#this is on both FF and Ao3
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putting this here because I've talked my friend's ears off about this but when I'm looking for GhostRoach fics and find one that has GhostSoap tagged in there, I don't get mad!!! I love me so good GhostRoachSoap yum yum, what I DO get mad about is when Gary is infact only mentioned AND is only mentioned as the "dead boyfriend" đđ why yall gotta reduce my boy like that đđ why can't you have them ALL alive and happy đđđ
#milky talks#PLEASE tag properly#it'll save us both the heartache đ#gary roach sanderson#simon ghost riley#john soap mactavish#cod#ghostroach#ghostsoap#ghostroachsoap#ghost x soap#ghost x roach#ghost x roach x soap#call of duty#if u need help understanding how to tag fics let me know đ i promise its actually not that difficult as it seems#(on Ao3 tho ur not gonna catch me teaching how to tag on FF that would be a whole 2hr lecture đ)
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im back to say after reading your tags/ramblings on this new jjk chapter yeah everyone shitting on shoko and yuta for this are like? how.
especially with shoko (as you know i think about her a lot) i'm not surprised she reacted this way considering she has seen all of her friends die basically and she definitely deals with dead sorcerers on the daily that she probably knew in life considering she's the main healer. in my headcanons she recognizes a lot of the people who eventually end up dead on her exam table.
plus as you mentioned her reaction to geto's mass murder is super chill. she was never going to have a breakdown over fucked up shit? at least not outwardly, unfortunately we don't really get a look in her head. also god forbid a woman have interest in dead/macabre things and/or not give 110% emotionally at all times.
personally i enjoy satosugu (insert multishipper nuance here) but the fandom surrounding the ship is very...... can you think about any other character? please??? can you also see satoru and suguru as individuals???? PLEASE?
the manga is not your satosugu fanfiction there are other characters here that matter...
ITâS SO BAD!!! THEY ARE ACTING LIKE HIS STUDENTS AND FRIENDS WANTED THIS!?!! And are refusing to look at the story from a narrative standpoint outside of shipper/fanon shit⌠They do this literally every time something huge and awful happens. They always end up making it about a damn ship, completely glossing over the characters themselves and their intentions. Itâs so frustrating. The Gojo and Getou they talk about is barely even them⌠those are OCâs!!!
And the only reason why theyâre talking so negatively about Shoko is because they hate women đŁď¸đŁď¸đŁď¸!!! Itâs crazy, sheâs literally a doctor who specializes in the dead. Sheâs a mortician!!! Like, youâve stated, sheâs been burying her colleagues and friends since she was a teenager. Iâm sure sheâs used to the business now. Even if itâs hard, if youâre in this line of work, people who work with the dead tend to not find it as torturous and haunting as any normal person would because death is an extension of life. They donât view death as this big, scary, horrible thing they way people who donât work with the dead/arenât used to dealing with death, are. Thatâs why in rl, morticians and doctors might come off as extremely fickle and end uncomfortably nonchalant regarding death. They donât view dying and the dead in the same way we would. They find comfort in knowing that they can help the grieving pass on the best way that they can by taking care of their bodies in their most vulnerable moments on earth. It wouldâve been nice to see more of Shokoâs reactions and knowing about more of her feelings regarding Gojoâs passing because like Iâve stated before, Gege really fumbled her character and because of the way he wrote her, it makes it easier for fans who already donât care about her, to mischaracterize and misunderstand her intentions, labeling them as âcallous,â and âinconsiderate,â despite her having always been this way since the very beginning. She didnât even so much as flinch when Getou had confirmed to her that heâd committed a massacre, killing over 100 people in the process. They were talking so casually as if they were talking about the weather. She had to fix up Haibara, probably one of their very first friends who sheâd most likely ever had to work on⌠itâs just, I hate how the people bashing her really DONâT understand her character at all and have never once tried to and theyâre constantly proving my point. They expected her to be sobbing in every panel, grabbing onto Gojoâs tightâŚ, Sexy ass, black t-shirt, holding on for dear life and screaming at him to wake up and they absolutely HATE that a female character wouldnât give that to them đśđžââď¸. Iâm so sorry Shoko⌠theyâre acting like Getou wouldâve been the only one to feel bad about all of this simply because they ship them and forgot all about canon.
As for Yuuta⌠oh brother. The fact that all of Gojoâs students do care about him and have always admired him⌠Yuuta didnât want this at all⌠but he knew that he HAD to do it in the end and so did the others. Knowing the kind of trauma that heâd suffered himself. The pain and isolation that he had to deal with because he was too afraid of hurting people so he pushed them away and purposely isolated himself. Heâs canonically tried to take his own life on multiple occasions. After meeting Gojo, he learned that he had just as much as a right to live as anyone else and that he mattered. He chose life. Gojo, alongside the friends heâd made, made a huge impression on him and it makes me happy whenever I think about it. He used his strength to protect others and learned to see his strength as a good thing instead of a curse that separated him from society. Gojo already knows what itâs like to be lonely and lived with that till the very end. But he made sure to let his students know that they all were worth living. This is literally why he wanted to become a teacher in the first place!!! Have the fans forgotten just how much he adores his students!?!! Yuuta knew exactly how Gojo mustâve felt⌠even taking over his body, he didnât need to view his memories to find out.
Even if it is, from a narrative standpoint, incredibly disgusting, Gojo gave them permission because he values the lives of the people he cares about, especially the kids (ppl always forget that he loves children đ⌠heâs do anything for them), above his own. When it comes to the kids, he knows that heâs the adult in the situation. Just like Nanami, itâs the adults duty to protect the children and he feels the same way. His corpse gave them a way to fight back and he gladly gave it to them as sad as this might sound⌠Heâs always been this way and we all know why. Come on. Heâd always seen it as his duty to protect and shield them from the horrors of the real world that would soon hurt them back. I hate that heâs still being used as a weapon in his death so much, it really makes me want to cry, I could barely sleep đ⌠but manâŚ, whenever stuff like this happens, it just goes to show that not everyone was reading the story with their eyes open. Blame it on shipper brainrot.
#uhhhhh sorry for ranting sksksksk#tkf replies#frostbitten-Icarus#the fans made me not care for the ship at all I can barely even look at itsnsnsj#itâs⌠I like the ship if its gego only because most of the fans for it seem to be normal and donât mischaracterize them like crazy⌠they#actually talk about the story and characters individually while stsg girls canât go a second without making everything important thatâs#ever happened to them about the ship itself and reduce them to generic tropes that just go around fucking and crying over each other when#we know they arenât like that at all like a lot of the artists are good but I can hardly handle seeing them as bastardized ocs đ⌠Iâm#glad I care about them individually I adore them both!!! i just wished fans actually read the text that gege wrote himself instead of ao3#ff all day#sorry for my typos yhhh
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YOU SHOULD TASTE IT BEFORE SAYING YOU DON'T LIKE IT
FROM THE STORY:
<<Have you ever tried it?>> Li Xiangyi asked.
<<No>> he answered without hesitation.
<<Then how can you say that, you should taste it before saying you don't like it>> the former physician replied turning more toward his rival, a light smile on his face. He had used the same tone he usually used with Fang Xiaobao to convince him to do something or not to do something, based on the circumstances. The two were similar even for what concerned his habits of eating candy. However Fang Xiaobao, so naive and young, was easier to deceive and to convince.
A-Fei looked at him for a while before answering.
<<You're right>> he agreed <<Let me taste it>> he said before bringing a hand under his chin and guiding his mouth on his own.
Li Xiangyi was firstly taken aback and stiffened. A-Fei kissed him delicately, he felt his tongue brushing his lips and he parted them relaxing.
A-Fei deepened the kiss exploring his mouth. He kept a hand under his chin and held him against himself with the other one. He was warm and Li Xiangyi melted under his touch and kiss. A-Fei stopped kissing him just before he could lose his grip on the book that was about to slip from his hand.
IN OTHER WORDS:
Li Xiangyi likes eating candies and Di Feisheng who has never eaten a candy in his life finds an alternative way to taste it thank to him. đŹ
LINK:
#This story has been parked in my phone for weeks#I was supposed to post it weeks ago respecting my goal to post a fic once a month#But life got in the way#Anyway there it is finally#I got the inspiration to write it from some illustrations I saw on X#They were illustrations about Yan Wushi and Shen Qiao from Thousand Autumns sharing some chocolate sticks#They end up kissing and I thought to write something similar with feihua#I wrote it completely with my phone#I have never written anything with my phone#This is the second time and it is surprising#The first time I wrote a ff about White Cat Legend that it is also on AO3#I will post it even here#I will share them both here and I hope they will be appreciated#enjoy#mysterious lotus casebook#li xiangyi#di feisheng#feihua#li lianhua#white cat legend#chinese drama#cdrama#i love them#lian hua lou
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I was looking through my notes for Good Omens fanfiction, and realized almost every damn story includes Crowley having a baby.
There's the one where Heaven and Hell decide to use an angel baby carried by a demon as a diplomatic tool, leading into Crowley being protected by Michael, and them falling in love.
There's the one where she leaves her baby with Anathema and disappears, which triggers all the following events - from the search, to Aziraphale's trial, and everything else.
There's the one where she has to supply the new Antichrist, which leads to her and Lucifer falling in love, and her being crowned the Queen of Hell. (Well, this one is really two stories set in different timelines, in the second one the "baby" is like 27)
In the one inspired by a dream, she does have a baby eventually, but that's far from the worst thing that happens to her. Gabriel's treatment of her after is... How the Hell will I write this damn thing if I can't even think about it.
There's no baby in the one where she gets tortured with diluted holy water.
I see I have no storyline with male Crowley just yet... Fine, that's not true. I do have some thoughts for Crowley x Fem!Lucifer... It could include a new Antichrist, too. And, Crowley wouldn't be the pregnant one for once. But, dealing with pregnant Lucifer would probably be even scarier.
#diary pages#writing journal#fanfiction writer#ao3 writer#good omens fanfiction#good omens fandom#crowley#good omens crowley#lady crowley#fem!crowley#writers on tumblr#writer life#ffs what's with me and torturing miss/mr. snake#she's either pregnant or she's in some horrible situation or actually it's both#yes i feel damn guilty for doing that but i can't help it#in first two bullet points the dad is aziraphale but he screws up (without even knowing it) so michael steps in...#in the first one and not immediately as a love interest at first just as a protector#don't worry she's in on using the kid for politics and crowley know's there's drama#the second i'd rather not spoil because of the detective/investigation plot#hey but she chose michael herself she was supposed to be with hastur#in the antichrist one all is obvious and honestly it's one of those âgood for herâ stories for crowley#but in the time jump she is kind of riddled with worry for maxine fearing she'll burn out and so on#grr the dream storyline... the dad is gabriel and don't worry in the end she ditches him i can spoil that this story is so heavy#this story is the ugly crowing jewel of my frustration with crowley saving aziraphale over and over again#what she does to protect him here almost ends up killing her or breaking her it's... seriously no idea how i'll write it#i'm also worried people will think i'm romanticising it when it's supposed to leave the reader sickened like i am#no comment on the holy water thing rn it's a simple hurtfic that develops into a survivor - the previous one is survivor in the end too#i haven't given too much thought for the crowley/f!lucifer but it should be good#fr hell would be so frustrated she chose this moron as her king consort but could do nothing about it#her pregnant would be SCARY - she's terrifying already... well terrifying and to die for
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another day of writing/editing.
Finished writing at 4.2k and now decided to rewrite it slowly while editing - since I already achieved my nanowrimo goals.
Currently sitting on 300 words of introduction to the oneshot, almost 4k left, still waiting for redacting. Not gonna lie, it keeps me a bit scared.
"Author regrets everything" tag is accurate there.
#a very personal post#I hate Käärijä he is like love/hate relationship#because ffs with my previous music hyperfocus I kept my own promise to not publish any fanfics#and now I'm sitting on one finished not redacted ficlet one wip bojere oneshot and another bojere oneshot in editing phase#not even mentioning the multichapter one needing a lot of polishing but at least it's mostly written#and I'm even considering posting on ao3#private rant about productivity#because last time i was like this was in freaking 2020 during both waves of old 'rona
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Oh no I can feel my goldfinch hyperfixation returning
#the goldfinch#maybe ill write a fic this time#lord knows ive read everything on ao3#i had some ideas but i never got to writing them#maybe i should#I just wanna study Theos brain#Boriss too tbh#theyre so fucked up and fascinating#ive been reading ff and god im sick of kotku slander#like i get that its easier to hate her than admit Boris was an abusive fuck but nothing she could have done would have excused what he did#also why act like Kotku is irredemable when Theo and Boris both did way worse#like i get not liking her#but dont pretend shes evil#also Theo is such an unreliable narrator and him hating her makes it easier#but even Theo couldn't explain why he hated her#the answer is jealousy#obviously my guy was so in love with Boris
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I'm sorry, there's gatekeepers for bloody Pride and Prejudice? Yikes... I guess they only remembered the latter half of the title of the book. (Aka: them being Prejudice over shipping.)
JAJSJSJ THATS PRETTY GOOD. Those people embody the title but not what the story hopes to convey.
I was reading this wonderful story that has Jane and Darcy as endgame and I was baffled by the number of naysayers in the comment section that nitpicked each chapter and constantly lambasted Jane, the ship, and the author.
You know what's worse? I thought I'd seen the worst of fandom and ship discourse on Xitter but these people NEVER run out of things to say. The PAGES a slighted and dissolute D/E reader could crank out is outstanding. It's a full on dissertation with a methodology rife with gaslighting, strawman arguments, misogyny, ad hominems, and asspulls of any relevant historical fact in an attempt to undermine the writer from continuing their oh so wretched and blasphemous work.
It's fascinating. It's ridiculous. It's terrifying. It's a calamity lurking in the dregs of the Classics fandom. Never attempt to anger those people because they will more or less take a page from their books and bombard you with essays worth the magnitude of their spite. And whatever free time they have to do all that, which is probably a lot.
#still reeling#all the love to the author who pushed through and finished their story despite the sharks swarming their comments on both ao3 and ff
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A very incomplete list of Hazbin Hotel Fanfiction Authors/Geniuses
I cannot believe the awsome, talented, absolute magnificent people I've met through this fandom. Writing FF for Hazbin Hotel has become one of my greatest joys in life, and reading the stories and creations of my fellow friends and idols is something that can brighten my whole week - and we don't gatekeep. So, if you're in search for a good read, here are a few of the SUPER AWSOME people I stalk (and I want to stress - this list is never going to be complete, but I'll try to edit it as there are just SO MANY GODDANG MASTERS out there!) @bapple117 If you love #RadioStatic, you have to read 'Bluest Monday' (completed) and the follow-up 'Say Hello, Wave Goodbye' (WIP) She'll break your heart in the most beautiful way. If you don't fancy that but Alastor is your go-to, then you will want to dive in head-first into "If You Can't Say Somethin' Nice, Don't Say Nothin' At All" (complete). But as before, be ready for a rollercoaster of emotional moments and extremely spicy shenanigans.
@hazelfoureyes Goddess of the smut, Hottest writer in Hell - If you're horny, Hazel has got you covered. Especially her 'The safeword is Radioapple'-Mini-series will make you sweat like a Zumba-Instructor on crack. Be prepared to blush, tremble, die and immediately ressurrect, because yes. She is THAT good.
Clover/corruptedteacups on AO3 With whooping 75 chapters and 300k+ hits, her Fanfic 'The Red means I Love you' is one of the best, most detailed slow-burn-pining-angsty-smutty-will-they-wont-they Masterpieces I've read so far. Alastor is magnificent and I guarantee you'll fall in love with Clover, the bunny who captures the heart of you deerest red demon.
@melodyonthewireless Highly underappreciated (imho), her fic "A Match made in Hell" (WIP) follows her OC Sybil down to hell, into the Hazbin Hotel and consecutively the arms of Alastor - but don't you dare underestimate the pink, harmless looking doe. Sybil's witch powers and her sassy, witty personality is quite the match to the established readio overlord. It's such a read, and the wait between chapters the sweetest agony!
@macabr3-barbi3 She delivers every. single. TIME. Her Short stories and One-Shots are like Pringles - Once you pop, you can't stop. I'm deeply in love with 'Dream a little Dream' (WIP), 'Nothing I can't Handle' (WIP) makes me run for a cold shower and did I mention the countless one-shot-candies that make you mouth water and your toes curl?
@slutforalastor/InconspicuousBosch on AO3 Whether it's the One-Shots on tumblr (omg the PRIEST ALASTOR BIT *fans face*) or the incredible Choose-your-Path-Fic "Say it with a smile" (completed) - you will be both amazed at the artistry of the wording and storybuilding and blushing at the sheer craft of the smut and sexual tension.
@impale-me-radio-daddy Founder of the kink #antlerplay, his series of 'The Lookalike' is steamy, outrageous, utterly magnificent and filthy down to the bones. Be prepared for some serious questioning of your own preferences, because you WILL get some epiphanies. And that's a PROMISE.
@hurthermore Listen. LISTEN. Bimbo is the mini-series that had me on a friggin CHOKEHOLD. It takes a special talent to make one so invested in THE radio demon, gentleman a la carte Alastor believably pining after and pounding a lovable, dumb airhead sinner with a fable for skimpy dresses and leave you at the end wanting for seconds and thirds!
As I said, this is a highly incomplete list, and I'll absolutely edit this list as I go. But I needed to put this out in the world. To all of the above, and all of those which I didn't include YET but most certainly will -
I ADORE YOU, I PRAY AT YOUR FEET, YOU ARE AMAZING BEINGS AND I LOVE YOU.
Thank you for coming to my TED Talk.
#hazbin hotel#hazbin alastor#alastor#alastor x reader#hazbin hotel fanfiction#ao3 fanfic#hazbin hotel smut#radiostatic#radioapple#alastor x oc#alastor hazbin hotel#fraugwinskaandfriends#ily fellow beings#author appreciation
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Masterlist
hey! my name is lia
I'm bahablastplz here and BahaBlastPlease! on AO3 this is a SKZ ff blog, MDNI! (chan and felix biased) Oneshots: Bang Chan: Best friend's brother: Chan x reader Your best friend's brother Chan has always been secretly obsessed with you Roommate: Chan x Reader Roommate Chan who wants to help you destress with a massage after a long day... Lee Minho: coming soon...
Seo Changbin: Changbin + Choking Small drabble about asking bf Changbin to choke you for the first time Hwang Hyunjin: Canvas: Hyunjin x Reader A late night with your boyfriend turns into something more as you both try something you had only talked about before Han Jisung: Best Friend: Han x Reader Han is your best friend. Which is great, if you weren't about to go on a date with someone else... Lee Felix: All in: Felix x Reader (Mafia Au Series) *Completed You didn't know what you were getting yourself into when you started dating Yang Jungwon, notorious mafia boss. Your life gets flipped upside down when you're found beaten and bloody by SKZ, the rival mafia group, and you're quickly integrated into their lives. What will happen when you try to leave your old life behind and start anew? Lollapalooza Felix Thinking about Felix from Lollapalooza, your boyfriend, and being absolutely horrendously down bad for him after the show. Kim Seungmin: Prove it: Seungmin x Reader, Part 2 Kim Seungmin, your best friend, is so fucking smug all the time. You make the mistake of implying that no man can finger a girl the way they do in porn, and you make the mistake of challenging him when he tells you he can. Seungmin + Lip ring Small drabble about boyfriend Seungmin with his lip ring in that photoshoot and you go feral for him
Yang Jeongin: Undeniably His: Jeongin x Reader Have you ever wondered what sex would be like with your boyfriend the first time after he turns into a vampire with new and overly heightened senses?
OT8: SKZ and their kinks SKZ as types of doms *** Threesome Series: Always there: Hyunjin x Reader x Changbin Your friend makes you feel bad after a night out at the club, but luckily, youâve always had Hyunjin and Changbin to comfort you. Or maybe more than that, if thatâs what you want. Is that what you want? Snap: Minho x Reader x Jisung After your boyfriend decides to punish you by not touching you for two weeks, you take matters into your own hands. There's one way to make him snap, and that is Han Jisung. Make it Hurt: Seungmin x Reader x Jeongin Your best friend is a menace. A stupid, kinky menace that drags you along to a BDSM event with her when your curiosity gets the best of you. What will happen when a strangely attractive man asks you if you want to do your first scene with him and his friend? Cosmic Love: Chan x Reader x Felix A night at the club turns into a lot more than you anticipated, all thanks to a stupid text that you don't even remember sending. The next day, Chan and Felix invite you over for dinner. That's all it is, right?
You can view my nsfw fic recs here!
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âmy all time favourite bts fics (pt. 4) áŻáĄŁđŠ
consists of my personal favourite bts fics that I've read countless of times. including those from other platforms, such as Wattpad, AO3, and Patreon.
For some works that are cross-posted between tumblr and wp/ao3, I'd only link them to the latters bcs I find it easier to read and navigate the stories on those. but I also tagged all the authors I know are here and linked the rest so you can check their blogs out yourself!
I'll also separate this list into several parts simply because there's too many... So it'd be easier for you guys to navigate!
red means unfinished
blue means finished
đŻď¸ editor's note
(sorted by alphabetical order)
Stay by OT7oramI
Y/N and her hybrid best friend, Jin, have known each other since Jin was eight years old and came to live with Y/N and her family. Throughout the years, Y/N and Jin have grown closer but there is one major secret between them. When an injured hybrid comes into Cherry Blossom Sanctuary where they both work, the secret is revealed. What will become of the friendship between Y/N and Jin when others are added to it?
Storms of Fate by SumiSG7
A darkly forbidden Auction in the veils of night catering to the morbid appetites of the wealthy in a world of legalized slave hybrids. Results in A melody of storm uniting the fates of a powerful Heiress with 7 mysteriously seductive & deadly hybrids The dark spiralling descent into the fever of passion & longing entwining their hungers while being targeted by an unknown enemy. What will be the result of the lethal games to Anya & the hybrids caught in a velvety prison of their own cravings for each other. But slowly, the realization trickled in⌠All was not normal as it should be, the love they forged, was a test of devotion that was still withstanding the time since before time beganâŚ
đŻď¸ too freaking good... but also really dark and sometimes sweet. I don't think I've ever read an ff as well-written as this one. plot's insane too. (this is actually a whole universe with side stories that you would be told to read along the way to understand the lore, so good it's crazy that it's free)
Sweet as Honey by sugakookie98
In a time where omegas are increasingly rare, others constantly question your resistance to find a mate. No one seemed to understand that you were content to stay in your comfort zone, focusing solely on your job. However, a series of unexpected events set your quiet world into motion, making you question your outlook on life and on mating bonds.
đŻď¸ another Idk what to say but it's really good
The Butterfly Effect by themonsterteddy
Easily attached hybrids get adopted into a family. Lei, the protagonist, is the quietest member of the family. Follow them to explore the lovely bond developing between them.
đŻď¸ a super warm read <3
The Butterseries by @minniepetals
Their names alone had every men and women turning their heads and falling at their feet. successful, prestigious, handsome, rich, and untouchable to anyone that looked their way. and you? you were just an employee who worked for them. who wouldâve known you meant so much more to them than you could ever imagine?
The Byeoljali series by LittleShyGirl
âś Finding A Place
As an isolated, lonely omega raised by humans, you have little understanding of how other wolves live. When you take a promotion to become a member of the BTS staff, your world collides with the Bangtan Pack and you realise you have a lot to learn.
⡠Making A Home
Now that she's found where she belongs, follow Y/N as she learns how to truly be a part of the Bangtan Pack.
The Companion by MoonChild791
After being fired, the job of a lifetime lands in your lap. You up root your life and moved to Seoul, only to find out you'll be working with your favorite group, BTS. Slowly, you start to develop feelings for them. But that's crazy, right? You can't have feelings for all seven of them, it would never work out.....would it?
The Contract by namjuicyy
Your life is turned upside down when a contract is pushed your way. But what happens if you sign it?
The Last Lycans by RoxNotRocks
Sometimes, a fateful encounter takes the form of a bullet through the head⌠After years of living as a wolf, alone in the wild, Yu has no memory of her past and no idea what her true nature is. As she attempts to begin anew and discovers that her fate doesn't have to be a lonely one, her lost secret comes back to haunt her. When your past comes back with a vengeance, should you flee, or fight?
The Line Between Love and War by @purpleyoonn
Your experiences told you that soulmates were something you would never have the pleasure of having; something not given to you because of who you are, despite the soulmark that resides on your inner left wrist. During your solo trip to Los Angeles, you find out that you are more than capable, that your soulmates had been waiting for you for a long time, and would not be letting you go anytime soon.
The Little Fox by @purpleyoonn
âThe idea of being free was a foreign concept. Being free meant having choices, having opportunities. Being a hybrid meant never being free.â Just as you escaped the Little Fox, a bidding house, you find yourself at war with your thoughts, not wanting to go to another shelter. You didnât expect yourself to find a home anywhere, especially not with the men who found you, and their pack.
The Pictures That Talk by @imnotlauriane
In a world where everyone has a special ability, mine is giving life to pictures. It allows me to see what happened behind the camera, reliving the moment when it was taken, as the subject. It's something I really cherish, but it can also come with great pain, so it's to be used carefully. I look at my finger, rings of fate black and cold. And I wonder, will I ever meet my soulmates?
The Seven by chewymilkyoda
When a young 17 year old girl and her friend went to an empty mansion that is reported as 'haunted', she never knew that her life would changed when she accidentally woke up 7 dangerous vampires that has been asleep for centuries. And boy is she in for a long-ass ride of fantasy shit that she never even knew about.
The Seven Princes by wassap_its_hunter
Being known as Nyx, you never had an easy life. With the expectations of being the world's best-renowned assassin and hunter, protector of your people, and a babysitter of five children, you can't really expect to have time in your hands to relax, the world being run by werewolves, witches, vampires, mermaids and more. But now, another role has been added. After hearing the princes of the biggest empire in the world, the Asian Kingdom, say the word "mate", you're scared for what is about to come. But then again you're Nyx, one of the very few humans that survived and became known, you could take a challenge like that.
đŻď¸ mc is so cool and the boys are whipped. my favourite.
The Seven Red Flags of HAKON University by tinyeyecat / emi ree
Born in the hell hole of Space Port 69, Rueâs a human Omega desperate to leave the alien whore house she calls home. Defying all odds, she masquerades as an Alpha and obtains a scholarship to the Ivy League of all space institutions. HAKON University is an all-male school that trains the cream of the cropâfuture leaders of the galaxies. Rue's just here to graduate, pretend to have a dick and then flee into the workforce, that is until the legendary Bangtan pack sets their eyes on her. Theyâre the future emperorsâaliens with godlike abilities that make them rulers of their species. But with excessive power comes the price of testosterone-fuelled insanity that cannot be soothed. An esper will always need his guide. Theyâve been searching for a final member to quell their raging soul-an eighth to complete their pack. Millions have tried for a taste of the peak, but none have succeeded, and thousands die from their power unable to withstand the bond. Bangtan doesnât chase their prey, they donât have to, but this time the seven Alphas want Rue.
đŻď¸ it's emi ree so it's gonna be insane!
The Siren's Song by PurpleQueenie
Modern day Seoul and myths don't go along hand in hand as easily as one might think. When for centuries (Y/N) has been bound to the Ocean, serving her duty as a siren- waiting for the day when it'll finally end, who knew stumbling across seven different souls would've been the reasons she needed to start living again, feeling again- even if it meant losing herself in the process.
đŻď¸ this might be my ultimate fave among queenie's stories. it's just soo good. mc who became the best version of herself after meeting the boys who support her despite the villain's constant torture. also, mc is just so full of life despite the ... it's amazing, go read it!
Through Her Eyes series by Gigi_Luv_4u
âś Through Her Eyes
In the world of soulmates, perhaps Daun is the only one who does not expect for any soulmate to come. She doesn't have the soul marks that everyone supposed to have. Not one ink on her skin, no time marks on her wrists, no glowing red strings... but why does one day, seven gorgeous men claims to be her soulmate? And these seven are none other than the greatest boy band in the world?
⡠Through Her Eyes: Eternal
Multiples puffing out to the open has been on the news, but not as often as Daun with her seven. Now, more than ever, people have made their lives more than just a curious entertainment. Snippets of their married lives have become great treasures of inspirations that the entire world would simultaneously coo. No one can't blame them with how adorable they have cultivated their marriage to an inspiring one. Not to mention with the new additional members that surely adds more life to their already dynamic universe. Or⌠How does a family of Multiples go through their lives?
To Be, Or Not To Be Your Omega by Anonymous
Which would be harder? To be an Omega in an Alpha's world, or to have to play Omega to a pack of Alpha's that's known across the WHOLE world? As if disguising your gender truth isn't hard enough, how many omegas can say they have seven alphas that want to claim them? That went to the trouble of drafting up an overly generous contract just to have you as their omega? Oh, why did they have to find out your truth? Maybe it won't be so bad to be theirs, even if it's only by contract? After all, they're all so handsome, and smell so good, andâ Is it wrong to have your inner omega cooing at the idea that this could become more than just your Omega status being taken advantage of like it's been all over the world?
To Be, or Not To Be Your Omega REBOOT by Anonymous
What would you do if you suddenly found yourself playing Omega to not just one, but seven world-renowned Alphas? Your struggle to conceal your true gender pales in comparison to this new challenge. These Alphas want to claim you. They've gone so far as to draft an outrageously generous contract just to have you as their Omega. But as your scent betrays your truth, you're left wondering: why did they have to find out? As you contemplate your fate, you can't help but think â maybe being theirs wouldn't be so bad, even if it's just by contract? After all, they're devastatingly handsome, their scents intoxicating, and... wait, is your inner Omega actually cooing at the idea? You've spent your life seeing Omegas taken advantage of across the world. Could this be different? Could this become more than just another power play? In this story, you'll navigate a world of primal instincts, hidden truths, and unexpected desires. Are you ready to step into the shoes of an Omega on the brink of a life-changing decisions?
Trouvaille by @spookyserenades
Until The Last Star Falls by Lov3Mochi / @minniepetals
In a world where hybrids are both the hottest commodity and largely exploited, a recent shortage of hybrids nationwide due to the wealthy adopting for sport hunting dominates the news headlines. More than ever, stray hybrids are whisked off the streets and taken into shelters to meet the demand. Mistreated, neglected, forgotten â in a notoriously disreputable hybrid shelter in a pocket of downtown Boston, seven âaggressiveâ hybrids await their inevitable fate of being sold for sport.
After years of trying to distance herself from her mystical past and upbringing, Y/N finds herself quitting her emotionally-draining job and is forced to face past mistakes. While accompanying her friends looking to adopt a child hybrid into their newly-formed family, Y/N inadvertently finds herself face-to-face with seven hybrids doomed to die. In a spur of the moment epiphany, Y/N decides to change the course of fate for the better; though bringing seven aggressive hybrids into her life and the darkening spiritual energy of her old home is trickier to navigate than she originally thought.
đŻď¸ I really appreciate the length of every chapter. like, so much details put into each and every chapter, and each chapter it just gets better and better.
It was a love you knew would never make it out alive without sacrificing a part of your happiness to receive a greater happiness. but for them, youâd go to any extreme to have them again, and for you, they will always remind you each day that you are theirs and that nothing can tear you apart, not even until the last star falls.
đŻď¸ so freaking good! a painful journey of love, full of longing and sacrifice.
You Never Walk Alone by @agustdakasuga
You live a quiet life in your late grandfatherâs cabin in the woods. You go to school just to graduate and get your diploma, not to make friends or stand out from the crowd. That was until one day, you enter your home to see a pack of wolves that need shelter.
ěŹë (People) by thearmyprof
You are preparing to move across the Pacific Ocean and start a new chapter in your life, when a chance meeting with a man in a coffee shop has you questioning the timing of everything in the universe. When you hit it off on your first date, little do you know that the man youâve already fallen head over heels for is, in fact, a member of BTS.
đŻď¸ this story doesn't include any insane themes, but so enjoyable and heartwarming. the characters also feel human, well-written.
PART 1 | PART 2 | PART 3 | NAVI
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Extreme long shot, but looking for a fic I read years ago, that to my knowledge is NOT on AO3 or FF, just on someone's blog or maybe a small hosting site. It's a three(?)-part series.
Stuff I remember: Zhao kills Iroh pre-north-pole; he dies on a beach due to shrapnel, I think. Zuko wanders off in a daze, stays with a nice Earth Kingdom woman for awhile, then embarks on Messing With Zhao's Shit until Zhao catches him. Gaang rescues him (from Pohuai?) after whump.
Zuko leads them back to the Earth Kingdom woman for a safe place to rest, meanwhile Zuko's crew has found her and given her a letter+their location+tell our stupid prince he's not the only one who wants to Mess The Fire Nation's Shit Up. Zuko and the Gaang go to his ship, whose treason against the Fire Nation is already in progress (and they've gotten their families out of the Fire Nation to avoid reprisal, so Jee's wife is there). Katara bonds with the ship healer, who teaches her non-bending healing and is both salty and instructive. Ends incompletely right as Zuko and the Gaang are about to leave the ship.
Those parts of the series are a good read, but I am dying to re-read the part that's an Iroh POV of the royal family, including Ozai's strategic murdering of all of Iroh's children (he had more than Lu Ten in this AU), and Iroh's extremely chilling "maybe I should do the same to his" thoughts until baby Zuko wins him over. It is PEAK disfunctional Fire Family.
I thought I bookmarked this somewhere, but I can't for the life of me find it. Plz send help.
EDIT: FIC FOUND! See the reblog chain for the link, it's in the second post.
EDIT EDIT: This is. Even better than I remembered. My heart hurts, ow. <3
#trying to archive all the fics I like to re-read#and it is driving me insane that I misplaced this one#because I know it took me several hops through ancient fic rec pages to find it originally#heeeeelp#avatar the last airbender#atla#Zuko#Iroh#Sokka#Aang#Katara#Jee#Zhao#The Fic That Got Away
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Chapter 21 is on AO3 and for NSFW version look on my Bluesky.
FF and Art are both mine, please don't repost!
I'd Burn Through the World
A journey marked by personal evolution, confronting inner and not-so-inner demons and embracing self-compassionânot necessarily in that order.
Or the one with over 200k worth of slow-burn dumbassery, plus an additional 30k+ of entirely self-indulgent epilogue.
Updates on Saturdays (GMT+7)
#bg3#bg3 fanart#bloodweave#bg3 fanfiction#bg3 gale#gale dekarios#baldurs gate 3#bg3 astarion#astarion ancunin#galexastarion#cw suggestive#iwbttw
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Ouroboros
Sequel to "Another Harley Quinn"
Go to the first fic: "Deal"
After everything is said and done, it is no secret that Bruce doesn't approve of Jason's choice of partner. How far is he ready to go to reject her, and what are Jazz and Jason willing to give?
[Read on AO3][Read on FF]
---
She was running.
She was running and the streets were too dark, the shadows too long, the air too cold. She was running through a city she had come to know but was alien to her, a place she wanted to call home and yet she couldnât call hers.
Jazz was running. Her chest hurt. Her feet hurt.
Thatâs when she saw it.
It was familiar, something that looked like home between the streets she didnât belong in, and yet, it wasnât home.
(Nothing was really home since Dannyâ)
She knew it. Jazz was sure. It was a ghost, she was positive, but a ghost she had never encountered before. It was bright, glowing in the dark streets, its light making its features difficult to discern. The body was more like a floating torn bed sheet than a human body.
It had a face.
It opened its mouth, jaw unhinged, and screamed.
***
Jazz woke up with a start, the only thing not letting her fall forwards and faceplant on the coffee table was a strong arm around her waist.
âEasy there, love.â
She looked up at Jason, blinking the sleep away. âDid I fall asleep? Iâm sorry.â
His smile didnât reach his eyes. She usually doesn't fall asleep like this, but latelyâŚ
âItâs okay,â Bruce set his cup on the table, âyou must be tired after last night.â
Last night⌠Right, she had been up late taking down a drug operation at the docks. That Batman knew about it even if she did it alone wasnât surprising. The slight judgemental glint in his eyes wasnât a surprise either â she had killed the lieutenant after destroying the cargo.
It had been the third chance she had given him and that person decided to mock her for being soft, claiming that âa man would have pulled the trigger alreadyâ. If that wasnât enough to kill him, the fact that his ex-girlfriend had filed for a restraining order for the second time, and had been dismissed by the police again, was a deal breaker for her.
Not that Bruce would care about things like that.
âShe's been having weird dreams lately and wakes up really tired.â
Jason, as always, jumped to protect her. Maybe he was trying to remind Bruce that they were in this together, that it didnât matter that she was taking over while he got his GED and started college. That if Bruce had a problem with her he had a problem with the two of them.
âI think sheâs trying to tell me something,â Jazz sat straight, cracking her back. She shouldnât have fallen asleep like that, now her back was going to be sore. âI mean Gotham.â
âAgain?â
âIs the same dream over and over again, the same noise. I thought after JokerâŚâ Jazz trailed off, remembering that encounter with the Spirit. She had been another person then. Another woman. Felt like long ago and yet like yesterday.
âHm?â
Both ignored Bruceâs clear âhmâ demanding her to elaborate. Right. They never explained what happened with the Joker.
âI think she is trying to warn me about something thatâs coming.â Her mind went back to the screaming ghost, to the dark alleys. That wasnât Gotham, even if it gave the illusion to be. âSomething more in my, uh, expertise.â
âWell, thatâs ominous,â Jason was deliberately only looking at her face, âand vague. Wanna go over it when we get home?â
Any thought was derailed when he lifted a hand to comb it through her hair. It felt nice. He was very warm.
âSure.â She picked his hand and kissed the palm. âIâm going to check if Alfred needs help with dinner.â
Still ignoring Bruce, Jazz stood up and left what was going to be another interrogation.
***
âElaborate.â
Jason watched her walk away, conflicted. She had been a bit distracted lately, spacing out more and more; and even if he was positive she was not actively hiding anything from him, he was sure something was going on with her.
The thought that not even she knew what was happening was not helping.
âJason.â
He looked up at his father. âWhat?â
âElaborate.â
Jason didnât like that it was worded like an order. Or that Bruce used that tone with him, with Jazz. Honestly? He was fed up with Bruceâs behavior about his girlfriend. She said it was okay, that Bruce would eventually let it go, but Jason didnât like that she had to endure that constant drilling because ofâ
No. It wasnât because of him.
Jazz had been firm when she insisted it was never his fault. That if Bruce decided to be a dick about her it was not because of Jason.
But Jason knew his father better than her, he knew what made the man tick, what he was thinking with each gesture. Sure, Jazz had investigated Bruce Wayne, Batman, and everything about Gotham â but she hadnât lived any of it.
What Bruce hated about Jazz is what he hated in Jason, the new Jason, and what he refused to accept. It didnât take a genius to see that the man berated her for things Jason taught her or did with her. It was obvious at this point, after all these months, that Bruce just couldn't let go of the little boy that died.
Listen. If Jason had problems with Bruce, it was his problem, not Jazzâs. She was innocent.
âBruce.â He cut whatever the other man was about to say. âYou have to stop.â
This made him blink in surprise. Yeah right. As if he didnât know what he was talking about.
âStop what?â
âDonât give me that crap. You know what I mean.â
They looked at each other in tense silence.
Bruce sighed, leaning back on the sofa, rubbing his face before looking elsewhere but him.
âI just ââ he started, unsure of what he really wanted to say. Was he going to be honest, for once? âI donât â There is something about her⌠I donât like it.â
There it is.
I don't like her.
I donât trust her.
Of course he doesnât. That stupid control freak. Jazz was a bat trained individual that didnât go through him or was approved by him. She had access to the Cave and to all their technology, just like Jason, just like Bruce promised they could.
But that wasnât the problem. Jazz could be temporarily banned and put on trial phase until she passed all of Bruceâs tests and yet she would never be enough.
âWe are a package deal, Bruce.â
The look the man gave him was equally annoyed and defeated. âI know.â
âSheâs not a villain.â It hurt. How Bruceâs jaw muscle tensed like he wanted to say otherwise, it hurt. If he considered her a villain, he considered him a villain too. He was just too chicken to say it. âSheâs my partner. Sheâs my other half.â
âI know.â He grumbled.
Bruce didnât like her. He didnât approve of her. He never would.
âWhy do you hate her so much?â Jason swallowed the discomfort. He needed to know. He needed to understand if it was a stupid dream to think he could have both his family and his partner. If he had to put distance between them and Jazz, he had no doubt who he would choose to go with. âWhy is she the villain and not me?â
Bruce looked at him like he grew another head. âThatâs ridiculous. You are not a villain. I donât agree with your methods, butââ
âBut nothing! Sheâs just the same as me. I trained her! I brought her into this life! If there is someone you should distrust is me!â He stood up, angry at the argument.
Surprisingly enough, the older man was unfazed. He thought his words carefully, looking down at his clasped hands. After about a minute, he finally said.
âShe killed her own parents.â
That was it? âWhat are you talking about? I was the one that did the actual killing.â
He still remembered it like it was yesterday. How he took his time, how he made it hurt. He let them know on whose orders he was doing that to them and why.
âShe hired you to kill them,â Bruce shook his head, frowning, âis not the same.â
âWhat the fuck do you mean with ânot the sameâ? Bruce, you werenât there, you didnât see what happened. They killed her brother.â
âIt still doesnât justifyââ
âThey tortured him, Bruce. Their own son. They deserved to die.â
Bruce blinked, eyes searching Jasonâs face, like he was seeing him for the first time.
âThey deserved to face justice. Notâ Not whatever she asked you to do.â
She never asked him to torture them. Sure, she said âI want those two to sufferâ, but she never specified how and what she wanted. She was angry and filled with rage, and she wanted to make them pay for what they did â but she didnât ask him to break every bone in their bodies and keep them awake during the whole process.
It had been all him.
âThatâs the thing, Bruce. She tried to seek justice, and the system failed her. If justââ Jason looked away, uncomfortable with sharing memories that werenât his â â If âJusticeâ actually had helped her, her brother would still be alive. But she took too long with the longer route, and by the time she decided to fix it on her own, Danny was already gone. Torn apart by his own parents.â
âWhat she asked of you wasnât justice either.â
âNo.â He conceded. âShe wanted vengeance.â
He remembered her dark eyes, so empty of any emotion except cold fury. It was easy to forget now that she smiled and regarded him with warmth, but not that long ago she had been an empty husk running on rage and rage alone.
âI still donât understand⌠How?â At his questioning look, Bruce added: âWe researched her, her family. There was no reason to believe they hurt either of their kids. Danny disappeared and run away and yes, it was suspicious as hell, butââ
âAre you listening to yourself? The investigation of Dannyâs disappearance is a joke and obviously a cover up. Are you so dead set on making her the bad guy that you overlook something so simple?â
Bruce thought his words for a moment, maybe finally noticing how his rejection of his partner was affecting his own son. He was making that soft face he had every time he talked about how he messed up with Dick and how he could have done it better.
âA cover up by who?â
âWhat? The GIW, obviously.â
Did he not know?
Wait.
Bruce stood up, eyes wide. âThe Ghost Investigation Ward?â
He doesn't know.
âBruce?â
âThey were supported by the GIW?â
He really doesnât know.
âBruce⌠they were the lead scientists of the GIW.â
Jason watched the pieces start to fit in Bruceâs mind, the whole story taking shape in his detective brain. Did he know about project P-001? About how Danny exactly died? About what they did to other ecto-entities?
âDid she know? Did she allow it?â
What was with Bruce and always assuming the worst? With a sigh, Jason gestured towards where the kitchen was, asking Bruce to walk with him. If what he needed to stop being hostile was answers, he would give them.
âAbout her parents working with the GIW? Yes. About the experiments? No.â
âAnd Dannyââ
âDanny was taken away when she was away in college. Came back home to find her brother gone and her parents uncaring about his whereabouts.â
He truly didnât like speaking for Jazz, but he also didnât want her to relive all of this just because Bruce couldnât let it go.
When Bruce didnât ask another question, he continued. âShe and Dannyâs friends tried to get him back, but nothing worked. They were just kids against a whole shady fake government agency â they never stood a chance. They tried anyway.â
âThey could have called the Justice League.â
Jason was already shaking his head before he finished talking. âAnd say what? âEvil organization thatâs barely legal has kidnapped my brotherâ? Bruce, we both know that by the time a thorough investigation happened it would have been too late.â
âBut we did investigate them. Sure, a lot of it was destroyed but the little we could find we completely tore down.â
He doesnât know, he doesnât know.
Jason took a deep breath as they arrived at the kitchen, smiling when he saw Jazz completely engrossed with her task of cutting the vegetables. She was smiling and chatting with Alfred about something he couldnât hear from there, but she looked⌠good. At peace.
âThere was an anonymous tip to the Justice League, yes?â
âHow do youââ
Jason looked back at Bruce, not hiding his thoughts. The older man made the correct connections and the correct assumptions. Who destroyed the GIW bases, who killed all those people, who brought the Justice a lonely soul desperately needed.
âBruce. She has suffered enough. Let it go.â
The other man was also watching Jazz cook; and as if she felt their gazes, she looked up at the pair. Jazz smiled, the emotion not quite getting to her eyes, and she waved with the hand that still had the knife.
Bruceâs mouth twisted a bit.
âI didnât know.â
âYou shouldnât have to know. Sheâs what I want. That should have been enough.â
Jason didnât imagine the pain in his fatherâs eyes when he looked back at him.
***
Tim glanced nervously at the woman quietly watching the horizon next to him.
What was Bruce thinking? Making him do patrol with her? Alone? What if she snapped and killed him?
âI know you are scared of me.â
He jumped at the mechanical voice, finding her smiling down at him. He wasnât sure. With the mask in the way it was difficult to know.
âIâm not going to hurt you.â
Yeah, right.
âReally. I donât hurt children.â
âYou shouldnât kill people, period!â He snapped. âSorry.â Tim muttered at his outburst. Murder girlfriend or not, he had manners and Alfred wouldnât like it if he was rude to a guest.
Jasmine looked away, humming in thought, her eyes watching the shadows of the night. Did she see something special in them? Apparently she had some kind of enhancements due to her parentsâ experimentation â something about contamination? â but no formal testing of her abilities had been done. Yet.
âAm I that scary?â
Tim almost missed the quiet question.
âIt Isn't that â uhâŚâ He tried to find the correct words. Scary? She was not scary per se. Her outfit was not made for intimidation, she looked pretty average with her dark pants, combat boots and black shirt. The most noticeable parts of her outfit were the full utility belt around her waist and the guns strapped to her thighs. And the red hair. But she was not scary. âIâve seen scarier people.â
âThat doesnât answer my question.â She turned to look at him.
Her eyes. He didnât like her eyes.
They were an uncanny shade of blue that looked green under certain lights. Eyes that sometimes glowed Lazarus Pits green. Eyes that gave him goosebumps.
âWhy do you want to know? You are the head of the Crime Underworld of Gotham, of course you are scary.â She found his words funny. âYou donât kill the Joker with kindness, either.â
She tilted her head, looking back at the city. âYeah. You might be right.â
âOf course Iâm right.â He scoffed, walking closer. She didnât react to his proximity. âDid you really kill him, though?â
âB didnât tell you?â
âHe just said⌠He said he found him dead. That Hood and you sent him in a wild goose chase and it was all so he couldnât stop you from killing him.â
âThere you go, then.â
âHe also said there were screams and that he couldnât get in the room.â He looked at her profile, since she refused to look back at him. âWe reviewed the cowl footage but it was all noise and snow.â
Jazz hummed.
Tim narrowed his eyes. âYou know why, donât you?â
She thought for a moment before answering. "I do."
"Well?"
She smiled. "Why would I tell you?"
Robin groaned in frustration, like he did every time she deflected his questions. Jazz was very private and didn't share any information that wasn't already guessed or known; and even in the case of the former, she usually smiles and let him ramble theories of what actually happened and never confirm or deny them.
Tim was still deciding if he hated her. Well. Hate was a big word.
Dislike.
Did he mind the murdering? Yeah, it was disturbing to know the woman smiling in front of him hired a hitman to massacre her own parents and then decided to become a crime lord. Just because.
But Jasmine was kind and patient and understanding, and she didn't bend even after how mean Bruce had been with her. And she loved Jason, really loved him, which made it difficult to reduce her to a mindless criminal.
"I'm curious." He finally admitted. "Truly. No suspicion, no investigation. I want to know."
"You are such a curious bug, huh."
Again she looked at him without really seeing him.
You remind me of him. You have the same spark. I hope it's never beaten out of you.
Tim wasn't stupid â he knew she was seeing her dead brother in him and it bothered him. It bothered him more than when Bruce called him 'Jason' those first months.
"I can talk to ghosts." She said out of the blue. Like it wasn't even that important. "The Spirit of Gotham asked me to kill the Joker."
Tim did a double take, surprised. "Why?"
She shrugged. "I don't know. For real. She just contacted me and told me to do it. So I did."
"Just like that?"
"Just like that."
There was more story to it, but Tim was going to count his blessings and let it slide for now.
Patrol progressed like normal without any surprises. Just minor crime, barely anything that required Bat intervention, but it was good to be seen around, especially with The Ghost at his side. The people loved Robin, and if they wanted to make them trust that The Ghost was not out there killing everyone, pairing her with Robin was the quickest route.
Was that why B did it? Had he turned a new leaf?
By the time they called off patrol for the day, Tim noticed Jazz being quieter than usual.
"Whatâs wrong?" He asked her.
Her eyes were hesitant when she looked at him. âAre⌠I mean, it isâ uhâŚâ
âJust spit it out.â
The Ghost was nervous. She shifted a little when they landed on a rooftop to talk.
âEverything okay at school?â
Tim did a double take, watching her like he was seeing her for the first time. What the heck? Was she for real? Asking about school, out of the blue like this? What was the point?
What was her angle?
âWhy would I tell you?â
She chuckled. âI had that coming, huh?â
He laughed too, amused by her switch in behavior. It was relaxing to see her act like a human â Jazz was a quiet presence glued to Jasonâs side, always watching with those sad eyes.
âSchoolâs good, but boring.â
âBoring?â
âToo easy.â He scoffed. âTeachers donât know what else to throw at me to make me shut up.â
She hummed. It felt good to not get the speech about school not being just about good grades and that he should be kinder to his teachers, that they were doing their best.
âAny friends?â
What was she doing? Was she trying to be his older sister, trying to fill a void left behind by her loss?
Danny was dead. She wouldnât bring him back by adopting another kid.
Tim almost laughed, amused at the similarities between Bruce and Jasmine.
Before he could open his mouth to gently ask her to stop, she tensed, looking at a nearby rooftop.
âRobin.â She switched back to The Ghost, the ruthless crime lord. âGo home. Call Batman.â
âWhatââ
âDo it.â
Tim hesitated a second too long, the glint of a sword on the edge of his vision put him in fight mode. He blocked in time, his staff and his arms straining to withstand the impact of a sword that had been aimed to his neck.
He jumped back, closer to Jazz, watching as a group of ninjas quickly surrounded them.
âWe have a situation,â he heard The Ghostâs voice coming from the comms and his ears at the same time. âRequesting back up.â
âEn route.â Bruceâs voice was a relief. Even if Tim had been trained and he wasnât alone, he was starting to get overwhelmed by the quick moving ninjas that were hellbent on killing them.
He didnât recognize the uniforms and their motivations were unclear. No obvious target either, since they werenât trying to crowd one of them specifically. The Ghost held her ground, dancing around the assailants with ease and practiced moves, some of them reminiscent of Dick and some of Jason, and he was grateful that she hadnât whipped out the guns and started shooting at them.
Robin stepped back, staff ready, feinting to the left to do a sweep under the closest ninja, making them stumble enough to elbow them in the side of the neck, knocking them out.
One down, three more to go.
He focused on his own fight, watching them, expecting their moves, dodging the very sharp blades they were swinging in his direction. Tim knew he was fast and he learned even faster, something Bruce always praised him about, and he decided to prove he was worth the chance to be Robin as best he could do.
The second assassin made a mistake, one tiny misstep, and he used his grappling gun to tie their legs together, leaving them dangling from the edge of the roof.
Now that he was facing only two of them it was easier to keep up with the speed. His staff was very useful to keep them at a safe distance, and he used that advantage as best as he could, even if the ninjas understood that they were losing the upper hand.
They changed tactics, instead of going for the kill they were planning on tiring him out â when he blocked one he had to be watching the other and expecting their move, not having a second to breathe. He was starting to get light headed and his arms starting to hurt after blocking impact after impact, when he finally saw his chance with one of them.
He attacked fast, staff ready, doing a series of katas that were meant to confuse the opponent and end with a strong push to the chest. Tim even managed to knock the sword out of their hands. When he hit them on the head and the guy was down.
âHa!â He allowed himself the shout of victory, turning around to face the other oneâ
Only to find wide eyes on a partially covered face, a choked scream escaping the trained assassin. Tim looked down to find the point of a sword right on his neck, barely digging in his skin. He continued looking down and saw rivers of blood coming down the assassinâs front from where another blade was piercing their chest.
The body hit the ground with a soft thump, leaving The Ghost standing, her face blank, her eyes glowing toxic green, her hands stained with blood.
Both turned to look when a new person arrived at the scene.
Batman didnât look pleased.
***
Jazz was tired and needed a bath, but she couldnât even think about going back home yet.
Jason. She needed him, she needed his comfort, but he wouldnât be home until his fight with Bruce was over.
A fight about her.
She knew killing the assassin would have consequences. She could have simply reduced them, she could have pushed Tim away and gotten hit instead, she could have thrown a smoke bomb and given Tim enough time to run away.
But she killed, and it had been a deliberate choice. Bruce knew that, Tim knew that â even if he had tried to defend her a few times before being completely shut down â and Jason knew that.
She just couldnât think about anything else the moment she saw the black silhouette approach the boy from behind. Tim was just that, a little kid roped into hero life, and she needed to protect him. She neededâ
Jazz was not stupid. Tim wasnât Danny, she didnât have any right to be any kind of older sister to him. She had one chance at that and she lost it, she couldnât just act like she deserved another.
The Ghost looked at the rising sun on the horizon, her ears ringing with the screams and threats Jason and Bruce had been throwing at each other by the time she quietly stepped out and left the Batcave. She doubted any of them noticed her leave, too engrossed in the moral question of taking a life and the what ifâs and could haveâs.
Jason looked distressed and unhappy, not just angry. She knew him, she knew he didnât like to fight with Bruce like this.
It felt that was the only thing they did when she was near.
âFinally caught you alone,â a smooth feminine voice purred behind her.
Jazz turned, finding a dark skinned woman looking down at her, her long black hair flowing in the breeze. She was tall, and strong, her common-looking t-shirt and jeans not hiding the powerful stance of someone that knew she was in charge.
She didnât miss the gun on her waist or the sword at her back.
âTalia.â She recognized her from the photos Jason showed her. She never thought theyâd ever meet in person. âIf you are looking for Jason he is busy at the moment.â
âIâm not looking for him.â Her deep green eyes were fixed on her, analyzing. âI wanted to have a chat with you.â
Jazz tensed. Knowing what she knew about Talia, that couldnât be anything good.
âI wanted to make you an offer.â
She arched an eyebrow. âAn offer?â
âYes. I have been following you and Iâve seen what you can do. What Jason made of you.â
So Jay was right. Talia was watching. She really couldnât let it go, huh.
âAnd?â
âI think we can benefit each other.â
This made her scoff. âWhat makes you think you can give me something I want?â
Danny was dead, he had been avenged. She didnât need anything else.
Somehow, Talia found her response hilarious. She chuckled with that silky voice of hers and approached Jazz to watch the city besides her.
âThis is not your world. This is not your place. You have been aimless since the death of your brother.â
Jazz didnât give her the pleasure of seeing her react to her words. Talia was a snake that dealt with information, she taught Jason some of her tricks. She would know about Danny and the GIW and how she came to meet Jason, of course.
âIâm not aimless.â Jasonâs smiling face came to her mind. He had given her a home when she thought she had nothing to come back to. âI haveââ
âJason. Yes.â Talia hummed. âBut do you really?â
This made her tense. âWhat do you mean?â
Taliaâs smile was pitiful when she turned to look at her, the rising sun painting half her face with warm colors.
âYou are in the way of his happy ending, dear.â
Jazz blinked, her heart skipping a beat. She knew that, she knew that things were rocky with Jasonâs family, but to hear it put bluntly like thatâŚ
âYou can have him, sure, but youâd make him lose everything else. Everything he wants. Jason lost his edge when he met you, and since that day he has gotten as dependent on you as you are on him. He has been declawed and what he wants now is a happy family to come back to, something you cannot give him, but he is too blinded by love to see it.â
Jazz hated that it made sense, that Talia was wording her troubled thoughts like this. She knew Talia pulled stunts like this, manipulating people until she had you working for her, but it made so much sense.
âLet him be happy, let him get his father back. Get his family back. If you love him, truly love him, then let him get his happy ending.â
Jazz watched the sunrise without blinking until it hurt. Her eyes watered.
She swallowed the knot in her throat and asked: âAnd what do you want?â What was her angle? What did she gain by this?
She didnât turn to look at Talia when she answered, knowing she would crumble the moment she saw her cunning eyes. âI can help you become better, become perfect. Iâve seen what you can become and Iâm positive you could use those skills to make sure no one else gets hurt like your brother was hurt.â
âYou are talking about becoming an assassin for you.â
Talia chuckled. âNot âfor meâ, dear. Youâd be your own person, you could choose your own targets. All Iâm offering is resources and training Jason canât provide. And Bruce wouldnât ever approve.â
Jazz didnât answer and Talia didnât push, both stayed quietly watching the sun climbing in the sky as the city woke up and started to pulse with life one more day. One more day where people would get hurt somewhere in the world, people she could help and yet she was in Gotham feeling like an intruder in someone elseâs family, trying to play house.
Talia was making sense. She didnât like it.
âIâll think about it.â
***
When Jason came back to the apartment he shared with Jazz, he was ready to drop dead and nap for the rest of the day. He was completely spent, his mind frayed and reeling with the argument and following screaming match about Jazz and how Bruce didnât like her.
He had been doing so well after the conversation they had, he had been trying, smiling more and including her in things and putting her on patrol with Timbo so people got used to seeing her fight crime with the Hope of Gotham.
She killed the assassin, true, but she had saved the kidâs life. Could she have done something else? Sure, of course, but it wasnât like the assassins were playing games and letting many chances or going easy on them. If Jazz thought the best course of action was killing him, he trusted her.
Bruce didnât. He kept going back to the recordings of Robinâs mask, marking places where she could have done better, where should have taken another route. It didnât matter that the kid said he agreed the assassins were going for the kill or that it was his fault for being careless â Bruce was set on banning her from the Cave, from the Manor and from operating in the city altogether.
Jazz was nowhere to be seen at the Manor when Jason decided that arguing with Bruce was pointless and got on his bike and rode off without explaining more. He was tired. He needed his girlfriend.
Just as he thought, she was at the apartment, waiting. She was not in her usual chair reading or at the kitchen having her post patrol tea; but he found her on the bed still wearing her suit, sitting with her back against the headboard. She was looking at the opposite wall with unblinking eyes, brows furrowed.
âDarling?â
She blinked, turning to look at him with empty eyes. He never wanted to see her look at him like that again, he hated that the situation had made her this upset.
âHi.â She smiled, but it was wrong. âHow did it go?â
âBruceâs pissed but I donât give a shit. He can choke for all I care.â Jason huffed, sitting on his side of the bed to start on getting rid of the suit. âI know this isnât over, but whatever. Heâll get over it.â
Jazz hummed softly, with her âIâm considering something that you wouldnât likeâ voice. He stopped unlacing his boots, turning to watch her. She looked⌠off. Not just upset, but genuinely likeâ like she was back to that empty shell that accepted his offer of coming to Gotham with him.
âJason,â she started, âwas this⌠a mistake?â
He frowned. âWhat do you mean?â
âI⌠IfâŚ,â she licked her lips, looking away from his eyes. âIf I left, do you think Bruce would drop it?â
Jason felt like ice crystals started growing in his chest. She couldnât meanâŚ?
âI understand you love me, but I canât pretend to understand the relationship you have with your father. All of⌠this â â All of me, he knew she wanted to say â â is putting a strain in that relationship that I don't want you to have.â
He felt like he couldnât breathe. She couldnât seriously be talking about breaking up. Not like this.
âI love you too, andââ
âWhat the fuck are you talking about?â He had the urge to grab her by the shoulders and shake the stupidity out of her head. âAre you seriously thinking about breaking up with me over this?â
She shook her head. âNot just over this. Iâm talking about everything else, too. You have been sweet and I love you with all my heart, but darling, this is tearing you apart.â
He couldnât argue otherwise. He couldnât deny he had been thinking about not coming back to the Manor and just say fuck it to the whole thing.
Jason was tired of arguing. He didnât want to fight anymore. If he tried to argue with Jazz right there, right then, he would give up and let her leave without a fight.
âCan weâ Can we please put a pin on this conversation?â
She was going to say something else, but closed her mouth, nodding. âOf course. Iâll⌠There is food in the kitchen. Iâm going to shower first, if you donât mind.â
Itâs true that they didnât bathe together all the time, but he really, really had been looking forward to her affection and, for once, her physical contact. It felt empty, watching her stand up and leave the room without looking back. Felt like an ending to their story, even if Jazz had agreed she would want to talk about this when both were in a better headspace.
This was not how he expected his day to end, how he wanted this to go. He wouldnât let the best thing to ever happen to him to either leave him or regress to that broken woman he extended his hand to.
Jazz carefully avoided him after the shower, and she chose to sleep on the couch instead of the bed with him. Jason didnât have enough energy in him to convince her to get into the bed.
When he woke she was still there, calming down his instinct that she just packed her stuff and left while he slept â Dannyâs rocket model was still on her night table and the apartment smelled like freshly made coffee.
She was looking outside the window at the sun going down, a still steaming cup of coffee in her hands. Coffee, not tea.
âHey.â
She turned to smile at him, eyes still haunted, deep bags under her eyes. Did she sleep at all? âHey.â At least her smile was more normal.
âFeeling better?â
She shook her head, but approached him to kiss him on the cheek before sitting down on the kitchen table. âWanna talk now?â
With a heavy sigh, Jason got his own cup of coffee and joined her at the table.
âLetâs talk.â
She nodded. âTalia came to see me.â
Jason choked on his coffee. âWhat?â He managed to say as he coughed out the liquid.
âShe made me an offer.â
âYou know her offersââ
âHear me out.â She stopped him before he continued, lifting a hand to signal she wanted to talk. âIâm not going to accept. Taliaâs motivations are not clear and I trust you when you say she is shady about her offers.â She tilted her head. âI also think that she is the one that sent those assassins to provoke meâ
This made him sigh in relief. That did sound like Talia, and it was good that Jazz caught on that quickly. âOkay.â
âBut she made a good point.â
âShe told you to break up with me?â
Jazz hummed. âSomething like that.â
âWell thatâs stupid.â He scoffed. âThat wouldnât solve the problem.â
âAnd whatâs âthe problemâ, then?â She arched an eyebrow, daring him to say otherwise.
âIt doesn't matter if Bruce hates you. It doesnât matter if you stay, or you leave or if we donât see each other again.â He leaned in to take one of her hands and smiled when she didnât move away, and even squeezed his hand. âBruceâs beef with you is actually with the stuff I taught you, the stuff thatâs a part of me I wanted to share with you. If he cannot stand you because of that then he is making the active choice to not see I am the same.â
Jazzâs eyes were fixed on their joined hands as she considered his words. She sipped her coffee without looking away.
âIf the condition for him to love me is for you to go away then he doesnât deserve me â and that has nothing to do with you personally.â
Seconds ticked by in the quiet kitchen.
He was firm about what he said and was completely ready to fight Bruce on that if it came to it. It was beyond if Jazz was a âbad influenceâ or not, beyond trying to play perfect son for Bruce, beyond trying to make him see that they couldnât go back to how they were before he died.
âOkay.â Jazz said, taking a deep breath. âOkay.â
âOkay?â
Her smile was watery, her eyes shining with tears, but she looked less pale and less like she was about to crumble down.
âI love you.â She said. Neither commented on how shaky her voice was. She wanted him, he could see it in her eyes. It wasnât because she thought he would need her, or because she thought that was what he wanted â she wanted to be with him.
âLove you too.â He stood up and walked around the table, extended a hand to touch her cheek. She leaned into the touch. âWeâll figure this out, but we have to do it together. I need my partner in crime.â
A few tears went down her cheeks as she nodded.
***
Jazz kept her distance from the Manor the following weeks and focused on things on the crime side of their lives. Jason had been taking on more tasks since they were doing patrol with Batman and Robin as well; but she was now going to focus completely on the Narrows and Crime Alley and let Jason take care of things with his father. He asked her to trust him and she trusted him. They were partners.
She was going back home thinking about her cup of tea and maybe convincing Jason to cuddle under a blanket and read together for a bit; when she saw it.
It was bright and just at the corner of her mind, and she understood she had to follow it.
Not one to question Gotham after all that happened, Jazz followed her gut instinct further and further away from their territory, across the bridge and deeper into the business district. There were some people walking around at night, better dressed people, that looked at her as she followed the faint signs of something other. She ignored them all, how men and women alike chose to get away from her as soon as she was in their sights.
She knew what the âniceâ people of Gotham thought of her, it didnât take a mind reader to understand that it took more time for these people to realize she was no Harley Quinn.
In any case, it was good that she found no resistance as she pursued the white form across the serpentine streets. She couldnât shake the feeling she was being guided somewhere, but she still needed to investigate.
The chase ended in a deserted street that had an opening to an abandoned metro station â if her memory was correct, it was part of the first metro line in the city, and the route was adjusted after the city grew in another direction.
Jazz wasnât looking at the art decĂł structure of the metro opening, though. Her eyes were fixed on the white form floating in the middle of the street.
It grew and grew, quietly and quickly taking a longer shape â a human shape. Legs, arms, torso and a head. It was so bright on a dark background that it hurt her sensitive eyes, but she kept looking at the humanoid shape, wondering what or who it was.
The white light started to dim around the body, a white sheet, torn and dirty, gently floated in an invisible wind, hiding the actual shape of the body. Itâs face was still too bright.
âHello?â Jazz asked, testing the waters with a step towards the ghost. Because it was a ghost, she was positive. âDo you need help?â
She never thought she would need to help another spirit, but if this lost soul needed assistance to find peace, she was the only person that could help.
It was also what Danny would have done.
The bright figureâs face was too intense to really see the features, but as she walked closer she could see short red hair floating around their face.
âI can help you. My name is Jazz.â
It was like she had said the magic words. The slight humming she didnât realize she had been hearing stopped. The light stopped pulsing. The figure froze mid-air.
Two eyes opened in the creatureâs face. Deep black eyes, full of hatred.
A mouth opened, impossibly wide open, in a way that a normal human could never be able to do.
It was a split second â just a tiny moment as the light in its face dimmed enough for her to clearly see the features â but she recognized that face.
The creature screamed a high pitched sound that blasted the windows of the buildings around them.
***
A ping on the phone and Bruceâs slight frown was the first sign that something was wrong.
âA rogue attack?â
The older man looked up from where he was tapping on the phone screen, the chessboard totally forgotten. It was âbonding dayâ and Jason had spent the day with Bruce doing whatever. They were in the middle of a post-dinner game of chess, and Jason would leave after they were done. Surprisingly enough, there hadnât been new arguments that day â but after a few weeks of screaming at each other they were too tired to keep at it.
Jason didnât miss how Bruceâs mood lifted once he learned Jazz was not coming to the Manor anymore.
He didnât miss either how Dick, when he came by one weekend, and Alfred were worried at that fact. Or how Tim frowned and looked down, distraught at the development. He didnât know the shortstack actually liked his girlfriend.
âThe Ghost is on her way here.â He tapped the phone screen. Jason hoped he was deactivating security. He better be, at least.
He checked his phone in case there was an emergency and he missed her calls, but there was nothing. She had promised to follow his lead regarding Bruce and he told her to not come around the Manor until he said it was ok, so why was she doing exactly that?
His mind reeled with all the possibilities, since she wouldnât break her promise for something light.
Jason abandoned the game and approached the door, quickly opening it and running his eyes over the pitch black darkness, trying to identify her silhouette against the dark.
He barely saw the two green eyes before a body slammed against his. Her arms and legs circled around him like a koala, her maskless face buried in the crook of his neck. She was also trembling and her face was wet.
Something was very wrong.
âJazz?â
She sobbed, rubbing her face against his exposed skin. Her breaths were accelerated too. What could have sent his girlfriend into a panic attack like this? She was made of the tough stuff, she had seen and done a lot of bad shit with him, so why�
âIâŚâ Her voice was rough. âJasonâŚâ
He squeezed her tighter against him, frowning. âJust breathe with me, darling. Okay? Breathe with me.â
She continued muttering his name, but mimicked his exaggerated slow breaths. In and out, in and out, in and out. The shaking diminished a little bit even if her body continued to be tense.
âIs she okay?â
Jason turned to find Alfred and Bruce looking from the door. It had been Bruce who talked, genuine concern painting his expression. Theyâve never seen her out of it before, not even during patrol.
âSheâll be.â He said, walking back up the steps of the porch and into the Manor, registering how Bruce moved aside to let them pass, one hand reaching out to help but not actually touching Jazz. âAlfred, could youââ
âImmediately, sir.â
Jason took the whimpering form of his girlfriend back to the sitting room, walked by the abandoned chess game and settled down on one of the comfortable sofas. He maneuvered her to be on his lap and let her cry in silence as they waited for Alfred to bring a glass of water. He didnât acknowledge Bruce taking a seat in front of them.
âIt was her, Jason. Her⌠How could this be?â Jazzâs voice was hoarse and spent, barely above a whisper.
âHer?â
âIs not fair.â She rubbed her face against his shoulder. âNot fair.â
He tried really hard to follow her. A quick glance at Bruce told him he also had no idea what was going on, so it wasnât anything Bruce had done.
Not that he suspected Bruce to try going behind his back and harm Jasmine, but⌠Well, he wouldnât put it past him after everything.
Alfred walked right in with a tray with a glass and pitch filled with water, a teapot and some cups. His face didnât betray anything, but Jason saw his eyebrows furrow for a moment when he glanced at the trembling figure on his lap.
âThank you.â
The butler nodded and moved to stand behind Bruce, watching them as well.
It was a bit longer before Jazz uncurled enough to accept the water, which she gulped down like a parched man in the desert. She accepted a second glass rather quickly, only giving it a tiny sip before placing it on the coffee table with a frown on her face.
âJason. Sheâs back. I donât know when, I donât know how. But sheââ her voice cracked. âIs not fair.â
âYou keep saying that. But who could beââ
âMy mother.â
Jasonâs memory supplied the tear stained face of Madeline Fenton as she begged for her life. Her screams in the secluded basement where he tied her to a chair. Her void eyes when he explained for the last time why he was doing this.
âSheâs dead.â
Jazz laughed, but it wasnât nice. âHavenât you heard? Sometimes the dead come back to life.â
âThatâs impossible.â He watched her die. He buried her body.
âSheâs come back and sheâs in Gotham.â
âA ghost?â Bruce spoke, voice carefully low.
Jazz flinched, suddenly too aware of their audience. She kept her gaze on the abandoned glass of water on the table. âA wraith, I think. Itâs a type of ghost,â she explained further, feeling the older manâs pointed stare demanding more information, âa subclass, if you will.â
Jason wanted to signal Bruce to stop talking, to not ask the next question. He knew what a wraith was in modern folklore, and he knew that Bruce knew as well.
âWhat does that mean?â He asked anyway.
Jazz looked him in the eye for the first time since she arrived. âIt means she died a painful death and wants revenge.â
The words lingered in the following tense silence. Jazz had never talked about it, especially not with Bruce. He already had a poor opinion of her and she tried so hard to not throw more wood to the fire, so to speak. Her direct admission of what she did, what she asked Jason to do, settled like a block of concrete in their minds.
Bruceâs shoulders tensed for a moment before forcibly relaxing them. He glanced at Jason, expression unreadable.
âIs she going to be a problem?â
Of all the ways to word that question, of course he had to choose the worst one. Jazz took it anyway, licking her lips before picking up her tea cup. She took her time blowing off the steam and taking a sip of the liquid.
The fine porcelain made a clicking sound when she put the cup down, too loud in the quiet room. âShe wonât stop until she eliminates her killer.â
Even Alfred looked at Jason with worry.
âWe have toââ
Jazz cut Bruce off. âNo mortal weapon can kill her. Nothing we can do can stop her.â
They looked at each other, both very tense. Bruce was trying hard not to cave in and take over the situation, push everyone away and fix it himself. Or at least Jason thought so, given what he knew about his father.
The older man unclenched one fist, reaching for his cup of tea. He took his time, considering Jazzâs words, looking at her form still curled on Jasonâs lap.
âThereâs one thing that can kill her.â
Jazzâs anxious confusion was almost palpable. Bruce let her ruminate his cryptic words like the sadist he could be, gently placing the teacup on the table. He didnât make any sound, his pinky properly cushioning the porcelain.
âThe Justice League seized all that was left regarding the Fentonâs research on Ghosts. Including theirââ
â â weapons.â Jazz finished for him, realization dawning on her.
All the tension left her body, her limbs untethered like a puppet that got their strings cut. Jason felt her heartbeat pick up against his chest, the implications of Bruceâs admission rolling in her head.
***
Bruce waited patiently in his office, watching the soft moonlight coming in from the windows casting shadows on everything. He felt more comfortable in the dark, he was used to it, so he didnât bother turning on the lights. He could see just fine with the full moon illuminating the room.
Jason, when he was done helping Jazz calm down enough to sleep, would be fine with it too â when he came stomping into the office to make demands and scream at him again.
It was the only thing they did lately.
And it was always about her.
He didnât hate Jasmine, contrary to what Jason must think. He knew that she was capable of kindness and was a damaged person trying her best. He knew she had a rough childhood and had redirected all that trauma and rage into something constructive.
But so did Bruce, and he didnât become a mercenary.
Jason taught her how to kill, but she was the one encouraging that behavior in him. She was the one selling him the idea that what they were doing was okay. Bruce had long discarded the idea that she had brainwashed Jason; but Bruce knew how equally damaging toxic love could be for people in their line of work.
Did he think Jason could be nudged in the right direction if Jasmine stopped pulling him further away? That she was knowingly, or unknowingly, associating that life of crime with love?
Yes. Deep in his heart, he knew that sometimes even the purest love could drag you down. He wanted to protect his son from falling deeper than he was.
âAlright, hereâs what we are going to do.â Jason said as he opened the door to the office, not giving Bruce time to interject. âIâm going to talk and you will shut the fuck up and listen, ok?â
At least he wasnât screaming. Probably because his precious Jasmine was sleeping.
Bruce let out a deep sigh and stood up to see Jason eye to eye. His sonâs stance was tense and guarded, his eyes shining with controlled emotions.
âYou will help â No, itâs not your turn to speak.â He said when Bruce opened his mouth. âYou will go to your stupid castle in the sky and you are going to bring down all the weapons you can bring. I donât care how you do it, but you will convince your boyband to let go of the goods.
âIn exchange ââ his voice broke a little, but he quickly hid it by clearing his throat and combing back his hair with his fingers. âIn exchange Iâll be the perfect little son you always wanted. Iâll come every Sunday for brunch. Iâll patrol with you, with the shortstack and with the Golden Boy. Iâll give up the guns, the killing, everything. Iâll even wear a stupid bat symbol so everyone knows who â that I changed sides.â Bruce knew that was not exactly what he wanted to say. âI donât care what you do to me. But you will help us and you will leave her out of â out of everything.â
The first crack in his mask. His eyes shone with unshed tears. Angry tears? Jason used to cry when he was a child and rage was overflowing his little body.
âYou wonât make her beg. You wonât humiliate her with silly little tests and sadistic games. No power plays. No punishments. I killed her parents. The wraith is coming after me. I will be the one that fixes this and after that⌠After that we will act like you never met Jazz and like I never died and like â I donât know.â He breathed, shoulders slumping. âIâm done fighting, Bruce.â The expression he made couldn't be called pleading. It was too angry to be considered in the same category. But still it was a face he hadnât seen Jason make, ever. âYou win, I guess. Thatâs â Thatâs the deal.â
Night was quiet as Bruce looked at Jason, really looked at him, for the first time in the whole night. His son has grown into a big man, a bit taller than himself, and nothing like the child he lost years ago.
In that moment, in that place, his boy never looked so small. So disarmed.
Not even in the first days after bringing him to the Manor, when Jason was distrustful and thought he was going to be kicked out at any moment, he looked like that.
He saw the exact moment something changed in his mind, because the emotions in his eyes turned into a wall of ice. âAnd if you do â If you hurt her in any way,â his hands clenched around the empty space where his holsters usually rested, âif you donât keep your word and go after her anyway â You wonât like the person I become. And that⌠that is a promise.â
Frozen and speechless, Bruce couldnât stop Jason from turning tail and leaving the office as quietly and quickly as he arrived. By the time he made his legs follow him to the hallway, his son was nowhere to be seen.
âMaster Bruce?â He turned, finding Alfred standing next to the door, quiet as always. âHow did the conversation go?â
âDid you hear us?â
Alfredâs expression was unreadable. He had been unusually somber as he helped the couple prepare a room for Jasmine to rest, once it was decided they would spend the night at the Manor.
âThe lack of screaming, while a good sign, made it difficult for me to eavesdrop.â
Jason never raised his voice, but it would have been better if he had. Then Bruce wouldnât feel like he had messed up again.
He looked so⌠so angry and defeated. Tired. Weary. He talked about coming back home and being part of the family, but he said it like a prisoner accepting his fate in the gallows.
âMaster Bruce?â
Bruce blinked back to reality, focusing on Alfredâs worried eyes. âYes?â
âHow did it go?â
He wanted to say âgoodâ, but somehow his voice wasnât working. âI donât know.â He finally managed to say.
Alfred nodded, understanding anyway. âI suggest sleeping on it. Things will look simpler in the morning.â
He was right, of course. He nodded at the butler and bid him good night before making the trek back to the Family Wing of the Manor.
Still considering Jasonâs words and the disconnection between his promise and his body language, Bruce walked past Jasonâs old bedroom. It should be closed, but the door was open.
Right. They were staying the night.
He almost ignored it and walked past without giving it a second thought, but then he heard a quiet sniffle coming from inside. Was Jason crying? He doubted so, but he still approached the door, peeking inside.
âBruce.â Jasmine called from inside the dark bedroom. A lamp was turned on, revealing her sitting up, alone, on the bed. Her eyes were puffy and red, so sheâd be crying for a while. âWhat do you need?â
He didnât want to be in this situation, but he couldnât say that.
âJust checking on you.â He lied.
She smiled, knowing that it was a lie.
âWell, I am fine. Thank you.â Another lie.
Awkward silence. Jasmine took a deep and fortifying breath and gestured towards the reading chair next to the bed. Probably Jason had moved it from beside the window, where it usually was, and sat next to her before going to talk to him.
âPlease sit.â
âI donât thinkââ
âSit.â
It was easy to forget she was the Head of the criminal Underworld of Gotham. That she held power Bruce would never dream of grasping in his own city.
Jasmine and Jason never talked about that part of their lives when they were at the Manor, and she very carefully avoided talking about anything regarding their time together before coming to the city or how they operated in Gotham. She stuck to gentle memories about her childhood, about her brother and vague mentions about picking up hobbies in recent months.
In front of him was the whole Jasmine, he knew. Like the moment before with his son, all pretense was dropped and what he could see was the truth.
In Jasmine, that truth looked cold and hurt.
Bruce walked closer and sat down in the comfortable reading chair, his hands placed on his lap. If she wanted to talk then so be it. It was about time they had a heart to heart.
âWe need those weapons.â She opened.
âI know. The Leagueââ
âI speak. You listen.â Jasmine interrupted and lifted her chin, her back completely straight. Bruce wanted to laugh at the gesture since it was all Jason. âWe need those weapons and you are going to get them for us. I donât know how, but I swear if I have to go up there and beat the shit out of every member of the Justice League, believe me I would do it.â She narrowed her eyes.
He held her gaze, letting the seconds pass. As amusing as it was watching her tired visage making vague threats to his colleagues, he was not going to poke the bear and make fun of Jasonâs girlfriend.
âI donât care what I need to do. I donât care if I have to pass some kind of cryptic test or if Iâm banned from operating in the city or if I have to â I donât know.â She breathed in and out, her hands gripping the sheets with white knuckled fists. âI donât care how many little dances or how many promises or how much of my soul I have to sell for you to give me those weapons. Believe me I would do it all.
âDo whatever you want with me, but leave Jason out of it.â Her glare was all hers, though. Her teal eyes glowing Lazarus Pits green, the bioluminescence adding shadows to her face that completely changed her expression. âDonât make him choose between me and you like some kind of immature toddler refusing to share his toys.â She spat. âGive me those weapons and in exchange humiliate me as much as your heart desires, I donât care. Justââ she let go of the sheets, her eyes dialing back to the dull teal he was more used to â â Just donât hurt him anymore.â
Bruce watched new tears gather in her eyes, but unlike Jason, she didnât even try to contain them. She didnât acknowledge them either.
âThatâs⌠Thatâs the deal.â
A strong sense of dĂŠjĂ vu hit him. Did they rehearse this? Some kind of pincer movement with a similar speech? What was her version supposed to do, tug at his heartstrings and pin Jasonâs suffering on him?
He wanted to scoff and walk out of the room.
âIf you break your word or your only condition is for me to leave the city, to leave him, I swear on my brother, Bruce Thomas Wayne, that there won't be a shadow or bunker in this world that could hide you from me.â
It was a threat. It should be a threat.
Jasmine was trembling. She tried to hide it, and if Bruce were any other person, if he didnât spend most of his days watching people and analyzing their tells, he would have missed it.
She was terrified. Of her mother, who came back as a vengeful spirit? Of a life without Jason?
He was tempted to smile, but he stopped himself in time.
âWhat did Jason tell you?â
She blinked, taken aback by his words. âWhat?â
âDid you guys practice long? They were good speeches, I have to concede it. Yours is a bit over the place, but good enough.â
âWhat are you talking about?â
âJason had the exact same conversation with me less than half an hour ago. He didnât come to tell you?â
He saw it, clear as day. She didnât know. She looked at the door and then at him, then at her hands that were still shaking. She fisted the sheets again, breathing in, breathing out.
âThat idiot. What did he promise you?â
She truly didnât know. Huh.
âDid he promise to give up his work? That he would be the son you want him to be?â Her voice was dripping with sarcasm and her laugh was hollow. âOf course he did. I donât even need to ask.â
She folded her legs to hug her knees close to her chest. She looked at Bruce, more tears flowing down her cheeks.
âDonât let him do that. Bruce, that could very well be the thing that breaks him for good. Living that double life, wearing a mask when heâs with you, burying a part of him... Please, Iâm begging you, donât accept that deal.â
She rested her head on her knees, eyes fixed on him. Her shoulders were tense and her posture was deceptively calm, but he could see her slowly curl on herself as if she were trying to give herself comfort.
âDonât let him hurt himself like that, Bruce.â There was barely any more fire in her voice. âI love him.â Jasmine smiled, the gesture as weak as everything else in her at the moment. âBut I guess it doesnât matter what I say.â
The switch was subtle. Her eyes stayed on him for a second before straying away; and when they did, her blue glazed over like she was not even there with him anymore.
âGood night, Bruce.â She whispered, still not looking at him.
He stood up, ready to leave, staying a moment to watch this new facet of Jasmine he hadnât seen before. She was always guarded, quiet, and had this sad air around her that only went away when Jason smiled at her.
Jasmine never cried. She never begged.
And she never looked like this.
Bruce ignored the pinch in his chest, murmured a quick âgoodnightâ and walked out of the room.
***
Next morning found him looking at his coffee with unblinking eyes. Alfred had already tried to ask what was wrong, but gave up after the third grunt in response.
Bruce watched his own reflection in the beverage, eyebags on his face after spending the whole night unable to sleep. Good thing he didnât have anything to do that day, because he was ready to drop and the sun was barely rising.
You wonât like the person I become.
There won't be a shadow or bunker in this world that could hide you from me.
He frowned, taking a sip of his coffee. Bruce wasnât a stranger to his kids threatening him. The echoes of Dick screaming at him in the tumultuous era back before Jasonâs passing rang in his ears.
What was new was how⌠how final they were. How ready to follow through they were â Dick had thrown around threats and tried to act tough, but at the end of the day he always came back. These two threatened him with the desperation of an animal in a cage ready to bite off their own paw if it meant getting free.
But you will help us and you will leave her out of â out of everything.
Do whatever you want with me, but leave Jason out of it.
This is the part that confused him the most. If they had a strategy then why contradict each other so blatantly? Why sacrifice themselves for the other and demand they stay safe? It didnât make sense.
Iâm done fighting, Bruce.
Just donât hurt him anymore.
Hurt him? He wasnâtâ
Well. He knew he was being difficult. He knew that his rejection of his partner was taking a toll on Jason, and he felt so horrible about it. He had been meaning to talk to him about it, and he tried a few times, but it always ended with them screaming at each other.
If Jason could just listenâ
Iâll be the perfect little son you always wanted.
Jasonâs eyes. Hurt and guarded and his brows furrowed. His hands clenching and his shoulders tense, as if he was bracing for the worst. Even under the sunlight he still saw that interaction in a weird light â why was it such a difficult thing to go back to how things were?
Donât let him hurt himself like that, Bruce.
What did she know about Jason? They may have spent months together, but Bruce had Jason for years. He knew his son, and he knew the kind of person he could be. Sure, his time in the League and then with Jasmine he might have been influenced â but he could be good, if he tried hard enough.
Bruce looked up when he heard footsteps, hoping he could catch Jason and tell him he would accept his offer. It was the most logical solution, and even if he still didnât understand why his chest kept being weird when he thought about their conversation; he knew it was best for everyone and that it was the most peaceful solution.
Jasmine was glued to his side, of course, when they walked in. She still looked pale and her eyes were distant, but she had a solid grip on his sonâs hand as he guided her to the kitchen.
âGood morning, Master Jason.â
Alfredâs greeting went unanswered as the couple froze in the doorway. Jason frowned a little, and Bruce didnât miss the slight gesture to place Jasmine behind his back. She also glanced at him without really looking at him, flinching when Bruce lifted his cup to them in greeting.
Alfred cleared his throat. âBreakfast will be ready shortly, the table has been already set.â
Jasonâs relief could be tasted in the air. âThank you, Alfie. Letâs go, darling.â
Jasmine hummed and quietly followed him out of the kitchen.
Bruce sipped his coffee. It was impossible to miss the mood shift. Even these past weeks, when they couldnât be in the same room without an argument breaking out, Jason never acted so guarded.
Something was breaking. Something was changing right under his nose. Jasmine â
I love him. But I guess it doesnât matter what I say.
Jasmine had flinched.
He remembered her trembling hands, how raw fear completely messed up her threats. How she looked at him with complete defeat.
Jason had explained before how she tried everything over the table before coming to him, and how broken up she was when they met. He had given a description of the things he found in his own research, but Bruce knew he was omitting some details, probably because they were too private or personal for Jasmine.
He had said that she gave up everything to avenge her brother, and how she had to beg and promise her godfather, a sketchy individual, for the money to pay the job.
Jason also had talked about her nightmares. How she saw her brother being pulled apart again and again by the GIW, by her parents, as she watched. How helpless she felt. There was a lot unsaid, but it didnât take a genius to understand that Jasmine had many reasons and many people to fear.
And she was terrified of Bruce.
The thought made him stop.
Jasmine was terrified of him?
Is that why Jason was acting like⌠like this?
Iâm done fighting, Bruce. You win, I guess.
Win? What did he win? There wasnât a competition to win. He just wanted his son back, was that too difficult?
Jasonâs voice cracked when he said he would do exactly that. Jasmine had said that it would break him.
Bruce looked at his hands grasping the coffee cup, suddenly not feeling tired anymore.
âAlfred.â
The older man hummed, going back to prepare breakfast for the couple. They didnât even cross the threshold. They didnât look at him more than a glance.
âWhy do I feel like a villain?â
Alfred didnât hesitate. âBecause you have been acting like one.â
He hadnât, had he?
Itâs justâ
He remembered Dickâs worried face. Alfredâs judging frown. Timothy lying to his face claiming homework as an excuse to not go on patrol with him.
Either Jasmine had managed to somehow brainwash everyone into feeling sorry for her enough to look past how she was taking Jason down with herâ
Or Bruce was wrong.
About her, about everything.
âWhat do I do?â
The butler placed the scrambled eggs on a plate just as the toaster pinged and released the freshly toasted bread.
âAs far as I can see, you have one last chance to make it right.â
He did. He didnât have to take Jasonâs or Jasmineâs offers, there was another option.
He stood up, taking the cup with him to refill it. As he did, he didnât dare look Alfred in the eye. âDo you think thereâs enough for three?â
The older man chuckled. âWay ahead of you, Master Bruce.â He turned, showing him there was enough toast and eggs prepared for everyone.
***
Jazz contemplated the zeta tube, trying to not get her hopes up just yet. Bruce may have done a one eighty, but that didnât mean everything was fixed.
Once he apologized and acknowledged he had been a grade A asshole for the best part of a month, he promised to help. No strings attached. No mention to them giving up their life of crime or jabs at Jazz about killing her parents.
Jason had been distrustful for a few days but in the end he accepted it if she accepted it.
They still had to convince the Justice League.
Bruce warned them â he was still just one member of the League, and if the others were unconvinced, he couldnât just steal the weapons for them. He could vouch and talk about his time knowing her, and he promised he would try his best to help.
Jazzâs relief was evident, guarded as it was. Hope was difficult to come by in their line of work, and she knew the tall task of convincing the Justice League that giving her confiscated weapons to re kill her mother was the right thing to do, as bad as it sounded.
âAre you sure?â She looked up at her boyfriend, smiling at his worried expression.
âIâm positive.â
Only one of them could go with Bruce to the Watchtower, and Jazz volunteered. It made sense â she was the only one deeply entwined with the problem, and she was the one that made the call to kill her parents.
âI worry.â He placed a hand on her cheek, the cold material of his gloves wasnât uncomfortable at all.
âI know.â
âI want to go with you.â
âYou canât.â
âI know,â he sighed, leaning in to gently place his forehead against hers. He closed his eyes, feeling her presence. âI hate this, butâ â
She hummed in agreement. This wasnât the first time they had this conversation, and having it again in front of the zeta tube was not going to change the outcome. She was going, disarmed, with Bruce.
Jazz trusted Jason, and Jason trusted that Bruce was being truthful. That was enough.
A throat being cleared made them jump away from each other, turning to find Alfred and Dick, with Bruce approaching from the stairs. Dickâs little smile was refreshing after so much pain. He had been quick to like Jazz once he got to know her.
âReady?â Batman asked, now next to the couple.
Jazz nodded, getting on the tip of her toes to quickly give her partner a kiss on the lips. âFor good luck.â
âYou think you are going to need it?â He asked, a smirk stretching his lips.
âI just wanted one.â
Both chuckled at the memory of another time, another place, and basked in the cozy feelings.
With a final nod, Jazz turned and joined Batman closer to the gate of the tube, head held high and shoulders thrown back.
Time to make her case.
***
Bruce watched Jazz closely since the moment they entered the Watchtower â maybe still wary about her murder tendencies, maybe to observe her behavior now that she was separated from Jason. Whatever he expected she was not it, since she looked exactly the same as she always did; a little bit sad but determined with the task in front of her.
She was very task oriented, so she didnât stop for idle chat as they made their way through the Justice League base. Her steps were quiet, eerily quiet, just like his. He still couldnât brush aside the discomfort of having another person know his techniques when he never actually participated in her training.
He heard her gasp, and turned to see what was wrong.
Jasmine was frozen in front of the nearest window, which gave an amazing view of the Earth from space. From being at the Watchtower so often, Bruce had gotten used to the views and usually just walked past without giving it much thought. Watching Jazz approach the reinforced glass holding her breath made him notice the astonishing view more than he did the first time he set foot in the space station.
He noticed one of her hands went for her neck and fished a necklace from under her shirt.
He had seen the chain before but he never asked about it, assuming it was a gift from Jason or something like that. Jazz didnât strike him as a jewelry kind of woman, but he wasnât curious enough to ask about it in case it was indeed a romantic gift from his son.
What an idiot he had been. He acted like he was concerned about their love being toxic but he actually just didnât acknowledge their relationship as much as he possibly could.
âThis was Dannyâs.â Jazzâs voice cut him from his thoughts. He approached her and quietly waited for her to continue. âThe only thing I could take fromâ When I ran away, there wasnât much I could take.â He watched her fingers rub the piece of metal with a hole drilled in it. It was shiny from being rubbed like this many times. âDanny loved space. He had rocket models he put together himself.â
She looked back to the blue planet from the window, her voice trailing as much as her thoughts.
This was the first time Jazz actually talked about her brother to him directly, Bruce noticed. The first time she brought him up when they talked alone. She was usually fine with Jason doing the talking, or with him talking about her past to the others, including her past life back at Amity Park.
But she never talked to Bruce like this. She looked⌠vulnerable. In a way that wasnât as broken and all over the place as she was when she tried to beg him back at the Manor.
âHe would have loved the Watchtower.â
âHm.â Bruce didnât know what to say to that. Maybe he would, maybe he wouldnât. He didnât know the kid.
She glanced at him and smiled. âBut it is better for all of us that he is not here now.â She put the makeshift necklace back where it usually rested, safe and sound. âRight?â
Bruce swallowed, unsure what would even be the right thing to say in this situation. Was she implying that Danny was better off dead? That he would hate confronting the Justice League? That he wouldnât like having to kill their mother, who was turned into a wraith?
He nodded without really knowing what he was agreeing to and gestured towards the hallway that led to the meeting room he had prepared. She nodded back and continued walking.
Soon they were at the correct place, and Jazz froze at the door. He watched, waiting to see what she would do. She took a few fortifying breaths and nodded at him, signaling she was ready.
The meeting room was as it always was â pure chaos. The Justice League loved to appear professional and put together on TV, but reality is that sometimes Bruce almost yearned for his Gotham and herding Robin and Batgirl around every minute he spent with the League.
He cleared his throat, calling everyoneâs attention.
Jazzâs feet make a bit of noise as she shuffled in discomfort at the looks from all the heroes in the room.
âHi, Batman.â Clark greeted first with a polite smile. âAnd guest.â
Someone swallowed.
The others had been roughly briefed about the topic they would discuss that day, and Bruce could already see some of the frowns of clear disagreement. The weapons and technology they found in the Fenton household had been deemed too dangerous to even try to analyze. They were stored safely and untouched next to the other artifacts they keep hidden, just in case.
If he didnât know Jazz and her situation like he did, he would have joined the ranks of the people against letting her have them.
âThis is Jasmine Fenton,â her eyebrows twitched at hearing her real name, but she had agreed that she wouldnât try to hide anymore, âand you should hear what she has to say.â
Without any other comment he glided towards his seat and gestured to Jazz to begin. No need for pleasantries. With a wraith loose in his city he wasnât inclined to waste time.
He ignored everyoneâs eyes on him. It was unusual for the Dark Knight to blatantly show this support with an unknown, specially when dangerous weapons were involved.
âHi,â her voice cracked. She cleared her throat. âI am⌠well.â She ran a hand through her hair and glanced at Bruce, who nodded in encouragement. âAs Batman said, I am Jasmine, Jasmine Fenton,â she swallowed hard as she said the last name. âMy parents were Madeline and Jackson Fenton, who created all that anti-ghost technology you guys removed from my house about a year ago.â
Bruce could see a bunch of people were already twitching to interrupt her and speak up, ask her more about her story, ask her all the unanswered questions back when they were alerted of the Anti-Ecto Laws and found the destroyed labs.
âMy⌠I need those weapons.â Jazz approached the table and placed her hands on the surface, eyes glaring at the pristine white material. âI knew they would be safe with you guys, it has always been my intention to bury everything, every gun, every device, every research; I knew it would be best if it was stored away wherever the Justice League keeps the doomsday devices and cursed amulets.
âBut things have changed â my mother is back. Madeline is back. And those weapons,â she jabbed her finger against the table, making a point, âare the only thing that can stop her. I need you to help me kill my mother again.â
***
Jazz felt spent after defending her case for about an hour and a half. It was hard, and the Justice League loved to get distracted by questions that didnât matter â what were ectoentities, who did the GIW really work for, who else was involved, how did they die, how did Maddie and Jack die.
No more secrets, she promised. Bruce helped her go through some of the questions since he knew all that information already. She watched as he skillfully redirected the questioning far away from Jasonâs involvement in this whole thing without actually lying, offering just enough truth to satisfy his colleagues.
What a hypocrite. Always obsessed with knowing everyoneâs secrets but refusing to give his own.
But she promised to behave, so she did, and after reliving the worst years of her life in front of a crowd of judging superheroes, she was asked politely to wait outside for the verdict.
She could still hear them discuss though. Did Bruce forget about her little ectoplasm-related enhancements? Or maybe he didnât and he counted on her listening in.
Whatever was the case, Jazz paced outside the meeting room as she listened to her supporters and detractors pull apart her words and memories, talking about things she didnât want anybody else to know. Danny would have hated sharing so much about his secrets, but DannyâŚ
Danny wasnât there.
Danny wasâ
âJasmine.â
She looked up, startled. She didnât hear the door open. Wonder Woman was there, gesturing her in with a warm smile. Diana had been supportive of her cause almost immediately, with the reasoning that if Batman vouched for her then she trusted her.
âYes?â
âWe have decided.â
She nodded and followed back inside with her head high and her back straight. She had been listening to the discussion go back and forth, but missed the actual verdict.
The heroes watched her intently, some with a slight frown, some with a curious smile.
Bruce was smiling one of his invisible smiles. Jason always said that understanding Bâs microexpressions was an art in itself, and by this time she was starting to understand his wisdom.
Superman cleared his throat. âYou can take the weapons,â she let go of the breath she didnât know she had been holding, âbut we will supervise and log what you take. And when it is⌠done,â he made a face, the topic of Maddieâs murder and wraith status had affected him, âyou will return everything as it is. Do you accept these conditions?â
Jazz was already nodding. âYeah! I donât think Iâll need a lot. Just let me see what you managed to salvage.â
Having decided, the meeting was adjourned and almost everyone left the room as soon as it was declared done. Bruce stayed behind with Jazz, same as Diana, who watched Jazz with curious eyes.
âYou have suffered, child.â She said in a soft voice. âI grieve for you.â
Jazz nodded, not knowing how to feel about the comment. Grief? Grieving was for the dead, and she was still alive. For a long while, that had been her problem.
She looked aside, feeling uncomfortable with her thoughts.
âShall we?â Bruce took pity on her and asked her to follow him towards wherever the Fenton tech was stored.
The walk was long, but she didnât mind it. It gave her time to focus back on the task and recenter herself after the grating discussion of her past in front of total strangers. She just had to suck it up and power through the discomfort, get what she needed and go back to Jasonâs arms and brainstorm strategies with him.
Bruce guided her deeper and deeper into the guts of the Watchtower, sadly away from any windows that showed Earth and the stars.
âHere,â he stopped at a seemingly inconspicuous wall and placed his hand against a panel. There was a beep and the wall opened to show a computer. He typed something on the keyboard and a robotic voice requested a code. âBatman, B01.â
Another beep and the walls hissed before splitting open to show a giant storage room.
He went first, Jazz followed.
The room was floor to ceiling full of different things â weapons, jewelry, paintings, anything you could imagine. Some were easy to guess why the Justice League kept under lock and key, but others were more mysterious in nature.
Finally, he stopped at the back of the room, where a few crates were pushed to the side. They were labeled and carefully cataloged with numbers she couldn't decipher, but probably were some kind of League storage organization.
She did recognize her own last name written on the label.
This was it. Everything that was left of her childhood, reduced to a bunch of boxes.
She chuckled at the situation.
Under Batman's supervision she got to work. After a moment it was easy to ignore his quiet presence and got into the flow of opening a crate and rummaging through the items looking for what she knew was familiar.
Sometimes Bruce asked her questions she found easy to answer â what does this device do, what's an ecto signature, why did her parents use a toaster as a base for that. Jazz got into a comfortable stream of words and memories, feeling lighter as she revisited a past she had been trying so hard to forget. Maybe it was exactly because it was Bruce, and not Jason, who listened that made the detachment of her emotions and her memories work. It was less raw, it was less painful, but she still got lost in the memories and remembered facts that had drowned in the grief for so long.
Soon she made a pile with weapons and devices she knew she would need and aligned with Batman how exactly she planned to use them.
âWhat is this?â Batman asked with the same neutral but curious tone.
Jazz turned, finding him holding a wooden box in his hands. It wasn't a gun, and it wasn't anything she had ever seen before. She'd think that Bruce misplaced an artifact with her family's stuff if she couldn't clearly see the Fenton symbol burned on the lid.
She took the box and turned it in her hands, trying to guess what it was. Inside something rattled, something made of glass, and she decided against shaking the box just in case.
She opened it.
Inside she found a single glass marble. It was dull and cracked and she could guess it was supposed to be a light blue in color.
Jazz screamed, one hand rushing to her mouth.
She knew what this was.
How?
Why?
Bile rushed up her throat and she barely had time to push the box away from her before throwing up on her shoes.
âJasmine?â Bruce carefully closed the box and put it on a shelf, but Jazz wasn't paying attention.
How?
How?
âJazz? Talk to me. Breathe.â
Breathe? She tried to breathe but air wasn't coming. She was hyperventilating. She needed to calm down, she needed to leave, she needed to close her eyes and disappear.
But the box was still there. On the shelf. He was still there. In the box. On the shelf.
She went back to the box, slapping Bruce's hand away. She needed to see it again, see with her own eyes, to feel it.
The marble â the core â Danny's core was still there, in the box, on the shelf. But Danny was gone. They looked for him. They looked so hard for him.
She opened the box and the dull piece of glass greeted her back. She lifted a hand to touch it, expecting it to be cold. One time, Danny explained he had an ice core and that if a human tried to touch it they would be frozen in seconds. He had been excited about it, talking about thermodynamics and ghosts' wacky physics.
But Danny wasn't here anymore.
The piece of rock was warm to the touch.
Danny is dead.
He was dead and his core was stored amongst velvet in a repurposed jewelry box.
Danny is dead.
âI can't feel you.â
***
âThey're taking their sweet time huh?â
Jason ignored Dick and continued reading his book, not at all glancing at the zeta tube and wondering if he should start assuming the Watchtower was on fire and Jazz needed a rescue. Bruce promised he would be there for her and Jason believed him.
But it has been hours and he knew how difficult the situation was for his girlfriend. He wished he could be there for her but Bruce could only take one guest at a time and Jazz was the best option and of course, she's a strong independent woman, but still, after everything he worried andâ
âOh finally.â
The telltale rumble of the zeta tube coming back to life was a blessing. He immediately stood up and approached the machine, ignoring his brother's snickers as he followed.
He expected to greet his beloved with open arms, maybe a twirl or two to celebrate her success â because of course he knew she'd be victorious â but he didn't expect to be pushed aside and be left in the dust with a confused sibling and their silent father. Jazz ran directly towards the stairs and disappeared before he could question why she was crying.
He turned towards his next best target.
âWhat did you do.â It wasn't a question.
Bruce had already removed his cowl. He looked tired.
âI didn't do anything. Calm down.â
âDid the League say no?â
Bruce shook his head at his eldest son. âAgreement was favorable. She can take what she needs as long as she gives it back.â
Jason looked between the stairs and Bruce. Console Jazz or get answers.
âThen whatâ?â
Bruce brought out a box from somewhere in his cape. Robins still had a theory the cape was some kind of bag of holding.
âFrom what I could gather,â his expression was very serious, more than the usual, âthis box contains what remains of Jazz's brother. It was left behind at the house amongst the weapons so we took it, assuming it was some kind of power source. It⌠It wasn't.â
He opened the box, showing a cracked little glass sphere. This is all that remained of Danny? And it was with experimental weaponry?
Dick and Jason looked at each other, their minds going to the same places.
***
Jazz had thrown up everything in her stomach and more, and she was past the guilt of ruining Alfred's carefully maintained garden. She hoped the old man understood.
She was hiding next to some bushes right outside the kitchen backdoor. It was the first place she collapsed in after finding a door and it was in the shade and outside and it was all she needed.
It was also quiet and away from everyone, and she sobbed in peace.
Danny is dead.
Danny has been dead and gone for a while.
How long?
Given how her parents had his core in a custom box, she guessed it had been a while, probably since the moment he died. Knowing them like she did, they would have harvested his organs for further analysis.
More bile shot up her throat. She almost didn't have the strength to retch this time.
âNeed some water?â
She didn't look up, not wanting to face Dick.
âI came as a stand in. Your darling is being calmed down by Bruce and talked out of looking for your parents' ghosts and⌠well. You know him.â
This made her chuckle. Jason would descend to the deepest pit of hell and shoot everyone in his way down if a single soul hurt her.
Jazz accepted the offering of a cold water bottle. âThanks.â Her voice was rough but she didn't care anymore.
Dick hummed and sat beside her, carefully away from where she had thrown up. He didn't mind the smell. Or her pathetic state.
âMy brother is dead.â
The words came out on their own, as if a supernatural force dragged them up her irritated throat.
Dick nodded, but didn't say anything. He waited for her to continue.
âMy brother is dead and my parents killed him.â
If it was another time, she would have hated sounding so small. She was being silly. Danny died a long time ago, why was she feeling so raw as if it just happened?
She had grieved. She had done her time.
More tears ran down her wet face. She thought she had run out of those but apparently not.
âThey tortured him and then kept his core as a trophy.â She drank some of the water, feeling her mind getting sharper as she talked. âNo. Not a trophy. It was research.â
It was used. Cracked. Dull.
Dick hummed again and this time she finally looked up.
âThey experimented with him after his body was gone, right?â
The man controlled his face well as he nodded. âWe think so too.â
Danny was dead, and had been for a long time, but didn't rest.
He didn't rest. And his core was used until there was nothing left of him.
He wasn't dead. He wasn't gone. If only she found him soonerâ
âIt's not your fault.â Dick stopped her spiraling thoughts. âYour brother's death. Is not your fault.â
âI could have contacted Jason sooner. I could have found his core sooner.â
Why didnât he understand? Danny was her little brother and she failed him. She was supposed to take care of him and she let him fade.
And here she was, playing superheroes and getting cozy with some guy and trying to fit in with a new family?
Danny would never have that.
Danny was dead.
âBut you didn't. You did what you could and it was enough.â
She shook her head. Nothing was enough. Her baby brother was gone.
âI didn't learn about Jason until I was back from a mission offworld. It was weeks. I learned my brother was dead because people told me they were sorry for my loss.â
Jazz already knew this, but nodded in encouragement.
âI⌠I felt like I failed my baby brother. We didn't start close but I grew fond of him and tried to be there, but I had the Titans and my team needed me more and more. I always thought that the kid was fine without me, that it was fine if I pursued my hero career away from Bruce's shadow and away from Gotham. Until I learned what happened. How Jason died. How Bruce pushed him away. And then I thought âIf only I was around more, if only Jason felt more comfortable telling me things, if only.ââ
âIt wasn't your fault.â
Even as she said the words she understood the irony.
âI know that now, but I felt that way for so long.â He smiled, showing his dimples. âIt really helped having Jason back, having this second chance.â
âDanny is gone.â
He nodded. âDanny is gone.â After a moment of silence he added: âThere won't be a second chance and we can only guess. But from what you told us about him, he wouldn't like you thinking that any of that is your fault.â
She watched him, his calm smile under the sunlight, his strong shoulders. Is this what having an older sibling was supposed to be like?
She tried to speak but only more sobs came out. Dick made the choice for her and pulled her into his arms and flushed against his chest.
He didn't say anything else as she screamed and sobbed for the life she never had, for the brother she wouldn't have back and for the second chance she had been robbed of.
***
âYou know, I can try to figure out the portal schematics.â
Jazz looked up from the Fenton insignia on the lid of the box. Tim looked small and unsure, looking at her briefly before averting his eyes.
The kid hadnât been present for the worst of it, but the others must have told him what happened. He wouldnât be so careful if they didnât.
Jazz felt annoyed. She wasnât going to break if her brother was mentioned. âWhy would you do that?â
Tim took her question as an invitation and walked closer, sitting down next to her on the steps of the back porch.
âI read,â he made a face, both knew whose research he had read exactly, âthat spirits can be dormant in their core and the right amount of ectoplasm could jumpstart it back.â
Jazz opened the box, proud when her hands didnât tremble. Itâs been a few days and she was still recovering but at least it didnât hurt to see the little glass core as much as it did.
âLike a car battery?â
The other chuckled. He sounded so much like Danny. âYeah. Like a car battery. But with ghosts.â
She smiled but couldnât gather the energy to laugh. âWould you do that for me?â
The kid didnât hesitate. âOf course! You saved my life.â He said it was a no brainer. âAnd you are part of the family now.â
If Jazz had the mental capacity to deal with it, she would have commented on the tone Timâs voice had when he said the last comment â the longing and desire and frustration. She knew the circumstances in which he became Robin and how he felt about taking a mantle that wasnât his.
But she just couldnât deal with any of this right now.
âItâs okay,â she closed the box, breathing in slowly, âI donât think it will be necessary. The world doesnât need another Fenton portal. One had caused enough grief already.â
She ignored the look in Timâs face and how he opened his mouth to comment but wisely chose to close it.
âWhat are you going to do?â He asked instead.
Jazz hadnât seriously thought about it, but after a chat with Bruce the seed of an idea started taking root in her mind.
âDid it help? Having a funeral, the tombstone, keeping it all after he came back?â
She could see her own face reflected back when he answered. âIt helped⌠for a while. What is harder is what to do after.â
âI think Iâm going to bury him.â She lifted the box. âDanny never got a funeral. He was actually never declared legally dead. He was just⌠missing.â
Missing implies the possibility of him coming back. Missing meant she didnât have a place to mourn.
She had asked Jason what he thought about his tombstone and he shrugged. âFunerals are for the living.â He had said.
Danny was gone and he wasnât coming back.
Maybe it was time for her to move on.
***
Killing her own mother should have been a harder task than it actually was.
If it was another time, another place, she would have had a difficult time. Maybe she would have hesitated, or lacked resources or her plans would have crumbled down the minute her targetâs erratic behavior overwhelmed her.
But she was not that person anymore.
Jasmine Fenton died when Daniel died. When her innocence was shattered by the same people that were supposed to protect her and her brother.
She had made something new, someone new, with the parts left behind in the destruction. She had become someone who knew how to plan, how to kill, how to pull the trigger when it mattered.
If she was another person, in another time, she would have found the emotional detachment aberrant as she took the shot that ended her mother.
But that was not her mother and she was not her daughter. The cycle of violence had to end.
Jazz was met with her favorite dish and plenty of hugs and a foot massage when she got back home. Jason didnât ask her, and let her talk as much or as little as she wanted. He hummed or clicked his tongue as the conversation needed, but never stopped listening.
Bruce accepted her bag with the weapons without making a single comment, trusting that she was returning everything exactly as it was supposed to be. He didnât ask anything, but pulled her into a hug and gave her a pat on her head that meant more than anything he could have said.
Tim and Dick never wandered too far, and helped her with figuring out the plans for the funeral. Her only request had been to plan it after she finished the business with her mother, and they patiently waited until she asked about it when she visited the Manor to give back the Fenton tech.
Jason was there every step of the way.
***
It wasnât raining the day of Dannyâs funeral. A miracle being Gotham.
Tucker had commented that maybe the city was giving her grace on such an important date.
Jazz chose to invite Dannyâs friends after a long back and forth. Their parting words had been hurtful and they were completely against what she had done to avenge her brother, but she also felt like they deserved to know. About the funeral, about the core.
They booked the first flight to Gotham and stayed with Jason and her the week before the actual day, getting to know her and reconnect and reminisce about Danny.
They still didnât approve of her life choices but at least had the decency to behave.
They guessed the whole Ghost and Red Hood thing pretty quickly, not that either of them was hiding. Fortunately for all the parties involved, nobody brought up the Batman elephant in the room, not even when they met the rest of the family.
The funeral was simple and to the point, and a very small event. Only the family and Sam and Tucker were there, who said a few words before Jazz put the wooden box with Dannyâs core in the ground.
She didnât cry during the ceremony. She had already cried enough.
âI still think itâs hilarious that you have a tombstone, dude.â
âWhat can I say? I dig it.â
Sam groaned while Tucker and Dick chuckled.
Jazz smiled and glanced at Jasonâs grave next to Dannyâs. It was weathered with time and the elements but you could still easily read Jasonâs full name and date of birth and death.
Dannyâs chosen death day was a hard debate between Sam, Tucker and herself â the date of the accident? The date when he was taken away? Or the date that Project P-001 perished, according to the GIW records?
In the end, just because Danny would have found it hilarious, they put the date of the portal accident.
Jazz almost jumped when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned, finding Bruce watching her with a worried expression. Well, as worried as his usual neutral face could be.
âIâm okay.â She said, and it was the truth.
She was okay. More than okay â she was content. She had a home, she had love, she had a goal, she had hopes and dreams. She still missed Danny and mourned the life they could have had, but she had so much more than grief and pain inside now.
The clouds parted and sunshine fell on the cemetery, blinding her for a moment. She lifted her face to smile at the sun, basking in the warmth that enveloped her body like an embrace.
She was okay. She was alive.
Itâs what Danny would have wanted.
---
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Thunder
2k9 | Joel Miller x fem reader x Tess Servopoulos Chapt summary: youâre threatened and rebel against Joel Warnings: 18+ mdni. Noncon/dubcon (captivity, threats), dark FF, threesome (FFM), oral (m/f), fisting, degradation, spanking, spitting, slapping, squirting, light rimming, piv, facials, angst, mentions of dvp, anal and gangbang Writer chose not to use all warnings. If you need to know before you read, DM me a/n: reader's girlfriend is described as âshe/herâ in italics Heed the warnings. If any of this makes you uncomfortable, do not pursue reading. This fic isn't for everyone, and that's ok. I don't condone any of this. Thank you @not-a-unique-snowflake-blog for beta-ing and listening to me whine đđ𫶠The Prodigy - Thunder | playlist | ao3 | series masterlist
Main masterlist - Part 3
You woke up in the middle of the night, hearing moans. Thinking Joel, Tommy or one of the guards was with her. You went to the bathroom to get a glass of water but froze when you heard a moan you didn't recognize. Feminine. Your throat tightened. No other women from the camp had come to your house since you arrived. You moved closer to the half-open bedroom door. The light of the moon allowed you to discern their bodies. Her face was between a womanâs thighs and this woman was holding her head against her pussy. Her back was arched with pleasure.Â
Before you had time to figure out what to do, a hand covered your mouth to stop you from screaming in surprise. Joel. You didn't even hear him come up the stairs. He nodded towards your bedroom and closed the door behind you two once you entered. Your heart was beating way too fast, because ofâŚjealousy? Fuck.
âWho is she?â you managed to ask, trying to keep your feelings to yourself.
âHer nameâs Tess. Sheâs not so much into dicks. She loves cunts. And she loves your girlfriendâs cunt,â he added, âsorry baby, you should get used to it. Sheâll fuck you too.â
You tried to remain impassive again. Even if he gave you too much information. Much more than you wanted to hear and could handle.
âIâve never seen her before.â
âShe runs another camp for me. She's like Tommy, let's say. And she loves pussy as much as he doesâ, he smirked.
You felt a spike sink into your heart.
âLooks like someoneâs jealousâ he chuckled, before saying âcome suck my dick, itâll change your mind.â
You knelt down and took his cock in your mouth, trying to forget. But even when he shot his cum all over your face, you couldn't think of anything else.
The next day, you tried to behave as usual with her. It wasnât a normal world, nor a normal life. You were just bodies available to raiders. You had just never imagined that women could be raiders, too.Â
So when she placed her hand on yours in the kitchen, you tried not to tense up. Not to remove yours. You knew that you were unfair in your feelings, but you had the impression that the only thing that brought sweetness in your life no longer belonged to you.
A guard came to take you to the fuckhouse, as you called it now. You didn't expect to see Joel and Tess there.
âTake off your clothes,â he ordered. You didn't move, your eyes fixed on Tess.
âThe fuck are you waiting for? Get undressed.â
âI canâtâŚI canât fuck her.â
And for the first time, she spoke to you, but you wished she hadn't when you heard her response.
âDonât worry, Iâll be in charge. I'm gonna fuck you, you'll just have to take it. See if youâre worth it.â
They both were looking at you like you were a piece of meat, and you resigned yourself to undress.
âCome on baby. A mouth is a mouth, right?â he said. At that moment, you hated him.
You lay down on your back and she came to settle between your thighs. Your body and mind were closed, and you were mechanically waiting for her to do what she wanted. Joel was leaning against the window sill. That guy had immense self control. You thought about it every time he watched you being fucked by his men, usually coming last to rail you and mix his cum with the spend of those whoâd used you before him.
Tessâs tongue along your folds made you forget about Joel. You didn't want to cum. You didn't want to give her that part of you. But her tongue was soft and precise, she knew exactly where to slide, where to linger. When she added a finger and started sucking your clit, you almost forgot your convictions. Two fingers slid into your now sopping pussy, fucking you gently. She had already found the right spot and you were struggling to hold back your moans. Her tongue swirled delicately on your clit, sometimes giving way to her lips which came to suck it. Within minutes, you were drooling on the bed. When she added a third finger, you muttered a âfuckâŚâ and heard Joel chuckle. You were so focused on your sensations that you didn't even react to him, finally accepting the pleasure your body felt building. Your lower abdomen was hotter than ever.
âMake that slut squirt,â Joel said. You heard her laugh against your pussy. A laugh that meant âof course sheâs going to squirt.â She showed such confidence. You saw her as a female version of Joel, and you might have feared her almost more than him.
She had barely started licking your clit again when you felt like you were losing all control over your body, and you squirted for the first time in your life, feeling like you were drowning the mattress. Your cheeks were hot, ashamed of having given her more than anyone else.
Tess didn't stop her movements and pushed a fourth finger into your pussy.
âWait, whatâŚwhat are you doing?â
âOh, youâre gonna give me more than that, baby.â
You saw Joel take off his clothes and position himself behind her, spanking her to make her put her ass up.
When he was sliding his cock into her pussy, he didn't take his eyes off you. She raised her face for a few seconds and stopped licking your clit, getting used to Joel's cock. You saw her face, her eyes closed in pleasure. Joelâs gaze was still fixed on you. It was the first time you saw him from that angle, buried in a pussy. His broad shoulders, his biceps, all his muscles tightened.Â
Instantly, she followed the same rhythm with her fingers in your pussy as his dick in hers. â
âI thought you werenât into dicks?â you dared to ask. Joel froze inside her to let her respond, hands on her hips. You knew he was buried deep inside her. You knew he loved that, these moments where he displayed his dominance by being buried in a cunt, the woman full of his cock.Â
She smiled when he stopped, fully aware of what he was doing, too.
âNot so much. But sometimes I like to get fucked, and wellâŚheâs the boss, right? By the way, your roommate has a really nice pussy. And she knows how to eat one, too.â
She fucking winked at you just before Joel started fucking her again, slowly. He kept looking at you, and you hated the smug look on their faces, the way they didn't care about you or your feelings.
When she rested her lips against your clit, her moans made you vibrate and a second orgasm swept through you, without you feeling it coming. You felt physically exhausted. Emptied. But she still didn't stop, and Joel fucked her gently so as not to hinder her movements. You felt spread apart like never before, and she pushed four of her fingers deeper. You couldn't believe it when you squirted again.Â
âFuck, did you see that, Joel?â she chuckled. âThe bitch is wrecked.â
She spat on your pussy even though the sounds of her four digits sliding inside you left no doubt that you were wet. Soaked. And she added her thumb to the other fingers, squeezing them together as closely as possible, to let you get used to it. Then moving deeper.
âWhat are you doing? Stop it, please, youâre gonna hurt me. PleaseâŚâ
But she didn't stop, and even added âtold you, youâre gonna take it.â
You realized finally what she was talking about. And you thought that you could never take her whole hand.
âDonât worry, youâll take itâ, Joel said. âWe fucked your cunt with two dicks, multiple times. If you had been a whore, youâd have earned a lot of money with that pussy, baby.â He was reveling in the situation, you could see it in his eyes.
She spat again, twice. On your pussy and on her hand. Continuing to push. You felt your folds spread apart painfully, until the knuckle of her outstretched hand bumped against your pussy. She leaned down, sucking on your clit, then swirling the tip of her tongue over it. While continuing to lightly push her hand in you.
âGive her another one, baby. Come on her hand. Be a good girl, give it to her. And give it to me. Come on, baby.â
His praise was turning you on. You thought about all those times they fucked you with two cocks. Joel and Tommy's dicks opening you up, and your pussy accepting them. You came again, your moans almost becoming screams. And she pushed more, making your pussy give way. You felt torn apart. She didn't stop until her hand was down to her wrist. âOh fuck, fuck!â you shouted.Â
You felt full. Fuller than with two cocks in your pussy. And you hoped none of the men would think about fisting you, because her slender hand was already spreading you apart more than you thought was possible.
Although you were getting used to it and the sensation was now giving you way too much pleasure for your liking.
You started to moan again, and her hand began sliding in more easily.Â
âShit thatâs hotâ, growled Joel. âIâm gonna fuck her now. Not sure Iâll feel something thoughâ. Your cheeks heated at his degrading words.
She withdrew her hand gently and brought it back to Joel's mouth while he was still buried inside her. He licked her fingers as he was looking at you.
âGet on all foursâ, he told you.
You got on your hands and knees and she laid down in front of you, her pussy level with your face. Joel spanked you, sensing your reluctance. âBetter make her come,â he said, menacingly. He pressed down on your head to put your face against her pussy. You submitted, ass in the air. He spread your ass cheeks with his hands and licked you, from your pussy to your ass. When he took his cock in his hand to thrust into you, hands clinging to your hips, your tongue was buried in her pussy. Her hands held your face against her.
âFuck, should have told Tommy to join us to feel something. Seems like the whole camp banged you.â You held back your tears when you heard him. Thinking about what your life had become since heâd captured you. Even though you knew it could have been worse. It can always be worse, right? But that time, his words hit you right in the heart. He wanted to hurt you, and you didn't know why. Was he jealous of your relationship with her?
He pulled out, and tugged on your legs so you lay down. He placed all his weight on you, crashing you under his weight without mercy, leaving only his legs on the bed against your tightened thighs. He pressed your face against her pussy again, growling in your ear as he thrusted.
âSpread widerâ, he told Tess. And he stuck his fingers in her pussy while you licked her clit. She moaned, louder and louder.
âCome for us, babyâ, he told her. He spoke in a softer tone when he addressed her. And once again your heart was pricked. He was trying to hurt you.
When she came, she held your face against her, and her pussy jerked against Joel's fingers.
âOn your knees, both of you. Open up, tongues out.â
You knelt as he physically dominated both of you, jerking his cock with his hand until he came all over your tongues.
You came home, and when you entered her bedroom, her things were gone. You ran down the stairs wanting to go back to the fuckhouse, but Joel was already coming.
âInsideâ, he ordered you, grabbing your elbow.
âWhere is she?â
âSheâs moving to Tessâs camp. Tonight.âÂ
You couldn't believe it. You couldn't believe he was acting like this, when he had always been, if not affectionate, at least never cruel.
âWhy are you doing this? You think itâs easy for us here? Or you donât even care for a fucking second?â
âTess needs a new toy. I don't think your girlfriend is upset about going there, anyway.â
And you felt something switch inside you. You couldn't let him and Tess take her away from you. You couldn't imagine living here anymore, without her. Without her arms and lips to warm your body and soul at night. A cold anger gripped you, and you let it possess your entire mind.
âIf itâs her wish to leave with Tess, fine. But if you force her...I swear to God Iâll turn this place to ashes and when you come to this house, youâll find me dead in her bed. As a reminder that you lost everything because of your actions."
You saw his face tighten in surprise, and his breath stopped for a moment.
âYouâre just a bitch. And you know where those who misbehave end up.â
âI donât think so.â
âOh really?â
âYeah, really. âCos you love my cunt too much to put me in the shithouse. There aren't many women here. In this house, itâll be just me, if you make her leave. I saw two women the day I arrived. There are two women in the shithouse. So five women. Maybe a couple more that had kids and I donât know them. What are you gonna do when you have only three women? two women? zero? Fuck your guards? Oh yeah, well⌠a mouth is a mouth right? So are holes.â
He slapped you. Stronger than he had ever done the other times, where it was more like a dominance sex game than anything else. You brought your hand to your hot cheek, and you couldn't help but smirk.
âFinallyâ, you said. âFinally, Joel the cold-blooded raider, is losing his cool.â
A second slap hit you, even harder than the first one, proving you were right. He called one of his guards through the window to watch over you, and left.
She didn't leave the camp. That evening, she returned to your house. You saw her coming back, when you were in the warehouse where he had locked you.Â
You knew your rebellion would have consequences. You didn't wait long to find out which one exactly. When a machete hit the wooden table, you were relieved that Joel only cut your little finger off.
After cauterizing your wound, he left you there until the next day.Â
When he picked you up and brought you to the fuckhouse, your throat tightened. Your little finger wouldnât be the only punishment. She was there, sitting on a chair. A guard had a gun pointed at her head, and several of his men were there.
âFuck herâ, Joel told his men pointing at you. âYou donât have to make her cum. If she does, good for her, but itâs not your problem today. Don't fuck her ass. I want at least one hole still tight for me tonight.â
He turned to you âIf you misbehave, you'll regret not having let her go with Tess.â He nodded to the armed guard.
Finally, he told her âenjoy watching her getting fucked hard. This is the consequence of what she did for you.â
When you got home, the sun had set. You went to lie down on your bed and she held you close, healing your wounds as she held you against her. More psychological than physical. Even though they were usually the worst.
âIâm so sorryâ, she said.Â
âDonât. I regret nothing.â
She kissed your forehead and said âthank you. For everything.â She paused before adding âmy name is Victoria. I've never told my real name to anyone here. I didn't want them to have that part of me. I donât care if they know it now. Youâre the first one to know, itâs all that matters. You can call me Vic.â
âVicâ you repeated. âYouâre mine, Vic. And Iâm yoursâ, you told her, caressing her cheek with your bandaged hand and smiling gently at her. You kissed, and you already knew that your heart was healing.
She held you against her for a few minutes, before saying âJoel is gonna come tonight.â
âI know. I will be ok.â
You knew it deep down. Joel knew that youâd be obedient again. You just wanted him not to take her away from you. He could have punished you much harsher, but you were apparently right in your reasoning. Women were a rare resource, as Tommy had told you the first day. Joel needed his soldiers to be calm and trustable. As long as they would have enough food and cunts to fuck, everything would be fine.
When he entered your bedroom, he gestured for her to go to hers.
As he unzipped his jeans and approached the bed, he warned you, âIf you do something like that again, not even your pussy will save you.â
You nodded.
He made sure to make you cum, before and while fucking your ass.
****
âI love her and thatâs the beginning and end of everythingâ F. Scott Fitzgerald
****
Part 5
**********************
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The FINAL chapter of âChampagne problems.â has been posted.
Read it here:
 https://archiveofourown.org/works/44689978/chapters/115129879
#Boreo#The goldfinch#champagne problems#boreo ff#ao3#ff#fanfiction#i am both satisfied to have another complete fic posted and also kinda sad its over#i hope you like the ending#some bits i have mixed feelings about and others im proud of#so yeah !!! go read it#or if u havent started it yet go ahead#i know some people only read completed works#cant relate#this is also my longest fic to date#at almost 50k#so yall boreo fans better enjoy#i know were starved for boreo content#so enjoy your goddamn meal#see I think i write best for small fandoms because lets be honest#i am writing for myself#i am my own target audience#and i was desprete for another boreo fic#and you bet i read my own stories
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oh, here comes day eight - merfolk! as i promised, something special for this day.
this art is an illustration for a fanfic by @gian-blackbell on the same topic. now her fanfic can only be read in Russian, but later it will be released in English translation (both versions can be found on AO3).
this art is a big reference to the famous painting by Viktor Vasnetsov "Alyonushka" (the idea belongs to @gian-blackbell)
I AM VERY BAD AT BACKGROUNDS AND PAINTING FORGIVE ME DD:
it was decided to make in this theme not a classic mermaid, but a mermaid from Slavic mythology. i adore Slavic mythology! drowned women become mermaids there. gloomy! but like a second life for the unfortunate.
i adore how unnatural the wreath of wildflowers looks in this autumn atmosphere. when everything withers and dies, the flowers (sebastian's feelings that he put into this wreath) are still alive. alive on the non-living body of his lover.
i feel very insecure with color. this work is a kind of step towards getting rid of the fear that makes me freeze at the color stage of drawing. i know that i'm not very good at it⌠but if i don't do anything, i won't learn anything, right?..
special thanks to the incredible @gian-blackbell! i really liked your ff (i'm literally in love with it, HAHA)! thanks for the support and your ideas!
#gauntingsalloween#art#fanart#hogwarts legacy#hogwarts legacy art#hogwarts legacy fanart#HL#ominis gaunt#sebastian x ominis#hogwarts legacy ominis#sebinis#october#sebinis event#halloween event
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