#way outta the blue lmk post

[scrombit]

year difference !!!!!! didnt have time to color so i might come back to it but idk !!!

mks just therr being mk !!!dunno if this interaction is at all acuracte, never watched the last season and i cant remember for the life of me !!! i feel like mei and redson would just fight all the gosh darn time for no reason tho !!! anyway, danny phnatom post soon maybe, worked on a lotta comission today !!! bye gang !! sleep well !!!

[rexsjaigeyes]

Firstly congratulations on your 1.7k followers 🥳

And I wanted to request no. 31 “touch (them) again and I will tear you to pieces.” With Steve Murphy

Thank you so much hun! Glad you joined in on the fun even though I didn't offer anything for Diego's characters (but stay tuned for a Cassian fic later 👀) hope you enjoy this!

Prompt #31 by @starrynightdeancas

Steve Murphy x female reader

Words: 860

Warnings: mentions alcohol consumption, unwanted advances from a stranger

A/N: Setting is not specified, but this most likely takes place in America, so post-season 3 Steve and Javi

It was just a regular night out with Steve and Javi, and both of them were drinking up a storm as usual. You didn’t mind being the designated driver, but keeping track of both of them while they were drinking was not a peaceful situation. You kept a watchful eye as Javi danced with someone, and you hoped Steve wouldn’t cause any trouble while you left to get another glass of water at the bar.

Steve was usually less of a handful, even when he was drunk. But tonight, he seemed antsy, and you wondered if it had anything to do with the way he kept staring at your dress. You’ll admit you wore something much more revealing than you normally wore in front of the boys, but there was a reason for that. You were hoping to finally make a move on Steve and show him that you haven’t missed the fleeting looks he gave you when he thought you weren’t looking. Unfortunately, it looked like your plans would have to wait for a night when he was more sober.

Smirking to yourself at how Steve’s gaze lingered on your body, you left the booth and made your way to flag down the bartender. You searched for Javi again while you waited, but the distraction from your surroundings made you momentarily miss the creep who sidled up to you at the bar.

“Hey pretty little thing,” a gruff voice broke you from your search for Javi. At first, you weren’t sure you were the one being addressed, but a cold hand on your arm soon brought your attention to the sleazy man who approached you. “Lemme buy you a drink,” the man offered with a grin. You assumed he was trying to act suave, but his blatant gaze on your cleavage made you want to punch him in the face.

“No, thanks. I’m not interested,” you responded flatly and tried to turn away from the creep.

Unsurprisingly, the man didn’t seem to take no for an answer. Instead, he grabbed your arm and tried yanking you back towards him, seemingly not done with the conversation that you ended.

“Hey!” You yelled in anger and tried pulling your hand from his bruising grip. “Let go of me, asshole!”

You were about to make a scene or defend yourself if needed, but luckily, Steve had rushed up to the two of you with a stern look on his face. He was much larger than the guy who tried to yank at your arm, but the creep didn’t seem concerned with Steve’s large presence.

Steve pushed the man’s chest, effectively knocking him back against the bar and forcing him to let go of you. Quickly, you moved out of the man’s reach and stumbled behind Steve as he pushed himself between you and the stranger.

“Touch her again and I will tear you to pieces,” Steve slurred. Regardless of his obviously drunken state, he still looked menacing as ever while jabbing a finger in the man’s chest.

The three of you must have been attracting a watchful crowd because Javi quickly joined your side and grabbed Steve’s shoulder to pull him away from the glowering man. You could tell the beginning of a fight was approaching, and you really didn’t want to deal with a bar fight involving two drunken DEA agents. So you called Steve’s name and tugged on his arm to pull him away from the intimidating staring contest he was currently holding with the asshole who tried to put their hand on you.

“Steve, it’s okay. Come on, let’s get outta here.” You tugged again and broke him from his angry trance before he turned away from the man with a scowl.

You and Javi pulled Steve towards the exit of the bar, having to tug on him every time the man yelled out profanities and tried to encourage Steve to fight him “like a man.” Once you were finally outside, you let yourself relax just a little bit beside Steve’s tense body. You could still see the anger in his eyes, but he looked over at you with concern, so you gave him a reassuring smile.

“I’m alright, Steve. Thanks for looking out for me.”

He nodded, the leftover anger on his face melting into a shy and sheepish look from how you smiled up at him. Javi groaned softly, muttering something about how his dance got interrupted, but you were too busy getting lost in Steve’s baby blues as your hand lingered on his arm.

Feeling a bit more confident from your praise, Steve puffed out his chest proudly and joked, “Glad I could be your knight in shining armor, darlin’. But how are you gonna repay me?”

You chuckled at his bold and suggestive question, your smile growing when you heard Javi groan again from Steve’s terribly cheesy attempt at flirting.

“Let’s get you sobered up first, big guy.” You patted his arm with a wink and smirked at him, enjoying the way his cheeks turned just a little bit rosy from your attention. “And then I’ll show you exactly how I plan on repaying you.”

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[rcl-stan]

my (probably controversial) opinions on ships

Canon:

percabeth: their relationship set the bar so damn high i want what they have 😔 10/10

jasiper: i say jasiper bc everyone argues whether or not it's jasper or jiper and it's a solid combination of the two. tbh their relationship wasn't good. like good while it lasted but if they never broke up i would've been surprised. it was also hella fake, and piper is probably gay let my girl live hera 4/10

frazel: ✨no✨ first of all (here's a side controversial opinion) i don't like frank. don't worry, i absolutely love hazel. second, that age gap? um, chile anyways 👀 sorry if you think that an eighth grader dating a junior in high school is okay, but it's a definite no for me ❤️✨ 0/10

caleo: it's cute, i like how they were a whole "destined to be together" thing and how they both believed they could never find love, but it was rushed. i have a whole long ass headcanon about how i would've done leo and calypso and their love lives better, but that's a post for another day. tbh leo's probably gay tho. the gods were nice to cal 5/10

gruniper: tbh this was the beginning of rickald sticking literally every character in a relationship but i'm happy for grover and they're really cute 7/10

charlena: they're so cute they make my heart soft 🥺 10/10

chrisse: tbh they're also super cute and i really love clarisse not being "just an asshole" like everyone can be loving and compassionate and that's sweet <3 and her saving him from insanity after the labyrinth?? and her getting dating advice she loved him so much?? 🥺👉👈 also i was simping over both of them watching sea of monsters sooo 10/10

solangelo: they're cute but i ship nico w someone else peep the non canon portion. bonus point because i love will solace more than anything and he should be known more than just being nico's bf 8/10

tysella: cute and i like how even monsters can find love but once again just ricks attempt to stick as many characters together as possible like it was so out of the blue PSA it's okay to not feel/want/find love <3 don't let fiction bring you down ily and you're doing fantastic sweetie <3 anyways 5/10

zarter: yes yes yes just YES ugh they're real cute and let me just say the red pyramid/the throne of fire broke my heart but we got back on it 10/10

saltnubus: i- just- what the fAwk 😃 they're the same person ?? i, gIrl eye- chicas it's- ugh let's just get to the rating because words can't describe this ship but numbers can 2/10 (extra points for effort and not dead walt)

Not Canon:

tratie: YES V GOOD SHIP they're adorable please make this canon we have one more book pull some strings. i remember in my most recent reread of pjo i was waiting for tratie and there was nothing and i realized it isn't canon my mind was blown. loss of a point because it's been around for so long and still hasn't been made canon, like, around for so long most people forget it's fanon until it's brought up every once in a while. 9/10

jercy: tbh i don't ship it. like they'd make good friends, but even then they'd both have multiple people they'd put over each other. 0/10

jasico: once again a hard no for me. i just don't see it. like def bros and i think jason being the ultimate good friend to nico, yeah that's cool, but no romance just bromance 1/10

pernico: ✨no✨ 0/10

pipabeth: v cute ship but once again feel like they wouldn't've been #1s to each other, better than jasiper worse than percabeth 6/10

lukabeth: FUCK THAT SHIT NONONONONO GET THAT PEDOPHILIC SHIT OUTTA HERE RIGHT NOW -92736373937373/10

thaluke: feel like they may have had a small thing when they were on the run, but it's a no for me 1/10

perachel: this ship is so valid y'all are just afraid of having this conversation well here it is. it's more similar to jasiper in how if they had gotten together i don't think they would've lasted, but there was some thiqq chemistry and they would've been really great together. and they're also really good friends, stop erasing that 😡✨ 8/10

jeyna: they would've been so great together. as much as i love me a lesbian reyna, i have to admit jason and reyna would've been lowkey goals and super adorable and just, perfect for one another. super sad hera decided to get in the way of that :/ 9/10

theyna: tbh i don't ship it. i just don't see any chem between the two. cool friends maybe, but it's a no for me. 3/10

pipeyna: yessss now that's a badass duo if i've ever seen one. turn it up! 7/10

clareyna: y'all ain't ready for this oneeee ugh like too powerful of a duo the world ain't ready but they'd be so cute i- 🥺 soft clarisse and reyna but also stern and badass clarisse and reyna ahhh this is so shmackalicious, spicetastic, words can't describe... but numbers can 10/10

clarina: a couple of cuties and they definitely had something. not bad, 6/10

valdangelo: no words can describe how much i love this ship. litch-rally gay percabeth. they're meant to be and i'll bet my life on that. like they've both gone through almost the same things, they just handled them differently. they'd feel for each other and eventually open up to each other and get along great. never feeling like they belong but finding comfort in eachother. knowing that there's someone there for them, who understands them, not feeling alone, ugh 🥺 please they're sooo cute 🥺👉👈 also forgive me if this is horribly incorrect but i feel like leo constantly flirting with every girl is just a bit of internalized homophobia ?? like if he had a super religious family i could see them being homophobic (i'm mexican and a lot of my family is like that so i can see it being like that, but not all mexicans are tho) so that could've been kinda rooted in him. he was also called el diablo by his family that could've ran through his mind a bit idk that was just a bit of random extra info anyways 10/10

valgrace: i've never gotten background on this ship?? like i'm open to options yk let me learn so like if anyone wants to elaborate on it/give me reasons to ship them i'm all ears ! but based off of what ik of them in general i don't think they'd be super great. def better as just friends, 3/10

jason + annabeth: uhm issa no from me they'd be that super bland saltine cracker couple, maybe like lifeless praetor duo or smth (if anna elizabeth was somehow roman ofc) 0/10

piper + percy: chaotic and iconic, but definitely not in a relationship 1/10

beckendorf + percy: no❤️✨ but beckendorf was definitely percy's first crush and you can't change my mind 0/10

carter + hazel: this one was a request from my ig.... idk how to feel like.. i mean.. tbh i don't even know... i haven't heard this before today, if you got reasons lmk i'm here for it but i'm very... idek what i'm feeling. ??/10

[theintelligentfool]

heyyyy im trying my hand at writing romance-ish stuff and posted the results! lmk what you think :)

“Oh, for the love of-” Ajax groaned, quietly, under his breath. The elevator door had opened to let someone in. And it was a face he’d recognize anywhere, even in civilian clothes.

It was none other than his archnemesis, Professor Sinister, the most dastardly supervillain in the city. His jet-black hair and cool blue eyes were the same as in-costume, as were his sharp facial features that his domino mask didn’t cover. His distinctive black cape and tuxedo-esque costume were gone, however, and in its place was a plain grey turtleneck and cream-colored jeans.

It was odd, seeing the Professor in casual civilian’s clothing, though Ajax had to admit it looked good on him. Not that the costume didn’t, but it was... oddly humanizing to see his archnemesis dressed like a normal person. Ajax had heard other people refer to the Professor as attractive before, and while he hadn’t disagreed, he felt like he understood those people a little better now. Not that it meant anything, of course. The Professor was his sworn enemy, evil, and all that.

The Professor didn’t seem to recognize Ajax, which was good, though it was uncomfortable standing right next to him in the small elevator. Ajax didn’t know what he’d’ve done if the Professor had recognized him. Have a fight, maybe? That’s what usually happened when they interacted. But the elevator was a small, confined space, and he was in civilian clothing. And also on the way to a job interview, though if Professor Sinister worked here, Ajax was fairly certain he didn’t want to anymore. He’d still go to the interview, of course, but if he could find anything else, he’d decline to work there.

The elevator stopped. Ajax checked the buttons. It was his floor. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the Professor doing the same thing. The doors opened. There was nothing but a wall in front of them. Ajax didn’t dare speak, for fear of getting recognized, but internally he was cursing up a storm.

The Professor groaned. He pressed the ‘call’ button on the elevator.

“Hello? Can anyone hear me? The elevator is stuck between floors, assistance required.” 

It took a couple of minutes- a couple awful, agonizing minutes that stretched like hours- but there was a response. “Remain calm. The elevator is being repaired. It should be freed within five hours.” “Thank you.”

The elevator beeped again, signaling the call was over. Ajax could no longer contain his rage. “No! No, no, no, for Christ’s sake! I can’t be trapped here!” He started pounding, futilely, against the walls of the elevator.

The Professor looked at him, raising a single eyebrow. “Claustrophobic, are you? Anyway, don’t forget, you’re not the only one trapped here.” “I’m not claustrophobic at all, actually. And I am well aware that I’m trapped in here with you, of all people, by the way.” Confusion and concern flickered across the Professor’s face for a brief moment, an expression Ajax was usually thrilled to see. “Rude,” he said, after a brief pause. “What on earth do you mean, me of all people?” “Forget it.” Ajax huffed, sneering, before he sat down against the wall. “We’re gonna be trapped here for a while. I want to interact as little as possible in that while, if you wouldn’t mind.” “...Sure.” The Professor sat down as well, rolling his eyes.

A few minutes passed. Ajax was very pointedly not looking at the Professor. The Professor, however, kept glancing at him.

“I’m sorry, you just- you seem very familiar to me. Do I know you? Have we met before?” Ajax suddenly laughed. “You could certainly say that, Lefty.” The Professor suddenly stiffened. “But the only person who calls me th-” “It’s me, Teach. Now the big reveal’s outta the way, can you please shut up? Bad enough I’m stuck here with you and you’ll probably use my civilian identity against me, but can we at least not make it any worse than it has to be.”

The Professor sneered, his entire demeanor changed. “Whatever you say, Cap’n.”

Ajax didn’t even comment on the Professor’s mockery of his name. It’s Captain, and he knew it, as he would often point out. Captain Incredible, and don’t you dare forget it. But he just was not feeling up to a banter. “Listen, if you want to have a fight, go for it, but we’re both in civilian clothes and this elevator has barely enough room for the two of us to sit. Anything more than slapping is going to end up badly for the both of us.” The Professor blinked in surprise, another expression Ajax would have loved to see on him at any other time. “What, that’s it? No correction? No banter? Are you sure you’re actually Captain Incredible…?” He furrowed his brows. 

“Yes.” Completely deadpan, Ajax shut his eyes. He rubbed his forehead in a way he rarely felt the need to do in the presence of his nemesis, or while in costume at all. He felt a headache coming on.

Slightly stunned, the Professor went quiet. Thank God for that, Ajax thought. 

A few more minutes passed, when finally the Professor couldn’t take it. “Really? No banter at all? None? Not a single witty joke or sarcastic remark or flippant one-liner?” “Fine, here’s a one-liner: I’m really not in the mood for banter. Or, for that matter, conversation.” “Technically, that’s two lines.” “Listen, lefty, I told you- I’m not in the mood today.”

“Wow. I know I’ve always said you need to shut up and stop making jokes, but it’s honestly really weird not hearing them from you. Are… Are you okay, Cap?” The Professor looked extremely uncomfortable as he asked. Ajax laughed humorlessly. “Wow, lefty, asking your sworn enemy if he’s okay? Are you going soft? One wonders what that will do for your reputation.” He carefully dodged the question, not really feeling like lying, even to the Professor. “It’s just the two of us trapped in an elevator. My reputation is irrelevant right now. And if you try and tell anyone it even happened, I’ll deny it ‘till the day I die.” 

Ajax rolled his eyes, but he was feeling a little bit better. Their banter always seemed to lift his mood. “Can I ask a question?” “Go for it, teach,” Ajax said flatly. He wasn’t feeling that much better, though.

“Why do you call me ‘lefty’? Literally no one else does and I have always wondered. I’m not even left-handed!” The Professor gestured as he spoke, pointing at his left hand. “Oh, easy question. I thought you already knew. I looked up synonyms for ‘sinister’ online one day, and apparently it also means ‘left-handed.’ Who knew?” “That… that answer makes more sense than I thought it would,” admitted the Professor.

To this, Ajax simply shrugged. He didn’t really have enough energy to continue the conversation.

About an hour passed in silence far more comfortable than sitting practically right next to your sworn enemy should be. After a while, the Professor even brought out his phone. 

“You know there’s no real signal in here, right?” “I know, I’m just playing Tetris.” “Shut up, there is no way in hell that you, the officially most dastardly supervillain in the entire city according to a recent census poll, literal evil incarnate, genuine public nuisance, disruptor of the peace, actual literal supervillain, child kidnapper, the world’s worst jerk, the guy-”

“You done?” “-with the literal worst score in the history of ratemyprofessor, horrible interrupter of sentences, frequent guest star in children’s nightmares, plays freaking Tetris.” “I have hobbies outside of evil, you know.” The Professor seemed vaguely miffed. “Sure you do.” Ajax over-exaggeratedly rolled his eyes. 

A few more moments of comfortable silence passed, marked only by the very faint Tetris theme playing from the Professor’s phone. Ajax resisted humming along, for the most part.

“Okay, wait, hang on, what’s your high score?” He had to ask. “Eh?” The Professor paused his game and looked up, tilting his head slightly to the right. “On Tetris. Your high score.” “378,067. Why?” Ajax checked his own phone and compared scores. “Oh, damn it!” “Oh? Do you happen to have a lower high score than I do?” The Professor did a full-on evil cackle, at least partially for comedic sake. He was really good at the manic cackle.

“By literally thirty points. I swear to God-” “Ha! This is great. You’ve practically admitted your inferior intelligence to me.” Ajax went bright red. His intelligence was a sore subject. “Thirty points is almost nothing, and you know it.” “But do you? That’s the real question. Can your tiny monkey brain comprehend numbers properly?” Ah, yes, the most antagonistic side of their banter, usually where the Professor mocked some trait of Ajax’s, and Ajax would respond with a rude comment of his own. It was always about as good-natured as the rest, but for this particular topic, Ajax was a little less willing to crack jokes or put up with harsh comments. “I don’t know why I’m even talking to you.” “Exactly: you don’t know. You’re incapable of using logic and reasoning. Something unsurprising to anyone who’s known you for more than ten minutes.” The Professor grinned, all teeth. “Just… Just shut up, alright? I really don’t need to hear any more comments about my intelligence or lack thereof today, okay? Please?” His voice cracked a little, and internally, he cursed himself for it. The Professor blinked in surprise. This was not a usual occurrence. Usually, the two would match each other, comment for comment, attack for attack. It rubbed on them both the wrong way whenever the dynamic became unbalanced in either direction, Ajax knew that much. It always made him feel guilty, somehow, when it was unbalanced in his favor. He wasn’t sure about why the Professor disliked it, though. Ajax liked to think the Professor also felt bad when the dynamic was unbalanced in his favor, though that was just wishful thinking.

The Professor, in a surprising turn of events, shut up.

“...Thank you.” Ajax mumbled, quietly.

The Professor nearly jumped in response to the thanks, looking startled, and then like he finally had the last piece of a puzzle.. “You’re not Captain Incredible! You’re some sort of clone! That explains the lack of proper banter, too… You’re an insult to his name!” The Professor leaped to his feet, seemingly ready to attack. Ajax raised an eyebrow. “Since when do you care when my name is insulted? Half the time, you’re the one that’s insulting it.”

“It’s not your name, it’s the Captain’s name.” The Professor wrinkled his nose in distaste.

Ajax rolled his eyes. “Is this the part where I’m supposed to answer a question only I would know the answer to?” “Very funny, clone. What have you done to the real Captain Incredible?!” “Again, since when do you care what anyone’s done to me? You’re the one to... do things to me, for lack of a better way to phrase it, well over half the time.” “I’ve done nothing to you, clone. That accusation might be fair game if you were the Captain. But, as you are not, that accusation is null and void and meaningless.” The Professor glared. “I swear to god, lefty. This is getting old fast. I’m the real me, the real Captain Incredible, you got me to admit it live on the elevator camera that may or may not exist and the microphone that may or may not exist. Well done, you did your evil scheme, but jokes on you, I have stopped caring.” The Professor seemed a little startled. “What evil sch- Oh, actually, that would have been fairly clever…” The Professor paused for half a moment, considering it, before snapping out of it. “But no, I wasn’t planning on anything like that. And that’s another proof you’re not the real Captain, you don’t care about his secret identity. I once saw him nearly- key word, nearly- kill a lower-level villain for even implying he knew his name. At least stand up and fight me or something instead of just sitting here.” Ajax did not stand up. “Wasn’t my proudest moment.” He shrugged.  “Listen, Prof, I’m telling the truth. I’m me!” He exclaimed, exasperatedly. “If you wanna know so bad why I haven’t been bantering or what have you and don’t really care about my secret identity even half as much anymore, you could've just asked! God, you’re so dramatic.” Ajax was not always against his nemeses’ tendency to err on the dramatic side of things, being a fair bit dramatic himself. But it was rather annoying at times. 

Ajax took a deep breath. “My girlfriend found out about my secret identity about a month ago and broke up with me. It was messy. It was horrible. My heart was broken. And to make it worse, she pulled some strings and got me fired from my job. I’ve been officially unemployed for the last three weeks because she was mad about me keeping a secret from her even though the secret could have cost her life. I’ve been a mess! She kicked me out of our apartment, too, and now I’m living with my old college roommate and trying desperately to get another job. I’m here to apply, actually.”

Ajax took another deep breath. “Today in particular’s been really rough because almost the entire time I was there at the apartment this morning, my roommate kept making passive-aggressive comments, mainly about my intelligence, which has always been a bit of a sore spot for me anyway.”

“What a complicated backstory for a clone.” The Professor narrowed his eyes. “Lefty, I swear to whatever god is listening, I’m not a clone. You know what, I’ll even tell you something to prove it, something I’ve never willingly told anyone who’s met Captain Incredible. My name is A-” “No.” The Professor shook his head vividly.

“Eh? It’s what you always wanted, isn’t it? Know my name, go after my family, make life a living hell for everyone I’ve ever loved? I don’t care anymore. I’ve got no real friends outside the Heroes’ League, my family disowned me years ago, and ‘everyone I’ve ever loved’ is a list that seems to be shortening itself.” “Look, clone, I don’t know how much of what you said is true, and I don’t care to find out. I owe the real Captain Incredible at least that much respect. I’m not interested in uncovering his identity, name or other details aside. And what’s more, I don’t want a clone of him telling me anything he doesn’t want me to know.”

Now it was Ajax’s turn to blink in surprise. “That was… honestly surprising to hear. And kind of nice, if I’m being honest. It’s nice to hear you hold me in such positive regard, lefty. I think I kind of needed to hear that at least someone does. That, and I think that’s the actual nicest thing you have ever said to me.” Why did he want to smile at that? It wasn’t that nice of a comment, and surely he couldn’t be that desperate for praise- from the Professor, of all people.

The Professor seemed to soften a little, before immediately hardening again. He sat back down. “I still don’t think you’re the real Captain, but you don’t seem immediately hostile.”

“Well jeez, real sweet. Not immediately hostile. This whole clone thing is driving me nuts, teach. How can I prove to you I’m the real me?”

“Well, obviously, you can’t. Any personal secrets, I wouldn’t be able to verify, and most of our interactions show up regularly in news articles.”

“Seriously? Nothing I can do? At all?”

The Professor thought for a moment. “Fine. A question only you and I would know the answers to. I thought of one.” “Well? Get on with it.” “Where did our real first battle take place? Not the one that got published and shown on TV, but the one with just the two of us where you called me a lily-livered cur.” A ghost of a smile seemed to flicker across the Professor’s face at the memory, but it was gone before Ajax could be sure. “Uh, hang on. I know it was somewhere by Central Park, I think, ‘cause there was that mugger and it was right by my apartment… Ha, that was when we still had our first costumes. Gosh, we looked so stupid. Anyway, final answer, Central Park, by the hydrangea bush. I remember it almost fondly, truth be told.” He probably shouldn’t remember it fondly. It was a battle with his archnemesis. But it was his first battle with him, and they’d both been so stupid about the whole thing, and it was funny to think about and somehow incredibly nostalgic. Which made it a pleasant memory, despite his knowing better. “Well, damn. It really is you. I mean, unless whatever pretending to be you is able to see your memories… Or you told someone and I didn’t know…” “Lefty. I’m warning you.”

“Fine, fine. Paranoia off.” The Professor mimed flicking a switch off, to prove his point. Ajax tried not to smile at that.

Ajax took a deep breath. “Does that mean you believe me about everything else now, too?” “Yeah, I guess so. Sorry to hear it, by the way. That sounds like it really sucks.” “You’ve got absolutely no idea, Teach.” Ajax chuckled humorlessly, but still managed to crack a small smile. And at that, silence fell over the two of them. Once again, it was a far more comfortable and companionable silence than any silence between two sworn enemies has a right to be.

“Attention, passengers of elevator 7B! There have been delays in attempts to fix the elevator. The projected time for your rescue is now ten hours. Over and out.” “WHAT?!” Ajax screamed. “No! No no no! Come on!”

“What, can’t stand any more time in my company? I’d rather thought we’d been starting to get along.” “We’re still sworn enemies, you know. And I still don’t like being trapped for ten hours with anyone.” Ajax sighed. “Besides, you’re still evil.” He said that as much to say it to the Professor as he did to remind himself of the fact. “And what exactly is that supposed to mean?” The Professor asked, clearly upset. Ajax briefly regretted his comment, but did his best to ignore it.

“You’ve still hurt people, stolen from people, committed heinous crimes against the citizens of this city. A villain’s a villain, teach. You were voted the official single most dastardly supervillain in the city for a reason.” Again, Ajax was speaking to the Professor as much as he was saying it to remind himself. This man is not your friend, Ajax, he reminded himself. “Hey, y’know what? I’m the only prominent supervillain in this city, probably in this continent, even, without a death count. That’s gotta count for something.” The Professor almost looked genuinely hurt, but Ajax hadn’t seen him with that vulnerable of an expression before enough to tell. “I hurt people mainly when it is unavoidable. I’m mostly just about teaching everyone a lesson, you know that better than anyone. It’s not like there was any other way to get my message heard, and to get people to listen.” “Oh yeah? And what message exactly is that, huh?”

“The rich have done nothing for our city. Our country. The lower classes suffer, straining under the weight of the upper class, the 1%, and so does the climate. But apparently, pointing that out and trying to actually do something about that is villainy.” “No, that’s activism. Honestly, it's a great ideology, in theory, and I could respect you for it, but that’s not exactly what you’ve been doing. Kidnapping the mayor’s son, however, and holding him hostage? That is villainy.”

The Professor gave a shrug. “It’s the only way he would listen, and the only reason I did that was so I could get him to pass a law restricting pollution here in the city. But before I could even send the ransom note- and really, is it even ransom since I wasn’t asking for money?- you and several other quote-unquote “heroes” showed up to take the little brat back. I didn’t hurt a hair on that kids head, despite what you seemed to think, and I even went as far as going out of my way to prevent injury to him during his, however brief, stay. I didn’t even knock him out!” “I… I didn’t know that you weren’t asking for money,” Ajax said after a minute. He bit the inside of his cheek, trying to recall what the mission briefing had been like. All the director had said was that the Professor was holding the mayors son hostage. On one hand, it was still definitely evil to kidnap a child, but on the other, the Professor did kind of make a point. “Or what you really were asking for. And while I suspected, I guess I didn’t actually know that you also were going out of your way not to hurt him. The other heroes rationalized it by saying you hadn’t begun torturing him yet, or whatever, but I wasn’t quite sure. It’s a nice confirmation, I guess.”

“I’m sure it is.” There was little warmth in the Professor’s gaze. He seemed irritated at the subject having been brought up. “That’s not my only plot for a better life that you and the other quote-unquote “heroes” have foiled. It gets frustrating, sometimes. I mean, I have to keep up appearances and reputation, now, because if any other supervillain in the city gets the notion I’m not as sinister as my name suggests, or on the side for a better future at any cost, or what have you, I’ll be fed to the sharks. And I mean that literally.”

“Sounds gruesome.” “Oh, you think? I hadn’t noticed,” the Professor said, sarcastically. “Being an official villain has its perks, though. I get my message out, some people listen, and I get the resources of the Villain’s League. I mean, it’s not easy having everyone in the city who doesn’t live under a rock hate everything about you, but I have a decent disguise- though I’m not really surprised you recognized me- and no one’s figured out my identity yet. I’ve never really been one to care about others' opinions of me anyway.” 

Ajax didn’t really know what to say. The Professor was trusting him a lot with this information, and he didn’t know what to do with it. Mostly, he was trying to make peace with the fact that just about everything he thought he knew about his archnemesis was wrong. Practically the only accurate things he actually knew about him prior to this encounter were that he looked good in spandex (not that Ajax would ever admit this to anyone), he had a wry sense of humor that was sharp enough to cut, and he had a hell of a right hook. Almost everything else was a dumb assumption about ethics. Ajax honestly kind of felt like he owed him an apology, at this point, but didn’t know how he’d take it. 

But he couldn’t just not say anything. 

“That… Honestly sounds really rough. I’m sorry to be one of the people that made it rougher.” The Professor seems thoroughly surprised. “The Captain, apologizing? Are you sure you’re not a clone?” After one look at Ajax’s expression, he chuckles. “Kidding, kidding.” 

“I may not agree with all of your decisions, and I’ll still try to stop you when you’re plotting to take over or what have you, but I can understand your intentions are noble. I’ve made too many assumptions about you, I think, and your villainous title.” 

The Professor paused for a moment, searching for the right words to respond with. “...Thanks, Captain. I’ll be honest, I still disagree with how you’re going about heroism, but I can also sort of see how you’d think that I can respect what you do.” Ajax was surprised not to detect the expected note of condescension in that last remark.

“And what more could I really hope for?” Ajax smiled, one of the few genuine smiles he’d ever shown to his nemesis.

“A higher score on Tetris, maybe?” Ajax’s expression very quickly became a comical, over-exaggerated scowl. He retained composure for about a minute before he burst out laughing. The Professor joined in laughing too, and for once, it wasn’t a maniacal cackle. Ajax decided he very much liked the sound of it.

A few hours later, filled mostly with silence and partially with a comfortable conversation and banter, Ajax checked his watch. It was nearly 11 at night. So that’s why he was so tired. He leaned against the elevator wall. “So, how much longer should it be, now?” “Maybe an hour and a half. Are you really comfortable sleeping right here in the elevator?” “That should be enough time for some shuteye. I’m very, very tired. I think I’m comfortable with most sleeping positions and places right now.” “Fair enough, I suppose. But still, with another person right there? Your sworn enemy, no less? There’s no way you trust me that much.” “Don’t be ridiculous. If you were going to try and attack me, you’d’ve done so already. Admittedly, though, if you’d asked me this morning if it was even a possibility, I’d’ve laughed in your face and called you an idiot.” Ajax shrugs. “The elevator rules seem to be different than normal fight rules.” 

The Professor nodded in agreement. “Oh, and speaking of normal fight rules, are we ever going to be acknowledging this? Whether vaguely in public ‘something happened’ or by simply agreeing to go a little easier on each other?”

Ajax paused for a moment. “That’s a good question. Well, I don’t think we can acknowledge it to the public or any news outlets, that just feels like a violation of privacy. And if we go easier on each other, are we still archnemeses? Do we have to get new archnemeses?” The Professor scoffed. “Don’t be ridiculous. I could never be happy with another archnemesis. You’ve spoiled me for anyone else. None of them will have the same banter.” “Honestly, I feel much the same.” And more besides. Their rivalry was a relationship he didn’t really want to lose. Even before the elevator, he’d considered them to be very good rivals. They knew each other, shared a sense of humor, and had enough respect for one another that neither evil schemes nor heroic plans ever went too far. That was more than what he could say about most archnemeses. Of course, they still hated each other, or had hated each other, but there’s a very special kind of hate for an archnemesis. Sure, you’re against everything they stand for and they could say the same of you, but you just sort of clicked together and, on special occasions, could almost be like friends. Friends who hate each other, sure, but still. “Couldn’t get the same theatrics from Molerat, now could I?” That, and somehow, the idea of the Professor fighting someone else the same way the two of them fought made him uneasy. He’d almost say jealous, but that’d be ridiculous. Possessive, even more ridiculous.

But not unaccurate in either case, not entirely. Ajax chuckled inwardly at the thought. “Ugh, don’t even speak his name to me, Captain. He is the worst. He threw dirt at everyone at our last Villain League dinner party.” “Oh? Do I have a competition for my rivalry?” Ajax joked. He did his best to sound casual, but honestly he really hoped not. Sure, probably not, he trusted the Professor at least that much, but, well, still. He was too tired for this.

The Professor put his hand to his chest, miming a scandalized expression. “Why of course not, Captain. Besides, didn’t I just say you’d ruined me for anyone else?” Ajax laughed, before trying to get back into character to finish the joke. “A filthy liar like you’d say anything to fool me, Professor. How can I trust a word out of your mouth?” The Professor gasped, trying to hide a grin. “How could you say such a thing? I’d never lie! Not to you, Captain, never to you.” Ajax made a show of softening his expression. “Oh, Professor, you know I didn’t mean such harsh words. My rage got the better of me again. I know you’ve been faithful.” They both burst out laughing. “Well, I don’t know what that was, but that was fun.” The Professor said, miming wiping a tear from his eye.

“I think it counts as improv. Hey, wasn’t I about to go to sleep?” “Oh, I suppose you were. Still, there’s only an hour left before we get rescued. Is that enough time to sleep?” “Enough time to try, at least.” Ajax yawned and stretched his arms- difficult, due to the cramped nature of the space, only narrowly missing the Professor- and leaned into the corner of the elevator. He shut his eyes.

Next thing he knew, the elevator was moving. They reached their floor. “Haha, yes!” Ajax pumped his fist excitedly, tired as he was. He stood up, slowly, stretching his legs. The Professor stood up as well, a ghost of a smile on his lips.

“Ready to go to your job interview, Captain?” “Eat sh-” Ajax cut himself off, suddenly remembering they were in an office workspace he’d been about to apply to. “Language!” The Professor gasped again in mock scandal. 

“Yeah, yeah. Anyway, what were you here for? I know I was here for the job interview, but were you? Or do you work here?” “Oh, I work here. I was on my way to my cubicle. But, as it’s past midnight and no fault of mine I wasn’t able to get anything done, I’m just going to go home.” “Yeah, that seems reasonable. If you were anyone else, I’d tell you to be careful, shady stuff happens to people who walk around the city after dark.” “But you wouldn’t tell me? I’m wounded, Captain. Do you not care about my health?” “Somehow, Professor, I don’t think you’re in any danger from anything shady this city has to offer. Most dastardly villain and all. You’re practically half the shady stuff that goes on after dark, no?” “No, actually. I’m usually at home after dark, and at this time of night I’d be asleep. With very few exceptions for very special schemes.”

“Fair enough,” Ajax conceded. They walked together, talking all the while, until they reached the doors.

“Good night,” The Professor said, smiling.

“See you tomorrow, maybe?” Ajax offered. 

“Oh, I dunno. None of my proper evil schemes will be ready by then.” “Aw, that’s a shame. See you when your schemes are ready, then.” “Oh, I might think of something for tomorrow. Maybe I’ll rob a bank, that’s a classic.” “I look forward to stopping you.” And he honestly did. Ajax grinned, not entirely intentionally.

“See you then. Be careful, by the way. I heard shady stuff happens to people who walk alone at night after dark...” The Professor said, cryptically.

“Ha, ha.”

And so, the two of them parted ways. They’d both agreed to never speak of the incident to anyone, and Ajax trusted that neither would.

[vxliant-blog]

is that FINN WITTROCK? no, that’s DICK GRAYSON also known by some as NIGHTWING but the world thinks he is just a SECURITY OPERATIVE AT WAYNE ENTERPRISES. if I’m not mistaken HE is TWENTY-EIGHT and he was  AGAINST the hero ban. (ooc meg, she/her, 18, est)

ayyyyyy idk if y’all remember me but i played dick for a little while and had to leave about a month ago bc i started college and things were getting hectic af!! but i’m all settled in and things have quieted down so i’m back (holla)!!! anyways u guys know the drill message me for plots blah blah blah… i’m just gonna copy and paste my original intro post bc im lazy and nothing’s rlly changed. ( SIDE NOTE: i’m going to drop all the threads and little plots that I had going before i left, but if you wanna keep one of ‘em going lmk!!! )

( disclaimer: if any of this clashes with the canon of your own character, PLEASE shoot me a message and i will change the SHIT outta it! )

dick’s childhood was equally unconventional and tragic - as the youngest member of the flying graysons, his first couple years were a montage of circus tents and touring cities. at twelve years old, dick witnessed the horrific death of his parents after a trapeze snapped in the middle of a show.

long story short, this event catalyzed bruce wayne’s interest in him and it wasn’t long before dick had taken on the mantle of robin, tights and all.

after several years of prancing around on the rooftops, the idea of being batman’s ‘sidekick’ grew less and less appealing. at this point, dick felt like his capabilities were exceeding his current namesake, and so he abandoned the tunic and tights (tragic, i know) for black and blue spandex. thus, nightwing was born.

it was around this time that whispers of a new band of young heroes forming in the shadow of the justice league were circulating around the city. dick, eager to separate himself from being ‘batman’s sidekick’ for the rest of eternity, jumped at the opportunity to join what was now the teen titans.

during his stint as pseudo-leader of the teen titans, rumors of the SRP were beginning to circulate.  it goes without saying that dick was at the forefront of the resistance against this new legislation, but the efforts were ultimately futile.

forced by the hand of the SRP, the tt disbanded and left dick stuck between a rock and a hard place. not seeing any other way to fulfil his yearning for justice, he enrolled in the police academy. he emerged at the top of his class and was thrust into the tumult of star city as a rookie officer.

after a short year and a half with the force, all hell broke loose when it started to rain aliens. unsurprisingly, he took the opportunity to dust of the nightwing mantle and fight alongside the rest of his family. when the invasion was over, dick couldn’t bear to return to the police force, instead returning to wayne industries as a “security operative.” this wasn’t so much a real job as a title to appease the public, but dick knew in his heart of hearts that he needed to be with the batfam in order to combat the hero ban.

[lettuce-seize-the-day]

Found ch. 4

Chapter 4 is finished! AO3 link is here but the chapter is also posted below the cut. Lmk whatcha think! <3

Summary: Jack Kelly is a 17 year old kid who has been in the foster system for more of his life than not. By now he's given up on finding his forever family and is counting down the days until he turns 18. Four months before the deadline, Miss Medda Larkin decides she is going to adopt him.

At the end of the day, Race came and found Jack and they walked out of the school together to a nearby bench out of the flow of people-traffic. “Hey, so Medda dropped us off this mornin’ since it was the first day n’all, but usually we’re gonna hafta take the train,” said Race. “Same thing goin’ home. Ya seen Crutchie yet?”

“Nah, not yet. He’s got his classes on the otha’ side’a the buildin’ though, right, since he’s a freshman?”

“Yeah, plus he’s got the crutch ta deal with,” added Race, sitting down on the bench.

“Think we oughta go look for ‘im?” asked Jack.

Race shook his head as he pulled out a cigarette. “Nah, he knows this is where we meet. Leavin’ this spot would just get ‘im all confused once he does get here. We’ll just-” Race froze with the unlit cigarette in his lip. His eyes were locked onto something. Jack looked in the direction he was staring and saw a brunette boy with very defined muscles walking out of the same door they just came through. He didn’t notice Jack or Race as he was laughing with a big group of boys, all of them very muscular and rather attractive. Jack recognized him from his chemistry class, which he also shared with Race. He looked back at Race- he was completely mesmerized. “Racer?” asked Jack, amused. He waved his hand in front of his face, which seemed to snap him out of it.

“Sorry. What was I sayin’?” said Race. He pulled out a lighter and lit his cigarette. “Crutchie’ll find us here.”

“Who’s that guy you was makin’ googly eyes at?” asked Jack.

Race blushed as he took a drag of his cigarette. “That there is Spot Conlon. Captain of the baseball team. Member of the soccer team. Doesn’t have a clue I’s exist, obviously.”

“You ain’t neva talked to him?” asked Jack.

“He’s in our chem class, but we ain’t talked much. Last year, we had English Lit togedda. We was readin’ Shakespeare an’ he read for Romeo an’ I read for Juliet. He’s fuh-sure forgot about it by now, but that was it for me. He’s real funny though, and one’a the nicest jocks I ever meet. I just ain’t neva got the nerve to talk to ‘im forreals. Way outta my league. Pun intended.”

Jack gave a small smile. “Well, for what it’s worth, I think youz in the same league as him, fuh-sure.”

Race took a drag of his cigarette and gave a sad smile. “Thanks, Jackie.”

For a moment, there was a pause. Then Jack took a deep breath. “Listen, Racer… I gotta ask ya somethin’.”

Race looked up at him, his blue eyes sparkling beautifully in the sunlight. “Sure, what’sup, Jack?”

“Well, I was jus’ thinkin’ about earlier when youz tried to gimme ya lunch, and then told me not ta tell Medda. And then, when I didn’t take it, ya still threw it all away,” Jack said.

Race stared at him, unreactive. “What’s ya point, Jack?”

“I dunno,” he replied. “It ain’t none’a my business, and I ain’t no narc. I jus’ wanted ta ask if ya doin’ alright.”

Race took another drag of his cigarette, then tapped the ashes off the edge of the bench. He looked up at Jack and gave a smile. “Don’ worry ‘bout me, Jack. I jus’ ain’t had a big appetite today. I asked ya not ta mention it ta Medda because I ain’t wanna hurt her feelins’. That’s all. I ‘preciate youz checkin’ in, but I’m alright.”

Jack looked at him for a second. Something told him he wasn’t telling the whole truth. But he also knew that if Race didn’t want to talk about it, he wasn’t going to talk about it. Not until he was ready.

“Yeah, yeah I figured,” Jack said, laughing it off. “I jus’ thought I’d ask anyway.”

Race smiled as he took a final drag. “‘Sides, c’mon, I ain’t skinny enough ta have that kinda problem,” he joked before dropping the cigarette butt on the cement and squishing it below his foot. While he was picking it up off the ground, before Jack could say anything at all, they heard Crutchie’s voice.

“Sorry if I kept ya waitin’” said Crutchie, clearly out of breath. “We ready ta go?”

Race stood up and threw away his cigarette. “Yeah, we’re ready,” he said, picking up his backpack. “Let’s go get on that train.”