#cass and wednesday

[thecharliechip]

cass and wednesday addams would get along well imo

[mysteriousbeetle]

(from Batgirl (2024) #5)

SO IMPORTANT BTW.

[livsoulsecrets]

Batgirl #5

I started crying during office hours while I read this. No words for how hard it hit, I just need to sob some more and then maybe I can articulate a full thought

[donnatroia]

there’s something about this juxtaposition that has me sooo entranced.. dick & cass as the two halves of his legacy.. his light and his darkness..

[fantastic-nonsense]

I need Sin to meet Damian and Maya RIGHT NOW, DC

[casscainmainly]

So as much as I loved Batgirl #5, I did kind of raise an eyebrow at this panel:

It's a sweet sentiment but not one I think Cass would have; this kind of sympathy towards her younger self, particularly this idea that she had "no control of her life," runs counter to my view of her self-hatred and guilt. Elsewhere in this sequence she talks about that self-hatred, which feels more true to Cass, and to me somewhat contradicts the way Cass is fully embracing her child self here. I do not think Cass would ever shift the autonomy of her killing away from herself by saying she was "lost" and had "no control."

But then I thought harder about it, about the times when Cass was more forgiving of herself, and realised there was a common denominator: the one and only Stephanie Brown.

From the beginning Steph is associated with communication and language - Brombal nods to that here, where Steph allows her to "find those words." In Batgirl (2000) #20, arguably the start of the Steph-Cass relationship, Cass goes to Steph for reading help. Stephanie has always been a source of communication and connection for Cass, both things David Cain withheld from her.

Then we have this scene in Batgirl (2000) #28, which is SO important to Cass' conception of Stephanie. The "you... won't last" isn't only referring to their sparring, but to Steph being Cass' "best friend" - Cass doubts whether anyone can truly love her like that. But Steph impresses Cass with her tenacity, making Cass realise that this is someone who never gives up, no matter the odds. Someone who might actually, truly be able to love her.

It's this foundation that allows Cass to relate her experiences to Steph's abuse from her own father:

Steph's friendship allows Cass to acknowledge, on some level, that what David Cain did to her was abusive. It's a crucial step to mitigating some of that eternal guilt she holds, and seeing herself as someone worthy of love.

It's why Steph's conversation with Cass in #38 kickstarts Cass' journey of romantic discovery. It's not necessarily the possible crush she has on Steph, but that Steph as a whole represents romantic possibility.

Then Stephanie dies, and we get #62:

Imagined-Steph encourages Cass to fight for her life. This is huge compared to Cass' death wish in the beginning of Batgirl (2000) - even though Shiva helps her overcome that in #25, this is the first time we see Cass fully embracing her desire to live, fully choosing to live. And this choice is framed not through her own voice, but through Stephanie's. It's as if Steph represents the fact that Cass is actually worth saving.

So although some other people might have worked for this hallucination, for this specific part - Cass embracing her younger self - I think no one would have allowed her to do it except Stephanie. Nobody except Steph allows her to look at herself as someone worthy of compassion and love.

Batgirls (2022) #14 and #15

[lemonlimestar]

( batgirl 2024 spoilers for issue #5 )

and god i know the stephcass is awesome and i love it so much but this panel in particular GOT ME. how she’s talking about hating the parts of her that are a murderer, but also hating & loving shiva for being a living example of what those parts of her can (and—at times—have) become OUGHHHH. AND THEN SHE HUGS HER CHILD SELF, FROM THE MOMENT SHE STARTED HATING HERSELF, THE MOMENT SHE BECAME A MURDERER. FUCKKKK WE GOTTA ALL KILL OURSELVES 😭

[brucie-baby]

kitty cat😭😭

[aingeal98]

Batgirl spoilers

I am going to be thinking about this issue and this dream sequence for a very long time.

[eemamminy-art]

wip wednesday!!!

I was tagged by @lilas !! I'm always working on a zillion things so the hardest part is picking which thing(s) to share haha

No pressure tags: @henarikat @4th-make-quail @fuerrziah @phillypumpkin @oorangesoda @gothgarbageboy @fishyfarms @theasnewgroove @benjineedssleep @usernamemybeloathed @halixius @hullygeee @starskullz -- and anyone else who sees this and wants to share something!

This is the main thing I'd really like to finish this month:

I feel like I need to mess with the pose a little, particularly Sebastian's legs... dude is tall in my version but I fear he's displacing his hips

also some year of the otp wips for the next three months!

And under the cut I'll post a writing snippet! It's a chapter much later in my fic, chapter 65 currently if I don't keep ADDING CHAPTERS 😩😩😩 I don't think this bit reveals anything about the plot, it's a scene where Sebastian is really fucked up and turns to Mal because he has nowhere else to go:

“Are you alone?” Sebastian asked quickly. “I need to talk to you.”

“Yeah, it’s just me here,” Mallory admitted. “Would you like to come in?”

“No, can you just come outside?” Sebastian asked hurriedly. “I want to be able to smoke while we talk.”

“Yeah, sure,” Mallory agreed, slipping on his shoes and a light hoodie before he stepped out onto the porch to meet Sebastian.

“I don’t know who else to turn to,” Sebastian admitted bitterly as he sat down on the porch steps, pulling out a pack of cigarettes and his lighter from his pockets. “And even though I know I don’t deserve it, you’ve always been good to me.”

The metal flicked as he spun the wheel of the lighter, blowing away the smoke of the first hurried drag of his cigarette in the opposite direction of Mallory as he pocketed the pack and lighter once again.

Mallory sat beside him, taking care to make sure that there was still ample space between them, his back pressed into the wooden railings of the deck. His long legs cascaded down the length of the steps, while Sebastian pulled his knees close to himself, his own equally long legs kinked up like a dead spider. One knee bounced anxiously, the wood creaking beneath them.

“Where's your boyfriend anyway?” Sebastian asked suddenly, looking around nervously as if Alex were lurking nearby waiting to ambush him. “I thought for sure he would have been here, he’s always with you.”

Only the orange and pink fading light of sunset greeted him, the silhouettes of distant fruit trees and the chicken coop which had gone quiet sat on the horizon unassumingly. A few yards away, the creek trickled and splashed lightly, and insects hummed and sang their usual songs to usher in the summer evening.

“It’s Sunday,” Mallory said simply. “He’s at home, watching sports with his grandpa like always.”

“Oh. Of course,” Sebastian rolled his eyes. “I wonder what it’s like to have a family who gives a shit about you.”

Mallory frowned knowingly, making Sebastian wince. How was he so good at fucking things up? It was a talent, truly.

“Sorry,” Sebastian muttered. “I know you’ve had it rough too.”

“Maru cares about you,” Mallory reminded. “She told me so. She wishes she was closer to you.”

“She does?” Sebastian croaked, compressing himself into a somehow even smaller ball of skinny limbs. “More things I just keep fucking up, I guess.”

[gnomewithalaptop]

Oh my god is this the return of the flower motif -- I am literally going to vibrate into a million pieces

[redstonekate]

Joke courtesy of @string-star-lights! The brown haired lady in the meme is Hallucination Steph obvi

[livsoulsecrets]

Birds of Prey #22

Cass being worried about Barda was so sweet, I need them reunited

[donnatroia]

cass fans. happy to inform you that we have never been so back

[fantastic-nonsense]

the paragraphs I'm going to write on this spread at some point when I get ahold of myself….anyway, the emotional crux of the whole issue is right here

[casscainmainly]

These are obviously Cass' top 3 people ever but Babs being in her own panel with an exclamation point... it's so rare for her to be above Steph nowadays is the Babs Cass relationship coming back for real??? Mother-daughter Babs Cass 2025????? We're so close to perfection...