#12freddofrogs writes

[12freddofrogs]

Okay. So having finished season one of OUAT, I might do a better summing up post of the things to actually sum up in a second. But first, I have just been thinking about all the characters who actually know their histories and backstories have been told to thousands of children as bedside stories, and how they probably feel about it.

There were four people who completely, 100 percent knew that they weren't from this world (who also had the theoretical opportunity to research fairytales; I kinda doubt Maleficent did): Regina, Gold, Jefferson, and August. As of yet, at least. Maybe later seasons will reveal that Tiana or someone was also there with her full memories.

Regina probably didn't buy a copy of Snow White for Henry (I maintain my theory Henry's first introduction to that specific fairytale was in the storybook), but she was probably curious. She might have picked up a copy of the Grimm's tale and laughed at most of it, successfully ignoring the slight twist in her stomach at the description of the Evil Queen's brutal death. Regina could have even put on the most famous movie version, the Disney cartoon, and deliberately gagged throughout the singing birds. She might have made a snarky comment at the Happily Ever After ("You sure about that?") and then tossed out the DVD. Ultimately, she's aware of the tale, but hasn't really studied it.

Mr Gold absolutely read a version of Rumpelstiltskin or two. He probably would have watched the movie, but there isn't really a mainstream American Rumpelstiltskin movie. A couple can be found here and there, but it doesn't seem to be a hugely popular movie to adapt. The biggest one I can think of is the third Shrek, and Mr Gold doesn't particularly strike me as someone who would sit down and watch Shrek for its own sake.

That said, he was trapped in time for almost thirty years, during which he could do very little. Refine his plans, gather information, the general running of a store, but he was stuck in Storybrooke for a long time. It's not impossible to me things would contrive until he found himself watching Shrek 3. And honestly? I think he wouldn't hate his portrayal in that movie. That particular Rumpelstiltskin was smart, made deals and kept them despite looking for loopholes, collected power, was terrifying in his own right despite being a comedic character in a comedic film. He was a villain, but it's not like the Dark One has ever particularly been surprised at that title.

My first thought on Jefferson was that he probably hadn't read Alice in Wonderland, but then I realised that he absolutely, most definitely had. So many times, in every variation he could find. Jefferson has spent those thirty years desperately looking for a way to go back. There is no doubt that the Mad Hatter has been intensely studying what seems to be the biggest link between the Enchanted Forest (and Wonderland) and the Land Without Magic: the fact that somehow the stories themselves are leaking through in variations.

He's watched movies. He's read Alice and Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass, and read books on those books. He's played video games and watched kid's cartoons and read dumb romances that seem to have no link other than the characters having familiar names. Jefferson has noticed that, for some reason, the Disney cartoon appears to be the most accurate.

Not just for Alice in Wonderland, but for all of them. Some of the other stories he only knew by reputation, or rumour, and he can't actually ask Mary Margaret what elements of the Snow White tale were true or not. That said, he knows that dwarves have names like Grumpy and Doc, and only Disney seems to have given that name. He'd heard of the fairy Maleficient, and every other variation of Sleeping Beauty gave the uninvited fairy a different name. Disney isn't exactly accurate but they are closer than anyone else, including the original tales. What does that mean? He has no idea. He would break into Disney studios if he could.

And then August, I think, would absolutely watch Pinocchio. I'm fairly certain he was still going by the name Pinocchio when he first arrived, and people made connections. Small child by the side of the road, someone grabbed the Disney DVD from Blockbuster. The first time he saw it he was too startled to tear his eyes away. He watched it again a few weeks later, and had adjusted enough to the world that he sobbed the whole time.

August has, much like Jefferson, also noticed that Disney seems to be the most accurate one. He read The Adventures of Pinocchio when he was fourteen, tucked up in a private corner of a library and half expecting the book to cause a breakdown, and was instead just surprised at how different things were. The Field of Miracles? Bandits? Why is the whale a dogfish shark?

He hasn't made it a hobby to track down every version, but he has watched a few of them. He liked a couple, disliked others, more based on how he was portrayed rather than how accurate it was. He did at least once go on the Pinocchio ride at Disneyland and, despite how cartoony and wrong the little Jiminy Cricket was, he was nearly crying when he got out.

And, of course, Mr Gold isn't just Rumpelstiltskin, is he?

I'm not sure how it would come up, necessarily. Again, he's not really the type to watch children's movies for fun. He could pick up a book of fairytales and browse through, but honestly, his story was different enough that he might not connect who this Beauty is, with two older sisters and a father who steals a rose and a monster with an unwilling curse.

But it was twenty-eight years, and a lot can happen in that time. Maybe Regina did it on purpose - after all, she had a young son who was allowed to watch most of the Disney princesses, just not Snow White. She could have made a delicate suggestion to a man she was sure wouldn't get the reference about a Belle and Gaston, and certainly nothing showed in Gold's face that he recognised those names. But once she left, he curiously tracked down the Disney copy of Beauty and the Beast.

It didn't take long at all before he saw the familiarity, a girl who loved to read who, even in a cartoon, looked too familiar. Gold actually couldn't get through the whole movie in one go, and had to keep stopping. If it was more accurate, he might not have finished. He didn't realise that the singing teacup with a single chip in it meant something until he was well into the movie. And he didn't quite cry, not even in the privacy of his own house with the doors locked, at the ending when the Beast that was not him chose love and the woman who was absolutely Belle, but his eyes were a little wet. He spent the next few weeks making Mr French's life miserable, raising rent and insisting on quicker repayments, and didn't even pretend to justify it.

[authenticaussie]

Tagged by @suzukiblu !! 😳❤️ Thanks!!!!

List 3 ships I like:

mas.....mas always and forever my beloved 😔😔 also atm tim//kon and kon//bart? They're. They're so cute. Wtf. 🥺 Bart's a silly lil guy and he DELIGHTS me

First ship ever:

Hdkshddj honestly I don't entirely remember? I THINK it was probably naru//hina?? At the least that's the first I remember like, consciously looking up ship art for. I think one of the first where I was like, an actively involved shipper would be rose//kanaya from homestuck tho, or zolu.

Last song I heard:

Had youtube on shuffle while I was doing work stuff, so it was, Heather on the Hill by Nathan Evans

Favourite childhood book:

Tamora Pierce!!!! I use to reccomend Song of the Lioness to everyone. Either that or the Mysterious Benedict Society, or The Extraordinary Adventures of Ordinary Boy. EAOB my beloved....when will they FINALLY come out with the book that discusses the fact that your superpower is common sense 😔😔😔 and that everyone in your town is just stupid as fuck......they were very childish and fun books and they had SUPERPOWERS from eating POTATO CHIPS and it was GREAT.

Currently reading now:

Sb'94 and the YJ omnibus!!!! I'm actually taking the omnibus pretty slow bc it's SO heavy that it's hard to read but they're all so 🥺🥺 cute 🥺🥺

Currently watching:

My roommates and I are finishing off White Collar and Batman: TAS. White Collar is ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ - start was really good, ending we are kinda Powering Through (it's very well done! Very well written, everyone is great! Just also getting a bit less fun I think). But I'm glad we managed to stick through with the first ten of Batman: TAS because it has grown on me. Also. Tim!! (Tim that's mostly Jason lol so we've been calling him Timson 😂)

Currently consuming:

I've got a stomach bug right now 😭 so unfortunately, nothing

Currently craving:

nausea my belothed 🔪 anyway, idk, craving to finish spiderkon so I can post this BEAST of a chapter one. Craving for writing time because last week I had to move my brother's stuff with him so he could move. Craving something fruit-sweet. Mmm smoothie...... let's see if I can keep that down 😂

Tagging: @midnightluck @rockingthegraveyard @touchmycoat @mewsefet @knittinganarchist @12freddofrogs

[eerna]

Regarding Zuko as every SoC character - he is also the powerful-but-not-worldbreakingly-so grisha / bender who would betray someone he loves in order to protect his nation (siege of Ba Sing Se) ; the young child far from home and forced to grow up into someone more deadly than they ever wanted to be; definitely an expert fighter who would follow his friends to the end of the earth but bad decisions follow him; an angry young man who is very willing to put aside his morals and get his hands bloody if it brings him what he really wants; and of course you already mentioned him as a patriot who learns his country is wrong but still believes in it, AND a disillusioned rich boy fighting his father.

... TBH six of crows with just zuko could be played well enough. He's just at different points in his timeline. Book One Zuko as Kaz, pre-series idealist as Inej (or maybe Zuko Alone), Ba Sing Se refugee Nina, Matthias as the first half of book 3 and Wylan as the second half.

CHEERS THERE WE GO, THANK YOU FOR WRITING IT OUT!!! Six of Crows Zukoverse works wonderful. All the romance is a metaphor for learning to live with and love yourself.

[mydetheturk]

First sentence challenge - It said something about the grand line when one's first concern about being splattered in the blood of a sea king was that their favourite shirt was going to smell fishy for a month.

It said something about the grand line when one's first concern about being splattered in the blood of a sea king was that their favourite shirt was going to smell fishy for a month. Shanks had been back on the Line for all of five hours. It’d taken that long for a sea king to decide it didn’t want to back down from Shanks’ glower and try to nibble on the Red Force.

A swift slice of Shanks’ sword had the fortunate blessing of taking out the sea king. The downside was that Shanks was now covered in its blood from the arterial spray and the entire crew - Ben included, the traitor! - was laughing at him.

[ayishashae]

“Will the accused step forwards?”

“Do we have to do this?”

A stony glare was all that met his words, and Al sighed, hands raised in defeat. “I don’t even know what I’m being accused of!”

“You are accused,” Lee said, arms folded over his chest, but Al caught the barely bitten back hint of a smile on Lee’s lips, “of stealing my heart.”

Al grinned. “Well in that case, I’m guilty as charged.”

“Oh sweet,” James said, distractedly presenting Al with a jar that contained a heart still somehow beating sluggishly. “Could you hold onto this for me, then?”

“Where did you get this!?”

[outshinethestars]

I was tagged by @merfilly

Rules: tag 10 followers that you want to get to know better

Name: [redacted] you can call me Ferith :)

Hogwarts House: Oh no.  I could write entire essays about how I think house sorting works, and what house I would have according to different models and at different points in my life.  I’ll just say that according to the Sorting Hat Chats system I’m Revenclaw-Ravenclaw, and every other hat quiz has pinned me as hufflepuff.

Cats or dogs: I’ve only ever had dogs, but I think I would really love cats if I had one.

Current time: 10:06 am

Favorite animal: Elephant, also all kinds of insects and arachnids

When I made this blog: January 2017

Reason for url: It is a reference to a poem that I never wrote.  Basically, the metaphor is that God is the sun and I am the moon reflecting His light.

I’ll tag: @now-thats-an-oof @maltheniel  @bdrixhaettc @anightmarefan @red-winters @allorafaith @12freddofrogs @steefwaterbutter @theshadowedqueen82  @kaylabarraza

[prixmiumarchive]

Rules: 15 questions, 15 mutuals.

tagged by @vvayneskyle​ with fourteen questions but i assume one got lost in the ether - thank you for remembering i exist!!!

Are you named after anyone? My middle name is for my maternal grandmother. My parents decided that if I was a boy, I got a paternal line middle name and if I was a girl, I got a maternal line name.

When was the last time you cried? Sometime last week I think. My eyes watered when I got my upper lip threaded today.

Do you have kids? No. I hope I might one day have one, though. Maybe.

Do you use sarcasm a lot? Yes, but not as deftly as some.

What’s your eye color? Hazel. Green-leaning. Some actual yellow flecks which I think is cool.

Scary movie or happy ending? Happy ending. Any amount of misery can be justified by an earned happy ending.

Any special talents? Typing real fast with few errors unless I’m casually chatting with friends.

Where were you born? Tennessee, United States.

What are your hobbies? Writing/Roleplaying, Sleeping, Learning, I play FlightRising again lately

Do you have any pets? A doggo.

What sports do you play/have you played? I’ve literally never formally played a sport.

How tall are you? 5′1″

Favorite subject in school? English and English-related electives, Drama, Philosophy

Dream job? Actually happily making a full-time wage for what I do now (teaching) or doing something in government administration related to food justice or other social service provided to the disadvantaged. 

I tag: @morethanprinceofcats, @huntingwendigos, @thethirteenthhouse, @stargazerdaisy, @popkin16, @lomedraug, @12freddofrogs, @xxemostrawbudzxx, @toshikogalanodel, @pressurebuilding, @johnandrasjaqobis, @aninfusionofwormwood, @bentfire, @yourfandomfreak

[janiedean]

1, 19, 21 & 23

1. favorite fic you wrote this year

*thinks* idkkkkk there’s a few I’ve loved writing and all of them are my children but tbh? it all comes back through the holes and the cracks where you thought you let it slip away is probably the best thing I wrote this year at least for what I was planning to do so there we go

19. any new fics to start next year

... haha let’s see given that this year I finish everything I should...

hopefully finish sfbd

the throbb calvinist soulmates au thing

... a modern au thing where the mains should be jaime and the blackfish which is going to require me spitting blood on appropriate research because Extremely Sensitive Subject but if I pull it off it should be worth it

go back to the prompts I have in the inbox esp. the ones I had for the throbb bdsm fic extras

... a modern au thing where cat and ned basically chaperone brienne and jaime into the art of women topping in a d/s scenario IF I MANAGE TO PULL IT OFF

THE GODDAMNED MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS AU WHOSE RECAST I JUST POSTED

more westeros mutants? I like writing that series sigh

the asoiaf eurovision au

MORE JONC/BLACKFISH

the theon + davos treasure planet au? maybe. idk. possibly.

... the asoiaf the grapes of wrath au from hell I’ve been wanting to do for a year

the third blade runner 2049 fix it I need to round up that series

and yeah I have to finish the jb time travel stuff

... that’s just what’s on the top of my head god happy writing to me especially if I want to throw some original stuff in between that...

21. most memorable comment/review

oh god a lot of the ones @12freddofrogs left me actually?

23. fics you wanted to write but didn’t

.... I wanted to finish the jb time travel fic before this year but lol not happening, I wanted to finish both sfbd (HAHAHAHA DIDN’T HAPPEN) and that davos & theon canon fic which has been lingering in limbo since 2013 but while I put some dents in it I didn’t manage, I wanted to do the calvinist soulmates and it didn’t definitely happen and a bunch of the prompts I have still in the inbox and I didn’t manage but is2g one day I’m finishing that stuff whatever it takes xD

[12freddofrogs]

So how much does Henry even know fairytales other than his book?

I can absolutely see Regina having read bedtime stories to him, no doubt. But... well, she wasn't reading Snow White and the Seven Dwarves or Rumplestiltskin.

She might have read Little Red Riding Hood, or Cinderella to him. Stories where she wasn't involved. I'm not even sure if she knows the Land Without Magic is wrong about the story of Cinderella - she could absolutely have found out Rumple was involved, but did she bother to check? But even if she knows, she wouldn't care.

Even stories like Hansel and Gretel where the Evil Queen did get involved, she wasn't invested in the events. If she found the book at a store she'd have been happy enough to toss it on the bookshelf.

But the other option is she never told him a story that happened in The Enchanted Forest. She picked up The Hungry Hungry Caterpillar and If You Give A Mouse a Cookie, rocked him to sleep with stories and poems that as far as Regina knows are just stories. Henry doesn't actually know how the traditional Snow White tale goes, the one that Emma knows. He only knows what was in the book.

And every once in a while, Regina told Henry a story that her father told her, fairytales and stories from the Enchanted Forest that no one in this world knows, that only she remembers, but that Henry adored.

[authenticaussie]

Music tag game <3

tagged by @suzukiblu!

Shuffle your on-repeat playlist and listen to the first 10 songs, then tag 10 people.

Hoodie by Lost Stars: you're leaving XO's XO's underneath your texts (don't try to make it like we're cool) / screaming SOS-oh, SOS-oh, girl you're such a mess

Reflections by We Are The In Crowd: destiny is overrated / so I think I'll write my own

Everything's Alright (Vocal cover by Adriana Figueroa): why do / my words / always lose their meaning? / What I feel / what I say / there's such a rift between them

Outrunning Karma by Alec Benjamin: it's always gonna chase him for his lies / it's just a game of waiting, from the / church steeple down to Satan, Karma

Bad by Royal Deluxe (from: "Songs to make you feel like a villain" collated by Rebel): I watched an empire fall / I stormed the gate and scaled the walls / they wouldn't share / so I took it all

A little less sixteen candles a little more "Touch Me" by Fallout boy (with a title like that who else are you thinking of?): She said, she said / why don't you just drop dead? / you said you'd keep me honest / but I won't call you on it

Grow as we Go by Ben Platt: You don't ever have to leave / If to change is what you need / You can change right next to me

Beautiful Things by Benson Boone: please stay / I want you, I need you (oh god) / If everything's good (and it's great) / why do I sit and wait 'til it's gone?

BRAINWASHED by Waterparks: shocked at the words coming from my tongue / a language that I'm not familiar / what if i pray? hoping you'll stay in the daylight / I'm see-though / I need you / why do I think you're so cool?

Not Like I'm In Love With You by Lauren Weintraub: it's not like I'm in love with you. shit. / no I'm not feeling unwell / and no it's not scary as hell / that I want you more than anyone else

I like that apparently my shuffle on songs I've been collecting for literally the last seventeen years has given me only the songs I've been listening to for the past like. Four months. Excellent job, VLC. tagging @cer-rata @touchmycoat @midnightluck @knittinganarchist @rockingthegraveyard (<- steals your music again snickers) @minister-of-silly-walks @2014federalbudget @12freddofrogs @lollesss @mewsefet

[12freddofrogs]

Headcanon that Qrow takes to storing the cocoa on the top shelf, not quite hidden behind a jar.

Ozpin is unsure whether Qrow genuinely thinks that's a good spot for it, or if he is deliberately putting it out of Oscar's reach. Oz has to climb on the counter to make a cup of cocoa, and if he puts it away somewhere else the powder will quickly be placed back. He has got about twelve tricks that would conveniently knock it down, including but not limited to actual magic, but climbing is the simplest option and sometimes you don't want to use battle tactics just to make yourself a drink.

Oscar at least tries to hide his laughter when Oz removes their shoes to climb up, even if it's very difficult to hide amusement from the person sharing your head. Nora, on the other hand, laughed so hard she nearly fell over when she walked into the kitchen and found him one day, and then proceeded to inform everyone in the time it took for him to climb back down and make his cup.

(Ruby's giggles seemed unneccessary, however, seeing as she also can't reach the top shelf.)

[12freddofrogs]

My theory is that Oz's magic is a little less with every incarnation.

It's not very noticeable each time. Oscar (when he has full access and skills) is going to have almost the same amount of power that Ozpin did, and Ozpin in turn was very nearly on level with the King of Vale or whoever his predeccessor was. Like, to the point an outside observer can't really notice the difference.

But it adds up. Losing that fraction of his magic each time... well, Oz did say that he didn't have as much now, compared to when he started.

He thinks its because every time he dies, a little piece of him dies as well. Not a piece of Ozma, per se (at this point, he isn't Ozma any more than he is anyone else), but still a piece of him. And he takes more than he leaves, maybe, becomes somebody new with even more memories and traits and skills. But that doesn't mean he isn't leaving part of himself behind.

Which I think is part of the reason for the Maidens. He liked those girls, sure, and he wanted to help. But its a big act and wasn't entirely impulsive - Oz must have had more than one reason.

He needed to ensure that his magic wasn't going to disappear completely, even if that meant it couldn't be his anymore. He might as well do that early, when he still had a significant amount to share. He needed other people to hold magic, so that someone would always be able to use it when it was needed.

Oz bound the magic to the Maidens, but didn't interwine it with their very being in the same way he joins with people. He'd wanted to give the Maidens the choice of who the next Maiden would be, but it didn't work in quite the way he'd hoped - he'd been aiming for more of an 'heir' that she could choose in advance, but slowly realised that it relied on their final thoughts. But when each Maiden dies, she is able to release all the magic.

So at the time, Oz split his magic into five pieces, all the same. But as incarnations went on, his own power kept dropping, while the Maidens remained as strong as ever.

Which is part of the reason why Cinder was able to defeat him, why Ozpin seemed to know it was a losing battle as he stepped up. Sure, Oz could have won, with a little bit of luck and the fact Cinder was still new to it, and he certainly put up a fight. But Cinder was stronger than him in terms of raw magic, and he knew it.

I think it also plays into why he gave some of his power to Raven and Qrow. Oz might have been experimenting, testing if he can temporarily give away magic. He was probably relatively upfront with them about it - not that he used the word experimenting, but he would have told them the magic will come back to him when they die. He was just testing out whether he could give power to someone else for a bit and get the full amount back - and since it was helping then in the meanwhile, he even felt okay with it. Being able to turn into a bird is a useful skill that both twins agreed to.

And I feel like the idea that he could kill them to get his power back literally never crossed his mind. It crossed Raven's, maybe, but Oz just wanted to see if he could store magic away in a place he couldn't reach or reduce for several decades, as well as help his allies in this fight.

[12freddofrogs]

So, Ilia went to a school in Atlas, right? It's implied that she was in a specifically very expensive one that her parents had to scrimp and save to sneak her in, because if you're going to get a Faunus girl into an Atlas school you might as well do it right.

Which means she might have gone to school with Weiss.

I doubt they would have been actually close or even in the same class, seeing as Illia specifically mentioned that she ended up breaking her ex-friends' teeth, and if Weiss had a story like that with the White Fang (nvm that Illia wasn't a member then, the Schnee family would have been convinced she was), it would have come up. We don't know how old Ilia is - she's close to Blake's age, but she could have been a grade or two above or below.

But still, they might have known each other. Illia might have spoken to the Schnee heiress, remembering that her parent's worked in Weiss's father's mines. She might have complimented Weiss's dress, genuinely thinking it was pretty and trying not to remember how it was afforded. If it was one of the training academies, or at least had a class in battle, they probably would have sparred together. Ilia's (third-hand-but-carefully-maintained) bag might have broken and Weiss might have stopped to help pick it up, grumbling about clumsiness all the while and refusing to acknowledge she was helpful afterwards.

And Weiss probably heard about that scandal later on, when it was revealed a Faunus had snuck in, how awful, not-that-there's-anything-wrong-with-Faunus but clearly she had something to hide if she was pretending to be human, it's not as if the rules forbid Faunus entering they just have to pass each of the tests, and she attacked those poor, poor young girls. How vicious, how violent, and if they don't want to be compared to animals they should really consider their actions more.

(I wonder if part of Weiss appreciated the scandal because it meant no-one brought up the mine explosion, that she didn't have to hear about the topic that weighed down her house and her father's mood at school as well at home. I wonder if she ever thought to connect the mine explosion and the Faunus reveal as at all related, if the chameleon girl might have had a connection to the other significant event that day.)

Because eventually, RWBY is going to meet up with the members of the White Fang again. And I would love to see Weiss talk to Ilia, who realises that the Schnee girl has really and truly grown. (Ilia has also had her own character growth, but considering Weiss only knew the smiling, average student who fled, Weiss wouldn't know about that.) I want to see Weiss being cautious but not judgemental, and asking for Illia's side of the story because some of her other classmates had been out of school for weeks and the entire school had buzzed about it. But after meeting Blake, after returning to Atlas with new eyes, Weiss has always kind of wondered if there had been more to that day then school gossip had known, that surely there had to have been some reason Ilia stopped trying to fit in so very suddenly.

It would just be an interesting dynamic to see more of.

[12freddofrogs]

You know, as a kid, I used to think Dain was ridiculously lucky with his plan in Return to Del. Like, most of it was pretty well thought through, such as getting their attention or setting traps. But, there was that one pretty important moment that started it, in which the Belt announced the heir was nearby.

Having finished the book, we all know who the Belt was really referring to. But as a kid - and frankly, as a grown adult two days ago - it always seemed like something Dain couldn't possibly have guessed.

I always brushed it aside. Maybe Dain was planning to step forwards and claim he was being called by the Belt. Maybe he just went with what happened, changed his timetable just a little from whatever was originally.

Or maybe...

The reason that the Belt started to burn had nothing to do with the heir at all.

[12freddofrogs]

Fact the first: in the Justice League Action episode “Play Date”, we discover that there is an in-universe video game starring the Justice League, in which players get to choose which hero to play as.

Fact the second: We see an image of how this video game portrays the Batcave.

We don't actually see the real Batcave in JLA, but judging by every other adaptation this seems pretty accurate. They've got the dinosaur, the card, the giant penny, a variety of batmobiles. There is a uniform collection up against the wall. Maybe its a little rearranged, with certain souvenirs placed together because it makes a better background rather than spaced out like in the real cave - but all in all, it's much closer to the real cave than you would expect from a video game developed in the same universe. The developers wouldn’t have ever seen it, after all, and even if the information is available that Batman took the dinosaur once, it’s a bit of a leap to assume he displays it in a cave.

Fact the third: Batman says that Robin plays, somewhat regularly. (And in fact, informs Toyman that Robin is a better player.)

Conclusion: Robin made his own mod to make the Batcave setting closer to reality, which then accidentally went viral.

Secondary conclusion: Batman was not pleased.

[12freddofrogs]

An episode of a Batfam TV Show

A while back I started wondering how I would design the Batfamily for their own TV. It started as a quick exercise, just considering ‘Season one would be Dick as Robin, and maybe he and Babs would do this, and then in S2 Jason would turn up’... and then it got detailed to the point I was working out individual episodes, character arcs, and themes.

This is an extract from Season Three, aka, Tim’s Robin run (pt1). The full chapter includes bright eyed Tim Drake nearly getting himself run over by the Batmobile so he can make his case why Batman needs a Robin, a minor cameo by the giant penny in the Cave, an adaptation of The Killing Joke, a driving lesson that technically involves Nightwing stealing the Batmobile, the Spoiler setting up in purple, a Wayne Gala or two, much mourning for what happened in the S2 finale, and Cassandra Cain rejecting her blood family for one that actually cares.

And, of course, this musical episode.

Full fic on Ao3  -Chapter 3 here. It’s much easier to read, especially on mobile.

Chapter 1 here.

Season Three, Episode Twenty - Songbird

A Pied Piper themed villain comes to Gotham. 

He has nothing to do with the Central City villain.

His powers work on children. Specifically, anyone under the age of about eighteen. It’s never made entirely clear what the cut-off age is, just that Cass is immune. 

Of course, no-one really knows how old Cass is, either, considering her lack of birth certificate.

 Tim is having an ordinary day at school, calmly walking past a couple having a break-up in the cafeteria, when the dramatic screaming match switches into a Broadway musical.

Tim is alarmed, and as he continues through the school, other people are bursting into song. Music is playing, and from the way he turns it’s obvious he can hear it and can’t figure out from where.

 “I need to finish my assignment for mathematics / but I can’t find the time without skipping football practise,” one boy tells his friends, then claps a hand against his throat.

“I’ve spent so much time working on Miss Greene’s essay / that I completely forgot about the science test today!” a girl sings, her voice calm despite the fact she’s frantically flipping through a textbook.

“He’s so handsome, he’d never notice me / what would I have to do to make him see?” another girl sings from her locker, glancing at a boy several doors away. He notices her singing, and she yelps, hiding behind her locker door.

Everyone is growing frantically confused by the music.

It eventually turns into a school wide song with everyone, including Tim, singing the same lyrics about “What’s going on? Why are we bursting into song?”

The song finishes and all the students stare at each other, wide-eyed.

“What was--”

“How--”

“I don’t--”

While everyone is still panicking, Tim slips out the school doors.

He heads straight to the Manor.

When Bruce opens the door, it’s to find a bundle of nervous energy fidgeting on his threshold.

“B, we - oh, no, it’s happening again.” Tim claps a hand over his mouth.

“What’s happening?” Bruce steps aside immediately to let his panicked third Robin into the house. 

It takes a moment as Tim scrambles inside, dropping his school backpack on the ground and turning to Bruce with a panicked expression, but finally he lowers his hand.

As expected, out comes another song.

“Bruce, we really need to talk because / there’s something in my voice. / Everything comes out as song / and I don’t have a choice. I don’t have a plan for this / so I kinda hope you do. / Otherwise get ready for Gotham’s musical debut. ”

"...I see.”

It’s not that Tim’s constantly speaking in song.

He still talks normally most of the time.

It’s just that whenever he feels something particularly strongly, he has an automatic performance about it.

He’s very concerned that when he sings, it’s always the absolute truth about how he feels.

“I have a secret identity! I can’t go to school if I’m going to sing about wearing a cape!”

Dick finds it hilarious

When he hears about the situation he comes up from Bludhaven immediately.

He’s trying to be sympathetic, but it comes across as insincere when he’s filming the whole thing.

“Come on, just one little song for the camera?”

“Mmm-fff!” Tim shakes his head, hands clapped over his mouth defensively.

Babs tells Dick not to worry, she caught Tim’s last performance on security cameras. Tim looks offended.

Meanwhile, Cass is jealous she’s too old.

“This is not a good thing, Cass,” Tim complains.

“Looks fun.”

“It is not.”

“Sourpuss.”

Tim has a song about being insecure in his place as Robin

Batman informs him that he is not to get involved in the case.

Tim grumpily agrees, and stays alone in the Cave while everyone leaves.

He starts on the obstacle course, swinging up and down on the wires as he begins to sing.

“Batman needs a Robin / That much is plain to see / The question that I’m asking / Is the Robin he needs me?”

He’s not insecure about being kept off this particular case, understanding if not liking it, but in general not sure about his ability to live up to the name.

 It finishes with a more triumphant declaration that he can do this. He’s Robin, he’s earned his cape, watch him go.

Steph is equally affected by the curse.

It’s the first time she’s turned up at the Cave, but she figured this was probably a big enough situation to be worth knocking.

She’s trying to make the most of it, and turns it into a game.

She acts like she’s finding it enjoyable. It’s almost believable until she does get a moment alone with Tim to confess that it’s creepy.

Steph and Tim have a duet.

Dick’s attempt at provoking them into singing finally works.

The song starts with Tim being annoyed at Dick, and quickly fades into both of them admitting they’re annoyed with the situation. It’s a very fast-paced cheer about how they can’t stop singing, when they find out who’s responsible that person will find out just what Robin and Spoiler can do.

They’re dancing around, jumping on and off the equipment, and performing perfect choreography.

Dick and Cass applaud.

It finishes with Tim dipping Steph, her balancing with one leg in the air, when they both react in terror. Tim drops her.

“I didn’t want — we didn’t want to do that,” Tim blurts out.

“You don’t understand, it made us move. It’s never done that before. It actually controlled what we did.” Steph’s breathing heavily, still sitting on the ground.

It’s discovered that the musical magic is not only growing, and is turning into a more complete form of mind control.

Dick and Cass suddenly no longer find it funny.

Within days, maybe even hours, the Pied Piper villain is likely to have an entire army of Gothamite children for choreographed villainy.

So, of course, the Bats push this situation up several rungs of the priorities.

Tim and Steph were already off the case, but now they are banned from leaving the Cave until they know exactly what this song can do.

They each call their parents to inform them they’re staying at the other’s house. Steph swears up and down that she’s just studying with Tim, seriously, she’ll bring home the flashcards as proof if she has to.

The two of them then actually end up making flashcards, because they no longer trust their bodies enough to train.

For a while everything is calm.

Batman, Batgirl, Nightwing, and Oracle are all focused intently on the case.

Alfred is watching the two youngest.

It’s not a joke anymore, but with Tim and Steph sitting casually on the ground, talking together completely normally and checking in via coms, the situation doesn’t seem red alert urgent.

No-one notices how Tim starts humming as he cuts out the next flashcard, or that Steph takes up the tune while she coats one in glitter.

The scenes of them humming along together is intercut along with moments of the others working the case. The audience is very aware — Tim and Steph’s song has no diegetic soundtrack, so all the audience can hear in the Cave scenes are Alfred’s footsteps, the scratch of pen and paper, and two teenagers humming too quietly for anyone else.

Up until the point where they actually start singing.

Steph and Tim’s humming gradually changes into a song.

“Cut and paste and listen,” they murmer in unison, wistful and fanciful, still working on the flashcards. “Cut and paste and listen to the magic sound. Cut and paste and listen. The Piper is coming to town.”

Alfred is no longer dusting the computer. Instead, he clicks on the communicator so Batman can hear the chant, and carefully approaches.

Tim and Steph insist that they’re fine. They don’t speak in unison for it, but it does come out as more of a duet.

“Don’t worry, Alfred, we feel fine,” Steph insists.

“Absolutely marvellous,” Tim chimes in.

“Completely sublime.”

Tim gets to his feet with an encouraging smile, scissors dangling in his fingertips. “We’ve just got a song stuck in our heads.”

“There’s no need to worry.”

“And no need to fret.”

“It’s just a shame you can’t hear that sound.” Steph tugs at her ear, grinning.

 “It sinks to your bones and makes you feel like dancing around.”

 Alfred cuts off the song to assure them that the Pied Piper will soon be defeated. This whole nonsense will be finished with by tomorrow, and by this point even Dick will be grateful for it.

The songbirds are oddly upset about that idea.

“You’re getting him chased down by the Big Bad Bat?” Steph asks.

“That shouldn’t happen. The Piper won’t like that,” Tim says.

“No,” Alfred says slowly, warily. “I suppose he wouldn’t.”

The argument culminates when Tim nearly stabs Alfred with the scissors.

 Alfred dodges the blow on instinct, sidestepping the blade aimed at his head.

Tim freezes, his arm outstretched.

For a moment all three of them are still, Alfred watching the scissors over his shoulder and Tim’s eyes wide. Steph’s mouth hangs open.

The scissors clatter on the floor as Tim steps back.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m so so sorry Alfred—” Tim nearly hyperventilates.

“Master Tim,” Alfred says after a moment, almost resting his hand on Tim’s shoulders but deciding against it. “I assure you I’m fine, but perhaps at the moment we should consider using the restraints.”

“Yes. Yes, we should do that.”

Tim practically bolts himself in to the medbay stretcher, and only allows Alfred to help because it’s not designed to be tightened by the patient.

Steph is slightly more reluctant, and has to force herself to take each step. She notably bites down on her lip, bunching her fingers into a fist while Alfred secures her to the other bay, but she allows it to happen.

 The urgency is immediately upped.

“Do you need someone to watch them with you?” Batman asks, pausing on a rooftop to talk into his comm.

“No. They’re quite lucid at the moment,” Alfred says, watching Tim and Steph talking nervously. “The best thing for everyone is for you to stay on the case.”

“I can come,” Oracle suggests. “The Cave has all the same tech so I can stay on the job, and if the kids are getting stabby you will need backup.”

It’s decided that is a good idea, especially as Steph starts humming again before slamming her head facedown into the pillow.

 Batman successfully tracks down the location of the Piper.

The three field vigilantes burst in, much to Piper’s horror.

They find him building a giant radio transmitter, and immediately start trying to shatter it.

Piper flees the room, carrying a small cassette player with him. Nightwing stays to make sure the transmitter is utterly broken. Batgirl and Batman split up to track the villain.

The Piper is caught by Batman, lifted off the ground by the scruff of his neck, when a dozen children come barrelling into the room to rescue him.

The idea of punching hypnotised kids makes Batman hesitate, and Piper manages to get away.

Worse still is that breaking the transmitter didn’t fix the problem. The kids are still hypnotised, and Nightwing reports that it wasn’t even finished. Piper had been making it for something, but it wasn’t the cause of the problem.

They search through Piper’s files, and track down that it was the cassette player that influences the children.

Steph and Tim are drifting back into their musical hypnosis.

 “Don’t listen to them,” Steph murmurs, pulling her face out of the bed. Her voice is too quiet for anyone but Tim to hear. “Hold yourself steady.”

“It’s time for a fight so you better get ready.” Tim holds up one hand. The picked restraints drop silently onto the mattress.

When Oracle arrives, Robin and Spoiler take the distraction and attack.

When Alfred and Oracle return to the room, it’s to find the two youngest have gotten into their uniforms and are swinging down from the ceiling at them.

 It’s not a real fight. The hypnosis is just telling them to go. It’s an escape attempt more than anything else.

Oracle is able to handle herself when Spoiler leaps at her, boot flying towards her face. A quick movement and Steph is thrown over Oracle’s shoulder, wincing.

But they don’t need to beat her, just outrace her. Spoiler jams a batarang into one of Oracle’s wheels while Robin locks Alfred in the cupboard, and by the time Babs can move again — it couldn’t have taken more than thirty seconds to untangle the batarang — they’re gone.

Fortunately, Batman already has a lead on where they must be going.

Over two hundred children — some as young as ten, most closer to fifteen or sixteen — have converged on a Gotham news channel’s office.

It’s a very convenient way for a villain’s exposition to be told to the audience. The children are singing about Pied Piper’s plan to broadcast his song to every child in the country as they forcibly drag the communication workers out of their offices. The Piper himself is walking through the chaos with a self-satisfied smile.

The song seems like a normal triumphant villain song, with a hint of creepiness when every once in a while, someone will say that they don’t like what they’re doing, they’re so sorry, can’t anyone help them?

Piper locks himself in the CEO office.

He’s humming to himself as he pulls out his cassette player. When he opens the case, an array of buttons that would look advanced on a phone blink back at him.

He begins to tap in a command when the window shatters.

Batman swings into the room.

Batgirl and Nightwing are close behind.

When Piper tries to run, he doesn’t get five steps. Batman throws him against the wall.

Piper glances at the door.

In an instant Batgirl vaults over the desk to reach it, turning the lock with time to spare before teenagers start banging on it. “Nightwing. Help… ballaracade?”

Nightwing is already pushing the desk aside it.

Once they’ve successfully ensured no-one’s getting in Nightwing informs her the word is ‘barricade’. Batgirl nods, pleased.

“Where are they?” Batman growls, looming over the terrified Piper.

“Where are who? The children? They’re all outside, or at least the ones I called are—”

“Don’t play games with me.”

“How do we fix it?” Nightwing demands.

“You can’t. It’s unstoppab—”

 “Lying,” Batgirl says sharply.

At that point Robin and Spoiler shatter a second window.

They land between Batman and the Piper, standing protectively over the villain. Robin has his staff at the ready while Spoiler’s cloak flutters.

They’re also humming.

It takes a moment for Piper’s shock to fade, but then his lips twitch in a smile.

There’s a fight.

Batman, Nightwing, and Batgirl hold back.

Robin and Spoiler don’t, which means that the hypnotised fighters are actually able to gain ground.

And of course, Robin and Spoiler are singing all the while. By now that’s not the focus of the scene, feeling more like background music with lyrics than a Broadway fight scene. Potentially, the TV audience can’t even hear the music, just watches the singing characters.

The lyrics don’t really delve into anyone’s interiority (mainly). It’s just a fast-paced song about fighting.

Every once in a while, though there’s a line like “Of course I know I can’t win, but that’s never stopped me before.” “Of course I’ll try my best, but I’ve never wanted to lose more.”

Just enough to indicate that some part of Tim and Steph know what they’re doing.

Piper takes the distraction.

He gets the barricade open and a hundred mind-controlled teenagers pour in, and suddenly the Bats have a much bigger disadvantage.

Piper escapes. Nightwing follows.

There’s a chase as Piper rushes towards the ground floor.

A dozen children are thrown at Nightwing, diving in his way.

But a former Boy Wonder doesn’t get taken down by a thirteen-year-old attempting a tackle, not when he can bounce off the walls to somersault over their heads.

Piper goes for the elevator. Nightwing is delayed to the point that he misses the doors by centimetres.

He pushes off the eleven-year-old girl clinging to his back and rushes to the fire stairs. His grappling hook connect with the handrail as he leaps over the edge.

Freefalling down the spiral staircase centre gets him to the ground with time to spare. He bursts out of the door and is able to throw his bolos at the fleeing Piper, tripping the supervillain up.

Within seconds Nightwing’s on him, scrambling through his pockets. He finds the cassette player.

Before the children can converge again, Nightwing leaps up with his grappling hook, holding himself on the high ceiling and resting one foot on the top of a window.

He flips open the cassette player.

“Oh, look at that. A labelled ‘off’ switch.” Nightwing grins at Piper, who’s just managing to pull himself free from the bolos. “So if I flick it, will it do anything to inspire me to kick your teeth in?”

“No, no, please—”

“Begging sounds promising.” His fingers hover over the button. Below him, the children are swarming, trying to figure out how to climb the wall. “If this hurts anyone, I am going to break every bone in your body. So is there anything you want to tell me?” Nightwing pauses for an answer, but Piper doesn’t give one. The children are starting to create pyramids. “Alright. Here goes.”

 He flicks the switch.

Immediately, the music turns off.

The children stop pressing up against the wall and back away immediately.

“Is it over?”

Upstairs, the same happens.

Everyone freezes in their attack on Batman and Batgirl.

Robin drops his staff and retreats several steps.

“Fixed?” Batgirl asks.

Spoiler touches her head. “I think so.”

Of course, this means the Piper just got himself trapped.

He’s now surrounded by a sea of students who had been at least eighty-per-cent aware of what happened.

Nightwing swoops down and pulls him out before anyone can catch him, but waits just long enough for Piper to realise the danger he’s in.

Nightwing ties him up, and waits patiently for the others to come downstairs.

He hands over the cassette player to Batman and goes to hug the now-coherent younger two, but Spoiler brushes off the affection onto Robin. Instead, she walks up to Piper and punches him in the face.

“Feel better now?” Nightwing asks.

 “Yeah.” Spoiler steps back and allows Nightwing to reassure himself that she’s okay, letting him wrap her in a short hug. “Much better.”

So the day is saved, everything neatly finished.

Piper is arrested, the children/teenagers that hadn’t already dispersed are collected by the police to be taken home.

Later, everyone is back in the Batcave, exhausted. They’ve changed back into their civilian clothes.

“So I guess I am never going to another karaoke night ever again,” Steph mumbles.

“Karey-oakey?” Cass repeats.

“It’s like a place where you sing. You choose a song, and they’ll play the music for you so you can yell out the actual lyrics as badly as you like.”

“Oh.” Cass mulls that over. “The singing did look fun. Before the dancing started.”

“Are you seriously still upset you’re too old for mind-control?” Dick asks.

Cass shrugs.

There’s silence for a moment.

Tim groans. “Fine, I’ll come with you, but I’m not singing anything else today.”

“I know a great karaoke bar.” Dick picks up his jacket from over the chair. “They sell amazing nachos.”

“I could go for nachos.” Steph stands up.

“Already booking us a private room,” Babs says.

“I’ll prepare the car,” Alfred says.

Dick grins. “B, you coming?”

“No.”

“Please?”

“You won’t have to sing,” Tim adds. “Sit with me and Steph and watch while the rest of these losers get up on stage.”

“I assure you, Master Tim, I will not be singing.”

“Sit with me, Steph, and Alfred,” Tim corrects.

Bruce groans, but reluctantly gets up.

Dick leans over to Cass where Bruce can’t hear him. “Bet you five bucks I can convince him to get on stage.”

“Deal.”

End episode.

Available on AO3.

S1 episode extract here. (17 year old Dick gets kidnapped for ransom, is very bored.)

S2 episode extract here (Robin-Jason goes up against Two-Face, trades himself for a hostage, proceeds to be as sarcastic as possible).

S4 episode extract here (in which Tim gets a dose of fear gas, Spoiler confronts her inner child in an alarmingly literal way, and Cass is awful at baking cookies).