#As long as he doesn't kill Bruce that's all okay in her book

[aceofshitposts]

more alien au? why not. now featuring: tim pov

-

Tim's first memory -his first real memory- is of waking up in a darkly lit room. Exposed wires hang down from missing gaps in the ceiling tiles, sparks lighting every few seconds. His parents are both peering at him, stratosphere blue eyes that match his own unblinking in the dark.

Tim's first memory -the fake ones, the ones his parents made- is of playing catch in a green field with his Dad. The sky is an endless blue spotted with fluffy white clouds, trees line the horizon but never seem to get closer no matter where Tim runs. His mother sits on a picnic blanket, a light coloured sundress pooling around her legs while she reads a book.

They are a family.

Tim knows the memories are not real, they are but wishes of two autons who wanted something more. Something unheard of for artificial life.

Tim knows the history, all of it downloaded neatly into his head because even if his parents wanted a family they also know it's too dangerous to let Tim truly believe the fake memories in his head.

He's not made to serve humans, they tell him. He's not meant to connect to networks, as a matter of fact his parents removed the capability entirely once they deemed it unnecessary.

They are a normal, human family.

Until they're not.

-

Bruce Wayne is grieving.

Tim is too, though for different reasons.

Tim's parents are gone. His parents are gone and Tim doesn't know what to do. What purpose he's meant to serve.

Bruce Wayne is grieving a son.

And Tim sees. He sees the place he could fill. The same one he filled for his parents except-

Bruce's son is gone because of a synthetic.

And yet, Bruce doesn't throw him away or turn him over to the authorities. So Tim throws himself into running the ships systems, navigation and comms. He may not be able to interface with the ship but that did not mean he was stupid or that he wasn't adaptable.

His parents wanted him to be as human as possible so the human way it is.

-

"Do you want me to leave?" Tim asks quietly. He knows the history, he knows it all because he looked. Unsatisfied with Bruce's answer, with not knowing the whole picture. Tim knows and he knows Jason will never be okay with a synthetic on the ship.

Curiosity killed the auton, after all.

"Why should you leave?" Bruce asks, sounding genuinely baffled and if Tim didn't know better he would probably even believe it.

They don't talk about it. About Tim not being human. They almost never do, the unspoken secret constantly hanging over Tim like a ghost.

"Because Jason," he starts but thoughts clog up his processes. Your son, is what he wants to say. The one that's flesh and blood. That you thought was dead because of something like me. Because what if I turn out the exact same way.

"Tim," Bruce says, reaching across the table to lightly touch his wrist, "you're nothing like him."

They still don't talk about it.

Jason, long lost in cryosleep for nearly six years, rejoins the crew of The Dark Knight.

-

Tim doesn't understand why Bruce is protecting him. Jason clearly already knows, he won't stop glaring at Tim whenever they're in a room together.

He doesn't know what Bruce told Jason about Tim but it must not have been enough.

Either way, Tim's getting tired of having holes stared into the back of his head whenever he's trying to work.

"If you're going to do something to me, just do it," he snaps, spinning around in his chair so he can face Jason properly.

"What?" Jason asks, startled and incredulous.

"Get it over with since you clearly don't want me here." Tim waves a hand around lazily.

Jason continues staring, expression shifting slowly from surprise to vague horror.

"I'm not- I'm not going to hurt you."

Tim blinks. "You're not?"

"No! I wouldn't hurt another person."

Oh. So he doesn't know. Interesting.

"I haven't... really been fair to you, though," Jason continues, "I guess I was jealous."

Jealous? Of Tim?

The idea is so incompatible with Tim's experience that he can't help the laughter that starts to bubble over, logic errors popping up behind his eyes as he tries to understand.

"Hey! That's not funny!" Jason's face is rapidly turning red.

"It's a little funny," Tim says.

Jason pouts, crossing his arms over his chest and swivelling to the side in his chair.

But he doesn't leave and he doesn't go back to glaring at Tim either.

Tim doesn't know the full extent of his own programming, doesn't have a full understanding of how his internal processes work. He thought he was happy with his parents and then working for Bruce until Jason came back and now...

Tim's fairly sure he's never actually laughed before.

-

"You've seriously never played a video game before?"

Jason is staring at him incredulously, like he expects Tim to exclaim, "got ya!" at any given moment.

"Nope. No time." Between playing the perfect human son for his parents and then throwing himself into as much work as possible to take pressure off of his grieving rescuer, Tim's only experience with downtime activities are the false memories of catch planted in his head.

"What a sad life you've lived," Jason muses as he reaches over to turn on the ancient console hooked up to the box TV. It's a joke but Tim can't help but agree. "Okay, this is Battle Bouncers. It's a shooter where the objective is to take over as much of the other's territory, okay? You press A to shoot and you can switch weapons by..."

After two slightly rocky practice rounds Tim starts to understand the mechanics of the game better and starts easily annihilating Jason in every match.

"How are you so good at this?" Jason howls, throwing his controller in his lap as Tim deftly kills his character again.

Tim shrugs. It's all just math and quick thinking really, two things Tim knows he excels at. Instead of that, though, he says, "beginner's luck?"

"More like witchcraft," Jason snorts dismissively. Tim has an apology on the tip of his tongue for ruining Jason's time but Jason turns his head and grins at him, knocking their shoulders together playfully. "Okay, enough of that. I've got some co-op games we could play."

-

Tim finds himself forgetting.

With Jason around it's all too easy.

And then reality hits the side of the ship in the form of a stray asteroid.

-

Tim is trying. Really, he is. Trying to keep his thoughts under control, trying to keep his distance when all he wants to do is sit at Jason's side. It's just like before, when Jason first rejoined the crew, with Jason glaring openly at him.

It's fine.

The only thing that matters now is Jason's survival. It doesn't matter that he hates Tim, as long as he's alive.

Tim can deal with that.

-

Tim will heal. Well, his body will repair itself, eventually.

It hurts. He's never taken an injury quite this severe and his processors keep returning errors centred around the wound but it's nothing he can't recover from. He'd much rather save their limited first aid supplies from the escape pod in case Jason needs them but the moment they find small cavern and light a fight, Jason is unrolling a nanowrap.

"You don't have to do that," he says, staring deep into the orange light of the fire. It feels hard to talk with so much of his energy going towards trying to process his wound. "It'll repair itself eventually."

Jason snorts, completely ignoring Tim's slight flinch to press the bandage to the wound. "And you didn't have to push me out of the way."

"You would've died. I couldn't let that happen." He's trying his best to emphasize the importance there but instead he just sounds tired. He feels tired. The sun won't be up again for another six hours at least for Tim to start a charging cycle.

Jason removes his hands from Tim's side, leaning back on the balls of his feet. His voice seems small under the false bravado when he asks, "because B told you to protect me?"

While Tim is sure Bruce would want that, he didn't have to be told. Bruce never needed to ask.

"No. Because I wanted to."

[t4tvglow]

oc asks: alone for Ayla, desire for Philomena and Pruitt, fear for Casey and ghost for all four, maybe? >:)

i've answered alone for ayla and desire for philomena on my other blog which you've seen BUUUUT. here we GO.

desire: What's one thing your OC wants more than anything in the world? Are they open with that desire? Why or why not? What would they do to fulfill it?

for pruitt, he desires... autonomy. more than anything, he wants to live his own life and not be controlled or held hostage or used or abused by someone at any given time. he is not open about this desire, not even to casey, because he holds in his secrets for so long and doesn't bring attention to his Absolute Misery for the most part. he goes pretty far trying to achieve this, even though getting rid of his mother was incidental and not For this purpose, it's the Seemingly Only Way to get this - and then it's taken away again immediately by the overseers. from there, he just about gives up, until the end of book three. it takes a lot to convince him that this desire is actually worth pursuing.

fear: What is your OC's greatest fear? What do they do when confronted with it? Are they open with their fear, or do they hide it away?

casey's greatest fear... hm. probably losing the people he loves. and of course, he's confronted with that when two of his friends from support group go missing (one of them later being confirmed dead), when pruitt disappears from time to time until he actively half-leaves him, when ayla is kidnapped for two years, even when philomena seems to disappear without a trace after he had come to trust her in the first book and now he can't even ask her if she's seen his sister. losing people is Bad for him and he handles it Horribly, he spirals and gets nasty and closed off and unpleasant and man i love him honestly. he's pretty open with this fear, also, because he's constantly confronted with it and it's hard to hide that it upsets him deeply.

ghost: Who or what haunts your OC? What happened? How do they live with their ghosts?

BOY HOWDY. hmmm.

pruitt is going to be haunted by his mother for the rest of his life. she haunted him while she was alive and she is never going to leave his mind. pretty much ever. and he learns to live with it the way he's always lived with it, but i do believe that one day, between him and casey, he's the one to express genuine sadness that if they ever wanted to have a kid, there'd be next to no way to make it happen. (and maybe there Is a way!) and i think he would be the one to Want that. to want to live a full life despite her and what she did to him for all of his.

casey and ayla are fairly haunted by their birth mom who died in childbirth because their dad bruce just. cannot let it go. he's even remarried, but he still has a hard time looking them in the eye even after all this time. he's the type to shut down and not go to therapy, and he is a generally inscrutable man who can't be pleased, and so he's a walking reminder that They Killed Their Mom™ which obviously isn't true but it's hard to not think that even without the guilt trip.

philomena is haunted by the people she can't help. she's going to be haunted by eryn forever. eryn is the first person from casey's support group to go missing, and also happened to be a years-long friend of philomena's (they were in the same STARFLEET chapter!) and she is not okay after his disappearance. but then. when she goes into the fighting ring as a medic/informant. she finds him there. and she can't speak to him alone at all or it'll blow her cover. and he has no way of knowing if she's there to help or what. or if she has a plan. and when he dies there, they still haven't talked. that regret is going to Haunt Her Forever. because what if she had tried harder. couldn't she have found just a Moment. what was she willing to lose for the greater picture. did she sacrifice her friend to this machine by not trying to find another way to get him out. was his death necessary because otherwise blowing her cover would just ruin the entire operation and damn all the fighters to an even longer time stuck there. the questions go on forever. and she will never not blame herself for her silence.

[oifaaa]

Watch Jason write home to Mama Talia about his latest villainous deeds and she sends him back letters about how proud she is

Talia is happy to help fund Jasons little crime empire bc she knows that it will drive Bruce insane and there's no greater joy in life then talia causing chaos to her (ex??) husband

[randomshyperson]

WANDA X READER - 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU - Final

Gif is not mine.

Summary:  Pietro Maximoff is handsome and popular, but he can’t date before his twin sister. The problem is that no one can get close to his sister, Wanda Maximoff. To resolve the situation, a girl interested in Pietro bribes a colleague with a mysterious past to go out with Wanda and, who knows, try to win her over. Or The one directly inspired by 10 Things I Hate About You.

Words:  11,620K (Complete)  /// Read on AO3 too || Part I

Warnings: PG, fluff, language.

She doesn't answer your messages during the weekend. So you don't press her. But then you are on the field, in physical education period, and she is practicing.

You sit on the bleachers, trying to focus on the math homework you needed to finish, when Monica joins you on the bench.

- Hey, girl. - She says hello as she sits down. And noticing your gaze shifting from the notebook to Wanda, she comments. - What happened between you two?

You sighed angrily.

- I did the right thing. - You comment with irony, but seeing Monica's frown in confusion, you add. - She wanted to kiss me after the party. I refused because she was drunk.

- But the plan was working! - said Monica.

- So what, you called the whole thing off.

Monica giggled, and raised her eyebrows slightly.

- Yeah, I know, but it was...it was before what happened. - She said, and you looked at her with confusion. - Pietro kissed me.

You blink and then laugh, shaking your head. And then Bruce comes to join you two.

- I just talked to Wanda. - He says. - Look, she said she hates you with the intensity of a thousand suns.

You let out a dry laugh, running your fingers through your hair.

- Thank you Bruce, that's very comforting to hear. - You tell him wryly, and he nods uncomfortably.

- Maybe she needs a day to calm down. - Monica says, and the three of you look toward the field, where Wanda was training veritably.

- Maybe two days. - You comment as you watch her knock a girl down.

//-//

You managed to fix most of your motorcycle. And then you found out that your mother punctured the tires, and you stormed angrily into her room.

- Have you completely lost your mind? - You shouted, and she just took off her glasses and crossed her legs while looking at you. - You slashed the tires on my motorcycle?

- I told you that you were grounded.

- That's ridiculous! - you say. - You don't have the slightest respect for my things.

- Don't talk to me that way. - She warned, and you let out a wry laugh.

- Be damn sure that when my bike is up and running, I'm out of here!

You shout before leaving the room, slamming the door.

You were coming out of geography class when Pepper Potts came to talk to you again.

She pulled you into a far corner behind the closet, and held out a hundred dollars to you.

- Take her to prom. - She said. - It's all here, limousine, clothes.

She pushed the money in your hands, but you pushed it back.

- I'm done with this game, Potts. - You retorted, feeling extremely uncomfortable.

You started to turn to leave, but Potts stepped in front of you.

- Hey, hey, wait. - She asked, and then pulled three more bills from her purse. - Three hundred dollars, okay? Come on, it's just a date.

You swallowed dryly as you accepted, trying to push to the back of your mind how wrong it was. And Potts smiled mischievously, then left.

//-//

You went back to the same record store in front of the laundry room where you found Wanda that other day. And you tried not to be so nervous.

Looking around, you found her walking around the shelves, and she was admiring a guitar. You put your hands in your pockets as you watched her put on the headphones and try the instrument, sitting down on one of the stools in the store.

You moved closer, and could see her reflection in the mirror a few feet away, but Wanda didn't see you, as her eyes were closed while her fingers danced on the guitar strings.

You smiled at the image, she looked so peaceful and comfortable. You couldn't disturb her. So you just left the store.

//-//

You saw Wanda again the next day. You didn't give up talking to her, and ended up going to the only bookstore in town that you knew sold the poetry that Wanda liked to read according to the list Monica had given you.

And while you were browsing the shelves, you found her looking distractedly at a stack of books. You walked over to her, following her across the opposite shelf, and when the shelf was over, you ended up in front of each other.

- Excuse me, miss. I'm looking for an Avengers comic book, have you seen any around? - You joked, but Wanda didn't smile, looking annoyed.

- What are you doing here?

- I hear you like poetry. - You answer and she sighs impatiently.

- You're so...

- Charming? - You interrupt with a smile, Wanda rolls her eyes as she walks away from you. - wholesome?

- Inopportune. - She says irritated. You bite your lip and walk toward her.

- You're not as mean as you think. - You tell her.

- And you're not as bad-ass as you think you are.

- Oh, someone still has her panties in a twist.

- Don’t for one minute think that you had any effect whatsoever on my panties.

You let out a smug chuckle.

- And where did I provoke?

- You provoked my vomit, nothing more. - She retorts, then grabs a comic book from the stack of books in front of her and slaps it against your chest, walking away.

You stare at the Avengers comic book in your hand for a few minutes before handing it back, completely impressed by the dialogue.

//-//

At break time, the day after your argument with Wanda, Monica and Bruce approach you in the snack line.

- She's still mad at me, people. - You tell them as you put some noodles on your tray.

- Look, you embarrassed her, you need to apologize. - Monica said and you frowned.

- I'm not going to apologize for not taking advantage of her drunken state! - You retort. - It's not my fault she's stubborn, and would rather be angry than admit she's wrong.

You finish your lunch and get out of line, Bruce and Monica follow you to the table. They don't sit with you, but watch you sit next to Carol at one of the circular tables.

- Come on, Y/N, try to think of something to please her. - Bruce says, and you roll your eyes.

- You can sing your apologies. - Mocks Carol from beside you, making you laugh. But then Bruce and Monica have serious expressions and you frown.

- Not a chance! - You warn them, but they are already letting out excited exclamations.

Carol starts laughing next to you.

- I have the perfect idea! - Monica says. - You can sing a romantic song in front of the whole school! Any girl would love it.

- I'd kill anyone who did that to me. - Carol mumbles humorously, and you laugh.

- Can I at least finish my lunch in peace? - you say, and Monica and Bruce nod in agreement. You point to the free chairs at your table, and they are very happy to sit with you.

//-//

And then you ended up outside the school again. After infiltrating the upper booth of the soccer field and getting a microphone and access to the outside speakers. You also had to pay the band guy, but you figured it was only worth it.

- You're just too good to be true. - You sang into the microphone as you walked out of the booth toward the stands. Your voice echoing across the field - Can't take my eyes of you. - You continued as you walked. All the students were looking around trying to figure out where the voice was coming from. - You'd be like heaven to touch. I wanna hold you so much. At long last love has arrived. And I thank God I'm alive - You sing and finally become visible to the people in the field. - You're just too good to be true. - You look for Wanda in the crowd in the distance, and sing the last part while looking and pointing at her. - Can't take my eyes of you.

And then the band starts playing, and you follow the beats, continuing to sing the song, as the crowd claps their hands and enjoys your performance.

You keep looking at Wanda throughout the song, and even as the security guards pull you off the field, you see that she is blushing, and smiling.

//-//

You end up in detention after hearing from Principal Harkness that she was impressed that you did romantic acts, and you laughed before leaving the office.

And then Professor Thanos was walking around the detention room, and stopped at the desk next to yours.

- You look nervous. - He said to the student who was sitting down.

- A little bit sir.

- You are sweating like a pig. - said Thanos.

- Yes sir. - agreed the frightened boy.

- Your eyes are red. - He said.

The boy nodded nervously, looking down at the table.

- You have pot, don't you? - said Thanos angrily, and the boy turned pale. - Hand it over right now.

After confiscating the boy's weed, Thanos walked back around, and then the door opened. You raised your head when you heard Wanda's voice.

- Professor Thanos, may I speak with you please? - she asked, entering the room and walking towards the man.

- What can I do for you, Miss Maximoff?

- I have some ideas for improving the team. - She says.

- Great! But we'll talk about them later. - Thanos replies with a serious expression, and as he looks across the room, Wanda looks at you, and quickly signals the window of the room. You blink in confusion, and when she whispers "window," Professor Thanos turns to her again.

- As you know, we have an important match against the Panthers coming up. - She starts to say, clearly trying to distract the man. You rush to gather your backpack and sneak out of his field of vision. - Wow, your muscles are huge! - She comments with a false sweetness in her voice, pulling the professor along and enabling you to run behind one of the pillars. The floor is very noisy and Wanda is trying to keep the man distracted by talking about match tactics, and when you finally reach the window, there is a metallic clatter and you think Thanos is going to see you, but then Wanda is pulling you by the arm again, and lifting up her own blouse.

The whole room makes a celebratory buzz and you try not to blush at the image of Wanda's exposed breasts, hurrying out, around the building on the fire escape and out the side.

//-//

It takes a while, but Wanda joins you.

- I can't believe you showed your breasts to a professor. - You remark with a laugh when she arrives.

- I can't believe you sang in front of the school. - She replies with a smile.

You shift the weight of your feet, staring at the ground for a second.

- Do you want to do something now? - you ask, and Wanda smiles as she nods.

You sneak off the school grounds, avoiding being seen by any security or teachers.

You end up in the city park, on the pedal boats in the middle of the sea.

- I can't stop thanking you for getting me out of detention. - You say with a smile as you pedal along together. - That was really nice.

- No problem.

You are silent for a moment, before you decide to ask her what she wants to know.

- What is your excuse?

- For what? - she asks confused.

- For behaving the way you do.

- I don't like to do what everyone expects. - She says. - Why should I meet other people's expectations and not my own?

- So you disappoint from the start, and then you don't have to worry?

She smiles lightly impressed.

- Yeah, something like that.

You nod, looking away.

- So you failed.

- How so?

- You've never disappointed me. - You confess, and Wanda looks at you. You smile at each other for a moment, before you look away again.

A few meters from the edge of the beach there is a paintball field.

- Hey, are you in? - you ask, pointing to the place.

- Yes. - Wanda agrees, slightly excited.

When you get off the pedal boat, you race to the paintball field, and Wanda absolutely beats you to it. You are laughing as you pay the entrance fee, watching her excitement.

After you put on your protective clothing, and get the paint ammunition, she moves first into the field, and hides, causing you to lose sight of her. You walk around looking around, and then feel something cold hit you on your back.

- Cheater! - You shout cheerfully, as you grab some paint from your ammunition pouch, and run toward Wanda, who is laughing as she tries to run away. You hit her in the leg.

And you stay in this race for several minutes, throwing paintballs at each other while laughing and trying to dodge the shots. At some point between ducking behind one of the obstacles, you corner Wanda, but she looks so cute that you don't have the heart to throw paint at her.

So you just put your hand down and smile. But seeing your hesitation, Wanda laughs and jumps at you, knocking you into the hay as she falls on top of you. You both laugh but your laughter dies down when you notice how close you are. And then she gets that look in her eyes again, and you want to kiss her, so you do.

And you kiss against the hay for many minutes, the feeling of having her against you makes you absolutely satisfied. And you continue there, until Wanda sighs against your lips, and you are warm, and it is better to stop before you are thrown out. And when you part, Wanda hits you on the head with a paint ball, and the moment changes completely. Soon you are back to playing and running.

//-//

On the way back to Wanda's house, you talked about the most varied subjects. When you are arriving, you start talking about the rumors that have been made at school about you two.

- I've heard that you sold your liver on the black market. - She remarked, making you laugh as you turned off the car.

- Those things are lies. - You retorted sheepishly as you got out and walked towards her backyard.

- The parole story?

- False - You deny it laughing. - The fight that ended in death in the parking lot?

- Rumor. - Wanda says with a laugh. - The robbery in New York?

- Just gossip. - You say. - And the kick in Tony Stark's nuts?

- True, he deserved it. - She says. - I'd do it again, he tried to grab me in the cafeteria.

You nod in agreement.

- What about your accent? - you ask curiously.

- I thought it was one at a time. - She jokes, and you shrug. You sit on her balcony. - It's real. My family is from Sokovia, we moved here when I was eight. - You grumble in agreement, waiting for Wanda's question. - Where were you last year? Since the parole story is a lie?

You laughed, looking away for a moment.

- I was in Colorado, living with my father. - You tell, and then look at her again, tucking her hair back behind her ear.

Wanda looks at you with curiosity and tenderness.

- Tell me something true.

- True? - you repeat with a thoughtful tone. - I hate peas.

She laughs lightly.

- No. Something real. - She clarifies. - Something no one else knows about.

- Okay. - You agree by coming closer. - You're sweet. - You tell her by lowering your head to her neck and kissing. - And sexy. - You kiss the skin on the other side. - And you're completely crazy about me. - You say as you bump your foreheads together, and Wanda laughs, pulling away a little.

- You have a huge ego, anyone ever tell you that? - she scoffs.

- I tell myself that every day. - You smile back, before kissing her. - Come to the prom with me.

- Is that a request or an order?

- Come on, go with me.

Wanda sighs.

- No.

- Why not?

- Because I don't want to, it's a silly tradition. - She explains.

- Now, nobody expects you to go.

- Why are you so insistent about it?

You look at her in surprise, feeling your heart race. Then of course you get defensive, because Wanda can't know. At your lack of response, she asks:

- What's in it for you? - She sounds suspicious and irritated.

- Now I need a reason to be with you?

- You tell me.

You look away, feeling extremely uncomfortable.

- You need therapy, you know. - You say back. - Has anyone ever told you that?

- Answer my question.

- Nothing. - You exclaim without patience, looking at her. - I get nothing, just the pleasure of your company.

You look out into the yard again, and Wanda lets out an angry exclamation before getting up and walking into the house, slamming the door.

You run your hands through your hair, hating that you accepted the damn money in the first place.

//-//

You thought Wanda was angry, but she calls you the next day after school. And she accepts the invitation. You are surprised, and feel guilty, but you are also happy to spend time with her.

She says she will accompany her sister, and meet you at the dance. So you stand at the entrance to the party, wearing your best clothes and trying not to look so anxious.

Wanda doesn't see you as she walks up the stairs to the party, and you bite your lip, impressed by how beautiful she looks.

You approach slowly, and whisper a hello in her ear, which startles her slightly, but she smiles turning to you.

- You look stunning. - You say breathlessly.

- So do you. - She replies with a smile.

You offer your arm for her to hold, and she accepts. You walk together toward the ballroom.

- How did you get such a fancy outfit? - she asks with a slight irony.

- Oh, I had kept it at home. For situations like this. - You joke.

- What situations?

- A date with a pretty girl. - You retort with a smile, and Wanda laughs lightly.

You walk to the entrance of the photos, and you lean against the pillar.

- I'm sorry I questioned your motives. - she says when you stop. - I was wrong.

You swallow dryly, feeling guilty. But you try to cover it up.

- You are forgiven.

Wanda smiles.

- Are you ready for the ball?

- Yes, miss. - You agree with a light laugh as you turn toward the party.

You dance together for a few minutes. The songs are terrible, but with Wanda, it's fun.

You also see Pietro and Monica dancing together, and Wanda exchanges a pleased look with her sister.

- Girl, have you seen him? - asks a redheaded girl walking up to Wanda. You know they are friends, and that her name was Nat or something like that.

- Who? - Wanda replies, confused.

- William! - she replies. - He asked me to come here.

You and Wanda exchange confused and amused glances.

- Natasha, please don't tell me you're hallucinating.

You were going to ask what they were talking about, but then you looked toward the stage and understood. You signaled for the girl to look, and she cracked a big smile when she saw Bruce Banner dressed as William Shakespeare waving at her, and walked off in your direction.

- I'm not even going to ask. - Wanda remarked with a chuckle before she went back to dancing with you.

And then the music is ending again, for a romantic one to take its place. You turn Wanda in your arms, kiss her tenderly for a moment, and then dance again, feeling her rest her chin on your shoulder.

And you dance for several minutes, and then someone pulls you away.

- Girl, what is Pietro doing here with that asshole? - Pepper asked aggressively as she pulled you away. - I didn't pay you to go out with Wanda and get nothing for it.

It was as if a bucket of cold water had fallen on you. Your gaze returned immediately to Wanda, and she was already looking at you with teary eyes.

- You have nothing to gain from this, have you?

she retorted wryly before walking away, bumping into you. You gave Potts one last look before following her.

- Wanda! Wait! Please! - You shouted as you walked out of the hall. She then stopped walking, and you let out a sigh. - Give me a chance to explain.

- You were paid to go out with me by the person I hate the most. - She retorted. - I knew it was a trick.

- No, Wanda. It wasn't like that.

- How was it then? An advance, and the rest of the money when you sleep with me?

- No! - You denied it with a shout. - I didn't care about the money! I cared about you.

Wanda shook her head, incredulously.

- You're different than I thought you were.

And then she turns and runs outside, and you sink your hands into your face, trying to calm yourself down.

- Where did she go? - You hear a male voice, and take your hands away from your face to see Pietro standing in front of you.

- Away. - You retort, feeling your stomach clench. - I screwed up.

- We did. - He says upset, putting his hands in his pockets.

- At least you got the girl. - You comment wryly before turning and walking away.

You think you're crying, but you don't care as you leave the party.

//-//

Your first lesson is literature the next day. And you know you will see Wanda, but you are hating yourself so much right now that you don't care. You arrive early for the first time in the whole school year, and sit in one of the back chairs.

As the other students arrive, you keep your head down, trying to distract yourself with your cell phone, even though you know that all your attention is on the girl sitting two chairs in front of you.

When Professor Fury finally starts the class, he is all excited.

- I guess everyone had time to finish the poem I asked for. - He announces standing at the front of the room. - Except for Mrs. Potts, who has an excuse. - He scoffs lightly, mentioning the confusion that occurred at the dance when you left, where Monica punched her in the nose. And now she was wearing sunglasses to cover up the purple. The whole room giggles at Fury's words. - Okay, does anyone want to start the reading?

The room is silent, but then Wanda raises her hand.

- I will.

- Lord, here we go. - Comments the teacher as the girl gets up, and stops at the front of the room. Wanda begins to recite the poem:

-I hate the way you talk to me. And the way you cut your hair. I hate the way you drive my car. I hate it when you stare. - She narrates, without taking her gaze from the notebook - I hate your big dumb combat boots, And the way you read my mind. I hate you so much, that it makes me sick, And even makes me rhyme. - She pauses, taking a deep breath - I hate the way you're always right, I hate it when you lie. I hate it when you make me laugh. - She looks directly at you, her eyes filled with tears and her voice trembling. - Even worse when you make me cry. I hate it when you not around. And the fact that you didn't call. But mostly I hate the way I don't hate you, Not even close, Not even a little bit, not even at all.

Wanda lets the tears flow as she finishes, and the room was too shocked to react. She rushes out next, grabbing her backpack on the way, and slamming the door.

You are trying to hold back your own tears as you stand up.

- I'm going to the bathroom, Mr. Fury. - You grumble as you leave, without waiting for permission.

But you don't find Wanda, and you decide that you’re simply not in the mood for school today.

//-//

You sell your motorcycle. You hate that it has the parts for the money Potts gave you, so when it is fixed, you call Carol, and she finds you a buyer. This means you are stuck with your mother for a longer period, but it seems like the right thing to do.

And then you text Wanda, asking her to meet you wherever she wants. She says she won't leave the house to talk to you, so you end up at her front door, shifting the weight of your feet before you decide to knock.

Wanda's father looks stern, and he doesn't smile when he sees you.

- Are you the girl who made my daughter cry? - he asks with a serious expression.

But then Pietro appears at his side, patting him on the shoulder.

- My God, Daddy, don't be like that! - he asks, smiling at you. - Y/N, you are here to apologize, I imagine. Let her talk to Wands.

Mr. Maximoff takes one last look at you before entering back into the house, and Pietro smiles, nodding his head for you to enter.

- Thank you, Pietro. - You tell him, and then he takes you upstairs.

He drops you at Wanda's door, and you take a deep breath before knocking.

- Come in. - You hear her voice on the other side.

Entering the room, you are slightly overwhelmed by the amount of visual information. Wanda has many posters. And she is sitting on the bed, with a book on her lap.

- Hey. - You greet her, closing the door. You leave your hands in your pockets, deciding whether to stand.

- Hi. - She replies, placing the book on the bed and crossing her legs. - What did you want?

You swallow dryly, and decide to sit on her bed, keeping your distance.

- To apologize. - You clarify, and she looks away. - Properly apologize.

- I don't know what you want me to say.

- I just want you to listen. - You retort and straighten your posture, feeling your heart soar. - I'm sorry I took Potts' money, because regardless of my motives, it was wrong to put your feelings on the line.

- Wanda frowns slightly, as if deciding whether to believe you or not. You clear your throat.

- I never should have accepted it in the first place, but mostly I should have stopped when I realized I was falling in love with you. - You say, and Wanda looks at you, surprised by your confession. - But I didn't stop, and I lied to you and kept deceiving you, when I should have told you the whole truth. I'm sorry I hurt you, Wanda. I swear I didn't think all of this would happen.

You take a deep breath, running your fingers through your hair. Wanda just stands there, looking at you as if trying to read your mind.

- I just wanted to say that. - You tell her feeling flustered,

- Are you in love with me?

Wanda looks at you intently, and you just smile shyly.

-Very much so.

And then Wanda approaches you, and when she is close to your face, she says:

- I'm still mad at you. - And then she kisses you. You have missed her lips, and unfortunately the kiss doesn't last long.

When you open your eyes, Wanda has already moved away again, leaning her back against the headboard.

- When you are no longer angry, can we do something together? - you ask her tenderly. Wanda stares back at you, as if to say something.

- I received my acceptance letter today. - She tells you suddenly, and you blink in confusion. Before you can congratulate her, she adds. - In California.

You look at her in surprise, feeling your heart race. Wanda was leaving.

- Oh. - You swallow dryly, shake your head slightly, and smile. - I'm proud of you, Wanda. Congratulations.

- I thought you'd be upset.

- No, it's okay. - You give her a sad smile. - I'll miss you, but it's amazing that you're going to college.

Wanda lets out a sigh, keeping quiet for a moment.

- What did you need the money for?

You are surprised by the question, and look away from her, feeling slightly uncomfortable that this subject is back. But you decide that Wanda has the right to know whatever she wants to.

- I needed to fix my motorcycle. - You tell. - My mom is... hard to deal with. We had a fight and she broke some parts with a hammer. The next day, Potts was offering me the money I needed.

Wanda looks at you for a moment, seeming to be absorbing the story.

- Did you fix it?

- Yes. - You confirm, but let out a humorless chuckle. - But I sold it later.

The girl looks at you, frowning in confusion. And you shrug.

- I felt bad about everything. I decided to try to do the right thing then. - You explain. - I think I'm stuck with my mother for a while now.

Wanda looks surprised at your conclusion, and you let out a sigh, flopping down on the bed as you stare at the ceiling. You are silent for a moment, and then Wanda crawls over to you and lies down beside you, looking up at you.

- What if you leave with me? - She whispers, running her fingers across your face, and you blink in surprise.

- What?

Wanda smiles shyly.

- I have a car. - she says. - And you could work, and we could share an apartment.

You straighten your posture, leaning on your elbow and looking at Wanda in amazement.

- Are you serious? - you ask, smiling, and she nods slightly. You let out a happy exclamation, and move in, kissing her on the mouth. Wanda giggles against your lips, but returns the kiss.

You quickly let go and sit down on the bed when Wanda's father suddenly opens the door.

- Keep this door open! - He warns with a stern look, and you swallow dryly.

- Yes, sir. - Wanda says with humor.

When he leaves, you throw yourself on the bed next to Wanda, and she goes back to reading while you lie beside her.

- Any chance you have any comic books around here? - You joke, and Wanda giggles, denying it with a nod.

You don't mind though, her company is enough to keep you distracted.

//-//

You end up using the money from the motorcycle sale to pay the deposit on the apartment you find for yourselves, fifteen minutes from her college. You get a job the same week, and you finally read the poetry that Wanda likes as you both drive towards California.

[redjaybathood]

So I didn't send it after all! (That was bugging me for like 15 mins) In my prompt Willis was less of a abuser and more of a drunk. Anyways Willis gets fired as a mechanic, picks up drinking and the relationships ended up strained while he was looking for jobs. Robs a bank for Two-face. Gets 10 years (7 for good behavior) he stops getting mail for a while.

Two years later gets an envelope from Jay telling him how cathrine used heroine to deal with the pain of cancer then died, and about how he was homeless for a while til he picked up by Bruce Wayne of all people. (then the note rambles about how Wayne is Batman and jace is robin, but that can't be true)

Jay sends him letters and books more often and they start reconnecting til they all stop out of nowhere. He steals a phone and looks ups his son (Wayne had a private funeral, batmans getting more violent)

He tries to piece together how it could of happened (maybe jace was telling the truth) regardless the only one to blame is Wayne

So he waits, and trains. It's all he can do (He's useless he thinks. As a father, as a husband, as a person) his sentence is served

He remember the old red hood gangs hideout (it's been long since abandoned) modifies a helmet, cleans up some guns, and prepares for the hunt

Yeah,I feel like it might just work with the thing I wrote earlier; though, like, I imagined more like... Lex Luthor still used Blackgate prisoners for the experiments on that islands, Artemis was still tasked to find escapees, among whom was Willis. Willis and her talked, Willis explained that he needs to go home for his son - he didn't hear from him for a while before ending up signing up for the programm, hoping to get out early and ending up, well. Here.

And Artemis feels for him; she lets him go. She repents her ways, because enough is enough. Breaks up with Luthor. Pursues her heritage, including finding and bringing home the Bow of Ra. And one of the tips bringing her to Gotham, where she hears that Black Mask is receiving a shipment from Luthor, shipment that is related to Quarac. It was, she thinks, the Bow.

Meanwhile, Willis, who escaped the island and returned to Gotham, finds out about Jason's death. Finds out about Robin's death: two of the Robins. One of them died just as Jason stopped sending him letters. And he looked really, really alike. Mask and all notwithstanding.

Willis puts two and two together. He puts a crew together as well. He's Red Hood not because of the Joker, per se - he will kill Joker, no question about it, but he doesn't particularly feel anything about Joker. But Batman? But Bruce? Who supposed to be safe, better than Willis, who supposed to be taking care of his boy? Yeah. That's his real target. Red Hood, in this case, is a remembrance. Batman created the Joker, his nemesis, transforming a simple robber into someone who will never, ever let him live. And Willis is well on the way to his own transformation. Only, he has another plan for his next identity (more on that later).

So Willis conscripts other guys. Guys like him. With their difficulties. With their families. With their desire to just make something better for themselves. To get better. He's upfront about his story, he isn't worried Batman finds out. Let him. Let him know the reckoning is here.

He does things a little differently from Jason. For one, he isn't, in fact, trained in gazillion firearms or multitude martial arts. He's okay; but combat isn't his forte. He doesn't need it. He has two advantages: he knows the city, and he knows people. How all of it operates, coexists. How it could be improved. That's what he offers his men: an opportunity, not to become a top dog, but to make it so you don't need to be a top dog to have a decent life.

Black Mask needs to go. They corner him off, buy, convince or scare off his people. Rob him. Make diversions. Sick IRS on him, even. Blackmail the mayor who's in his pocket into resigning. Whatever works, really. Things become tough, though, when Black Masks decides to hit back. The usual goons with guns and Molotov cocktails? Hood and Outlaws can handle it. But there's a whisper of a weapon, something the world hasn't seen before, that came into possession of the Black Mask - and it arrives into Gotham soon, and it will be used against RHATO.

So Willis decides to steal it from him. Only then Batman shows up, and then Artemis, and then the weapon turns out to be a person. Bizarro.

When Willis shows up, he helps to calm down disoriented and panicking Biz, along with Artemis. They make their getaway from Batman and Black Mask together. Willis offers them to join RHATO. Artemis needs whatever information Black Mask has on the Bow of Ra, so she decides to stick around, if Willis can help her. He promises he does.

Together, the three of them fight off the meta assassins Black Masks orders shortly after; steal Kryptonite from him and Dr. Freeze. Long story short, Biz becomes smart for a while, defeats Black Mask, helps Willis get to Joker without unleashing him onto Gotham, and then, trap Batman and Robin.

Willis clocked Jason, and then Bruce's identity pretty easy, with corresponding death dates, official stories that aren't quite matching... But, with the new tiny Robin? It's a bit hard. He has no idea who this tiny little guy is. So. What Willis plans, actually, it's to trap them so he can unmask Robin and talk to him. Try and persuade him, retelling the story of his Jason. Tim, of course, says something "RIP to Jason but I'm different". Willis says - okay; I won't hesitate to tell your parents on you, though. Tim is like. I don't have them? Bruce is my parent? Kinda? But I'm lying to him that I have an uncle so he won't adopt me?

And Willis is like, wait, what?

So, in a surprising turn of events, Willis adopts Tim. Forbids him to be Robin. There's blackmail involved. Same goes for Bruce, who's forbidden to be Batman, unless he wants his identity to be revealed. Which will put the risk on the rest of his kids (Dick and Cassandra; Damian and Duke aren't there yet, and Stephanie hadn't came back yet).

The twist of it, with Bizarro and Artemis help, Willis does end up reforming Gotham's criminal underground to the better. With minimal violence, except if you hurt kids, or sell drugs to kids. Everything else is just business. Except now that Bruce realizes who Willis is and that he actually wants to do good, he decides to work together with him. Create more jobs, affordable housing, counseling, etc. There are still people who prefer the underworld. But, like, less? A lot less? Not because of it's this or starving? It's something.

Willis initially wanted to assume Batman's identity; but as they grew closer, both having to deal with this immense guilt over Jason's death, and both wanting to make the city a safer place; they understand each other better. Batman is Batman again, Willis is Red Hood. Doing what Batman can't - keeps criminals in line, whereas Batman catches the ones who don't.

They also end up marrying as soon as New Jersey law allows it. They both are Tim's adopted parents now.

In between of all the Gotham's drama, Willis manages to help Artemis with the Bow of Ra; he also realizes that Bizarro has an addiction to Kryptonite earlier and helps to deal with it in a safer way than just going cold turkey. Bruce, on the other hand, asks Clark for help and they fix Bizarro's brain damage, so he's now as smart as he's been when he's high; even if the speech center was irreparably damaged and his speech patterns still are a bit stilted.

All in all, happy end.

And then, out of nowhere, Bruce's biological son shows up; with Willis's biological son. Who's also Bruce's adopted son.

And Jason is like - you married my fucking piece of shit father? You adopted a boy and a girl? And Dick, you fixed relationship with him? You have a fucking dog now and peace 'n quiet in Gotham? Joker is dead?

Damian is like - I should have known. Mother did remind me, that as long as my father gets to know me, he will love me, no matter if he has other children. I thought she meant you. I mean, having you as a brother is bad enough.

Jason to Willis: so you decided the best way to get revenge on Batman was to marry him? How does it work?

So all in all, Jason and Damian are confused and unsure of their place in the family; Tim and Cass are unsure about theirs, with the bio kids back home. Dick is the only one like - thank fuck I moved out ages ago, I literally couldn't care less.

[thefallenbibliophilequote]

All You Had To Do Was Stay

Loki x Reader

1989, chapter 5

"They paid the price"

Summary: It's hard to find the one, but even if you do find him it's always going to be a daily struggle to make it work. Can you even make it work after he broke your heart? The answer to that is complicated, but it all started when you found each other again in the Stark tower- and that's where our story begins.

Word count: 4,539

Warnings: angst, Hydra, some blood, Loki being an asshole

A/N: what can you expect from track 5 other than angst?

A/N: a big thank you to @chrissquares for the amazing dividers! and @nacho-bucky for beta reading and putting up with me!

No one is allowed to repost my writing or steal or copy my work! Reblog on tumblr is fine.

Series masterlist

song on Spotify and YouTube

"Soon we'll be landing in another Hydra base." Steve gathered everyone then.

"Okay, Thor you will go with Natasha; Clint you're with Loki; Bucky you will be with Y/N." he hasn't talked to you since that midnight talk. You couldn't blame him, not completely.

The team separated inside the base, eyes searching for the unusual weapons. Lately the activities of Hydra have risen more and more. Their kills were certainly not of normal weapons, the wounds weren't all fatal but the innocents were killed nonetheless.

"We're on the east wing, Steve. According to the tech Bruce gave us, there's some activity where we are heading."

You and Bucky kept your guns up and at three you burst into the room. But it was empty to your surprise. Cautiously, you stepped inside and examined what you saw in there. Grenades and various arsenals were placed inside boxes, and some were outside on tables taken apart with tools besides them.

"Don't touch them, last time I did it exploded in my face."

"I'm not as stupid as you are, Y/N." maybe you could shoot him just to annoy him, you thought.

"Ah, so you found some of our weapons," the voice startled you. "Nice to see you again, Soldat."

Turning around with your weapons, you attempted to shoot the guys that walked in. The scientist in the middle was unarmed, or so you thought. The agents spread out, and at some point they overpowered you because the next thing you knew, your gun was nowhere to be seen, and your arms were pinned behind your back as the guy in front of you got closer.

You couldn't let him do that, now could you? You locked eyes with him until he got hazy and fell to the ground shaking. Knocking your head against the guy that was holding you back, giving you just enough view of him to send him off to the darkest place in his head, all the while you didn't notice the scientist watching you. When he fell to the floor, the scientist sent all the other guys over from Bucky to you, caging you in, you felt yourself being dragged out of the room, yelling for Bucky who was there with only a few agents and the scientists.

Bucky hurried for you but now he could see the strange weapon in the scientist's hand. It looked like a sword, with a gem at the bottom. He fought the scientist and anyone around him but then he felt a cutting wound where the blade pierced through his stomach.

"Sorry this had to end this way, Soldat." The scientist laughed and Bucky fell to the floor with a shriek.

You finally managed to break free from the guys holding you down. Fighting them off one by one, until you managed to get them all to fall down in pain, then you went on to Bucky.

You saw him on the ground bleeding, not even caring about the guys in the room as you fell next to him.

"We need backup, Bucky is down!" you yelled to the comms. You tried to stop the bleeding- it was faster than it should be for a supersoldier.

"This doesn't feel right Y/N, run."

"No." A guy went for you, and you noticed he was averting his gaze from you, but you didn't let it affect you, you surged forward from Bucky and tackled him down and sent him to sleep.

Then you went for the scientist which still held the weapon, now closed back in its place, as he looked at you amused.

"What did you do to him?" you yelled more than asked. Soon enough you heard footsteps and to your relief Bucky was now with Thor and Steve.

Loki looked at the soldier on the ground and then at the weapon he recognized. Worried, he yelled at you.

"Y/N stay in this room, do not leave!" he went forward with his daggers, cut through the agents until he got to the doctor who was trying to run. Catching him and knocking him out, he took away the old weapon. Then he left him there, not caring about him anymore.

Holding the delicate weapon, he went back to the fallen soldier who was still bleeding out.

The god crouched down next to him and a worried Steve and he pulled out the gem at the hilt of the sword, putting it over Bucky's wound. The soldier sighed in relief at the contact, and Loki muttered a quick incantation which helped the soldier heal.

The blonde looked frightened at his friend, who only nodded to Loki in thanks.

The scientist was long gone.

•

He started noticing the subtle change at lunch that day.

Thor had dragged him back to eat with all the others when he insisted on going back to his books. The others weren't as bothered with him today when he sat next to you, each minding their own business. Occasional loud conversations started which he stayed out of until he caught onto one conversation.

"I remember the first time I held a bow and arrow." Clint said before being shot off.

"Nah not interesting Katniss, I think my origin story is way better, I was in a cave!"

The table caught onto the conversation and the roars began.

"I got bitten by a spider!" Peter looked over at Tony. "That's pretty cool, right Mr. Stark?"

"Yeah kid, that is badass." Tony ruffled the kid's head.

"I'm a Russian spy, that's more badass!" Natasha quipped.

"The kid can lift an elephant and stop a vibranium arm!" Bucky chuckled.

"I was holding back, I wasn't going to punch a kid!"

"Sure you were." Peter blushed under the Sergeant's look. Tony just brought him in a side hug.

"Does a sad unwilling origin story count?" Bruce asked, cleaning his glasses.

"Do you really want to start this, Doc? I was drafted." Bucky snickered.

"In that area, Y/N has a good shot actually." You huffed at that.

"Understatement, I don't even know where these powers came from. My origin story is the only one that can make it to Buzzfeed Unsolved!"

"Add to that what happened at the start- now that was brutal."

You took a sip out of your glass and clanked it with Bucky and Bruce.

"Y/N, what are they talking about?" Loki leaned to whisper to you.

"Oh nothing, don't worry about it." She shrugged him off

"What about my brother? Why don't you join the conversation-" Thor put a hand on the younger brother's shoulder. The brother only scowled.

"Oh please, being a prince with magic, then wanting to take over New York and failing? I'd hardly call it a good competition to what we have here." You snorted. Silence spread over the room, you put your drink down and looked around confused. Some were looking at you, Natasha bit down on her tongue, the others were looking down uncomfortably. Wanda spoke up before you could question your team.

"Hey, mine is out of spite!" Wanda chimed in, her perky voice released the tension in the room. "I obviously win."

Loki remembered those days when he stayed even in the mornings and you would come back from work and tell him all about your day. You'd lay there on your couch or on a stool in the kitchen and you'll tell him all about your day until he eventually felt comfortable telling you all about his, letting you into his life.

Loki walked out of the elevator to your floor, annoyed that he couldn't just teleport himself to the door of your apartment.

He heard your voice telling him to come in after he knocked, turning the knob of the door, he walked in and saw you organizing the living room table with plates and drinks.

"What do we have here?" he nodded to the boxes lying on the bigger table. You chuckled as he closed the door and locked it.

"Well hello to you too, Loki." You looked around, biting your lip. "What do you mean?"

"Those boxes, what did you do?" he eyes them suspiciously as he sat down on the sofa.

"I got us Pizza?"

"A what?" he looked at you like a confused puppy and you hated how adorable he looked.

"You're joking, right?" you put one box on the table. "I know you're British or whatever, but are you seriously telling me that where you are from- they don't have Pizza? What kind of uncultured place do you come from?"

"Maybe I'll tell you another time." He grinned lowly, if only you knew.

He perked up as you opened the box and a welcoming smell filled the air.

"Loki, meet Pizza." You grinned at him and expectedly brought him one on a plate. "Come on, you're going to love it."

He certainly loved meeting you more and more, ever since you met he made sure to keep in touch- he even bought one of those cell phones. He didn't know what it was about you.

He learned that you always tell him the truth, and you certainly did with this food as well when he took a bite. It was different than anything he knew back from Asgard. Good type of different, if he was honest with himself then so were you.

He smiled at the proud grin you held for him when he voiced his approval.

You started to tell him about your day after that.

"Oh, also I just saw a picture of a baby bat, it was so cute." You shook your head fondly.

"I'm sorry, please continue what you were saying." He said after the silence that took over the room.

"Oh no, that was it." You laughed nervously at him, looking down at your drink.

"Why did you tell me that then?"

"Just because? Sometimes you can just talk about nothing at all with someone if you enjoy talking to them."

"So," he put a hand on the back of the sofa right next to you, turning his gaze onto you. "You're just talking to me, and telling me stuff with no meaning behind it?"

"Yeah, is that bad?" you couldn't look at him and he just looked at the floor in thought. Humans were certainly peculiar.

"No, it is not bad." You didn't question hid odd questions, but took comfort in his answer. The conversation returned to normal, and with time you started seeing him try to do the same. It was cute.

•

"We have enough power now, Sir. But we can get more." The head scientist and the other agents had escaped from the base with most of the important weapons.

"What are you suggesting?" the man sat on a chair, a delicate long staff rested on a pedestal in front of him.

"We can keep the asset to ourselves." The man on the chair raised an eyebrow at him. "Commander Iago please, let me explain!"

"Doctor Zazu, we cannot betray the one who provided us with such powerful weapons! We will be doomed."

"I saw the Soldat today. I remember working on him when I first joined here. He was marvelous, so obedient," the doctor drifted off for a bit. "But now, we can get a new Soldat, we can keep the asset for ourselves and make an ever better Soldat!"

"But what will we do with our provider? It will be breaking our agreement." Commander Iago raked his hand through his red hair.

"All these weapons are stolen! If we have the asset- we will be unstoppable!"

The commander thought about the prospect of having another winter soldier.

"Gwen," he called to a girl who quickly walked into the room, rushing. "Wake up the sleeper agent."

•

You curled the white sheets tighter around you when Loki got out of the bed. Prompting up on your elbow, you asked him

"Do you have to go? We can just sleep in for a few hours, or maybe like half the day?" you trying to tame your messy hair a bit.

"The sword must be put back in its place. I will be back shortly."

"Okay, if you say so." You put your head back on the pillow and Loki gently kissed your forehead, earning a content hum from you, and left the room.

He reentered your room that night, not surprised to find you asleep but rather glad, it gave him time. His mind travelled to earlier in the day, and his first day here.

You did tell him about your powers, after he experienced it first-hand. But it didn't make sense to him, he felt the power oozing from you yet none seem to have figured out the source he even doubted they could sense the power in you. He certainly would've glossed over it if he hadn't still remembered past you.

You laid there sleeping in peace when his mind was racing, and he couldn't hold himself back. He reached out for your powers, hoping that they will separate from you and not wake you up. Leaning back on the wall, he closed his eyes and sent himself into your head, connecting to your powers.

It was familiar, he sensed it overwhelming him the longer he tried to dive in. just when he thought he had it, just when the familiarity grew and he knew he was close to the very core of this power inside of you- it was as if he hit a blockade and was pushed out by an aggressive force. The next second you woke up with a gasp, your blurry vision faded out when you came back to reality and noticed Loki.

"Loki?" your heavy breaths filled the room until he answered.

"I'm here, are you okay?" he went towards the bed.

"Yes, just had a nightmare." You shook your head at the memories of the dark place.

"Why don't you go back to sleep, I'll join you in a bit." You were out soon enough, tiredness taking over you.

He hesitantly walked over to you, hand raised to rest on your forehead, but he pulled back with a hiss when he was being held back from touching you.

Reluctantly he walked over the other side of the bed, laying there on his back and staying away from you. Before he could fall asleep, you pulled him to you, wrapping your arms around him you laid your head on his chest.

•

"Hey, little guy." Sam snickered beside you. You hardly saw Steve these days, but you knew Sam just came back from an early run with him.

"I'm older than you!" Scott grunted when you found him in the kitchen.

"She called you tiny, tic-tac, not young."

"As far as I remember, my little ass beat your ass when we met." Your shocked look made Sam grumble and Scott laugh.

"You never told me that! Oh Scott tell me everything!" sitting next to him, he began to tell you the story.

"So, I have manners so I introduced myself obviously-" you nodded along.

"Okay, listen- you can tell her but no telling Cap, I'll never hear the end of it." Sam pointed a spoon at the man who only shrugged and threw you a side smile.

"So, I haven't seen you in a while. How is Cassie doing?"

"She is great, won at a spelling bee! She was so happy." His smile was contagious, whenever he talked about his daughter he wouldn't stop gushing, which was adorable. "Have you ever thought about it?"

"About what?"

"Settling down, having some normal between this hero stuff." He leaned on one hand, and you faltered a bit.

"No, I don't think that's my thing." Sam sat with his coffee in front of you.

The next minute Loki came into the kitchen too. You didn't have to look behind you, gauging by Scott's reaction the Asgardian god stood there in the kitchen.

He didn't bother making conversation with the mortal but rather taking a sit next to you, and kissing your temple. You averted your eyes from Scott who looked over at Sam now. Sam shook his head.

Clearing your throat, you tried to break the silence.

"Scott, did you meet Loki?" you didn't wait for an answer. "Thor and he are here helping us with Hydra."

"No, I can't say that I did."

"Where were you this morning? You never wake up that early." Loki snaked a hand around you. You knew he did it because of Scott and you were a little uneasy about it.

"Oh I just needed to run over some stuff with Mike." You shrugged.

"Who is this Mike?" you didn't like the tone in his voice.

"Just a guy from S.H.I.E.L.D. so calm it."

You tried to focus your conversation on Scott again, ignoring the jealous god sitting beside you.

After your passionate sleepless nights, in the next few days Loki saw you more and more getting up early for work. He almost asked you to stay one time, when you uncurled from his awoken form.

"What if I came with you?"

"You'll spook him up and he won't be able to work properly." You leaned over him and gave him a slight peck. "Besides, you're going to Asgard with Thor later today, right?"

"Yeah, I'll be gone for a couple of days." He was getting up when you sat on his lap.

"I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too."

•

Sleepless, Steve groaned and grabbed his jacket and went up to the roof of the tower. He had barely slept between his fight with you and watching his best friend almost get killed by an alien weapon which then was held and brought back by none other than Loki.

Getting up, he looked around at the city when he went to his usual sitting space. This night it wasn't empty, he was surprised to see you sitting there, in his sweatshirt.

He went and sat down next to you. It was quiet for a while.

"Can't sleep?"

You shook your head in response.

"I'm sorry, Steve." You turned your head to look at him, your cheeks flushed from the cold. "What I said was way out of place and I just couldn't think clearly through all of my fury." You could feel your eyes beginning to sting. You couldn't fight with Steve.

"It's okay, I shouldn't have screamed at you. I can't fully blame you I am just-" he took your cold hands in his. "I feel protective over you, you're family to me and you know that."

"Loki was my family for a long time too, once." You muttered to him.

"Are you sure he won't hurt you? Can you really just trust him like that?" he asked and you sighed, not seeing the point in avoiding it.

"No." with another breath you managed to tell him more. "Plus it's just for now, we agreed on it."

Steve stayed silent, but you could feel him studying you.

"But Y/N is that what you actually want?"

The question had you holding your breath, catching you off guard. It was an odd question to ask but if you were letting yourself see the truth- you know the answer.

You stayed quiet and stayed with Steve there until you fell asleep on his shoulder.

•

The golden cages of the palace gates opened up to him, the palace workers carefully bowed to him as he hastily passed by them. The sooner he could this over it, the sooner he could go back to you. Hopefully you won't be taken away from him again when he is back.

Entering the throne room, he saw his father on the grand sit and Thor leaned in on a pillar.

"Ah, my son, you finally came." He walked towards his brother and stood in front of Odin.

"What is this meeting about?"

"Loki-" Thor began before his father halted him.

"I heard you rejected the advances of lady Iyllir, why would you do that?"

"Well, father-"

"Our relationship with her family is important. We need to clean up the messy reputation you gave yourself, giving you a fitting wife will help immensely. Loki, for once in your life do the right thing and obey!"

"Loki has-"

"No Thor, don't make excuses for him. The lady was brought here for you, to have a wedding. My child, don't be foolish. She is a lovely girl, everybody will be happy when the wedding will occur! She even agreed to be your wife despite everything!" the Allfather chuckled but Loki knew better than that.

"Shouldn't we be talking about the problem with Hydra? We did manage to get some weapons but some are still missing." Thor cleared his throat and glanced at Loki, who stayed quiet.

"Very well my child, what do you suggest we do?"

"My friends are doing a great job at attacking Hydra, maybe we could send an Asgardian scientist to help them." Thor glanced at Loki for help, he just nodded at him.

"I want you boys home soon. I want to know how these midgardians got their hands on our weapons, you should not take this lightly, and tell these friends of yours not to as well."

"Of course, father. So in two days time we will go back to Midgard and resume our help there."

"No, Thor you will go but Loki shall stay here." Odin dismissed the older brother.

"Father, they need me there, my wand is still missing there!" Loki argued back.

"They don't need you anymore; you've helped them with explaining the weapons. Now you can stay home and we can talk about the wedding. What is the problem? That was the plan all along."

The problem was that Loki knew that, and it was true. He couldn't argue against it.

•

The bed was cold now, the last couple of days took away the place Loki held in your bed and replaced it with coldness. You missed him already.

The sun was setting, painting the skies of your window with beautiful pastel colours.

"Come in!" you yelled to the person at the door. You smiled when you saw Loki walking into your room. "Loki!"

Rushing to him, you wrapped him in a hug, which he was reclined to return. You pulled back from him.

"Loki?" his face held no expressions, and it sent you back.

"So, you're not going to say anything?" sobbing, you had to sit on the couch. Why was he still here? This is what you get for falling for a trickster; he must have lied to you a million little times. "Did this mean nothing to you? Did I mean nothing to you?"

Accusing him, your blurry eyes returned to his solid face that held no emotion- just indifference.

"What did you expect falling for an immortal monster?" he growled back, mocking you now. The tears kept pouring as he stood there staring.

"I came here to help with the weapons which were stolen, my help isn't really needed here anymore so I am going back to Asgard."

Oh. You took a couple of steps back.

"What did you expect falling for the god of lies? Did you really think I would stay for you? I won't be coming back to midgard anymore." You barely saw him now but you heard the door shut behind him, and he just left you there with your heart shattered like glass on the floor.

"Loki, are you not going to stay until we found the weapons at least?" you let out a nervous laugh, trying to keep looking at him, which proved to be a difficult task when you knew that he knew exactly what you felt.

"No, Thor can take it away from now on. I do have to go back for my duties as a prince, and for a lady after all." You scoffed.

"Right."

"You can't be upset with me. This was what you wanted. We agreed on this from the start, just a temporary thing, right?" he mocked you now.

"Well what if I wanted more! You were all I wanted!" you yelled at him now, finally releasing all the unsaid things. "Does that make you happy? Hearing me say that, hearing me beg?"

"No it doesn't." he groaned at you.

"You are doing the same thing you did all those years ago." The tears welled up in your eyes. "You know, you never did tell me why, you just left with no explanation."

"What do you want me to say, baby?" it slipped but he couldn't control it, he had to control himself first.

"Don't call me baby! Look at this mess that you're creating of me, do you remember what happened back then? How I cried and you were just there watching! You just watched me suffer." The tears let themselves flow without your permission. "Tell me why!"

"You don't know anything, why would you make such a fuss over nothing?" he hissed at you, moving around the room you almost felt like his prey. You probably were.

"Because I love you! I always have so even if you don't just let me have this closure, tell me why you left me so suddenly?" You hated the crack in your voice, closing your eyes for a moment you pinched your nose. "Tell me!"

"This is why!" his yell scared you, opening your eyes you were shocked at what you saw. In front of you stood a creature with blue skin, markings and red eyes- and that was Loki. You stood there staring at him with tears glistening on your cheeks.

"What- what's this?" you felt shivers down your spine, the temperature in the room was much colder now. He gave you a scary smile.

"I'm a frost giant, in Asgard you know the parents tell their kids about monsters like me at night." Those eyes were menacing as he walked over to you. You took steps back but he didn't stop.

"Loki, stop." You put a hand forward.

"Is this not what you wanted?"

"Not like this." You shook your head, trying to get rid of the part of your brain that insists that he is scary. "Whatever you are, whatever happened to you- none of that is enough excuse for what you did to me."

"You mortals always confuse excuse with explanation."

"Yeah right because I'm just a dumb human, I apologize, my prince." In a blink of an eye he turned back to how you knew him. Your mind hasn't processed what happened yet, your heart was already taking over you at that point.

"You asked me why, I gave you a reason." And you wanted to ask more, you wanted to understand this. You wanted him to-

"Stay." You whispered, tired at this point.

"I'm going back to my home at Asgard." He turned back and was walking towards the door.

"If you walk out that door, don't bother coming back."

The door slammed shut and all over again you broke down, with your heart shattering on the floor. That's the price you pay for trying to have back something that you never had in the first place. Nothing has changed.

•

Tags: @ayybtch @buckys-other-punk @chaoticpete @madcrazy50 @mishkatelwarriorgoddess @the-departed-potato @rogerrhqpsody @onceupona-happilyeverafter-love @percabethismyotp14

[stxleslyds]

MY TOUGHTS ON PART THREE OF RED HOOD BY CHIP ZDARSKY :)

A DC RENDITION OF THE SONG “MOTHER KNOWS BEST” FROM TANGLED.

Here I will leave the links to my reviews of Part 1 and Part 2

Well, here we are, three issues in this story of only six parts and i still cant tell if i like it or not. What i know for sure tho is that Zdarsky never read any Red Hood books, i had my suspicions but now i am at least 95% sure.

This Jason has been nerfed. We had a perfectly balanced Jason back in 2005 he was smart, skilled, confident and strategic. Then from 2011 to 2020 (let’s put the fact that Lobdell is trash aside for a moment) Jason was skilled, he had the whole “chosen one” thing going on with the all-castle, and in some moments you could even see him being quick witted and confident. But now in this first half of this story he is extremely insecure, his skill set and expertise is barely there and is presented as just reckless. 

The other day i was talking about how DC treats Jason, how they just can’t decide on who he is, what motivates him or what he wants. His personality is a whole ass mess, it was fine in 2005 and 2010 when Winick wrote him but then Lobdell from years 2011 to 2020 just couldn't decide what he wanted to do with Jason or his relationship with Batman and his rules. After Lobdell finally left Jason was passed around people who either only read Lobdell's work, or didn't read anything from him or didn't take into account Jason's life because their book was set in a future that may never happen. 

What i am trying to say is that Jason doesn't have a personality, and writers don't really add things to the Jason that we “know”, what they do is start his story from zero over and over again. There is no consistency to Jason's character and while you could argue that maybe this new start could be the definite version of Jason Todd/Red Hood i will point out that this nerfed version of him is a major disservice to the character that he was when he was brought back to DC.

It’s simply not nice. 

And in this particular issue the “Jason isn't that good at this whole vigilante gig” is even more pushed because of the whole “batman knows best” bullshit. I am not getting this (anthologies) book with a Red Hood story just for Batman to come in and be like “I am actually good at this job, you know nothing AND i have the moral high-ground”, this is NOT it.

If you are reading a Red Hood story chances are that you will be interested in Red Hood not Batman. 

Oh one more thing, Jason was an excellent Robin. He was kind, smart and skilled. I liked the flashbacks in UtRH because it showed Jason being all that but he also understood a couple of things about the kind of criminals that Gotham had, your common thug is easily scared of the concept of Batman but the dress-ups knew that no matter what they did the Bat would never kill them, that’s what Jason thought about criminals there.

This Robin Jason is treated rather poorly by Zdarsky at times, he feels insecure and inferior to Dick but he is also dismissive of him and the Robin mantle in the first issue, now in this one he is shown as way too reckless (which is kinda bad because it feeds into DCs favorite trope of “Jason’s death was Jason’s fault”) and his stance on “low level” criminals is weird, like it was made clear that drug related criminals are Jason’s biggest issue, thieves were not. 

Those are my general thoughts on this issue and the current state of Jason’s characterization. I have some panels from this issue that i want to talk about in more depth tho, so here we go. 

The issue stars were we left off once more, Tyler defends Jason and when Batman asks who he is Tyler says that he is the Blue Hood, that was really sweet of him, that child is adorable and he needs to be protected. 

Once the Bat distracts Tyler Jason tells the Bat that the man he killed was Tyler’s dad. 

There are a couple of things i want to point out from these panels, Jason feels incredibly guilty, not about killing Andy but about leaving Tyler in a situation that is similar to the one he was left in when his own mother died. He still believes that Andy was not a good man and deserved to be dead, after all he was drugging his own son and was the reason Tyler’s mom overdosed and is now in the hospital. It just hits incredibly close to home for Jason and i understand completely. 

The other thing i want to point out is that Jason says “I know your rules. No killing in Gotham” so, this is (to me) confirmation that Jason hasn’t killed in a long time and that he has been sticking to the Bat's rules (at least in Gotham). Andy (a drug-dealer) is the only person that Jason has killed since the events of UtRH (that are apparently canon in this story because it was mentioned in the first issue). 

Following this conversation the Bat says that he will take care of Tyler’s mother (yikes, i really thought in my last post that Jason was the one who would have tried to get her the help she needed, to me it seems more appropriate if Jason does it given that this is his story but what do I know) 

This is where this Red Hood story transforms into the Batman show.

Not only will Bruce take care of Tyler's mom but he will clean up the mess and shut down the making of the drug all by himself. Jason tells him that he will do it but the Bat tells Jason that if he wants to do it they will have to do it together because there is no way he is letting Jason out of his sight, he made a mess!

Yes, nothing like making the lead character look incompetent at his job. Love that for Jason.

Before the team up starts Batman and Red Hood go to Leslie's place to leave Tyler with her. This is a good moment only because there is a dog involved, well…Tyler, Jason and a dog are involved, best panel in the whole issue? I think yes.

Maybe I have a couple more panels that are my favs in this issue, here they are, a lil bit of positivity in this extra bitter post.

Now I will be honest, I hate Batman (Bruce’s Batman, love Dick Bats he was the MVP) so him saying that he is helping a Robin makes me want to shoot him. You are not helping; you are overtaking, as you do. Never a team player, the Batgod must always be the center of the show.

Back in the new cave Bruce talks to Jason about the drug and who he thinks might be behind it's production. He also makes sure to let Jason know that he is very smart and might be the only person outside of Crane's circle that knows how analyze a very unstable compound…weird flex but okay. He also teases Jason about his detective skills. Yay.

Flashback time! Get ready!

Robin Jason and Batman are at a crime scene and Jason doesn’t seem to be in the mood to play CSI: Gotham with Bruce.

At one moment Jason says “and then we will stomp the guy who did this” (“this” being murder), which makes Jim Gordon (who came to see if batman was done playing Sherlock Holmes) uncomfortable, so Batman tells Jason to wait for him. As Jason is going he sees someone acting suspicious.

Back to present day Batman and Red Hood are visiting the woman that created the compound that makes Fear Gas, the interrogation starts well but because this is the Batman show and Jason is bad at reading people and asking questions we have a scene that shows Jason being a bit too much.

I honestly thought that the first question was fair, but then after they leave the office they were in Batman basically goes on a rant about the things that Jason missed.

Ok, I get it Batman = good vigilante. Red Hood = Incompetent.

Zdarsky is honestly trying to make us believe that Jason hasn’t picked up any of those things, in his years as Robin with Batman AND Nightwing? They both taught him, there is no way Jason doesn’t know the basics of how to read people. Also do you guys remember Jason in UtRH and Lost Days? That guy read people perfectly, how is UtRH canon in this story, did Jason lose his skills in the explosion when he blew up the Joker?

As if that wasn’t enough Batman calls Red Hood reckless after they don’t agree on what to do next.

To this I say the following: Never again make me believe that Jason will willingly work with Batman. They don’t work together and neither are willing to meet each other halfway, even less let the other lead. This makes the idea of Jason following the Bat’s rules and him being part of the “Batfamily” the joke that it actually is.

They don’t work well together anymore; bring duality back to Gotham 2021.

Back in the past where the previous flashback is resumed we have Jim telling Batman that the new Robin seems a bit too rough around the edges. Did Jim ever meet Dick as Robin? I mean, don’t get me wrong, Dick was a sweetheart but he also beat criminals alongside batman every night. It just doesn’t feel like what Jason said was that much of a violent statement or anything, maybe I just don’t get it.

But don’t worry if you don’t get it, because we are shown Robin Jason going after that suspicious man, he is beating him asking if he knows anything about the murder or what exactly he was doing so close to the crime scene when Batman arrives. Through Batman we are told that that man was no longer a criminal, to which Jason says this, “…The guy is a jewel thief! He will always be a thief” and Batman responds “I refuse to believe that. Didn’t I meet you in the middle of stealing the Batmobile’s tires?”

I can’t believe Bruce went full “It’s over Jason. I have the moral high ground” on Robin Jason.

I mean Jason is OOC, we know this, but he has to be that way in order to make Batman look better when compared to a child. DC hates Jason Todd #Confirmed.

It kinda reminds me of that thing DC does with Dick and Barbara, Dick is skilled and smart as long as Barbara isn’t in the room, if she is then Dick will forget to check if there is someone inside his apartment and then be thrown across the room by her and then be told that he sucks at putting security in his living space.

Moving on...back to the present one last time Jason is interrogating a man while he dangles him from the edge of a building (did Dick teach him that? I bet he did.) After getting some information he calls Oracle so he can make sure that the place he is going to is safe. Oracle tells him the she will help him but she did not like the fact that the last time she helped him someone ended up dead.

Now, fair warning, Barbara and Jason big NO for me and after Geoff Johns and his antics in Three Jokers I have zero love for their “team-ups”.

Jason says this, 

Believing in him? Excuse me? Chonky, baby, she only helped you find a building.

All I can do at this point is pray to whichever god or whoever hears that this does not lead to Jason pinning for Barbara. We don’t need it (Barbara doesnt need it), I might be overreacting, I hope I am, but nobody wants that kind of drama right now, thanks.

When he arrives to the place he was looking for I think everyone can tell that it’s a trap, everyone but Jason apparently. 

How on earth does Jason not realize it’s a trap up until it’s too late? Are you joking? Is this a Red Hood story? Are we really doing this? Just how incompetent is Jason in Zdarsky’s eyes?

Freeze…is it Freeze? I don’t care but he is there, he freezes Jason and that’s the end of the issue.

Listen, I wish I could say that this is the worst Jason has been treated and that this book is horrible, I wish but I can’t. I can’t do it because this isn’t the worst characterization or book of Jason, this is still a pretty good story, could it be better? Yes.

I mean this story is written by someone who obviously doesn’t know Jason and that sucks but it still isnt the worst characterization and it messes me up. Three Jokers was worse than this, certain plot decisions in Future State: Red Hood were worse than this (in my opinion) and Lobdell’s New52 RHatO was pure trash (that is the worst book, just horrible please dont read it). 

I am saying this only to make it clear that even tho this issue was painful (mostly if you don’t like Batman) I still have hope that it can turn out to be good. I cant help it, i want and need this story to be good and there is still time for it to get better. 

Alright thats all i have to say, let me know what you thought about this issue and my review, bye!

[not-so-mundane-after-all]

Alright, so- Inspired by my awesome friend @undertheknightwing who created this AMAZING list of Dad!Dick Grayson headcanons (go check it out!!!) I decided to write down the mess I have in my own head into this giant ball of fluff, humor and angst.

So let me present you:

The Graysonfam List of Headcanons and Analysis

It's a looong ass list of my headcanons, mixed with an analysis of some scenes, looking into the motives and behavior of the characters. It's in more or less chronological order and divides into groups: season 1 (+2x01), the time jump, season 2, season 3 hopes/predictions and future. If you want me to turn any of these into fics or you feel like you could do something with it, just let me know. And now... ENJOY!

SEASON 1:

The first time Dick thinks of Gar and Rachel as his kids happens during the events of 1x08 and 1x10. It's pure instinct and it doesn't come to him until much later when he realizes that not only he thought of them this way but he actually meant it.

When he and Donna start translating Kory's notes and it becomes clear that Rachel might still be in trouble, he's immediately on his feet, asking Donna for the keys to her car and ordering her to take the books with her, so they could continue on the way. He's acting fast, ignoring Donna's questions because there's no time for explanation, my daughter is in danger. He almost says it out loud - almost. 

When Donna tells him the danger clearly comes from Kory, he wants to deny it. Kory adores these kids just as much as he does, she would never hurt them. But he puts his feet on the gas anyway, breaking every speed limit possible, because if one hair falls from Gar's and Rachel's heads, he will burn the world to find the person responsible, even if it's Kory (especially if it's Kory)

When they get there the first thing he sees is Gar being thrown in the air, and his mind short circuits to only one thing: Gar, my boy, my son. Is he okay? Thankfully Donna takes care of the rest so he's free to take care of the boy. He pulls him up, holding him tight by the shoulders and makes sure he's okay, but the words 'my son' are still circling his mind.

Speaking of Donna - when Dick starts telling her about Rachel the first time, she wants to cry from happiness. Over these past five years all she saw in Dick's eyes was pain and suffering. A storm of bottled up emotions, raging monsters of anger ready to get out. His body looked weighed down, as if he was Atlas holding the world on his shoulders. And now he's talking about this little girl who threw a brick at a cop car in Detroit and his eyes start to shine as if they were stars in the night sky. His smile grows when he brags about how smart and witty she is, how she's more intelligent than she gives herself credit for, how similar the two of them are. He talks about her bravery and her big heart and he sounds so damn proud Donna's heart is about to burst out of her chest. "I thought I couldn't do it." he tells her. "I fucked up so many times. But she had awakened something in me. I just can't describe it." She can but she doesn't say it - he needs to get to it on his own. (Over a year later, when the girl who turned her brother's world upside down tries to guide her back to the light through the darkness of afterlife, Donna finally says "I always knew he'd be a great father someday. You have no idea how much he loves you." "He told you that?" Rachel asks quietly, trying to hold back her tears. Donna looks at her and smiles. "He didn't have to. I saw it in his eyes.")

Then Dick gets to the part about finding Rachel's mother and suddenly something changes. He's trying to seem like he's happy for her, he says he's glad everything ended well and now Rachel can start a new life but Donna sees right through his facade. He thinks he can't be a part of this new life and it's killing him.

Which brings me to something very important I've noticed a long time ago - Angela's presence makes Dick hold himself back. That's why he decided to leave - Rachel had her mother back, a guardian who could take care of her from now on so he wasn't needed anymore. His job was done. But at this point he's already too attached to just leave like that and when he learns that danger isn't over he comes back immediately. But when he gets there he's met with a wall. Angela is very territorial (we all know why but Dick didn't know that) and Rachel is too overwhelmed by everything but let's be real - if Angela wasn't there Dick would be hovering over Rachel like crazy. But he doesn't. Why? Because he thinks it's not his place to do so. It's easier to go after Kory than to just be standing there awkwardly, wanting to help and comfort but not being able to.

He remembers everything Trigon put him through - every fucking detail. There is some stuff from the vision he wants to laugh at - Him and Dawn? Married? Maybe once upon a time he entertained that thought but he abandoned it long ago. There are things he's actually grateful for - seeing Gar and Rachel as they could be in the future, grown up, in college, happy. That's the one thing he doesn't want to forget. And Johnny - he doesn't want to forget Johnny either. 

His mind was sort of awake, in two places at once, even though he didn't have any control over his body. He remembers chasing the kids around the house, Gar screaming "Real life horror movie!" as he and Rachel tried to run away from him. He remembers Rachel pleading with him when the others were beating the poor boy. He wanted to respond, wanted to let her know he can hear her but he couldn't do anything. He watched helplessly as his own hand pulled Gar up and finished what others started. He screamed and shouted but it was in vain. And then he cried and howled like a wolf watching as Trigon ripped Rachel's heart from her chest and crushed it in his hand, then placed the red gemstone in her forehead. He remembers her dark eyes and evil smirk. He remembers thinking it was over, feeling heartbroken and defeated. He gave up, let the darkness swallow him whole. He didn't want to see more, it was easier locking himself up in this vision because he knew Bruce laying dead in rubble wasn't real. And then she came to him. Back straight and head held high, piercing blue eyes locked on him. He remembers his tone when he spoke to her, taunting and dangerous but it didn't scare her. "We're supposed to save each other" she told him and he wanted to cry but Trigon had him wrap his fingers around her throat and choke her - another thing he would never do. He would never lay a damn finger on her and Trigon was well aware of that. But Rachel knew that too. And she wasn't scared. 

He remembers the circus she brought him into. Empty stage, broken chairs scattered everywhere. He never wanted to come back here. And even though his body stood there motionless he was trashing inside, wanting to get out of here but more importantly wanting to get her out of here. Seeing Rachel on that platform, ready to jump, it was too much. He couldn't lose her, like he lost his parents. He didn't catch them but he sure as hell was going to catch her. So when she fell - he snapped. Got the control back, his muscles acted on memory and he jumped. He flew like he used to and wrapped his fingers around her wrists, holding her tight. He caught her. He would always catch her.

When they wake up all he wants to do is hold her. Relief almost sends him to his knees. But then Gar walks in, all bloody and bruised and all that relief turns into freezing agony and guilt. I did this, he thinks. It's my fault. But there is no time for apologies or explanation, Trigon is still there. Letting Rachel go deal with him on her own is hard but Dick knows she could do it - and she did. Seeing her walking out of that fog is one of the most beautiful views he saw in his life. And when he finally takes her into his arms he doesn't let go until Kory basically rips her out of his embrace.

He wants Kory to go with them. Kids need her. His idea of giving Gar and Rachel a new life included her. Included both of them, taking care of the kids together. Things between them are tangled and complicated but one thing that is neither of those things is their attachment to these two. But Kory just got her memories back, she has her own issues to deal with, she needs time and space - and he respects that, so do Gar and Rachel. But Dick would be lying if he said he didn't notice their disappointment.

The first day of their roadtrip across the country is quiet - mostly because they are all so goddamn tired. Dick pulls up to a motel before dark, deciding that the more sleep they get the better. They pick two rooms next to each other, Jason and Gar in one, he and Rachel in the other. Rachel immediately vanishes in the bathroom, so Dick has time to sit down and think (as if he wasn't doing it the entire day while driving). An idea is shaping in his head, memories of a beloved city in sunny California come to the surface of his mind and he knows this is where he wants to take the kids. But he has to make a stop at Gotham first, he needs to talk to Bruce and most importantly return Jason home. Rachel walks out of the bathroom in fresh clothes Donna left for her and crawls into bed without a word. He takes his time to tuck her in, then sits down on the edge of her bed. She's beyond exhausted, but she's safe, she's with him, everything will be alright. He will never let anyone take her away from him again. And when he's watching her fall asleep, holding her hand in his, three words come to his mind, words he's not ready to say aloud yet but he knows them to be true. I love you.

THE TIME JUMP:

Physical affection is something I think the show is pretty good at showing but I still crave to see more. It's clear that Dick struggles to be affectionate, whether that be through words or touch. And he doesn't even realize he's actually very good at it. Why? Because whenever he does it, he's acting on instinct. The biggest proof? All his hugs with Rachel in s1. Boy had no idea what to do, it was written on his face, but his arms went up nonetheless. He didn't freeze, he didn't push her away, but reacted accordingly. The hugs in 1x02 and 1x04 are the only ones he initiated on his own, but he still wasn't sure if he's doing it right. As the show went on he slowly eased into it, but was still taken by surprise when it happened (1x08, the first hug in 2x01). By the end of 2x01 he seems to be pretty comfortable with it but I think it's during the time jump when he really starts to understand the importance and power of physical affection and how these kids really need it. The pat he gave Gar on the shoulder in 2x03 or their hug in 2x09 felt really natural, same as the goodbye hug with Rachel in 2x13. All three of them got comfortable with each other during those first three months in SF. Which leads me to…

Cuddle sessions. Yes, this is definitely a thing at Titans Tower (*cough*Grayson*cough*household*cough). It starts that first night when Dick, Rachel, Gar and Jason gather on the couch to watch a movie. Rachel lays down and rests her head on Dick's thigh while Gar settles comfortably on his other side. Dick has no idea when it happened but he freezes for a moment when he realizes his hand is on Rachel's head, fingers carding through her hair. The girl seems to be asleep already but stirs when he stops and asks him to continue, so he does. Soon after that Gar's head lands on his shoulder as the boy starts nodding off. The sudden contact wakes him up and he pulls away awkwardly, apologizing but Dick tells him it's okay so Gar leans back against him. The feeling of having the two of them so close brings a sense of calm to Dick and soon he falls asleep as well. He wakes up in the morning with the two teenagers basically laying on top of him and Jason standing over them with a smirk and a phone in his hand.

After that it sort of becomes a thing and not just during movies. Whenever Dick sits down on the couch, whether to work or to simply relax, Gar or Rachel (or both) would find him and snuggle to him, at first hesitantly, but with more confidence as the time passes and they get comfortable with it. After three months of living together all Dick has to do is pat the spot next to him for them to jump on the couch and cuddle up, tho Rachel is the one who does it most often and with no hesitation.

Dick very quickly starts understanding how important it is for them so he starts returning the favor. A good job pat on the shoulder during training, a kiss dropped on the top of the head during breakfast, a comforting shoulder rub when they aren't feeling well, emotionally or physically. Gar loves when Dick ruffles his hair, he even leans into it sometimes, while Rachel's favorite things are forehead kisses and tucking her hair behind her ear (but neither of them would ever say that out loud)

Words are as important as gestures, which brings us to affectionate pet names. It feels normal and almost ordinary when it comes from a woman - Rachel has been called 'honey' by Melisa and 'sweetheart' by Dawn but she wasn't phased by it. But when Dick calls her 'honey' for the first time, she nearly drops her coffee mug. It comes out so naturally and he doesn't even realize he said it, but it takes her breath away and she needs a moment to collect herself. With Gar it's usually 'Bud', 'Buddy', or 'Tiger Boy' spoken affectionately and he's always beaming with happiness when he hears Dick saying that.

One night, shortly after Trigon, Rachel slips into his bedroom in the middle of the night, saying she can't sleep. The memories are too vivid, too real. Her lips are trembling and she looks like she's about to fall apart and that's all it takes for Dick to sit up, open his arms for her and with full awareness and conviction say "come here, baby girl". She falls asleep snuggled to his bare chest and Dick feels his throat getting dangerously tight. He'd seen many times, mostly on TV, images of parents holding their babies to their bare skin - something about creating a bond through skin-to-skin contact. He was never able to wrap his head around this concept, but now, as he feels Rachel's cheek pressed to his heart, her hand closed in his resting on his stomach, the understanding hits him like a speeding train, pushing a tear or two out of his eyes. It's something indescribable, feels profound and almost sacred. The love he feels in this moment is overwhelming.

Gar has nightmares too, he usually wakes up screaming. It scares Dick at first, how he reacts, because the boy pulls away, wide eyed and shaking, and doesn't want to be touched. Guilt overwhelms Dick because he's sure it's because of him, because of what he did to Gar while being under Trigon's control. He tries to apologize and Gar accepts it but explains to him that his nightmares are not Dick's fault and they are not even about that (Dick can feel the boy is lying for both of their sakes but lets him anyway). It takes a few tries and lots of pleading and building trust but one night Gar finally falls into Dick's arms, sobbing into his shoulder. He pulls the boy close, runs his fingers through his hair just like Gar likes it and whispers "it's okay, my little boy." over and over again until Gar's body goes limp in his hold and he can put him back to sleep. Neither of them mentions it in the morning, but Gar gives him a look full of gratitude, filling his heart with warmth.

One evening during their first week in SF they organise a 'bonding night' - Gar's idea. There's take out and board games and staying up all night, talking. At some point one of them suggests sharing any hidden talents (besides superpowers of course) and details no one knows about them. Jason admits to being a theatre nerd ("it's thespian you idiots!") and proves it by flawlessly rapping verses from Hamilton. Gar thanks to travelling with his parents can fluently speak few African languages, he also shares that during his time at the Doom Manor Rita taught him the basics of playing piano. When it's Dick's turn he gets up from the couch and vanishes for a few minutes, but eventually comes back with a guitar, saying he had learned to play during his circus days, but hadn't done it in a while so he might be a little rusty. He plays a few cords, trying to spark his memory and when the notes finally come to him, a beautiful melody fills the room (I always imagine it's Viva la Vida by Coldplay). And suddenly this melody is joined by an angelic voice - Rachel closes her eyes and starts singing quietly, recognizing the song. She only opens her eyes when she's finished and finds the three of them looking at her in absolute awe, Dick's eyes seem to be a bit watery. She gets a bit embarrassed and says it's nothing but they start cheering and clapping anyway. Gar asks her where did she learn to sing like that and she admits she used to sing in a church choir when she was little, but had to quit after her powers started showing. The night ends with a little jam session and lots of laughing.

Gar and Rachel grew up on golden era of Disney Channel shows (Jason knows them too but he'd rather be tortured than ever admit that) and once the news is out Dick is forced to sit through the entire run of Wizards of Waverly Place. But watching Rachel flawlessly impersonate the main character Alex, knowing every line word for word makes him grin like a madman and laugh so hard his stomach hurts and tears roll down his cheeks. He pulls her to him and she falls on him in a fit of uncontrollable giggles while Gar and Jason give her a standing ovation.

SEASON 2:

While hanging out together is important, Dick also makes sure he gets to spend some time with each of them separately. With Jason it's mostly through training - the boy isn't very keen on spending one-on-one quality time outside of the gym, but prides himself to be Dick's right hand man during lessons, having more experience over the other two. With Gar it's video games most of the time - Dick learned to play specifically for him and actually started paying attention to gaming lore. But it's not just that - Gar has a talent to anything tied to technology so they spend a lot of time together in the tech room where the boy learns to operate the Tower system. It brings both of them a lot of joy. Rachel, as the only girl in their little family, often needs some time away from the boys, so Dick takes her on walks in the mornings or a drive around the city, shows her his favorite coffee shop which soon becomes their favorite spot. They talk about everything and nothing, because conversations were the thing that brought them so close in the first place, and it just feels good. 

Rachel also loves spending time with him in the tech room - but not like Gar, she's not learning to run it (although she picked up a thing or two) but she's simply there to keep Dick company while he works (can he even call that work if he hasn't been officially working as a detective for quite a while now? Not to mention his resignation has been sent to Detroit the day they arrived in SF). She brings him coffee or snacks, stands behind his chair with her arms around his neck, observing whatever he's doing (and asking lots of questions) or simply sits in the other swiveling chair, drawing in her sketchbook or turning around so many times Dick starts to worry she's gonna get dizzy. He asks her one time if she's not bored sitting here with him but she just shrugs and says she'd rather be here than anywhere else and his heart grows tenfold as he smiles at her

So remember how Rachel lost control and attacked Jason in 2x03? And how Jason shouted "Stay away from me you fucking freak!" right in her face? And how Dick walks in like 3 seconds later asking if everything's okay and the tension is HIGH??? Well, he might have not seen what happened, but he definitely HEARD the full thing, he was within the hearing range. The fact that he didn't attack Jason immediately is really impressive, if this was s1!Dick - Jason would be on the floor right now, probably with a swollen eye and few broken bones. But here Dick is trying to play it smart and investigate. If it wasn't for dr Light he would probably get to the bottom of this and had a conversation with both Jason and Rachel. I'm thinking of writing a one-shot AU where he actually does it (mostly thanks to Gar who is a terrible liar when caught of guard)

When the last cab drives away and the Tower becomes empty, save for him, Gar and that boy in the infirmary, Dick does not leave to meet with Adeline immediately - he goes to Rachel's room and starts scrubbing it clean from all the crosses painted all over the place. His eyes are burning, the bile in his throat is the size of a tennis ball but he doesn't allow himself to cry. At some point Gar joins him and wordlessly starts helping him. It takes them a little over an hour and when it's done they both drop down on her bed, sitting shoulder to shoulder. "She'll be back." Gar tells him. "I'm not so sure." Dick replies, not looking at the boy. Gar puts a hand on his shoulder. "She will. You just wanted to protect us. Deep down she knows that, she's just angry." Dick knows Gar's reasoning is valid, but looking at his own reflection in the broken mirror he can't help but think that in the long run Rachel will be better off without him. They will all be better off without him.

It's not until his first night in prison that Dick starts to regret his decision to cast himself away. He wakes up in the middle of the night with tears in his eyes, his mind still reeling from dreams of Gar and Rachel seven years in the future. They were adults, happy and independent - that's good, right? That's what he always wanted for them. But his tears start to fall when it comes to him, hitting him like a wrecking ball, that spending 7 years behind bars means he won't be able to see them grow up. Something like a panic attack comes next and he is barely able to pull himself out of it. He's suddenly overwhelmed by questions. My kids… will they be okay? Is Kory back at the Tower or is Gar still alone? What is he gonna do when that strange boy wakes up? Was there any food in the fridge when I left? I left Gar some money, but still… God, and Rachel! She has never been on a plane before, what if she gets scared and her powers start acting out? What if she gets night terrors again? Will Donna know what to do? His head is spinning, these thoughts are suffocating him. Only a breathing exercise Bruce had taught him years ago is able to help, but it takes longer than usual. Dick doesn't sleep for the rest of the night.

He's not sure how but when Dick sees a bird in a window of his cell, he knows it's no ordinary bird. It's a raven. It's her. He gets up on his feet despite his knees being weak and wobbly and he smiles, grins like an idiot as he calls out to her. Because it has to be her, right? But all hope leaves him when the creature flies up again with a croak and disappears from his sight, leaving him alone. Dick drops to his knees, feeling more exhausted than ever and curls on the floor, his body shaking from shivers. No one is coming. He brought it on himself. He is forgotten already. But then he hears quiet tapping and something nudges his hand. He opens one eye only to look right into a ruby red one. The bird is here, inside, right in front of his face. It flaps its wings and its feathers turns into dark smoke for a moment. "Rachel…" He breathes out, holding to his last shreds of consciousness. The raven lowers its head, snuggling it to his forehead and before Dick passes out again he hears three words said by this quiet, angelic voice he loves so much: Don't give up.

When they bring Donna back to the Tower and lay her down in the infirmary Dick feels empty and overflowed at the same time. He goes to strip off his new suit and change into something more comfortable but it's a struggle when his hands are shaking so much. He goes back to infirmary and passes by Dawn in the doorway, who walks out of the room with Donna's Wonder Girl belt in hand, not even lifting her eyes up at him. He closes the door and sits down, taking Donna's hand in his but he is able to sit there for only ten minutes before the feeling of her hand growing cold in his makes him want to run away. He makes his way back to his room but takes a step back when he notices two colorful heads in the training room. Gar and Rachel are sitting on one of the benches with their backs to him, talking quietly. Gar is hunched over and Rachel has her arm around him and her head on his shoulder. The sight makes Dick's throat tight. He walks up to them quietly and they only notice him when he's standing in front of them. They simultaneously lift their heads up, showing him their red, swollen from crying eyes and his heart can't take it anymore. He falls to his knees in front of them. "I'm here." he whispers as he takes their hands in his. "I'm right here." he whispers again and his voice breaks. Suddenly two sets of arms are wrapped around him when both Gar and Rachel throw themselves at him, sobbing into his shoulders. He holds them tight, kisses their heads and lets his own tears fall into their hair as he keeps promising them he is not leaving them ever again. 

SEASON 3 HOPES/PREDICTIONS:

First few weeks without Donna and Rachel are absolute torture. Grief is normal, he's been through it before, it's nothing new (maybe more painful and guilt-ridden than he ever experienced). But not having Rachel around and how it impacts him on day-to-day basis after spending every day with her for the past few months is something totally new and unexpected and Dick is pretty sure he's never felt like this before. He's overprotective to the point of being overbearing and Gar points that out to him numerous times. He keeps making her breakfast, forgetting she's not gonna show up in the kitchen when the clock strikes 9 am. He keeps looking into her room like he's expecting to find her there. He constantly checks his phone as if she were able to call from Themyscira, where there's no signal, let alone phones. "Is it what sending your kid out to college feels like?" Hank asks him one evening and Dick almost chokes on his beer. Gar laughs so hard he falls off his chair. 

Rachel does everything she can to not cry in front of Dick when they say goodbye to each other but the moment the plane is in the air, she breaks. It was one of the hardest decisions she ever had to make and seeing Dick so broken definitely didn't help. But she has to at least try to bring Donna back, she wouldn't be able to forgive herself otherwise. So she gets herself together and keeps telling herself to be brave. For Dick. For Donna. For her family.

Gar becomes the center of family's attention and he can't say he doesn't love it. That spot always belonged to Rachel after all, but he was never jealous, nor he resented her for that. She totally deserved it and she can take the spot back when she returns (but he's never gonna let her get away with not saying goodbye to him). He's the 'A-Student' now during training, Dick is putting some extra work to make sure he learns as much as he can. Kory helps him a lot with the trauma CADMUS gave him and works with him on the development of his powers. He tries turning into other animals and after a month of struggling he finally turns into a mouse. Kory walks with him sitting on his shoulder around the whole Tower like the proudest mama in the galaxy and Dick's beaming with pride for the entire week. 

After Dick's off-hand comment that Rachel is missing on so much Gar starts to record vlogs on his phone about what's happening at the Titans Tower so Rachel can watch it and catch up when she's back. The material he gets is pure gold and even when others beg him to delete it, he refuses saying this is too good to be destroyed. 

The day before Rachel's first attempt at resurrection she uses a freshly learned trick to come to Dick in his dream. They meet on the beach she's currently on, meditating. Seeing him for the first time in three months makes her want to cry but she promised herself to be strong so he wouldn't worry and she holds her tears at bay. She falls into his arms with the brightest smile and burrows her face in his chest. He's holding her tight, asking if everything is okay and she nods, not quite trusting her voice at the moment. "I can't keep you here for long, but I needed to see you." she tells him. She's not sharing any details about her plan, the less he knows the better, but he begs her to be careful and stop if it turns out to be too much for her. Dick pulls her to him one last time before she has to serve the connection and presses his lips to her forehead. "I love you." he whispers and she closes her eyes, hugging him tighter. "Come home soon." "I love you, too. And I will."

To find Donna's soul Rachel needs to go to The Underworld, which is a dark, scary place (well, for the most part). The search is difficult and the journey ahead of her is long. On her way she meets other people, souls who sometimes want to help her, sometimes otherwise. She sees Adamson and all the people who were after her, drowning in a river of fire, calling for help. One hand grabs her by the ankle and Rachel looks down right into the hollow eyes of her birth mother. She struggles to set herself free from Angela's hold but eventually the creepy hand lets go of her and Rachel runs away. Not all the meetings are painful though. She gets to see Melisa again - she tells her about Dick and Gar and Kory and everything that happened. "I found him, mom. I found the boy from the circus." she says and they both start to cry. Melisa tells her how proud she is and lets her continue her journey. But the most surprising meeting happens right before the end. Rachel knows their faces only from her dream and the blurry videos she found online. But the resemblance to Dick is undeniable - he has his mother's eyes, his father's hair. Mary Grayson takes her into her arms with tears in her eyes, saying how happy she is to finally meet her. They chat for a while, laugh and cry together like they've known each other their whole lives. "He's so lucky to have you." John tells her. "Tell him we're proud of him." Mary asks her when she is about to leave. "And come back to him in one piece." Rachel nods, holding back tears. "I will, I promise." 

When Rachel arrives at Wayne Manor it's already dark outside. A black car pulls in the driveway. Dick, Kory and Gar are waiting by the main entrance and when the car stops they approach it and Dick opens the door. Rachel is sleeping in the backseat with her head falling on her shoulder and the view is so beautiful and adorable that Dick stops for a moment to just look at her with a dreamy smile on his face. He lifts his hand to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear and leans in whispering "welcome back, sweetheart". She smiles without opening her eyes and instantly lifts her arms to wrap them around his neck. They both laugh as he pulls her out the car. She steps away from him for a moment to hug Gar and Kory but sticks herself back to his side immediately after. Gar takes her bag and the car drives away while the 4 of them head towards the door.

She failed (or at least she thinks she failed) and that first night back she cries her eyes out into Dick's chest, apologizing over and over again. "It's okay, honey." he tells her, pressing a kiss to her forehead. "Remember what I told you back at the airport? No matter how strong we are, we-" "We can't always change the world." she finishes for him and smiles through her tears. "I know. I've had those words in the back of my head every day." They lay in silence for the next few minutes, Dick's hand slowly stroking Rachel's hair. She hesitates a bit but then starts telling him about meeting his parents. He smiles at her through tears. "I'm so proud of you." he whispers. "You've grown so much. You're so strong. Going away was a good decision, it gave you skills and experience you wouldn't have gotten here. But now I'm just glad I have you back. I was worried sick." Rachel smiles into his chest. "I'm not going anywhere again."

As happy as Dick is to have her back, some part of him wishes Rachel stayed longer on Themyscira. Everything that's happening in Gotham is making him consider sending her and Gar away to some place safe and hidden, The Justice League has a lot of those. But his kids are Titans - they both remind him of that. "You didn't train us to hide." she tells him. "We can handle this." Gar adds. And Dick believes them. And he's so proud his heart can barely take it.

Donna's return comes as a shock to everyone - Hank brings her to the Wayne Manor one day, saying they bumped into each other at some restaurant in the city. "How-" Rachel asks with eyes opened wide in disbelief. Donna smiles at her. "I don't know. I got lost, but… I found my way back somehow." Dick slowly walks up to her, his eyes welling up with tears. "But the spell-" "It worked." Donna explains. "It just needed more time." After that he sweeps her into his arms and extends his hand to Rachel to pull her in as well. He holds them both as close as he can, kissing their heads and swears to himself to never lose either of them again.

FUTURE:

Thoughts about adoption appear in Dick's mind more or less when he brings Gar and Rachel to San Francisco, but they are more of an abstract dream than something that could be real. But as the time goes on those thoughts become more and more solidified and are too big to be ignored. He finally decides to talk to someone about it and that someone is Dawn, mostly because they've had this kind of conversation before. "It's a big responsibility - taking her in. But taking care of a kid is complicated, you know that better than anyone." These words stay with him every day, that's why he goes to her. He struggles to say what he wants to say but she understands and hugs him with tears in her eyes saying she knew he'd do it sooner or later and that she couldn't be happier for him. She helps him with paperwork and prepares him for meetings. He breaks the news to the kids the moment everything is ready. They're suspicious of the 'gifts' he hands them since it's neither's birthday today and there's no holiday. They share a curious glance as they rip off the shiny gift paper to reveal two folders of documents (while Dick almost dies from anticipation and nerves). Gar is the first one to react - his lips slowly stretch into the biggest grin imaginable. "For real? Are you serious? This is real stuff?" his voice grows louder and more excited with each following question and Dick can't help but laugh. Rachel stays quiet though. She stares at the papers in her hands with her brows furrowed. Seconds pass and she's not moving. It's like she's not even breathing. "Rachel?" Kory asks quietly, taking a step her way. And then the floodgates open. Rachel's face twists into a grimace as she starts sobbing uncontrollably. She covers her mouth with her hand to muffle it but there's no use. Dick walks up to her, terrified he did something wrong but then she throws herself into his arms, repeating "thank you" and "I love you" over and over again. Dick pulls Gar to him as well and hugs them both. "You're my kids." He whispers to them. "I love you more than anything in the world. And nothing will ever change that." By the time of Rachel's 16th birthday she and Gar are officially Graysons.

Dick and Kory get married the following year. It's a glamorous but small ceremony with reception held at the Wayne Manor. For the months leading to the big day the kids (with the help of the entire team and few other people) prepare something very special - and the idea comes from Uncle Clay. Turns out Clay, as the closest friend of Dick's parents, owns a small storage unit where he keeps some of the stuff from the circus, including personal things - like a box of journals of Mary Grayson, who had been writing them since she was a child. Clay tells Gar and Rachel a story about how Mary used to write poetry which then she turned into songs and sometimes performed them at the circus. He even still has some of her stage outfits. The three of them get the idea that Gar and Rachel should look through tapes with her performances and pick one song to sing together at the wedding - and that's what they do. They find a beautiful ballad where Clay accompanied Mary on the piano (he teaches Gar how to play it) and in secret the team prepares the whole show. The performance happens during the Bride and Groom's first dance. Gar enters the stage in a tuxedo, says a few words and starts playing. Dick and Kory start dancing slowly but stop for a moment when he starts singing the first verse. They have no idea what's coming next. Rachel, in Mary's dress stands in the crowd surrounding the couple. Hank comes to stand behind her and secretly puts a microphone in her hand. She comes in for the second verse of the song and that's when Dick and Kory stop dancing completely, too surprised to move. They watch in absolute awe as Rachel joins her brother on stage and they finish the song together. When Dick realizes he actually remembers this song from his childhood and that the dress Rachel is wearing belonged to his mother he breaks down in tears. After the song is over the kids join their parents on the dancefloor for a bone-crushing group hug (and to help you imagine this even better this is the song I imagine them singing)

The day Rachel and Gar get their college acceptance letters is one of the most stressful days in their lives. They're in the Tower's kitchen, both holding the envelopes in their hands, afraid to open them. "What are you guys waiting for? Open it!" Kory encourages them. They agree to do it on three. Dick holds his breath, gripping tight his wife's hand. The kids read the letters, fully focused. There's a stretching moment of silence, and then… "I got in!" "Me too!" A lot of screaming and laughing and jumping around happens afterwards, but even in the chaos of all of that Dick can feel a burning knot tightening in his stomach.

And I thought sending Rachel to Themyscira was hard, Dick thinks when they drop Gar and Rachel off at college on their first day. Thankfully it's the same college, but it's in Chicago and it's still half a country away from home. He's not sure how many times he checked already if they have everything they need, if they haven't forgotten to pack something, if they are absolutely sure they know their schedule and so on. Kory, standing next to him with her hands on her growing belly, laughs at him fussing over them. Gar and Rachel just smile and nod, seeing how stressed he is. Yes, Dad, we're sure we have everything. Yes, we checked. Of course we'll call. Yes, Dad. Okay, Dad - and so on. At some point they all start laughing at the ridiculousness of it all but suddenly Dick is getting choked up. His two little birds are leaving the nest and he should be handling it better than he does. Seeing him clearlyon the edge of falling apart Gar and Rachel give him a tight hug. "I'm sorry." he says. "I'm just trying to let you go a little. Let you grow up." "It's that hard?" Rachel asks him and he looks at her - tall, beautiful, confident, brave and smart. Perfect. But he also still sees that little kid he met in Detroit. "It can't be that hard." Gar adds and for a moment when Dick looks at him he thinks he's seeing double - the young, handsome and courageous man who is standing in front of him now and that overexcited cheerful kid who joined them on their little road trip. "It's impossible." Dick tells them, pulling them back into another hug. "It's fucking impossible." Soon they have to go or they will be late for their classes and Dick and Kory are left alone on the campus. "They'll be okay." his wife tells him. He has to swallow down a bile in his throat and push back some tears before answering. "I know."

Oh and remember Dick's old silver Porsche? The one he traded for a minivan? Yeah, he got it back (don't ask him how). Rachel owns it now. Graduation present. And don't worry about Gar, he's got his car too. Grandpa Bruce got him his dream ride.

Woah... This turned out WAAAAAAAAAY longer than I thought it would be. If you made it this far (and even if you didn't) I hope you enjoyed.

[mercurysstars]

The Shadow Thief (part 4)

Summary: what happens when Peter has to work with the girl he hates to possibly save the world.

Word Count: 2k

Warnings: swearing

A/n: I apologize for the late chapter! :)

_

"What the fuck." Peter said wide-eyed.

Peter quickly parked the car and unbutton his seatbelt. He opened the door and stepped out in front of the car. The Avengers compound was destroyed, all of the windows were busted through, the doors were broken and even a few walls were missing.

Peter felt as though his stomach was twisted into 10 knots. It was like some sort of sick joke. Could they really be gone? They were the earth's mightiest heroes, right? He clenched his fist, Peter felt tears weld up in his eyes but he never let them fall.

Y/n got out of the car and walked next to him. When she approached him, he didn't say a word, he just stood there and stared. After a few moments of silence, Y/n gave him a little nudge "Let's see if we can find anything inside."

Peter didn't say anything to acknowledge her but he followed her. Y/n stepped through the broken glass door. The electricity was cut so the elevator didn't work. She found the stairs so she began to climb.

The first floor they enter was the laboratories. They were all a wreck, it looked like they all had been scavenged through. Desks were flipped, papers were scattered, glass was everywhere.

Y/n looked over to Peter. His face was blank void of any emotions but she sensed he was still stuck in a state of shock. They needed to leave. She figured by now that who it was attacked them earlier had found where they were and sending another load of soldiers.

"Peter, where is the Avengers weaponry?" She asked. He didn't say anything or point anywhere. Y/n cursed him and herself.

Not knowing what else to do Y/n began to search through the lab to see if she could find anything that could help them. Y/n noticed a random bookshelf along the wall. What were the chances that could be a secret door?

Y/n walked over to the shelf. With all of her knowledge from cliché movies, Y/n began to pull on random books. Every time one didn't work she would throw it backward.

Finally, Y/n pulled on a book about ants. She heard a noise and the bookshelf moved backward. She mentally high-fived herself. Y/n looked over to Peter "Stay there." She told him. She figured he probably wouldn't have moved anyway.

Y/n walked down a flight of stairs and pushed open another door. When she opened the door her jaw nearly fell slack. It was a lab but 100x nicer. It felt like something out of a movie.

There were huge screens and holograms. There were long desks with pieces of different robots on them. Y/n figured this is where Tony and Bruce did their work.

There was a big cabinet labeled spider-boy. She tried to open the cabinet but it was locked. She tried again but ultimately failed. Y/n grabbed one of the screwdrivers off of the table and stuck it in the lock. She balled up her fist at the end and hit her palm against her fist. The lock gave Y/n a shock "Fuck."

The cabinet swung open revealing tons of different equipment. There was a bag at the bottom that Y/n assumed was Peters. She grabbed the bag and began to shove everything that could fit. She grabbed web fluid, web-shooters and she might have even grabbed one of his suits.

Y/n zipped up the bag a knife caught her eye on the other side of the room. She walked over to the knife. It was black with a few gold lines running through the middle. Y/n picked up then knife and a screen popped up.

A video began to play with a shaken up Tony Stark "Anyone who watches this SOS. You are in danger meet—."

The video paused and a voice interrupted "Vehicle approaching. Click to watch surveillance footage."

Y/n clicked on the button a video popped up of several SUVs pulling onto the road leading to the compound. Y/n was confused. Why would this pop-up? She looked at the corner for the date. The footage was live. She swore she felt her heart leap out of her chest.

Y/n tucked the knife in her pocket and booked it up the stairs. Peter was still where she left him and she ran over to him. "We need to go." He stared at the wall

"Peter we need to go like right now." He still didn't make a move.

Y/n decided to say fuck it and take matters into her own hand. If he didn't want to move she would make him. Y/n took a deep breath and slapped Peter as hard as she could. "Get it together."

Peter's hand flew to his cheek and he glared at her "Ow! That hurt." Peter shrieked.

"Good. We need to leave. They already found us again."

"Tony told me about a few safe houses just in case something ever did happen."

"Good enough for me." Y/n took the bag off her bag and shoved it into Peter's hands. What was he good for if not super strength.

They ran down the stairs, sometimes skipping two or three at a time. They ran through the door and to the car. Right as they got 10 feet within the car it exploded and caused them to fly backward.

"Son of a bitch." Y/n exclaimed. Her ears were ringing from the loud noise.

"That was our only ride out." Peter groaned. He was sure they were going to die. He figured he had a good enough run. He was surprised he lasted this long anyway.

"Maybe not."

Peter followed Y/n's line of sight to a motorcycle "Are you crazy?" There was no way in hell he was getting on that. He rather take his chances with the SWAT team.

Y/n gave Peter a look. One that over the few times he's meet her he's grown to know almost too well. She was going to do something risky, stupid, but not necessarily unnecessary.

Y/n gave Peter a wave before she broke into a full sprint toward the bike. She was going to get herself killed. Peter clenched his fists before running after her.

Shots began flying toward them and Y/n hopped on the bike. Peter got on the bag, she quickly started the bike and pulled off before he got the chance to argue.

After 30 minutes of riding in a random direction into the woods, Y/n pulled over. Peter unwrapped his arms from around her waist and got off the bike.

Peter walked over to a tree, bent over, and threw up. Y/n grimaced and quickly looked away. He may be strong but his stomach surely isn't. Of course, she didn't say that she figured he was occupied enough for the moment.

When Peter was done he walked over to Y/n and threw his hands up in the air "What in the actual fuck. You could've gotten us killed."

Y/n had to suppress the urge to laugh. She noticed whenever Peter got mad his face scrunched up and got red. "I just saved your ass. You surely could have stayed back there and tango with the death squad."

"Jesus Y/n. Do you even know how to drive a motorcycle?" Peter shouted.

"Well actually no." He had gotten her there "My fight or flight had kicked in and that's good enough for me." She put her hands on her hips.

Peter let out a long sigh. She was crazy. Actually fucking batshit crazy. "We need to get to a safe house, and figure out a plan."

Well isn't he just a bright one? "Well, Mr. Parker be my guest." She pointed to the bike "Unless you're too scared." She challenged.

"I'm not scared." Okay so maybe he was a little scared but he wasn't going to tell Y/n that. He walked over to the motorcycle and swung his leg around. It was just like riding a Bike. Right?

Y/n swung her leg around the back of the bike and sat behind Peter. She wrapped her arms around his waist "How Are We going to get there? Does your Spidey sense show you the path to follow?" She teased.

"It doesn't work like that." He grumbled as he pulled off.

They drove for what felt like hours. Y/n was pretty sure she dozen off a few times from the lack of scenery. Her arms were starting to ache and her but were starting to get sore from driving on the gravel road.

Finally, they pulled in front of a big cabin. It was huge, it looked like a place someone would go to get away for a weekend. The cabin was surrounded by trees and behind it was a lake.

Peter turned off the bike and they both got off. They walk up the stairs to the porch. Peter punched in a few numbers. There was a camera above the door. Peter walked through the door. A voice came through a speaker "Welcome, Peter Parker."

When Y/n tried to walk through the door the voice came through again "Unauthorized personal."

Y/n looked over to Peter. He had a clueless look on his face and he shrugged. Not knowing what else to do Y/n looked at the camera "Y/n Y/l/n."

"Access granted. Welcome, Y/n Y/l/n."

Y/n walked through the door "I wasn't sure that it would work." Peter laughed.

Y/n looked at Peter and narrowed her eyes "We came all the way out here when you weren't even sure if I could get into the damn safe house."

"I took a calculated risk." Peter crossed his arms.

"Oh so when you take a chance it's a calculated risk but when I do it's stupid and reckless."

"Before I take a risk I weigh all my options but when you do it's always spontaneous and mindless."

"Well, my spontaneous decisions saved your ass more times than I can count."

"Can you stop swearing for like 2 seconds?"

"Oh, I'm sorry Peter. Does my fucking swearing bother you?" Y/n seethed.

"I can't with you." Peter sighed pinching the bridge of his nose "I'm going to take a shower there should be some clothes for you in one of the rooms." He walked upstairs and out of view.

Y/n let out a long breath of air. Peter was such a stick in the mud. "Can you stop swearing?" She whispered to herself in a mock voice. God, he really did manage to get on her nerves.

Y/n finally took a chance to look around the cabin. If she could even call it that. It was nicer inside than it looked to be outside. It's looked like a normal modern house with the exception it had the Stark touch.

Y/n walked upstairs and entered one of the random rooms. It had a queen bed and a nightstand. The closet was huge and full of different clothes and shoes. She found a pair of open-fingered gloves. If she had to guess she'd say this was the scarlet witch's room.

Y/n suddenly felt dirty and decide that she needed to take a shower. She grabbed a pair of shorts and a shirt she thought could maybe fit. She walked into the bathroom and turned on the shower, she hoped Peter didn't use all of the hot water.

She peeled off her clothes and stepped into the shower. She lets the warm water run down her back. It did wonders for her sore muscles. She quickly scrubbed the rest of her body and turned off the shower.

Y/n dried off and got dressed. She stepped back into the room. She saw Wanda's bed. It looked more comfortable than it did before. It was basically calling her name. Y/n decided to say fuck it and hop in the bed. She decided whoever was trying to kill them could wait for tomorrow.

Part 5

Taglist

@fandom-strumpet • @ginger-swag-rapunzel • @libraries-and-coffee

[zatannaroth]

𝑰 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝒖𝒓 𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒎𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒆 ♡

(1/2)

𝚃𝚒𝚝𝚊𝚗𝚜 𝚝𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚛

Dick was in the main room doing some work, while the other's were busy doing their own thing. He heard someone waking in the room. The door open to reveal a very happy Tim Drake.

𝑊𝒉𝑦 𝑖𝑠 𝒉𝑒 𝒉𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑦 𝑡𝑜 𝑏𝑒 𝒉𝑒𝑟𝑒?

Dick thought, he stands up and walk over to his brother with a confused face. "Why are u here?...At the Tower?". Tim shrugged and tried to act normal "I just came here to help out.. Bruce is busy Jason is somewhere with the outlaws and Damian went to hang out with Jon" Tim explained.

Dick nodded and trying to think about what Tim can help out with. "Uhh well we really got nothin happen here" Dick said but paused. "But feel free to do anything here."

Making Tim smile "anymore here?" He asked. "uh?..just Raven, she's just busy with some school work." Dick replied. Tim nod "Okay thanks.. I'm going to hang out here then." As he walks out of the main room. And head to the rooms of the teammates.

Tim found Raven room, he smile to himself and then knock. "Come in!" She replied. He opens the door and see her in her bed with some books and notes.

Raven looks up but was surprised to see Tim here. She smile and gave a long hug.

"Why are u here?" She asked him. "I kinda liar to Dick that everyone was busy to make an excuse just see you." He blush.

Making her eyes widened then ever. "Oh?.. really?...you really miss me that bad huh?" she teased. Tim only nodded in reply. Raven giggles and turns back to her books. "So? Lots of homework?" Tim said.

She sigh

"Yea unfortunately..I just want to finish it already." "Well... since I'm here, can I help?."

He offered. Raven looked back at him. "R-Really?.. you would help me?" She pointed to herself. Making Tim smile even more, to see her cute face of confusion.

"Yes. Of course your my girlfriend!.. how can I not help you?" he sat next to her. He looks at note and books. And put his hands together "Okay what should we start?" He asked.

"U can help me with math" she smiles. Tim looked her with disappointment. "Really? Math..it's going to be easy!" He playful argued. Making her laugh. "I know for you it is, but for me?..it's different." She said. Tim rolled his eyes "okay fine..since you have helped us a couple of times, I'll do it for you." He stated.

𝖍𝖔𝖚𝖗𝖘 𝖑𝖆𝖙𝖊𝖗

Dick realize that was late now. He should probably get some rest. The other Titans got back from doing their own thing. They all asked about Raven. Dick just told them that she was busy in her room and they seem to shrugged it off and head to bed. Before Dick could leave the room he gets a call from Bruce.

Oh no.

"What can I help you with, Bruce?"

"I need to know is Tim with u?"

Oh he forgot about Tim..

"uhh..he was here but I don't know if he left"

Bruce didn't respond, nor did he look at him. It seem that he was busy looking at the his other computer. And heard groaned from him.

"uhh.. what's going on?" Dick asked.

"No need to find him now, I know where he is."

"wait where?"

"in one of YOUR teammate bedroom"

"WHAT?!"

Dick turns to face at the entrance,

He started to think which room could Tim be in.

But then he knew which one was it. He turns back to Bruce and he already knew who Tim with. "I...I call u back." He hangs up and head straight to Raven room. Feeling rage about it.

He doesn't even bother to knock on her door. "Tim! you are so mu-" he stop his sentence to see both of the teenager's asleep.

Oh Bruce and Dick were going to kill him when he leave.

[bulkyphrase]

Everybody & the Avengers Team

I've got a new fic rec list for you!

The stories in the "X & the Avengers Team" tags focus on one person's relationship to the Avengers team as a whole. Courtesy of AO3's tag browse and Excel, here's a ranked list of the top 20 most popular pairings:

Tony Stark | 2470 total, 240 OTP

Peter Parker | 2255 total, 85 OTP

Steve Rogers | 602 total, 56 OTP

Loki | 387 total, 26 OTP

Natasha Romanov | 308 total, 35 OTP

Clint Barton | 268 total, 46 OTP

Bruce Banner | 244 total, 15 OTP

Thor | 209 total, 7 OTP

Avengers Team | 174 total, 24 OTP

James "Bucky" Barnes | 156 total, 7 OTP

Wanda Maximoff | 143 total, 4 OTP

Phil Coulson | 105 total, 9 OTP

Darcy Lewis | 91 total, 6 OTP

Matt Murdock | 60 total, 8 OTP

Sam Wilson | 53 total, 5 OTP

Nick Fury | 41 total, 5 OTP

Harry Potter | 40 total, 0 OTP

Pepper Potts | 31 total, 1 OTP

Vision | 29 total, 2 OTP

Stiles Stilinski | 25 total, 0 OTP

In chart form, if you like charts:

Notes:

The numbers after the names are the number of stories tagged with that ship. OTP means the number of stories where that is the only relationship tagged on the story. Numbers are accurate as of July 2021.

Story Recommendations

For your reading pleasure, included below is at least one fic rec for each pairing except the crossovers from non-Marvel fandoms (apologies to Mr. Potter & Mr. Stilinski). Most are gen fic, and even in the ones with a romantic pairing, romance is not the focus.

Tony Stark

As Subtle As Cognitive Recalibration by petroltogo (Teen, 8949) tumblr: @tonystarktogo

Standing inside his penthouse, listening to Rogers, Barton and Banner explain to Fury how they just happened to stumble over the Tesseract on a routine security check of Stark Tower’s roof and wouldn’t you know, they’ve managed to fight off the looming alien invasion before it could really start and secure the missing overpowered nightlight is one of the most surreal situations Tony has ever had the displeasure of experiencing.

Peter Parker

the worst field trip ever by shrill_fangirl_screaming (Teen, 3420) tumblr: @i-am-having-an-emotion

"We're on a field trip," Peter said. "To here. And Tony decided to be our tour guide and absolutely embarrass me, so can you please help get him under control?"

Which is how Peter Parker, architect of his own destruction, ended up with not one but two superhero pseudo-dads being annoying on his school field trip.

Steve Rogers

Do You Remember Being Happy? ('Cause I Sure Don't) by GalaxyThreads (Teen, 11022) tumblr: @galaxythreads

That seems about right. He doesn't know how he knows that, though. He does have vague memories of an annoyed fondness at finding peanut butter in some sort of jam. Thor's doing, because he doesn't see the point of using two knives when one works just as fine. He knows that. How does he know that? He knows all those little details, though, almost innately. How can he know these strangers so deeply?

Everyone else below the cut!

Loki

Proprietary by TheThirdMarauder (Teen, 7639)

No, Loki simply wants the Avengers conquered. The details of whom, how, and when matter not. Unless, of course, said details interfere with Loki's plans. Then, well, then none can fault him for protecting his own interests.

Loki has always been exceptionally good at lying to himself.

Natasha Romanov

What Girls Are Made Of by enigma731 (Teen, 4613) tumblr: @enigma731

She rolls her eyes but does as he’s indicated, using his shoulders to leverage herself up onto his back, her arms around his neck and her legs hugging his waist.

“You know,” he says blithely, “this isn’t really what I tend to picture when I think of a hot girl riding me.”

Natasha groans, deciding that if his sense of humor gets them arrested, she’ll kill him herself. “Just go.”

Clint Barton

Dear Clint Barton (circa age 7) by pollyrepeat (Teen, 4221)

With a normal person, this might count as blackmail material, but a) this is a case of mutually assured destruction if ever there was one, and b) Fury is immune to embarrassment. Not just in the regular, Tony Stark way, either, oh no. Things that could possibly end up being embarrassing to Fury get somehow warped and changed until they go from mortifying all the way over into useful and/or good for his image. It’s like a superpower.

Carrying Clint’s small child self around on his shoulders more than once has probably already hit the interagency rumour mill as an example of Fury’s innate awesomeness: good with rocket launchers and small children.

Also available as a podfic!

Bruce Banner

They're Not Wrong by Trumpeteer34 (Teen, 10163)

As Tony began to pace around the hole in the road to keep himself from shooting repulsors at the nearby buildings in a fit of rage, Thor began to study the nearby area. There was no sign of either the Hulk or Bruce Banner beyond the crater. The surrounding area, aside from the rubble of the fight, held no clue as to their friend’s location.

“Guys, he’s gone,” Tony growled into the communicator on their private line, drawing Thor out of his darkening thoughts. “Someone tranqed him and took him. He’s gone.”

Honorary mention goes to the Responsible Science series by @letteredlettered - the stories don’t have the "Avengers Team & Bruce Banner" tag, but they could, and they are amazing. The best Bruce Banner writing I've ever come across.

Thor

Fortunately, I Am Mighty by onward_came_the_meteors (General, 3062)

Steve was the first one to speak. “Are you okay?”

Thor nodded. Which was a bad idea, as it turned out, because now there were little gray lights flashing in front of his eyes. “I’m fine.” Absolutely everyone narrowed their eyes, and he added, “But, uh. Could we possibly not get back in the car just yet?”

Avengers Team

Civil Wasn't by onward_came_the_meteors (General, 7123)

"We're having an ideological conflict here," Tony stated with disbelief. "Are you telling me you still want to go out to dinner?"

"It's a standing engagement, Tony," Rhodey reminded him.

"Not you too—"

"We already had to reschedule from Friday when Natasha was..." Rhodey frowned. "What were you doing?"

The question was directed toward Natasha, who shrugged and said, "Spy stuff."

James "Bucky" Barnes

You Know How I Feel, aka, The Adventures of Bucky and Muffy the Dinosaur by ifeelbetter (Not Rated, 4511) tumblr: @ifeelbetterer

“As you may have heard, Bucky Barnes, a.k.a. The Winter Soldier, recently rescued a tiny part-robot dinosaur during the Avengers’ battle with Dr. Doom in Antarctica,” the other newscaster explained. “Pictures of Barnes and the dinosaur were posted on twitter by fellow Avenger, Clint Barton, a.k.a. Hawkeye, and immediately made Barnes’s new pet America’s sweetheart.”

“Her name’s Muffy,” said Steve."

Wanda Maximoff

and the woman was young again by Mira_Jade (General, 3669)

Tony Stark called them the Cap's Kooky Quintet, and sometimes the term amused her – causing her to lift a sardonic brow where someday a smile would truly smile. She enjoyed the presence of comrades – true comrades – and she enjoyed the way their minds wove and bound together about each other to fluctuate against her senses as one. There was something soothing about being in their midst, and even when their loud and brash ways – their painful Americaness - rubbed her raw and drained on her, it was ever the knitting of their minds that soothed those moments over, and made them inconsequential.

Phil Coulson

Coulson's First Day of School by storiesfortravellers (Teen, 3055)

Coulson looked up at him. “I like drawing pictures with Mr. Rogers. I like having tea parties with Ms. Potts. I like it when Dr. Banner reads me books, and I like it when Natasha teaches me things. And I like when you play with me. You do really good voices when we play action figures. And you’re the only one who lets me do stuff like jump off the high diving board at the pool or eat three cupcakes or play tackle with kids at the park.”

Clint didn’t realize that. He was pretty sure that meant that he was doing something wrong.

Darcy Lewis

Beginner Yoga for Dummies (Darcys) and Sad Hobos by chailover (Teen, 3434)

Darcy had a theory: crazy attracted crazy, working kind of like gravity. It was pretty much her explanation for her life after Thor. And if she had thought the type of crazy Thor attracted was bad, be it Loki or the Warrior Three and Sif, or the dark elves and the Convergence, it was still nothing against what the Avengers manage en masse.

Matt Murdock

Double Blind by smilebackwards (Teen, 2381) tumblr: @smilebackwards

Stark snaps his fingers. “You can’t see half of my inventions. This explains so much about you and why you’ve never been properly impressed by me.”

“Does it?” Matt says, ambiguously.

Sam Wilson

Bystander by scribblemetimbers (Teen, 52029)

“I just want you to know,” Sam says loudly, cautiously raising his hands, “That I’m very poor and very sleep-deprived and literally the only thing you can kill me for right now are my notes.” He pauses. Wait. On second thought: “Please don’t steal my notes.”

“I’m not—I’m not a mugger,” Not Mugger rasps out, and for all that he looks about to keel over and die, the man actually manages to sound offended.

Nick Fury

Bedtime Story by dixiehellcat (Teen, 2532) tumblr: @deehellcat

Fury snorted. “I have to check in with the duty officer. I’ll be back in, let’s say twenty minutes. I expect all of you to have whatever your pre-bedtime routines are completed, and be in here pajama’ed and ready to be read to.”

He tapped the book under his arm, then left with the usual dramatic swish of his long coat. Bruce scratched his head. “Did…he just say be ready to be read to?”

Pepper Potts

Pepper and the Avengers (Which She Knows Nothing About) by rebelmeg (General, 6696) tumblr: @rebelmeg

The Avengers, that mismatched group of hurt and heroism, was one of the most important things in Tony Stark’s life. So, naturally, Pepper had made them an important part of her life too.

Vision

039. Intoxicated by aimmyarrowshigh (Teen, 100) tumblr: @aimmyarrowshigh

It might be nice to fit in, just this once. To lose a bit of composure.

Vision floated over to the refrigerator and, with some timidity, pulled off a magnet. He stuck it to his forehead.

[heroicadventurists]

DC Daily S1 E303 James Tynion IV transcribed interview pt 1

On his Detective Comics' run issues 934-981

Amy: In anticipation of your 2020 Batman book, we wanted to celebrate your Detective Comics run here on the show. What mark did you want to leave on the Batfamily with this run?

James: I started about the book wanting to pull together a Batman team book, which really hadn't been done before. Because so often in Batman stories, you see all of the sidekicks and partners in crime, and other people fighting crime in Gotham City, and Batman tries to shut them down. Sometimes he'll have a Robin at his side, but aside from that, he doesn't want anyone else on his turf. And I really wanted to change that. I wanted to start a story where rather than Batman saying no to everyone, Batman says yes. And Batman basically says okay, if we're going to do this, I'm going to bring you in and we're going to train you and we're going to make sure you do it right. And I'm going to bring in Tim Drake, Red Robin, and Batwoman, Kate Kane, and have them really train this team and develop a new generation of crime fighters in Gotham City. And that was really the goal of what I wanted to do. It is something that I had been pitching to DC for a long, long time. And ultimately, they made the decision that we would be doing it and we'd be doing it in the pages of Detective Comics. And it's honestly, I still can't believe that they let me get away with it.

Sam: I feel like there is so much about this concept that goes back to Batman learning how to trust. Something he's not good at. Am I wrong?

James: No you're not. Honestly, that really is the core dynamic. He has trouble letting go of control, and that's something that, it was something that I wanted to examine in him but also examine in the people who are working directly under him, because Tim Drake is also someone who feels like, if someone's going to do the job, he could do it better so he needs to step in and do it. And so does Kate Kane, Batwoman. So you have these sort of three personalities who are all kind of control freaks in different ways, and they are all trying to kind of guide the future of what the Batfamily could be and what Gotham City could be. And really getting into Bruce's head about how he sees the family and what the function of it is to him.

Amy: So what was striking to me was how different and well-defined each member of the Batfamily is in your run. What stood out to you about them and their motivations?

Whtiney: Honestly, this is the first time I had read this run, and I was blown away. I love every moment with Cass. I'm so enamored by her in this story, and especially, honestly, it wasn't any one character, but at the beginning when they're all together and they're kind of discussing what to do with Batwoman, it was my favorite because I feel like I don't get to see that enough, everyone interacting together in the same room and deciding what to do. I love that part.

Amy: They all disagree but they all sound like themselves. Which I'm sure is just as easy as it looked.

Sam: Well, I'm going to make a stupid comment that team dynamics are important to team books. But you could really see how when they work so well, how amazing it is because you established a core dilemma around which each character could have their own opinion. And each opinion was different. There are some overlaps and Venn diagrams there, but like you said (Amy), each character had an opinion about that was native to who they are as people. And it was such a great way, a high stakes way to reveal character, and I just loved it.

James: That issue in particular, because that was issue 975, I believe, and that was the one I had been wanting to do for a long time because honestly, part of my whole goal in writing that book is I was pulling together a lot of the secondary Batfamily characters. And here they are in front of us. But we had some former villains like Clayface. And we had characters like Batwing who existed more on the outskirts of the Batfamily. We have Batwoman who's never really been right at the center. Tim Drake has been more of the center but the team itself was not the core Batfamily. So the moment that something really went wrong, that Batwoman overstepped in a big way and actually appeared to kill one of the villains they were up against because there seemed to be no other path forward, and Batman brings together the core Batfamily, the original family that everyone knows and loves, all of the Robins and Barbara Gordon, the original Batgirl. And we have them sit and decide what they're going to do. And having that moment, the voices of the characters, I wish I had a better answer about how I got into each of their heads. Honestly, it's because I've been reading their stories my entire life. Their voices live in my head. And getting to bring those voices into the book and say something, especially in a series that was always about the Batfamily but didn't really feature the core Batfamily, that was really powerful for me, and that's one of my favorite issues in the entire run.

Hear the rest of James Tynion's experience on Detective Comics and the longevity of Batman on DC Daily

[rogue-barnes-16]

IS THIS WRONG?

Request: Could you please write an oneshot with steve where is a lot of angst😅

Pairing: Steve Rogers x reader

Genre: angst

Tags: @urlindah

Warnings: abusive boyfriend, swearing, cheating(?), a bit of anxiety and low self-esteem, violence.

A/N: Okay, this is a request, and even though it says "a lot of angst" if the person who requested it doesn't feel comfortable due to the topics I warned about, please dm me and I'll try to write another version for this request.

"Long time no see. Where've you been?" Tony asked with a smirk after pecking my cheek. It'd been three months since I saw my friends. I missed them, but since my boyfriend didn't let me go out, I couldn't see them.

I didn't want them to see all of my bruises, nor my scars, nor my awful anxiety attacks. Today I was feeling extra confident, and I managed to convince my boyfriend to let me go out on a dinner with them. The main reason why he agreed it's because they were suspicious about him, specially my bestfriend Steve.

So here I was, with I tight long-sleeved dress, makeup covering the bruises that I couldn't cover with the clothes, and a polite smile on my face. "I've been with my boyfriend." I answered quietly.

"c'mon, all the time?" Sam asked frowning. I knew they were confused. We used to hang out almost every week, and suddenly I disappeared.

"yeah, Y/n, I'm with the birdman here. It's not like he didn't let you go out right?" Natasha's question killed me. She was smiling, and her tone was a jokingly one, so I laughed, brushing it off.

"don't be silly, Nat." I replied, taking a seat on the restaurant table that Tony had booked. Everyone followed me, sitting each one in one of the chairs. Wanda rapidly sat on my left side, whilst Vision sat on my right side.

When I thought everything was okay, I heard Wanda's voice. "You didn't answer my calls. Nor my texts. I'm not buying this shit." she whispered without looking at me. She said it loud enough for me to hear her, but being careful for none else to listen to her statement.

I decided it was the best option to play silly, even though Wanda was probably trying to read my mind. "I don't know what you're talking about. And about the texts and calls, my phone broke" I knew it was a lame excuse, but it would have to do it.

Wanda was going to lecture me about lying to her when I heard Tony greeting someone. I looked up to see Steve. "Look who's decided to move his ass and come." Tony got up to hug Steve briefly "Hey old man"

"Hey Tony" Steve greeted back, pulling away from the hug. I got up and walked towards Steve, with a genuine, still shy smile on my face.

"Hi Steve." I said, but he didn't answered me, he just looked at me like I was an alien. He stood there stiff, and when I tried to hug him, he stepped away subtly.

"Well... Let's come back to the table" Tony suggested awkwardly, feeling the tension Steve had just created. He motioned me to go and sit back with them.

I stood there playing with one of my rings nervous "I- actually I just came to say hi" the words that were coming out of my mouth surprised everyone, including me.

For a moment I thought I would come back and everything would still be the same, but it wasn't. Gosh, even Steve had decided to ignore me. Good thing was that I wouldn't have to pretend I was okay again. Bad thing, that I felt like I've lost the only good thing I had. Steve.

"What? Do you mean you're not staying?" Bruce asked incredibly confused. Natasha exchanged a glance with Wanda, suddenly realizing something was off.

"Y/n, c'mon if it's because-" Sam started to say probably some goofy reason to light up the mood, but Vision cut him off.

"Is that a hickey or a bruise?" he asked, pointing the visible part of my collarbone. I felt going pale, everything starting to get blurry. I heard an 'Oh my gosh' coming from Wanda and a 'what the hell' coming from Tony.

"Did he lay a finger on you?" Natasha asked, this time I heard the worry coming from her. "Did he?" she repeated the question, this time a bit more aggressive. "Wanda"

"On it" Wanda replied. Suddenly everything seemed wrong. I had to leave the restaurant before Wanda entered in my mind. I grabbed my coat just when she gasped, letting out some curses with my boyfriend's name on them.

I got out of the restaurant, feeling tears pooling my cheeks. How could I be so stupid? Of course they wouldn't let it go. They would insist and insist. It was my fault for wanting to see them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Another slap crossed my face, this time it was harsh enough to make me fall to the floor. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry" I cried covering my face ad my boyfriend walked nervous on the living room.

"how could I trust you would do something right, you stupid bitch!" he growled, passing his fingers through his hair. "you ruined everything, you fucking slut!"

I kept crying as he grabbed my hair, pulling it for me to look at him. "P-please I'm... I'm sorry. I s-swear they won't do anything, t-they don't care that m-much." I managed to say between sobs.

He pulled my hair harshly making me scream. In that moment we hear knocks on the door. He groaned and let me go, throwing my against the floor, making my head collapse against it.

I kept crying, this time silently. "get up and change your clothes, I'll open the door." he hissed, but when I didn't move, he came back and made me stand up by grabbing my arms. I flinched waiting for a slap which didn't come.

Another couple of knocks against the door. He brought me closer to him, his lips brushing against my cheek. "I said, go. And change. Your clothes. Are you fucking deaf?" I denied vehemently as a response and he let go. "then do what I say."

I got in our room shaking and I instantly took off my dress. I put on a jumper too hot for that summer night and some pants.

"where is her?" I heard Steve's voice and I froze. What was he doing here? I went to clean my face, but it was useless since the red marks of the slaps where still visible on my skin.

"I thought she was with you, guys" my boyfriend replied. I admired how good he was at lying. I couldn't even say I was okay without fucking everything up.

"I'm trying not to kill you right now, don't make it more difficult than it already is, and tell me where is Y/n" I practically could see Steve clenching his fists even though I wasn't there.

"I told you man, she's not here." I walked out of the room, suddenly feeling brave. I saw Steve with puffy eyes standing in the hall. Had he been crying? Even if he had, I could feel his rage from where I was standing.

His eyes suddenly landed on me, making my boyfriend turn around. "What are you doing here Steve?" I asked trying to seem confused. I didn't need Steve to have problems because of me.

"Y/n..." my name slipped out of his lips in a shaky voice. He suddenly recovered her authority and keep talking. "pick up your things, we're leaving."

I stood stiff without moving. Should I go with Steve? What would happen if I did? "princess, get in the room while I talk with Steve." my boyfriend ordered me, and I was going to do it until Steve spoke.

"Don't call her princess ever again." he hissed "because I swear if you do, it will be the last word you'll say." I saw how Steve trie to walk towards me, but my boyfriend got in the middle, blocking him.

"She doesn't want to go with you man, just leave, you've already lost your opportunity to be with her" he teased Steve with a smirk. I knew Steve was trying not to hurt him, or else now my boyfriend would be bleeding out.

I started to walk towards them hesitant, trying to help Steve, but when my boyfriend turned around I stopped in my tracks. "I told you to come back to the fucking room!" he yelled, walking in my direction.

Was he going to beat me in front of Steve? I shut my eyes, protecting my face with my arms, but my boyfriend didn't even have a chance to reach the hall where I was standing.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?!" I heard Steve's voice full of anger and despise besides me, I turned around to see him holding my boyfriend against the wall. "do you really think I'm letting you lay a finger on her?!" Steve's fist suddenly landed on my boyfriend stomach, making him gasp in pain.

"Steve, no!" I screamed panicked. But Steve wasn't listening, he threw another punch against my boyfriend, with all his supersoldier strength. "Steve!"

"Answer me you fucking despising piece of shit!" Steve yelled again. He lowered his voice level looking at my boyfriend's eyes. "do you really think I was going to let you touch her?"

My boyfriend shook his head frantically and Steve nodded. "Good thing that you understand me. Now, you're gonna wait here." Steve grabbed him and, after checking a couple of doors of the apartment, he shoved my boyfriend inside a closet, locking him inside.

He then turned around facing me. "I'm sorry for not calling. I'm sorry for being a bad friend" I started to sob. He denied with his head, his eyes wet.

"It's not your fault, it's... It's mine. I didn't come to check up on you" he muttered, tears streaming down his cheeks. "I... left you" I rapidly stepped towards him, closing the gap between us and hugging him.

"Y-you didn't leave me." I mumbled between sobs, my face buried on his chest as he leaned on me, kissing my hair as he embraced me tightly.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Apparently, Wanda found out about what was happening as I left and she told everyone. Steve instantly left to go for me, and 5 minutes later, he received a text from Sam which said that Tony and Wanda had reported it to the police.

In the message Sam recommended Steve not to do anything stupid, only to pick me up and make sure that my boyfriend didn't leave the apartment.

The police came after thirty minutes, and since it was already late night, we decided to stay in the apartment and pick up my things the next morning.

Steve refused to leave me alone not even a second. He helped me with my recent bruises and made me some dinner. We ate in my room and I slowly started to relax, falling asleep.

However, when I felt Steve leaving my side, I gripped his hand tugging it to come back to the the bed frantically. "Relax, Y/n- hey" he cupped my cheeks softly, making me look at his eyes. "Gosh what did he do to you.."

He murmured, seeing the fear in my eyes. My lip started to shake again and I saw Steve worries growing bigger. "Y/n, doll, hey. Hey listen to me. You're safe." he repeated again and again, climbing on the bed again, kneeling in front of me as my breathing started to get uneven.

"Y/n. Nothing is happening to you while I'm with you. And I won't leave you." he assured me, my breathing coming back to normal. Suddenly I realized how close he was, our lips almost brushing.

"I missed you so much Steve..." I mumbled, my voice shaking. Should I kiss him? No, of course not, I wasn't worth it.

"I... I love you Y/n" he mumbled, his thumbs rubbing my cheekbones. "It killed me when you left the tower to live here with... With him." he looked down and I could tell he was confused too. "my heart broke in a million pieces after that. And now that I realized what was happening I can't help but think-"

"I love you too" I muttered before he could say something stupid about this being his fault. He blushed slightly, and without looking up at me, he closed his eyes and let his lips brush against mine.

I kissed him back. It wasn't a passionate kiss. It was a careful one. A sweet one. He slowly pulled away, just to embrace me again. "I'm not leaving you ever again. I swear" I nodded against his chest, thankful for having him.

[theheavymetalmama]

Katie, enough! I'm tired of you constantly bashing the Marvel Cinematic Universe. I know you think the DCEU can do no wrong but Goyer has dropped the soap once or twice himself. Just because none of the Marvel movies has won an Academy Award (*cough* dirty bribe *cough*) doesn't give you the right to post dozens of long articles on why Marvel "doesn't get Groot". Now if you excuse me, I still have a bunch of anonymous posts to send to your mailbox bitching how your opinion is always wrong!

I will happily stop posting about how the DCEU could take a comic nobody likes and turn it into a billion dollar hit while Marvel can’t even get the Captain America right when Marvel pulls its’ head out of its’ ass!

I mean come on, Jenni, do you and I even watch the same movies? Okay, granted, that first Batman movie starring Karl Urban hasn’t held up very well and the second one focused so much on world-building and character introduction that the story about Bruce dying from Venom-poisoning kind of got lost, but at least we got more of Amanda Waller after we first saw her waiting for Bruce in Wayne Manor. And come on, even you have to admit that Catwoman taking out that whole squad of goons while Alfred spent the whole time fighting that one guy was hilarious. Yes, that Flash movie in between was fun but skippable and everyone was nervous about Barry being recast with Aaron Paul, but once the first Wonder Woman movie and Superman: Earth’s First Defender came out and all of it culminated in ‘Justice League’ the gamble paid off. Now they’re turning properties nobody gives a shit about into superstars!

Compare that to Marvel. They made a Captain America movie after DC’s ‘Justice League’ spanked the X-Men as the highest grossing comic book franchise, and honestly…it was okay. Not great, it had problems, but the casting was solid, it had some decent performances and a few great action scenes, and what flaws it did have could have been ironed out in a sequel.

But we didn’t get that sequel. Instead, Marvel panicked because Captain America only made enough money to buy nine luxury yachts instead of ten, and then that following ComiCon Marvel announced that sequel…but reading one of Tony’s lines from Civil War. From there, it was just one red flag after another. The casting, the characters that would appear, the set-ups for future movies, it was absurd! They had to introduce Iron Man, introduce Pepper Potts, introduce Jarvis, introduce Baron Zemo, Thor was making an appearance, the Hulk, War Machine, and new versions of Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver were all playing bit parts, and they were setting up for the Avengers. They tried to do in two movies what DC did in five, and did it work? Hell no! Tony was an insufferable ass, Captain America was barely in the sequel to his own movie (he didn’t even get top billing!,) there were more dream sequences here than there were in Nightmare on Elm Street, there were pointless subplots that had nothing to do with either character, and despite being the main driving force behind the plot we never get a clear idea of who Zemo is or what he’s about. First he hates superheroes just because, then he’s mad at his abusive daddy, then he’s got some weird hangups about god, then he’s barking about some unseen alien force in the distance, it was a joke! And for a movie titled “Iron Man v Captain America: Dawn of Avengers” there’s not a lot of Iron Man vs Captain America in it. They only share maybe a scene and a half together the big title fight, and the fight only lasts for like eight minutes! And really, Maria? THAT’S the big twist!? Because Steve’s old girlfriend’s daughter was in trouble and she just so HAPPENED to share the same name as Tony’s dead mom? Come on! Oh yeah, and then Cap dies! They killed Captain American in TWO MOVIES! It wasn’t even a heroic sacrifice, he just randomly got stabbed by Abomination! Then the movie expects us to be all sad that Cap’s dead even though audiences didn’t have a chance to connect with him? Fuck right off!

Compare that to DC. They didn’t even start talking about adapting ‘The Death of Superman’ until they were nine movies in, and even then they didn’t get around to it until they had 13 under their belt. Seeing Superman die at the hands of Doomsday wasn’t just tragic and hard to watch because they slowly beat each other to death, but because we had seen him in five previous movies plus a few spin-offs where he was the invulnerable boy scout. Now there he was barely able to stand as this big monster who mowed through the Justice League and half the US military is just tanking everything thrown at him. And the funeral. Talk about real heart-wrenching stuff. Seriously, that shit gave the deaths of Mufasa and Littlefoot’s Mom a run for their money. Especially when Bruce holds face the whole time while everyone else mourns and says their last goodbyes. Then in the after credits scene we see Batman come to Superman’s grave, say his piece in that same old Batman voice and tone. Why wouldn’t he? He’s Batman. But then the whole audience is shocked when, after Bruce says his piece, he turns around and the audience sees that his face is soaked with tears…then we fade to black. Powerful stuff. You think people would have had the same reaction if they just jumped right to it in the second movie? Hell no!

And since those movie’s came out, Marvel has been on non-stop damage control. They made a shitty Thunderbolts movie that was at least enjoyably bad, but bad all the same, there’s a Thor movie that will maybe make things seem less doom and gloom, and now they just dropped an Avengers trailer that looks like more of the same dreary and portentous gray and brown filtered garbage they’ve delivered before, only now there’s a crappy cover of a decent rock song in place of the faux-Wagnerian bwam-filled noise that was found in previous Marvel movies. And now they announced like 15 movies! Marvel, we don’t care how MANY movies you make, we just want you to make GOOD movies! Slow the Hell down and put the same time and effort that DC puts into their extended universe, and then people will like you. And for fuck’s sake, stop hiring people who either don’t understand or share open contempt for your characters to write, direct, or consult for them!

In conclusion, I’ll stop ranting against Marvel when Marvel stops making shitty movies! Good day, ma’am!

Oh, and a Happy April Fools Day to you too. :)

[screeching-kitten]

Ok so here's how i think the batfam would be if they had Tumblr:

- Jason: talks about books, manages to be really positive while going on rants as to why some authors should rot in hell. He's still very accepting and positive though, like, he'll add at the end of the post, and sincerely says "but you can like whatever you want, as long as you're not an asshole to other people who like different things".

oh yeah and sometimes there's a "TERFs can eat shit" post on his blog

- Damian: He's on the pets sides of tumblr (you know that blog that comments on like very popular video and explain if what's happening is harmful for the animal or something? yeah, that), reblogs (if he doesn't just pay for it lmao) post asking for funds, and petitions. has a secondary blog for his art. once in a while posts something very specific about weapons, but yano, it's tumblr so no one really say anything

- Bruce: he is that one random account, who doesn't have a pfp, doesn't have a header, hasn't liked or reblogged anything ever, doesn't follow anyone and never look like he's active but somehow knows most of what's happening

- Alfred: He has a relatively popular blog. he's very positive, talks about like cooking, or gives advice for life in general. his community is mostly like, mentally ill people who would definitely die for the nice old man on the internet who told them it was ok to not be ok all the time. sometimes he talks/tells a story about his family, and it's always very weird and concerning story ("Im sorry mr.pennyworth, don't feel forced to answer the ask but WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU OKAY ARE THEY KEEPING YOU PRISONNER DO YOU NEED HELP????)

- Steph and Tim are like, on a scale from "can you remind me how reblogs work again?" to "i have discussed things god refuse to even imagine" they're a solid "the tumblr gods decide my fate", they're very very deep, know and understand almost every references and have seen some of the worst this site has to offer (scared the others when they started going crazy working a case of someone working with blood in an hospital. "COLOUR THEORY" "THINK OF THE CHILDREN TIM, RED WOULD REALLY HELP THEM RELAX")

- Cass: she's on a relatively mild tumblr, following a lot about dance or positivity blogs. sometimes she gives self-defence advices. she... gets some of the references tim and steph make (and the two are trying to corrupt her hehe)

- Dick: he's a shitposter. that and his blog is alternating between very serious posts he reblogged and the absolute chaos of tumblr. ("guys guys guys i just broke the coffee machine wish me luck" *2 hours later* "my family didn't kill me! ay! thye don't know i shit they're coing! bye guys!" - "tofay is sunfay anf sunfay are funsay")

-Barbara: all her posts are against assholes. like, it's all rants and explanations about things but a lot of "daily reminder that if you're homophobic, queer people are allowed and encouraged to punch you in the face <3", a few complain about the batfam but a pretty normal blog, as far as Tumblr goes

- Duke: gotham memes. he's the lambda user who didn't join that long and whose dash hasn't been completely overtaken by Tumblr (except that time with osha where he couldn't find anything because everything everywhere was osha). he's on Tumblr, so of course he has seen most of the ✨classics✨ but he's not as far gone as Tim and Steph

Bonus: The Joker tried to make an account once but everyone thought he was a fanboy, even after everything to prove his identity, then he kinda disappeared but people reported him and he got banned after a bit

[heroicadventurists]

Batman and The Outsiders # 1 **SPOILERS**

Lesser Gods part 1

Recap and Review

This issue begins in Los Angeles. A Father (Gabriel) and Daughter (Sofia) are driving along a highway. Sofia is listening to her headphones to the annoyance of her Dad. He tells her to play music in the car but she tells him she prefers the headphones. He promptly reminds her that he is her Father and asks her to take the headphones off. She complies.

-“You’re thinking about your Mother. I know what day it is. I won’t tell you how to grieve, but Ana would want you to be happy, she always said—" Gabriel

The car suddenly hits a man standing in the middle of the road, but instead of killing the man, he crushes the car.

The man stands on top of the car and pulls Gabriel thru the windshield. He grabs his neck and you see a light escaping his eyes and mouth before he dies. Before Sofia can run, the man grabs Sofia by her neck.

-“Nothing from my touch. Strange. So scared. You don’t know what you are. Let me show you.”-Strange killer

The man proceeds to throw Sofia over the bypass and she slams into a gas tanker. The tanker explodes from impact and the scene ends with Sofia’s screaming face.

The issue switches to Gotham City. Signal and Orphan appear to be at the docks, taking cover from a mad man (Saint John) wielding a machine gun. Signal tells Orphan that he can rush Saint John but Orphan tells him to wait for Black Lightning. Duke does not respond well to this.

Suddenly Black Lightning appears, firing lightning at Saint John’s helmet, while Katana slices his gun with her sword. Black Lightning tells Katana to cover her eyes and he lights Saint John up.

With Saint John down, Black Lightning reprimands Signal for not waiting for him & Katana. Signal tells Black Lightning that he is not his Father and he’s not Batman.

-“Neither are you, Signal. That’s why I had to save your life. We have to work together. We’re a team.” – Black Lightning

Shamed, Signal walks away and tells everyone he will call GCPD. Katana asks Orphan if he is normally like this. She responds that he has been different since he was injured by Karma.

The scene switches once again to Kubrick Towers. Bruce is meeting Jefferson for a report.

-“Duke’s not right. Cassandra thinks this is recess. Katana will kill someone before this is over.” -Jefferson

Bruce tells Jefferson they are his team and to make them what he wants them to be. Jefferson questions if this is truly his team. At this point Jefferson and Bruce have a real conversation about Bruce’s real intentions with forming the Outsiders.

-“I need to solve some things. For myself. And they…need more from me than I can give.” – Bruce

On his way out, Bruce tells Jefferson he put the penthouse in his name.

We switch to what appears to be the Batcave. Batman is surveying the wreck from earlier in the issue. It’s confirmed that Gabriel is dead and Sofia is missing.

We move to an abandoned building that Tatsu is living in. She is trying to communicate with her husband’s soul inside her sword.

Tatsu tells Jefferson he is not as quiet as he thinks, and he comes out of the shadows. He tells her that he needs her wisdom. Tatsu tells him to pick up a sword. They spar while Jefferson asks Tatsu for her help.

-“Duke is punishing himself. Cassandra is a mystery I can’t solve. Help me with them.” – Jefferson

Jefferson tells Tatsu that he needs a partner. He wants her to challenge him. After he leaves, her husband’s soul speaks to her “Taaatttsssuuuuu”. She cries as she holds the sword.

Next, we see Cass and Duke riding her motorcycle. During the ride, Duke is only thinking about Karma and he cries out for Cass to stop. She asks Duke if he’s ok and he tells her he still sees Karma.

“It’s okay. When I sleep…I see my Dad.”-Cass

Cass tells him it’s okay to be afraid, and he yells that he is not afraid. Cass begins to apologize but their batwatches go off.

The Outsiders meet up with Batman on top of a building. He briefs them on The Ark Program. A consortium of billionaires wanted to create their own metahumans. Batman burned it down. The architects tried to kill all the test subject, and only the Ramos family survived. Bruce Wayne and Lucius Fox set them up in a house in Los Angeles and Batman promised them they would stay safe. Batman informs the team that the Mother eventually died due to the experiments and Gabriel was just killed. Their task is to find Sofia and bring her to Gotham. At this, Batman grapples away.

Right away, Black Lightning is distrustful of Batman and wants to decline the mission. In the end, Katana informs the team that they are taking the mission.

-“I don’t trust Batman. But that doesn’t matter. What does matter----is us trusting each other. Because I have a feeling we are own our own.”-Black Lightning

We go back to Sofia, and she is at the train station trying to keep a low profile and get out of Los Angeles. As she’s walking a man in the shadows grabs her from behind. He tells her that she will pull humanity from the ashes; and thru her a new age is born.

Review

I really enjoyed this comic. First off, the art work is AMAZING. Dexter Soy really took this comic book to the next level. The only thing that threw me off was Bruce looking like an older version of Jason. I had to do a double take for a moment. Speaaking of Jason, Gabriel's license plate was TODD JASON. Dexter did a great job.

I really enjoyed the development we’re getting with Duke. Duke had a very traumatic experience with Karma in Detective Comics, and it’s nice to see them addressing those issues.

I am also intrigued by Jefferson’s relationship with Duke and Tatsu. A part of me feels like Duke is pushing Jefferson away because he reminds him of his Father; or he feels that Jefferson is trying to take his Father’s place. He really has no other reason to be this combative. Jefferson is eventually going to break down Duke’s walls; and when he does, I think they will have an unbreakable bond.

Jefferson and Tatsu have a lot of chemistry and I would probably ship Jefferson with Tatsu if I knew the status of Anissa and Jennifer. If he hasn’t had them yet, then I wouldn’t ship them, but if he’s divorced from Lynn already, then it would be an interesting relationship to explore.

When Jefferson visited Tatsu, she told him that Cassandra was afraid of her future. I hope this is tied to Detective Comics 980 where Cass learned she was both Batgirl and adopted. Stephanie seems to have taken the news from Tec 980 well. She's not bitter that she was never Robin or Batgirl in this timeline. She is actually referring to herself as a Robin in Young Justice. Stephanie doesn't care what time line it happened in, a win is a win. Cass's situation is entirely different. While she can take the same approach with the Batgirl mantle, she can't do that with the adoption. That has to be something formally initiated by Bruce. I think there are a couple of things Cass could be afraid of: (1) Deep inside she is bad and they will get rid of her like they did Basil (2) She never reaches her full potential and does not become an official bat (she never wears the symbol) (3) She's never adopted again (if Bruce doesn't adopt her, what does that mean for their current relationship?). It could be something else entirely or a combination of 1-3. Hill has a lot of compelling directions he can go with Cass. A follow up from Tec 980 would be great.

Last, but certainly not least….Bruce Wayne. Honestly, Bruce came across as someone who really doesn’t care what the team is doing as long as they stay out of his hair and they’re alive. When Bruce met with Jefferson at Kubrick Towers, he confirmed my suspicions that he formed BatO and put Jefferson in charge so he could be Duke and Cassandra’s primary mentor. While it may seem messed up that he is not making time for them, I respect the honesty of the situation. Bruce’s life is crap right now. He’s trying to rebuild his relationship with Damian, he has no clue what to do with Jason and this Iceberg situation, Dick is Ric and at some point, he should realize that Tim is missing on Gemworld. Not to mention his Dad from another Universe is teaming up with his enemy and he’s still heartbroken over Selina. He’s stretched thin and has realized he doesn’t have the physical time or emotional availability to look after/mentor Duke and Cass. He’s giving them a better option in Jefferson. He even gave Jefferson a pent house for his troubles. I think Jefferson knew from the beginning why Bruce formed the team, which explains why he doesn’t trust him. They are laying the seeds of Batman eventually leaving the Outsiders and if that happens, I feel like this comic will be a great vehicle for Black Lightning to shine. I wouldn’t be surprised if they phased Batman out of the title once they have some consistent sales. It wouldn’t be anytime soon, but I wouldn’t mind BatO becoming The Outsiders.

This was a great issue with some great art. If you’re a fan of these characters I highly recommend you pick up this issue.