#dead waynes causing problems again

[zhelin-thames]

The Fudge Courier

The Wayne Mansion was never exactly quiet, but the sudden crack of breached security systems and the high-pitched alarm was enough to cause a minor panic in the Batfamily group chat.

Everyone mobilized. Jason was halfway to the armory. Damian had his sword in hand. Steph already had a batarang between her fingers. Bruce was the first to reach the front foyer, cape trailing behind him dramatically, expecting an assassin, a rogue AI, or maybe Ra’s himself.

Instead, it was a teenager in a baggy hoodie and Converse, standing in the middle of the marble floor with a tray of fudge like he owned the place.

"WHERE IS THE OLD MAN?!" the intruder demanded.

Bruce raised a brow. "Now, I don’t think I’m—"

"NOT YOU! THE OLD MAN!" the teen snapped, eyes wild with exhaustion. “You don’t count. You’re like… diet old. Where’s the real deal?”

Before anyone could tase, tackle, or interrogate him, Alfred emerged from the dining room, adjusting his gloves with dignified calm. “Master Bruce, is there a—?”

He didn’t finish.

The fudge was shoved into his hands with the kind of reverence usually reserved for live bombs.

“Happy Father’s Day from Thomas and his wife.” The hoodie kid (ghost? gremlin?) looked like he hadn’t slept in days. “They haven’t stopped haunting me about it for weeks. I’m so tired. Please. Please tell me I can finally tell them that baby Brucie is fine and stop being their afterlife errand boy.”

There was a beat of stunned silence.

Then Alfred—gentle, serene, forever composed Alfred—smiled. He even laughed, lightly, like this wasn’t a complete break in reality. “Yes, indeed. They are doing well. I am so terribly sorry to have put you in this position. Perhaps we can make it up to you by having you stay for dinner?”

Danny, hoodie gremlin in question, beamed like he’d just won the lottery. “Free food? Absolutely.” Then he glanced at the fudge. “Oh, right—It’s not poisoned or ecto-contaminated, FYI. Totally safe for normal humans and whatever brand of chaos you people are.”

He waved like this was a PTA meeting and followed Alfred into the kitchen like he hadn’t just broken into one of the most secure homes on the planet.

The Batkids stood frozen.

“Umm… Alfred, do you know this kid?” Dick asked carefully.

Danny turned to face them with a tired sigh. “Are you baby Brucie? Because I swear to the Ancients, if you are, I need to punch you. Like, lovingly. Ghost realm tradition. Don’t worry, it only hurts a little.”

A long silence.

Then Dick lost it, wheezing. “Nope! Nope, that’s not me—he’s behind you and probably wants to punch you now.”

Danny blinked, glanced back at Bruce, then offered a grin. “...Fair.”

Bruce stared at the tray of fudge in Alfred’s hands, then at the strange boy now comfortably parked on a kitchen stool. Then, very calmly, he pressed the panic button for the entire family. They were going to need back-up. And a full psych eval.

Meanwhile, Tim was already texting.

get here now bring Kon AND jon dinner’s cursed there’s fudge and ghosts and bruce has parents again???

The Phantom Courier had arrived. And dinner was going to be spicy.

Dinner at Wayne Manor was already chaos on a good day. Add in Danny Phantom, ghost errand boy of the dearly departed Wayne parents, and things got wild fast.

By the time the rest of the Batfamily arrived, Alfred had set the table like nothing strange was happening—because to him, nothing was. A guest was a guest, even if that guest had floated through a wall earlier and casually mentioned alternate dimensions.

Danny sat between Steph and Duke, legs criss-crossed in his chair, still wearing his hoodie like it was armor. “So anyway, it turns out if you make direct eye contact with the portrait of Martha Wayne at exactly 2:37 AM, she shows up and starts judging you for the dishes in the sink.”

Steph choked on her drink.

“You’re lying,” Jason said flatly.

“Swear on my core,” Danny grinned. “She folded my laundry. Folded it. But she also gave me this look like I was a raccoon rooting through the family fridge.”

“...She always did run a tight household,” Alfred muttered under his breath, pleased.

Tim, phone still in hand under the table, was quietly live-texting everything to Kon. Bruce hadn’t said much since Danny’s arrival, though he'd definitely tried to interrogate him mid-salad. Danny answered every question with equal parts snark and sincerity, and Bruce hadn’t known how to handle that since Nightwing’s teen years.

But the real kicker came after dinner.

Alfred brought out a lovely tray of tea and that infamous fudge. Everyone reached for a piece. Except Bruce.

Danny froze. Eyes wide.

“You’re not eating the fudge?”

“I don’t eat dessert,” Bruce said firmly, because of course he didn’t.

Danny paled—well, more pale. “Oh Ancients. You were supposed to eat it. That was like... half the haunting quota! I told them I shouldn’t be the one to deliver it, but nooo, I’m the ‘living representative’—"

Suddenly, the lights flickered.

A breeze swept through the dining room despite all the windows being shut.

Then—

A glow shimmered above the table, and two figures faded into view. Elegant. Ethereal. Slightly translucent.

“Bruce Thomas Wayne,” said Martha Wayne, voice calm but cutting, “You did not just ignore the dessert your father and I specifically requested be delivered for this occasion.”

Thomas Wayne crossed his arms. “We died. The least you could do is eat a single piece of fudge.”

Bruce stared at them, stunned. “...You sent the fudge?”

Danny waved his fork. “I told you. They’re relentless. I’ve never been hunted harder in my life—and I died.”

Jason was half under the table laughing. Damian stared at the ghosts with a mix of disbelief and awe. Dick was frantically signing do not punch them, do not punch them at Damian.

Martha floated closer, arms crossed like the world’s most disappointed PTA mom. “Your father and I have waited a very long time to share something—anything—with you again. And this young man was kind enough to help us.”

Thomas chimed in. “And he’s got moxie. You could use more of that in your life.”

Bruce cleared his throat, awkwardly picking up a piece of fudge. “...Fine. One piece.”

The lights settled.

The ghosts relaxed.

Danny slumped forward. “Thank the Ancients. I can finally go home and not have Martha materialize in my mirror telling me I ‘forgot the nuts.’”

Martha beamed. “Thank you, dear. You’re a delight.”

Then they both faded out. Just like that.

Silence.

“...So,” Dick finally said, “Do we do Father’s Day like this every year now or...?”

Tim texted Kon again.

fudge was ghost-coded bruce got mom’d from beyond the veil help bring backup

Tim’s texts didn’t go unanswered for long.

Kon: we’re coming Kon: jon says we should bring a gift Kon: is batman allergic to anything? Jon: (from Kon’s phone) my mom says you can’t show up empty-handed to a ghost-fudge dinner. I’m bringing lasagna.

Twenty minutes later, just as Alfred was prepping dessert plates and Danny was halfway through explaining what ghost zones were (with salt shakers), there was a knock at the front door.

A polite knock. One that radiated Midwestern kindness and super strength.

Bruce answered the door with the grim expectation of chaos.

Instead, he got Superman, Superboy, and Jon Kent holding a steaming glass dish wrapped in oven mitts.

“Hi, Bruce,” Clark said, smiling like this was a backyard barbecue. “Happy Father’s Day.”

“We brought food!” Jon added helpfully. “And napkins!”

Danny peeked out from behind Bruce. “...You brought napkins to a haunted fudge dinner?”

“Ghosts like etiquette,” Jon said with perfect sincerity.

Danny stared. “...I’m adopting you.”

Bruce groaned. “Why are you here?”

Clark gave the world’s most innocent shrug. “Tim said dinner was going great. And involved your parents. The ghost versions.” He looked very smug. “I couldn’t miss that.”

Tim popped out from behind a hallway arch, phone in hand. “For the record, you’re welcome.”

Danny barging into the wayne mansion wearing a hoddie and holding a tray of fudge.

"WHERE IS THE OLD MAN?!"

All the bats and birds panicing bc a random broke theu their security measures. Bruce being first to look at him"hey now, i dont think i'm~"

he gets cut off by Danny. "NOT YOU! THE OLD MAN!"

Alfred steps out of the dining room fixing his gloves and suit. Before he can speak danny shoves the plate of fudge in his hands"Happy fathers day from thomas and his wife. They have not stopped hounding me for weeks. And im tired. Please tell me i can say their baby brucie is fine." He says half pleading.

Alfred breaks a small smile before laughing lightly"yes indeed. They are doing well. I am so terribly sorry to have put you in this position. Perhaps we can make it up to you by having you stay for dinner?"

Bruce and the kids are glading ready for a fight unsure of how to interact in this moment."Umm Alfred, do you know this kid?" Dick asks breaking the silence.

Danny turns to him"are you baby brucie? Bc i swear to ancients i need to punch you and i hope you are an adult." Silence as crickets sounds before dick breaks down laughing."no he is behind you ready to punch you himself. Can umm you explain?"

Danny pauses thinking a moment before amiling"you offered me free food. I will gladly accept! Oh! That reminds me! The fudge isnt poisoned or ecto contaminated. So it is safe for normal humans to consume as well as whatever the hell you all are." He waves and follows Alfred theu to the kitchen.

Bruce panic buttons the rest to come home for dinner. This is gonna be a long night.

Meanwhile tim is texting Kon to being supes and jon with him to dinner tonight. Things are about to be spicy!

[clockwayswrites]

Dead on MAYn 25 Day 3:

Trope | Eldritch horror Danny/Monster Fucker Jason

Word | Contract

Situation | The Batfam learn about Jason's boyfriend by accident.

Dialogue | "You may belong to Gotham, but this one belongs to me."

cw: blood, demonic cult, off screen screen torture

The noise that Jason made when he hit the ground was worryingly wet. Wet with the sound of blood and wounds and tortured flesh. Tim kept Duke pushed behind him until the old steel door clanged shut and the latch had scraped into place with a rusty finality.

“Okay, okay, I think that maybe it’s past time to act,” Duke hissed as he rushed to Jason’s side.

Tim didn’t rush over, instead he searched Jason’s discard jacket for supplies. It wouldn’t be enough, not with how heavy the scent of blood was, but Tim knew that Jason always had some medical supplies on him. “We can’t.”

“We can’t?!” Duke asked.

“Timbo’s right,” Jason said. His voice was clear at least, though he needed Duke’s help to get sitting up. “Can’t expose things.”

“Dude, you’re insides are getting exposed! I think we’re past that!” Duke’s voice was laced with all the dangerous anger of the same kid that had led ‘we are Robin’.

Jason sighed. “Duke—”

“No, don’t Duke me! What about when they drag Tim out of here next? Will you stop it then?”

“Duke,” Tim snapped. He tossed the vacuum packed bag of bandages at Duke. “Enough. We pressed our signals, help is on the way.”

“You’re assuming the signal can get out of this pit they tossed us in!”

“Not a pit, old tunnel construction that got abandoned,” Jason said. “Trust the tech.”

Tim squinted at Jason, trying to figure out why he sounded off. Was it just blood loss? Had he been drugged? Or—oh, that was Jason’s voice for soothing victims. Right, Duke hadn’t been abducted like this before, not for being a Wayne. Maybe Tim should tone down the bite a little. Duke hadn’t grown up being taken for ransom like Tim had.

“It will work, Duke. They’re on their way. We’ve all been through worse,” Tim said. He pulled his knife from his boot and cut swiftly through what was left of Jason’s shirt. They could use it to wipe off the worst of the blood at least. “And right now they don’t seem interested in you.”

“I’m not worried about me, jackass,” Duke said. “They’re obviously racist fuckwits, of course they don’t want my blood. I’m worried about what they’re going to do to you! Or that they’re going to grab Jason again.”

“Hey, Duke, we can handle ourselves—”

“But you won’t!” Duke snapped, cutting Tim off. “That’s the problem, you won’t.”

“Hey, bleeding here, can we argue later?” Jason interrupted. His voice was sounding a little breathless, so Tim was inclined to set aside everything else.

Besides, patching up wounds was always a good distraction. It gave the mind time to work through facts and data without so much emotion in the way.

When Jason at least wouldn’t be bleeding out as quickly (all of their shirts sacrificed to the cause), Tim asked, “What has your so scared about this situation, Duke?”

Duke balled up the last of his t-shirt and tossed the bloody thing aside. He frowned seriously. “Y’all can’t see what I can see. There’s something actually magical or… or otherworldly going on here. I think that someone in this cult actually knows what they’re doing. That’s a different thing. Magic isn’t what we do.”

“‘snot what you do,” Jason slurred from where they had propped him up in the corner. “Well. I mean, you do do someth’n, what with the light stuff. Still only me and you.”

“What do you mean him and you?” Tim asked with a frown at Jason. Sure, it was maybe a little unfair to press Jason when he was obviously a little blood drained and unusually chatty, but chances like this didn’t come often

“You know, the…” Jason waved an arm around like he was holding something.

“No,” Tim drawled.

“The All-blades and the…” Jason froze. His eyes widened. “Oh fuck.”

“Jason?”

“They, um,” Jason collapsed back into the corner with a giggle. “See, they used m’ blood for a summoning circle.”

“Right.” Tim exchanged a look with Duke. “That’s pretty standard demonic cult bullshit.”

“Yeah. But,” Jason dropped his voice to a whisper as if he was telling a secret, “they dun know what my blood will get’em.”

“And, um, what will your blood get them?” Duke asked.

Jason giggled again. “Danny.”

“Right,” Tim drew the word out. “And who or what is Danny?”

Jason opened his mouth to answer but before he could a scream broke the silence. Jason’s smile turned vicious. “That is Danny.”

-

Jason was a big guy in way that Tim never would be and that Duke wasn’t (yet). It meant that making their way from the old machine room they had been locked in towards the commotion was slow going. Jason was obviously trying not to lean on them too much, but he didn’t really have much choice with how his leg was minced. And they certainly weren’t going to leave Jason behind.

They were, though, going to stay out of the way of whatever the fuck was currently decimating the cult.

Hands—what Tim could only describe as hands were reaching out from what was now a void of space in the floor of the center of the room. The white spindly limbs would grab a cultist, ignoring blades or bullets, and then drag them back and down into the void. Usually with a horrible scream.

“That’s a lot of eyes,” Duke whispered in awe from the other side of Jason, clearly seeing something that Tim couldn’t.

“The more to look at you with,” Jason joked, still acting a little giddy. Being upright didn’t seem to agree with him much.

“That’s… that’s Danny?” Tim asked.

There was something more moving in the void. The surface rippled and churned and then exploded out into a spray of light and colors like a supernova. The being—and if held at gun point Tim couldn’t actually explain was he was seeing—pulled themselves free of the void and with a few reaching grasps, across the floor to them.

“Jason,” they purred, the word a rumble that Tim could feel in his bones.

Of course, that’s when Batman, Robin, and Nightwing came crashing into the abandoned tunnel.

Before Tim could even blink, the being—Danny—had wrapped themselves around Jason like a giant snake. All the eyes that Tim hadn’t been able to see appeared. All glaring at the heroes.

“Let him go,” Batman ordered. “The cult had no right to offer him as sacrifice. The all belong here.”

The being curled themselves further around Jason and growled out, “You may belong to Gotham, but this one belongs to me.”

“Shush, Danny, no, hush. They’re family,” Jason slurred while trying to pat the being’s cheek and missing entirely. “No devouring the souls of family.”

The being indulgently moved their head so that Jason got what he wanted. “I would not devour them. They stink like Gotham, and the Lady would not abide it.”

“Be nice,” Jason said.

“Despite the blood loss B, er, Batman,” Tim started. “Jason really does seem to know this being.

“Danny,” the being cooed.

“Who’s name is Danny.”

There was a shriek behind them as another cultist was lifted from some boxes they had been hiding behind and into the void.

“We’re alone now. We can talk,” Danny said. “They’re your family?”

Jason hummed in agreement and pressed a kiss to the sometimes bony face. It still wasn’t clear what Danny was. Tim tried not to look too hard.

“Brothers,” Jason waved loosely around the room and then pointed to Batman. “Dad.”

Danny sighed, the noise a weird sound like the hydraulics of a bus stopping. “You couldn’t have warned me this was a meet the family thing?”

Jason shrugged despite the eldtrich horror draped over him. “Didn’t ‘spect to be sacrificed. Didn’t think about how my blood might summon you.”

“Of course your blood summoned me. I wouldn’t let it summon anyone else,” Danny said, clearly offended as the voice took on an increasingly human note. The mass of whatever shifted and shrunk until a humanoid about Tim’s size hung, floating, off Jason’s shoulder. He pressed a kiss to Jason’s lips. “Like I said, you belong to me. I’ll always come when called.”

“Holy—you’re dating Jason! You’re his, what, eldifriend?” Dick asked with a wide grin. “Guy’s, Jason is dating someone!”

Bruce sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

“My little bird is all grown up!” Dick cooed.

Jason flipped him off. “Dating or romance isn’t part of growing up. Way to insult aros, dickhead.”

“That’s not what I meant and you know it!”

“Boys,” Bruce tried.

“So, Danny, Jason lost a pretty good chunk of blood,” Tim said, ignoring everyone else in the room. “We should really get him some medical care.”

“Shit, yeah, absolutely,” Danny said, deflating until their white shoes—since when did they have legs?—touched the ground. “Can I come? Technically Jason did summon me and so I’m around until I pay some sort of favor—”

Jason reset his chin on the top of Danny’s white hair with a salacious smirk. “I know a certain favor that you can—”

“Okay!” Tim said loudly and clapped his hands together. He did not need to know what his brother got up to with an eldritch horror. “Blood loss, remember? Deal with that later. You two can pile in the Batmobile with Robin and Duke. I’ll ride back with Nightwing.”

“Good plan, baby bird! And you’re totally staying for dinner, Danny,” Dick said. “We have so many questions.”

For a powerful cosmic horror, Danny looked pretty frightened by that prospect.

[dcxdpdabbles]

DCxDP idea: The old switcheroo

Based on this ask that got me thinking.

It's not well-known that Mary and John Grayson had identical twins. The reason is that Haly Circus had a strict rule about babies traveling with them. There could only be one at a time.

Jack Haly tried his best, but it had been a long-standing rule of the circus back when his grandfather first started the business, and since he enforced it onto everyone else, he couldn't make exceptions for the Flying Graysons even if the second boy wasn't planned.

There were a lot of reasons for this rule. The first was traveling, which was dangerous for the little ones: illness and unsafe equipment. The second reason they encountered more delays whenever they crossed borders was because people were suspicious of multiple children being moved about.

The last was that Fedrick Haly thought children were a distraction and would not stand for his performers to not be entirely focused on their acts. So the rule went up, and anyone displeased with it was welcome to leave. He later allowed for more than one child as long as the first born had was at least ten years old before the second born was on its way.

The problem was that while a few people did leave, most had been born and raised in Haly's circus and couldn't imagine a world where they weren't part of it. Mary and John were in the second category, so they made a hard choice.

They gave up one of the twins to a lovely couple, Madeline and Jack Fenton, and tried not to think about him. They went as far as to leave themselves off of the boy's birth certification. This was a viewpoint the son they did keep, Dick, did not share.

The minute the circus Strong Man let it slip that he had a brother, Dick had tried tracking him down. He found an ally in Jack Haly himself, who had always hated his grandfather's rule and took him on an "educational" trip to America.

The Graysons didn't suspect anything, and the Fentons were also left in the dark because Jack H. was worried they would try to cause trouble among his people if they found out about Dick.

Danny Fenton, Dick's twin, swore to never tell anyone a thing. In his eyes, he saw it as tearing Dick's life apart when it was their parents who made the choice to get rid of him. He didn't even tell his sister or his best friends. He liked to think that one day, when they were older, the brothers would be able to be seen in public.

In the meantime, they shared secret letters as pen pals and would call each other once a month with the help of Haly. It wasn't much, but they built an unbreakable bond.

Then, the Graysons were killed when they were nine. Dick vanished from the face of the earth for a few months. They lost communication until Dick appeared in Danny's life again one year later. It couldn't have come at a better time because Danny, who was used to Dick not responding without months-long gaps in between, was getting angsty that he hadn't heard from his brother.

Apparently, he was taken in by a billionaire who felt a kinship with him, as someone who also watched their parents die. Dick begs Danny to keep their connection a secret for a bit longer because if Bruce knew he had family, he would ship him off to the Fentons, and Dick would never bring their parent's killer to justice.

But he kept their connection a secret anyway so his brother would not lose a second family. Despite what Dick believed, Danny knew that Bruce Wayne actually saw him as a son and that Dick slowly, over the years, thought of him as a father. Dick would later tell him that Bruce was Batman and he was Robin.

Danny didn't have the heart to tell him that he couldn't care less about Mary and John Grayson. He didn't even care that they were dead past the pain it caused his brother. After all, to Danny, they chose a career over him.

They were nothing but a tragic tale. Strangers in every sense of the world. He never even met them.

Both knew that Gotham needed the dynamic duo, so they kept their mouths shut. Danny later realized how important that was when he was turned into Phantom. He too had a city that needed protection.

One day Dick came to him with a proposal.

"We look exactly alike. Down to the mole on our left butt cheeks! No one would know if we switch places." Dick told him excitablely.

"I don't know Dick. I'm not exactly the best actor in the world." Danny started a little hesitant, but he eventually agreed because Dick worded it as a favor he needed desperately.

Danny would do anything for his twin. So he jumps on a plane and flies to Gotham, slipping into Dick's life quickly. He was trained to know people's names, faces, and even his school schedule, which were a part of Dick's life. There were only two things he wasn't prepared for.

Robin's training and the fact that the twins had very different personalities.

On Danny's first night out as Robin, he fell back on his powers to fight crime. He was lucky that Bruce had left Dick on his own for a month now, after years of arguing, and wasn't present to see Robin blast criminals with green rays. He was smart enough to stick to the shadows when people clearly out of his league were up to something- plus, fighting the bigger threats would expose his identity.

When they met up on a roof, Bruce turned to him with a commanding aura that had Danny standing up straighter.

"Robin, report," Bruce, in his Batman outfit, bit out.

After years of giving his parents oral lab reports, he quickly rattled off, "There were four mugging by the east docks, two break-ins at Old Gotham, and a suspected sighting of Joker at-"

Batman slaps him across the face, cutting Danny off. He gasps, clutching his face. "Ow! What the hell!?"

"You were being hysterical. Not once did you crack a joke or insult me. I think the Joker slipped you something." Bruce tells him seriously, tapping his communicator to let Agent A know they needed medical aid as soon as they arrived at the cave.

"What?" Danny demands

"Oh no. You didn't throw a flying kick at my crutch for that. It's worse than I thought. I'm going to have to sedate you." Danny doesn't have time to dodge or go intangible before Bruce leaps at him with a needle.

The following day, he was informed he would not be out on the field until whatever was in his system was cleaned out. The tests picked up his ectoplasm- but Bruce wasn't aware of what it was. Danny is ecstatic about it, getting comfortable in the house of old money and enjoying the world's finest had to offer.

Bruce was unsure why "Dick" was okay with not going out in the field when his angry determination to fight was the whole reason he became Robin. He also took him to a gala, and when he was telling him that the Robinsons had an enormous chandelier and "Dick" was not allowed to swing on it.

"Why would I want to do that?" Danny scoffs, missing the way Bruce's face paled. He was more worried about how obviously popular Dick was and all the people that were tripping over themselves to speak to him.

It was a nightmare.

In school, Dick was in all the advanced classes. Danny was a little worried until he realized without ghosts to fight and people not bullying him every second of the day (Dick was one of the popular kids!), he actually did really well. He enjoyed learning.

Gotham Academy was challenging and engaging in a way Casper High never was. He would go straight home after class, check in with Alfred or Bruce, and then just relax in one of the Wayne pools or in the video game rooms- they had the latest games and systems!

Bruce looked like he was having an aneurysm whenever Danny politely asked him about his day and thanked him for everything he did.

Thankfully, the two switched back after a week-long stay at Wayne Manor. Danny didn't think he could keep tricking Bruce or Alfred without getting caught.

"Did you enjoy your time with Bruce?" Dick asks him after they switch clothes.

"It was.....something. Your foster dad is weird." He tells him.

"Yeah? Well your dad is way too sentetive. He told me he loves me before bed and every morning at breakfast." Dick scoffs. "I still think he was on drugs."

Danny sighs "Well, at least it's over. I miss Sam and Tucker, though I am not looking forward to seeing Dash again."

"Oh, about that. You're suspended from school." Dick tells him casually. "You hit Dash Baxter with a chair after he and his little group surrounded you to shove you in a locker. Thankfully, the ugly one, Paulina, was recording everything because they liked to laugh at the videos, and you broke her hand when you stole her phone. After getting proof of self-defense, plus several other victims coming forward with the videos, the suspension is all you have. Dash is expelled."

Danny gapes at him as Dick winks. "Thanks for doing me a favor of providing the perfect window to protect my twin. Love you! Bye!"

Dick hops onto the plane before Danny can find any words. When he shows up to school, everyone jumps out of his way, eyeing him like he is one second away from telling Sam and Tucker not to come to school tomorrow.

He forgot that Dick has some.....unresolved anger issues. Every day, he is thankful the Graysons gave him away to a family that may be ghost-obsessed, but at least they knew how to process emotions.

Miles away, Bruce watches Robin launch himself with a scream of rage at a mugger and wonders if his son has developed split-personality disorder.

Years later, he tells everyone that Dick has a second personality called Danny, who occasionally slips in once and while. Everyone treats Danny as his own person, including Justice Leauge and his siblings.

Both twins forgot to come clean about each other even after they turned eighteen. They thought the Waynes figured it out because the Fentons did when Dick switched again a few months after Dash got expelled.

It was the fact Dick laughed when his meal came to life, thinking it hilarious. Jack and Maddie were more than happy to have a second son, incredibly one open to ghost research. He did argue a lot about ghost rights, but it was better than Jazz and Danny, who wanted nothing to do with it.

[luveline]

𝐭𝐨𝐩𝐚𝐳, 𝐥𝐢𝐦𝐞, 𝐫𝐮𝐛𝐲 𝐫𝐞𝐝 | 𝐞𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐞 𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐬𝐨𝐧

Eddie has a staring problem that you barely notice, though you share an aching, awful crush. One of you has to bend first, and it’s not who you’d expect. fem, 5k 

ditzy-ish reader, pining eddie, mutual pining, confessions, first kisses, fluff and hugging, idiots in love, mild states of undress

˚‧꒰ა ✮ ໒꒱‧˚

It’s a day fit for a funeral in Hawkins. Rain hammers his bedroom window like hailstones, plinking against the frame, condensation running down the panes in thick rivulets he soaks up with an old t-shirt. 

It’s supposed to be spring time. Green grass, flowers, a gentle humming sun to warm the back of his neck while he sits out on the couch on the porch, a hand-rolled cigarette between his fingers, the tip shimmering with heat. 

But the rain pours. He’s cleaned his room for the first time in a month, at least, and his back aches in the best way as he lays down amongst fresh sheets. His room feels strange when it’s organised, but he doesn’t mind. He pictures the state of it through a second pair of eyes. This is a boy who cares about things, who takes care of them, who could take care of me, too. 

Rain again rackets on the metal roof above. He and Wayne keep a couple hundred bucks stashed for the day the roof flies straight off —they take turns hiding it, because cars break down and groceries get more expensive every year, but god will they need it, and so they safeguard it well. 

He syphoned a little of the money recently with Wayne’s support. It was for a good cause. 

“Jesus,” Eddie murmurs to himself, not tired but feeling dull as the clouds outside eat the remaining sun. 

It’s depressing to be poor, and to lose a day trying to hide the evidence of an entire life in a small room. He could sleep a hundred years. 

He’s just finished pulling the sheets over his shoulder when somebody knocks on the front door. Wayne opens it three rooms away, the sound of the rain doubled. 

He gives a startling shout, “Ed! Your girl!” 

Eddie topples out of bed. Doesn’t mean to, foot caught in the bottom of the sheets and stuck as he scrambles to slide out of the mess. He’s begged Wayne not to call you that when you’re within earshot, but Wayne’s a mean (kind) old bastard (middle aged dad) who wants Eddie dead (happy, and in love). 

“Come on in, girl. You’re soaking.” 

“It’s raining.” 

“It’s pouring down. Did you walk here?” 

“Took my bike. Thought I’d get struck by lightning in the car.” 

“How’d you figure?” 

Eddie goes to grab the door handle and spins on his heel, staggering onto his bed and up against the wall, where a mirrored tray once used by Dio himself for rolling hangs from the wall. He checks his face in the polished surface, his warped mouth and nose, too small eyes, and swears to himself that one day he’ll get a real mirror with a fully-functioning reflective surface. 

Then he hops down off of the bed, causing a reverberation he knows traverses the entirety of the trailer floor. Eddie snatches a rare clean towel from his laundry chair and speeds down the hall. 

“Hello,” he says, more casual than he feels to find you unexpectedly in his house. “You’re soaked.” 

You give a sweet smile. “It’s raining out, did you not know?” 

Your hair is dripping, water racing down the curves of your face to collect at your chin. Eddie can see the smudges of your makeup where it’s washing off as he wraps a towel around you, kohl on your cheeks, eyelashes turned to half-diamonds and sticky-looking. You grin at being covered, taking the towel from his fingers before he can dab you dry. 

“Why didn’t you just call me?”’

“I can never remember if your phone number ends in three or four.” 

“Seven. I wrote it down for you a hundred times.” 

You rub your eyes and spread all manner of glitter and shadow over your skin. You wipe your neck and the glitter spreads like an alien rash. 

When you talk next, you shiver, “I lost it a hundred times, sorry. Is it okay that I'm here?” 

Wayne, who’s been watching with a distinct sense of amusement from the couch, lets out a chesty laugh. “Honey, it’s always okay that you’re here on my account. And it’s my house.” 

“It’s fine.” Eddie turns your shoulder so he can mouth over it without being caught. Asshole. 

Another laugh follows. Eddie would cut each of his fingers from his hand and then his hand from his wrist if it were something Wayne needed him to do, but that doesn’t make him any less of an opportunistic asshole. If there’s a way to fuck with Eddie, he tends to try it. He loves Eddie with all the tenacity of a father who loves his son, but Wayne got infected with little bitch disease or something and Eddie can’t cure it. 

“Can I please wash my face? I didn’t expect to get soaked.” 

“Didn’t you?” He regrets his flippancy quickly, leading you down the hall. “You could take a shower. What do you think?” 

You’ve never showered here, but Eddie’s trying to, you know, date you. Romance you, get to cherish you, however anyone wants to say it. And it’s not a war of attrition, just a natural escalation of sharing, or a minimising of boundaries. 

No, that’s pervy, isn’t it? 

“I mean–” He starts to correct himself. 

You interrupt with your answer, “Yes, please, do you think I could? But I don’t have anything to wear.”

“I have your purple hoodie in my room, and there’s gotta be a pair of sweatpants here that fit you,” he says. 

They’ve got a whole bunch of clothes here that floated in from somewhere else, Eddie’s other friends or stuff they’ve bought by mistake. He’s sure he can find something.

“You have my hoodie?” you ask, black kohl spreading across the towel as you wipe your cheek. 

Eddie only smelled it one time. When he’d realised you left it in his van he brought it in and folded it, waiting for the next time he’d see you to give it back, but that night he’d been getting out of the shower wondering if he could call you or if that was too soon, and your hoodie had been right there. So he stood there in his pyjama pants with his wet hair and he didn’t think about picking your hoodie up, he just did, and when he pressed it to his face it still smelled of your perfume. 

He put it back and felt like a loser for days.

“It’s in my closet, you left it in the van Monday,” he explains quickly, nudging you through the doorway of the bathroom. 

The Munson bathroom is teeny tiny but not unnavigable. There’s a shower pressed to the far wall that could squeeze in two people, their toilet to the right, a sink basin opposite that with a medicine cabinet and just enough room for a dirty laundry box that’s always, always full. 

Eddie opens the shower and turns it on. “It takes a while to get really hot but then it’s not hot for long, sorry. There’s my shampoo if you want it, and soap, and body wash. Sorry, none of it is super girly.” 

“Sorry sorry,” you say, pretending to hit him in the stomach. “What’s with all the sorries, handsome? I can’t wait to smell like a boy.” 

The way you say it. Eddie doesn’t know what it is, but it’s why he’s crazy about you. 

Probably shouldn’t tell you that as you're taking off your jacket, though. 

“I’ll be right back,” he says. 

Eddie heads out of the bathroom to their skinny linen cabinet hidden in the hallway. He grabs the last two towels from the middle shelf and takes pause, fabric starchy in his hands. Just be normal, he thinks, a pep talk from Eddie to Eddie. She hangs out with you all the time for a reason. She held your hand at the movies. 

Eddie’s in better spirits when he remembers that. Your hand in his, your ring pushing his ring further down his finger, your cheek touching his shoulder as you’d leaned in and asked if he wanted some of your popcorn. 

He opens the door without thinking, shower pattering against the perspex wall, your legs crossing tightly as he enters, turning yourself away from him.

“Woah!” you say, laughing.

“Holy crap.” The image of your red underwear immediately stamps itself into his mind as he pulls the door shut between you. They were really cute, red and white gingham, showcasing just the slightest curve of your– “I told you I was coming back!” 

“I thought you’d knock!” you laugh. “Sorry I flashed you. At least I had my shirt on.” 

At least, he thinks wryly, shoving his arm through the gap in the door, heavy towels pulling at his fingers. His head’s about to snap off, it's turned so far away from the door’s opening. “Here.” 

“If you wanna see me naked so bad you can just ask,” you tease. 

“Take the towels, loser.” 

You take the towels and he closes the door, preventing any more accidental creeping, and giving himself a reprieve. Gingham underwear. Wavy lettuce edgings kissing your skin. 

Holy fuck. Being a person is so lame, Eddie thinks. He wants to have a crush on you purely, and yet seeing the way you’d crossed your legs to hide from him, smiling, he can’t not think about kissing you —touching you. If he doesn’t get you laid out in his bed soon for some slow kissing he’s not gonna make it.

Eddie opens the strip vent above his window and prays it doesn’t flood his whole room. Clean, it doesn’t look half bad, he could bring you in here respectfully, you could stay the night without fearing for your life. 

You take a quick shower. He’s barely gotten over his nerves when you’re walking into his room, a towel around you, not a hint of shyness about you. 

“You didn’t bring me anything to wear,” you explain. 

Eddie just stares at you. 

“Eddie?” You wrap the towel tighter. “Come on, you’re staring at me.”

“Sorry.” His mouth is bone dry. 

“You have my hoodie, right? Just need some pants.” You cross your arm tightly across your chest. “I don’t usually notice when people are staring at me.”

“You aren’t usually naked in my room,” he says, genuinely and embarrassingly apologetic. 

“I’m not naked. Come on, please? Do I have to wait outside the door?” you ask with a laugh. 

Eddie stands up. Shakes his head hard, almost trips over himself trying to get to his dresser. He decides honesty will be best at this point, lest you think he has only one thing on his mind, “Listen, I’m sorry. I’m just in my head about something and I wasn’t expecting you to come out like that. It’s not right. You’re just… you’re really pretty.” 

“Thank you.” He can’t see you, sorting quickly through his middle drawer and all his miscellaneous pants for a pair he’s sure would fit, if he could just remember where it was. “What are you in your head about?” 

“What?” 

“Eddie, are you okay?” 

“No, no,” he moans, rubbing his face with his hand, ring scratching the bridge of his nose, “I’m not okay, princess, I’m overheating or something, Jesus Christ.” He finally lays eyes on the sweatpants he’d been thinking of, grabs your hoodie from the top shelf and drops them both at the end of the bed. “I’ll give you some privacy.” 

“I don’t have any underwear.” 

“And that’s something I can’t fix,” he says, leaving the room in a hurry. 

Eddie gets to the living room and keels over. His hair falls in his face, his shirt slides down his back. What the fuck is wrong with him? 

Wayne, sliding his shoes on in the recliner, gives a start. “What’s wrong?”

Eddie lifts his head, yanking hair from his face, the skin of his under eyes pulled down harshly. “Oh my god.”

Wayne wrinkles his nose. 

“No ones ever been such a pathetic excuse for a man before,” Eddie says. 

“Your dad’s in jail,” Wayne points out. “And not for the impressive stuff.”

“I’m pathetic.” 

“You’re fine. You’re not supposed to be not pathetic, you’re twenty.” 

“I’m twenty one.” 

“The extra year doesn’t mean much. I know you think you’re all grown up, but you’re still an idiot.” 

Wayne stands and shrugs on the jacket laying over the armrest. 

“Wait, where are you going?” 

“I thought you were definitely gonna ask her?” Wayne asks knowingly. That’s what Eddie told him, after all. “Next time I see her, Wayne, I’m asking her to go steady.” 

Eddie shakes his head. “You can’t leave.” 

“Eddie.” Wayne gestures for Eddie to stop slouching like some fiend from a bad horror. “Listen. I get that you’ve always been sort of… behind everyone, but that doesn’t mean you can’t do it. She likes you. She biked here in a hurricane.”

“What if she says no?” he asks. 

Truthfully, Eddie’s more scared of you saying yes. 

Wayne shrugs. “Girl like that’ll still be your friend after. It’ll be fine, okay? Do you need a hug before I go?” 

“No.” Eddie rubs his eyes some more, sore now from being touched. “Maybe.” 

Wayne crosses the room to give his shoulder a squeeze. “It will be fine. You’re great with rejection, Eds, but I have a good feeling about this one.” 

Eddie felt better about it, before he embarrassed himself staring at you. But Wayne’s right, even if Eddie’s read things wrong between you, he’s sure you’ll still want to be his friend. You and Eddie are the same kind of weird, though he’s more angry where you’re carefree. If everything goes wrong, you’ll probably just give an unnecessary apology and offer to braid his hair. Which will be torture, but Eddie’ll still say yes.

Wayne calls goodbye, and you shout, “Bye, Mr. Munson!” to which Wayne wiggles his eyebrows. 

“Get lost,” Eddie says. 

“Go make her a drink. I’ll see you later.” 

That’s not a bad idea. Eddie makes you a mix of orange and grapefruit juice with a couple of ice cubes and a plastic straw, your reaction predicted and then proved. 

“It’s a cocktail,” you say, pleased, sitting on the side of his bed. 

“It’s not a cocktail, just juice.” 

“Can I have some socks, please, Eddie?” 

Eddie passes you your drink, fingertips brushing. “Yeah. Anything else?” He pretends to be exhausted as he trudges back over to his dresser. 

You laugh and sip your drink. “No, I think you’re treating me quite well.” 

Eddie grabs a random pair and finally gets to sit down beside you, the dresser drawer left out, a spare sock fallen to the floor. You shuffle back into his pillows, propping your juice on his side table, and holding your hands out for the socks. Again, your fingertips touch his as he passes them to you. You seem to enjoy it, a smile lighting your face as you pull your knees up to put the socks on. 

“Thank you for waiting on me,” you say quietly. Not shyly, just quiet. 

“You’re welcome. Came all this way to see me, didn’t you?” He gives you a shove. You shuffle back further. “In the pouring rain.” 

“It felt important at the time.” 

“Yeah?” 

You get the socks on and don’t care about them once they're past your heels. Eddie does the honour of smoothing out the bands so that the elastic won’t dig into your skin, and when he’s done he can feel you looking at him heavily. You’re not one for continued eye contact, but you smile like you were waiting for it all day, like it’s a relief to see him. 

“Bad weather,” you say, slouching down. “I think I’m still wet on the inside.” 

“Gross,” Eddie says, pushing you over bodily to sit beside you. This isn’t new, he doesn’t need any nerves, and he’s grateful when they don’t come. “Here, I’ll pull the blanket over you.” 

“Can’t move,” you say, leaning back against the pillows.

Eddie stretches his legs out. You keep yours up, but you turn to his side, and before he can really make any sense of you, you’re dropping your face into his shoulder. 

“Are you still cold?” he asks, searching for the truth in your strange comment. 

You nod into his shoulder. “I’m freezing. The shower didn’t get very hot.” 

“Sorry,” he says, letting his cheek rest on your head. 

You lift your chin as he does it, his lashes pressed to your forehead, the two of you stuck together like two warped jigsaw pieces. You probably weren’t made to be together, but you make a nice picture, and you fit snugly now. That’s what Eddie thinks. 

This is the sort of moment that makes Eddie wanna ask you out. Maybe you’re just the best friend he’s ever had, but something about this closeness feels different. You wrap your arm around his stomach in a hug and he knows this is different. 

“It’s okay,” you say finally, sighing as you shift downward into his side, getting comfortable. 

“Please don’t bike here in the rain. It’s, like, torrential. You could actually get sick.” 

You feel warm where your body presses against his, but Eddie doubts that’ll make a difference if the cold already made you sick. The bike ride from your place to his isn't short. He covers your arm with his and tries to be your space heater, cheek sliding over your forehead. 

“Eddie…” You hug him with tenderness. Eddie’s reluctant to say cuddle, but it’s close. “This might be a surprise to you, but I think it’s worth the rain and the cold to see you. Especially when you do this.” 

“What am I doing?” 

“You’re rubbing my arm.” 

He hadn’t noticed his hand caressing up and down your arm where it rests on his stomach. 

“You make me feel amazing,” you say, dropping your face into his chest. 

That’s his last straw. Eddie gets both arms around you and cuddles you (it’s a cuddle, okay! he’s a loser!) to him, arms tight but not cruel. All this fuss and you’re finally laying on top of him. He decides he won’t ask you after all. He’s not that brave, and he doesn’t want this to end. 

Your legs fall onto him. You relax completely. Even after you shower he can smell your perfume. 

“You smell nice,” he murmurs. 

“It’s on my hoodie,” you murmur back. 

Right. Eddie should remember. 

“You make everything smell like you.” Even his van keeps your scent most days. 

“Too much?” 

“The right amount,” he says firmly. 

You lay on his chest for a while, just breathing. Eddie rubs your back, tells himself he will ask, actually, because he can’t imagine not getting to do this again. You might even stay over. He could live hours of this. He didn’t know having you lay on him could make him feel like this. 

He can’t believe you’ve never done it before. 

Rain pounds the window. Condensation drips down onto the sill. You let your legs stretch out flat and then manoeuvre to be laying half atop him, hoodie riding up your back. 

“Any warmer now?” he asks.

“Yeah, you’re warming me up.” You lavish in his arms for a moment, and then lift your face. “Oh, this is a bad angle.” 

“For me or you?” 

“For me, duh.” 

Eddie doesn’t think you could have a bad angle. He rubs at your upper arm as you start to shift. “You know, your bike has just as big a chance of getting hit by lightning as your car does. More, probably.” 

“You think so?” 

“It’s physics. So, please don’t do it again.” 

You hum. “Hm, should I risk getting struck by lightning, or spend the evening without you?” you murmur, your arm moving, moving slowly, your hand resting gently on the column of his neck. There’s something ironic in your voice, wry, but your eyes are warm. He’s paralysed. No one has ever spoken to him like you. “I think I’d rather get struck by lightning.” 

You stare at one another. He laughs. You join in, your thumb a pressure at his neck, and when you move up his chest to lean in, he isn’t expecting it. 

“We’re very close together,” you whisper. 

“Super close,” he whispers back. 

“…Eddie, can I ask you something?” Your eyes slip shut, your lips so close that something in him aches, just enough wit about him to cup your shoulders in his forearm. 

“Yeah.” 

He doesn’t sound half as calm as you do. 

“Would you… Do you think we could be official? Would you want that?” You tilt your head to the side. “Is that stupid?” 

“Official?” he asks, panicked, his eyes squeezed shut hard enough for a moment that they ache.

“Like, you’d be my boyfriend. I’d be your girlfriend. We’d be close like this all the time.” 

Eddie panics so hard he just says the first thing that comes into his head, “Like, we’d kiss?” 

“I hope so,” you say, your nose pressing against his, the tip to the side of his, and then against his nostril. The heat of your breath is hard to ignore. “What do you think?” 

What does Eddie think about it? 

He catches your lips in a slow kiss. Achingly slow, not even sure it’s a kiss until you reciprocate, and your fingers dig behind his neck to tease his hair. Your lips part against his, the heat of your tongue sudden and undeniable —Eddie didn’t know you had it in you. He squeezes you to him, attempting to crane his neck downward, reliant on your enthusiasm as you move up, as you use his neck to pull yourself closer. 

Your noses crush together, and it actually hurts. “Sorry,” he says, easing you back, “you okay?” 

“‘Nother kiss,” you say hopefully, distractedly. 

He can’t not give it to you. 

Your hand spreads flat against his chest and you kiss, you kiss, long and slow movements against him before turning your head to take it again. Eddie doesn’t always know what to do with himself, but he knows kissing, no matter what anybody might think about him, and he takes the lead. 

His hand screws into a fist against your hoodie, the slip of your back further exposed as you shiver into his mouth, a sound you shouldn’t make sweet on his tongue. 

You pull away, breath on his lips. “Wanted you to kiss me for so long,” you murmur. 

Eddie knows you’re not saying it to flirt, and that makes it worse. 

“I should’ve kissed you a long time ago,” he says roughly. 

“You wanted to?” 

“Yeah. Yeah, so much, I’m a loser about you–”

“I’m always a loser,” you interrupt, “but especially about you.” 

You scratch your fingers through his hair, encouraging his head down for another kiss. This one rougher but not rough, his arm slips finally behind your head where he’d needed it to be, hooking you in his elbow to keep you in one place. To kiss you soundly, without interruption. Your almost feverish ebbing inward is a dream, your nose rubbing up against his is a fantasy. 

His heart hammers and hammers at his ribs. 

You pull away to let him breathe. “You’re very excited,” you tease lightly. 

Eddie kisses you, breathless. He kisses you so much he’s surprised you allow it, but your thumb rubs his cheek, and he knows he’d been right all along. You want him like he wants you, with startling, mildly pathetic urgency. 

He feels like a fucking prince. Girl of his dreams in his lap, everything he wants, and he didn’t even have to ask. 

—

Eddie spends a week in bliss. You’re suddenly everywhere, all the time, attached to his hip or some other part of him, and he forgets for seven whole days that he bought you a ring. 

The rain dries up, the Munson emergency fund lives to die another day, and he remembers the ring only minutes before you’re knocking at his door. 

He trips over himself trying to answer it before Wayne, who’s taken to being as painfully embarrassing as is possible for one human being, can get it for him. 

“One day you’re gonna eat shit and break your nose,” Wayne says. 

Eddie yanks open the door. “Yeah, thanks. Hey, beautiful, what’s with the sunglasses?” 

You slide them down your nose. You’re a vision on his front step, not that you’d ever notice your own intrigue. “The sunglasses?” you ask, tucking them away. “What do you think they’re for? Three guesses.” 

He grabs your waist, leaning down out of the doorway so as to save Wayne the agony. “That’s smart,” he says, kissing you quickly in hello. “You’re funny. Need anything before we go?” 

“No, I’m okay. Hi, Mr. Munson!” you add.

“Hey, honey! How are you?” Wayne calls.

You look up into Eddie’s face with an obvious delight. “I’ve never been better.” 

Eddie grins back. 

He waves a quick goodbye to Wayne and then he’s out the door. You grab his wrist and practically dance him to the car, where you offer your keys, and he deigns to drive. From there it’s smooth sailing, familiarity with a better twist, Eddie driving with the windows down and your hands twined on your thigh. Things haven’t changed much since you asked him to go steady, there’s just a whole lot more of this. Touching, kissing, no weird guilt about staring. 

As it turns out, you’re as eager to be laid out in his bed as he is to lay you out. He’s never wanted to kiss you more, and now he’s allowed. 

“Eyes on the road.” 

He leans over to kiss your cheek. The sun has warmed your skin, and his kiss makes you smile. You look pretty no matter the weather. 

“Before we get there, I have something to give you.” He takes his hand from yours to slide the box from his pocket. He holds it up. “But you can only have it if you swear you’ll call me tonight before bed. No excuses. You know exactly what number to call.” 

“Ends with a three,” you say, nodding. 

He sighs. “No, it does not.” 

“I’m kidding! Two one nine seven, I have now committed it to memory.” 

Eddie pays attention to the road, though it’s clear and long heading out of the trailer park and into town. “That deserves a gift.” 

You’re back in your glitters today, a skirt to enjoy the fine weather, a button shirt with a cute triangle collar, you’re lovely as ever, if a tad much for some. Not Eddie. He loves the dark clothes, the tinkling bracelets, the fun way you smile like everything he says is a secret between him and you. People stare wherever you and Eddie go, but as long your arm is sewn through his he couldn’t care less. 

“A gift,” you say, smiling in your way, and taking the box politely. “I don’t think I deserve it for just remembering your number.” 

“You deserved it for less. It’s not much. You can pay me back in three or four amazing kisses. Right here.” He points to the tight juncture beneath his jaw. 

You attempt to lean over and kiss him immediately. He pushes you back, laughing, worsened by your own breathless laughter as you steal one exactly where he’d tapped. 

You settle back down, Eddie’s hand dropping kindly to your knee. “I wonder what it is,” you say. 

“Then open it.” 

“I am!” You pop the box open, it’s springing hinge snapping into place. “Oh, woah. Woah. Where did you get this?” 

It’s a slim ring, with a weirdly shaped band of quality metal around some cheaper but not totally worthless gemstones, of which there are three different colours: a topaz orange, a lime green, and a pinky-red ruby colour centre stage. They have nice cuts. It’s strange as you are, and he knew when he saw it you’d have to have it. 

“If I put it on my marriage finger, are we engaged?” you tease. 

“That one would be way heavier,” he says, giving you a squeeze. 

You slide it onto your middle finger and hold your hand up in the sunshine. It fits in with your other ring nicely, though it is, to Eddie’s pride, far prettier. 

He has half a mind to pull over and kiss each knuckle, but he’s trying to be less dramatic about you. It’s not working. 

“Thank you, Eddie. I love it.” 

“Best boyfriend ever?” he asks hopefully. 

To his mild fear but better pleasure, you climb up onto the console to press three quick kisses to his cheek and jaw, your hand under his ear holding him in tender place. “Best boyfriend ever. Even if you stare too much.” 

“How am I supposed to not?” he asks, with more weight than he’s intended. 

You speak matter of factly for the first time in your life. “I am going to cause an accident,” you promise, attempting to kiss his nose. “A bad one.” 

“Sit down, please.” He lets you kiss his nose, and then jabs you in the side. “Sit down, oh my god! That’s not funny, you’re so pretty I will total your car.” 

“Now who’s not funny?” 

You both laugh at the same time, the unfiltered, un-cute cackling of two idiots with the same sense of humour, and the same wealth of ridiculous honeymoon love. 

˚‧꒰ა ✮ ໒꒱‧˚

thank you so much for reading!! I hope you enjoyed. if you did, please consider reblogging or commenting!! thanks very much <3

[faesdreaming]

cardinal concept

yandere platonic batfam with a resurrected reader

a/n: because as much as i love neglected reader, dead (then alive again) reader just has so much potential

the dynamic duo, batman and robin. bruce wayne and dick grayson. then, you came along; a result of bruce’s irresponsible coupling with a young woman he’d long since forgotten about. you grow up in the nastier parts of gotham with your mother, where you’re forces to grow up faster and become more mature, until she has an accident.

after you’re mother’s untimely death, you find yourself under his care. bruce is hesitant and unsure, he’s already struggled with raising dick. he doesn’t want to fail you too. he dances around telling about batman until you happen upon the batcave, at your insistence and a few instances of you following them, he relents and lets you join.

suddenly, it’s batman, robin, and cardinal.

bruce is initially unsure what to do with you, even after you become cardinal. unlike with dick, who needed to become robin lest he go down a darker road, you’re only cardinal because of him. it draws out an agonizing guilt, causing bruce to practically coddle you. but you’re emotionally intelligent, in a way bruce isn’t, you’re able to communicate with soft words and gentle reasoning instead of shouting matches and tearful pouting like your brother. you’re his angel, his sweet, understanding angel. it reminds him of his own mother. you’re kind, empathetic disposition is everything bruce needs in his life. because yes, to him, your brother needs his guidance. but bruce needs yours.

as for dick his relationship is with you as simple as this: he’s the big brother and you’re the little sibling. you can fight and argue, but you two always make up and head off to snuggle or play. you’re bond grows stronger the more time you spend on patrol— having each other’s back, getting into trouble with batman— or at school— although you’re in a younger grade, you still see your big brother at school and go to him when you have problems— or at home— snuggled up, watching a movie and eating snacks provided by alfred— you two are extremely close.

you’re little of family of four— including alfred, of course— is tight-knit. you fight and argue but always make up and you’re always there for each other.

until dick becomes nightwing and a scruffy teen named jason todd joins you. as close as you are with your older brother and father, you bond with him far quicker. maybe it’s because of how close you are in age, or maybe it’s because of your shared past experiences.

the family dynamics shift and change, but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. dick grows more distant, going off with the titans. but that’s to be expected, he’s grown up now. you still visit him, of course. and he still pops by to see you. bruce, you notice, softens, almost. he’s grown accustomed to parenthood. jason is your favourite change, though. a sibling close in age, but still younger, so can justify (playfully) bossing him around. your family isn’t perfect, but it’s yours and you love it.

then, jason and bruce start fighting. dick goes off world. a fight with bane leaves you injured and out of commission. it’s just a rough patch, you tell yourself. until, suddenly, jason’s birth mother contacts him. something’s off about it. you want to tell your dad, however, jason is adamant you shouldn’t. reluctantly, you don’t, opting to go along with him just in case.

your gut, as it turns out, was right. you’re injured and unable to do much as the joker captures you and jason. you’re helpless to watch as your brother, your sweet baby brother, is beaten mercilessly with a crowbar. your voice is hoarse from screaming during your own beating and your body is sore, but despite it all, you still rasp out pleas to let your brother go. one child will be effective enough. the joker can spare one. of course, in his cruelty, he doesn’t.

you’re left aching, battered, and bruised. the ticking of the bomb serves as the count to your death. jason, brave jason, tries to gather enough strength to get up. and maybe, just maybe, he could escape if he weren’t focused on trying to save you. he won’t listen to your pleas for him to go, to leave you behind. he’s adamant upon accompanying you to your doom.

you hear the final ticks. with all the strength you have left, you move towards him. you cannot save yourself. you cannot save him. all you can do is die beside him. pressing your forehead to his, the last thing you see is your little brother’s face before the final tick sounds and the ensuing explosion consumes you.

and that’s the end of it, your journey, your life. you’re buried alongside your brother in a sombre ceremony, your uniform cased in glass as a memorial to bruce’s failures. he becomes angrier, loses himself. he’s lost two of his children and is fighting with his only remaining one. dick, is utterly furious, with himself and bruce. he blames bruce. for letting his precious siblings die, for starting them all of this heroic crusade. he blames himself for not being there, for being distant with you and jason.

alas, time marches forwards and batman needs a new robin, in the form of one tim drake. he’s a clever kid, one way too smart for his own good. one you used to babysit while his rich parents were away to earn some extra cash. it wasn’t right, leaving him with no one his age to play with. so, when you could, you’d come over. you’d soothe his loneliness. and for that, he’s forever grateful.

your influence continues beyond your death. for you life has impacted so many. barbara gordan, for example, who viewed you akin to a little sister. who fought alongside you as batgirl. you were loved by many as (Y/N) Wayne. your friends and family still hold candles for you. even as they accept your lose, they never stop fully grieving for you and the lost potential brimming inside you. then, there are those who you impacted as cardinal. as a hero, you saved numerous lives, including that of one stephanie brown, who will forever feel indebted to you and strives to become just like you.

the justice league, who knew you as one of the first sidekicks, who functioned like extended family, mourn deeply for your loss and offer sympathies to your father and brother. they will remember you and your tenacity, carrying on their pursuit of justice with you in mind. certainly villains, such as poison ivy and even harley quinn, are enraged with the joker. while you could occasionally be a pain, you were their favourite kiddie hero. and of course the likes of selina kyle and talia al ghul, your father’s paramours, women who became like family to you.

cardinal will be forever immortalized in the hearts of heroes and villains alike, your legacy of compassion and kindness living on in memories transformed into stories, your death a testament to sacrifice and love and heroism— except, that isn’t how it ends, is it? no. your story doesn’t end with your death, it’s how it begins.

and your real story begins by waking in the constricting confined of your casket, bursting out with inhuman strength, fueled by the adrenaline boost, and digging your way out of your grave, the cool mud giving way to harsh ground until you break through the service. that night, that stormy gotham eve, is the day you are reborn.

you flee then wander the streets of gotham until you regain your mind. you remember, you remember everything and you, you don’t want to go back. not to your family, not to your friends, not the life you once knew. you were given a new life. and this life, you would live for yourself.

sans your old attachments, you live encumbered, untroubled by past woes. yet, you seem to forget your festering memory, the mark you’ve left on people. you forget that while you may be willing to leave your old life behind, they aren’t as willing to let you go. especially when they learn you’re within reach.

[frownyalfred]

Fic idea: Ra’s al Ghul grows tired of waiting for Bruce Wayne to come back to his service in the League of Assassins after spurring his offer ten years ago at the end of his training. He can no longer function as the Demon’s Head due to repeated exposure to the Lazarus Pits, and Talia cannot take his place. Ra’s travels to Gotham with his closest shadows/guards, desperate to make a deal. He corners Bruce Wayne as his famed Bat on a rooftop and gives him an ultimatum: one year of service, one year as the Demon’s Head in his place, and Ra’s will spare his city and family.

Bruce, as Batman, prepares to fight the League shadows and Ra’s, defending his beloved Gotham, until Ra’s adds that amid the carnage and confusion of their resulting fight, he will take a son — any son — and force them to the Demon’s Head in Bruce’s stead. Even the Bat cannot run forever, not from the League. Their existence has always been in passive recognition of the other; fighting will draw heavy losses on both sides.

And so, recalling his own days of training under Ra’s and the horror that await, Bruce agrees. He swears to service for one year, and one year only; no more, no less. No killing. Ra’s tells him his moral code may outlast all of them.

Bruce returns with Ra’s and Talia, faking his death for his family to discover. He hides the traces of League activity and follows them back to Nanda Parbat, where he had trained ten years before. As he embraces his year as the Demon’s Head, certain strained seams begin to appear. Ra’s is dying, and will not return to service in a year. There is no clear successor after Bruce. Killing is “off the table” when he meets with his advisors, but everyone gives him an amused, indulgent look when he mentions it. Talia is not interested in him romantically or sexually, but he gets the impression the word soon is floating around somewhere in her mind.

Soon comes around quickly into his tenure and new life. Ra’s orders him bathed in the Lazarus Pits one night. It takes sixteen League shadows to wrestle him into the water. Once submerged, he sinks without knowing how, all the way down. In the waters, he realizes that the Pits remember everything. This cave system knew Ra’s, it held Jason, and it drowned and changed dozens of powerful men over the years. The waters know, and he knows. He sinks past the shallow cove of Jason’s trauma, so blotted out that he cannot remember the Pit at all; he sinks down into Ra’s life, at the very bottom, and it becomes him. He becomes it. There is no line between them down here, where knowledge simply is.

The man who emerges from the Pits is not Bruce Wayne, not entirely. But it is the man he would have been, had he agreed to LoA service all those years ago. He is sharp and uncompromising. He is the Bat without his code, without his guardrails or rules. He is everything the Demon Head had lost, in the last few centuries of existence. He glows with a dark fire so bright, it sucks away the light from every other source in the room. He is dressed in dark, simple armor and black robes that call back to his former life. His face is bare. His eyes are a bright, all-knowing green.

Our fic picks up after this Demon’s Head comes into his own destiny and power. Told from the perspective of the children Bruce Wayne left behind, who find themselves chasing a shadowy figure around the world with the help of the Justice League. The new Demon’s Head is causing problems for everyone, and things have changed at the global level under his mysterious hand — so why does it feel like the Batkids know him?

It all comes to a head (heh) when the Justice League arrest the Demon’s Head and bring him up to the Watchtower. Only for him to be unmasked as Bruce Wayne, a dead man walking, an unfulfilled legacy, the person who built the very satellite under their feet in another life. Batman himself, with glowing green eyes and a Father’s face. Gone, but remade again. All in service of something greater than one man.

[scriptseekstories]

Queen Bee’s Hive

Chapter 11- Wasp in a Beehive

A/N: See what I did there on the title? 😼 it’s not that clever- it’s also been hard to write this chapter because I had a lot of ideas but can’t just cram it all into one chapter, so I had to cherry pick what to put in.

That and writer’s block lmao

You had another nightmare this night. You fell out of your little hammock with tears in your eyes, shaking as whimpers build up in your throat. You frantically searched for your bee plush, hugging it tightly against your chest.

Rain poured down from outside, droplets splashing onto the window, slowly rocking your beehive. Staying in such a tiny room didn’t feel comforting, so you stepped out of the room and crept through the halls.

“A-Alfred…” You whispered to yourself, the dim lights from the walls illuminating your way. Passing the upstairs railing, you could see Dick and Tim downstairs, talking in such a late hour while laughing and smiling.

You wish you could run to them for comfort, but the last time you did you only got an uncomfortable smile from Dick and an annoyed eye roll from Tim. So you only continued to walk until making it to a door, knocking slowly while sniffling.

“Master (Name), why are you out of bed?” The door opened for Alfred to kneel down, worried at your teary face. The thunder outside only made you flinch more, where you shakily opened your mouth.

“M-Mama…” You only choked out before collapsing in his arms weeping. Alfred immediately began to shush you gently, his gentle tone soothing out any of the thunder outside.

“You poor dear,” He whispered, “Had another nightmare, did we?” You nodded before sobbing softly again and hugged the butler’s waist tight. He lifted you up in his arms before setting you on his bed.

“Here’s your bee,” He softly said, handing you your bee plush you dropped. You grabbed it and crawled under his covers, making him chuckle softly as this was a nightly occurrence for you to sleep on his bed.

“I will make a vow to you, Master (Name),” He hummed, sliding into his side of the bed, making sure your Wonder Woman nightlight (he never told Bruce) lit the room to keep you calm.

“I promise you, you will never have another nightmare again,” Reaching to cup your little cheek, you wiped all your tears away and gave a smile, eyes fluttering closed before sleep overtook you.

“G’night Alfred…” You mumbled. His heart ached, his breathing stuttering before smiling warmly at you, his own eyes drifting down to sleep.

“And you will never be alone,”

꧂꧁꧂꧁꧂꧁꧂꧁꧂꧁꧂ ꧁꧂ ꧁꧂ ꧁꧂ ꧁

“I promised…” Holding your bee plush seemed to be the only thing that’s keeping Alfred from falling onto his knees and letting out another heartbreaking cry. You were alive, truly alive! You may look different, but you’re still his baby!!

Problem is… this changed everything to what the Wayne Family was struggling with. The thing that “killed” you… was really you.

And it was causing chaos.

“I say we just go track them down and bring them back!” Damien demanded, already in his Robin suit and ready to find you.

“We need to find out what caused (Name) to become that thing so we could create a cure!” Tim countered back, glaring at the younger boy.

“Guys…” Duke swallowed hard, “What if… it’s not (Name) anymore…” Alfred didn’t want to believe it, he wanted to deny and insist that you were still you. Yet… he didn’t know who you were, and it seemed like you didn’t know either.

“If that thing is no longer them… then we have to kill it,” Steph managed to choke out. The memory of seeing you dead haunted her, but knowing the thought of killing you again… She definitely took in the fact both times would be because of them.

“You’re wrong,” The voice of Cass made the yelling stop. The vigilante never speaks unless she wants to, so Cass speaks, everyone listens. She had a hardened look on her face, moving over to where Jason was sitting.

“When they broke Jason’s hand,” She lifted Jason’s cast, “They stopped before they could kill him,” The way you looked after you backed away in terror, as if seeing him- albeit his mask covered his face- gave you recognition.

“They called me Jaybird,” That was a name Jason hasn’t heard ever since his death. The one name that made him grin with joy and laugh like he was a kid again. The name that was given to him by the one person who balanced his hero life and his kid life.

“(Name) is still there, somewhere deep down in that beast’s heart,” He continued for Cass, sitting upright from his chair. A spark of hope and determination filled everyone, prepared to do whatever it takes to save you.

Alfred stared down back at your bee plush. Maybe things will be okay, you’ll be in his arms again and everything that happened will be nothing more than a memory. You’ll be his sweet (Name) again.

“I’ll find a cure to whatever they were infected with, to bring them back,” Barbara and Tim immediately got to work in searching for whatever was left in that warehouse they took. They lost the tapes your mother made about Project: Honey, but splashes of pollen and videos from your phone could give them enough time and clues for a cure.

“We’ll have our (Name) back in no time,” Duck reassured everyone, “Don’t celebrate yet Grayson,” Damien hissed, but Dick knew that tone of his brother’s voice that he was also anxious about finding you again.

“The next step is to find Poison Ivy, see if she was behind their accident,” Bruce declared, “The mere mention of her name already gave us many leads and clues as to what happened,” Hunting Ivy down was another hassle, since she usually vanishes for months before appearing for her next spree, and Harley never snitches on her.

“I know how,”

���꧁꧂꧁꧂꧁꧂꧁꧂꧁꧂ ꧁꧂ ꧁꧂ ꧁꧂ ꧁

Selina was a woman of many words through action. She shows her body to save others like her, swings a leg to kick it into a face of bad people, drags a whip to crack it into a neck, speaks to lure others into a trap.

Yet when it came to Bruce, it was a roll of a dice on whether or not her actions will get through to him. She couldn’t get through to him about his No-Kill code, nor did she got through to him when letting Jason go, but now?

Nothing is ever going to get through to him with this.

“Figured it was about time you would come sniffing around us for a certain someone,” She leaned against a railing on a rooftop, admiring the moon as if it was precious jewelry.

The brooding figure of Batsy was always something she was amazed to seeing, yet tonight she could tell he was off his game, that’s how much she knew him well.

"Where’s Poison Ivy?” He gruffed out, skipping the smooth talking he combined his Batman persona with his Brucie Wayne persona.

“You know I don’t rat out my girls, especially if she hasn’t done anything bad in a while,” Selina scoffed while admiring her claws, seemingly uninterested in what he was going to say.

“But even if I did tell you where Ivy was, not like she would say anything to you willingly, not without breaking your bones. I’m all you got right now for any information,” She shrugged, her whip draped along the ground like a tail.

“Then you know the reason I’m here,” Bruce pulled out a photo, taken from a security camera catching your figure, blurred and out of focus. Selina didn’t bother looking at what he was holding.

“We weren't going have the kid to be thrown in Arkham, Bruce,” She snapped, “Whatever you see, they weren't always like that,” She stretched her body and sat up right, already ready to escape whatever interrogation Bruce was initiating.

“They were just a kid. A clumsy yet smart kid who even knew us as criminals, still smiled and greeted us as if we were still human,” She smiled at the memories of you skating along the street while waving to them, before eating shit into a pole.

“You would’ve loved them, they kinda reminded me of you,” She breathed a chuckle. She was tired, and swung her legs over the railing to leave Bats in the dust, but froze when he spoke.

“That was because they are my child,” His breathing was stilted, as Selina slowly turned her head to see Bruce pulling his cowl off, letting her see how… tired he looked. More than usual.

“Holy shit… you’re the neglectful dad?” Selina’s eyes narrowed before letting out a soft chuckle, growing into a bitter laugh, “Should’ve known, your history on loving your kids were a bit iffy, never really thought you had it in you for abandoning one,” She continued laughing as she slid back to sit on the railing.

“I didn’t abandoned them,” He quickly said, though it felt defensive rather than the truth, “Sure seemed like you did,” She scoffed, standing up.

“I mean, talk about broken home! Did you really didn’t do anything when Damien swung his sword at them? Poor baby went to Ivy for it to heal… never got rid of that scar,” Selina pressed her finger on her forehead, informing where you got your scar from Damien.

“Selina, please. I’m begging you to tell me where they are. At least where Ivy is,” Bruce clenched his hands around his cowl, voice more desperate if you recognized the way he spoke. He was trying to stay strong despite it all.

“And why should I? So you could feel better about yourself? So you don’t have that guilt in your heart reminding you that you failed as a father? That you can’t stand the thought of actually failing being what others saw you as?” Selina pressed him, glaring at Bruce as she backed him to the edge of the building.

“You might as well just accepted you never had them as your kid in the first place since you failed to see them!” The venom from her voice made Bruce clench his eyes shut, gritting his teeth before the gates burst open

“Selina please!!” His Batman voice wavered and broke into Bruce Wayne. Selina stayed silent, watching a broken man as he fell onto his knees, not being able to support the emotional wreck he was in.

"I lost them once-!… I-I can't lose them again…” He wasn’t ever going to lose you again. He will make sure that you will be loved till the end of times that you won’t even remember why you were angry at him. You’ll forgive him that he can promise.

“… Fuck, she’s going to kill me…” Selina groaned, rubbing her face seeing the pathetic face of Bruce, yet couldn’t help but soften a little. She opened a little bag on her belt and shuffled around.

“This is all I’m giving you, because despite us together, your mistakes messed that little baby up so bad they became a monster because of you,” She flicked a small card at his feet, avoiding eye contact.

“This is the only thing I’m going to do, it ain’t my place to interfere, nor help you with,” Even if she was involved with Bruce, you were first, always had and always will be.

“And watch out with Ivy finding out that not only you’re their dad, but the reason they were hurt for so many years,” Selina dusted herself off before hopping onto the ledge of the building, stopping for a moment and turning to Bruce.

“Don’t. Make me regret this,” She warned cautiously and dangerously, pointing at him before jumping off the ledge to leave. Bruce stayed silent before slowly crouching down to lift the card to him.

The card didn’t had any other information other than a name with little hexagon patterns splattered across the faded paper. Guess whoever takes card would know their way around the city to find this place.

“The HoneyComb,”

꧂꧁꧂꧁꧂꧁꧂꧁꧂꧁꧂ ꧁꧂ ꧁꧂ ꧁꧂ ꧁

“Here!” It was easy to pin point the location to this indie club that apparently is easy to join. Barbara zoomed in from security footage that came from an undetected camera perched on a small bakery nearby.

“Oswald Cobblepot paid for the property of the warehouse (Name) spent years in by using an alias to sway any suspicion. Discretely having it under renovation during the night, construction was under wraps for days,” Tim crossed his arms and leaned against the Bat computer’s desk holder, eyes darting around to take in every detail from the footage.

“Now we know why,” Barbara piped in, “(Name) has been using the very place they worked hard in as their new home. Surveillance from other stores showed people enter and exit through the night,” More choppy videos played, yet it was clear as day what, or who they were seeing.

“Look at that…” Duke’s eyes widened when spotting familiar faces. From simple mugging or burglary, they see people that only wanted to survive that they had stopped before, “Glowing eyes… just like-,” Now they’re eyes were just like-

“(Names)’s,” Jason breathed out a laugh, “Guess their little rants about bees to me worked in our favor,” Damien looked up at his brother, confused as Jason began to explain.

“A queen bee can’t survive without drones or worker bees, so instead of laying eggs to larvae, (Name) must’ve used that honey they were so proud of as some sort of mind control to target homeless, muggers, or drug addicts to work for them,” He explained, arms crossed and nodding in realization.

“No one would miss those kinds of people,” It sounded mean, but even the optimistic ones in the Batfamily knew that they were nothing more than thieves.

“W-we can’t just let them continue with this! This isn’t like them!” Dick pleaded. He was sure that whatever you turned into has trapped your mind into a mindless state where you had no idea you were harming others! He’ll save you and bring you back to normal!

“That’s the thing… If it’s too late to bring them back, we have to arrest them…” Bruce’s hand trembled at the thought of taking you away to Arkham. Maybe he’ll pull some strings to stop it from happening.

“But if we catch them… we can’t send them to Arkham. I know that our (Name) is still there, we could rehabilitate them to regain their memory!” Duke looked scared, and rightfully so. This could go wrong in many ways, but the look in the family’s eyes means that they’re willing to risk everything.

Bruce has made many mistakes in the past, but you weren’t going to be another. He will bring you back, he will spend his entire life finding a cure to your beast and throw a big party for you when you’re normal again.

“Question is…” Alfred began, his fingers on his chin in a thoughtful manner. Going in dressed as Batman and the Robins is a huge no-no, despite not knowing how capable you are in your bee form Alfred knows how much you hated them. So in a disguise…

“Who’s going?”

…

“ME!!!”

꧂꧁꧂꧁꧂꧁꧂꧁꧂꧁꧂ ꧁꧂ ꧁꧂ ꧁꧂ ꧁

“Honeycomb, where all is welcome,” Dick flipped the card over a few times, as if thinking there was some sort of code behind it. Dick, Damien, Steph, Jason, and Duke were chosen (or rather fought) to be disguised as homeless or low citizens.

“Tt, Grayson, why must we wear such rags?” Damien tsked, shoving his hands into his pockets while they turned a corner to see the warehouse from a distance.

“We don’t know if seeing our faces or clothes the hypnotized “drones” will alert (Name), we lay low,” Dick ruffled the assassin’s hair, making him growl. Yet he was more focused on finding you rather than biting Dick’s hand off.

The low vibrations of upbeat music indicated that they were near. Standing at the warehouse, it looked like it was completely run down just like before, but the lights shining through the cracks said otherwise.

“Please! We seek shelter, we seek a home!” Duke banged on the door, before grimacing when he pulled his hand away to see honey sticking onto him.

Jason snickered before the two doors slid open, the glowing lights from inside blinded them for a moment. Duck squinted his eyes and raised his hand as a figure stood at the entrance, a familiar grin on his face.

“Greetings, my fellow outsider bees!” A voice so familiar with memories caused all of them to freeze. A hand quickly grabbed onto Dick’s, Jason tugging at his scarf frantically. Joker stood happily, oblivious at the group’s reaction.

“Looks like we are welcoming more poor little bees who are in dire need of our sanctuary!” He laughed heartily, “But not to worry! Our queen will take you in definitely!” He gave a dramatic bow before the doors slid open, the light from inside pouring out that blinded them for a moment.

“Grayson,” Damien stilled, “That’s the Joker,” Yet those words felt like a lie. It was so clearly that it was the Joker, but he was… different. His outfit consisted on resembling of a fancy jester with strips and pastel colors splashed across, large antennas sticking out of his head, his smile still wide, but lack the insanity behind it.

And his eyes… glowing like everyone else.

“Yeah, I know…” He mumbled, squeezing the hand of Jason, who remained silent but had that look in his eyes, Lazarus green glowing.

“We are happy to take in more of our precious bees!” Joker’s antennas twitched, which caused a few younger bees to offer plates of honey to the new group, to which they declined. Jason grimaced in slight fear when seeing Ben, a young boy he saved from being in the wrong crowd when he spotted him stealing from a car.

He didn’t look malnourished the last time he saw Ben, in fact, he looked better than ever. His clothes were new, his face clean from bruises and blood, but it didn’t felt great when his eyes glowed and antennas twitching.

Dick scanned the area while Joker rambled on about how his “Queen” showed him his wrongdoings and let him in with open arms. “They truly do care about their bees,” He sniffled dramatically, dabbing his fake tears away before laughing softly. It felt unnatural, this place.

Inside had hexagon patterns for the walls and the floors, along with the rails for the three floors she has within it. What appeared to be a waterfall fountain with glowing pink and orange honey where older drones gathered in bowl, still offering them to them.

Damien sure as hell doesn’t like the fact everything felt… too happy. Everyone was safe, yes, but the music, the atmosphere had this… strain, as if it was determined to keep everything in a happy state.

“You’re just in time too! Our queen is about to begin the party!!” Joker clapped his hands with joy, a genuine smile on his face as the lights began to dim. Dick instinctively pushed the others back as the drones and worker bees gasped with excitement, all looking up at the ceiling, where a massive wax covered smaller hive was glowing.

“Party is buzzing tonight!!” A loud, beaming voice echoed throughout the hive, causing your subjects to all cheer. Damien and Duke looked at each other just as a tempo began to drop, and from the ceiling, a bright glow crawled to be revealed.

A bright smile they recognized anywhere, and the voice that no longer stuttered or sounded coarse.

Buzzzzz

“Your Queen Bee makes the sweet stuff, so make me that sweet, sweet honey!!”

A/N: Again, this may be an allegory, but who knows lmao. Anyways, here’s a chapter for you hungry pests because writer’s block actually shot be 47 times then tossed me into a ravine.

Have fun analyzing why things feel fake and too happy, I like when yall analyze things

Taglist: @pix-stuff @jellystar-star @moon0goddess @bad4amficideas @lettucel0ver @lithiumval @degenerates-posts @ryuushou @deathbynarcisstick @silverklaus @artistwithcreativeburnout @middevil465 @jsprien213 @1abi @oliviaewl @redkarmakai @nxdxsworld @the-dumber-scaramouche @sc3n3mo-t3to @tw-om-gi-hs-56387 @bunniotomia @welpthisisboring @rad4bean @ithoughtthinks @reeyy0-2 @ceramic-raven @danart501 @esposadomd @trashlanternfish360 @jjoppees @nervousalpacalady @eyeless-kun @pinkcloudcat @lunamonkeypower @soriansick @your-favorite-god

[lazycats-stuff]

Could you write a batfam story where the reader, who's in an established marriage with Bruce Wayne, accidentally triggers Jason? Perhaps the Wayne family has kept Bruce and Jason's past hardships a secret from the reader, thinking it wasn't important to discuss. However, a misunderstanding between the reader and Jason causes Jason to run away after being triggered of his pass. The rest of the family understands that it was a misunderstanding and tells the reader that Jason will come back and not to worry. They explain Jason's troubled pass with Bruce. However, the reader is consumed by so much guilt and sets out to find Jason. Literally the reader goes and searches Gotham top to bottom IN THE MIDDLE OF A HURRICANE! 😭The reader ends up locating Jason in a warehouse, where Jason’s freezing and the rain is pouring right through. More happens but I want the story to like end where the reader and Jason are crying together in the pouring rain and Jason realizes that he now has a loving dad that would do anything to ensure his and his brothers safety. And like the reader brings Jason back to the manor and everyone else is thinking to themselves like damn, (y/n) really is the best thing to happen to this family, literally the damn glue. Or something… like if (y/n) wasn’t there to save Jason he could have been dead… again.

I am sorry this is so long… i just couldn’t stop thinking of this story dynamic 😊

Oh, my jay bird... Of course I can do it... My poor bird. Also, 2k followers? Why thank you. Also, taking some time off to focus on college because I have some shit coming up. To say lightly.

Summary: The family didn't tell (Y/N) about Jason's trauma. And that causes problems and some broken hearts.

Warnings: Mentions of Jason's past, but nothing graphic, (Y/N) is done with emotional constipation from everyone, but he still loves them a lot, also hurricane.

(Y/N) has been in the family for a few years now. Married with the patriarch of the family, Bruce Wayne, was the best decision he has ever made. Bruce, while known to the public as a playboy at the time, abandoned that mindset, all for (Y/N). Boys accepted (Y/N), once they saw that (Y/N) wasn't marrying Bruce for money. (Y/N) will be marrying him for love.

Were there a few hiccups with Bruce being Batman and all the nightly patrols? Yes. However, (Y/N) and Bruce worked through it. And more importantly, (Y/N) essentially adopted all of the boys as his own. He saw them as his own sons rather than looking at them as their stepsons. And besides, saying that they are his sons brings (Y/N) an indescribable amount of happiness. And besides, living with 4 boys is always fun.

(Y/N) knew about their trauma, but what no one told him was the trauma that Jason went through. He had a vague idea, but never knew exactly. He didn't feel qualified to prod around in anyone's head, anyone's mind, but he made sure to let them all know that if they need to talk about something, get something off of their chest, he is the person they can come to talk to.

And it has happened a few times. Sometimes they would come after a nightmare, squeezing between (Y/N) and Bruce, looking for comfort. Now, everyone was unsure as to what to call him. Batdad or mother hen... That one remains to be determined soon enough by the boys.

It was a tough day for everyone in the household and everyone was ready to straight up murder each other. (Y/N) had an awful day at work, Bruce had a bad day as a CEO and as Batman, well, the Batman part was only the night before, but has moved onto the day. The other boys had difficult days at school and at patrol. Jason had a big problem with his nightmares and flashbacks. Not to mention, Gotham was expecting a hurricane to come over and just sweep over it. It shouldn't be bad and there shouldn't be any damage besides any heavy rain.

Gotham natives are used to rains, whether they be small drizzles or storms. However, Bruce worried about it and made sure to get enough supplies, just in case. Safe to say, everyone was on absolute edge. Closed into the same house, despite it being a manor and absolutely huge, tension could be cut with a knife.

And then, Jason and (Y/N) started fighting. It started off as bickering, but then it turned into a fight where hurtful things were said towards each other. Jason, mentally pushed to the limit by the nightmares and flashbacks has had enough and went to his car. He drove off and (Y/N) was fuming still.

But...

When the anger went away, (Y/N) was mortified. Completely and utterly mortified. He essentially crushed whatever relationship he had with Jason. Words hurt more than any punches and any kicks. No matter what Jason went through, (Y/N) was sure that Jason was hurting like hell now.

(Y/N) couldn't stop pacing in the living room, wondering what is happening to Jason at this very moment. A hurricane is going to pass through soon enough, Jason went to God knows where and (Y/N)'s own heart was breaking apart.

" (Y/N), love, you need to calm down. Jason will be fine. He just needs space. "

" Space?! In the middle of a hurricane?! " (Y/N) now yelled, upset beyond belief. He has upset his son and he was telling him to calm down? He might kick Bruce out of their bed.

Bruce then talked about all the trauma that Jason went through, before he adopted him, after he adopted him at the hands of Joker. (Y/N) was now absolutely mortified.

" Father is right. Jason needs some time to cool off. " Damian said in passing, making (Y/N) throw his hands up in the air.

" Is anyone in this damn house emotionally available?! "

Tim shrugged from the sofa and (Y/N) took a deep breath. Bruce watched intently and he could see what (Y/N) was thinking.

" Do not tell me you are going out there. " Bruce said as (Y/N) put his jacket and shoes on.

Dick and Damian paused to watch the entire thing unfold. Tim looked up from his tablet.

" I am. Jason is my son and I'm going to get him back. Tim, track Jason's phone and send me the location. " (Y/N) said, ignoring Bruce. Bruce rubbed his forehead. (Y/N) is a stubborn bastard when he wants to be. And does Bruce love him for it? Yes. Is it annoying sometimes? Yes.

" There is a hurricane! " Tim yelled after (Y/N) as he stormed out.

" (Y/N)! " Bruce yelled after his husband, but it was too late. (Y/N) was already out the door.

" He's nuts, " Damian said underneath his breath.

" And I married him, " Bruce added.

Jason has started to regret the fact that he has decided to even come out here. Sure, (Y/N) and him got into a fight, nasty things were said, but it would be better if he has just stormed up to his room and slammed his door shut. That would have been a better option than this. This damp warehouse, where there was leaking rain wherever you looked...

Jason was shivering, teeth chattering. Cold probably seeped right to his bones. Hypothermia was also on its way too, Jason had no doubt about it. He leaned back against the wall, curling into himself as much as he could and allowed himself to think about what happened with (Y/N), his dad in a way.

They were all on edge from the hurricane, supplies, wifi and all that stuff was needed just in case. Bruce made sure to make the manor proof of any natural disasters. Gotham wouldn't be hit that badly, so there was no need for evacuation, but there was advice to be cautious about it. Everyone was on edge as it is from being cooped up together too much, since Bruce didn't want them to stray too far, just in case.

And Jason being in a foul mood from his nightmares already, he didn't like this one bit. He wanted to be alone, but no. Common areas are a must according to Bruce. So the fight happened and both of them said really hurtful things to each other. And Jason felt guilty. He knew that emotions took over them both, but still... (Y/N) was always trying to be good to them all.

It was wrong.

Jason looked up at the door when he heard a slam. It could be wind. Or maybe someone trying to find shelter?

What Jason didn't expect was (Y/N), wet to the bone, looking around frantically. When his eyes fell on Jason, he sighed in relief.

" Oh Jay, I've been looking for you everywhere! Are you okay?! " (Y/N) ran up to Jason, quickly kneeling down to check to see if he had any injuries. Jason was touched... To have a genuine parent, a loving parent, alongside Bruce, but Bruce is a bit emotionally constipated so (Y/N) is essentially everything that the boys need.

" Bruce told me what you've been through... And now I know why you ran, what made you so upset. It was a combination of everything plus the hurricane. "

Jason nodded and (Y/N) hugged him tightly. Jason hugged him back just as tightly, if not more.

And the two broke down in tears, holding onto each other tightly.

Bruce was pacing in the living room, worried about (Y/N) and Jason. He should have gone after Jason too. He shouldn't have been so stupid. He should have chased Jason down the moment he left the mansion. But no, he's too emotionally constipated to deal with this. Great. Absolutely great.

He flipped his head around when he heard the front door open and then close and then two sets of footsteps. Jason and (Y/N) stepped into the living room, both soaked to the bone.

" Bruce, " (Y/N) said calmly and Bruce had a feeling he would be kicked out of the bedroom.

" (Y/N)... Are you two okay? " Bruce asked softly and (Y/N) nodded, smiling at Jason.

" We are B. Jay, go down to the Batcave. Take a warm shower and get changed into warm clothes. I'm sure the others are there too." (Y/N) softly nudged Jason to get going.

Jason took the hint and went to the Batcave. Once he was gone, Bruce turned to (Y/N).

" I'm sorry. I truly am. I should have gone after him, but I was- "

" Stupid? Yeah. Clearly. But I'm willing to forgive. I assume that the cots are ready? "

" Yup. I prepared you warm clothes, some earplugs so that you can't be awaken by the bats. And also a mask so that you won't be awoken by the lights of the cave. You know, reflectors, Batcomputer... Come on. " Bruce gently lead his cold and wet husband to the Batcave. " A warm shower is in order too. "

(Y/N) rolled his eyes, knowing that he will be forced into a warm shower, warm and dry clothes and an intense cuddling session, where Bruce won't let go, out of fear and love... How did he even marry into this crazy family?

[ssatorussuguru]

hey!! absolutely adore your batfam fics!!! any chance you have any fic recs? especially for steph <33

BOY DO I!!

i made a grave mistake in middle school privating every bookmark because now it's habit and way too much work to sort through. apologies it haunts me too

seriously though it's making me so unbelievably happy u like my work, mwah love u <33

very sorry if it's overwhelming under the cut, i tried to organize it but it's still crazy, i couldn't choose!!

dick

dick pt.2

tim+dick

tim

Favs!!!

yeah, dad, maybe no one is perfect - It's a story about murder, it's a story about motive, it's a story about mommy issues. Or: Stephanie Brown kills her dad!

the shark was calling to express his feelings on his ugliness and his mortality - Stephanie does not ask Bruce to buy her pads, which causes some problems, solves another, and ends with Bruce buying her some anyways.

(i love luvo's fics just read them all honestly)

prove that i'm worth something - Dick Grayson has never had much time for Stephanie Brown. But when the two of them find themselves stranded without a line to the outside world, he finds that they might have more in common than he thought.

their arms are extended (my eyes start to close) - In which Dick Grayson gets hit with fear toxin, Stephanie Brown imparts some wisdom, and Damian Al Ghul Wayne learns to forgive himself.

don't you cry, dry your eyes - ALSO read all orpheusaki fics theyre incredible

I Used to Be an Adventurer Like You, Then I Took an Arrow to the Knee - Stephanie was just on patrol and now she’s stuck somewhere, sometime, with Bruce. They bleed and bond and mostly try to keep each other alive— you know, just a Tuesday.

Steph and fam:

touch the sky - tragedy strikes, the batfam is left to pick up the pieces, and once again steph finds herself having to prove to the world that she can do anything she wants.

steph's batman - A brief look at Steph, Damian, and Dick learning to become a family. Even after Bruce comes home. Even after they all die. Even after Dick comes home, he is still her Batman.

have you been half asleep, and have you heard voices? - AU where Tim was never Robin and Stephanie reminds everyone of Jason

steph!robin verse - After Jason Todd dies, Stephanie Brown becomes Robin.

bitty batty baby vigilante crew - the story of two kids conning their way across gotham, and (mostly) inadvertently into the batman family.

Steph and Bruce centric:

the hall in the back of wayne manor - "Somewhere in the Wayne Manor there is a wall of pictures, each with Bruce in a suit and one of the kids in a suit or a dress, standing in a courtroom at the end of an adoption hearing." --audreycritter

and i've been cold since you left - Stephanie Brown is dead. And yet, Bruce Wayne can’t stop seeing her out of the corner of his eye. He’s used to being haunted by his mistakes, but this is the first time that it’s literal.

though your eyes will need some time to adjust - stephanie and bruce, figuring it out

carpe diem (today fish) - [Bruce doesn't see what the problem is, honestly. It's a college tuition, how much can it cost?, a hundred grands?]

(don't) compare similar species - Batman and Robin have a night on patrol. Bruce is trying to be better about trusting Stephanie as Robin, and making it clear that he does. Stephanie might be working just as hard.

calming notion, perpetual in motion - (What it means to be a legacy, even for those you don't wish to carry.)

we could have had anything else - Stephanie and Bruce take a road trip to see the solar eclipse, featuring: Stephanie Brown and her Stephanie Brown-ness, Bruce Wayne and his Bruce-ness, and grief.

Steph and Dami:

in this quiet company (i forget sometimes, just how to breathe) - Steph and Damian kill time in Gotham and Damian tries his best not to experience Emotions. Oh, and there's ice cream.

coming clean

the gentleness that comes (despite the violence) - how steph and damian sleepovers became a regular occurrence

Steph and Jason:

this time, the loser wins - They were two sides of the same coin. They understood each other. It was nice. It was a downright relief. She’d never had a big brother before.

too young to be taken seriously, too old to believe all this hypocrisy - When Crystal Brown goes into rehab, leaving Stephanie in the sole custody of her father, Steph decides to run away from home, and meets Jason Todd, who decides that she is the best little sister ever.

the great birthday heist - Stephanie Brown, age 6, didn’t want to come to this kid Jason’s birthday party, especially since she figured out it was just a front for their dads to discuss crime. She’s especially cranky about the fact that her dad made her give her favorite new stuffed animal as a gift and plans a one-girl heist to get it back. Then a dozen-odd years later, they meet again.

bringin' home the rain - After Jason digs his way out of his grave, he lives a broken existence in the city unable (and unwilling) to remember his life before. That changes one night when he sees Robin flying overhead and follows her home.

Silly Steph!!

hanging around

always look where you throw the brick

most girls never win if they're polite

Misc:

who they could have been (who they'll never be) - In which Bruce is haunted by several ghosts, who unbeknownst to him are his future kids from a timeline that will never come to be.

have i told you about minnie? - After you’ve known Matches Malone long enough, you get used to him telling you about his kids. Not that his kids know about it.

told the world i had a plan - loosely connected series in which jason lives after ethopia, steph succeeds him as robin and tim is...around here. somewhere.

cheese viking has taken over damian's life - Damian has gotten (really) invested in this little arcade game called ‘Cheese Viking’. And he has to let everyone in his family know. Everyone.

think how great it is to fall asleep (and how terrible it is to wake up) - (Or: 5 times a Bat noticed/discovered jason's body dysmorphia post resurrection)

[spider-jaysart]

Today I'm introducing a dear oc created by both me and my friend @paladin-of-nerd-fandom65 !!

Marco Grayson!!!

(Click for better quality) The first pic is their hero suit and the second one is their casual, default outfit

Name: Marco Grayson and Markoand'r in Tamaranean (which is a name of one of Tamaran's first Kings/Warriors "Markoand'r the deathfire". A little headcanon by @pin-crusher2000 )

Hero name: Starwing

Age: 6-7 years old

Personality: Fierce, stubborn, is always too brave without a care, sometimes is weird in his little way, often passionate/determined, and is a sweet kid with a good heart

Orientation: Gay

Random facts:

Marco is the third and youngest child of Dick and Kory

Marco's favorite Uncle is Damian. Marco looks up to him a lot too and they get eachother, since they're mostly similar in their ways, and are usually chaos together because of it

For others Marco is also close with besides him, it's their Siblings Mar'i and Jake, their 6 year old Aunt Helena Wayne, Wade West, and two playful civilian friends from school named Jarred and Lizza

Marco is in a hero duo with Wade West (aka The Blur) called SpeedStar. They are best friends who grew up knowing eachother ever since they were babies (another headcanon by @pin-crusher2000 )

Marco loves dinosaurs and they are their fave animal. They even own lots of toys and other things of them because of it and they also know lots about them too, because of their interest in them. Bruce and Marco bond over this a lot and on special days, Damian will usually gift them cool art of dinosaurs too

Marco's fave films are the Jurrasic park movies and they're also not the type to mind the gore and instead thinks horror like that is cool

Marco has the condition CIP, which never let's them feel pain at all. This causes many worries most times from family, especially their parents. Dick and Kory usually have to check them to see if they're really okay anywhere, even on normal days for anything, since they don't understand how bad pain is or what it's like at all, which can often make them feel overbearing to Marco, but they only do it cause Marco would never be able to tell them themself if there ever was a problem, so they both have to always keep up with them for their child's own good just to be sure

Marco actually has 7 stomachs while both their siblings have 6

Marco's voice sounds like AJ's from TellTales the walking dead games series in season 4, but slightly lighter on the heavy part

Marco is ticklish on their feet like their Dad, but their most sensitive spots are their ears and ribs

Marco will eat anything, which can also be concerning sometimes. They get this from Kory who isn't a picky eater and Dick who just be tasting anything that's apart of clues like it's normal💀 Marco's fave foods tho are cookie dough and their Mom's more stranger cooking, which are unlike her usual Tamaranean dishes

When Marco becomes a teenager in the future, they begin going by They/Them pronouns and have a boyfriend by that time too, who is Dorin (aka Green Troia), the Son of both Donna Troy and Kyle Rayner, and is also a popular supermodel who sometimes takes up gigs in his spare time (once again another headcanon by @pin-crusher2000 and that oc is created by him)

Marco got help on their hero suit from Mar'i and Jake and got it approved by Damian after immediately taking it to him for reviewing lol. Damian was impressed by the results of the design and the only thing he suggested was a mask, but Marco rejected the idea, since they like the idea of being free like their Mother and big Sis, which left Damian a bit grumpy internally but he just dealt with it lol

Marco is a proud member of the Robin!Damian defense squad/fan club with their Aunt Helena, since Damian is one of them that just gets too much hate a lot of times

Unlike others who often make fun or judge it, Marco actually loves Damian's horned boots and thinks they're so cool, since they remind them so much of dinosaurs

Damian has a nickname for Marco, which is Goofball

Marco is one of the only special ones Damian gives out forehead kisses to as a habit from Talia always doing it to him when he was younger. But it's only between them, cause he has a tough reputation to keep still lmao

Marco has the the unique ability called Starblast, which is being able to breathe out a huge blast of Starbolt energy from their mouth after transferring it from both of their hands up into their lungs (think like Godzilla)

When Marco watched fireworks for the first time at 3 years old, they got so excited and overjoyed from the show, so since Starbolts are so similar to them, that's when their powers finally came out, when they were imitating them with their hands

[thy-valhallen]

Batfam by How Likely They Are to Break the No-Killing Rule

Jason Todd. obviously, this is his bit, the man is okay with murder so long as he perceives due cause, pew pew babygirl, rubber bullets still can kill you but now, Bruce can't yell at him if they die later

Barbara Gordon. you cannot tell me this woman isn't bloodthirsty. she follows the rules because she plays nice and respects the justice system (mostly), but i fully believe she can and will fly a drone with a mounted gun and snipe someone from six blocks away one day if the other Bats are busy, and she might not feel inclined to call an ambulance

Stephanie Brown. a Narrows girl, she knows how shit can happen, and if someone's after one of the Batfam, you better believe she's got a knife at the ready. Steph follows the rule well! for now. but look, if she's in mortal peril, she's not about to put her attacker's life above her own

Tim Drake. Tim is the true neutral here to me-- he follows the Code because of the effect it would have on Bruce and the rest of the family. he fully understands this and avoids it. ... there are no less than six different timelines in which he has pretty freely murdered people, and the jokes about him being the Most Likely to be a Supervillain jokes are based in something, guys. i feel like it would be more of a problem if he weren't so exhausted and busy 24/7-- so let's keep him very busy so he doesn't catch a charge

Damian al Ghul-Wayne. he's had a lot of growth from his days of being a child assassin and puts a lot of value on following their Code now-- but look me dead in the eyes and say he wouldn't kill for most of his family in a heartbeat. lie to me.

Dick Grayson. he and Damian are tied for me in how it's fairly situational and both would suffer tremendous emotional backlash for the action-- but Dick has a lot of rage and a lot of people who have hurt him and his loved ones. there's a tipping point, and he's reached it before. he blames himself for so much, if he ever got caught up in his own wrath and actually game-ended someone, I think the man would never wear a mask again

Duke Thomas. Duke may be under-credited for his absolutely feral behavior, but murder is definitively not on that list. he is so down to throw down, but Duke has never (to my knowledge) had a close call with murdering someone like many of the others in this family. putting this mostly on his powers giving him a leg-up there, but powers or not, no body count and never expect that to change for him

Bruce Wayne. the epitome of the No-Killing Code except for all those times he's nearly killed someone in intensely stressful situations. is strict about it because he knows how easy a line it is to cross and how it would devastate him emotionally and holds that standard. no killing is probably a kitschy poster in the Batcave at this point, Jason got it lovingly printed on a metal sign next to the Batcomputer

Cassandra Cain. has killed and will never kill again-- Bruce has close calls and has to be stopped, Cass has close calls and reins herself in. the blood on her hands is red enough without more-- she's an obsidian blade, sharp enough to cut molecules but so very fragile. one bad move would break her, and being the strongest in the family, it would be so very easy to make that move and it would be easy to live in fear of herself. but she doesn't-- there's shit to do and crime to be carefully nerve-pinched, after all

Bonus:

Alfred Pennyworth. i couldn't rank him with the others, do you know how this would look if I started the list with Alfred??? this is an ex-MI6 agent. this is a man who responds to home invasions of any threat level from "Burglar" to "Darkseid" with a sawed-off shotgun and fresh pair of gloves in his pocket for after he's disposed of the body. he's killed and will kill again, just step within range, kind sir, and you'll find out

[touretticeddiemunson]

“(if i get more pretty) do you think he will like me?” [wayne’s pov]

summary: transmasc eddie trying so hard to be a girl because he likes steve, and as far as he knows, steve is straight. he’s constantly putting his own mental health in jeopardy just because of a stupid boy.

~

Wayne wonders why his boy is suddenly curling his hair again, putting on lip gloss, and wearing those little black dresses he once wore when he was in junior high. He watches Eddie come home with mascara stains stuck to his cheeks, a dead giveaway that he’d been crying.

It gets to the point that Eddie asks Wayne to stop calling him “he”.

He tells Wayne he’s not a boy, he was wrong; he wanted to be a girl again.

Wayne had no problem making Eddie comfortable, so he did what she wanted. She wanted to be called Ella again, wanted Wayne to take her shopping for different clothes. But even though Ella insisted, Wayne couldn’t help but notice that “Ella” still wasn’t happy. “She” still came home crying, as unhappy as she was before her transition to male, possibly even moreso.

Eddie never seemed the type to pretend to be something he wasn’t. So why was he doing it now? Eddie seemed to be perfectly happy as Eddie.

One day, Wayne’s boy came home in his old clothes. He looked just as dejected as the days he’d come home crying. Every time he asked what was up, Eddie shut him down. He decided to be “Eddie” again, shouted that he was done pretending, that he would never like him anyway. Despite all the questions Wayne had brewing, he knew better than to ask them. It wasn’t like Eddie would answer them.

-

Years went by and his boy still wasn’t happy. He didn’t see him that way until months after the earthquake came and destroyed their house. Even then, he wasn’t himself, and rightfully so. Wayne longed to see his boy the way he was before he was affected by whoever made him question who he wanted to be.

He finally saw Eddie happy again one night. Wayne came home late to find his boy smiling in his sleep on the couch, cheek pressed against the shoulder of the Harrington boy. There was a snuffed joint in the ashtray and a few empty bottles of beer on the floor. He gave Eddie a kiss on the forehead and watched lovingly as the boy shuffled in the other’s strong arms. He wondered if this was the person who’d caused Eddie try to be his old self; the person who made his boy so unhappy. He hoped to whatever god there was that this boy was going to be good to his Eddie, that he wouldn’t make him feel unloved again.

-

Over the course of several more years, the two boys grew closer. They didn’t have to say anything to Wayne for him to know they were in love. They moved off to Chicago with Eddie’s band, where they put out their first album.

-

In the times Eddie was convincing himself that he was supposed to be a girl, Wayne could hear Eddie picking up his guitar in the dead of night and plucking out chords. He heard his quiet, pained voice fighting against sobs, choking out words to a song Eddie was writing.

-

After spending 2 years traveling through America with the band, Corroded Coffin was a household name for metal fans. Eddie became a hot topic in magazines, became a staple of the metal scene. They held their biggest concert at Lollapalooza that year and got Wayne VIP seating.

That evening, they played a new song.

“Is everyone enjoying the show tonight?” Eddie called into the mic. He was met with thunderous cheers, enough to make everyone’s ears ring. “That’s great to hear, you guys. It means a lot that you came out to see us. We’re gonna end the night with a new song and then we’ll turn it over to your next artist, but I have a little to say about it first,” He announced.

The chords took Wayne back to a time he’d never forget. Weeks after the concert, they released their new album containing the song. The album “In the Dead of Night” was a hit everywhere, released on streaming platforms and even printed on vinyl. The moment it hit the record store in Hawkins, Wayne bought the first copy he could get his hands on. He rushed home and put it on his record player, sniffling as the familiar chords reached Wayne’s ears again.

Wayne stood crying in the kitchen next to the record player as he listened to the full product of Eddie’s teenage torment.

“If I get more pretty, do you think he will like me?”

~

a/n: i was inspired by the lyrics of “prom queen” by beach bunny for this. the song is originally about developing an ED, but i also thought that it would fit really well as someone going back in the closet pretending to be someone they’re not.

[wolfsrainrules]

Me, Staring into the Night: Oh No

Discussed with @deepwithintheabyss on discord, and as a result:

I'm just Saying. I have been contemplating a Jurassic World in DC verse (with the understanding that I have not actually READ nor SEEN much DC content and am working off fandom.)

Jurassic World, as in, a JW that has done the work to hide and defend their island from super villains and various heroes poking their heads in. The full nine yards, everything they could possibly stop- and all that focus on "outside" threats? It's what allows the internal issues that result in the mess that is JW.

The thing though? Jurassic World still needs sponsors and Batfam has still been trying to get a look into that- because it should not be left unchecked. Legally they can't send a hero in. But Timothy Drake-Wayne, CEO of WE and potential sponsor and good word on JW? That they would allow. So if he gets a VIP access tour to 'tempt him into sponsoring Jurassic World" that's supposed to last a week or two...

They've already got the park operating on front of house, and they have a camp with six kids who got sent in. What's one more VIP who could get them a ton of money, and may sponsor their work and expand what they're doing? Thing is- VIP access means that technically, Tim isn't supposed to have any tech that operates inside without proper access. He knows it CAN be gotten, because there's a kid here- Brooklyn?- that is a very popular vlogger who is allowed to record and post things. He's also not here as a Bat, but as Timothy Drake-Wayne and that comes with some handicaps to what he's able to do int he open.

So he has to look like he doesn't have access to anything, can't be caught snooping around, and also is instinctively keeping an eye on the kids when he's in the same areas they are.

And then. And then the park goes down. Assets are out of containment. And we have this really shitty time, where Tim has to figure out how the hell to get them all off, when the protections from outside 'interference' mean that the heroes cannot set foot on Jurassic World, Jurassic Park, or anything within without causing a hell of an issue. Interference also means Tim can't get the emergency signal out. The only thing allowed out of JW is what's done on it's own network. He needs to find a way to hook into it, when the power is shot. Would it stop them? No. Especially not when people are dying, and definitely not the BatFam when Tim is on the island.

Problem? By all rights, the island was evacuated of all survivors. So far as anyone can determine, the others are dead, and the island is overrun with assets that got loose.

Tim didn't make it off.

And Tim doesn't have a functioning access to internet OR signal to get a call out, the white noise machines and everything else are blocking him from just yelling for evac. He technically doesn't have any BAT- grade tech or supplies for himself- this was Timothy Drake-Wayne that went in after all. He didn't bring anything big while he snooped. He had some things, yes, but not for this level of FUBAR.

The BatFam are losing their minds. The world is saying Tim died on the island, since he didn't get off. Tim is struggling to find a way to get a message out. BatFam refuses to accept that Tim is dead until it can be confirmed.

And then.

And then the kids and Tim get the generators back on. And everything has gone to hell, but the power means Tim has a way to get something out. A way to hook into the network finally

It's not perfect. It involves him making trips to the faculty, and a LOT of tech-work so he can get these things routed properly, that he's not even sure are WORKING. And he can't leave the kids either- this island has tried to kill them all over and over again, he's not willing to let them wander around alone.

So he sends something like video diaries out, careful to maintain that he is a civilian trying to reach his dad, with six other kids surviving with him.

Bruce absolutely FLIPS when he gets the first video. Tim is front and center, looking like literal hell, blood smeared on his face, dirt and mud, a ruined set of dress pants, a stolen set of boots (because Timothy would have been in dress shoes for something like this, so he hadn't had his good shoes with him) an absolutely stained, ripped, and ruined dress shirt, smeared face, just- looking like he's survived dinos, and kept kids alive doing it.

Bruce cries. That's his boy. He's not dead. He's not dead. Oh God.

So Bruce gets an update, Tim talking about what happened, that he's not dead, he's surviving with six kids- who all pop into frame and frantically try to cram as much "NOT DEAD HI MOM AND DAD AND SIBLINGS" into the video while Tim is still trying to update everything.

And then the video ends with Tim's head- and six children's as well- all snapping to the side while there's a large echoing clank and the shadow of a dino. And the last image is Tim reaching forward to send the video out, hoping it gets through.

He takes a tablet hooked intot he system, and uses that to film various updates around the park while surviving. A sneaky update on what exactly the park has done, as well as continuous updates on their survival for their families. He has to trek back to the generator room to actually post these out but he's sending them.

The systems aren't great. Sometimes the videos go through a little glitchy, sometimes they get sent out of order. The uploading speed is shit, and occasionally corrupted videos go out due to a sudden need to stop or a flicker in power or any other number of factors.

But Bruce recognizing the chance to use the videos as proof that his kid is still alive- as are six other family's children, and he can bring this forward to get to the island quicker and by leagal means.

It's a huge thing in Gotham, Bruce Wayne's kid on this island surviving, These six kids he's helping. Their families all coming to Gotham to back Bruce on their crusade to get their kids out. Public pressure building as more and more videos go out, more and more people watch what they're going through.

They don't have to get themselves off the island. Bruce Wayne, their families, and public pressure all combine to get a rescue sent out to them. And sure it takes a little bit to get put together, but Bruce Wayne is funding it, and he will not rest until his son is home, until all of these kids are home.

The families all bond over the trauma of their children being on a death trap of an island. And the work to get them off of it. The relief they're ALIVE. The horror of what they'd gone through. The terror of not knowing if they're STILL alive. The fear-terror-hope of waiting for the next video update, hoping it's one that actually WORKS, that isn't corrupted or cut off cause of some disaster. The trauma of seeing their children on these videos, seeing the changes, and the rough surviving, of thinking your kids were dead only to find out NOPE they're in a historical horror of predator species that would eat them instead.

And Bruce knows Tim is capable. He knows he is. He also knows Tim would do whatever was necessary to get the kids home alive and whole.

And that? That's terrifying for Bruce. Because he knows Tim would jump in front of those kids to save them. His mind is running every worse case scenario through. He knows the (official) list of dinos that are in the park. He can imagine exactly how wrong an encounter could go. And then he gets the video updates of Tim and the kids explaining hybrids and the horror of THAT. So he's not even sure what the hell the kids are running into, and THEY don't even know, because they're could absolutely be more, so many more and-

And then you have Tim's brothers. His brothers who get the news he's presumed dead after the park goes wild and there's late videos and all kinds of things going live as survivors get off the island and into range of posting again, without access to JW's network. His brothers who all wait, all scared, all worried, for him to step off a ferry. Only he doesnt. Only he's one of many names presumed dead. And oh they aren't willing to leave it at that. The hero community is pushing for their ability to look into the park and what went wrong, but by all accounts- Tim is supposed to be dead.

And while they keep hoping, thinking, not without a body, and even still- there's every chance there ISNT one on an island full of dinosaurs. There's plenty of videos from those who escaped of paradactyls flying off with people, of various dinosaurs outside containment and the chaos and panic of it. Of deaths caught on camera and everything else. They're trying. But they're not even sure if-

And then Bruce gets the video. And they are right there with him in using the proof to get to the island faster, to save him, and the kids he's with, and just-

And there's HOPE and horror. Because he's alive! He is. But he's lost weight, and he's so obviously working to keep these six other children alive, and surviving and all the horror of that, and just-

It's such a mess.

But they are all there, every family, when they go and get the survivors.

There's tears and fierce hugs. And every kid has to introduce themselves to everyone's families. And every parent has to thank Tim for being there for their kids, for saving them, for not abandoning them for FIGHTING for them- because they all have stories.

And Tim did his level best to be there for these kids, to lead, to save, to keep safe. His very, very best. And the parents are so so thankful for it.

And if Tim meets each of his kids parents from the arms of a different family member (Alfred, Bruce, Dick, Damian, Jason, Cass, Duke, Steph, Babs...) the kids are happy to see Tim getting the support they couldn't give him, no matter how much they tried.

[electricprincess96]

Asking out of curiosity, but why do ya dislike Damian Wayne? I ask this not in a acussitory manner mind, as my only exposure to Damian is in non comics material such as those animated movies he popped up in. More so curiosity cause he seems to be a very controversial character among the main comics fandom itself.

He is controversial. There are a few reasons, some I could change my mind on with better writing and others would take a lot more for me to get behind him. I'll start by saying if you're reading this and are a Damian fan don't continue, you aren't gonna like what I have to say so don't both hate reading for the sake of it.

Firstly the concept of the Bat Family for the most part up until that point was about Found Family. Let me be clear I'm not saying it was sunshine and rainbows and they all got along great all the time BUT it was about broken people finding each other and trying to work together to make a difference. The very concept of giving Bruce a blood son ruins that, you need only look at most Damian fans when the debate on who should be Bruce's successor comes up, they will always say Damian despite the fact he has shown NOTHING to prove he deserves it, their only reason is he's the blood son. While yes being both biological and adopted kids is a thing that exists and most real people can do it and it works most DC writers are not adopted parents and dont know the specifics of how you depict that balance and it shows. It reeks of weird blood purist, anti-adoption vibes that just aren't good. Like the rise in "bad parent Bruce Wayne" towards Jason and Tim and some of the others (not sure he knows Cass's name anymore) conveniently corrolates with demon brats creation. Coupled with the fact on more than one occasion writers have seemed to make it seem like Damian does indeed mean more just cause he's blood related. I just don't like it. I wasn't overly fond of Helena Wayne (although she was better cause she was from another world instead of the canon one) and I don't like Damian for the same reason.

Secondly he was forced as Robin. As I said in a recent post up until Damian the role of Robin had only really been changed when it was necessary. Jason was made Robin because DC wanted Robin to be a kid again but readers liked the storylines they were getting with young adult Dick Grayson so they promoted Dick from sidekick and created Jason Todd. Likewise when Jason died there was no Robin, Dick wasn't about to go back to being Robin and Jason was dead thus Tim was created to fill a role that needed filling. Even Stephanie was made Robin due to Tim being unavailable for a long period of time (i dont remember the specifics but i think it had to do with his family finding out about Robin) so even when she lasted not even a year, she was still filling a vacamcy instead of being forced into a role that was already filled. Damian however was just created. They had not taken the proper steps to develop Tim out of being Robin naturally (and before people come at me with "oh he had plenty of time" Dick Grayson got FORTT YEARS and Damian is coming up on nearing 2 decades so shut up) and thus his creation has directly led to the problem we have right now in DC were we have TWO Robins cause they demoted Tim back to being Robin when Red Robin didn't work out (and 3 batgirls but that ones Barbara Gordon's fault). Coupled with the fact his introduction came right after the revival of Jason Todd thus basically screeching to a halt any real meaningful development that plotline could have had because suddenly DC had a shiny new toy to play with. Damian's creation was a turning point for Batman comics and not a good one, because it contributed to the derailing of multiple characters arcs and plotlines and some have still not fully recovered.

Thirdly his character upon introduction was already redundant. He's a child raised by assassins.... OK well we already have Cassandra Cain. He's a Robin willing to kill and will really test the Bat Fams moral compass. OK well as I said we'd already revived Jason Todd and he was already taking the fight to the Bat on the no kill rule. Literally the only unique thing he had upon introduction was that he was a blood relation to Bruce which I personally do not think should mean anything. But DC starting from that point going forward started to have a horrible undercurrent of blood purity. The only thing I can think that he is semi unique on is being biracial but even then not entirely his since Cassandra is biracial as well AND they never do anything with him being biracial. Plus if they really wanted to they could have reconned one of the existing Robins to be biracial without derailing multiple other characters plotlines.

Fourthly. He's an obnoxious and annoying brat 90% of the time. Like I get it, being raised by Talia (although there's conflicting information on of he was actually raised at all since the timeline does not seem to add up for his age and at one point he was grown in an artificial womb and artificially aged but that's been retconned but the timeline still don't add up if he's not artificially aged somewhat. His back story is a mess I ain't gonna make heads or tails of it) will inevitably result in a very arrogant child afterall Ra's and Talia's egos rival Lex Luthors. BUT they want us to believe at times he can back that up. And I'm sorry I don't care how skilled you are as a child assassin, you are still a child. Like in the Animated movies he should not be able to beat Deathstroke in a straight 1 to 1 fight. He just shouldn't. Both are highly skilled assassins sure but Slade is like 6 times Damian's age, double his size and at least 3 times his weight. There is also the fact that his dark, brooding, arrogant, cruel character sort of worked when he was Dick Grayson's Robin cause it was flipping the established dynamics for Batman and Robin. But when he's Bruce's Robin it doesn't work, we no longer have that little bit of sunshine that Robin is meant to bring to Batman (and don't think I haven't noticed how Batman's character has got crueler and darker since Damian became his Robin) while Batman is meant to be a guiding hand for Robin to keep him on the right track.

Fifthly. For Damian's character arc to really work/make sense ot has to be acknowledged that Talia is not a good mother. At best she's deliberately raising him in a dangerous environment and at worse she is actively abusive. It's the only way you can justify half of his character traits and why he's even here in the first place. Here's the issue for all I dislike Talia as a character... I don't believe she's an abusive mother. One thing that seems to be consistent for Talia was that she did love her family. Talia's flaws for me are in her inability to choose a side and her entitlement towards Bruce and other men (well and the whole worldwide genocide of anyone not League of Assassins). Now I am more willing to accept this one as just being how new Talia is but I don't blame some of her fans who feel miffed about this however they do have to acknowledge that there's no real way to do his story without her either being an incompetent parent or a down right bad one (but don't worry Talia fans Bruce is also awful nowadays so she's not alone there....)

Now his arrogance and overall unlikable character can absolutely be fixed with good writing. I hated him in the Animated movies (kid you grew up in the mountains leaving to kill you SHOULD NOT BE LECTURING BRUCE FUCKING WAYNE ABOUT STOCKS) but I'm quite liking him in Boy Wonder where it's actually tackling his own sense of entitlement and showing that he needs to learn from his predecessors rather than acting like he's better than them purely because he shares dna with Bruce.

BUT the conceptual issues I have won't go away quite so easily. It's why if I'm asked if I could wipe one Robin from existence, it will always be him. He could be written wonderfully, he could get a comic run that is the best written thing ever and I will still always say him when asked that question. And I know I'm not alone on that.

[nburkhardt]

5 Random Words Fic

Got tagged by @estrellami-1 and @i-less-than-three-you 🥰

Rules: generate 5 random words using this generator and then write something using those words! Tag 5 (or however many you want) mutuals to challenge! (If you don’t like your 5 words, try again. This is supposed to be fun!)

(Challenge/game originally from @a-little-unsteddie!)

My words: Capital, Something, Haste, Bandit & Neural (I’m switching neural to nerve btw)

There was something going on behind his back but he can’t quite figure it out. It was small enough that nothing was actually out of place but big enough for him to even notice anything wrong to begin with. Not that it was wrong per se, it was like something was being misplaced or maybe taken? But it wasn’t anything that important?

Eddie isn’t quite sure what to make of it, but given his place as second in command at the Capital, he needs to know what’s happening.

Wayne could possibly make him doing basic training again if he doesn’t figure out what the issue is.

“I don’t get it, Gare. Have you noticed anything?” He groans, taking a seat next to his friend.

Gareth shrugs, “Jeff and I did another round, found nothing wrong. Whatever is going on, it’s either being replaced immediately or whatever is being taken isn’t important to any of us.”

“You think it’s what, someone stealing?” He rolled his eyes, “Like what, a bandit around here? That’s impossible, Gareth! Ever since Wayne took over, we’re very fair and generous! If, if someone needed help we’d-”

“Look, you keep having that freakish feeling whenever this thing happens. There’s no issues around the place, nobodies dying and it seems like everything is in its place. So what could be going on? It’s gotta be a someone stealing and replacing it!” Gareth crossed his arms, looking at him with a glare, “unless you’ve been playing us and making us look like idiots for your own amusement”

Eddie snorted, shaking his head and patting Gareth’s arm, “I’m not, I swear, why waste our time with a silly game of-”

They’re both jolted out of their seats by the loud alarms going off, they quickly get up and start running.

“Do not say I told you so right now!”

Gareth snorted, throwing up a middle finger behind him as they run.

In their haste to find the others and the cause of the alarm, they failed to notice a person slipping by them and out the door.

They only slow down once the notice not just Jeff, Frankie and Chrissy standing by the main entrance but also Wayne.

“Please tell me no one is dead” is the first thing out of Eddie’s mouth, judging by Chrissy’s eye roll and Frankie’s snort, there thankfully, isn’t anyone dead.

Wayne’s serious demeanor breaks a little by the crack of a smile but still keeps the serious look on his face, “no one is dead, but there was a few things stolen. My boy, aren’t you supposed to be in charge of this problem?”

“Wayne!” Eddie whined, “I am, but everything so far has been in its place every time I check!”

The group all roll their eyes at him, “Not this time, a few pieces of jewelry was taken, your late mother’s ring and my grandfather’s near priceless necklace.”

Eddie’s heart dropped, their family heirlooms?! He could’ve sworn his mother’s ring was locked away in his room! “What idiot had to nerve to steal from us?”

Steve’s heartbeat was fast as he makes his way over to the next town, it’s been a long few hours but he couldn’t handle doing a trade within the capital this time.

Taking these pieces was a huge risk and he knew it but he needs the money. It’s his last time and attempt to make the offer, if the dealer takes and hands the money over to him, he’ll breathe easier and hopefully; his family actually survives.

He didn’t want to turn to stealing but after his siblings got sick, he had to. It was the only way. Their parents are shit and he couldn’t just stand around as both his twin and little brother got the worse and worse. Currently, he hopes at least, Robin is doing a little bit better. But Dustin has been in bed for a week straight now, even their Aunt Claudia can’t figure out what it is.

It was the last resort. He had to steal even if he tried his hardest to replace the items if they were worth next to nothing. Wasn’t too hard to get in and out of the Capital building anyway, with the Munsons being genuinely good and open.

It makes him feel a little bad for all the stealing. But it’s nothing on him panicking at his siblings health.

“I’m sorry boy, but this piece?” His dealer, Rick, jiggles the necklace again “it’s worth the money but I can’t accept it. Everyone knows it’s the Munson’s. I’d imagine they’re already letting everyone know”

Steve hope dies a little as he slumps against the counter, “what about the ring? That wasn’t even in the safe! Come on, Rick, I need the money!”

Rick held up the ring again, it’s a beautiful ruby with black gold accents.

He couldn’t believe it when he saw it, just under a simple glass case with no alarm attached to it. Not even a lock, just sitting on a shelf in the random room he hid in after grabbing the bracelet.

“Yeah this could be worth something, maybe a few hundred.” Rick nods to himself and slipped the ring back in the box, “deal?”

“Just a few hundred? But I need more!” The bills piling on their table back at home was definitely more than a few hundred, “are you absolutely sure about that bracelet?”

Rick opened his mouth, then snapped it shut as he paled. Dropping the bracelet on the floor and shoving the box away from him, “actually, boy, I can’t do either”

Steve looked at him confused, “what? You just said it was-”

He jerked when he was roughly shoved against the counter, eyes widening as he’s met with Eddie Munson. “Gotta hand it to you, managing to steal from us- from me, is impressive.”

“I-”

Eddie shook his head, a small ‘tsk-tsk’ coming out of his mouth. He let go of him and grabbed the box, “This? This is mine.”

His heart was beating fast, that ring was supposed to get him- get Dustin the help he needed. And now it’s being shoved into Eddie’s pocket, “But I need the money!” He blurts out and cringes at how whiney he sounds.

Eddie scruffs and let’s go of him, stepping away and crossing his arms, “oh, for what? Drugs? Payment back to some other shady person? You like all the other bandits and idiots?” He looks him up and down, “sure don’t look like them”

Steve looks away, his cheeks burning and his hands shaking. “Wish it was that simple” he mutters to himself, he wouldn’t be here at all if it was drugs he needed.

“What was that?”

“I said,” Steve shook his head, “I wish it was that simple, look, can I go? Rick wouldn’t take the necklace and you already took the damn ring back.” He grits his teeth, holding back a breakdown he’s absolutely ready to have.

Eddie frowned, seeing the guy tense up and red marks form on his arm from his own hands. “Uh, yeah, but don’t come anywhere near the capital building again. Do you understand?”

“Yeah, yep. Got it.” Steve nodded, blinking hard to stop the tears, already thinking; Not with Dustin’s health issues and Robin’s panicking. “Like I’ll be able to go anywhere” he muttered out, making his way away from his last hope.

He can feel eyes on him as he manages to hold himself together, putting off the inevitable until he’s out of sight and alone. Once he’s completely out of sight of Eddie, he lets the tears fall.

“Good job, Steve, you’re even a shit bandit” he huffs a pathetic laugh as he roughly wipes his eyes, “can’t even make enough to help your brother”

Making his way into the alley, he finds a spot out of sight to continue his pity party before he has to go home and figure out a new plan. Pulling his legs up against his chest, he tries to blink away the tears and hold his sobs in.

Hiding his face in his knees, he doesn’t quite hear the footsteps come up to him. Moving his head to rub his arm against his eyes, he finally notices the feet next to him.

Freezing, he looks up, finding Eddie Munson.

“So, Steve,” Eddie shoves his hands in his pockets, “I’m a little curious, if you were just stealing for drugs you wouldn’t be having a breakdown beside a dumpster.”

“how would you know?” He bites out, “my dealer could’ve left”

Eddie laughs, “yeah, I’m sure this is the reaction someone has after getting their fix. Come on,” he held out a hand and Steve eyed it, “I’m not going to hurt or arrest you.”

That didn’t exactly ease anything but this is a low moment for him, so he grabs it and Eddie easily helps him up.

“So?”

Eddie raised an eyebrow, his lips twitching into a smile, “So, what?”

“Why are you out here, you already got your jewelry back and you think I’m doing drugs” he crossed his arms, ignoring how hot his face feels from both his breakdown and the fact that Eddie hasn’t moved away from him.

“I told you I’m curious,” Eddie shrugged, taking a step back only to lean against the wall, “I overheard you say something about being a shit bandit, it got me interested. So, what lead you to stealing?”

Steve mirrors him and leans against the dumpster, looking at him for a second before sighing and tipping his head back. Closing his eyes for a second, “It was my last decision, my parents are shit and my aunt’s job doesn’t pay enough for my siblings. So, I resorted to stealing because my brother is getting worse”

He refuses to actually look at Eddie now, knows the look he’ll get. It’s the same look he’s been getting for weeks now, almost months now. Always “oh you poor boy” and “maybe it’s time to give up” from neighbors and strangers alike because they think Dustin won’t survive.

“Oh man” Eddie whispers and Steve can only hear it because of how quiet it is in the ally, Eddie clears his throat and out of the corner of his eye sees Eddie shift, “Is he sick? Is he dying? That’s why you were stealing?”

“He’s not dying!” He snapped with a glare, his hands in fists, “He’s- he’s going to be okay. I just, just gotta,” his eyes are watery again and he takes in a sharp breath, “he’s not dying!”

“Yeah, yeah, of course.” Eddie has his hands raised and inching closer to him, “he’s not dying and I’m going to help, okay? I’ll help you.”

He shakes his head, let’s out a laugh or maybe a sob, he can’t tell anymore, “oh yeah? How?”

“I’m not sure, yet! But I can help, come on, let me help you.”

Entering the Capital building in the main entrance is a bit strange, especially after all the times he’s entered by windows and side doors. It was even more jarring to be entering with Eddie Munson.

“Eddie, who’s this?”

He nearly jumped at the new voice, looking behind them to find Wayne Munson coming up to them. He paled at seeing him, knowing he stole from this man and that his nephew is standing next to him who caught him stealing.

“Oh! Wayne, this is Stevie, he’s a new friend” Eddie spun around and pulled him closer to him, “I’m helping him and his brother out”

Wayne only raised an eyebrow at Eddie before looking at Steve, then he looked back at Eddie, “This the one who stole?”

Eddie gasped dramatically, tightening his arm around him, “Wayne! Of course not, I just so happened to catch him having a moment of weakness. Now i’m off to show him around and then we’re going to his place and-”

“Son, you ramblin’ like that gives ya away. What’s going on?” Wayne interrupted him, shaking his head and crossing his arms, “Be honest now”

Eddie felt Steve tense up as he squeezed his shoulders before moving his arm, “Uncle, look. Could we possibly talk about this in my room?”

Wayne’s face grows concerned, looking back and forth between him and Steve before nodding. Eddie smiles and grabs Steve’s hand to lead them towards his room, once inside Eddie only lets go of Steve’s hand to close his door and set the ring back in its place.

“Eddie,” Wayne eyes the ring and then at Steve who’s focus is only on the glass case again, “Ya think I’m gonna believe that ya just helping him out?”

“Look sir, I’m-”

“Wayne, I’m serious-”

Eddie and Steve looked at each other and Wayne shook his head at both of them, “Steve, was it? If ya did steal from us, be honest”

Steve paled and nodded, his heart sinking already. “I’m sorry sir”

“Wayne, we can’t punish him,” Eddie shifted to stand closer to Steve, “I have the jewelry, isn’t- can’t we let him go?”

Wayne sighed, knowing his nephew’s bleeding heart, “Steal anything else?”

Steve cringed, pulling his arms up to wrap around himself, focusing his eyes on the glass case to avoid looking at either Munson. “Yes, sir”

“For good reason, Wayne!”

“How much?” Wayne ignored Eddie and stared at Steve, watching as the boy gripped his arm harder and blink several times, clearly trying to get tears away. “How much did you steal?”

“A few pieces of jewelry, sir.”

Wayne raised an eyebrow and looked at Eddie hand up in question, “and how much did you get”

Steve cleared his throat, “about two hundred, sir.” He avoided their gazes but looked around to catch a peek, Eddie frowning and Wayne sending Eddie a pointed look. “I- I still have it”

“Steve no,” Eddie took a step closer, “Wayne you don’t- Wayne, his brother is sick. He needs the money and the stuff he stole- they aren’t that important to us”

It was silent and Eddie felt his face get hot, he looked away from Steve and back at his uncle, “it’s okay, I swear, the dealer he was selling to is caught- he’s being arrested as we speak. I have the pieces we cherish most back. Now,” he spins back around not waiting for Wayne’s response, “I’m going to help Steve and his family, got it?”

Three Months Later

There was something going on, Eddie can already tell and a smile is forming as the giggling behind him gets louder. He’s not sure what it is but he can’t wait to find out what it is.

The giggling is right behind him and he spins, his face breaking into a wide smile at the brothers in a pose to grab him standing there. Robin and Jeff next to them rolling their eyes but smiling.

“My loves!”

Steve and Dustin grinning wide as Eddie throws his arms around them, holding them close and his smile is starting to hurt his face as Steve presses a kiss to his cheek.

~~~

So. Uh. This wasn’t supposed to be this long and if I keep going it won’t stop. So! Here’s a thing that doesn’t have an exact time period, it’s definitely not set in the 80s and I went and switched roles up. OH AND IMPORTANT INFORMATION: Steve & Robin are a year apart, Dustin is the baby of the family. Don’t ask me what his issue was it was serious tho. Eddie’s a few years older than Steve. They got together only once Dustin was completely healthy. Eddie totally fell first and Steve wasn’t very far behind him. (Eddie also fell harder toooo)

Also I know the ending is kinda blah haha sorry like I said it wouldn’t end 🤣

No pressure tags: @simplebtromance @tartarusknight @zerokrox-blog @steddieas-shegoes @eriquin

TAGLIST:

@spectrum-spectre @itsfreakingbats @mysticcrownshipper @artiststarme @thereindeerlady @justforthedead89 @ronniescontinuum @freyaforestafay @littlewildflowerkitten @estrellami-1 @gregre369 @bookworm0690 @flustratedcas @carlprocastinator1000 @marvelmwah @solliesolesito @navnae @grimmfitzz @strangersteddierthings

[loreoftheforgotten]

How i think the batfamily acts after getting their wisdom teeth removed

written by someone who’s had to have both their top and bottom wisdom teeth removed at two different times because the world hates me and wanted me to go through it twice i guess

okay so first of all bruce, this man has an insane tolerance for pain and tbh i think the only person able to get him to listen to this doctors instructions is alfred. and it’s not like he’s ignoring the instructions on purpose, he just isn’t really aware of how much pain he’s in because of his pain tolerance so he pretty much assumes he’s just healed faster than normal (also he doesn’t swell much for some reason so again, he just kinda assumes he’s fine)

next up, dick! tbh i feel like he’d legitimately have a bad time with it. idk why but i just think he would. he’d get super swollen and sore, and probably wouldn’t be able to talk for a few days without some kind of pain. although he absolutely would take advantage of everyone doting on him to get whatever he wants. it helps that he looks like a chipmunk for like a week after getting his wisdom teeth removed and the pictures make great blackmail material

and cass! cass and barbara come home one day with cass looking super swollen. everyone’s super worried bc wtf!!?? turns out she asked barbara to take her to get her wisdom teeth removed bc they were causing her some pain. that’s basically it, she’s a bit swollen for a bit and in some pain, but otherwise she heals fine. she does sorta take advantage of everyone looking after her, but honestly she just kinda chills in her room to recuperate while she reads and catches up on some shows she’s been wanting to watch.

now jason. okay listen, hear me out. he originally gets both his top and bottom wisdom teeth removed after being taken in by bruce. his experience is sorta average tbh, maybe a bit slow on the healing part of it bc of his already recovering health from being a street kid. but after he comes back from the dead and gets chucked into the lazarus pit he starts getting some pain in his mouth. turns out the lazarus pit regenerated his wisdom teeth. so basically jason has to get them taken out twice and no one will let him live it down

next on the list is tim. tim probably gets his taken out after he looses his spleen so someone sticks with him 24/7 just to make sure he’s healing properly and shit. it probably takes him a bit longer to heal and i feel like he would have a bit more pain than average but otherwise he heals perfectly fine. he probably tries to stay at drake manor at first, but dick convinces him to stay at wayne manor so that they can keep an eye on him.

okay now steph! she’s the only person in the batfamily that doesn’t need to get both her top and bottom removed. she just needs to get her top wisdom teeth removed and everyone hates her for it because they all had to do all four. like dick, she totally takes advantage of everyone doting on her while she heals. she spends most of her time at wayne manor just sprawled out on one of the couches and makes bruce buy her the best ice cream money can buy.

okay now for damian. he straight up doesn’t need to get his wisdom teeth removed. like they aren’t a problem at all and he brags about it constantly. although, jason ends up punching damian in the face when jason got his removed for the second time and damian made fun of him for it. he spends the next few days moping on the couch with an ice pack pressed up against his swollen cheek while jason sends him shit eating grins.

and finally duke. my younger sister had to get her wisdom teeth removed before getting her braces on bc she had to do another surgery on some other teeth and they figured they’d just do it all at once to get it over with and i feel like duke would be the same. so like he’d get his wisdom teeth removed at like 13/14 and just have an average time healing. when the other batfamily members ask him about his wisdom teeth he just shrugs and goes “i got them removed years ago” which makes the rest of them upset because they like having blackmail material of how swollen people get after getting their wisdom teeth removed and they can’t do that with duke now