#nobody fucking noticed when he disappeared apart from mary beth

[arthursfuckinghat]

The worst part about playing rdr2 again is knowing who's going to die, how they're going to die, when they're going to die, and not be able to do a single thing about it

[livsoulsecrets]

It’s us - Batwoman fic

Sumary: Mary is broken after Kate goes missing and Luke tries to be there for her.

 Luke hasn’t talked to Mary since Kate disappeared. He saw her many times, yes, but they didn’t exchange a word. They both carried her secret and, therefore, they both felt specially lost with her being gone. Luke had tried to, but no words came to his mind when he looked at Mary’s desperate face every time they found out there were no news about her sister.

 He meets her again in the Crows’ headquarters for an update on the searches for Kate. They are taken to Jacob’s office by him in complete silence.  The man was a wreck, Luke knew, but did his best to stay strong for Mary. In a falsely calm tone, he told Luke and his daughter they still didn’t know where Kate was. The Crows were sweeping all of Gotham and the nearby cities, being led by Sophie and Julia, and would not stop until finding her, Jacob assured.

 Luke was sure he meant what he said and trusted both women a lot. Still, it had been three whole days with no sign of Kate, not a clue about her whereabouts. His fear was bottling up inside him, making Luke feel powerless. 

 He was Kate’s guidance when she went out to fight whoever stood in her way. Luke was good at it: giving directions, finding shortcuts, thinking fast to help her. Without Kate by his side, he didn’t know what to do. He had been trying to find her by himself, but his searches had ended on dead ends and Julia had assured him the Crows had enough technology to find anybody. 

 But that was three days ago, when they assumed Kate had either went into a secret vacation or been taken by some crazy bad guy that they could capture. Right now, Luke couldn’t shake the feeling something awful had happened and he was the one supposed to find his friend. He was the one who should be out there looking for her, after all, Luke knew more about her than most in this building. More than even Jacob himself. The only other person who came close was Mary. 

 He turned to her, trying to think of something to say: a word of comfort, perhaps? A plan of action? Anything, anything at all, he begged his own brain to come through and spite the words out, but nothing came. 

 Mary suddenly got up from the chair, startling Luke. He could see tears forming in her face when she walked towards the door. Jacob calls after her, but she is gone before either of them can do anything.

 Luke leaves shortly after, making his way back to the Wayne Tower. He doesn’t know where else to go.

 He finds Mary sitting in Kate’s chair. 

 It’s not a surprise, when he really thinks about it. Kate spent a lot of time here, especially in the last few weeks, ever since Mary joined their secret mission. It made sense she would seek comfort in a place that reminded her of Kate.

— Hey. — Luke says, almost kicking himself for saying something so dull after everything they had been through the last few days. Mary looks up, but she barely registers him being there. — Are you... I mean, I know you’re not okay, but do you need something? Is there anything I can do to help? — Luke knows he’s stalling, but he can’t help it, his nerves getting the best of him at seeing how devastated Mary looks.

— Can you make it stop? — She questions, slowly getting up from the chair and walking towards him.

— Stop what? — He asks, confused. Mary stops right in front of him, her eyes cast down.

— Stop this fucking nightmare from happening to me again. — She completes her question and Luke doesn’t have an answer to it, so he stays quiet. Mary shakes her head.

— Like I thought... Nobody can stop it. — She takes a deep breath and Luke fears what’s about to come, wondering if he can handle seeing Mary fall apart right in front of him. — I keep losing everyone I love. — Her voice is small, not sounding like her own at all. He needs to fight back his own tears. Mary is the kindest person he knows, she should never, ever feel this type of pain (the type he knew all too well).

— Fuck, I lost my dad when I was so young I can barely remember him. My mom died right in front of me... And Beth? I lost her before even knowing her. Then I got her back for some miracle only to have her dying too. Now, Kate is gone. She’s gone and I don’t know if I will ever see her again... I can’t keep doing this, I can’t keep loving people only to... Only to fucking lose them again. — Her voice is shaking, tears streaming down her face. Luke has never seen Mary so broken, not even in the aftermath of her mom’s death. Kate disappearing brought back all the anger and hurt she had buried deep inside herself, it appeared.

 Luke doesn’t know what to do, he’s not sure if Mary even wants him to do anything. Nonetheless, he can’t just stand still while his friend breaks down in front of him. Before he can properly register it, his body is moving forward and clashing against Mary’s. She doesn’t move for some seconds, struggling against him until, finally, Mary collapsed into him, sobbing in his arms. They slid down to the floor, the girl’s cry echoing in the office Kate used to spend so much time in.

— It’s okay, I got you. It’s okay. — He repeats over and over again even though nothing is okay, even though his heart is also breaking at the thought of never seeing Kate again. He clings to those words as if he’s whispering them to himself, not only to Mary. The only thing that keeps Luke from falling apart is his unexplainable need to support Mary through her pain. 

 Luke holds Mary tightly until she stops sobbing, until her breath is still shaky, but constant again, until she doesn’t have it on her anymore to fight his offer of comfort. 

— Mary, look at me. Hey, look at me. — Luke asks, backing away just enough to stare at her eyes, his hands holding hers. He is not sure where he gets the strength from, but he keeps his voice firm when he talks again, not a ounce of dread slipping into it. — You will see Kate again, we will find her, do you hear me? I will look for her for however long it takes and I will bring her home, I promise. — Mary stares at him, exhaustion written all over her face. 

— You can’t promise me that, Luke. — Her voice cracks when she mouths his name.

— I know I can’t, but I will anyway. — He answers, Mary’s eyes piercing his, an hesitant flame of hope firing up inside them. — Because I won’t let you lose anybody else. I will find your sister, Mary.

 New tears are forming in her face and, for a split second, Luke wonders if he misread the fire in her eyes, until she throws her arms against his neck to hug him. Mary buries her face in his neck and he needs a second to process the desperation with which she holds on to him.

— I don’t know why, but I believe you. — Mary whispers, her voice muffled. — If anybody can do that, it’s you.

— It’s us, Mary. We are her team, remember? If anybody can bring Kate home, it’s us. — Luke answers, hope building up inside himself too, even against his best judgment. Mary is the one to pull away first this time, wiping the tears out of her face with determination. Mary holds her chin up high, in the way she always does when she’s getting ready to win an argument, he notices.

— So, where do we start? — Mary asks. Her eyes are still red and teary, her face is swollen from all the crying, and they are both sitting on the floor a couple minutes after a meltdown. Still, she never looked as brave as she does right now, he thinks.

 Despite the fear crippling inside of him, Luke finds himself smiling at Mary. He has a thousand different doubts and concerns about Kate going through his mind, but he grounds himself by remembering the words he told Mary just before.

 If anyone can find Kate, it’s them.

 They are Kate’s family. And they will not stop until they bring her home.