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#okay so: obviously there's the 'waking up in cadmus'
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superboy: the man of tomorrow 1 spoilers
(it's just one panel but below the cut just in case)
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memory identification: go!
#dc spoilers#memory identification CHALLENGE#okay so: obviously there's the 'waking up in cadmus'#the friends don't seem like a reference to anything - i mean ig it could be donna's death but i think they're just a generic memory#or possibly it's yj:dc and there's just nothing that actually happened to reference?#i think that's tara dying#and then the last one: match punching him?or is it superboy-prime punching him?#(to be conner is to be constantly getting punched by alternate superboys dsfdsfs)#anyway (despite this one angsty panel) this was fun and zippy#v. light-hearted and not a whole lot to it - looks like it'll be space adventure + punching-stuff#there isn't enough here to really hook me but the art is cute and conner's narration is bouncy#so if they keep putting it on the app i'll probably keep reading#i really wish. mm. okay WARNING RANT INCOMING this is kind of tangential and maybe it's just the comics that i pick up#but i feel like of the few modern comics i've picked up - a lot of them are very light on the characters having concrete problems#even problems as simple as 'getting bad grades in school' or 'have to lie to my dad' or 'need a job to pay the rent'#like. i feel like tim in robin '93 had concrete problems that couldn't be solved with a pep talk and 'you just gotta believe in yourself'#dick in nightwing '97 - same! concrete personal life problems that could not be resolved by a pep talk!#and i really miss. like. characters experiencing dilemmas or having to make trade-offs#and just generally i miss a bit more realism - like. conner feels unneeded. okay? so?#shouldn't he be going to school or something? why is costume-stuff top of mind? where are the authority figures/external forces?#i think these kinds of intensely-internal problems can work in non-visual fiction bc you're in the character's head BUT#comics are largely visual and everything with real emotional punch works way better if it's concrete things that i can see#anyway that's just my personal preferences though and it's not superboy's fault!#conner's never been a realistic character - he had goofy merchandising and was a kid celebrity and so forth#and although i didn't read his preboot solo i don't think he ever went to school there either? except in adventure comics?#so he seems very well-suited to plucky space-adventure#and i wish him the best. go forth and prosper conner!! punch those aliens!!
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nerdpoe · 11 months
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DC x DP au
Ra’s successfully clones Tim, ages the clone up to Tim’s current age, but the clone won’t fucking wake up. There’s brain activity, but the Lazarus solution he’d been shoving into the body seemed to prevent it from having a soul, so to speak.
He makes a deal with a demon, and manages to piss the demon off.
The demon, feeling offended, decides to play By The Letter of the Law.
Okay, sure. He’ll shove a soul in the body. A strong soul, per the deal. But Ra’s, you never specified if the soul had to be strictly human, which the Ghost King very much was not anymore. Annnnnd maybe the demon kinda also felt like the High King of Ghosts could use a break after three hundred years of non-stop bureaucracy.
So a very surprised Danny, who had followed his good buddy Beelzebub and that asshole had fucking promised him an adventure, wakes up in a human body. Again. And he isn’t a halfa, he’s just human with ghost powers, and he feels a pull to obey this obviously evil guy in green? Also there’s like ecto-contaminated water everywhere and that’s weird.
The dude just ordered him to Gotham so like, sure. Danny’d take the fuckin get out of jail free card, cities were easy to vanish in.
Danny escapes, Tim finds out he exists, and they hatch a plan.
A trail is laid out, spanning decades, and the pieces are put in place.
Danny moves into Wayne Manor, Tim stays in his penthouse, and they randomly trade places.
The plan?
According to every single legal paper in existence, Daniel Janus Drake and Timothy Jackson Drake have always been identical twins. All online info has been doctored, including photos. Bruce’s adoption papers have been copied and altered, making it so that he adopted Daniel as well as Timothy.
Both Danny and Tim have the same training (thank you CADMUS tech for the brain download tech) and the same memories (at least concerning Tim’s life). They both know how to fight, and the only difference is that one of them is a meta, which was included on the documents they made.
They divide up the time with the Batfam from Tim’s memories, deciding which event they’d say was Danny and which was Tim that had attended. 
All they have to do is switch when convenient and cover for each other, and see how long it takes for the Batfam to realize that there’s fucking two of them, and watch the Batfam tear themselves apart arguing over whether or not they’d always known who was Danny and who was Tim.
Cass figures it out first, of course.
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camslightstories · 3 years
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Tolerate it - Part 3
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Notes: I wanted to thank all of you for the love and support, it means a lot. I don't think my writing is very good, but I been improving and I'm really glad you guys liked it. I will be updating tomorrow. Thank you for reading and I hope you like it
I added a prompt list to my page, so if you have any request you can use that for your idea, or if you have already one then its okay. I write for everything. If you have any request just tell me I will gladly write it. I receive any type of feedback, comments and request. Have a great day.
Lena Luthor x reader, Kara Danvers x reader, Alex Danvers x reader. Baby Danvers. 
The afternoon came around and the sunlight illuminated the house. Boxes of Christmas decorations were piled in the living room. The soft Frank Ocean music was heard in the background. The smell of chocolate occupied the house.
A few hours after you left, your mom stood in the kitchen. With the phone on her ear as she waited for your sister to pick it up. Her eyes ranked over the entrance of the house, as she remembered how weirdly you were acting. 
The hand dribbling in your thigh, the way you didn't talk more of a sentence. Your constant staring at the beach is the same thing you did without knowing as a kid when your father died. The silence as you worked putting the boxes away, was another giveaway since every time you would be doing anything you would hum a song. 
The way you awkwardly answered when she asked you about Lena, and you didn't fangirl over her as you always did, even though the two of you were in a relationship. The way your glance painfully glanced at certain places and tears would threaten to come out, as you immediately brushed off. 
She knew you enough to tell you were different, and that is why she was calling. She knew one of your sisters would obviously know something about it. The long phone rang a few times before Alex picked up.“Danvers, speaking”
“Hey sweetie, how are you? How is Maggie?” Your mom responded.
The redhead said as she smiled. After a time, their relationship grew stronger. “Hi mom, we're both good, today is our day off, and you?” 
Eliza mentioned as she took a sip of her chocolate.“That's great honey, I'm good, your sister came to visit me today”
“Yeah, Kara told me she was going to go since she needs an interview for the girl she is mentoring after New Years'. But I thought she was going on Saturday” Alex responded as she nodded to Maggie to not stop the TV.
“No honey, Y/N. She came to put some boxes away in the storage.” Your mom responded as she put her mug on the kitchen island.
“Ohh I thought she had to work on the pastries for the DEO gala tomorrow and the classes,” Alex said confused. You guys told each other everything, from you having a dumb thought to you accomplishing your dreams.
“No, she didn't mention it. She seemed different to Alex, she just didn't seem as herself” Your mom mentioned.
“What do you mean mom?”Alex said as she sat up on the couch, Maggie stopped the movie and stared in worry at her fiance.
Eliza said “Well she put at least 12 boxes away and she was just not herself, she kept staring at the ocean. And when I mention Lena she just awkwardly answered trying to avoid her”
“That's weird” Alex commented after mouthing to her fiance ‘Y/N’ after Maggie asked what was wrong.
“Yeah, I wanted to ask you if something happened. Because Alex she hasn't been like that since Jeremiah” Your mom said as she glanced outside to see where you sat.
“Nothing has happened that I know of. But I will go check on her. Don't worry okay mom? I will call you later” The redhead responded as she got up.
“Be safe, Sweetie and I love you, say hi to Maggie for me” Your mom concluded as she walked outside to see your drumsticks on the storage.
Your sister said, before ending the call, as she turned to Maggie. “I love you too, okay mom” 
Maggie stared at her fiance, as she asked “What's wrong with baby Danvers?”
“Mom said she was different, she said she was acting like when Dad died,” The redhead said with tears. You had felt in a silent depression when Jeremiah died, and it left slowly after a few years. 
She had told you when you were born she was going to protect you at all cost, and when Kara entered the Danvers family the blonde did the same. And you as the baby of the family you promised yourself you were going to protect you as they did to you, and you were going to sacrifice everything if it meant for them to be okay and happy.
Maggie knew that the bond between the three of you was strong, and she had witnessed it various of times. When Alex was kidnapped, while she and Kara were fighting you were talking to Alex the whole time, and even offer yourself to change places with the guy’s father confessing to a murder you didn't do.
Or when Kara had solar flares you were helicoptering around her, you would check out what she would eat, or where she was going, everything. And when both of them got into a Life or Death situation with Cadmus you had yelled at them until exhaustion. And cried for the next week clinging to them from waking up to sleeping.
And when you got hurt, Kara and Alex would stop everything just to comfort you. When Barry broke up with you, she, Winn, and James had to stop Kara and Alex from going to beat him up because he broke your heart as he chose Iris over you.
Maggie and Alex were walking down the street, before entering JJ’s, one of your workplaces. The redhead furrowed her eyebrows when she noticed a new girl at the counter doing her job. Maggie noticed Amelia on the register working and signaled Alex to talk directly to the manager. 
“Hey Alex, Maggie. How can I help you guys?” The brunette said as she noticed the couple.
Alex responded as she looked around “Hey Am, I'm looking for Y/N, I thought she had an afternoon shift, or is she at the school?”
“She didn't tell you?” Amelia commented surprised.
Alex recountered worried “Tell me what?”
“She was fired from the school two weeks ago since they found a ‘better fitting music teacher’ and well JJ fired her this morning after she slept in here last night” The brunette mentioned.
Maggie and Alex begin surprised and worried about the newfound information. Alex started to think about the trust and abandonment issues you had. Maggie noticed her partner going into deep thought so she decided to take over the conversation.
“Wow, that's weird. Do you know where she might be?” The Latina asked.
Amelia answered as she pointed to a jewelry store at the front of the street.“She had me put some of her checks in Mr. Rogers name, she might be there”
“Thank you, Lia, see you,” The couple said as they nodded. The brunette nodded with a smile and kept working.
The streets in National City had always been busy, cars honking up and down the road, some people would often compare it to New York. The daylight of the afternoon illuminated the streets. The cold air and breeze still accompanied people even when the sunlight was up. 
“Good afternoon, to my favorite couple,” The old man said behind the counter with a smile, as Alex and Maggie entered.
Alex responded as she smiled and hugged the man. She had his help to find the perfect ring for Maggie, and now he was making their wedding bands “Hello Mr. Rogers, good afternoon”  
“I was going to call you Danvers” The man commented. 
Alex responded with a worried glance. “Why?”
“Well, your sister paid for outrageous engagement right, and then she came by this morning saying she didn't want it anymore and that I could donate all the money to the orphanage,” He said as he reclined on the counter, Maggie and Alex sharing a look of surprise. 
“She did what?”Alex dropped her jaw in surprise, making Maggie roll her eyes as she softly hit her fiance on the shoulder. Alex came out of her shock, just to speak up almost yelling.
“Yeah a $25 thousand ring, she paid in the last 2 years” Mr. Rogers commented, making your sister and Maggie enter in shock, not being able to say anything. 
“Let me get it for you so you can see the piece of art,” The old man said as he laughed going inside the back of the store. 
“Did you know she was going to propose?”The couple looked at each other before, asking millions of questions with their glances. Maggie recuperated herself first, before speaking up. 
“No, I knew she was in love with Lena but not that she was going to propose” Alex mentioned, as she clenched her jaw. 
How could you not tell her?, What other thing were you hiding? Weren't you supposed to tell her about things like this?, Weren't you supposed to trust her with everything?
“Here it is ladies”. Mr. Rogers said as he put in the counter a black box, Breaking Alex out of her thoughts, opening it when the couple came closer. 
Both of the women stared at the silver ring. The ring was simple but sophisticated. The diamond was but between a small infinite form. Alex and Maggie exclaimed at the same time. It was small, simple, and perfect for Lena. 
“Ohh wow,” Alex said.
Maggie commented “That looks so much like Lena”
The old man said, breaking them out of shock. Giving them 5 envelopes, “Do I still give the money to the orphanage? She also left this for you”
“Yes sir, thank you, I will see you around Mr. Rogers,” Alex responded before sighing as she checked the letters, no daring to open the one with her name. There were five letters in total, with your handwriting. One for Lena, one for Maggie, one for your mom, and the other two for each of your sisters.
The man said with a wave, making the couple smiled.“Bye girls”
After a few minutes, of silence and thinking. Maggie started to think as a Detective recurring every single thing you did. “Okay let's go back and think, She was fired two weeks ago from begin a music teacher which was her primal income, she didn't tell anyone”
“Yes, then last night she slept at the bakery when she had a shared apartment with Lena, her girlfriend. And if they had fought she would have asked Kara or me to spend the night at our apartments.” Alex responded, stopping, seeing her fiance working technique.
Maggie said as pointing out each action. They knew you would often make decisions on feelings but this was out of your league. Leaving is not something you would do, your trust and abandonment issues making sure of that. “Because she slept overnight at the store, JJ fired her today, which she didn't tell anyone, then she canceled her perfect engagement ring order for Lena of 25 thousand dollars and told Mr. Rogers to give the money to the orphanage. Which was at least 2 years of her work” 
“Then she gives five letters to Mr. Rogers and asked him to give it to us and then she went to Mom's, with enough boxes to put away all of her things. Acting differently like when my dad died.” Alex said as she finished, taking a big breath, she knew something was wrong and now she didn't know what to do. She was mad at you but she was also scared of everything that has happened, and how haven't break.
“You don't think it has to do anything with Kara don't you?” Your sister said after Maggie and she shared a knowing look. Kara was also in love with Lena, her best friend. 
After 2 years of seeing you two together, the blonde had figured out. And she knew the blonde was hurting, when she saw Lena with someone else, better said with you. Alex didn't want to think about the fact that Lena somehow loves Kara too, and that if something happened you would be heartbroken, lost, and more. 
She couldn't think like that because she knew you would give up anything so that they could be happy and okay. And if you were hurting, Kara would be hurting too, knowing she hurt you. And she would have to stand at the side, as both of you were hurting because she couldn't do anything.
But why the letters? Why not a text, a call something? Why did you ask someone to give them? There was something that wasn't adding up.
The redhead was pulled out of her thoughts when her phone started to ring again, hoping it would be you. But was greeted with your sister's name on her screen. The redhead shared a look with Maggie before answering the phone.“Kar?”
The line was silent for a few seconds before the blonde blurted out. Making the redhead sighed, there it was.“Yesterday, I told Lena I love her”
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Wherever the Winds Take You: Chapter 13
A/N: Okay, not gonna lie, didn’t really edit this one much. It’s super duper short, sticks pretty close to the episode, and it’s just been a week. So I apologize for any spelling errors or awkward phrasing. But otherwise, I hope you all like it! Thank you so much for your continued support of my shameless guilty pleasure.
Santa Prisca July 22 21:10
The tunnel remained dark and cold for a few minutes, the only sounds being the ragged breaths of six young heroes and the shuffle of feet against stone. All members collectively could hear their own heartbeat in their ears, and felt the adrenaline pumping through their veins.
Finally, a loud crack broke the silence and an eerie red glow emitted from the glowstick that Aqualad held and promptly tossed to the ground. Every member of the team stood there; Kid Flash and Zephyr showing the most wear, as the non-humans held good composure and Robin stood silently, staring at the barricade of rock and debris that separated the team from the way they came.
After a moment, however, Robin finally broke the silence.
“How could my first mission as leader go so wrong?”
“You do have the most experience, but perhaps that is exactly what has left you unprepared.” Aqualad spoke. “Fighting alongside Batman, your roles are defined. You two do not need to talk. But this team is new, and a leader must be clear, explicit. He cannot vanish and expect others to play parts in an unknown plan.”
Robin whirled around, snarled and poison-tongued. “Oh, so I’m supposed to hold everyone’s hands?!” The boy let out a growl of frustration and glared down at the ground. But then, after a moment, the tension in his shoulders released and his form slumped slightly. “Oh, who am I kidding? You should lead us, Kaldur. You’re the only one who can.”
“Please! I can run circles-” Kid Flash’s outburst was cut off by Robin’s now much calmer tone. “Wally, come on. You know he’s the one.” The young boy’s eyes lifted to meet his elder’s. “We all do.”
“Hello, Megan! It’s so obvious!” M’gann chirped.
“Could’a told you.” Superboy shrugged.
Kaldur’s eyes met Lina’s knowing gaze. “You know you have my vote.”
Everyone turned to Wally, who stood awkwardly for a moment before sighing in resignation. “Okay!”
“Then I accept the burden,” Kaldur nodded, stepping towards Robin and placing a hand on the younger boy’s shoulder, “until you are ready to lift it from my shoulders. You were born to lead this team, maybe not now, but soon.” Robin nodded, his normal smile returning to his face.
Kaldur turned back to speak to the team as a whole. “Alright, our first priority is preventing that shipment from leaving this island.”
“Funny,” Robin smirked, “I had the same thought.”
As the group began to dash down the tunnel’s length, they began to compare notes.
“Robin and I discovered data about the new shipments on a computer in the warehouse.” Kid Flash spoke up. “It looks like Kobra has combined Venom and the Blockbuster formula from Cadmus, making Venom three times as strong and permanent.”  
“So obviously Kobra attacked Bane’s Satna Prisca to have an unlimited supply of the Venom formula, making it able to create the new superformula.” Robin explained. “Which explains how normal supply chains have been cut off if--it’s for a whole new product. But it doesn’t explain how Kobra got his hands on Dr. Desmond’s formula.”
“We discovered that the supplier arriving today was the villain, Sportsmaster.” Aqualad nodded.
Robin pulled up his holo-computer. “Okay, so that must mean Sportsmaster is the supplier and buyer...but it still doesn’t track. He’s a gun for hire, he doesn’t have the power to acquire the blockbuster formula or to get Kobra to do his dirty work.”
“And neither of them have the chops to bond blockbuster with venom. That took some major nerdage.” Kid Flash chimed in.
“I believe the expression is…” As the team arrived at the mouth of the entrance, they were met with the sight of Bane standing there, finishing pumping himself with his normal venom serum which connected from a tube from his arm to the base of his skull, and seemed to enhance his muscle to an inhuman amount. With a sigh of relief, the masked villain dropped the vial formerly containing venom and gazed down at the team of young heroes with a crazed look in his eyes. “‘tip of the iceberg’.”
“Halt, ninos.” Bane growled and revealed a handheld trigger in his grasp. “I’m feeling...explosive.” Simultaneous beeping alerted the team to gaze up, revealing a large number of charged explosives around the mouth of the tunnel.
“You betrayed us, why?” Aqualad spoke, in a tone that-to anyone that knew him-sounded very fake. Bane, however, didn’t seem to notice the falseness. While Bane was distracted, the Atlantean reached out via the telepathic link. “Kid, you’ll need a running start.”
“I want my factory back!” Bane began to monologue. “So I forced you into a situation where you would either take down my enemies for me, or die trying. If the latter, the Justice League would certainly have come to avenge their sidekicks. And when the smoke cleared, Santa Prisca would be mine once more...blowing the tunnel with you inside, should have the same effects.”
Caught in his own monologue, Bane didn’t see the dark blue that flew by him.
“With what?” Kid Flash suddenly asked, now suddenly behind the hulking man and holding the hand-held trigger that had just been in Bane’s grasp. “This trigger thingy?”
Bane let out a loud growl and pulled back to land a strong punch to the speedster, but promptly found himself being lifted off his feet by an invisible force. Being slowly turned around, Bane saw a smiling Miss Martain standing under him, lifting him telekinetically with a raised hand.
“Finally,” Superboy smirked as he stepped forward, and cracked his knuckles. “Drop him.”
Santa Prisca July 22 21:31
Back outside the warehouse, at its helipad, we watched patiently until Sportsmaster and Kobra bid goodbye to one another. Sportsmaster was a tall, hulking man that was essentially all muscle, who wore a signature goalie mask over his face, but otherwise had no notable physical traits. Kobra, on the other hand, has an almost just as tall figure with an equally as strong build, although his muscles were not nearly as hulking as his compatriots’ and hid his figure under a dark crimson cloak. His pale skin was almost anemic and seemed to glow under the light of the moon, but somehow didn’t make him look sickly. Overall, the aura around him made Zephyr’s spine tingle uncomfortably.
“This Kobra man…” Zephyr whispered from her spot in the shadows next to Robin, Kid Flash, and Aqualad. “I do not like his vibe.”
Robin snickered quietly. “Have you liked any villains’ ‘vibe’ before?”
The young girl thought for a moment. “Poison Ivy.” She whispered, thinking deeply. “She is, uh, qu'est-ce que...fine as hell, tres tres bonne. Robin, why are most of your famous villains so good-looking, hm? Seems very unfair.”
This made both Robin and Kid Flash snort with laughter to the point where they had to muffle themselves.
“Do you want to trade cities Zeph’?” Robin asked, eyebrows cocked in amusement.
The young women paled, recalling the patrol she and Aqualad had done the other night. “Fair enough! No thank you!”
This made Robin chuckle a little more.
Sportsmaster began to make his way towards the helicopter, causing Aqualad to give Kid Flash his signal, and the young ginger ran off at lightning speed, knocking down cultists and pulling gunfire in his wake.
“Protect the shipment!” A cult member exclaimed. Just in time for Superboy to jump and land in front of Mammoth, who stood next to Kobra.
“Go again?” The clone yelled at the hulking beast, causing it to roar and attack. However, it was promptly forced off-course by a sudden continuous force of water, controlled by Aqualad, sending him right into nearby trees. “Sorry, not the plan.”
As Mammoth roared fiercely and began to fight back against being sprayed, Zephyr flew over him, moving her arms and collecting as many of the coldest Winds she could find. The girl reached high up into the atmosphere to find the ones to complete her task and sent them crashing down onto the blast of water and onto Mammoth, freezing the water around him until slowly but eventually, he was encased in thick, frigid, ice.
At being controlled so forcefully, the Winds carrying Zephyr faltered and the girl landed on the ground in a crouching stance. “I am going to be honest with you,” She called to her new team leader as she dodged a cultist’s fire. “I did not know if that would work!” She managed to grab hold of the cultist’s gun and bashed him in the head with it, before chucking it at another cultist’s head, successfully rendering both unconscious.
“Be thankful it did then!” Aqualad yelled back as he fought his own share of cultists.
Not a moment later, the helicopter filled with products began to take off with Sportsmaster inside. Zephyr turned and prepared her Winds to go after it, just in case, but was relieved when it exploded into flames mid-air, causing it to plummet down towards the factory. Off in the distance, the figure of Sportsmaster leaping out and deploying a parachute could be seen.
As the burning helicopter dropped into the factory, it only took a moment before a deep, rumbling ‘boom’ seemed to shake the island as a whole, and flames erected from the giant metal structures. As the fire began to swallow up the entirety of the warehouses, the cultists-those who remained conscious enough to stand-began to flee from the helipad and into the forest, causing the team to turn its attention to Kobra, who stood (no longer wearing his cloak) over Robin, with a single foot pinning the boy to the ground. The cult leader seemed to scan the six teenagers carefully as if weighing his chances of success, but ultimately began to move away, removing his foot from Robin’s chest and slinking away into the shadows of the trees with a low, grumbling “another time then…”
Robin stood, and immediately darted into where Kobra had disappeared, but alas, he was gone without a trace. Slowly walking back to his team, Robin gazed up at the sizzling remains of the factory and watched the flames like at the metal for a moment, before looking back down at his comrades.
“We picked the right guy to lead.” Robin nodded with a smile at Aqualad. “...automatically making you the right guy to explain this mess to Batman!” Robin walked away, laughing, and Kaldur’s face seemed to immediately drain of any blood as fear entered his eyes.
“Don’t worry Aqualad.” M’gann piped up, floating close to her leader. “We won’t let Batman chew you out too much! Besides, I was technically the one who made the helicopter explode.”
“Yeah, don’t sweat it too much.” Wally smiled. “We’re a team now, which means we’re all gonna be killed by Bats equally!” This earned him looks from all the remaining members.
“Your bedside manner definitely could use some improvements, my friend.” Lina shook her head, but she quickly offered a supportive smile to her best friend-now leader.
Mount Justice July 23 10:01
“A simple recon mission! Observe and report!” Batman growled loudly, his tone so uniquely terrifying that it could possibly strike fear into every living creature on the planet. Or at least that’s what it felt like. “You will each receive a written evaluation detailing your many mistakes. But until then…”
The main open room of the cave seemed to ring with anticipated breath as the co-leader of the Justice League paused.
“Good job.”
This shocked every member of the team with surprise, causing them to all whirl their heads to look at Batman with bewildered looks.
“No battle plan survives first contact with the enemy. How you adjust to the unforeseen is what determines success. And how you choose who leads determines character.” Batman turned and began walking away. “You’re all dismissed.”
“Did…” Wally spoke, a small smile itching at his lips. “Did we just get verbally patted on the back by the Batman? For blowing up a factory?”
“I...I think we did!” Robin chuckled, running a stunned hand through his spiky black hair.
“We just finished our first actual mission together, right?” M’gann perked up. “I believe that’s cause for celebration! What do you guys think?” All the members of the team looked to one another, and then looked to Kaldur.
“Well...leader gives the orders.” Robin smirked.
Kaldur smiled and nodded. “Celebration is well-deserved, I think.”
The team all cheered, or in Superboy’s case silently smiled, and began making their way towards the exit to the cave.
“I’m thinking...pizza, Chinese food, snacks and a movie marathon...with possibly dessert provided by the lovely M’gann?” Wally asked, shooting finger guns at the martian herself.
“You...want me to make dessert? After my batch of cookies went so wrong?” M’gann asked, seemingly delighted and flattered.
“I will give you some help in the kitchen M’gann, don’t worry,” Lina said, locking her arm with the younger girl’s. “We’re going to need two sets of hands in the kitchen if we need to feed Kid Mouth and everyone else anyway.”
“Oh, this is going to be sweet!!” Wally exclaimed.
As the gang began to loudly plan their big party, Lina leaned away from the conversation slightly, pulling her phone out of the pocket of her jean jacket. Unlocking the device, she quickly found her and Roy’s texting conversation. Smiling to herself, she quickly types out her message.
Call me when you get home from patrol tonight! You’re going to want to hear about our first mission! Guess who our new leader is…. :D -L
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theteams-notebook · 3 years
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Character/Moments Playlist!
And here is the beginnings of the character/relationships/moments playlist!
You can find it right here!
And here is the setlist!  Obviously for both playlists, I’ll be adding onto them as more songs are added.
Original 3 (Wally, Robin, Kaldur): Soldier, Poet, King - The Oh, Hellos (This song just makes me think of these three and their friendship)
West-Allen Family: Family Tree - Caylee Hammack
The Team: People Like Us - Kelly Clarkson (Enough said, honestly)
Wally West: Thunder - Imagine Dragons (With how upbeat this song is, it definitely matches her personality)
Cadmus Invasion: Break the Rules - Charli XCX (They literally broke the rules to get into Cadmus)
Wally and Roy (Post-Fallout): Memories - Maroon 5 (After they made up, they definitely sat around and reminisced about their time together before he left)
Wally and Roy (Fallout): I Built a Friend - Sophie Pecora (This is from Wally’s perspective about Roy leaving)
Wally (Pre-Rescue), Roy (Post-Reveal), Conner: Broken - Anson Seabra (All three have felt like they’re not human or less than human at points in their lives)
Robin (About Wally): Favorite Record - Fall Out Boy (He likes to listen to her talk about whatever she likes)
Artemis and Wally: Wake Me Up - Avicii (I don’t have as good of a reason for this one, it just felt... right to make this a song about them)
Wally (About Conner): You’re Gonna Go Far, Kid - The Offspring (She’s been his number one supporter since day one)
Artemis: Bubblegum Bitch - MARINA (This song just radiates Artemis vibes for me, idk why)
The Girls: All Men Are Pigs - Studio Killers (Okay, I know all the girls end up in relationships in the end, but they would definitely jam out to this song)
M’gann: Everything at Once - Lenka (I think it reflects her desire to be whatever people want her to be in order to please them)
Artemis and Zatanna: Jenny - Studio Killers (You can pry Snaibsel from my cold dead hands)
West-Allen Family: In My Arms - Plumb (Moreso for the aftermath of Wally’s rescue)
Robin: Castle of Glass - Linkin Park (This song is nothing but Robin vibes and he would definitely listen to it)
Kaldur: King - Laruen Aquilina (He’s a king in my heart and he deserves all the love for putting up with his chaotic Teammates)
Zatanna and Wally: La La Lainey - Forever The Sickest Kids (They’re BFFs and you can’t convince me otherwise.  They team up to terrorize Robin)
Conner: Radioactive - Imagine Dragons (I feel like this would be a song for him as he was coming into his own and not trying to mimic Superman as much)
Wally and Robin: Alone Together - Fall Out Boy (They’re both troubled souls that found solace in each other)
Wally (About Her Friends): 7 Years - Lukas Graham (Just Wally reminiscing about her friends and how far she’s come)
The Team: Die Young - Kesha (I’m sorry)
The Team: Crazy Kids - Kesha
The Girls: Run the World (Girls) - Beyonce
The Team: Demons - Imagine Dragons (Who thought it was a good idea to put a bunch of traumatized kids onto a Team together?)
The Team: I’m Just A Kid - Simple Plan (Seriously, they’re just kids)
The Girls: Salute - Little Mix (The girls will save the day if the boys aren’t up to the task)
Wally and Robin: Electric Love - Borns (Try and tell me this isn’t a Birdflash song)
Wally West: Yellow Flicker Beat - Lorde (Just straight up Wally vibes up in here)
The Team: Save Rock And Roll - Fall Out Boy (This song just screamed “The Team” to me)
Conner and M’gann: La La - The Cab (A cute song for a cute couple)
Zatanna: She Likes Girls - Metro Station (I HC Zatanna as bi leaning more towards girls)
Wally and Dick: Shut Up & Kiss Me - Orianthi (Enough said, honestly)
Wally (About All Of The Boys, But Mostly Dick): My Best Friend’s Hot - The Dollyrots (Self-explanatory)
The Team: This Afternoon - Nickelback
The Team: New Americana - Halsey
The Team: When We Stand Together - Nickelback
Dick, About Wally: Body Language - Jesse McCartney (Am I going to add more Jesse McCartney songs because he voices Dick Grayson? Absolutely)
Wally (Season Two): Shatter Me - Lindsey Stirling, Lzzy Hale
Bart Allen (Impulse): short kings anthem - blackbear, Tiny Meat Gang
The OG Team (Post Endgame): Dead Hearts - Stars (tfw one of your friends sacrifices herself and then you can't stop thinking about her)
The OG Team (Post Endgame): See You Again - Wiz Khalifa, Charlie Puth (I know this one is cheesy but what can you do? It fits)
Nightwing (About Wally): Gone Too Soon - Simple Plan (Gonna be honest, I saw a Birdflash amv with this song a while ago and it's just been stuck in my head)
Wally (Endgame, In The Vortex): Helena - My Chemical Romance (So long and goodbye)
Everyone, To Dick (Post Endgame): Achilles Come Down - Gang of Youths (This kid did some crazy and reckless shit in between Season 2 and 3 because of Wally, you can't change my mind)
Dick, About Wally: The One That Got Away - Brielle Von Hugel
Dick, About Wally: Sad Song - We The Kings, Elena Coats (He definitely feels like half of a whole now that she's gone)
Dick, About Wally: I Hear a Symphony - Cody Fry (Okay this song can go both ways honestly)
West-Allen Family (Post Endgame): Family Portrait - P!nk (I know this song is about abuse, but the shattered family image fits them)
Dick, About Wally: When She Loved Me - Lyn Lapid (I heard this cover on TikTok and I literally hunted it down on Spotify to add to this playlist)
Dick, Kaldur, Roy (Clone), About Wally: Ribs - Lorde
Dick, About Wally: Mr Loverman - Ricky Montgomery (I know I have a lot of these but can you blame me?)
16 notes · View notes
lena-in-a-red-dress · 5 years
Text
Cadmus’ Revenge
WARNING FOR THEMES OF SELF-HARM, SUICIDAL IDEATION, PARANOIA, NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCE.
A/N: This story is not a character death, and ends on a happy note.
----
Cadmus is resurrected, and abducts Lena. She's missing for over a year when they finally find her, in a facility packed with guards but devoid of any trace of Lillian. They find Lena pale and thin but alive in a small windowless cell. Down the hall and around the corner, they find a chilling lab, complete with a chair that looks like it belongs in a dentist’s office, if not for the manacles bolted to the arms and legs, and the macabre net of needled probes haloing the headrest.
Lena sleeps for days when they get her to the DEO. They clean the smears of blood from her forehead, examine her from head to toe, but when she wakes Lena is hale and whole and remarkably cogent. She doesn't seem surprised by her rescue, and is neither scared nor thrilled to be back. 
She's a little distant, but otherwise well-adjusted-- unnervingly so. The Superfriends are all massively concerned, but Lena goes to therapy, she follows the doctors' instructions, and they don't want to make it worse so they just... let her be. 
Until the day that Kara walks into Lena's L-Corp office as Supergirl, and finds her building a bomb. 
A big one.
"Is that...?"
"A bomb?" Lena replies coolly. "Yep. I'm surprised it took you this long."
"Lena..."
"Don't come any closer," comes an off-hand warning, along with a head tilt towards a new arrangement of wall-mounted rail guns suddenly aimed at Kara. 
"Those are loaded with kryptonite bullets. Not sure if kryptonite is needed against a construct, but just in case you're following the usual rules... even if it doesn’t kill you, it'll hurt like hell."
Kara swallows thickly. "I don't know what's happening, but I do know that this isn't you. Step away from the desk, and we can talk about what's going on with you, okay?"
"Nope. No more talking. No more interrogations, no more debriefing. No more scenarios."
Scenarios? "Lena, what--"
"I'm a little surprised to be honest. You usually catch on to my escape attempts a lot sooner. But that was my mistake, wasn’t it? Escape." 
Finally, Lena straightens and turns, pressing a button that sets a countdown in red lights. 
"Tell me, mother," Lena smirks, folding her arms against her chest. "Do you believe what they say about the Matrix?"
Kara doesn't understand what's going on, but she does understand that Lena is not well, and she understands that Lena is fully intent on blowing them both up. And the whole city block, if the size of the bomb and Lena's acumen are any indication.
"Lena, please..."
Green eyes regard her coolly. "You really do look like her. Its the closest you come yet. Fitting that it'll also be your last."
"What do you mean?"
"Scorched earth. There's nothing to reset if this explosion fries every neuron in my skull. So whatever you're looking for, better ask now before I'm brain dead."
"Lena--"
"Oh, and before you decide to blip out on me, I should probably mention that this room is equipped with an electromagnetic barrier. Again, not totally sure it works against what amounts to an online avatar, but I figured I might as well do my best to rid the world of both us Luthors."
"I am not your mother..." 
"Obviously."
Kara's gaze flickers to the timer, ticking down. Less than twenty seconds.
"Lena, I am not Lillian, I am not here to hurt you, but I need you to let me get that bomb out of here--!"
"Ooh, the tears are a nice touch. For a heartless bitch I'm impressed--"
"I am not your mother!"
"You're not Supergirl, either--"
Without thinking, Kara surges forward, pressing her lips against Lena's. She can almost feel the surprised stutter of her heartbeat underneath the panicked roar in her own ears.
She pulls away, maintaining her grip on Lena's face to stare deep into her eyes. Shocked green stares at her, her calm confidence flickering in confusion.
"Would your mother have done that?!"
Lena's mouth works wordlessly, finally returning something human to her. Finally, she looks at the room around her as though seeing it for the first time. Too late.
The timer flickers from two seconds to one.
"LENA!”
She only has time to wrap her arms and her cape around Lena before the bomb detonates. The force of the shock wave throws them through the office wall, followed by a bellow of flame and debris.
Heat engulfs them both, swallowing them in a blazing inferno that seems to last hours. Kara's entire focus narrows to funneling cold air from her lungs to the hollow of her cape, cooling the air within before the superheated gust could sear Lena's lungs. 
For an interminable moment, her world is fire and ice, and the desperate, panicked prayer that when it abates, Lena's heart will still be beating.
As soon as she can spare an ounce of focus she propels them both through the nearest window. The blaze chases at their heels, hungry for the oxygen accessible through the broken pane. Kara doesn't stop. Not until she's skidding against the floor of the DEO lobby, Lena cradled against her chest.
"Supergirl!" Alex calls, cutting through the blur of Kara's shock. "We just got the alert about--"
She cuts off abruptly as Kara peels back her cape to reveal the bruised and ashen features of an unconscious Lena. Her hair is dry and singed, soot staining every inch of her, blackening the raw, weeping burns the cape couldn't protect against.
Kara looks up at her sister, tears cutting twin tracks down her cheeks.
"Lena's not okay."
---
Lena wakes in the infirmary, bandaged, medicated, and under constant guard. Kara remains at her side, and straightens when she sees her friend's eyes flutter open.
"Lena?”
At the sound of her voice, Lena's eyes pinch shut. Gritting her teeth, her hands fist in the blankets.
"Are you in pain? Alex! Lena, it's all right, you're safe--"
"Shut up!" Lena cries. For the first time, something besides ready acceptance colors her voice-- despair. "Just shut up! You're not real. You're not real!"
Kara stares, helpless. Alex materializes at her side, watching with wide eyes. 
"It should have worked, why didn't it work... You're not real. Not real..."
"Lena..."
"You're not real!"
---
The chair, Brainy deduces, was a means to run a series of simulations. From the data he's able to mine, Lena has spent most of her captivity in that chair, trapped in an ever evolving construct of her own mind, where it learned her patterns and expectations until it could render even the most realistic and intricate scenarios. 
For what purpose, they don't know.
"Information, perhaps," Brainy suggests, his anxiety betrayed by his habitual twisting of the Legion ring on his finger. "Something they anticipated Lena would only share with a familiar figure."
"Or maybe to mine her intellect?" Alex theorizes. "If they had a problem, Lena would be the one to solve it."
"Whatever the reason," Kara concludes, her voice low, "Lena caught on. She learned to doubt everything she saw. Us included."
"So how do we snap her out of it?" Nia asks. 
They all exchange glances, hoping another has an answer.
None of them do.
---
Reason gets them nowhere. 
Footage of Lena’s discovery and rescue is met with disinterest. Detailing the ongoing search for Cadmus and her mother puts Lena to sleep.
They take her to L-Corp to show her the aftermath of her bomb. Thankfully, they'd been the only ones in the building, but the damage was substantial even weeks later, and it seems that none of the prior simulations ever displayed such continuity. For a moment, her mask cracks.
They try to capitalize on their opportunity by immediately following up with a game night. Lena loses soundly, seemingly another distinct change. Lena's features soften further, enough for the tiniest of smiles to creep over her, and for a moment they can believe that they've finally gotten through. 
Twenty minutes later, Alex finds Lena in Kara's bathroom, carving a long, deep line into her forearm with a razor.
Chaos reigns, and a hopeless fear creeps into Kara's heart as she cradles Lena in her lap. Alex wraps a hand towel tightly around the wound, lifting it above Lena's head while Brainy notifies the DEO.
"Lena... please," Kara whispers. "I don't know how to help you. Tell me what I need to do."
Hazy green eyes gaze up at her.
"Let me go..."
"No, Lena--"
"Please, Mom…" Lena's voice cracks. A tear squeezes from the corner of her eye, coursing down her temple to pool against Kara's hand. "Let me go."
It's worse than the moments before the bomb went off. This time, it isn't a triumph of spite.
This time, it's surrender.
---
It's a surrender none of them accept. 
When Lena is stitched up and resting under sedation in the infirmary of the DEO, the rest of them gather to discuss a new plan of action.
"There is likely no way to convince Lena that this is the true physical world," Brainy delivers crisply. "The nature of the machine allows it to perfect mimic the world she expects to see, but any aberration to that effect is merely a glitch, or an instance of learning."
Alex shakes her head, hands propped on her hips. "I refuse to believe there's nothing we can do. There must be something we're missing."
Silence stretches between them, until Kara rocks back in her seat. 
"If we can't convince her out here, maybe we can convince her in there."
Nia blinks. "In... where?"
Turning to Brainy, Kara takes a deep breath. "Brainy, you've found mind-palaces for both me and James. Do you think you could find Lena's?"
"You think we might connect with her there," James fills in. "Like Kelly did with me."
Kara shrugs. "It's worth a shot."
"It would be exceedingly difficult," Brainy warns. "Even before this recent trauma, Lena has relied heavily on compartmentalization, which I now know is not a healthy mode by which to operate. Her mind is bound to be in chaos-- if there are any boxes left, it may be wise to leave them unopened."
"Could you build a new one?" Alex asks. 
Nia shakes her head. "Isn't that what got us into this mess in the first place?"
"I don't know what else we can do!" Kara snaps. "I am not going to just sit here and watch her kill herself! I won't! We--" Her voice cracks. "We just got her back..."
The others stare at her in stunned silence. Kara swallows her rising sobs, and looks omce more to Brainy.
Brainy shifts uncomfortably.
"I will try."
---
It takes days, but with Nia's help, Brainy succeeds. He finds the one quiet corner of Lena's mind, and with the aid of Nia's psychic powers manages to tethers Lena's consciousness to it. The moment he gives the signal, Kara puts white diode to her forehead and closes her eyes.
When she opens them again, she finds herself standing on the rocky shore of a wide flat lake, the water so still it turns the surface to mirrored glass.
On the shore stands a familiar figure, looking out across the water with an air of peaceful serenity.
"Lena?"
Lena turns, and when she lays eyes on Kara her features spread into a soft, sweet smile. "Kara..."
The next thing Kara knows, she's wrapped up in all she remembers Lena to be-- her warmth; the smell of her shampoo; the press of broad hands against her back, pulling her close. 
"I've missed you," Lena murmurs. Kara hiccups a sob, half of a laugh. If only Lena knew... "But I think I've finally done it. It worked."
Kara's purpose catches up to her like a knife to the heart. She grips Lena tighter. 
"You're not dead, Lena."
Lena pulls back, resting her hands on Kara's shoulders. "It's okay," she says calmly. "It means it's finally over."
"No, Lena. We saved your life. This place isn't real, Brainy made it so we could talk to you."
Kara braces for Lena's reaction, but it comes in the form of lines crinkling at the corners of Lena's eyes. 
"It is real. Real enough, at least." She turns to look out across the water. Though she pulls out of Kara's embrace to do so, their fingers lace together in a gentle grip. "My mother died here."
Kara's heart pounds against her ribs. This isn't a construct of Brainy's design. It was something else. 
Lena turns to look at her, giving their joined hands a squeeze. "I'm glad I got to see you again."
Absurdly, Kara's reminded of The Deathly Hallows, and Dumbledore's final scene in a quiet, sterile version of Kings Cross Station. That's what this place feels like: a waystation. A platform to say goodbye.
"No."
Her voice cuts through the quiet, sharp and incisive. She pulls Lena back around to face her, and gets a startled pair of green eyes staring back.
"Four months ago, we found you and rescued you from a Cadmus facility. In that same facility, we found a chair."
Alarm sharpens Lena's gaze. She tries to pull free, but Kara tightens her grip. "No, no, I won't--"
"You're not there anymore," Kara promises, rubbing her thumbs against Lena's hands in comfort. "We brought you home. We thought you were fine, but-- six weeks ago, you built a bomb in your office. And then you tried to stop eating. And then..."
"Stop," Lena said. "Let me go--"
"I don't know what Lillian wanted from you--"
"LET ME GO!"
Lena tore free, stumbling backwards from the force of it. Suddenly, the placid aura of the lake shattered with the sharp, heaving sobs of Lena sitting among the rocks, hands pressed tight to either side of her head. 
"It wasn't enough... it's never enough! Why won't you let me go?! Please! Please just let me go..."
Kara sits on the pebbled beach in front of Lena. When she reaches for Lena, it's to place one hand on a pale ankle, exposed by a denim cuff. 
"I don't know what she wanted from you," Kara says again, more gently. "And I'm not going to ask."
Rocking, hands pressed tight to her head, Lena says nothing.
"I don't know how to convince you the real world is out there," Kara continues. "I don't know if I can. Maybe... maybe you just have to choose to believe that it is."
"I won't give you anything--"
"The only thing we're asking for is you, Lena."
Lena opens her eyes, meeting Kara's gaze for a brief moment before the anguish returns, and Lena rocks backwards once more, breath quickening with anxiety as her features pinch in distress.
"We won't ask you any questions except what you want to have for lunch," Kara continues, desperate, "or what movie you want to watch on Friday night. We don't even have to stay in National City. We can go up to the mountains-- find you a lake just like this one, where no one can find you."
Lena stills. Her eyes stay closed, her body continues to tremble, but the rocking stops, and Kara hears the steadying breath that cuts through it all.
When Lena makes no move to speak, Kara tries one last time.
"I know it won't be easy. I know how tempting it is to just let go. And I know I can't stop you." Her hand firms on Lena's ankle. "This is your crossroads, Lena. Whatever happens next, you have to choose. All I'm asking, right here, right now, is that you choose us."
Kara's breath catches in her chest. 
"All I'm asking is for one more day with you. So that tomorrow I can have one more chance to ask you to stay. However many times it takes."
Lena sags, exhaling into a sob. She reaches for Kara's hand. 
"I'm so tired, Kara," she whispers.
Nodding, Kara blinks back her tears. "I know... I know."
They sit together for long minutes, until Kara senses that her time here is down. Whatever happens next, comes from Lena, and no one else. 
"If you do choose to let go," she croaks. "Please know how sorry I am that I didn't find you sooner. And know that we don't blame you. We love you, and we'll miss you every day."
With a final squeeze, Kara climbs to her feet, letting Lena's hand slip from her fingers.
"Kara--!"
"I love you, Lena. With all my heart."
Kara blinks open to the sight of the med bay ceiling, and the weight of Alex's hand in hers. 
"Kara?"
Brainy and Nia both exhale, turning to face her.
"It worked," Kara croaks. She pulls the sensor from her forehead and sits up, scrubbing the tears from her cheeks. "I saw her."
"What happened? Did she believe you--?"
"She needs to choose," is all Kara can say. "She has to choose."
Together, they wait.
---
Kara stays at Lena's bedside as she sleeps, long after the sedative wears off. As the minutes and hours tick by, Kara waits for the ever growing expectation that the only change in Lena's condition will be the flatline of the heart monitor.
Which is why she jumps a foot in the air when Lena's hand tightens on hers, well into the next morning. 
"Lena?" 
The room wakes around them: Nia bolts upright from where she'd slumped against Brainy's shoulder; Alex pushes off the wall, crossing towards the bed; James jolts awake, blinking and bleary-eyed.
Lena flinches when her eyes open to find shadows looming over her, as her heart monitor jumps alarmingly. Kara motions them back with her free hand, the other still locked around Lena's.
"Lena, can you hear me?"
After a long moment, Lena manages to turn her head, focusing a blurry gaze on Kara.
"Kara...?"
"It's me." Kara coughs out a smile. "It's us."
Lena blinks sluggishly against the hairs sticking to her forehead with sweat, jutting out over her eyes. Kara reaches up to smooth them away, then lets her hand linger against Lena's skin. Lena breathes softly, turning her face into Kara's touch. 
"I choose you."
257 notes · View notes
cyoza · 4 years
Text
come here
hi guys! kind of long author’s note, sorry! 
I found a few prompt lists and on one of them was ‘Come here’ and all I could think about mother and son duo Kory and Gar so I wrote from that angle. 
I looked up the wikipedia page for Kory because I kinda saw some info about her past on the net but didn’t know for sure so I kinda just skim read through it and drew different things that I read. 
I guess its kinda of an au? or non cannon? idk the proper terms I am still learning. But it’s set assuming the Titans have rescued Gar but before all the troubles over
It’s kinda of long sorry, I tried to shorten it so it wasn’t too long but yno it is what it is 
I hope you read and enjoy it! Please like, reblog or comment if you do! Thanks! 
TW: Abuse, Blood & Gore
-
The cool autumn air was crisp as it nipped at Kory’s nose, sending sharp shards up her nostrils. She looked over the railings, gazing at the park below as the trees quivered gently, the breeze taking down multiples of amber leaves with it. 
Kory rarely ever felt the cold as acutely as her human counterparts but she had begun to really appreciate such frosty mornings like this one. There was something about the biting gusts of wind that invigorated her. The way she could feel the piercing breath travel completely down to her chest reminded her that she existed - that she was still here despite everything she had been through. As tough as it could be to keep going most of the time. 
The sound of the balcony door sliding open behind her pulled her from here revere. She turned to see Gar standing awkwardly by the door which piqued her interest. Gar was many things: energetic, excitable, enthusiastic but Kory would never attribute awkwardness to him. 
‘Hey, what’s up?’ Kory greeted, leaning on the railing behind her. She could see him battle with himself for a second, his lips pressed in a thin line and eyes unsure before he finally slumped slightly as if reaching a conclusion himself. 
‘Um, actually, it doesn’t matter. I’m just gonna go back inside, don’t worry about it.’ He shook his head with a tremulous smile, his emerald locks falling forward to somewhat shield his eyes. 
He turned to slide the balcony door back open when Kory spoke, halting his movements. 
‘Hey, of course it matters. Come here, tell me what you’re thinking.’ She beckoned him over, making space for him next to her. 
Gar looked at her for a few moments, contemplating his next moves but ultimately made his way over to her, saying nothing more as he placed his elbows on the metal railing. The silence dragged on and Kory let it, knowing that he would talk when he was ready. So they stood together, watching as the gales made sienna tornadoes out of leaves. Minutes went by before Gar finally broke the silence. 
‘I’m sorry I’ve been keeping you guys up. It can’t be fun being woken up in the middle of the night by a screaming teenager.’ He paused, his face vacant and haunted; obviously plagued by memories constructed by his own warring psyche. 
For weeks now, Gar had frequently jolted everyone from sleep between the hours of 2am-3am with blood curdling screams that reverberated through every hallway in the tower. The first few times it happened, all 6 Titans raced to his room panicked over what they might find but it quickly came to their knowledge that only Dick, Kory and Rachel could get near him close enough to begin to get him to calm down. So, eventually the rest of the team awakened but stayed in their rooms and instead got a debrief the following morning so as to not make things worse. Each time, Kory, Dick and Rachel had darted to his room to find him sweaty and glowing a low green whilst mumbling absently about CADMUS. It periodically took them a full hour minimum to settle him so they began insisting that Rachel instead also stayed in bed for fear that the lack of sleep would make her ill, very aware that teenagers needed more sleep than their adult bodies. But as much as they insisted, it didn’t stop the 14 year old from trailing behind Dick and Kory every single night. 
‘Garfield, we would wake up every single day of forever at any time of the night, I promise you. You have no reason to apologise. This isn’t your fault.’ She punctuated her statement by placing a gentle hand on his shoulder, turning parallel to him. 
The action seemed to trigger something in him as his eyes shot towards her, glazed over with liquid. He mimicked her, turning to face her but dropped his head, his gaze to the floor.
‘Thank you for saying that but Kory, it has to be my fault somewhere. The tiger is a part of me and it attacked those people, under my control. I attacked those people. And they’re dead Kory. They’re dead and it’s my fault.’ His head hung lower as he spoke, his hair the only visible part of his head but it was impossible to miss the drops of liquid dropping to the floor. 
Kory’s eyes softened as her heart clenched, completely affected by his words. She, however, could not let it show and instead hardened her resolve as she moved to lift his head up to see trails of tears coating his cheeks. 
‘Let me ask you something, Gar: did any part of you want to do any of those things?’ She enquired, already knowing the answer but also knowing that he needed to hear himself say it. 
‘Wha-No! Of course not! I didn’t even know it was happening until after it happened! But when I’m asleep, it’s like it all comes back to me. Like all I can taste in my mouth is their blood. Like I can feel my teeth ripping through their skin all over again. I can hear their screams.’ He broke off with a quiet sob but continued talking before Kory could so much as open her mouth. ‘The first time it happened, you know with that guy in the asylum, I rationalised it with what you told me, I needed to protect myself, if it hadn’t have been him then it would have been me. And then with Trigon. All times of survival. But I’ve hurt innocent people, Kory, and I didn’t even know I was doing it. But it’s still somehow tormenting me and I don’t know how to get it to stop.’ He collapsed in her arms with a wracking sob, his chest shaking with the force. 
Kory held him tightly as he continued to weep into her shoulder, raking a comforting hand through his hair. She felt slightly at a loss as she listened to his cries, but she hoped what she had to say next would give him some solace. She let out a deep sigh as she readied herself to speak but stopped short when her sensitive ears picked up on the rustling by the door. She shifted her eyes to see Dick standing at the door with his shoulder rested on the frame, still in pyjamas and hair rumpled from sleep. His arms dropped to his sides and he stood straighter as their eyes met. 
‘You okay?’ He mouthed to her. 
She responded with a small imperceptible nod of her head to reassure him but still he didn’t leave and instead stayed rooted in his spot. It oddly gave her a sense of support knowing he was there, given what she was going to say. So, she turned her attention back to Gar, bracketing his face in her hands. His cheeks were still damp to the touch but his sobs had lessened some, now only letting out quiet whimpers. 
‘Garfield, I’m going to tell you something. Something I haven’t really said to anyone before.’ She dropped her hands to clasp his own. ‘When I was younger, I was captured by an enemy ship. They were called the Citadel and we’d been at war with them for years. I was...fascinating to them. They wanted to know about Tamaraneans and in that included physiology. So...they experimented on me.’ 
Gar’s face morphed into appalled shock at her words and when she glanced over at Dick, she found a look that mirrored his. Suddenly she was transported to her youth and was seeing that expression on every person she came into contact with when she’d escaped back home. The insidious slither of victimisation threatening to make itself known but she steeled herself and reminded herself that she was no longer a victim but a survivor. So she continued talking. 
‘I won’t go into the details but it was tough, to say the least. And it took me a long time to even begin to know how to recover. This has just happened to you Gar, it’s still fresh so you need to give yourself time to heal. I know what it feels like to have your body not feel like it’s your own. Like it’s a vessel you exist outside of. It’s something I would never wish on anybody and I am so sorry you had to go through this. But I promise you, it will get easier. Maybe not as soon as you want and you’ll need a whole lot of help but you’ll get your body back and you will feel like yourself again. Perhaps not the you you were before but the you you get to decide to be. The you you get to feel comfortable existing in again...Wow, how many times can I say ‘you’ in less than 10 seconds.’
Gar let out a wounded chuckle, her quip lightening the mood slightly, just as she intended it to. He let go of her hands to swipe his own across his cheeks, drying them with the ruby hoodie he had on. He looked at her tenderly for a moment before pulled her into a tight embrace. 
‘Thank you, Kory. For sharing, for being here. For everything.’ He said, voice thick with emotion and clutching her tighter. 
‘Always, Gar.’ She returned the hug with equal vigour.
The cleared throat from the door had them pulling apart to see Dick smiling softly at them both. 
‘Hey, come on in you guys. Before you get a cold.’ He admonished but was only met with Kory’s rolling eyes. 
‘You know that’s impossible for me, Grayson.’ She chided. Then, she turned back to Gar, ruffling his hair slightly. ‘But you should go inside. Besides, I think I can smell eggs, you should get something to eat. I’ll meet you in there.’ 
Gar gave her one last smile before he shuffled past Dick inside, flashing another at him too. Suddenly, it was just the two of them. Dick strolled over to her and placed his hands at her waist, looking at her longingly as he pulled her closer. 
‘You’ve never told me about that before.’ He stated, no hint of accusation in his tone but rather concern. 
‘Yeah, well it never came up before. Plus you already know what a heinous bitch my sister is.’ She replied flatly, wrapping around her arms around his neck.
‘Your sister? What does your sister have to do with what happened to you?’ He asked incredulously. 
‘She’s the reason I got captured. She gave me up to them to get rid of me but I managed to escape and make it back before she could manipulate her way to the throne.’ She said it matter of factly, as if it wasn’t one of the most damaging things that ever happened to her. 
‘Holy shit, Kory, I’m sorry. Do you want to talk about it some more?’ 
‘Later.’ She leaned forward to peck him on the lips. ‘Right now, I know there are two jelly donuts waiting for me in the fridge.’ She untangled himself from his arms and slipped past him mumbling to herself. 
‘Or at least there better be, otherwise I’m burning this entire place down to the ground. My love for you guys be damned.’ 
Dick trailed behind her, chuckling quietly. He knew they had a lot more to talk about the topic, he could see that Kory wasn’t completely healed from it and Gar was nowhere near but they could take it one day at a time. Seeking help wherever they could. 
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concertedlysuper · 4 years
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@goldentemplariumcrow​ sent: "Yoyo!" Dio fucking broke into Cadmus to rescue his son and he isn't making it any easier on anyone coming between him and Yoyo. He's out for murder if needed be, but so far, things are looking good. "I'm here. Papa is here." He whispers when opening the door and rushing to pick Yoyo in his arms. "Are you okay? Did they hurt you bad?" He asks softly. "It's alright. Now, let's get out of here." And he takes the same way he made in, out of the place.
Since Cadmus had kidnapped him, Yoyo had been in different states of consciousness. They had poked and prodded him. They had done some excruciatingly painful things and some that he didn’t feel at all. At the moment the was sluggish, but aware of his surrounding, needles and machines attached to his small frame. He was trying to think of a way to escape again, but it was hard to focus. At least he wasn’t hallucinating anymore, having thought he saw a version of himself a few times.
Yoyo had no clue how long he’d been at Cadmus or how long he’d been laying there trying to wake up this time. It took a moment before he registered that something sensed.. different. That’s when he heard it, his name said by a familiar voice. The boy blinked and looked at Dio, not fully believing he’s there until he felt his touch. “Papa...” he whispered and clung to him. “I want to go home.” Yoyo nuzzled his neck, still obviously drugged, but awake enough to know what was going on.
In the chaos Dio had caused when breaking into the facility, someone else had gotten lose. That someone was watching the two of them from a hidden nook. He was the reason Yoyo had been kidnapped. The main scientist, a geneticist named Joshua Kendricks, had helped Yoyo escape the first time. As punishment, he had been killed. Unfortunately for Cadmus, he was a very smart man and he had rigged the computers to erase some of the most essential knowledge about the cloning process if he didn’t log in regularly. This meant they couldn’t redo the project fully without Yoyo. This boy, Project 17, had existed before that, but his genes had been unstable. Now that had been solved. They had also used a different set of human DNA, one that were more known for violence. That hadn’t done them much good and now when he had the opportunity, the boy silently escaped in the tracks of Dio and Yoyo, but far enough away that they wouldn’t discover him.
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crypticbeliever123 · 5 years
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Chapter 1 of my Superboy fanfic. 
Story synopsis:
Following the death of Superman a new hero has arrived, Superboy, a clone who claims to have been literally born yesterday. But is he really? Is this Boy of Steel nothing more than the showboating teen he seems to be or is there more to him than meets the eye? And what happens when a villain is revealed to be good and a hero is revealed to be a villain?
Lois Lane had been through a lot the past couple of weeks. Her husband, Clark Kent, Superman, was killed in an almost hopeless battle against a monster from outer space that has since become known as Doomsday. The creature had killed hundreds and left countless ruins in its wake as it came for him, for Superman. Why it had been searching for Clark and why it wanted him dead so badly no one knew, not even Bruce Wayne who was supposed to be the world’s greatest detective. But in the end, it hadn’t mattered. The monster got what it wanted even at the cost of its own life. And her?
Lois lost the love of her life and father of her ten-year-old son Jon who still woke up screaming from nightmares of his father’s death. She’d have to stay with him every night and hold him as he cried himself to sleep just so that he would sleep. Needless to say, seeing your own father be brutally murdered by a mindless behemoth on television left quite a few traumas in the boy’s mind.
Following the funerals of Superman and Clark Kent, Lois threw herself into her work, desperate to try and move on from her grief. Jimmy was a sweetheart, even though he too had lost Clark, his best friend, he’d been nothing but a supportive shoulder for Lois to lean on in these difficult times, always bringing her fresh baked muffins and hot coffee from the local Jitters café. In return she did what she could to cheer him up now and again and gave him a big hug every time she saw him in the office. Though she knew Jimmy probably thought the hug was more for her own sake than his. In truth, it might have been a little of both.
Halfway through the day and Lois was busy revising a fluff piece she had written on the release of the latest Lexcorp product, a new virtual reality gaming system that had 4k graphics and stunning audio relay. It seemed trite in Lois’s opinion, creating a new VR game just like everyone else in the industry. Sure, it was a superior system, everything Lex made usually was, but it still just felt pointless after everything that had happened. Then her boss, Perry White, came up to her desk with something that wasn’t so pointless.
“Lane, robbery in progress on 38th and Siegel Avenue, hostages taken. I want you on the ground and reporting on it pronto. Take Olsen with you to work the camera. Go, go, go!”
“Yes, sir. Jimmy, we got work to do! Grab your camera!” Lois shouted out as she grabbed her gear and headed out.
“On it!”
They made it to the bank in record time and found a police barricade at the front of the bank. Lois and Jimmy quickly got to work reporting on the situation after asking a few basic questions to know what they would be reporting on.
“On the air in 3, 2,” Jimmy said, leaving off the one in place of a pointed finger as the camera got rolling.
“Good afternoon, this is Lois Lane reporting live from Shuster Bank on 38th and Siegel where a robbery is taking place. Officials say there are four perpetrators responsible for this crime and approximately twenty-three civilians being held hostage. Police have been unable to make contact with the hostage takers in order to begin negotiations but believe they can-”
A gust of air and a blur sped past them into the bank startling them out of focus.
“What was that?” Jimmy asked.
Suddenly gunshots started going off inside as two of the criminals got tossed through the doors and out of the building. More shots were fired as police moved in to try and control the situation.
“The situation has escalated. Police are moving in as we speak. It would seem from the perpetrators being thrown from the building that an as yet unidentified individual has sped into the bank in efforts to aid in the apprehension of these individuals. Hold on.”
Lois took a pause to turn around as the sound of bullets being fired ended and saw the criminals being walked away in handcuffs.
“Gunfire has ceased, and police are now filing everyone out of the building. The hostages appear to be shaken but unharmed. Excuse me, ma’am,” Lois said, approaching one of the officers, “can you tell me what just happened in there?”
“Hello Metropolis!” a voice shouted out to the crowd.
“Why don’t you ask him?” the officer replied, pointing a thumb behind her at the teenager hovering above the ground with a bright smile on his face as he waved to the onlookers and police officers.
The boy couldn’t have been older than 16. He was wearing a blue and red suit with Superman’s logo on the chest and a black jacket over top. His dark hair was cut into a fade and his face looked so much the spitting image of Clark’s high school yearbook photos that Lois was certain that his eyes would look blue behind those dark specs of his.
“Excuse me, young man, but might I ask who you are?” she questioned, approaching the teenager.
“Name’s Superboy, but don’t wear it out,” he replied, lowering his shades to wink at Lois with surprisingly green eyes.
“I see and would you care to explain these powers of yours?”
“Isn’t it obvious? I’m a clone of Superman. Born yesterday. Literally.”
“Funny, I thought Superman had blue eyes, not green.”
“Yeah and he doesn’t have marble white skin and poor speech but as we’ve seen with Bizarro, cloning ain’t an exact science. Sometimes things go wrong. But enough about me. You came here to report on the bank robbery, right? Well here’s what happened. I flew in, punched the biggest guy in the face and bent his gun in half, the other three started shooting at me, bullets bounced right off; obviously. I used my heat vision and super strength to tear up a piece of the floor to use as a shield, so that when I grabbed the first guy and then a second one they wouldn’t get hit by bullets flying around when I tossed them out of the building. Then it was simply a matter of zipping up to the last two guys, crushing the gun barrels with my hands and punching them both in the face. Any questions?”
“Just one. If you’re a clone, who created you and more importantly, why?”
“That’s two questions actually but I’ll answer them anyway. I was created by an organization called Cadmus. Why they made me doesn’t matter. What matters is what I choose to do with my life and what I choose to do is to use my power to help people, protect people, just like Superman before me. Now if you’ll excuse me, Mrs. Lane, I hear a cat stuck in a tree over on Main Street, so I’ll have to catch you later. But ya know what? You being a reporter and all we’ll probably be seeing a lot more of each other so tell ya what,” he said, reaching down at his thigh holster to grab his phone from inside to hand to Lois. “You give me your number and if I ever feel like having a sit-down interview, you’ll get first dibs. Sound good?”
“Uh… okay,” Lois replied, not really sure how else to respond.
She tried taking advantage of having his phone in hand to look for his number so that she could call him for questions but found no sign of it on the device. After giving up and typing in her number she handed the phone back to the boy.
“Thanks. I’ll be in touch,” he said with a wink and a two-fingered salute as he flew off toward the East Side, leaving behind a bewildered Lois Lane who was trying to figure out what her opinions were on this kid.
He seemed nice enough, far from as humble as Clark ever was but a good kid for sure if his positive demeanor and heroic act were any indicator. But the fact he was a clone of Clark, and a clone he’d never gotten to meet was… well she was a bit uneasy about the whole concept. It was like finding out she had a long-lost stepson after losing the kid’s dad.
For a moment she wondered how Clark would’ve reacted in this situation. Would he have been happy to meet him and thought of him as a newfound son? Would he have been disturbed by the whole clone thing and brushed him off? Okay, probably not that one but still, for as well as she knew Clark, she didn’t have a freaking clue what he would’ve thought about meeting this Superboy.
She did know one thing though and quickly went to her phone’s contact list.
“Bruce, it’s Lois. I just met the most interesting person today and trust me when I say that you are definitely going to want to hear all about it.”
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supercorpbookmarks · 6 years
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do you have a huge master list of all your recommended fics?
Supercorp fic master list 
Completed fics:
Giant - coeurastronaute
Kara and Lena meet in high school, but then life. (not a high school AU). Lena leaves and they meet up again, this time as Supergirl and Lena Luthor
Swipe Right for a Super - eluigih
Lena Luthor matches with Supergirl on tinder and she’s convinced that she’s being catfished.
no one but you (got me feeling this way) - AgentJoanneMills
It’s not like Kara deliberately sets out to make her life harder than it should be. It’s not her fault that she’s excitable, okay, and she forgets things sometimes and maybe those things should not be forgotten under any circumstances. Maybe those things include, well, housing forms, which as it turns out are super important to submit on time if she wants to not be homeless on her sophomore year of college.
A Ribbon at a Time - abcooper
After Lex Luthor defeated Superman, after the courts declared him innocent, after CADMUS rose to power, 16 year old Kara Danvers went into hiding. Five years later, a chance encounter with L-Corp CEO Lena Luthor throws her back into everything she’s been running from.
Exquisite - Cartecka
Just another mistaken identity fic. Kara falls in love with Lena, but how could a junior reporter ever compete with Supergirl?
judge - cautiouslyoptimistic
it starts with a cat and an interview and the realization that they’re not so different after all, or, a chance meeting kinda changes everything
Breaking down (the walls) - thistableforone
Surely they got it wrong when they said green is a cold color because Kara’s chest suddenly feels incredibly warm. Kara feels out of place.
Green Eyed Monster - shawdog21
Lena’s new intern starts to show Lena a little too much attention in Kara’s opinion. or, Lena’s intern is thirsty af and Kara doesn’t realise she’s jealous.
Her Brother’s Keeper - ProfessorSpork
“Now,” Lena says, physically pushing her keyboard away on her desk, as though trying to distance herself from the temptation to keep working. “What can I do for you?” Anyone who has met Lena is familiar with these words. They are her go-to greeting; practiced, polite, and most importantly, meant in earnest. A thesis statement: Lena Luthor wants to help.
we’re playing to a full house, darling (but this show can’t go on) - The_Ominous_Owl
Kara’s struggling to find work. Lena’s struggling to find herself. When fate (with some help from Cat Grant) casts them into the same orbit they find themselves completely off-script, because while everyone knows about the sins of the father, they’re somewhat less clear about the sins of one’s siblings. Throw into that an audience hungry for stories at the expense of fact, a showrunner with a plan nobody saw coming, and a co-star who steadfastly refuses to keep it in his pants, and you’ve got a tale so dramatic even the protagonists have noticed.
Ongoing:
a world full of light, & you (always you) - unicyclehippo
accidental marriage fic - kara and lena work their way through the seven courtship steps of a kryptonian marriage…without realising it.
You’re no stranger to my soul - eluigih
They say that every face you see in a dream is one you’ve seen before. OR, Kara’s been dreaming of a cute barista for months and she’s determined to get some answers. [Soulmate AU]
Duck - coeurastronaute
Standard ‘first word your soulmate says to you is tattooed on your body’ except its supposed to be the weird words I could manage. I’m sure I could have gone weirder but this is going to be a 5-ish chapter short story.
avoidance strategies - younglemonade
“I’m not over her,” Lena breathes, and she hopes Supergirl hears what she really means: that she might never be over her. She adds “this doesn’t mean anything”, because it seems like a good way to sum up the fact that she’s imagining someone else, no matter how hard she’s trying not to. Supergirl nods, and then they’re kissing again.
it’s a boy! - bs13
When an alien baby falls from the sky and into her life, Lena realizes she has a lot to learn - namely, how to deal with not only a baby with super powers, but also the mysterious new neighbour who seems to know more than she’s letting on. AU.
You Deserve It All - karalovesallthegirls
AKA the sugar baby Kara AU
The Fifth Wall - Black_Tea_and_Bones
Kara goes to bed with Mon-El, and wakes up with Lena Luthor. But it isn’t Kara’s bed, and they’re not in Lena’s apartment, and that is definitely not their baby… Right?
Paranoia Incarnated - SupercorpSmutFluffandAngst
Lena Luthor blames herself for everything that had happened in National City. The Daxamite army was able to invade National City simply because she built the machine that brought them to Earth. She buries herself in work and decides to simply rely on herself and never trust anyone ever again. She decides to avoid everything and everyone, especially Kara Danvers, who she is in love with, as well as the Girl of Steel. However, that proves to be easier said than done. Especially when Supergirl reaches out to her for help when she is affected by something lethal. Eventually, the relationship between her and Supergirl grows and Lena finds herself falling in love with both blondes present in her life.
Oneshots:
It is For Your Sake I Have Braved the Glen - seabiscuit
Sometimes you have a good day, sometimes you accidentally see a picture of your friend’s boobs and it changes the entire trajectory of your life. It’s all about not splitting hairs.
cops, robbers & incredibly bad decisions - C_AND_B
Kara’s been trying to catch a masked criminal for months, and Lena, well Lena is just trying to steal from the rich and give to the poor (or something along those lines).
brave - cautiouslyoptimistic
they met as wide-eyed, sticky fingered, mess inclined, and chatty third graders. and kara had known it was a love story from the start. or, it takes a long time for kara and lena to stop being stupid about each other
Almost. - C_AND_B
“The need to kiss Kara Danvers was a passive one, a consistent one, an unavoidable thing - she had enough boys following her around like lost puppies for that much to be evident (although, now Lena had found herself as one of those lost puppies, so perhaps it was a little hypocritical to be so judgemental).” Times Lena wants to kiss Kara but chickens out (and the time it finally happens).
Sun Kissed by ribkages
Lena accidentally lets her feelings for Kara slip when the reporter takes the CEO to a science convention for her birthday OR, Kara and Lena go on a weekend trip and see cool sciencey things, and Lena falls more in love with Kara.
the softest of highs - falsealarm
“She wonders how many times she’s allowed to cancel on Kara before she’s ousted from their friendship. Her generosity has to stop somewhere and surely a fifth time in as many weeks could be it, the final nail in the coffin Lena’s built herself.”
Green (Kara loves it and hates it in equal measure) - BloodInTheFields
It’s not that Kara doesn’t want Lena to have other friends, no. Not at all. Why wouldn’t she want that? Pfft. It’s stupid. Lena can totally have more than one friend and Kara’s fine with it. If Lena wants to start hanging out with Winn, or accepts an invitation to go out and drink from Alex; then Kara is happy for her. or, in which Kara is a jealous hoe who doesn’t understand what she’s feeling.
I Just Want to Love You in My Own Language - lynnearlington
“In the center of it all, on her desk, is a gorgeous glass vase full of over two dozen lavender roses. “Pretty,” she murmurs as she comes around to look at them. In the middle of the light purple flowers is a small card, thank you written in elegant script over the surface. There’s no name, but there doesn’t need to be.” A love story, told with flowers.
exception by cautiouslyoptimistic
kara keeps doing strange things, and lena doesn’t know what to make of it or, kara is in love and it takes lena an absurdly long time to notice
One And The Same - acoolusername
Lena Luthor has two crushes: Supergirl and Kara Danvers. This is the story of how she discovers they are one and the same.
Of hickey’s and hearts - Rykeral
Lena Luthor becomes increasingly frustrated with how she never seems to leave hickeys on Kara, and she has been trying-very, very hard. Cue an elaborate (simple and selfish) plan in order to ensure the world knows Kara is taken. Prompt from Tumblr and the user Supercorppp. One-shot. Supercorp
Honesty is the Best Policy (if you can make it that far) - Ryaninthesky
Kara tries to tell her girlfriend she’s Supergirl. And tries, and tries, and tries. Or, Lena thinks Kara has a kink for dressing up as Supergirl, but she’s endlessly supportive.
make my wish come true - falsealarm
“Kara said she could come over whenever she was free, had literally texted Lena saying she would welcome the company so she knows she isn’t going to intrude but Lena’s three hours early and she doesn’t know if that welcome extends this far ahead.” AKA Lena shows up early to a friend get-together at Kara’s and things get festive (and flirty) real quick.
in the sun - isawet
Lena needs a date and Kara needs a job. (fake dating supercorp)
Green-Eyed Kryptonite - Alexis_Payton
Lena chuckled lowly and Kara’s stomach flipped and twisted into an achingly, tight knot. Yep. It was official. Kara would need to inform the DEO as soon as possible: Lena Luthor was definitely some form of Kryptonite.
Crush - spacemanearthgirl
Kara becomes jealous when she thinks Lena is flirting with Supergirl.
Don’t Let Her Go - Cartecka
Cat Grant has watched Lena Luthor grow up and has watched her get broken over and over. She wants to make sure that it doesn’t happen again.
Say Something - C_AND_B
“Her face is plastered into a smile, one she hopes doesn’t look as obviously fake as it feels, but she still can’t breathe. She feels like the world has crumbled on her chest. Maybe it has. There’s no doubt in her mind that her entire world shattered the moment Kara spoke those words… I’m getting married.” Or, Lena has been silently in love with Kara for years and now Kara’s getting married and Lena has to do something, doesn’t she?
Other lists:
social media aus 
faking dating
soulmate aus
 fluff  
smut
angst + slowburn 
one shots 
one shots + angst 
supercorp + kids 
coffee shop aus
neighbour aus
medieval 
hogwarts aus
supercorp boarding school aus 
supercorp high school/college aus
fics where Kara is the one pining  
supercorp rivalry
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intergalactic-zoo · 3 years
Link
I decided, apropos of nothing, to put on Joss Whedon's Zack Snyder's "Justice League" while doing some work today. I discussed the movie when it came out eleventy billion years ago, and thought it was fine. It's not good, but grading on the curve of every DCEU movie up to that point, it was a solid B-. Sitting in 2021, I remember bits and pieces of it—Steppenwolf looking like he stepped out of an XBox 360 cutscene, the decent cell phone video of Superman that was marred by the terrible attempt to CGI out Cavill's moustache, all the characters sounding like their rough counterparts in "The Avengers"—but not a lot of details.
Obviously the intervening years have altered my perspective on the film, both through the revelations about the behind-the-scenes racism and abuse and through the fanatical and also frequently abusive behavior of the fans clamoring for this version of the film, which absolutely definitely existed and was finished years ago and also needed an additional $70 million dollars and reshoots to complete. 
That perspective has not been altered for the better. 
Against my better judgment, I'm going to watch the Snyder Cut sometime, probably this weekend, so I figured it'd be good to see how it deviates from the theatrical release, like I did for the Lester and Donner cuts of "Superman II" so very long ago. I don't expect to enjoy either one; my feelings on the superhero movies of Zack Snyder are well-documented, and even under the best circumstances, four hours is too @#%*$! long for a superhero movie. But four hours of nihilistic spite dressed up in cinematic deepities and CGI with a sepia-toned overlay is unlikely to be the best of circumstances. 
Will it be better than two hours of the extremely generic re-skinned "Avengers: Age of Ultron" that got released to theaters? There's only one way to find out!
Boy, the New 52-ass character designs in the DC logo opening sure didn't age well. When was Rebirth, like, the year before?
Pretty neat that it's got Mogo and Jessica Cruz in there, though. 
That cell phone scene was a lot better in my memory. Like, the kids with a podcast are kind of charming, but I remembered it being a good Superman moment, when it's really just kind of nothing. Certainly not enough to justify the extremely bad CGI. And is the negative space on the S-shield supposed to look so gray?
Gotham City looks like the background of a Robert Rodriguez movie, but I actually like it here. It feels grimy and a little uncanny, the way Gotham should. A big building with "JANUS" on it in glowing letters and big coal chimneys out of Victorian London are what I want to see in Gotham, along with copious brooding gargoyles and enormous iron statues of Greek gods that you could drive a car on. 
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A building that is continually being robbed by either Two-Face or Maxie Zeus
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"Batman Forever," for comparison
Ben Affleck's Batman rasp is at least as silly as Christian Bale's. Batman can just talk in a voice, my dudes. I watched bits of "Batman & Robin" and "Batman Forever" to track down the right screenshots, and it's so much better when Batman is a guy with a deep voice rather than a guy who sounds like he's gargling gravel and sand. 
The crook asking "where does that leave us?" because Superman's dead is a little weird given that Superman was a public figure in this universe for literally a year and a half. In 2021, it's a bit like asking how we could go on if Billie Eilish died, except Billie Eilish hasn't, to my knowledge, ever been involved in a fight that leveled a major city.
The maudlin mourning sequence probably should have come before Batman backflipped over a snarling Kirby monster and "Mindhunter's" Holt McCallany hopped around on a rooftop, because I laughed out loud at the unhoused person's "I Tried" sign and I do not think that was the intended reaction. 
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And then the Leonard Cohen cover gives way to the Danny Elfman score, and it sounds like "Batman" '89 again. God, this movie really is a mess. 
I appreciate Wonder Woman explaining her powers like she's in a Chris Claremont comic. How long until we get a superhero movie with a proper reference caption? I just want to see a box in "Into the Spider-Verse 2" that says "*It happened in Spectacular Spider-Man #206, True Believers!"
I really wish superhero movies could stop having the scene where superheroes talk about how stupid superheroes are. It feels so self-conscious. Just embrace the concept without being ashamed of it, please.
I also wish we could have dialogue less on the nose than everything Henry Allen says. He talks exclusively in clichés about movement—"running in circles," "standing still," "find your own path." We get it, he's talking to the Flash.  
I keep forgetting that this movie is a fetch quest. It could have worked if we'd seen more than Themyscira before. This could be like that sequence in "Avengers: Endgame" where we go on a little memory tour of the previous films, but instead it's a return to Paradise Island, our first brief, boring glimpse of Atlantis, and a nuclear plant cooling tower. This is one of the problems with setting the "let's get the team together" movie before you've met most of the team or established most of the set pieces. 
The boom tube effect is pretty good. It's a shame Steppenwolf looks so much like a character from a Zemeckis film. I do appreciate that Joss had enough restraint to avoid dropping "Magic Carpet Ride" or something when he showed up. 
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Fus roh dah!
Also, I realize the ship has largely sailed on this, but the Amazons are supposed to be an incredibly advanced society; maybe we could stop depicting them as exclusively armed with bronze-age weaponry. 
You know, it's hard to see Lois Lane so...despondent? Demoralized? Even in the wake of Clark's death. Like, Lois was pretty weepy for a few issues of the comics after Superman died, but within two months she was accosting cops and breaking into Cadmus in a wetsuit and punching dudes in the teeth. Lois Lane is a stone cold badass, and the only film in this erstwhile trilogy that came close to understanding that was "Man of Steel."
The frustrating thing about the dialogue is just how obvious it is that Joss knows how to write exactly as many characters as are on the Avengers. Batman just sounds like Tony Stark, Wonder Woman banters like Black Widow until she needs to exposit like Thor, it's just so lazy. 
And so is the backstory of the Mother Boxes. I actually really like the "all the races of man joined together with the gods and the Green Lanterns to repel Steppenwolf" angle, because it makes this idea of uniting as a League into a theme that you could build a movie around (that movie was "The Fellowship of the Ring"). Unfortunately, they do it by stripping the Mother Boxes of anything that made them interesting as a concept and turning Steppenwolf into a low-rent Thanos. Thanos is supposed to be a low-rent Darkseid, get it right. 
I was going to rag on Bruce for comparing Flash's suit to "the space shuttle" in the present tense, when the space shuttle program ended six years before this movie came out, but I suppose Bruce Wayne is a cranky old guy in this movie, so it kind of works. 
Man, poor Ray Fisher, in addition to everything else, having to read this warmed-over Bruce Banner dialogue. 
Not gonna lie, hearing the Elfman Batman theme is pretty great. It's nice that Batman and Wonder Woman have really solid, recognizable motifs in the score, even if they had to reach back 30 years to find one for Batman. It's a shame the other characters don't get anything so clear and distinctive. 
Casting J.K. Simmons as Commissioner Gordon was a pretty good move.
Our first full glimpse of Cyborg is a bit uncomfortable. Up until this point, we've seen him in sweats, so seeing him without clothes...it's like that bit in "Cats" where Idris Elba takes off his coat and even though he's covered in CGI, you can't help but think "okay, he's naked now," a thought you only have because he was wearing clothes before. 
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Batman does his "disappear while Gordon has his back turned" bit, and it becomes a gag because only Flash is left behind. Except that we've seen that Flash perceives things at a higher speed than others, so why would he be caught off-guard? Wouldn't their disappearance have happened in basically slow-motion to him? Why did Wonder Woman and Cyborg disappear when Batman did? How did they know to do that? The only reason Flash is left behind is for the gag, because he's the comic relief character right now, but it would make more sense for literally either of the others to be the one in that position. It feels like a "kill your darlings" moment. Like, they decided that this gag was more important than making sense, when they could easily have done a different gag—like Flash noticing that Batman was leaving and stopping him in the middle. 
The Nightcrawler is a bad idea. It doesn't really make sense as the thing Batman would bring to this fight with Steppenwolf, and it's loaded up with guns, which...come on, guys. It doesn't even get a clear enough spotlight to be properly toyetic. 
If you needed any confirmation that Joss saw how much better Quicksilver was in "X-Men: Days of Future Past" than in "Age of Ultron," the Flash is here in this battle to make it obvious. 
God, the "Flash is awkward about being on top of Wonder Woman" gag feels like it lasts a thousand years. It's like something out of a "Big Bang Theory" episode.
It physically pained me to hear crappy Steppenwolf quoting New Gods #1. 
I know there's pathos to Cyborg's character, but, like, is this really the version that they thought people wanted to see? Is this just the Brooding League? I thought a part of the reason for bumping Cyborg up to the big League was to bring in people who love the version on "Teen Titans," but there's nothing of that character here. 
On the other hand, they've sidestepped the modern problem of making Barry Allen act like Wally West by instead making Barry Allen act like Bart Allen with a head injury. 
I really like Bruce Wayne in a vest. 
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There's so many things that would have made this movie better, but honestly? I think Superman should've stayed dead. Obviously I love the character, and I even love Cavill's performance, but a movie about  a superhero community coming together and being inspired by Superman's example to be better—you know, the thing Batman says at the end of "Dawn of Justice"—would have been a lot better than a movie where two characters we just met dig up Superman's grave to MacGuffin him back to life. It still wouldn't make that much sense that Superman would have such a massive impact after just a year and a half of public superheroing (come on, Snyder, if you're going to do the Christ allegory, why not give him three years?), but it would have been a better way to showcase what the character means to this universe and to these characters. 
This runs into something I said way back when I first saw "Man of Steel": You shouldn't make General Zod your first-movie villain. I've been comparing this film to "Age of Ultron" a lot, but I'm starting to realize that the entire DCEU—with the possible exception of "Wonder Woman"—is made up of the second movie in each character's respective franchises. Zod should have been the villain Superman faced after he was established, to raise doubts about the character's allegiances and present him with a seemingly impossible threat. Batman should have fought Superman after a movie where we established what Batman's deal is, how he got to be so angry and bitter. The Justice League should have faced an enemy too big to fight without Superman after the movie where a threat and Superman's legacy inspired them to unite together. Heck, even "Suicide Squad" would've been better if they'd saved the "one of our own is a traitor" plot for a sequel, where we might have some emotional attachment to some of the characters. 
Boy, Barry Allen attempting a fist bump with Cyborg and then laughing off the rejection with the phrase "racially charged" hits real bad in the wake of Ray Fisher's discussion about the environment on-set. 
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One thing to appreciate about Cavill's Superman is how much he exemplifies the hairy-chested, dimple-chinned version that Dan Jurgens draws. 
And Elfman works the John Williams theme into the score. The motif works well the first time, less so the second when he's trying to kill the Flash. Hitting it in a more minor key would have been nice. Again, it's a shame they had to go literally forty years back in time to find a recognizable Superman theme when there were two Superman movies leading up to this. 
This fight between Superman and the League is bad and unnecessary, but the bit where Superman reacts to Flash in super-speed is well-done, marred only by the incredibly doofy look on Flash's face. 
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God, Cavill doing the gravel-voice, asking "Do you bleed?" might be the worst part of this movie. Although Lois Lane entering the plot for the first time in an hour so she can say "the sun's gettin' real low" to Superman is a close second. Why isn't she involved in the formation of the League? Why wasn't she a major character in this?
Batman's "something's definitely bleeding" comedy bit feels like something out of a View Askew movie, and not only because it's Ben Affleck. 
Clark's discussion with Lois, "it's itchy," it's yet another jarring tone shift from what we saw immediately before. And the greenscreen work on the farm (reshoots, I expect) is somehow worse than the moustache removal. 
The bit with Aquaman baring his soul because he's sitting on the Lasso of Truth is the closest one of the comedy bits in this has come to actually working for me. 
And then, adding to the "Age of Ultron" comparisons, we're back to fighting an enemy in a small Eastern European nation. The red skies are a nice touch. The Batmobile's 50-caliber cannon and chainguns, less so.
Did...did the Flash just say "oh snap"? 
And Aquaman saying "my man" to Cyborg with the exact same inflection as Bradley Cooper in "Get Out" is another one of those real uncomfortable moments. 
And then Batman gets a laser gun, because why not? 
Superman asking "how can I help" and then rushing off to save civilians is maybe the best moment for the character in the entire DCEU. It's also nice that Superman gets a moment to help more or less each character with their individual missions. 
And then Wonder Woman drops the "I work with children" line, which is the best line Black Widow gets in this movie. 
Cyborg gets his "booyah" moment, which feels forced but at least makes some sense with his character arc. Flash gets his fistbump. Not-Sokovia gets to be the setting for a Jeff Vandermeer novel, and the team gets their triumphant moment in the sun. 
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We're on to denouement, and Lois gets the closing narration, which is mostly fine. It would work better if she weren't basically a cameo in the movie. I do like that it ends on "look, up in the sky," and that Cavill finally gets a chance to do the shirt pull. 
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Except that's not the end. First we get the beginning-of-credits scene with the Superman/Flash race, which is cute but unnecessary. And then a truly awful cover of "Come Together" before the post-credits sequence where Lex Luthor meets up with Deathstroke and his truly ridiculous dye job. 
In summary, Joss Whedon's Zack Snyder's "Justice League" is a bad movie. In fact, it's several bad movies stitched together into a shambling bad movie Frankenstein. And tomorrow I'm going to watch Zack Snyder's Zack Snyder's "Justice League: The Snyder Cut," which is getting surprisingly positive reviews. I do not expect to enjoy it, because I really don't think my problems with this movie will be fixed by making it broodier and longer, and my track record with enjoying Snyder's films is basically nonexistent. But I'm watching it, because I'm a glutton for punishment, and at least if I do it while I'm still on vacation from Twitter, I won't be tempted to join in the undoubtedly toxic discourse. 
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