#one who uses awful puns like Nightwing

[epkot94]

Had a great idea for a Spirit Halloween fic!

Ok so I know people tend to write the Infinite Realms as being connected to all dimensions, so imagine when FlashPoint Paradox occurred (it created a completely different timeline for the DC universe before it was corrected by the Flash, one in which Bruce Wayne died in the alley) the ghost of Bruce Wayne came into existence in the infinite realms.

Clockwork is aware that reversing the changes to the timeline will destroy ghost!bruce but he uses his power to protect him and keep in existence. Because ghost!bruce has to exist so he can be in the right spot so when a portal opens up he can fuse with a boy named Danny and save his life.

DP canon proceeds for the next year or two, by this point Danny has revealed his halfa status to his parents but he’s still unaware that he’s bonded to a ghost (maybe the bonding event knocked ghost!bruce unconscious?) and after some time and a lot of talks they’ve come around to the truth that ghosts are actually sentient and just like humans some are good and some are bad.

Unfortunately the GIW are still around and with years of public ghost appearances and battles, all the footage and proof they’ve built up leads to the government deciding to expand the GIW. More agents, better training and more weaponry. Their mission statement goes from discovering ghosts weaknesses and studying them to complete extermination.

Some big fight between Phantom and some agents happens and maybe there were some bystanders killed, maybe Tucker and Sam or the rest of the Fenton family? And the sheer trauma of the event as well as the injuries Danny gets pushes through his bond and wakes up ghost!Bruce.

Because of the bond Bruce is aware of Danny’s memories and has subconsciously been learning with him as well as “aging” (he might just be subconsciously shapeshifting to match Danny’s age).

And now Danny is starting to hear a voice in his head, trying to comfort him, promising that he’ll never be alone. Freaked out, Danny travels to see Frostbite thinking he’s finally going crazy but gets waylaid by Clockwork, who finally reveals this whole convoluted plot he set up to prevent Danny’s death from the portal and ensure that Danny Phantom would come to be.

*I’ve always liked the idea that Clockwork aims every dimension toward the timeline with the best outcome, but Danny’s has always been difficult to see clearly so clockworks mostly making plans on the fly ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I have no clue what happens next because my brain went straight to Danny and ghost!Bruce working together to figure out how to split, and eventually starting to grow feelings for each other the longer they’re aware of each other.

Eventually, something’s leads them to going to Gotham (I imagine Danny is in his mid 20s at this point) and they decide that with the GIW growing more dangerous they need to actively search for allies, ghost!Bruce doesn’t have super clear memories of his living life, probably doesn’t even really remember his name, but he does have a memory of a voice saying something along the lines of “Wayne’s always help when they can” and hey Bruce Wayne is Batman’s auger daddy, maybe he can get them an in with the JLA?

[mej2235]

A little propaganda for the @tmnt-crossover-polls for our collab au WAFD. @ossadeaurata @marshmel-l0w7 @we-all-fall-down-series

Oh and some lovely mentions going out to @wandering-ghost and Pico, her baby Godzilla from Atomic Pets, @phoenixdeleted and Neon, her future rise Leo who has a habit of adopting people and a mention of Batman and Nightwing from A Heart Of Sunflower by @doctaaaaaaaar

This snippet contains:

Donna: 03 Donnie uses they/she

Raph: 03 Raph

Mikey: 03 Mikey

Master Splinter: 03 Splinter

Leon: Rise Leo

Neon: Disarmed! Future Leon

Enjoy!

“Well, that hurt,” Donna groaned, rubbing her head.

Master Splinter hopped off her shell and landed smoothly on the ground, allowing Donna to push herself to her feet. She offered the turtle under her, Leon, a hand which he took quickly, holding it as he glanced around the arena in awe. Donna caught him by the lip of his shell as he tripped with a fond smile.

“Mikey! Get your butt offa me or I swear-“

“Keep it in your shell, Raphie!” Mikey growled back, playfully nipping near his brother’s face as turtles would. “I’m getting off, I swear.”

Mikey readjusted himself to pin Raph’s body more effectively and made no move to get off the older turtle.

“That’s it!” Raph began to rock his body, dislodging his brother and allowing him to twist his body around and trap the younger turtle in a headlock. “Say ittttt.”

“NOOO!” Mikey shrieked, laughing as Raph gave him a noogie.

“Last chance, little brother!” Raph stuck a finger in his mouth and pulled it out.

“NONONO!” Mikey squealed, “I WILL NEVER SURRENDER TO TYRANNOHMIGODTHAT’SOGROSS-!”

“Children,” Master Splinter punctuated the word with a tap of his cane on the ground. “Unfamiliar territory is no place for games,” the rat mutant turned away, unable to keep his grin in check behind his poker face, “even if they are amusing.”

“Hey!” Mikey protested, “That’s taking sides!”

Splinter did not answer, simply observing their surroundings. Leon was staring around at what appeared to be multitudes of giant stages, like the traditional kind where musicals or plays would take place. Donna had always adored theatre. She used to sneak into theatres like these with Leo all the time; he always let her take centre stage and was even willing to learn how to use the lights to give her her moment.

Donna missed that. Maybe she could introduce that part of her life to Leon. She wondered if he’d ever seen a play or a musical or if he was like Mikey and only enjoyed the art of movies.

“Welcome to the TMNT Crossover Polls,” Donna read aloud, grabbing her family’s attention. “Polls? That would imply some sort of popularity competition or election, but what does TMNT Crossover mean?”

“Crossover means when two different universes visit each other,” Leon cut in, hands flapping away as he tried to look everywhere at once. “It’s usually a term used in fandoms to describe when they combine two pieces of media they enjoy or a set of characters travel from one media to another. Like Jupiter Jim meets Lou Jitsu and they kick alien invader butt together!”

Leon blinked at them, done talking. They all blinked back. Leon’s face began to turn red and his head began to disappear into his shell.

Raph laughed and hit the kid’s back, “I don’t understand most of that, but it’s cool that you do.”

The younger turtle beamed at him, puffing his chest out in pride. Donna smiled and patted the younger’s head, drawing out a churr from him.

“I suppose that would make us a crossover then, wouldn’t it?” Master Splinter stroked his chin as he looked over his four children, “After all, Leon here is a universe traveller. He has quite literally crossed-over to our dimension.”

The four turtles stared at the rat for a few seconds until Leon flung himself forward, face right in Splinter’s face.

“Ohmigod! Was that a pun?” He practically squealed.

Master Splinter simply smirked and held a finger to his lips, “Let’s keep that our little secret.”

“You have officially jumped up the coolness scale to the top, after me, of course,” Leon flipped his mask tails, jumping up and down on the toes of his feet with a huge smile.

“Hey!” Mikey protested, “That’s my title!”

Leon just innocently blinked his little eyes at the older turtle, “I guess you’ll have to work harder then.”

Mikey scowled, poking Leon’s plastron with his finger, “You are playing with fire, young man.”

Leon shrugged, turning on his heel and walking with his hands behind his head, “My Mikey actually wields fire so I’m used to it.”

Mikey, along with his family, stared after the slider blankly.

“EXCUSE ME WHAT?!” The orange-clad turtle ran after the slider, looping a hand around to force him to face him.

They quickly caught up, watching Leon avoid Mikey’s relentless questions. Instead, the younger turtle seemed to be picking at a sticker on his plastron. That was strange. It wasn’t a bandage or one of the pads from Donna’s medical tests. She had made sure to remove them once it was over. Mikey twisted around in frustration suddenly and kicked at air, revealing another sticker on his own plastron.

“Mikey,” Donna called out, putting a stop to the little playful spat between the two turtles, “what’s that on your plastron?”

Mikey glanced down at it and then back up at Donna and shrugged, “Dunno, but we all have them.”

She glanced down, confirming that fact. Donna pulled off the one stuck to her plastron and held it out. Raph, in true Raph fashion, pulled his off his plastron and dropped the sticker, except the poor turtle found it did what stickers did best and stuck. To his finger. He started to wave his hand trying to get it off as his family watched on. Donna, eventually, had to be the adult of the family and rescue her poor suffering twin by grabbing the sticker by the none sticky part and dropping it.

To her surprise, the sticker dissipated into nothingness, only to appear upon Raph’s plastron once more. Upon closer inspection, it read ‘We All Fall Down.’ Well, that didn’t exactly spell bright things in their future. Heh. She should tell Leon that one later.

“Hey, Raph!” Donna glanced over at her ki- Leon as the younger turtle smirked, sticker in his hand, “Look!”

Raph, never one to ignore family, unfortunately turned to face the boy, only to receive a slap in the face for his troubles, gentle and literally. Leon snickered as he stepped back to admire his handiwork for a few seconds. Raph blinked and raised his hand to touch the sticker now adorning his face. His eyes locked onto the still snickering target in front of him and Donna could see the moment he made his decision.

“Oh you’re gonna pay for that one!” Raph sneered, attempting to tackle the slider, who darts under his arms and makes his escape, now cackling as Raph gave chase.

Donna shook her head and sat on the floor next to her father and remaining brother. To her amusement, once Leon got about a mutant turtle away from Raph, the sticker removed itself from Raph’s face and repeated with the void magic on Leon’s plastron. Fascinating. She would have to look into those properties to see if they could use those to find a way to access Leon’s dimension and get him home.

Maybe.

She was still undecided on whether or not to let him go home yet.

“Tea?” Master Splinter offered from where he knelt beside her, holding up a tea kettle that had been over a small fire (maybe she got her more arsonist tendencies from him).

“No, thank you, Sensei.”

“You should take him up on it. It’s really good.”

Donna smiled, “I am well aware, but I much prefer coffee beans.” She glanced back at her twin pinning Leon to the grown playfully, before realisation set in and she did a double take. “You’re not Mikey.”

The larger turtle smirked at her, “What gave it away? My handsome stripes? My winning personality? My stunning physique?”

Donna gave him her most deadpan stare, “You’re another version of Leon.”

“In the flesh,” he grinned with a wave of his metal arm, “well mostly.”

Donna snickered at that. “So is it just you or will I finally get to meet your brothers?”

“Not with me, I’m afraid,” the older Leon shrugged at her concerned glance and pointed at a group of four different turtles. “I’m taking care of that lot right now. It grows randomly.” Right on cue, another turtle joined the group. The older Leon held out his hand, “I’m Neon.”

Donna took it, “Donna.” She glanced at the scars that covered the older version of her kid, “Looks like you’ve had it rough. When was the last time you’ve eaten?”

Neon chuckled, answering her question with another question, “You’re a Donnie, so let me ask you, when was the last time you’ve eaten?”

Donna frowned at him, “Touché.”

The three sipped their tea in silence for a bit.

“Hey! Donna! There’s new superheroes here!”

Donna twisted to see her Mikey charging over to them. He stopped right before the tea, giddy and grinning as he hopped up and down, a comic book in his hands.

“Look!” He held it out to her and she took it with the utmost care, “They signed it! They said their names are Batman and Nightwing! Apparently there’s more of them and I need to find them and collect all the-“

It had been a long time since Mikey had geeked out over comic books. Leo used to do that, always the sci-fi nerd. Leon, unfortunately, didn’t know enough lore to be able to join in with the infodumping.

“Excuse me,” Neon interrupted as Mikey took a moment to finally breathe, “but would you sign this?” He held out what looked like a strangely wordy and legal document.

“Of cour-“

Donna, of course, grabbed the pen and contract and scowled at the turtle wearing her kid’s face. She read over the contract in her hands.

Donna read it again.

She held it out and pointed at it.

“This is an adoption form!” She accused, making her father spit out all his tea as he hacked up a lung. Right now however, she didn’t care and glared at the other turtle.

“Yep.”

“We’re mutant turtles.”

“Yep.”

“We aren’t legal.”

“Usually, yeah.”

“What do you mean usually?” She snarled at him, making sure her brother was safely behind her.

“Normal human laws don’t apply here. That form is perfectly legal in here. I’m pretty sure we all randomly have birth certificates, even if they are inaccurate.”

Now that was an interesting tidbit.

Donna sneered, “You don’t get to adopt my family, legally or otherwise.”

Neon rolled his eyes, “You can stop me.”

Donna tilted her head with a smile, “Well I suppose I’ll have to adopt you.”

The larger turtle gasped, “You wouldn’t!”

Donna twisted on her heel and stalked away to gather her team. It was time for a custody battle.

Master Splinter finally managed to expel all the liquid from his lungs, only to find himself alone, except for a tiny lizard creature watching him curiously.

He held out a cup of tea to them, “Would you like some?”

Splinter’s entire vision turned blue as some strange burning sensation consumed his body. It dissipated soon enough, leaving the rat mutant singed.

He coughed and the lizard wandered off. Splinter missed his old cage in Master Yoshi’s dojo.

That was it! He was retiring to Tahiti!

[river-bottom-nightmare]

i love thinking about how wally’s definition of a hero changed and evolved over time.

every kid thinks their parents are heroes, at least at first. for a couple, that hero-worship lasts well into adulthood. for others, it fizzles away in mutual laughs when they sit behind a wheel for the first time and shush their parents’ backseat driving, or when they take successfully take control of the kitchen for a night. and for some, it slips away much earlier. because rudy talked loudly at dinner about the trust his boss was placing in him at work, smiling smugly at wally as though telling him to take notes. but wally noticed him yelling at his mother when coming home from work, his steps stumbling, his posture menacing over the smaller but no less angry form. and wally had to bite back protests when rudy sneered about aunt iris, spitting the fact that she was adopted in her face, nevermind that she seemed to care for the west family more than anyone else in it. (saying this aloud would only end with a backhand to the face or a belt to the back, though, so wally kept quiet.) and, anyway, when wally grew up and helped the green lanterns slam the doors of a prison cell shut on his fathers face, wearing a manhunter uniform and looking for all the world like the traitor to humanity he was, wally was grateful his hero worship had drizzled down the drain early.

aunt iris was brilliant, aunt iris was kind, aunt iris was beautiful, but aunt iris was human. she stuck bandaids over wally’s scraped knees with gentle fingers and danced in the kitchen of a little apartment while she made wally’s favourite version of mac and cheese. she was real and present and there, but she wasn’t really a hero. because the world seemed to have a new definition of “hero”. there was a man with a cape and a symbol of hope flying unattainably high over metropolis, there were arrows sticking out of steel walls in star city, there were hushed whispers of a leather-clad demon and a beam of brutal light fluttering around him in gotham. but central city? wally’s home? had someone who could run faster than the speed of sound with lightning crackling in his wake, had someone who exuded sheer power, had someone who laughed in two-second television appearances, had someone who made jokes with kids he was saving to calm them down, had someone who cared about the city so goddamn much. he was everything wally had ever seen in a hero, and when aunt iris and her new boyfriend barry (wally kind of liked the guy so far) took him to the flash museum, wally stood in the center of it. he made a slow turn, taking in everything he could see and hear and feel. “s” could mean hope and a bat could mean vengeance, but that red and yellow bolt of lightning meant power to wally, benevolent and uplifting power that made the lives of everyone it touched brighter. 

it took a christmas when wally was in 5th grade for him to realize that the flash was a hero of the people. central city loved him, and the flash loved them right back. but when wally was zapped with lighting, feeling unimaginable pain coursing through every single nerve in his body, barely even registering the chemicals that had gotten into his mouth, it was his uncle barry’s face looking down at him. it was uncle barry that never let go of his hand in the hospital, it was uncle barry that held him up every step of the way when his new powers (his new powers!) left him a stumbling, newborn foal. it was uncle barry that explained every single part of what happened to him, then at wally’s shy insistence, happily showed him around his lab. it was uncle barry that scoffed at his homework and wrote up some much more engaging problems for wally to do for fun. and it was uncle barry that presented him with his very own suit for christmas during that memorable 5th grade, and lifted him up easy as breathing when wally barreled into him for a hug. the flash was the hero of the people, but barry was wally’s hero.

of course, with his new name and new identity and new powers, he was exposed to a network of more super-people. superman was kind, if a bit bumbling. wonder woman’s biceps were bigger than wally’s entire head, but her laugh was as kind as aunt iris’ when wally told her that, and her grip was strong yet gentle when she scooped wally up and let him ride on her shoulders. uncle barry, no, the flash pouted theatrically when wally told him green lantern was funnier than him, but he cheered up when wally gave him a hug. batman was...well, first of all, real. wally honestly hadn’t believed he existed, and stepping cautiously into the batcave for the first time, wally couldn’t reconcile the near-invisible black mass moving silently around an outrageously high-tech cave with a human being. the reason for batman’s invitation became clear soon, though, because if the darkness was real, that meant the light had to be, too. robin was everything wally had ever imagined and more. he one-upped wally’s jokes with puns of his own and broke a man’s nose with a backflip and balanced on top of a telephone wire like he was walking on concrete and ordered curly fries exactly the way wally liked them. wally couldn’t do anything but marvel. 

over the years, he realized a couple things about his best friend. first, dick grayson, from the very beginning, had cast aside the notion of being “batman’s sidekick.” robin wasn’t a continuation of batman. robin was different, in everything from costume to demeanor to fighting style. dick wasn’t following batman’s legacy, he was creating his own. second, no matter how many times dick’s world burned down, he would always rebuild it. nightwing was a fitting name, a sort of poetic justice to it that wally himself never would have considered had dick not pointed it out. when robin was taken away from him, and the two of them lay huddled together, seething and devastated on clark kent’s couch, he built himself up again as nightwing. when jason todd was murdered, the robin suit cast aside as if caught up in a curse, dick wept at his mistakes, then did everything possible to correct them, gently but insistently shaping tim drake into a damn near perfect vigilante, an artist turning soft clay into an unbreakable vase. when dick’s memory was ripped away from him, with time he clawed his way back; when his father was killed, he built up batman again and honoured him the only way he knew how; when the feeling of touch and sensation and love that he used to adore was brutalized into the opposite by a spider, he broke apart in the presence of the titans, placing his trust in their capable hands, then with their help, stood taller than he ever had before. the amount of strength that took was awe-inspiring to wally. finally, third, dick never lost his light. the warmth that draws everyone to him, the kindness that healed their wounds, the mischievousness that broke their chains of despair and buoyed them upward in laughter. he never once lost it. he didn’t let many people see his breakdowns or his temper, but no matter the witness, he chose light over succumbing to the damning, over and over and over again.

a hero is someone you idolize, someone you aspire to be. wally had been trying to embody what dick stood for almost the entire time he knew him. from the way dick hugged him, the way the titans supported him unconditionally, the way the justice league respected him, the way central city loved the flash fiercely, and he loved them right back, wally liked to think he’d been successful.

that post about central city having a flash museum was the inspo for this. it did,,,,,get away from me a little at the end, and i got swept up in birdflash feels, but oh well. you get what i mean.

tag list: @woahjaybird @birdy-bat-writes @anothertimdrakestan @subtleappreciation @screennamealreadyused @pricetagofficial @catxsnow @bonkybearjpeg @bikoncon @maplumebleue-blog-blog @sundownridge

[a-marlene-s]

Pt. 2 of an Ask: Timari

pt. 2 of this ask by @imfreakingmagical​

Pt. 1: https://a-marlene-s.tumblr.com/post/188830276141/how-about-a-lady-noir-the-mini-catwoman-fic-how

Everyone watched with a mixture of awe or outright horror as they watched Lady Noir create a ball of black energy that quickly took aim at a massive bomb. Many cried out for her to run and to get away. Some even ran in to get her out of area before the bomb could go off.

Then, Lady Noir grabbed hold of the bomb and it quickly started corrode before it turned into dust. This caused Riddler to go silent as his main ace just got destroyed by an unknown cat themed hero… who is now glaring at him… “Cat’s Game?”

“Yeah… no.” Lady Noir pulled out her staff and spin it around before swinging the Riddler across the warehouse. When the Riddler landed, he attempted to get back up but was knocked out when Robin ran over and knocked him out completely. “Puns and riddles… I am getting tired of puns and riddles.”

“What was that!” Nightwing called out, running over towards the now destroyed bomb along with Red Robin, Batman and Black Canary. There was nothing left of the bomb except for some dust but even then, it was clear whatever Lady Noir could do, it’s highly dangerous. It made everyone in the warehouse wonder just how dangerous Lady Noir Could be. “Lady Noir?”

Red Robin looked over to see that Lady Noir now looked tense, almost like she wanted to run away. “Lady Noir, are you alright?”

“What kind of power was that?” Batman questioned, ignoring Black Canary’s glare.

“It’s called Cataclysm… it’s a just a ball of bad luck.” Lady Noir explained hesitantly. This is the first time she had used the special power since meeting the batboys. She fears that they will consider too much of a risk. What if they will lock her up? What if they will take away the ring? What if-

“That was amazing!” Red Robin gushed out, rubbing over to Lady Noir, catching her off guard. “Why didn’t you show us before? That was cool and far easier than disarming a bomb.”

“How did you know it would have worked?” Robin questioned, walking over while dragging the Riddler by his collar. “You could have detonated the bomb.”

“Cataclysm is a ball of black luck energy. Whatever I touch, it reacts negatively to my touch.” Lady Noir maintaining eye contact with the youngest Robin. “And even then, all of you were too far away to be able to safely disarm the bomb in such a limited time… Batman or not.”

A sharp beep sounded off from Lady Noir’s ring. This caused her to panic. She has exactly five minutes before her transformation wears out and right now, she isn’t in a good place for that to happen. “I have to go!”

Without a second thought, Lady Noir pulled out her staff and used it to jump over them. She promptly ran out of the warehouse, while her ring let out another beep. That beep prompted Red Robin to run after her, asking if she’s okay. The only one that knew what’s going on is Black Canary who is calling out for Red Robin to leave Lady Noir be but to no luck.

Black Canary looked into her jacket and pulled out a small zipblock bag. “I need to give this to Lady Noir.”

“You’re going to give her cheese?”

“It’s a long story.”

-.-

“Lady Noir? Lady Noir? Where are you?” Red Robin looked around the general area she had last seen Lady Noir. So far, he hadn’t had any luck in finding her. This the first time she had ran away and the first time he had ever heard her ring beep. He hopes her powers didn’t have a horrible drawback. “Lady No-”

The sound of a trashcan being kicked over and what appears to be someone cursing caught Red Robin’s attention. He headed into a dark alley and what he found has him extremely confused. There’s a girl his age, that looked like she had tripped over a trash can and is now groaning in pain.

“Way to go, Marinette… talk about bad luck.”  Marinette criticized herself, for tripping over a large metal trash can.

“Hey, it’s not bad luck! It’s just you for not paying attention is all~” Plagg flew out of Marinette’s purse while munching on a small piece of cheese. “I need more cheese to transform you back to Lady Noir, kid.”

Marinette slowly got back up while looking through her purse, she cursed at herself when she found none. She will have to find Black Canary to the stash of cheese from her. “Shoot. I don’t have any more on me.”

“Next time, pack more cheese!” Plagg huffed out, crossing his arms over his chest at the thought of not having any more cheese. He turned around to see Red Robin staring at him with his mouth agape. The Kwami grinned at kid, before looking back at Marinette. “Hey Marinette, isn’t that the boy you’ve been crushing on?”

“Red Robin!” Marinette spiraled around to see Red Robin standing several feet away from her, his mouth agape and pointing at Plagg. She turned her attention over at Plagg who is now laughing openly at her misfortune. Without a second thought, she grabbed hold of Plagg and stuffed him into her purse before turning around to run away… to only trip over the same trashcan she had tripped over earlier. She groaned when she heard Plagg laugh at her misfortune. “Why…”

“Are… are you okay?” Red Robin asked, running over to Marinette. He kept his eyes on the giggling purse while he helped Marinette stand back up. “Could you stand?”

“I’ll be fine… You wouldn’t happen to have any cheese on you, would you?” Marinette asked, exhausted beyond measure at this point. Red Robin doesn’t know her identity and perhaps she could still save face.

Red Robin couldn’t help but chuckle despite how weird the entire situation is. “Sorry, I don’t carry around any cheese.”

“Curse him! Curse him!!!” Could be heard from Marinette’s purse.

Marinette hit her purse, earning her a loud oomph and all she could do is to give Red Robin a strained smile. As if Plagg is punishing her, her phone went off. Marinette spun around and pulled out her phone. “Dinah? I don’t know where I am… No… No… I’m fine… …No... Um, Red Robin is here with me… I… it will make things easier for me if we’ll be working together more often… Okay. Here.”

Marinette stuck her phone out to Red Robin who took a step back by her actions. “Black Canary wants to talk to you.”

Red Robin fumbled with the phone before putting it next to his ear. He wonders if Black Canary is actually on the other side of the line. “Hello?”

-.-

Marinette glared at Batman, who just glared back at her. All of them were in the Batcave and everyone started to question her powers and Plagg. There’s no way that she’s going to spill her secrets to anyone, especially by forced and intimidation. “I am under no obligation to tell you anything about what I could do just for you to use it against me.”

Black Canary could only shake her head at Batman’s attempt to have Marinette tell them about her supposed powers and Plagg. Marinette told her as she felt the need to do so… after Plagg destroyed the kitchen and had witnessed Tikki yelling at him for destroying said kitchen. To think that Marinette is a Guardian of these powerful creatures and is tasked with taking care of them.

“This… thing-”

“He has a name and it’s Plagg!” Marinette corrected him.

“Plagg has the power to destroy and you don’t even have the pro-”

“Tikki no!” cried out Plagg from Marinette’s purse and instead of tiny cat like creature flying out of the purse, it’s a small crimson creature flew out.

“Tikki! Don’t, you should be resting!” Marinette gasped out, she reached up to take hold of Tikki, but she only flew away from her grasp.

Tikki flew over to Batman, face to face. “How dare you say that about her! About him! How dare you!”

At the other side of the cave, Nightwing, Red Robin and Robin were watching with extreme fascination. It was quite a sight to be seen and they were enjoying every moment of it.

“The fact you are considering taking Plagg away is complete blasphemy! Do you actually believe your technology could hold us back? The fact you are trying to assert your authority over Marinette is laughable.” Tikki tutted at Batman. “Where were you when she asked for the League’s help in dealing with Hawkmoth? Oh, right. You thought it was just a bunch of teenagers making things up. Guess what, it wasn’t. I have half a mind to turn your luck upside down….”

“Hey Tikki… that’s enough. You need your rest.” Plagg flew over to Tikki. “You still need your rest… don’t worry about us! I’ll cause another Great Fire here in the city! To teach him a lesson!”

Tikki couldn’t help but chuckle, she looked over to see Marinette’s hands are extended out for her. She flew over tiredly into her holder’s opened hands and laid there. Oh how tired she is. “If they had taken her seriously… things would have been different…”

“I know… I know…”

-.-

Lady Noir and Red Robin stood in front of each other awkwardly. Things has been rather awkward, even more so, after Tikki and Plagg had confronted Batman. It was clear there were a lot of things were left unsaid and Lady Noir will probably no avoid coming back to Gotham to avoid Batman. This left Red Robin mentally cursing out his mentor for his typical manner of knowing everyone’s business.

“Black Canary mentioned something about me joining Young Justice… She’s going to make sure that I steer clear of Batman though.”

I swear, If this this gets at least 100 likes and reblogs, I’ll make a pt. 3.

[ali-kitkat]

Hisses and Scratches Ch 1

Sometimes life was easy to get through and other times it turned her into a cat. It had been happening to her all week, turning into a cat that is. Her twenty-fifth birthday had passed the earlier Friday and since then she has been shifting back and forth between human and cat. A seal point Siamese to be specific; she had been in her room when she first shifted and every time afterwards. She had considered herself lucky because of that since she transformed back naked.

The present conundrum Marinette was in, was she was lost in Gotham, as a cat. She just moved to the city and had been at a fabric shop before she felt the magic that signaled the shift. Leaving before she bought anything, she ran into an alleyway just as the transformation took over. She wandered for hours before she got lost and she still hadn’t transformed back. She turned around at the loud noise from behind her to see Robin staring at her in curiosity.

“How in the world did you end up out here? I can tell you’re not one of Selina’s, she doesn’t have any Siamese cats. She’d keep you locked up tight. You’re definitely not a stray either, too well kept.” He mused. “I don’t want to leave you out here; you’re wandering around lost. So, I’ll take you with me.”

He scooped her up in his arms, ignoring her hisses and claws. Holding her in his left arm, he raised his right and fired a grappling hook. She stopped lashing out so as not to slip out of his hold but continued hissing and growling. He chuckled at her displeasure and she cast what was supposed to be a glare at him, though she doubted it had any effect. They landed in front of a taller man wearing a bomber jacket and red helmet.

“Another one? You don’t have enough pets already?”

“What’s your point Hood? I found her in Crime Alley, and I wasn’t going to just leave her there; she was wandering around. I’m going to keep her.” He announced. She let an annoyed growl at his statement.

“Are ya sure that’s a good idea? She seems a little angry about that.” Hood asked while reaching out to pet her; yanking his hand back when she started to swat at it. “Shit, she’s a demented little fuck, a perfect match if you ask me.”

“I didn’t.”

She started to squirm, trying to escape his grip was tough and she almost accomplished it before he grabbed her by the scruff. Her body went taut against her will and she let out a pitiful mewl, hoping he’d ease his grip, he didn’t. Another two people landed on the roof and shook their heads at the sight.

“Baby bird, you can’t keep picking up strays.”

“Yeah you’re gonna get fleas that way if you keep it up brat.”

“You lot would know about that wouldn’t you?” He replied shifting her, so she was squished in his arms against his chest. She let out a growl that turned into a purr when he started to scratch her behind the ears. She stopped when she heard someone land and let out an exasperated sigh.

“I’m keeping her.” He announced. “She already swatted at Hood.”

“I didn’t say anything.”

“You didn’t have to father.”

Batman hadn’t given a physical sign of understanding, but the other three vigilantes were falling over themselves with laughter. She heard their mutters ‘It’s genetic.’ ‘Adopting strays is fucking genetic.’ ‘You’ve gotta be shitting me. He adopts animals like B adopts orphans.’ She let out a mewl of disapproval and the vigilante who called Robin ‘Baby Bird’ stepped forward to pet her but backed away after she hissed at him.

“Alright so she’s a little hissy.” He said. She let out a growl at the pun. He jumped a little and stared at her in bewilderment, as did Hood.

“Is it just me or was that a little odd, like she understood Nightwing’s joke?” Hood questioned; his tone worried.

“Hood animals have more intelligence than you. They can understand the human language, though I will concede that it was odd that she growled at the pun.” Robin answered.

They all stopped and stared at her as if she was going to speak, she merely blinked at them in return unfazed by their actions.

“Of course, he found a cat with a similar temperament to his.” Hood said dryly.

Robin let out a snort and resumed petting her, drawing out another purr. She could see Nightwing and Hood pouting. She started to squirm, demanding to be let down. He eased his grip slightly and she slipped out of his hold, she trotted around then brushed against Hood’s leg. She darted away; tail puffed out.

“Way to go Hood you scared her.” Robin sneered and started towards her. She ducked under his grasp running to the edge of the roof. She had almost made it before she was scooped back up, she lashed out against the person holding her, spitting and hissing before she was handed back to Robin.

“Thank you, father. Let’s go home before she makes another break for freedom.” Robin said, while keeping a tight grip on her. She let out another growl. “Yes, I hear you loud and clear you snarling ball of fur.”

*~*~*~*

It had been a few hours since she was accidentally kidnapped by the Bat family.

Robin, who she learned was Damian via his family butler, was laying on his back petting her while the rest of his animals were laying down near them.

He had taken to calling her Eris, since she had sown discord between the brothers when only Damian was allowed to pet her. She was content with the scratches she was receiving from Damian, being a cat wasn’t too bad but that came to a halt when she transformed back into a human. While still laying on him. Lacking clothing.

“What the fuck?” He exclaimed, throwing her off him. She landed on the floor covering herself to the best of her ability.

“Son of a bitch.” She muttered while staring at him in shock. “Could I get—”

He threw a blanket at her before she finished her sentence. Catching it she wrapped it around herself as quickly as possible.

“Hi, my name is Marinette.” She whispered, embarrassment coloring her face. Damian was staring at the ceiling. She could hear the clamoring of footsteps headed for the room, Damian could as well since he lifted his head in confusion at the sound.

The family had rushed into the room, not bothering to open the door but break it down instead, falling into a heap of limbs on the floor. Jason, the first to look up, locked eyes with her. The blanket fell from her shoulders and she let out a squeak as she transformed back into a cat, back arched, tailed puffed out again and started to spit at the Bat clan.

“What the fuck?”

“Isn’t that the cat he brought home?”

“Yes, that’s the cat I brought home. Apparently, she’s not just a cat, are you Marinette?” Damian said finally shaking himself out of the daze he was in, sitting up to look at her. She turned to face him and let out a growl. “Can you transform back?”

She let out a hiss, backing further away from the family as they finally pulled themselves up from the floor. They were wide eyed in shock and awe, but they were on guard. Damian climbed off the bed and approached her carefully, she backed herself into a corner. She was scared, she supposed that much was clear with the family as they eased themselves from their taut posture to a more relaxed pose. Not completely but enough to tell her it was okay. Damian had grabbed her by the scruff again, much to her ire and was keeping hold of her.

“She told you her name?” Dick asked.

“You’re focusing on the wrong thing boy wonder.” Jason sassed. “She was wrapped up in his blanket, shoulders bare. So, when she transforms back again, we should probably have something ready for her to cover herself up in.”

“Will she even transform back?” Tim questioned, moving in front of her.

She was writhing, the need to flee rising. The fear she had, had her so on edge she extended her claws lashing out at whatever was closest to her. Unfortunately, that had been Tim, he let out a swear as she caught his arm. A long scratch stretched up his arm, he glared at her and the scratch. Damian had shoved him back while holding her scruff a bit tighter in one hand.

“Way to go jackass, scaring her further won’t help us a bit.” He snarled at Tim. “Everyone but father leave. The two of us might be able to calm her down. Have Alfred stand outside the room, he will be the one we call for if she transforms back.”

She relaxed somewhat as the three other boys left, but when she locked eyes with Bruce, she tensed up again. Bruce was unreadable, she knew from living in Gotham so far that it was because he didn’t like meta-humans. She understood in that moment, that’s what she was.

Damian eased his grip a little bit, not enough for her to get free. It was an attempt to establish trust she realized when she glanced at him. His green eyes were worried with a hint of anger, she wasn’t sure if it was directed at her or not though. He had shifted her into his arms, keeping a firm hold on her. She was still taut, barely eased and casting glances at Bruce before either of them caught onto her nervousness of the man. Damian followed her line of sight to his father and connected the dots from there, she was classified as a meta and she knew Bruce was Batman. She was scared of what was going to happen to her. His father nodded and left the room, there was no point in terrifying her further.

“Can you try and transform back, Marinette?” Damian asked her, his voice soft. She let out a cry that she tried to make sound like a no as much as possible, an odd attempt at communication. “I’m assuming that was a no, I want you to focus on being human, focus on yourself, push everything else out of your mind.”

He let her go, so she didn’t stray far from his side for fear that he might tackle her. She sat on top of the blanket and closed her eyes focusing like he suggested. It had taken a bit of time as she kept getting distracted while he watched her, she had to swat at him to get him to turn around so she could concentrate. After that it hadn’t taken long for her to shift back. She clutched the blanket to her chest before tapping Damian on the shoulder. He turned his head slightly and whipped it back just as fast.

“Couldn’t you have tried to focus on clothing?”

“Look it was hard enough to focus on being human with you staring at me, but every other time I changed back before I didn’t have any clothes. I don’t think it’s going to happen honestly. Besides I’m pretty sure I’m more embarrassed here.” She replied. She was blushing and he was too if the back of his neck and his ears were any indication, they were bright red.

“Somehow I doubt that.” He muttered.

“What is your dad going to do? I classify as a meta, and he hates them.” She asked, her voice meek. There was a knocking sound before Damian could respond, Alfred stepped into the room. She ducked behind Damian, the blanket covering her but embarrassment winning out.

“Forgive me for intruding, but here are some clothes for Miss Marinette to wear.” Alfred said; handing Marinette the clothes and leaving just as quickly as he entered.

She slipped the clothing on while still keeping the blanket on her, getting dressed underneath it. She shifted the blanket to her shoulders and tied the drawstring on the pants given, they were small but still a bit too big for her.

“I’m assuming it’s meeting time now?” She asked moving in front of Damian. His face was unreadable as he nodded in confirmation. She took a deep breath, gripping the blanket tighter for a small sense of security. He led her to what she presumed was the living room.

She had expected stares but theirs’s unnerved her, almost to the point where she shifted again. Damian’s father was standing behind his brothers. Jason stood between Dick and Tim. She started to hyperventilate, and Damian grabbed her, ushering her into an armchair, distracting her from her train of thought.

She looked at their faces trying to gauge their expressions. Bruce’s expression, from what she could actually read, was a mixture of shock and awe. His brothers were amused, Jason was muttering something she couldn’t make out but had resulted in him being elbowed by both Dick and Tim. He had fallen over with a pained expression and she had to muffle a laugh. Which caused him to look a little disgruntled on top of pained. Damian let out a laugh shocking his family, as they all turned to stare at him instead of her.

*~*~*~*

@chocolate1721 posted in the discord about cat Mari being cuddled by Damian and this transpired. Enjoy!

[bigfan-fanfic]

Dank? (Batdad!Reader Headcanons)

Requested by @yesthetrashbin for how batdad embarrasses Bruce and the Batboys with puns, jokes, and meme references

I do apologize - I am so not caught up on memes.

You know how when the newscasters start using memes, it’s basically a death knell?

Like, “Citizens are saying, ‘Bye, Felicia’ to summer with a Labor Day bash...”

That’s you.

Being a celebrity, it means that you are more often a meme than a user of memes.

For example, you and Bruce went on the G. Gordon Godfrey Show once (big mistake), and when the host went in for a hug you basically stabbed him in the gut with you hand meant for a handshake

It went viral with the caption “tfw your drunk uncle tries to hug you”

Frequently people post GIFs of your face as reactions.

Jason pretty much loves this, and his official social media (before he dies, when he comes back he has to start a fake one) is a main producer of Y/N Wayne Reaction GIFs

But even more embarrassing, somehow, than being a meme is when you try to use one.

You and Damian are the most behind at memes. It’s hard keeping track when you spend all day and night working. Also, patrol tends to be more interesting for you than memes.

Tim is the most hip. He’s always scanning the Internet, so he knows what’s up.

Speaking of, you taught Damian to say “whasssssuuuuup” and Tim didn’t speak to you for a month.

Dick and Jason groan a lot during patrol.

Because you often react to villainous monologues with archaic meme references.

“Scarecrow’s gonna gas the city? Ermagerhd!”

“ugh”

Mainly you do it to annoy them. You are responsible for the revival of the “trollface” meme. You monster.

But the best (or worst) part is your constant punning.

It can be glorious at times

It can be hellishly awful at others.

Mixed reactions. Dick is a giggler. Damian snorts, trying to stop himself (he’s a sucker for wordplay). Tim groans without fail. Jason will either silent eye-roll or burst out in high-pitched hoots. There is no in between,

You do a Steve Irwin impression whenever Killer Croc comes into view.

When chasing Poison Ivy:

“Hey, Red Robin. Why did Poison Ivy change her clothes?”

“Ugh. Why?”

“Because she SOILED them!”

“Ugh....”

“Hey, Nightwing. Why is Two-Face the best villain?”

“Why?” Dick asks warily.

“Because he’s not HALF-bad!”

Both of you giggle like freaks.

“Hey, hey, Robin. Where does Batman go pee?”

“Is this really appropriate?”

“C’mon!”

“TT, very well. Where does Batman urinate?”

“In the bat-room.”

Damian knows it’s awful. But he can’t help it. He starts snorting and then laughs.

“Red Hood. Why is Batman really a kleptomaniac?”

“What?”

“You heard.”

Silence. Then: “Fi-i-ine. I’ll bite.”

“Because he can’t go anywhere without Robin!”

Silence. Crickets.

“You’re so embarrassing.”

“I know.”

Bruce is very good at keeping the smilies down. But sometimes, something weird just gets him. 

Bruce is talking with you about patrol. “The Joker hasn’t been active for a while.”

You wiggle your eyebrows. “You know what that means.”

He gives you the side-eye. “What?”

“He’s probably riding his Harley.”

Bruce snorts so hard he chokes, and then guffaws. A good ten minutes later he glares hard at you.

“The boys can’t know.”

You shrug.

“Who would believe me?”

They call it embarrassing, but they love your stupid jokes.

[batboysandgirls]

Jason Todd x Reader - What a Night

Title: What a Night Pairing: Jason Todd x Reader Summary: Your commute home turns into a kidnapping, but at least you’re not alone tied up in this warehouse…  The Red Hood got kidnapped too. Words: 4k

When you come to, you stopped yourself from panicking.  You were tied to a chair in what appeared to be a pretty empty warehouse, and you were 80% sure that the Red Hood was sitting next to you.

The last thing you remembered was walking into the metro station at about seven in the evening, and a huge explosion.  One would think this was a totally new and shocking experience, but you lived in Gotham.  This was the third metro stop explosion you’d wandered into in your twenty-one years in Gotham.  (Public transit was just too appealing, apparently.  The bad guys either like dramatic encounters on trains or just revel in messing up the commutes of a few thousand citizens.).  Now, both the previous times, you’d woken up in an ER, and watched on the TV above hospital bed your as some of the bat vigilantes stopped whoever was behind the attack.

So, the whole being tied to a chair was a new, unpleasant development.  Also, the Red Hood.  Your chair was angled in a way so that you could only see the guy through your peripheral vision, but the mask was pretty recognizable to anybody.  His head was slumped down, though.  He must have gotten knocked out, too.  Good to know the only guy who’s probably been in this situation before was KO’d.

Well, time to get to work then.  You wriggled your fingers… Rope.  Okay.  Workable.  Maybe you could shimmy out of them.  But your wrists were tied together separately from your body behind the chair.  Not great.  You made your muscles tense then relaxed them a few times, opening and closing your hands.  You felt one of the loops around your left wrist shift a little, and you tried to slide your hand out a bit.  Your left hand was just about free when you heard a grunt next to you.

“Ouch.  This is a doozy.”

Did the Red Hood just describe this situation as a doozy?

“Um,” you said, “I’ve got one hand free.  I should be untied in a couple minutes.”

“It’s always nice when hostages taken initiative,” Red Hood replied.  “Sometimes you guys just flounder.  I respect the hustle.”  He was trying to break free of his own ropes, it seemed.  Flexing and wiggling around to find some slack.

Your left hand was free, so you started on the ropes around your chest.  You were merely done when you heard a snapping sound and turned to see Red Hood had literally broke his hands free from strength alone.  That was kind of impressive, alarming, and attractive all at once.

“Wow,” you said, slightly in awe, not realizing you were even speaking aloud.

“Don’t be too impressed yet.  This was the easy part,” Red Hood said as he came over to your chair, but he stopped to stare at you.  “Wait, I know you.”

You grimaced.  “I’m kind of a famous gymnast.  I was in the last-last summer Olympics, not the one last month, but the one over four years ago now, uh.  I was in some advertisemen—”

“Oh, so you’re ____ _____, then?” Red Hood said, helping untie you.  “Cool.”

(There was something odd in his voice. Your name came too easily to him.  Like he had recognized you as soon as he saw you, but wanted to pretend he didn’t.  Something like that.  File that under “weird” and “vigilante fan of my gymnastics trying to play it cool?”.)

“So,” Red Hood said as the ropes fell away, shaking out your sore wrists, “Like I was saying, that was the easy part.  The hard part is getting out of here, and figuring out why we’re here.”

You frowned.  “Did you see the explosion?  Or did whoever did this get you some other way?”

“An explosion?”

“At the Gotham U East Metro.  It was pretty empty as I walked up, and then halfway down the stairs everything exploded and I woke up here.”

“I was attacked by a group of mobsters a few blocks from there.  Seems like Two-Face’s guys.  One injected me with some kind of strong sedative, and I passed out.”

You furrowed your brow.  “Two-Face?”

Red Hood sighed.  “Yup.  Just need to figure out his stupid plan for this time.”

Stupid plan… You made a little ‘oh’ as a thought occurred to you.  “Do you think the attacked the Gotham U East Metro, but not the West one?  Or maybe the East Metros across the city?  As part of his half thing?”

Red Hood was staring at you again.

“What?” you asked, immediately feeling foolish.  “Is that dumb?  I haven’t—”

“No, no,” Red Hood… chuckled?  He seemed to find it amusing.  “It’s pretty smart, actually.  You just remind me of my—my associate Red Robin.”

“Associate?” you repeated, feeling yourself smiling.  What an odd way to phrase that.  “Or is he a more of colleague?  A comrade?  Is Nightwing an associate? He seems more like a wingman, you know.”

“I—“ Red Hood begins, before clearing this throat. He turned away and seemed to be surveying the space.  “First off, that pun was very bad, and I’m not begrudgingly smiling under my helmet about it.  Secondly, it’s—associate is just cause—look, honestly you don’t need to know this, but I’ve got a kind of complicated relationship with the other Robins, current, former, whatever.”

He paused and glanced at you as if to gauge your reaction.  You were still standing and listening to him.  He took a breath and continued, “We’re almost like brothers.  The rest of them are, but I don’t fit so nicely in their little family.”

It seemed he was finished, so you spoke, slightly hesitantly.  “Have you talked to them about it?  Either the Robins or Nightwing?  I—I mean, we don’t have to talk about it if you want.  We probably should be focused on getting out of here.  But, if you—”

Shkk.  You were cut off by Red Hood suddenly pulling out a grapple gun from his belt and coming up next to you.  Okay. Strictly business then.  No more oversharing.

“Mind if I…?”  Red Hood’s arm was hovering next to you.  Oh, this was cute.  Very cute.

You shook your head, and Red Hood wrapped an arm around your waist, firing off the grapple gun into the rafters with his other hand.  Your heart sped up as you landed in the support beams of the building.  That was scary in an exciting way.

Red Hood put away the grapple gun, and started to fiddle with something on the side of his mask, opening up a panel and pulling at wires.

“Mask’s communication got fried somehow.  Hoping I can fix that.  Better signal up here.”  You nodded, and there was a pause before he spoke again.  “I haven’t talked to them about it.  I’m not as buddy-buddy with the other bats like Nightwing is.  My M.O. is too different…”  (You resisted the urge to look at the now empty gun holsters at his sides, which when full of pistols distinguished him from any other Gotham hero.)  “…so we’ve had our ups and downs.  But I like the Robins.  They’re good kids.  And I do like Nightwing, even if he’s an ass a lot of the time.  So I’m trying to be a better…”

He trailed off, fiddling with the helmet absentmindedly.

“A better associate?” you offered.  You couldn’t tell if the Red Hood was smiling behind his mask, but you hoped he was.

“Exactly.”  Then he added quietly, as if to himself, “And maybe at some point I’ll be a better brother, too.”

It was kind of odd he felt comfortable talking about this with you, but maybe because he knew you as an athlete, or maybe because he just really needed to say it aloud.  Either way, you felt like maybe you helped him, which made this whole affair feel better. The eyes of his helmet lit up, and Red Hood let out a satisfying “Aha!” as he shut the little panel.

“Oracle?  Nightwing?  Anyone hear me?”

Sitting right next to him, you can hear the faint sounds of someone talking to Red Hood through an earpiece in his helmet, but only his side of the conversation is clear.  You weren’t sure who Oracle was either, but it was probably a woman based on the pitch of the voice you heard.

“It’s Two-Face.  His guys got me.  He attacked Gotham U East Metro.  The hostage I was with thought maybe he was going after the East metro stops across town.”  He turned to you, and you gave a nervous shrug.  Twenty second pass before you saw him freeze up.  “Okay.  That’s bad, but okay.  Can you track our location?”

He paused, listening to something from the other end, before he turned to you.

“So, you’re right.  They hadn’t realized the pattern before but Gotham U East blew up, then the Wayne Tower station too, except—”

“Except the Wayne Tower station is technically Old Gotham East, right?  No one ever calls it ‘Old Gotham East’ unless you work for GCTA.”

“Right.  But after checking other East stations, there’s definitely bombs set up at Fashion District East and Robinson East.  Probably more they haven’t found yet.”

You frowned.  “So, that’s bad, but where are we?  And why did they just leave us here?”

“Radio came through but location tracker is still down.  Still working on theories for the why question,” Red Hood said, standing up and scanning the roof above for an exit.  He darted up some of the beams and started slamming different places with his fist to see if one was loose.  After thirty seconds, he found a loose section and Red Hood was able to bend a panel to the side, exposing a little panel of night sky.

He returned to you and helped you climb out onto what seemed to be a fairly innocuous warehouse roof.  To your left you could see what looked like the Vincefinkel Bridge.  Behind you was the water, so you must be not far from Chinatown.  Huh.

“Why did Two-Face take us half-way across town?” Red Hood asked, echoing your own thoughts.  Your eyes widened in realization.

“Red Hood, Chinatown East Station is just a fe—”

He was already moving, holding you to his side as you fly from the warehouse roof into the city itself.  Grappling up to the rafters of a warehouse was one thing.  Hurtling through the air several stories high was another.  It was exhilarating, but you also felt yourself cling a little tighter to Red Hood when you glanced down.

“Don’t worry, I’ve got you,” he said quietly, as he felt your body tense.  Your heart fluttered at how gentle his voice was.  Agh.  Why did superheroes have to be so attractive and noble?

Soon he dropped you down about a block from the station.  A barricade had been put by the entrance, but unhappy (and slightly bored looking) commuters stood dangerously close to the entrance, waiting for it to reopen.  You didn’t blame them.  This was Gotham City.  Metro attacks were a favorite of supervillains.  Whenever one station was attacked, the whole system got shut down, which was an annoyance.  Most of the time, if something happened to one metro stop across down, you’d probably be fine waiting next to another station.  Key phrase being “most of the time.”

“I need to find the bomb,” Red Hood said, “But tell everyone to get away from the station.”

You didn’t have a chance to say “okay” before he was gone, swinging around the block and vanishing behind the station.

The next five minutes were a blur.  You ran up to the station and, calmly, explained that the East metro stations were being targeted in a series of attacks and everyone commuting need to give the entrance a wide berth.  Most people raised an eyebrow and quickly hurried away.  A few people asked how you knew this or waved off your warning, but you (quickly) explained that you’d discovered this with the Red Hood when you were both kidnapped by Two-Face.  You didn’t know whether the name drop of Red Hood or Two-Face was more persuasive, but everyone backed off.

When the police arrived a few minutes later to barricade off the whole block, you were the only person even remotely close to the station from where you stood across the street.  One of the bats must have tipped them off.  You waited at the barricade as seconds passed by agonizingly slowly.

You didn’t want the station to explode, but you really didn’t want the Red Hood to explode either.  At the very edge of the explosion, you’d been knocked unconscious.  At the center of it, after failing to defuse it…. You inhaled and exhaled.  You’d lived in Gotham your whole life.  You didn’t want to see another vigilante die thanks to this crazy city.

Maybe ten minutes passed when a police officer near you leaned their ear to their radio and let out a sigh of relief.

“Bomb defused!” she shouted into the ground behind the barricade.  There were a few sighs, some cheers, and a couple of grumbles about “this goddamn city.”  The metro was going to be closed for the rest of the evening, so pretty much everyone cleared out except you and the people who lived on the block.  The police said the barricade would be up for another half hour or so as they secured the area.

You stayed, and you didn’t know why.  Well, you did; it was more like you didn’t know why you bothered.  For some reason, you thought maybe the Red Hood would be back.  You wanted to thank him, or just see yourself that in fact he did not get blown up.

When the barricade lifted and he still didn’t appear, you gave up.  You were actually closer to your apartment from Chinatown than Gotham U. It was still about a half hour’s walk at night in Gotham City, but cabs weren’t an option—you didn’t have money.  Your bag must have been taken by Two-Face’s guys or lost in the explosion.  You hoped maybe the cops would find it in the next couple days.  Thankfully you’d stuck a key underneath the potted plant in your apartment’s hall, so at least you wouldn’t be locked out.

You had been walking for about ten minutes, staying pretty on edge from the night’s events, when a familiar voice came from behind you.

“Headed home?  The night’s still young for some of us.  It’s not even three yet.”

You turned around to see Red Hood leaning against a street lamp.

“It’s been a long day,” you replied, “And it’s a long walk home.”

“Would you mind some company, then?”

You smiled as Red Hood moved beside you.

“Not at all.”

You were walking for a while in silence, but it was the peaceful kind.  You weren’t as afraid now since you 1) weren’t alone and 2) had a crime-fighting walking companion.  Red Hood was whistling as you walked, which was kind of wild.  Tough gun-wielding vigilante whistling for fun?  Sure.  Honestly not the weirdest thing that’s happened in the last few hours.

“The cops said you did a good job getting people away from the station before they blocked it off,” Red Hood said.  “Thanks for that.”

“Oh, no problem,” you said, “I’m just glad everyone was safe.  Especially you.”

“Especially me?” Red Hood repeated, “You’ll make me blush.”

“You saved my life basically, and saved all those people,” you explained, “Not to mention how many people you probably on a nightly basis.”

“I think you might want to consider that you saved all those people,” Red Hood said.  “Batman, Oracle, or Red Robin probably would have figured out the East metro thing sooner or later.  Their brains work like that.  But you made that connection before all of them did, and getting it that quickly saved a lot of people.”  You shook your head, feeling your cheeks color a bit at the compliment, but Red Hood didn’t let you off the hook.  “I’m serious, _____.  You impressed the ‘world’s greatest detective,’ if you believe that.”

“I’m just glad to have been a help,” you said, positive your face was flushed at this point.

When you arrived at your apartment building, the Red Hood nodded his head at you.

“Enjoy the rest of your night.  Oh—” He seemed like he was about to leave but paused as he reached to grab something near the back of his belt.  He held out a small blue bag…  Wait, that was your bag!

“Oh my gosh,” you said, taking it.  You looked in.  Your wallet, phone, keys, metro card (important), and headphones were all safe and sound.  “Thank you!  Where did you find it?”

Red Hood shrugged.  “After we took care of all the bombs, I went back and found all of Two-Face’s guys.  In police custody now.  They had meant to kill us, but there were troubles with some of the bombs so they just left us alone for later.  I figured they might have taken your stuff, so I checked and they had your bag in one of their desk drawers.”

He had actually looked for things?  Just to be nice?  Wow, the Red Hood really did get a too bad a rep.  He had been a pleasure all evening.

“I can’t thank you enough, Red Hood,” you said.  “For this and for everything.”

“Don’t mention it,” he said, pulling out his grapple once more.  “Later.”  You stood outside your apartment until his figure moved into the darkness of the rooftops above.

What a night.

✹ ✹

“OH!  Damian, you’ll never guess what happened to me yesterday,” you said near the end of your most promising student’s private gymnastics lessons.  “I got kidnapped by Two-Face’s goons, but I worked with the Red Hood and kind of helped stop those metro bombs.”

Damian launched off from the uneven bars into a slightly messy landing onto the mat in front of you.  Oof.  That looked awkward.

“Hey, make sure when you let go that your body is s—”

“_____, pardon my bad form.  I’m trying to understand why you spent the entire warm up monologuing about how you want to bake more but you hate getting your kitchen messy, and you didn’t lead with your kidnapping?”

You shrugged, gesturing at Damian to follow you as you did a handstand.

“Honestly, I still think I’m processing it all, but it was surprisingly lowkey for a kidnapping.  I was barely harmed, and I didn’t really interact with my kidnappers.  Red Hood helped me get out.  I don’t know.  I was debating making pancakes this morning as a treat for yesterday evening, so I guess that was more actively on my mind earlier.”  Damian grunted in response, and you let your legs fall forward and resumed standing.  Damian followed suit.

“I’d appreciate hearing about any attempts on your life immediately,” Damian said.

“Run your routines twice through, and I promise I will tell you upfront about any dangerous encounters I’ve experienced between lessons.  Then we can call it a day.”

Damian nodded and started his routine: without complaint.  That was slightly miraculous!  About three months into your lessons, Damian began to have some semblance of respect for you.  Before then it has been an uphill battle with the young teen to get him to listen to your instructions.  It just took constant effort and patience, and him discovering your former Olympic glory, to form a productive relationship.

Though Damian seemed to be mocking about you burying the lede, you knew his tumble from the bars meant he was genuinely concerned.  He could see it in his eyes, too.  Damian was a good kid, even if he was a bit full of himself.

As Damian went through his routine, you alternated between watching and doing his moves yourself to pass the time.  He had the routines down pat other than a couple of his more complicated dismounts.

You were finishing a series of two flips, landing right on the edge of the mat in front of you, when you find yourself face to face with Jason Todd.  Like, faces just a few inches apart.  You were reminded how, of all Damian’s ridiculously attractive brothers who’d come to pick him up from gymnastics lessons, Jason always managed to disarm your the most.  Something in those stunning green eyes peered into your soul.  And you always wondered if his hair was as soft as it looked…

You immediately took a step back as Jason clapped. “Ten out of ten from this judge, although I don’t think they score it like that anymore.”

You couldn’t help but smile.  “Not quite, but I appreciate it nonetheless.  You’re sneaky, I didn’t even hear you come in.  Your turn to pick up the little Wayne?”

“Unfortunately.  I was going to tell him to just take the metro to my apartment, but that got screwed up,” Jason said, a twinkle in his eyes.

“Oh, I know.  I actually was there when the station exploded last night.  I had just finished coaching the women’s team’s night practice when it exploded just as I walked in.  It was a long night,” you replied.

From across the room, mid-flip, Damian shouted, “She got kidnapped by Two-Face’s guys, then saved by the Red Hood!  Can you believe it, Todd?”

Jason had a slightly funny look on his face but looked at you intently.

“Really?  Are you okay?”

“Oh, I’m fine.  It was nothing.  Red Hood was nice, and the goons didn’t even hurt me.  Just tied me up.  I even helped Red Hood figure out that Two-Face was targeting East metro stops.”

“He must have been pretty impressed, it sounds like,” Jason said with a still slightly funny smirk.  What was that about?

“Uh, well, it’s kind of hard to see his face behind the mask, so I don’t really know.  But he seemed happy enough with me.  He actually recognized me right away, I think.  He was weird about it.  Maybe he was a fan back in the day.  Was really nice to me, though.  Polite, and honestly kind.”

Damian finished his routines and did an extra flip to land right next to you.

“I’m sure he was more than impressed.  Enamored by your Olympic and intellectual prowess, I’d wager.  Probably why he was so weird.”

Uh.  What?  Where did that come from?  You looked at Damian quizzically.

“Damian, what—”

“_____, how are you getting home tonight since the metro is down here?” Jason asked, glaring at Damian.  He looked almost…embarrassed?  It was a weird enough remark to create some second hand embarrassment.  You decided to let the topic slide for now.  Maybe you’d pry Damian more about it next lesson.

“Um, I don’t have a car or anything, so I was just going to walk.”

Damian frowned.  “But you don’t live near here.”

“It’s about 40 minutes.  But I don’t min—”

“Woah, woah.  It’s almost eight o’clock, and it’s already dark.  You really shouldn’t be walking alone at night.  That’s good practice everywhere, but we live in Gotham City.  It’s basically a necessity.”

You opened your mouth to protest, but Jason held up his hands.

“You did manage to get yourself out of a kidnapping situation with some help, but, at least for tonight, let me drop you off at your apartment on the way home with Damian.  It’ll be easy.”

“I’m out of your way, Jason, you really don’t hav—”

“I want to.  Alright?”  He was smiling.  Damn.  How could you resist that?

“…Alright.”

As you got into the car a few minutes later, Damian asked you loudly if you thought you’d see the Red Hood again.  Jason was glaring at him again, this time via rear view mirror.  You were in the passenger seat next to Jason and turned to face Damian in the back.

“Well, I’d hope I’m never in another situation where I’d need his help again.  But maybe I’ve ‘enamored’ him like you said, and he just won’t be able to stay away,” you said, narrowing your eyes at the young teen.

Damian scoffed.  “Look, all I meant was that Red Hood has a reputation for not being very friendly.  So if he was so nice to you, it probably means he found you attractive.” ��You scoffed back, mimicking the sound, enjoying Damian’s slightly offended face at the mockery.

“Okay, well, a couple of counter-theories.  First, maybe he’s just not as mean as people say.  Second, even if he is meaner, maybe he was just in an overly friendly mood yesterday.  Third, maybe he was a fan of mine, so he was extra nice.  None of those scenarios involve him finding me attractive.”

Damian opened his mouth to protest, but Jason spoke before he could.

“Let’s let _____ not relive what was probably an unpleasant evening, okay, demon brat?”

What affectionate names the Wayne brothers called one another.

You turned and smiled at Jason, who smiled back.  A warm feeling in your chest blossomed as you did, and it didn’t vanish long after you were safely laying in bed at your apartment.  You were trying to picture something other than the soft smile of Jason Todd or the brilliant green of his eyes…

Man.  What a night.

[iwritethat]

Dick Grayson: Meeting Your Heroes

A/n: Bit random but I thought it was a cute idea.

>>>>——————————>

Ever since you’d discovered he was Nightwing, your boyfriend was simply underwhelmed by your lack of enthusiasm or any reaction at all regarding his vigilantism. Like his family had discussed when he brought up the ‘issue’, this was the best case scenario - not only had you stayed with him, you didn’t make yourself apart of that side of his life, it was simply as if nothing had changed. Which, to every hero, was the ideal outcome for confessing their alias to their significant other.

Dick on the other hand decided he required a reaction, he’d made it a secret competition between you two. He wouldn’t hide anything, if you asked a question then he’d tell you about his night in full detail if only to get something from you. Or least a reason as to why you were so collected with all of this.

It started when he climbed through the window one particular night, crimson decorating the right shoulder of his costume as he captured the light of your living room.

“Babe you’re covered in blood!” Your tone held some concern, yourself standing to meet him by the kitchen counter with a glass of water in hand.

“Don’t worry, it’s not mine.” Dick replied rather cooley, acting rather proud that he’d miraculously returned home with only a few minor bruises.

“Oh great, so it’s some strangers blood you’re dripping all over my carpet.” Your sarcastic playful remark knocked him back down to Earth, the man completely miffed that you weren’t phased by the gore he’d brought home with him nor repulsed by it. In fact you had the audacity to joke about your carpet of all things.

He’d have to try harder.

.

“The Penguin escaped Arkham again tonight, not too much of an issue but that old crow still packs a punch.” Was the first thing you heard when your boyfriend returned from patrol, freshly showered and changed he collapsed on the sofa moving between your legs to wrap his arms around your waist and simply rest his head on your abdomen. Instinctively your fingers soothingly carded through his raven hair as he released a hum of contentment at your touch alone, your other hand still shifting through the channels.

“That idiot still using his damn umbrella, with that annoying spike at the end to stab at you like some sort of fencing duel?” You casually questioned, gaze still focused on the TV but Dick noticed the way you jabbed the remote like a sword to complement your words as a visual representation. He wasn’t even sure if you realised you did it.

“Yeah, it totally rained on my parade.” At your boyfriend’s terrible pun, you flicked your attention to him with a raised brow, Dick had taken note as he watched whatever programme you’d settled on but you responded with a pun of your own.

“Straight to the point I suppose.”

This caused him to chuckle a bit, maybe he didn’t need a reaction from you, you’re willingness to take his lifestyle in stride truly didn’t require this competition of his. Your openness about it made it easier for him to relax, to share moments like these with you.

.

And so he settled on keeping you informed on his vigilante side job just as much as he did on his usual one. Contest set aside.

“Harley Quinn and the Suicide Squad are back in action, keeps them in line somewhat I guess.” Grayson commented as you both walked into your apartment that evening after your date.

“Agreed, I always said she’d be better without the Joker. Glad she took my advice, and Ivy is a much better match.”

“Ivy? What?” He looked puzzled, watching as you placed your keys on the coffee table reaching for an envelope beside them.

“Yep, my girls are dating! Surprise my love, it’s good news though at least I think so.” You gleefully stated, handing over a letter sealed with a prominent scarlet lipstick mark.

“To my favourite (S/h/n), the best there ever was cuz Bats put me in Arkham.

Hope everything is okay with you sugar, I told ya I was doin alright now I’m back on my feet and out of that crazy place and Ivy has my back. Broke my phone on my last mission but I’ll drop by soon or call ya (Y/n), whichever comes first.

Love, Harley x”

.

It was eerily silent after your boyfriend read the letter, his brows knitting together as he looked between you and the parchment a couple of times with failed attempts at making conversation. Instead simple gasps emitting from his lips which you found endearing.

“(S/h/n)?! You’re them?!” His sudden excitement startled you, his sapphire irises lighting up more than you thought possible.

“I was, but I retired. Wanted to make a life for myself outside of the vigilante game y’know.” You shrugged it off unbothered, the contrasting response to a giddy Dick Grayson who gazed at you like a lovestruck teenager.

“No way! This is the best day of my life! I’m so glad I finally get to meet you - I have so many questions!” He places the letter down on the counter, pacing the kitchen with his hands in the air and a variety of gestures accompanying his cheerful tone.

“Uh... Dick...” Your voice and expression mirrored that of confusion, believing he would already know about your past.

“I don’t think you understand, I had the BIGGEST crush on you and it sucked that I only got to work with you like twice. No matter how many times I tried to get Bruce to track you down so we could recruit you to one of our Teams, he wouldn’t allow it and I couldn’t find you myself either. And yet here you are in my apartment!” His hands grasped your shoulders, words tumbling from his lips like he hadn’t processed them much to your amusement.

“You’re dating me... in our apartment...” Your voice displayed your humour, dazzling smirk gracing your lips as you emphasised the facts.

“...”

As if this information had just registered in Dicks brain, you tilted your head slightly as you spoke with a genuine smile.

“Earth to my boyfriend - hello?”

“Holy crap, I sleep with you.” It was a mutter of disbelief, any quieter and you wouldn’t have heard it but you smugly answered anyway.

“Yes. Yes you do.”

“This is - I don’t know what this is - a dream come true! (S/h/n) is my significant other, I’m the luckiest guy in the world, I mean I knew that already but now - I love you even more (Y/n) and I didn’t think that was possible.” The excitement practically radiated from his form and he wasn’t really sure how to process this development - going from crossing his arms to gesturing toward you and shaking his head with an unyielding grin.

“Oh my god, you’re fangirl-ing. I have a fangirl, this is unreal. I can’t look at you right now let alone anything else Dick.” You facepalmed, hiding your obvious devious smile behind your hand as you desperately tried not to laugh at his behaviour.

.

It was silent once more, you still being surprised by how much Nightwing admired you, although back then he’d have been Robin. The original boy wonder had a crush on you, how sweet.

“Do you still have your suit?” It was out of the blue, Dick more serious about this inquiry.

“Wha- no!” After playfully punching his shoulder you responded, the male feigning pain but matched your smile.

“Aw, we could’ve taken a picture together in our suits. Talk about goals.”

“What a tragedy.” Sarcasm, you simply couldn’t help it as you rolled your eyes.

“It all makes sense now, why you didn’t give a damn about me coming home a mess. You’d seen it all before, probably done it yourself. You know about major criminals and asked about their strategies and gave your own advice, heck you even have personal ties to Harley Quinn! Wait, did you get stabbed by Penguins umbrella? I feel like I should’ve noticed this sooner actually...” The last statement held a hint of sheepish embarrassment, Dick rethinking over the signs he’d glossed over during your relationship.

“Lightly prodded. And considering you were trained by the worlds greatest detective then maybe? But in your defence I made sure all evidence of my past was gone.” You happily reasoned, wrapping your arms around his waist as you stepped toward him.

“Exactly! You seem like a normal civilian except from the casual ‘oh cool’ when your boyfriend tells you he’s Nightwing.” He returned your comforting embrace, placing a kiss to your nose in the process.

“I knew that fudged you up!”

“It didn’t... I just wanted you to swoon a little, I mean have you seen me in that suit? But you didn’t even bat an eyelash...” Now you could tell he was joking with you, tone somewhat seductive as he smirked knowing you did find him attractive both in and out of his Nightwing suit.

“Oh? I’m sorry, but aren’t you supposed to act cool in front of your hero crush?” Was your cocky reply, pulling back from his embrace with sass in your tone.

“You have a - on me. As in me?” Dick placed a hand to his heart as he asked, sincere with a degree of surprise.

“Duh.”

“I have to call my brothers! Tell them that (S/h/n) has a crush on me!” Once more his voice filled with what can only be described as sheer joy, quickly kissing your lips before reaching for his phone whilst you crossed your arms with a sigh.

“On Nightwing, but sure go ahead fangirl.”

[avengerdragoness]

What would it be like to be the protege of night wing

 Gotta love some Nightwing! I thank your amazing face for the request! I hope you like it my dear! (This is from a young justice pov)

________

Being Nightwing’s Protege

First he teaches you the first thing batman taught him

Never leave home without your utility belt -  the golden rule

He isn’t as strict as batman

Makes sure to crack some jokes and keep the mood light when training

Getting used to his constant pun making

You know he’s Dick Grayson

Meaning you know who Batman, Batgirl, and Robin are as well

At the cave he’s always the one you train with

Sometimes it’s the others but he constantly has new techniques to show you.

Eventually starting to talk in his abbreviations

“So not whelmed so not whelmed”

“You sound like Nightwing”

“Aw shit”

You hate the new habit

You’re a natural born leader

Dick often would leave you in charge of your team when they split up

Even though you were a protege you were highly skilled

He was like an older brother

A bit protective in that manner

though he knew you could handle yourself

He trusted you and you trusted him

[lakecountylibrary]

Book Rec: Death of the Family

Griffith-Calumet reader’s advisor Ian recommends Batman Vol 3: Death of the Family for fans of gruesome plots and a fallible Batman.

Death of the Family it is a well-told Joker story, which is the highest compliment I can give it.

Reteaming with artist Greg Capullo, Scott Snyder crafts a dark and harrowing tale that cleverly reframes Batman and the Joker’s relationship, even if it occasionally becomes a little too self-analytical in places.

(Editor’s note: Full review under the cut for length and because it contains briefly described gore, murder, and, you know, the Joker. This book also contains animal abuse and death, though the review does not.)

Picking up a year after Detective Comics #1, which saw the serial killer Dollmaker cut off the crime clown’s face and pin it to his cell wall, Death of the Family begins with Joker returning to Gotham following an extended absence. Retrieving his mangled mug from the G.C.P.D. evidence lockup, the Clown Prince of Crime launches a heinous plan to destroy the Bat-Family from the inside out.

Right off the bat (no pun intended), Snyder and Capullo, whose art here is truly awe-inspiring, immediately set their Joker apart from the herd with a grisly re-design. I can’t praise Capullo enough for his attention to detail, especially in the Joker’s rotting face, now crudely re-attached with hooks and wire, which perfectly suits Snyder’s more feral, animalistic interpretation of the character.

Gone are the days of master plans involving long-time girlfriend Harley Quinn and hordes of henchman. This Joker does his own dirty work, and relishes every minute of it. One notable scene involving Penguin sees him slaughter an entire church worth of mobsters, mockingly bemoaning good ol’ Ozzy for never telling him “how fun it is to kill a man with an umbrella.”

It’s repulsive, hilarious, and most of all, pure Joker.            

But it’s the least of Bruce’s concerns. This time around, Joker’s after the Bat-Family: Batgirl, Nightwing, Robin, Red Robin, and Red Hood; the ones who, as the clown says, “keep him weak.”

Throughout the book, Joker seeks to prove that Batman has gotten soft ever since he starting letting sidekicks into his cave, which brings in both the most interesting and on-the-nose idea in the book:

The Joker sees Batman as the symbolic “king” of Gotham, with the Joker serving as the Bat’s loyal “court jester”, ready to bring the king the bad news. He even goes as far as referring to Batman as “sire.”

By ridding Batman of his allies, Joker believes he can restore things to a time when he and Batman were both at their best.

It’s a captivating and strangely endearing perspective, but one that Snyder unfortunately spells out a bit too literally. I wouldn’t mind the Joker dressing himself and the other villains as members of the royal court if he didn’t spend so much time commentating on the significance.

If you have to explain a joke, it becomes less funny. The Joker of all people should know better.

Despite these scattered philosophical platitudes, Snyder never forgets that the heart of this story lies in the emotional turmoil between Bruce and his kids.  

Snyder continues to impress in being able to believably write a Batman that is at once completely capable and utterly lost. This is not Grant Morrison’s Bat-God; this Bruce Wayne constantly questions his role as Gotham’s protector, even as he performs incredible physical feats that remind us why he is a founding member of the Justice League.

Bruce, now more than ever, is emotional, sloppy. He keeps secrets from his family and pushes them away when he needs them most. He knows what Joker is capable of and fears losing them more than anything, which goes a long way in keeping him sympathetic even as he makes plenty of mistakes.

Death of the Family is a more subdued piece than The Court of Owls, closer in terms of pacing and scope to The Black Mirror, which suits Snyder and Capullo’s horror roots as well as the more personal nature of this conflict.

No better is this represented than in the final chapter. It won’t be to every fan’s liking, and perhaps the narrative deathtrap is resolved a tad too easily, but on a thematic and character level it hits as hard a well-timed Batarang to the face.

Ha.

See more of Ian’s recs

[river-bottom-nightmare]

Nightwing 83 Review

guess who isn't weeks late this time. my opinion of the series is going up a little bit. it's still not great, but i'm not actively put off by it anymore the way i was after 81. not going to tag as spoilers, but be warned that they are under the cut

i’m sure you all are well aware of this but now, but dear god i love bruno redondo’s art. like, an unhealthy amount. the pink and blue is getting to be a theme with either him or just this run, but i am definitely enjoying it. the movement in this cover is clearly obvious, but well done. you recoznize right off the bat that the cover was drawn to drag your eyes down the page until you get to the bottom, but you enjoy the whole ride there. 

also, redondo’s way of drawing a character in stages of action so we can see just how much they’re doing in a split second of movement is quickly becoming something i like to see drawn with dick, and any other character that has that sort of ease of movement and body sense, like cass or sin or maybe a super. 

and he’s in action the entire time! there’s shot drawn just to show off a shirtless comic book character, the way nightwing is so often subjected to. he’s shirtless because he’s changing his clothes, and that’s all we see, no more and no less. very practical, very well done. i like it.

he looks so cute right here oh my god. the little squint, the hair curls. it’s adorable.

but also like. unless melinda has specifically outfitted the door spyhole so that the person on the other side can’t see dick looking through it (and in all honesty she might have) then everyone on the other side can see dick looking through that door. 

bringing your attention back to the “i can’t see melinda’s fbi file oh no!! it’s redacted!! whatever can we do!!” stupidity. redacted files are child’s play for oracle, and definitely doable for both dick and bruce. so that’s bullshit.

now, melinda apparently grew up with the maroni family, then took down part of the family from the inside. the maroni family is a large and notable presence in gotham, one that bruce pays a respectable amount of attention to. he definitely would have grown suspicious when two members of the maroni family were taken down, and with some investigation, he would have discovered melinda’s plan. and it should go without saying that the majority of things you see batman doing? dick can do it too.

it’s not so much that i don’t like how clever the villains/antiheroes are getting. i don’t like how dc heroes are increasingly written as less intelligent. they seem to be relying on pure fighting skills or luck, which may be the case for a couple heroes, but has never been the case for most of dc’s big name heroes, the bat family included. it’s irritating to me to see this sort of stuff pop up as a major plot point when i know that, if dick or bruce had been written with the amount of skill and power that they canonically possess, this entire mess would have been sorted out years ago.

unrelated but dick and melinda have the same hair

this may just be me, but i was always under the impression that dick doesn’t really have a “double life???”

yes, he’s talented enough to create enough differences between robin/nightwing and dick grayson’s mannerisms, way of movement, voices, and speech patterns so that it’s very difficult to put the two together.

but nightwing has never been separate from dick grayson, not the way bruce and batman is. he’s always leaned more towards clark in that aspect: his hero persona is an exaggerated, stately, larger-than-life version of who he really is. there’s no second persona, no real “dick grayson identity” and “nightwing identity.” they’re the same person with the same goals, ideas, and skills. one just pretends to abide by the law, and one gives up pretense of that.

oh good thank god. if he’d trusted her right off the bat (hehe. bat.) i would have slapped him upside the head. at least he’s still got instincts.

gosh the colouring on this is cool. the red has enough purple and pink tones to it that it doesn’t abruptly ruin the tone of the artwork. but it’s definitely glaring enough to take the reader outside of this personal moment they had slipped into between dick and melinda, to put them back in the present where they’re reminded that oh yea there are people hunting dick down. 

the next panel keeps this up too, in a less severe way. melinda’s bodyguard shows up (i forgot her name sorry :[ ) and subtly places us in the middle of an action scene rather than a private, personal scene.

laughing so fucking hard have our little vigilantes grown so accustomed to breaking into places that it doesn’t even register as a crime anymore??? tim coming in through the fire escape to pick bernard up for their date and being very much confused as to why bernard is freaking out.

i really like melinda’s shirt and now despite all the work i have to do and the fucking conference i have to host on monday i want to spend hours scrolling through clothing shops online trying to find this shirt. the mock neck/neckline is so cool i want it

so roland just assumes that a very dangerous vigilante who is highly talented in combat and a very dangerous bodyguard who is also highly talented in combat had a fight that ended with this very dangerous bodyguard being tied up and she looks completely fine? roland just assumes that her having no visible wounds or bruises means that they got into a fight and she lost that easily? uh. aight then

dick what are you doing. legitimately what the fuck are you doing. why are you posing oh my god. you are injured and tired and in absolutely no position to go hand to hand with one of main enemies. jesus christ run away or head to lower ground or something. don’t just stand around letting the floodlights show exactly where you are.

i don’t understand what he’s trying to do here??? blockbuster fully bought the story that dick fought them both, won, tried to get info out of them and failed, then hightailed it out of there. he didn’t have to draw roland out for a fight.

but it does look cool. the way the light just highlights his silhouette and the blue parts of his costume does look badass. he does get style points in my book for this.

w h a t  d i d  i  f u c k i n g  t e l l  y o u ,  d i c k ?

very classic superhero line and it does sound like something dick would say in a fit of righteous rage but also it makes me laugh so hard because all vigilantes think they’re so powerful that the law doesn’t apply to them. dick vigilantism is illegal. you’re acting above the law and pretending it doesn’t apply to you. hypocritical much?

it happens so often in superhero movies, tv shows, comics, whatever and it makes me giggle every damn time.

pretty decent comeback but before i start seeing people writing blockbuster as a thug i’m going to remind you that he made a deal with a demon for genius level intellect. if this turns into another bane situation i’m going to be a little miffed. he’s a smart man, which makes him a dangerous and infinitely more interesting enemy for nightwing.

this is so horribly in character i want to scream. (or. at least. it lines up with one of the versions of nightwing i have in my head.) he’s running right towards the bullets, miraculously doesn’t get shot, while making a sort-of pun. i hate this so much. i love him.

this is cool. this art is really really cool.

he leaped from a building right towards a helicopter that’s actively shooting at him, but none of the bullets are touching him. none of the corruption of the city can touch him no matter how hard it tries, because he’s too good to be corrupted. Comic Book Logic Can Be Good Sometimes Actually.

batman’s belt what??? swiss army knife who?? sorry, i only know nightwing’s bright blue escrima.

this is one of my favourite things about heroes with exceptional abilities, even more so if the hero is human. the things they can do are so far beyond the realm of normal human abilities that it’s equal parts terrifying and awe-inspiring every time they act.

he just used modified grappling wires to hook to the door of a moving helicopter, swung around the helicopter safely without hitting the blades, gained exactly the right momentum to swing upward again right through the opening of helicopter, then fought and tied up the men before they had any idea what was happening. that’s near impossible to do.

it’s stuff like this where i just sort of sigh in contentment. no matter how many times they leave out dick’s detective skills or conveniently forget that he’s actually a master planner and team leader and make him out to be this forgetful dude who makes everything up on the fly because of his “circus roots,” at least they won’t ever take away dick’s sheer physical ability honed to perfection. 

the art, too! in a few panels, dick’s drawn a little lightened or blurred. he’s moving so quickly and fighting so efficiently that he can barely be seen by the enemy. he’s got perfect form all the way through.

and THIS!

there was a helicopter that had five men shooting at him with what looks like machine guns. most people would be dead. some would run away, and be nimble enough to survive without fatal hits. there are very few people, even in fucking comic books, who can look at that hopeless situation and turn it around so quickly and thoroughly that he benefits from it instead.

i just. love nightwing.

it was funny the first time as a comic reader aware of the meme. it’s really not anymore. why the hell would you, in universe, be wearing a shirt that has a picture of your boyfriend being hit in the face by his father. 

okay that was funny. 

look at lil bitewing, so concerned for her human!!! love her sm. 

also a question as to the timeline of things. is nightwing happening before or after urban legends? 

i was so distracted by dick wearing a robe and briefs and nothing else that i didn’t register the second part until later. he slept for two days?? babs, baby, he recently had a very traumatic brain injury. why do you sound so nonchalant?

@TIM X COFFEE SHIPPERS GET FUCCCCKKKKEEDDDDD

ngl i totally forgot about that dude oops

this comic is giving so many reaction pictures. you know how you always use the worst possible picture of your friend for your friend’s contact picture? i’m just getting so many of these.

leslie!!! the titans!!! lucius!!! dick going to go see old friends!!!! the titans!!! this part made me so irrationally happy it really did. gar being the one to just. offer dick solutions with open arms. this was the best

i wish i could just copy and paste this entire scene, but that would take up way too much space, so i’m just going to talk about it instead. 

you gave me my name, nightwing, and you gave me some of the best advice i’ve received in my life: beautiful little throwback to nightwing’s origin. you’d be surprised at the amount of people who don’t know where the name came from, or who don’t know how much clark means to dick. and the fact that dick still looks up to clark as a hero, recognizes that clark isn’t always perfect and yet continues to hold him in such high esteem, and still looks back on advice that clark gave him fondly just warmed my heart so much.

for a man who has fearlessly stood up to darkseid, bruce will do a lot to avoid a conversation: “grrr. i’m the BATMAN. i’m so DARK and MYSTERIOUS. nobody knows the true me. no one ever will. i will be LONELY for the rest of my CURSED LIFE. such is the price of a hero. ignore my farmer himbo husband in the background”

but i don’t think there’s anything heroic about being a billionaire: another nod to how much dick follows clark’s example rather than bruce. yes, this was a very poignant and important criticism, and i think it’s wonderful that this was published in a pretty popular comic book. but the thing is, there is a way to be a heroic billionaire, but only in fictional universes. the way bruce, ollie, t’challa only ever use their wealth to help people. they donate massive amounts of money to charities that they themselves create so they know exactly how the money is being used. they hire people who aren’t likely to get jobs anywhere else and pay them much more than what a base living wage is. they use their power to help push progressive laws and social change. they are helping. 

dick doesn’t fully see it that way. he spent more than half his childhood the son of a billionaire, but still believes that one could be more heroic when one doesn’t have obscene amounts of wealth. whose example do you think he followed to come to that conclusion?

superman looked up to alfred pennyworth?: i mean yea alfred may have been a wildly irresponsible guardian and one hell of an enabler but goddamn if he didn’t love his kid.

you don’t need my input. you’ve thought it all through: ooooooh this line made me grin. for so long, dick’s treated clark as a mentor and a guiding figure. he’s still seen as a kid, an up and coming, snot-nosed titan with dreams of a better world. clark still thinks of him as a kid, despite watching him grow up. but this little line was something i think dick needed sorely to hear. he doesn’t need anyone’s guiding hand on his shoulder, he doesn’t need to ask for permission. he doesn’t need clark to support him the way he did when he was a teenager. he’s all grown up now, and he doesn’t need clark’s help. i imagine it was a bit of a surprise for dick to hear that. 

honestly, i couldn’t think of a better role model: ohhh but it doesn’t stop there. clark just straight up turns the tables on dick. imagine you’re dick, and you’ve looked up to this one hero your entire life, and then one day he turns to you and says that he thinks you’re so kind and smart and worthy of a person that he wants you to mentor his son!? goes to show just how much clark trusts dick.

i swear to god dick probably cries every time he hears clark compliment him because bruce is so rare and sparing with his praise that clark giving him the slightest hint of approval is just a dopamine rush.

also, now deathstroke and superman have both asked nightwing to mentor their kids. the juxtaposition is fuckin hysterical. imagine either of their reactions when they realize what kind of company they’re with

lets talk colours for a second, because i absolutely adore how classic colour tropes have been subverted in this comic, and in this general run really.

warm tones have usually (usually, not always) been associated with light and comfort and friendship and,,,,,well,,,warmth. whereas cool tones are usually used to unsettle, or make a scene seem colder and put the reader on edge. this varies if a comic only uses cool tones, or only uses warm tones, but if a comic uses both, this is generally well-used.

that isn’t the case in this run.

dark red, orange, and other warm tones have been used to symbolize danger, action, attacks. hot pink isn’t usually included in this colour group, but it’s definitely part of it in this case. in contrast, scenes that have cool colours give us the impression of slipping into a comfortable, calm scene with babs, tim, the titans, and other allies. even the beginning scene with superman has this blue, but then it transitions into something more golden coloured. dawn broke over dick, as his new idea came to light, and that was reflected in the art (and the sunrise setting.)

have there ever been times when dick’s longed for the comfort of his mask because he didn’t feel confident as dick grayson? i can’t think of any. i may be wrong, but this struck me as pretty ooc.

am i just??? gay and reading this all wrong??

cause i was under the impression that when someone says they are grateful for your friendship you don’t immediately kiss them. 

or is this like. normal straight mating rituals.

i mean he’s smiling afterward but still babs aren’t you supposed to at least make sure it’s okay first? you guys broke up a while back after you said something along the lines of “i want to be coworkers with you and nothing more because i don’t trust you or feel comfortable around you as a civilian anymore.” like lmao after you say something like that to someone i would assume that you don’t have the permission to just kiss them whenever you want.

show of hands who else got real sad when they realized dick was talking about himself in this.

sure, he could be referencing the things he’s seen blockbuster pull, and the children on the streets. but “i’ve seen money used for enforcement,” sounds a little too close to dick’s entire life being destroyed by one man threatening the circus to pay protection money for me to completely ignore. and “i’ve seen the poorest and most vulnerable blamed and punished rather than assisted” becomes a lot worse when you remember dick was thrown in juvie for a couple months until bruce was able to obtain legal guardianship, and in there, not a authority figure believed him when he told them his parents were murdered.

he’s lived this before.

a. mother. fucking. typo.

fucking why

i mean i’ve stated my distaste for the batfamily groupchat before but like. this is reaching new levels of ridiculousness. jason sounds like he was written by a fanfic writer. tim sounds like he was written by a fanfic writer. steph sounds like she was written by someone who doesn’t know the first thing about steph and wanted to include her for “family points!!!!!” damian’s supposed to be completely off the grid, and everyone’s searching for him. i do love the way cass texts tho.

well god fuck now i’m crying

dick got a phone call, a sorry, and a thank you out of bruce. i feel so much secondhand happiness for him, if that’s a thing. we’ll just ignore the way bruce looks ugly af and focus on the good parts okay?

and again with the colour symbolism here!

i’m either going to love this or hate this. who knows, we’ll see.

something something hearts something something pink is an evil colour something something. i need to know more about this guy but there’s definitely symbolism there. 

is it just me or does this dude look like the backstabbing traitorous absolutely motherfucking piece of shit villain that killed tadashi hamada in big hero 6?

~~

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