#the baby after Steph is gone? How does Steph feel when she comes back and sees her little girl already walking & talking? | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

stxleslyds · 3 years

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you know how dc keeps forcing this sudden "we're a family" narrative out of nowhere? I'd love batfam content but years of hurt among them make the recent content seem unearned.

bc you know more about dick and jason than the others, how do you think they would realistically become family to each other, or would it even be in character for them to be the "bros" they're written as now?

Oh anon, this question is amazing, I love it! I saw it when I woke up and since then my brain has been brewing this answer, I was thinking about it as I brushed my teeth and as I was making breakfast, and now I am ready to give you the answer, I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed thinking/writing about it!

DC keeps forcing the wrong relationships, and they keep forcing the wrong centre of this supposed family, they make it out to be the Bat-Family when in reality the Bat (Bruce) should have never been invited to this party.

This is why I give you the… Dick-Family!

Oh yeah baby, I am going there. Dick is the centre of this “family”, he is the guy who is actually connected with everyone, he has been around for so long and he has been present when almost all of the remaining characters were introduced! Bruce might have come first but that guy has nothing on Dick Grayson.

Dick has cared and loved for everyone in this family in a true and beautiful way, no matter how much fanon and DC try to tell us otherwise. This man was an amazing son to Bruce and Alfred (my love for Alfred and Dick is brought to you by @hood-ex), a fantastic brother to Jason, Tim and Cass as well as a phenomenal father/older brother to Damian.

Dick Grayson is the centre of this whole thing, and thanks to DC now being an Omniverse I will be able to explain my line of thoughts. But first let me clear some ideas up.

The way I see it Jason would only get along good enough with Dick. I am not here for Jason and Tim having brunch together (honestly, Lobdell, what were you thinking), Jason never cared for Tim, and then writers that didn’t know how the Red Hood worked made him try to kill Tim so, to me, that relationship is non-existent, Jason doesn’t really perceive Tim (yet).

Jason and Damian, listen, I know that there is this fanon theory that Jason knew and cared for Damian while he was in the League, but that is just fanon talk and it doesn’t really fit in canon either. Jason wasn’t really capable of doing much other than fight, and after he was put in the Lazarus Pit he either had to leave because Ra’s wanted to kill him or Talia took him to the All-Castle. So, Jason’s only real interactions with Damian would be when Jason was written as a crazy, blood thirsty dude that actually tried to harm a child. So, him and Damian wouldn’t really have a good relationship (yet).

Jason and Cass… that’s just a no. Jason and Barbara, I mean Barbara was older than Dick when she first met Jason, so they wouldn’t have much of a relationship.

Now, lets move on to how I will make the Dick-Family work.

Dick (bless him) actually talks and listens to people, unlike Bruce, so the change would start there. Let’s set the timeline, I will stand right after the events of Under the Red Hood. Bruce just chose saving Joker over letting Jason kill the Joker and the building they were in exploded.

Batman keeps on being himself (trash) and Jason, having survived the explosion, moves on to keep on building his empire. He really wants to control the drug trade in Gotham, so he works on that, he slowly but surely takes his place as a drug lord again and is a constant pain in Black Mask’s ass.

While Jason is doing that, Dick is trying to put together his life after Bludhaven was attacked with Chemo. Let’s say that Bludhaven isn’t completely erased from the map but he does have to leave so the city can be re-built. He goes to Gotham, where the Red Hood works.

Let’s say that Alfred told Dick who was under the Red Hood, so Dick being a good brother goes looking for Jason. Their first interaction out of the mask wouldn’t be nice, Jason barely remembers his life before the pit and he really is convinced that Dick is the absolute worst.

But then Jason being a nosy man would make an appearance, for some reason, let’s say that he hacks into the Batcave and when he does that he finds some footage… The footage in question would be the one which shows Bruce punching Dick and sort of blaming him for Jason’s death. (Oh yeah, I am going there). The footage will make a memory come to mind, Dick taking Jason on a skying trip.

So, the next time that Dick and Jason see each other is because Jason went looking for Dick and here is where these two actually talk. The way I see it, Dick is more flexible with the no killing rule, he has worked many times with people that are villains or that just have different ways of doing things. So, I think that he would understand where Jason’s coming from with his ideas. As they begin to understand one another Jason begins to recover more and more memories from before the Pit.

They get together once a week and they chat about life as well as vigilante stuff. They become friends.

At the same time Dick is also very good friends with Tim and also acts like the amazing big brother he is with him. They chat, they sometimes work together and one day they come across a very complicated situation involving a new drug being introduced in Gotham.

Dick would call Jason and now both of them and Tim are reunited in a safe house working together so this new drug doesn’t fall in the wrong hands. Jason and Tim wouldn’t really like each other. Both of them are there for Dick and because they have to get the job done.

That’s how I see Dick forming the Dick-Family unconsciously. Hell, I will introduce Barbara now. Do you guys remember that in UtRH Barbara was mad with Bruce and didn’t want to work with him but she was still in contact with Dick? Well, I am using that so it can fit my narrative.

Dick, Jason and Tim need more intel so Dick calls Oracle (real Oracle) and because Barbara trusts Dick she works with them.

Here is where it gets interesting, through Barbara, Dick meets Cass, through Tim he meets Stephanie. You see that Dick’s connections are leading him to form a group of people. Cass and Stephanie are trained by Babs and Dick and they become the new Batgirls.

As all of that keeps developing Jason and Dick become “partners in crime” they help each other, they start building a brotherly relationship again. Although Jason refuses to say that out loud.

Then comes in Damian, a difficult child if there has ever been one but he has Bruce so Dick doesn’t have to jump in that fast… right?

Oh brother! Bruce is dead (omg what would we do? Battle for the cowl maybe? No!). with Bruce gone there is only one person who can take his place and everyone knows it has to be Dick.

Dick would feel a lot of things as he is taking Bruce’s place as Batman but he has a group of people ready to back him up (Alfred, Jason, Tim, Babs, Cass, Steph), and he also has to take care of Damian, he is a child and with his father gone then maybe his mother would want to take him back to the League of Assassins, Dick obviously doesn’t want that so he talks to Tim and tells him that he sees him as his equal and that he has a plan to make Damian stay and it involves making Damian his new Robin.

Tim would obviously be sad and a little hurt, but he understands Dick’s decision because they talked about it and Dick actually took the time to explain why he was doing what he was doing (really DC half of the problems you guys come up could be fixed in seconds if people would only take some time to just TALK!).

Dick and Damian work as Batman and Robin and Dick starts assuming the position of his father. They would live with Alfred in the penthouse and maybe Tim will join them from time to time (when he wasn’t busy with Young Justice/Teen Titans stuff). Slowly Dick and Damian will become the Dynamic Duo that we love today.

So, Dick would have his own Robin, Oracle (who is also managing her own team with Black Canary and (why not) the Batgirls), Red Robin and Red Hood working with him if he needs them. They are always a call away. Jason is the most difficult to reach and he will only involve himself in that kind of drama if its about controlling the drug trade or scaring the living shit out of some very shady people.

So, Red Hood wouldn’t be working with the new (and improved) Batman but Jason would hang out with Dick sometimes.

From there they build up. Dick renovates Arkham Asylum and makes it work they way that it is supposed to work. He might also recruit Catwoman when he needs someone really sneaky, they have known each other for so long, I bet Selina loves Dick, she would certainly help him out.

But as all things do, this happy and well-connected Dick-Family is disrupted when Bruce comes back, he inserts himself slowly back into his role as Batman and as he does that Dick starts to move away from it.

But Dick’s connections are strong and well cared for, so, even when he goes back to Bludhaven and starts fresh (again) as Nightwing those connections remain. Oracle still gives him intel, Robin and Red Robin come over to Bludhaven to patrol, maybe they even have their own rooms at Dick’s place.

With Bludhaven functioning again, all of the terrible people that were working there also come back, maybe some of them never left and they have been corrupting the city from its very core. So, when Jason tells Dick that he would like to expand his operations to Bludhaven, Dick says yes, as long as Jason keeps him updated on his work and also lets him know what is going on.

I think it works! What do you guys think so far?

From then on with the whole Dick-Family being connected and strong I think they can actually act and solve their problems as a family. All those arcs that didn’t work very well because Bruce was in the middle of it being a jerk, I think they will work if Dick is at the centre of it. Let’s say that Bruce hid the fact that Joker knows their identities and all that, with such a strong family the second that the Joker tries to manipulate Jason into believing that he created him, Dick will come out of the shadows and shut that bullshit down. If Joker tries to do something to the Circus, then the Birds of Prey and the Robins will be there in seconds helping Dick.

The Court of Owls, those little shits wouldn’t stand a chance against this team, this force of nature! Jason would be the one working from afar because you know my boy wouldn’t be subjected to the “no-killing” rule but if he does it, he has to do it away from the children (Damian) and away from Cass, if he doesn’t want to know real trouble. (He probably arranged those things with Dick a long time ago and he is happy with it).

Now, please forgive me but for angst reasons I will actually let the events of, Batman Incorporated #8, Forever Evil, Nightwing #30 and Spyral run its course.

Let me explain, after Damian’s death Dick holds the Dick-Family together, as well as Bruce because he is amazing like that, but then after Dick supposedly dies, things change just a little bit. Jason would retreat back to his own corner because the only thing attaching him to the Dick-Family was Dick but he would also keep his eyes open and he might also have a direct line with Oracle if things go south.

Aside from Jason, I do see the others working on keeping their connections intact. When Damian eventually returns the land of the living, I can see all of them coming together even more because that’s what Dick would have wanted.

And then Dick will come back from Spyral and here is where the Dick-Family will show the “Bat-Family” why its superior to it in every aspect possible.

The Dick-Family will notice that something must have happened, Dick would never play dead and leave them like that, but Dick loves Bruce and he doesn’t want to tell them the truth, Bruce has no memories now and his family doesn’t deserve that kind of drama BUT Jason and Tim are suspicious, they know Dick at this point and they trust him so they firmly believe that he is hiding something to protect someone. And here is where life repeats itself. Let’s review the Batcave’s footage, yes, I did it again, I just love the fact that Bruce has footage of himself being the absolute worst to his kids, how does DC not use it! Anyway, Tim and Jason find the footage from the events of Nightwing #30 and suddenly the Dick-Family have their “Dick defence squad” jackets on and they are ready to party.

After all that Bruce eventually gets his memories back and he is held accountable for his actions. Also, around this time the events of Robin War would have already happened so Duke is also introduced. Dick lets him join and all that, and then Duke and Cass become besties and they work together.

And yeah, as Rebirth comes closer the Dick-Family would be more united than ever.

The end.

That is how I would have done it. But this way is slow, and DC wouldn’t be able to monetize it as much as they would want.

Jason wouldn’t be giving hugs and calling everyone their brother or sister, he will only get along with Dick and he would be professional with everyone else.

Tim and Damian would get along but they wouldn’t go for ice cream together on a sunny day. Steph and Damian would and so would Cass and Tim or Cass and Duke.

Oracle would work with Dick and the others as a side thing because her main thing would be the Birds of Prey, this time with Helena too.

Alfred would spend his time with Bruce but he would also be very aware of Dick and his influence on everyone around them. Bruce eventually would be integrated to the Dick-Family because Dick is a sweetheart but Dick would also make Bruce follow his rules, Dick is a little bean but he is also the most badass person in the room (whichever room) so you better listen to what he has to say.

The Dick-Family would be something that grows silently and doesn’t need a “Joker War” in order for them to be there for each other, they would try their best each step of the way and they will talk things out when mistakes are made.

This is the way that I see this family dynamic working.

I would even go as far as to say that Talia can be part of the Dick-Family because she is connected to three people, Dick, Damian and Jason.

Dick is the person with most connections in the DC Universe, the Titans, the Justice League, Deathstroke, they all have connections to this treasure of a man. If he needs help in Gotham or Bludhaven then he can call people from the “first circle”, if things are beyond a “street level” threat them he can call the Titans and if shit really hits the fan, Clark and the others are a call away.

Anyway, this was unnecessarily long, I am sorry about it but I am also not because I really don’t know how to answer your question without going on a long rant.

In conclusion the Bat-Family doesn’t work and sadly it wouldn’t work no matter how much they force it. These people don’t have connections, Bruce is not able to make connections between people. And DC has erased entire relationships that Dick used to have. I mean, they got rid of Dick and Tim being close brothers just so they could give us a shitty brunch between Tim and Jason? Only yesterday we saw a true and beautiful interaction between Dick and Damian.

DC is handling the “Bat-Family” in all the worst possible ways. It just doesn’t work.

They should have used Dick all those years ago and they shouldn’t have destroyed Jason’s characterization with Lobdell’s ideas.

So, sadly, my dear anon, I don’t see the Bat-Family as a in character thing for any of these people as they are written currently, but I hope that you enjoyed my version of it. May the Dick-Family bring everyone who reads about it a little joy!

#Dick-Family #Jason Nation #dick grayson #nightwing #red hood #tim drake #damian wayne #red robin #robin #batfamily #alfred pennyworth #bruce wayne #dc comics #jason todd #asksss

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dccomicsimagines · 3 years

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What’s Lost is Found - Batfamily Imagine - Part Eleven

Part One Part Two Part Three Part Four Part Five Part Six Part Six.Five Part Seven Part Eight Part Nine Part Ten

***

“Now look at how beautiful it is today,” Dick said as he pushed your wheelchair out of the manor and into the gardens.

You covered your eyes, giving them a moment to adjust. “I guess.” You rubbed the AV fistula in your arm.

“Are you feeling okay? The dialysis didn’t make you sick again?” Dick rubbed your shoulder with one hand. You swallowed hard. How could your life have changed so much?

“I’m fine.” You smiled when Dick pushed you around a corner to find Kori and Alfred. “Hi.”

“(Y/N), my love.” Kori waddled toward you, kissing your cheek. Her belly was huge. The baby was supposed to arrive any day now. “Come, we decided to have a picnic outside.”

Alfred was setting the picnic table. “Master Dick, will you go get us more ice please?” Dick parked you near the picnic table before running back to the manor. Trees shaded the area, keeping it cool from the summer sun’s blazing gaze. You got to your feet and slowly walked to the table. Alfred watched you worriedly.

“I’m okay. I just have to get used to walking again.” You waved him off. Two months in a coma weakened you. Not to mention your failing kidneys and your bad arm. You eyed your thin, ghostly arm. The cast had come off the day after you woke up. They told you it took two surgeries to correct it.

Alfred hummed, pouring you a cup of lemonade. Kori sat across from you. She rubbed her belly. “The baby is kicking again.”

You perked up. “Can I feel?” She leaned over to take your hand and pressed it against her belly. The baby kicked hard. “Wow.”

Kori smiled. “They must know you’re here.”

“How are you such an imbecile that you didn’t know where the ice was located, Grayson?!” Damian’s voice came from around the corner. You pulled away from Kori’s belly.

“Damian’s here? I thought he’d be at the penthouse.” You took a sip of lemonade. Dick and Damian came around the corner with the ice.

“Master Damian said he’d stop by.” Alfred finished laying out the sandwiches and salads. “Master Tim, Miss Stephanie, and everyone else will be here for dinner.”

Dick put the ice in the cooler. Damian sat down next to you, glancing you over before he relaxed. You were touched by his concern. “Is Jon back from space yet?” You bumped Damian’s arm.

“TT, no, he is not.” Damian growled. “Don’t worry about him. He’s an idiot.” He piled food onto his plate.

You frowned. Alfred started to fill your plate for you, passive aggressively hinting that you should eat. Dick sat down next to Kori. “He’ll be back soon, sweetheart. Superman wouldn’t have sent him to space if he knew you would wake up three days after he left,” Kori said.

“Yeah, sure.” You picked at your food. Alfred sat down at the end of the table in a folding chair.

“Young Mr. Kent was here all the time. His parents sent him away to give him some distance.” Alfred patted your hand. “It hurt him to leave you.”

“Couldn’t get him out of the house,” Dick mumbled. “I can’t tell you the number of times we found him sleeping on the floor of your room.”

Damian huffed, rolling his eyes. You smiled. Your heart ached to see Jon. He was the one person you hadn’t seen yet. Part of you was afraid something happened to him and no one was telling you. “When are you moving back to your swampland?” Damian asked with a smirk.

Dick rolled his eyes. Kori answered for him. “We are going to wait for the baby to be born and for (Y/N) to receive their new kidney.” Your eyes widened.

“New kidney?!” You gasped. Alfred, Dick, and Damian winced. Kori looked at them, confused.

“What? (Y/N) needs to know they’re going to get a new kidney.” Kori shook her head at the men. She reached over to rub your arm.

“We were going to tell them at dinner.” Dick bit his lip, studying you. You sighed. A headache blossomed in your temple.

You felt sick to your stomach. “Who is it from?”

Damian swore under his breath. “Like it matters.”

“Master Damian.” Alfred glared at him. Damian blushed and looked away. You shook your head. Everything had changed so much.

“I need some space.” You slowly got to your feet and walked off.

Dick got up to follow you. “(Y/N), don’t walk off on your own.”

“I’m just going over here! You can see me!” You walked over to a bench a few yards away. “Let me breathe, will you?!” Dick stopped in his tracks. You made it to the bench, panting. Frustration formed a lump in your throat. You were so out of shape.

Dick hovered from where he stopped. You glared at him. His mouth twitched. “Don’t give me that look,” he snapped, marching over to you. “You don’t walk off. Do you understand me?” He grabbed your bad arm.

“Shut up.” You jerked away from him, but he gripped your arm tighter. You gasped in pain.

Dick let go, but he pointed his finger in your face. “Do you know how much you scared us all?! You walked off and literally handed yourself over to the enemy! We all thought you were dead until we received word about the auction!” Dick’s hand trembled. The guilt crashed down on you, soaking you with that terrible sinking feeling. “You don’t get to act this way! Not now! Not after everything!”

Kori came to Dick’s side. “Dick, sweetheart. Stop.” She pulled his hand out of your face. You looked away, hiding the quiver of your lips. Your eyes burned with tears.

Dick took a shaky breath. “I’m sorry.” He walked off further into the garden. “Give me a minute.” Kori watched him go, tears in her eyes as well. She followed him after a moment. You watched them go.

“And you were saying I have no decorum, Pennyworth,” Damian retorted from the table. Alfred hushed him. You buried your face into your hands, leaning down over your knees.

Alfred approached with his short, slow steps. He settled on the bench beside you, rubbing your back. “Mx. (Y/N), try to not get too upset. Master Dick shouldn’t have exploded like he did. He was just expressing the worry we all had for you.”

“TT.” Damian wandered over. He stood in front of you. You sat up to meet his eye.

“Master Damian, you are not one to talk, so don’t even start.” Alfred shot Damian a look so cold, it almost made you think the warm summer day suddenly turned to winter. “You both were reckless and irresponsible. Too much like your father.”

You smiled sadly. “I know,” you said. Damian raised an eyebrow.

“I would like to point out if Jon and I did not do what we did, (Y/N)’s condition probably would be worse.” Damian nudged your foot with his.

“Once again reckless.” Alfred shook his head. “You both pushed Master Dick to the brink. With Miss Kori recovering from her injuries, to finding Mx. (Y/N) gone, then Master Damian.” He kept rubbing your back soothingly. “Try to not push him, Mx. (Y/N). He is coming to terms with everything.”

“I know, but he’s hovering again.” You blinked back tears, refusing to cry in front of Damian.

Alfred nodded. “I will speak to him. Just understand he does it all out of love and concern.” Alfred got back to his feet. “Now come back to the table. You both need to eat.”

Damian took your hand and helped you to your feet. “Do you notice he scolds me more than he scolds you?”

“It’s probably because you’re Batman.” You poked his side teasingly. Damian let you walk on your own, but stayed nearby in case you needed him. You made it to the table, exhausted. Damian, Alfred, and you went back to eating. Dick and Kori joined you minutes later and the meal continued peacefully.

***

“So it turns out, we’re a match,” Tim said from his seat across the dining room table. Steph sat down next to him, holding his hand.

“Tim, you can’t give me a kidney.” You shook your head in disbelief.

Damian huffed, leaning back in his chair. “TT, like (Y/N) would want your inferior kidney?” He glared over at Tim. “And why are you a match when I am (Y/N)’s blood brother?”

Tim pursed his lips, clearly holding back a snarky retort. Steph spoke up before Tim could. “(Y/N) and you may be biological siblings, but you have too much diversity in your DNA to be a match. Besides, turns out you, (Y/N), and Tim are sixth cousins.” Steph giggled, smirking at the shock on Damian’s face.

“I guess that makes sense.” You smiled at Damian’s dropped jaw. “I mean the Drakes are part of Gotham’s high society and they married each other all the time. That’s how we’re related to the Kanes too.” You reached over to close Damian’s jaw. “Besides, sixth cousins means we’re barely related anyway.”

“However, I’m still a match and I want to give you a kidney.” Tim smiled, leaning his elbows onto the table.

“Did I miss it?” Jason ran into the room, looking at Damian. “Damn it, I missed it. I told you to wait until I got here before you told him you’re sixth cousins.”

Steph rolled her eyes. “We can’t help it if you’re slow.”

Jason flicked her forehead before sitting down next to you. “So you’re taking Tim’s kidney? Guess that means you’d be blood siblings.”

You shook your head. “That’s not how it works.”

Horror dawned on Damian’s face. “No, I refuse to allow this to happen.” He pointed at Tim. “I will not let you pollute the Wayne bloodline with your fucking incompetence.”

Tim opened his mouth, but Steph stopped him. “Let me.” She smiled before laying into Damian. They argued loudly and within minutes, Damian was flying over the table to tackle Steph. Jason egged them on. Tim moved out of the way, coming over to your side.

“I think Steph is enjoying this too much.” Tim bit his lip.

“To be fair, Damian had it coming.” You blinked back tears. “Tim, you don’t have to give me a kidney.”

“I know I don’t have to.” Tim smiled, taking your hand. “But I want to.” He tapped your nose like he used to do when you were really young. “We’re siblings. Besides, I don’t think I could live with myself knowing you were on dialysis for the rest of your life when I could have just given you one of mine.”

You squeezed his hand. “But what about Red Robin? You’ll have to be careful with only one kidney.”

Tim chuckled. “I was actually thinking about retiring.” Your jaw dropped, making Tim laugh harder. “I’ll still investigate and help Damian out, but I won’t go into the field. With Wayne Enterprises, it’s just too much.” He ran a hand through his hair. A move you all inherited from Dick. “Yesterday, I fell asleep during a board meeting. Lucius had to kick me under the table to wake me up.”

You laughed. Steph and Damian broke a vase on the table by the wall. Dick ran into the room. “What the hell are you two doing?!” He pulled them apart, scolding them like they were two small children.

“I can’t believe Batman is wrestling with Spoiler.” Duke laughed, coming in with Cass and Alfred. They were carrying plates to set the table.

“Luckily, preparing dinner took shorter than expected. I would hate to have more casualties,” Alfred said, eyeing the broken vase. Cass clicked her tongue, smiling. She patted your shoulder as she passed. Tim got up to help them. You stayed where you were, startled by the warm feeling in your chest. It felt like you were home at last.

***

Two weeks later, you strolled the gardens by yourself. You were getting stronger. The doctors said in a week, you should be ready for the kidney transplant.

You sat down on a stone bench under the Northern Red Oak Alfred always told you had been planted when the first Waynes moved into the manor over two hundred years ago.

Closing your eyes, you breathed in the fresh air. It surprised you that you found you missed the humidity of Florida. Maybe it was a home to you after all?

A sonic boom cracked the air. You flinched. Birds went flying, squawking loudly. “What?” You stood up only to suddenly find yourself off your feet and in someone’s arms. Lips pressed against yours. Jon’s scent hit your nose. You kissed him, closing your eyes.

“I can’t believe you’re awake.” Jon was spinning you around. You laughed, squeezing your eyes shut to avoid getting dizzy.

“Jon, stop.” You wrapped your arms around his neck. He stopped to kiss you again. You melted into him. “I missed you.” You pulled away to get a good look at him.

His hair was longer. A glance at the ground told you he grew another inch as well. Did his shoulders fill out? Your face burned. You definitely didn’t grow any. Probably looked worse. Lost a lot of weight and so weak. Jon studied you. “You look so beautiful.” He kissed you again, sitting down on the bench with you in his lap.

“Now I know you’re lying.” You leaned against him, soaking in his warmth. “I look like I got hit by a truck.”

Jon blinked. “No, you’re beautiful.” He grinned, tilting his head like a puppy dog. You ran your hands through his longer hair. “I flew here as soon as they told me.”

“When did you get back?” You kissed his cheek, laughing when he turned to catch your lips with his.

“Five minutes ago.” He smirked. “We just arrived at the Watchtower and Dad met me in the hanger bay. I zoomed out of there so fast, I’m sure I gave the Flash whiplash.”

You smiled as you kept running your fingers through his hair. Jon smiled back at you before frowning. “Something is happened in the house.”

“What?” You glanced back at the manor curiously. “Oh, I bet Kori went into labor. She was complaining of back pain this morning.”

Jon paled slightly. “Dick is losing his mind.”

You rolled your eyes. “Yeah? He loses his mind at everything.” You nodded to the manor. “I suppose we should go see.”

“Do we have to? I mean what if the baby is coming fast or they want privacy...” Jon tightened his arms around you.

You got out of his lap and took his hand. “Don’t tell me Superboy is scared of childbirth? It’s really not that bad.” You rolled your eyes when Jon didn’t get up. “Come on, it’s early labor. Let’s just say goodbye before they head to the Watchtower for the delivery.”

“How are you not nervous?” Jon followed you, squeezing your hand gently.

“During the Joker infection a few years ago, I had to help a woman give birth. She was crying in one of the old apartments in the Bowery. I found her and had to keep her calm with thousands of laughing jokerized people outside.” You shivered. “Honesty, this is nothing compared to that.”

Jon stopped. You turned to look at him only to find him studying you in awe. “You’re pretty amazing, you know that?”

You bit back a smile. “Maybe. The woman named her kid after me. Robin Maria de León. She should be about two now.” You pulled Jon to keep walking. “They moved out of Gotham after the attack.”

Jon shook his head, kissing your temple as he wrapped his arm around your shoulders. The two of you entered the manor and followed the noise to one of the dens. Kori was sitting on the couch, quite relaxed. “Oh Jon, you have returned. (Y/N) was missing you,” Kori said, flipping through a magazine.

“How is she so calm?” Jon remarked. You moved to sit next to her.

“Is it time?” you asked, leaving Jon to keep his distance. He was acting like Kori had an infectious disease instead of going into labor.

“It is.” Kori sighed when a loud bang came from upstairs. “Dick is not handling it well.” She set down the magazine. “(Y/N), will you go help him get my bag? Jon, stay here and tell me about your adventure to space.”

Jon swallowed hard. You patted his arm as you passed. “You’ll be fine. It’s just Kori.”

It took you a full minute to get up the stairs. You panted at the top, slowly making your way to Dick and Kori’s room. At least you weren’t as wiped out as you were a few days ago. Progress.

“Where is the damn thing?” Dick slammed a drawer shut before ripping open another. Clothes were scattered about the room.

“Kori is going to be pissed if she comes back to find the room like this.” You leaned against the door frame to rest. Dick looked up at you worriedly.

“I’ll clean it up. I just have to find it before we go.” Dick turned away once he was satisfied you were alright.

“Yeah.” You moved into the bedroom once you caught your breath, picking up and folding the clothes. “What are you looking for?”

Dick swore under his breath. “I’m looking for Sitka.”

You blinked, stacking the clothes on the bed. “Sitka?”

“My stuffed elephant that I had when I was a kid. I wanted the baby to have it right away.” Dick ran a hand through his hair, glancing around. “I thought I left it here, but maybe I did take it down to Florida.” He shook his head and grabbed Kori’s bag. “I guess I’ll have to go without it.”

“I’m sure it will turn up.” You smiled when Dick hugged you tightly, kissing your forehead.

Dick hummed. “I’ll keep you updated. Be good. Unless you want to come with us? It’s going to be a few hours at the least.” He pulled away to look you in the eye.

“I’ll wait. Jon’s here.” You bit your lip when Dick’s eyes flashed at your words.

“Tell him that if he sonic booms over the manor again, I’ll break out Bruce’s kryptonite ring.” Dick ran a hand through your hair.

You smirked. “Sure, you will.”

Dick chuckled before a shout from below made you both freeze. “Gotta go.” Dick rushed out of the room and back downstairs. You followed slowly, shaking your head at the chaos below.

***

“If you were a sentimental fool, where would you leave it?” You mumbled, glancing around Dick and Kori’s bedroom at their house in Florida.

“I would have probably left it on my bed or something,” Jon said, checking under the bed. He pulled out a box, opening it before quickly shutting it again. His face burned redder than you ever seen it before.

You frowned, crossing your arms. “What was that?”

“Nothing you would want to know about.” Jon gagged. “I can’t unsee it.” He covered his eyes with his hands.

Shaking your head, you opened the closet door and checked in there again. “It wasn’t at the manor, so it has to be here.”

“I know you want to do this for him, but shouldn’t we be going to the watchtower? Dick called you an hour ago.” Jon pushed the box back under the bed with disgust.

“No, not until we find it.” You hummed. “We still haven’t checked the attic.” You headed out to the hallway and pulled down the staircase. Jon followed, frowning. “Come on.” Taking out your phone, you turned on the flashlight and climbed up. You ran out of breath at the top.

“Rest.” Jon pushed you to sit on the top of the stairs. “I’ll take a look.” He took your phone and wandered into the dark attic.

“I know Dick put the Christmas stuff up here and some of my boxes.” You leaned back on your hands, closing your eyes. “It should be up here. He had stuff up here already when I brought up mine.”

Jon hummed, opening a box. “Decorations.” He closed it and went to another one. “Why couldn’t you label anything?”

You smiled, getting up to point to the side of the box. It was neatly labeled in your handwriting. “We did.”

“Damian’s right. I am blind even with supersight.” He shook his head and moving deeper into the attic. The attic ceiling was low. You both had to duck down uncomfortably just to move around.

After searching for a while, you found a box in the far back. It was covered in dust. No one had touched it in years. You wrinkled your nose, blowing off dust to read the label written in Dick’s messy handwriting. “Stuff. No wonder he can’t find anything if he just labels it ‘stuff’.”

Jon came over with your phone to give you more light. You opened the box, sending dust everywhere. Jon sneezed. “So much dust.”

You shook your head, peering inside. Right on top was Sitka. “Found it.” You took out the worn, old elephant.

Jon raised an eyebrow. “We probably should wash it before we give it to the baby.”

“Probably.” You handed it to him, frowning at the painting under Sitka. It looked familiar. “Oh my, he kept it.” You pulled it out. It was the painting you made years ago, back when Dick was Batman and you were his kid. “My ‘Jackson Pollock’.”

“Who’s Jackson Pollock?” Jon settled down next to you, wrapping an arm around you. You leaned into him, tired from moving around. The painting was just how you remembered it.

“A painter. I read about him and copied his work when I was little. I gave this one to Dick.” You shook your head. “I thought he would have gotten rid of it.”

Jon hummed. “Judging by what we dug through, Dick doesn’t throw things away.”

A frown pulled at your lips. Dick never threw anything or anyone away, even when they hurt him. You swallowed hard. “Yeah.” You dug through the box, finding more treasures from the year Dick was your parent. It hurt and pleased at the same time. ”I’m always mean to him. I don’t know why he cares.”

“Because he loves you.” Jon kissed your temple. “And you’re not always mean to him. I think you’re one of the kindest people I’ve met.”

“That’s a lie.” You closed the box. Your stomach twisted uncomfortably.

“No, it’s not.” Jon kissed your cheek. “A mean person wouldn’t have spent all this time trying to find a stuffed elephant.”

You snorted. Dust got into your nose. You sneezed hard. “Okay, we got to get out of here.” Your eyes watered.

Jon nodded, helping you up. The two of you left the dark, dusty attic behind.

***

Hours later, you were alone on the watchtower. It was quiet and dark, being nighttime for most of the league members. Jon had went home after he dropped you off here.

A dull ache came back to your bad arm as it seemed to do every night. You wondered if it would ever go away. Space was so deathly silent. You felt like you had to hold your breath. Sitka was under your arm, dust free and clean for the baby.

It took you a good few minutes to find Kori’s room in the medbay. She was fast asleep with a bassinet next to her. You tiptoed inside and peeked inside the bassinet. “Wow,” you gasped quietly, smiling at the tiny little baby inside. Tufts of dark hair, same color as Dick’s, stuck out from under the blanket they was swaddled in. Their little hand twitched in their sleep was the same golden orange as Kori’s.

You stared at the baby for a long time. Of course, you had seen babies before. Even helped someone deliver one, but you had to admit, you never saw a more beautiful baby.

Carefully, you set Sitka in the far corner of the bassinet where the baby could see it when they woke up. You blinked, realizing at this moment you didn’t know if the baby was a boy or girl. Dick only said the baby was born and for you to come, nothing else. You glanced at Kori, who was still asleep.

After a few minutes of gazing at the baby some more, you pulled yourself away and slipped out of the room. You turned the corner to head back to the teleporter only to come face to face with Dick.

“Now you show up.” Dick took a step back, sipping a cup of coffee. Dark circles were under his eyes making him look older than his years. His hair was a mess. You resisted the urge to fix it. “I called you hours ago.”

“I was busy.” You bit your lip. His mouth twitched. Eyebrows furrowed. He was angry. Why was he angry?

Dick took a moment to swallow before walking around you and back down the hall. You followed, concerned. “I was waiting for you.” He spun around to face you. His lips pulled into a frown.

“I know, but I was busy.” You raised an eyebrow. “What’s wrong? You should be happy. The baby is beautiful.”

Dick’s face softened. He glanced inside the window of the medbay at Kori and the bassinet. “We wanted you to be here, you know? To meet your niece for the first time.”

“She’s a girl.” You smiled, peeking around the corner. “I should have known. She has so much hair already.” You looked back at Dick, catching loss of focus in his eyes, the slight droop of his lower eyelid. “Oh, so you’re not mad? You’re sad I didn’t get here right away.” You smiled when Dick’s eyes widened. “I learned from the best, you know.”

Dick took a sip of coffee, sensing you were mocking him with the ‘you know’. Of course, you were. “I guess I’m worried what you would think of adding a baby to our little family. A baby changes things.”

You shrugged. “Not that many things.” Your eyes stayed on the bassinet.

“I suppose not.” Dick studied you. “Do you want to hold her? We’ll have to be careful if she’s asleep.”

Fear stuck you like lightning. It was one thing to look at the baby, but another thing to hold one. “I don’t...I mean...” You bit your lip.

Dick chuckled. “You won’t drop her.” He went into the room, setting his coffee down on a table before looking into the bassinet. You held your breath when you saw him pause, knowing he saw Sitka. He looked back at you, raising an eyebrow and holding up the elephant. Your face heated up. You looked away.

“Come on, Mar’i. You need to meet (Y/N).” Dick came out with the bundle in his arms. You froze, terror chilled you to the core. “Don’t be scared, (Y/N).” Dick nodded to your arms. You swallowed hard, copying his. He slipped Mar’i right into yours. You gasped. She was awake, staring up at you with brilliant green eyes.

“Hi.” You smiled bigger than you had in a long time. Out of the corner of your eye, you saw Dick taking a picture on his phone. You ignored him. Mar’i just blinked. “So her name is Mar’i?”

“Mar’i (Y/N) Grayson.” Dick smirked when you looked at him in surprise. “I mean it fits, don’t you think?”

You bit your lip, looking down at Mar’i. “I guess it does.” You rocked her. She dozed off in your arms.

“Thank you for getting Sitka for me.” Dick leaned against the wall. He closed his eyes. “I suppose that’s why you didn’t come right away, huh? That’s why I can never stay mad at you. Always sneaking up and doing something sweet.”

You sighed, leaning down to kiss Mar’i’s head. She smelled of baby powder and sunshine. “I’m sorry.”

“For what?” Dick raised an eyebrow, opening his eyes to look at you.

“Everything.” Alfred’s words echoed through your head. Guilt soured your stomach once again. “I shouldn’t have handed myself over to Bane’s son. I threw my life away and I know that hurt you.”

Dick blinked. “I forgive you, sweetheart.” He stepped over to you and wrapped an arm around your shoulders. You leaned into him, using him to help support Mar’i‘s weight. It started to strain your arms. “Just don’t ever do it again.”

You snorted. “I don’t plan on it.” Dick kissed your temple, chuckling as you looked down at Mar’i’s perfect little face.

***

“Now don’t panic.” Jason poked at your arm as you laid in the hospital bed. Nurses moved around you, prepping you for surgery. “You’re going to have Tim’s kidney inside of you, but that doesn’t mean you’ll be a stick-in-the-mud like him.”

“Geez, thanks,” Tim said from across the room, where he was also being prepped for surgery.

You laughed. “Stop it.” You batted Jason’s hand away. “Dick and Kori will be here when I wake up, won’t they?”

Jason gasped, pressing his hand against his chest like you shot him. “What about me? I’m here, giving my support.”

“More like a headache,” Tim grumbled.

“Yes, they will be here. They just have to handle the baby first.” Jason kissed your cheek. “Little Mar’ionster.”

You smirked. “Don’t call her that. You don’t want Kori firing star bolts at you again, do you?”

“Like she could hit me.” Jason matched your smirk and leaned back in his chair.

“We’ll take them in now,” the nurse said, gesturing for Jason to leave. “You may wait in the waiting room.”

“Sure, sure.” Jason kissed the top of your head. “Be good.” He went over to Tim. Tim glared at him, daring him to do something. “Ah, don’t be like that, Timbo.” He ruffled Tim’s hair, much to Tim’s despair.

Tim knocked his hand away. “Get out of here already.” Jason left, laughing his head off. The nurses rolled your bed into the operating room across the hall. You frowned at the bright lights.

Tim was parked a little ways from you. “You okay?” He asked, smiling when he met your eye.

“Fine. You?” You swallowed hard, suddenly scared.

“Good.” He winked at you. “We’ll be fine. Once we’re out, we can laze around and watch cartoons like we used to.”

“Ninja Turtles?” You smiled. The tension drained out of you.

Tim nodded, turning away when the anesthesiologist spoke to him. You gripped at the blanket covering you.

“Relax, (Y/N). You’ll be fine.” A nurse rubbed your arm. You gave her a shaky smile.

The anesthesiologist left Tim and came over to you. “I want you to count down from one hundred for me,” he said soothingly as he injected something into your IV. You closed your eyes, counting only to pass out at ninety seven.

***

“I can’t believe I haven’t watch this before,” Jon remarked, sitting by your feet and leaning back against the couch. You lifted your legs to rest on his shoulders. He kissed the side of your knee, hugging your lower legs.

“You never watched Ninja Turtles?” Your fingers played with his hair. “That’s it. Can’t be together anymore.”

Tim snorted from his spot on the couch next to you. “If that was the case, I would have broken up with Steph a long time ago.”

“Did I hear my name?” Steph walked in with a tray of healthy snacks Alfred prepared. “Speak of the devil and she should appear.”

She set the tray down on the coffee table, handing a small bowl of popcorn to Tim and you. You munched happily. Jon tilted his head back with his mouth open. You fed him a piece. “Thanks,” he said, tilting his head back to the tv.

Your recovery was going good. You had only a little pain and your body was accepting Tim’s kidney the best it could. The medications weren’t fun and came with their own restrictions, but you were happy to not have dialysis three times a week.

Tim was recovering as well if not better than you were. He was still on the same healthy diet as you, but at least he didn’t have the same medications you did.

The four of you watched cartoons and snacked away. Eventually, Tim and Steph left to go back to their apartment. You and Jon kept watching until Jon fell asleep and your legs went numb from laying over his shoulders.

“Ouch.” You folded your legs back, wincing at the pins and needles. The remote laid next to you. You put on the news out of habit.

“Today, the court decided the fate of Tourne Wu-San, otherwise known as Bane. Two weeks ago, the court confirmed Wu-San guilty on charges of terrorism.” You froze, shocked that you didn’t hear about this before. Why didn’t anyone tell you? “Wu-San’s sentencing was held off after much conflict from Santa Prisca’s embassy. However, after confirmation of Wu-San’s dual citizenship, the court sentenced Tourne Wu-San to death by lethal injection.”

“What?!” You jumped to your feet only to fall back onto the couch. Your legs were still asleep. The blood drained out of your face. Jon jerked awake, looking around.

“What’s wrong?” He focused on you, frowning deeply. “Woah, hey. You look like you seen a ghost.”

Your hands shook. “They’re going to kill him.” Jon took your hand. His hand radiated warmth. You pulled away, unable to accept the comfort. “It’s all my fault. He’s going to die because of what I did.”

“Sweetheart, what are you talking about?” Jon kissed your arm, moving to sit on the couch beside you.

You shook your head, pointing at the screen. The TV was playing a My Pillow commercial. “Bane’s son. They sentenced him to die.”

Jon swallowed hard. His face paled. “That’s rough.”

“Rough? He’s going to die and it’s all my fault.” You jumped to your feet and paced the room. “I have to help him.”

“It’s not your fault, (Y/N). He made his own choices.” Jon stood in front of you, forcing you to stop pacing. “He has to pay for what he did. If the courts decided that, we can’t change it.”

Tears ran down your cheeks. The surge of emotions raged through you, but you knew you couldn’t live if Bane’s son was killed. “Yes, we can. We can break him out and free him.”

“Are you crazy?!” Jon threw his hands up in the air. “He almost killed you.” He leaned close to your face. “You had to get a kidney transplant because of him! People lost their lives and homes because of him!”

You screamed. Jon jerked away from you. “He’s like us, Jon!” You pushed Jon away from you. “He’s like Damian and me! All three of us lost parents that day! We can’t let it continue!”

“What the hell is going on in here?!” Dick burst through the door. “I’m trying to get Mar’i to sleep and all I can hear is yelling!” Jon blushed. You panted before storming past Dick. Dick caught your arm. “Hey, what’s wrong?” His voice dropped to a soothing whisper. You were confused until you realized you were still crying.

“Nothing.” You yanked your arm away from Dick. “Just leave me alone.” You ran upstairs and slammed your bedroom door shut behind you. Only then did you allow yourself to break down completely.

***

“Have you lost your mind? He’s a criminal.” Damian folded his hands in front of him as he sat in his batcomputer chair like it was a throne. You glanced around the batcave he had made for himself under Wayne Tower and admitted the chair was a throne in a way. This was Damian’s kingdom he built on his own.

“Damian, we can’t let him die.” You rocked on your feet. Jon hovered behind you. Despite the fact he hadn’t said a word, his disapproval burned into you. “We can’t let the cycle of death continue.”

Damian raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

“Bane killed Dad, then I killed Bane.” You swallowed hard. Those words would always carry a heavy weight for you. “Bane’s son almost killed me and if we allow him to be executed, what’s to stop someone from Santa Prisca to come after us and Gotham again?” You crossed your arms, shivering. “We have to stop the cycle. No more death.”

“Interesting notion.” Damian rubbed his chin. He spun in his chair and typed on his computer.

You waited, watching his screens. A smile pulled at your lips when Damian brought up the schematics of Blackgate Prison where Bane’s son was being held. “Damian, you can’t be serious,” Jon said, going to Damian’s side. “He almost killed (Y/N).”

“Yes, but he didn’t, did he?” Damian kept working. “He could have killed (Y/N) right after they handed themselves over, but he didn’t.” Damian glanced back at you. “He could have killed them during the three weeks they held them, but he didn’t. When he caused (Y/N) to overdose, he knew we would get to them in time to prevent cardiac failure.” You smiled. “I say he didn’t want to kill (Y/N) just as much as (Y/N) doesn’t want to see him executed.”

Jon glanced between the two of you. “Nope. This is not happening.” He crossed his arms. “I love you, (Y/N) and Damian, you’re my best friend, but I’m not letting you do this. I’ll tell my dad and Dick if I have to.”

Damian snorted. “I guess we’ll have to do this quickly then.” In a move so fast, you almost missed it, Damian landed a punch to Jon’s jaw. Jon fell like a rock. You gasped, running to him. “TT, he’s fine. Just repaying him for the time he did that to me.”

“He’s unconscious.” You felt the lump on his jaw. “Damn it, Damian. A bit more pressure and you would have broken his jaw.” Damian huffed, taking off the kryptonite ring and putting back into his belt.

“I know what I am doing.” Damian cracked his knuckles and walked over to his changing area. “Come along. We have to be done before he wakes up.”

You were torn between Jon and Damian, but you knew you had to save Bane’s son. Kissing Jon’s head, you got him a pillow and a blanket before following Damian.

***

Pursing your lips, you gripped the stirring wheel of Damian’s flying batmobile. It was in camouflage mode, hovering only a few meters above the prison. You held your breath, counting to ten, then releasing it. Damian entered the prison twenty minutes ago. Where was he?

You glanced at the clock. It was three in the morning now. At your best estimate, Jon would wake up in another half an hour. You had to be back before then.

A flash of red light came from the roof of Blackgate. You sighed in relief, lowering the batmobile until it was a few feet above the roof. It rocked as two forms climbed to the cockpit.

“I don’t understand why you would do this,” Bane’s son said, confused. Damian pushed him to sit in the backseat before climbing up to join you at the front.

“Shut up.” Damian growled in his Batman voice. You shook your head, feeling Bane’s son’s eyes on you. You hit the gas, flying the batmobile away from the prison. “I think we need to provide some more funding. Blackgate’s security has too many holes.”

“Says someone on the outside.” Bane’s son looked out the window. “Where are you taking me? Are you planning to kill me?”

You glanced back at him. He didn’t have his mask on. Your heart jumped into your throat. “We’re ending this.”

Damian huffed. “TT, now it sounds like we’re going to kill him.”

Bane’s son chuckled. “It does.”

“I didn’t mean that.” You smiled. It was odd to have the man who was your captor for three long weeks and forced you to overdose, sitting behind you, making a joke. “I meant that we’re going to end the cycle of death. All three of us have suffered enough. We couldn’t allow you to lose your life when you should get a chance to move on.”

“And how am I supposed to do that? They will search for me.” Bane’s son shook his head. “Not to mention they will know it was you who set me free.”

Damian glared at him. “What do you take us for? Idiots?” He smirked dangerously. “They may suspect we have something to do with it, but no one will know as long as they never find you.”

“That is not reassuring me that you aren’t going to kill me.” Bane’s son sighed. “I never wanted this.”

“None of us did.” You bit your lip. “But we can let it go now. No more killing, no more pain, no more death.”

You landed the batmobile on the shoreline in the outskirts of Gotham. All three of you got out. Damian helped you. He squeezed your arm, reminding you to take it easy. Bane’s son studied you as if he could already see the damage he had done to you.

“What now?” he asked, pulling his gaze away from you.

“TT.” Damian went to the shoreline. He pressed a button on his gauntlet to reveal a camouflaged boat. “Your escape.” He narrowed his eyes at Bane’s son. “It’s autopilot will take you to Canada. Inside is money and documents for your new identity.”

Bane’s son blinked in surprise. “You are really letting me go? After everything I did to your city and to you?” He pointed to you. “They told me I put you in a coma for two months.”

“Like I said. I’m letting it go and I hope you can too.” You held out a hand. “Go live the life you wanted to live before I forced you to fight your father’s battles.”

Bane’s son eyed your hand. He paused before taking it. “Let bygones be bygones.” He smiled. “Thank you.”

Relief washed over you. The tension you didn’t realized you had for so long drained out of you. “You’re welcome.” Bane’s son pulled his hand away. He nodded to Damian before running to the boat.

You and Damian watched as the boat disappeared into the distance. “We have to go. Kent will be awake soon.” Damian helped you back into the batmobile, taking the pilot’s seat this time.

“We did good.” You closed your eyes, exhausted.

“TT. Only time will tell, I suppose, but you are right.” Damian flew the batmobile back to the city. “It feels like we did the right thing.”

***

You sat on Damian’s couch with Jon’s head on your lap. Your hand lazily ran through his hair. He hadn’t woken up yet, much to your relief. You kissed his forehead. Tears filled your eyes. You knew he probably won’t forgive you for this.

“TT.” Damian walked by. “Stop being emotional.”

“Shut up.” You glared at him only to turn back to Jon when you felt him stir in your lap.

Jon groaned, opening his eyes. His hand came up to rub his jaw. “What happened?”

“Payback.” Damian retorted, tossing an icepack onto Jon’s lap.

You shook your head. “Damian punched you.” You took the ice pack and pressed it gently against Jon’s jaw. Jon looked at you, drinking in the tears in your eyes. He probably could feel the guilt dripping off you.

“You did it, didn’t you?” His voice was a whisper as he looked into your eyes. Biting your lip, you nodded. Jon sighed and closed his eyes. “You look like there is a weight off your shoulders.”

“What?” You twisted a strand of his hair around your finger. He opened his eyes.

“When I first saw you at Christmas, you looked like you had this backpack of rocks hanging off you at all times. Even when I made you laugh, you still had it.” Jon smiled sadly. “But now it looks like it’s gone. You seem...happier.”

Damian huffed, taking a seat nearby. “That was put as eloquently as you could manage, Kent.”

“Shut up, Damian.” Jon glared at Damian before looking back at you. “I’m sorry I tried to stand in your way.”

You grinned, leaning down to kiss his lips. “You’re amazing, you know that?”

Jon moaned into the kiss. “You’re the amazing one.”

“Stop it! I’m sitting right here!” Damian threw a pillow at you. You caught it easily with one hand. Jon kept kissing you. You never felt so relieved in your life.

***

Time passed. You recovered from your transplant, thriving the best you could even with the side effects from all the medications. The rest of the family seemed to know you and Damian had something to do with Bane’s son’s escape, but didn’t act on their suspicions.

After three long months, you, Dick, Kori, and baby Mar’i were moving back down to Florida. Luckily, you were able to make up enough work to graduate from high school like you planned. You were going to a small college nearby for at least the first year. After everything, you did want to be near family for now.

The car was packed for the drive home. However, you insisted on one last stop. “Are you sure you want to go alone?” Dick asked, getting out of the car. You nodded your head.

“I’m good.” You walked into the cemetery. Dick’s gaze weighed on you. It brought you some comfort as you remembered how messed up you were when you came here the first time.

Mar’i started to cry in the distance. Kori soothed her. You walked past graves. Their noise faded until you got to the one you were looking for.

“Hi Dad.” You knelt down in front of the simple tombstone. The silence was deafening. “I’m doing like I promised. I’m living my life.” You smiled sadly. “And I repaired my mistakes. Damian, Bane’s son, and I are free from the events of that one night.” Your face burned. “Well, I will always carry the burden, but it won’t dominate my life anymore.”

“I’m sorry I haven’t come earlier. It’s still hard to think that you’re here.” Tears filled your eyes. “I’ve got to stop crying so much. I feel like that’s all I do.” You rested your forehead on the tombstone. “I’m being nice to Dick and Kori.” You sighed deeply. “Mar’i is beautiful too. You’d like her. She’s got your grumpy look.”

A laugh escaped you. “I love you so much, Dad.” You pressed a kiss to the tombstone before pulling away. “I hope I do you proud.” Slowly, you got to your feet. “Goodbye, Dad.” You let your hand rest on the tombstone for a moment. “Thank you for everything.” Almost painfully, you let your hand drop away and started back toward the car.

Dick and Kori were outside, waiting for you. Mar’i was in Kori’s arms, looking at you with those beautiful green eyes. You went to them, allowing yourself to be pulled into Dick’s arms. Kori wrapped one arm around the two of you. You sighed, enjoying the hug. “We can go home now,” you said firmly. You knew truly what was lost had been found.

#batfamily #batfamily imagine #batfamily x reader #dick grayson #dick grayson iamgine #nightwing #nightwing imagine #kori anders #kori anders imagine #starfire #starfire imagine #dc comics imagines #dc reader insert #jon kent #jon kent x reader #jon kent imagine #superboy #superboy x reader #superboy imagine

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mochegato · 3 years

Text

Hope on Board

Chapter 12 – Pretending to Be Functional Adults

Chapter 1 Chapter 11

“Oh my God”

“What?” Dick came running out of the bathroom, his hair still dripping from the water in the shower and a towel around his shoulders and waist.

“Did you buy every pregnancy book in the bookstore?” She gave him a teasing smile.

He rubbed the back of his neck before pulling his soaking wet hand away and drying it and his hair with his towel. “Yeah, I um… wanted to be prepared. I’ve only gone through a few.”

“I can’t believe you’ve gone through two already. I haven’t even made it through one.” She made her way over to him and took the towel from him, using it to gently dry his hair for him.

He looked at her adoringly and wrapped his arms around her. “I just want to know what to expect and make sure I’m giving you the support you need.”

“90% of parenting is being there and supporting them. You are going to be a great father,” she assured him gently. “I can see it in the way you interact with your family and talk about the kids you teach, how you interact with Rachel when you visit.”

“I really hope you’re right. And I can’t wait to see you as a mom. I know you’ll be amazing but I still can’t wait to see you rocking our baby and cuddling our baby, putting our baby down for the night before coming to bed…” he pulled her closer and leaned down suggestively as he said it.

Marinette squeaked and covered his face with the towel before he could see the deep blush that settled on her cheeks. She wasn’t fast enough though, judging by the way Dick’s chest rocked with laughter and the way his arms tightened around her. He gave her a peck on the lips before going back to get dressed.

Marinette turned back to his bookshelf with a quiet, “Should have grabbed the other towel too.” To distract herself from her mind going down that road, she continued looking over the books, movies, and cd’s on his shelf.

When he returned a few minutes later, she glanced up at him quickly before looking back at the CDs. “I didn’t realize you had such an extensive Jagged Stone collection. Oh, I still have your shirt too, don’t I? I’ll return it next time I see you.”

“Keep it,” he grinned at her and waggled his eyebrows. “I’d really like to see you in it… and nothing else.”

She blushed and looked down to collect her thoughts. Instead her focus got caught on something else. She started giggling and looked back up to Dick. “Are those your slippers?” She eyed the fuzzy bunny slippers on his feet.

He grinned back. “They are. I love these slippers. They are extremely comfortable. Maybe if you’re really lucky, I’ll get you a pair too.”

She rolled her eyes at him, “Be still my heart. So romantic.” She giggled and wrapped her arms around his waist. “Did you want to go with me to his concert in a few weeks?”

“You have tickets?” He exclaimed louder than he meant to. “I mean, sorry. How did you get tickets? I tried to get tickets but they sold out before I could get to a computer.”

“Yeah, well kind of. I have backstage passes,” she answered shyly. “My friends are coming to visit that week so it would be going with all of us. You’d be meeting my friends at the same time.”

Dick gaped at her. “I’d love to meet your friends, but Marinette, how did you get backstage passes? And you just happen to have an extra one?”

She cocked her head to the side, confusion clear. “I… Tim didn’t tell you?”

“Tell me what?”

“Do you know the name of the artist you liked who does all his album covers and some of his costumes?”

Dick looked at her suspiciously. “Yeah, kind of. I know they go by MDC.”

“Marinette Dupain-Cheng…” Dick stared at her dumbfounded. “That’s what caught Tim’s attention for the partnership in the first place. I can’t believe he didn’t tell you.”

“No. I asked him not to. He did a background check on you before the partnership and…” he cringed as the words left his mouth, “a more thorough one after the pregnancy. Sorry. But I asked them not to tell me anything. I figured we should learn that stuff together.”

She beamed up at him and pulled him down for a quick kiss. She stayed cuddled in his arms and looked up at him with a mischievous smile, “So is this a bad time to mention I was given a full briefing on you and your history after my friend discovered who you were?” Dick looked at her for a few moments unsure how to react.

Marinette giggled. “I’m kidding.” Her face suddenly turned serious. “It was actually two friends, coming from two very different perspectives.” Dick opened his mouth to say something and shut it again, uncertain if she was serious or not. Marinette smiled shyly. “Or at least they wanted to. I had the same reaction you did. I thought it was unfair and we should get to know each other on our own. Although if there was anything I needed to know, they could tell me that.”

Dick nodded. “That makes sense. I’m pretty sure that was the deal with my family too. Even if I didn’t want to know, if there was anything extremely concerning, they would have told me.”

Marinette cocked her head to the side and studied him for a moment. “And my best friend and current roommate’s father being a supervillain terrorist wasn’t considered concerning or you were just waiting for me to mention it?”

Dick furrowed his eyebrows and rested on the arm of the couch, examining her in an attempt to figure out if she was telling the truth this time or teasing him again. But the earnestness and nervousness in her eyes told him it was the truth. “It wouldn’t have been considered concerning unless Adrien showed signs of having helped him. Since nobody mentioned it, I have to assume he didn’t.”

Marinette shook her head frantically, her eyes now pleading. “He didn’t. He… it was a really big blow to him to know his father had done that to not only all of his friends but him… that he cared that little for him.” She looked away as if trying to steel herself for something. Dick tensed in anticipation for what she was going to say.

“That’s one of the reasons I think he is so excited for the baby. He is so excited to be an uncle, to shower our baby with so much love and acceptance. Even before we knew he was Hawkmoth, Gabriel was a crap father. Always judging, always cold, always putting Adrien down. His only value to him was what he could bring to the brand. It was a completely loveless life. He wants to make sure our baby has that. It would kill him if he couldn’t see the baby or if we didn’t trust him around the baby.”

Dick reeled back in realization. That was why she was so nervous. She was afraid when he found out about Adrien’s father, he would ban him from hanging around his child. He smiled gently and pulled Marinette closer until she was standing between his legs and wrapped in his arms. “I would never blame the child for the sins of the parent,” he assured her. “Remind me to tell you about Damian’s mother sometime, when he’s comfortable with me talking about it. And Stephanie. Her father is Cluemaster. He’s one of our rogues. He’s done a lot of damage, responsible for a lot of deaths. I have never thought less of Steph and I won’t of Adrien.” His voice was gentle and comforting.

Marinette looked up at him tears falling out of her eyes, so filled with appreciation, it pushed the tears out. She lunged at him in a desperate hug, causing both of them to fall onto the couch. Dick chuckled affectionately, but kept his arms tight around her. After a few seconds his face became serious again. “Is that… is that why Adrien doesn’t like me?”

Marinette pulled away from him just far enough to cock her head to the side as though confused, but the sudden tension in her frame confirmed his suspicions. “What makes you say that?”

“He just seems slightly hostile toward me. Not really welcoming.” Dick shrugged as though it was a small thing. She could dismiss it if she wanted to, or they could talk. He was letting her decide.

Marinette sighed and leaned her head back on his chest, staring out the window as she started to speak. “He… he takes his role of protector very seriously. During those attacks, we were usually right by each other. We had a main group of four through most of it. Nino took care of Alya, they were dating back then, I mean, they still are, but… yeah, anyway. So that left me and Adrien to watch each other… and for some reason a ridiculous number of akumas targeted either him or me.” She fumbled for the words. She did not want to lie, but she couldn’t exactly tell the truth either so she settled on a half-truth.

“So we watched out for each other. We protected each other. We’ve saved each other’s lives so many times. We died for each other. Him… him more than me… a lot more. And now, he still has that mentality. I’m his family. He needs to protect me like his father never did for him. And you just kind of snuck in. He thought he’d get the chance to have an opinion on my romantic interests and now you’re in my life, our lives for the rest of our lives because of the baby. So it doesn’t matter what he thinks of you, it doesn’t even matter what I think of you, one way or another, you are in our lives forever.

“And he’s just worried about you walking away or being like his father.” She worked her arms under her chest so she could angle her face to look at him. She looked at him, sincerity clear in her eyes. “He doesn’t know you. When he does, he’ll relax. I’m sorry he didn’t make you feel welcome.”

Dick reached up and tucked some hair that had fallen in her face behind her ear. “That explains why you understood Damian so well and were so comfortable with his attitude.”

She chuckled and leaned into his hand. “Yeah, a bit of similarities there.”

Dick nodded. “I can accept that. I have to earn his trust. We’ll have to hang out more and maybe you with Damian.”

Marinette smiled and nodded. “I like that idea. Maybe we can make a plan for it while we eat? I’m starving.”

Dick grimaced and looked toward his kitchen. “Yeah… maybe we should go out for breakfast… unless you’re a fan of cereal… but I’m not sure if my milk is still good.”

Marinette blinked a few times. “You have no food in your apartment? How do you… eat… like not even snacks? Last time I was here you had food.”

He shrugged sheepishly. “I asked Steph to bring food over while you were sleeping last time. Probably going to need to change that before the baby comes, huh?”

She pushed off of him to stand up and offered him a hand. “How are you considered a functional adult?” She shook her head affectionately.

“I never made any such claims. That’s on you for assuming.” He grinned at her.

She laughed and pulled him toward the door. “Come on, we’re going to get breakfast then get you some groceries and I’m going to teach you to make at least one dish.”

He grimaced. “I should warn you, I’ve been banned from the kitchen by Alfred more than once. It might not be as easy as you think.”

She gave him a cheeky grin. “I’m a very good teacher. I’ve already taught one hopeless, rich boy to cook, I can teach another. Just make sure to pay attention. There’s a test at the end.”

Dick stopped and pulled her back into his arms. He lowered his head so he was barely a few centimeters from her ear, his warm breath brushing against her ear. “And what do I get if I pass,” he asked huskily.

Marinette took a deep breath and slowly let it out, hoping to calm her thundering heart. It was unfair he could affect her like that with just a few words. She looked up at him from under her lashes. “You get to not starve.” He pouted but quickly morphed into a smile when she pulled him down so her lips were now just centimeters from his lips. “But, if you’re a very good student, I might give you a reward.” She smirked and started walking away.

Dick stared after her in a daze. He waited a few seconds for his heart to calm down. “Okay, but it isn’t the same reward you gave your other student, right?” he called after her. “Right, Mari? Mari?” She giggled and kept walking.

After a few hours of getting to know what Dick liked and might like to try, and buying the essentials for a functioning kitchen, they finally returned back to his place. They had just gotten everything put away when Dick’s phone started ringing with a very distinctive ring. “Damn it,” he cursed under his breath. “Give me just a second.” He gave her an apologetic look and walked back to his bedroom to talk.

He came back out a few minutes later with a deeply guilty look. “I’m so sorry. Something came up at work, an emergency they need my help with.”

Marinette gave him a concerned look. “On a Saturday? Is everything okay?”

“Yeah. No. It’ll be fine. I just need to take care of a few things. I should… I should be done by dinner if you wanted to stay here. I don’t think we have time for a lesson today, but maybe you could do it tomorrow? And tonight we could go out and get something.”

Marinette smiled. “That sounds like fun. Are you sure you’re okay with me staying here while you’re gone?”

“Absolutely,” he assured her.

She nodded and beamed at him. “Okay. I might run home to change though. I wasn’t exactly expecting to spend last night here and might want new clothes.”

He looked down at her clothes, making no secret of him checking her out as he did it. “Or, you could just walk around naked.”

She giggled and pushed his face away. “Not while you’re not here. Where’s the fun in that?”

He nodded in agreement. “Good point. Here,” he rummaged through a drawer in his kitchen and pulled out a key. “Take this. You can run home and come back and hang out here while I’m out.”

She looked between him and the key a few times. “Are you sure.”

He shook his head and pulled her into his arms again. “About you? Absolutely. Now I have to go or I’m going to be late.” He gave her a quick kiss on the cheek and ran out the door.

<><><><><>

He hated the Court of Owls. He hated them. They never made things easy or straightforward. Whatever they were planning was going to be big and it seemed like he and the other Titans couldn’t get any insight into it. Every time they got a hint, something happened. He couldn’t figure out if the Court figured out they knew and backed off that plan or if his information was wrong or if he was just misinterpreting it. They couldn’t get a foothold into it and it was driving him crazy.

He unlocked his door and threw his keys on the counter, freezing at the sight at the table. There was an amazing looking plate of food, probably ice cold by now, waiting for him. “Fuck,” he cursed quietly and ran his hand back and forth through his hair, mentally berating himself for being such an inconsiderate, thoughtless asshole. He had completely forgotten Marinette was going to wait here for him. It looked like she had even made dinner for him before giving up and going home. He was going to have to do something huge to make this up to her. And God, Adrien was going to think he was right about him.

He moved over to the couch to collapse and call Marinette, but found her there instead, fast asleep on his couch, her empty plate of food on the coffee table. At least she hadn’t waited for him, he bitterly mused to himself. That would have made him feel even worse than he already did. He watched her as she laid there in the shirt she had borrowed after their first night together, hand protectively placed over her tiny baby bump. She looked so peaceful and sweet and perfect. He looked down and huffed out a quiet laugh seeing his slippers on her feet.

He lightly traced her cheek and jaw, feeling his heart swell. He still could not believe he was somehow lucky enough for her to come into his life in the first place, but the fact she wanted to be there with him was overwhelming. He furrowed his brow as a thought occurred to him. Whatever the Court was planning, it was going to be big. What if it was something in Gotham? What if Marinette got caught up in it? He didn’t think he could survive losing her and the baby. He had given her his key for a reason. He hadn’t planned on asking for it back. He already couldn’t imagine his life without her there in some capacity. He didn’t know if it was love yet, but he knew she made his days brighter.

He needed to protect them. He needed to work harder. He had to figure out the Court’s plan and end it before they could get started so they would never have the chance to hurt her or the baby. He needed to double his efforts and stop messing around. He needed to… “Dick?” the sleepy mumble brought him from his thoughts.

He gave her a soft, apologetic smile. “Hey, beautiful. I’m so sorry. Things took so much longer than I expected. I should have called. I’m sorry.”

Marinette yawned as she shook her head. “No, it’s… you were working. I’m out later than I expect for work all the time. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to fall asleep. That’s kind of creepy.” She sat up and looked groggily around. Her eyes found his food on the table. “I’m sorry. I meant to put your food somewhere so you could reheat it when you had the chance to eat.”

“Marinette,” he let out a frustrated sigh. “You didn’t do anything wrong. It wasn’t creepy. I asked you to stay here. It’s fine. You have nothing to apologize for. I do. I let you wait for me without giving you any updates. I’m so sorry.” He looked around quickly, trying to formulate a plan. “Hey, do you want to sleep here again tonight? I can drive you home if you want, but if you want to stay here, we can just cuddle tonight? I need to take a shower and eat something really quickly, but you can go to bed now and I can join you when I’m done?”

Marinette looked at him unsure, her eyes still not completely open. “Are you sure?”

Dick smiled at her and gently ran his thumb over her cheek again. “I would love it. I like having you in my apartment. It makes it feel more like a home. And I love waking up to you. Here,” he picked her up in a bridal hold, “let me carry you so you can go back to sleep quicker.”

Marinette smiled sleepily and snuggled into his chest, resting her head in the crook of his neck. “This is a good way to travel. We should do this more often.”

Dick’s smile widened at the idea. “That’s a promise.”

Chapter 13

Tags:

@dickinette-february @demonicbusiness @ichigorose @iloontjeboontje @ladybug-182 @toodaloo-kangaroo @dast218 @golden-promises @trippingovermyfeet @emimar7 @laurcad123

#maribat #Dickinette February #dickinette #platonic jasonette #platonic adrienette #Hope on Board #Knocked Up AU #prompt - slippers

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nebulablakemurphy · 4 years

Text

Almost

Notes: This Fred lives AU, is very late for @firewhisky-kisses 200 follower writing challenge. Congratulations Steph, on your now over 500! 🥳 Prompt is in bold. Beta read by my love @dreamer821

Masterlist

It’s been three weeks since the battle of Hogwarts. Things feel normal enough when you return to the flat you share with your fiancé Fred. Who seems even more himself, after his brush with death.

You haven’t talked much about it. That was good, you suppose; that Fred was able to move past it. He throws himself headlong into his work at the joke shop, and wedding planning.

Like nothing ever happened.

You still attend weekly dinner at the burrow. Seeing the Weasley’s bustle around each other loudly and full of life, does little to calm your frayed nerves.

“William and I are having a baby.” Fleur announces, as you begin clearing the table.

“Congratulations.” Fred says immediately, stepping forward to embrace the happy couple.

As you stand there shell shocked. How could they have a baby now? When things are still uncertain, when the world still needs mending?

The three of them look to you next, trying to gauge your lackluster response. “That’s brilliant.” You force a smile. “Can’t wait to meet my little niece or nephew! When are you due?”

Fred is back at your side, kissing the top of your head. “These can wait a moment.” He whispers, setting the pile of plates back on the table.

Fleur goes on about names and nursery themes, and life. Life moving on. Somehow it keeps on doing that. Leaving you to wallow in it’s wake.

————————————————————

“Great news about Fleur, isn’t it?” Fred says later that evening. Making small talk as you sit, huddled together on the couch. “Maybe by this time next year we’ll be working on one of our own.”

“One of our own?” You stammer. No, it’s too soon. What if something happens? How can he be so oblivious to your panic? You don’t think you’re hiding it all that well.

“After the love, the marriage, then comes the baby carriage; everyone knows that.” Fred smirks, ticking at your ribs.

“Well, if everyone knows it.” You huff a laugh.

The worst part is, you don’t want to dwell on what would’ve been, in a world without Fred. You want to keep moving and stop feeling like your feet are stuck in one place.

You want excitement, joy, passion.

At this point, you’d settle for plain peace.

———————————————————

Two more weeks pass, it’s harder to get out of bed in the morning. The facade is giving way to the shattered pieces underneath, try as you may to keep it together.

“What do you think?” Molly turns you to the mirror proudly. “The alterations make all the difference.”

You stare at your reflection, running your hands over the material of your wedding dress. It still feels like a dream. A vivid one, but a dream no less.

“It’s beautiful Molly,” you nod. “You were right to take it in a couple inches.”

“Looks like I may need to pin it again.” Molly remarks, pinching at a bit of loose fabric near your waist. “Everything alright, dear?”

“Everything’s fine,” you lie through your teeth, a fake smile tugging your lips up.

“Nearly every bride tries to lose a few pounds before the big day. But really there’s no need.” Molly rests a hand on your shoulder.

“You’re right, I skipped a few meals.” That’s not a lie, but she doesn’t need to know why. She doesn’t need to know that the little things are starting to slip through your fingers. Or that waiting for the other shoe to drop is gnawing away at you from the inside out.

————————————————————-

Fred finally confronts you, after a couple worried comments from your friends and family.

“Is it the wedding?” He asks first. “Do you want to push it back?”

“No I- I don’t want to push it back.” You shake your head.

“Is it me? Do you want to call it off?” His bright eyes fall to the floor. As if the sight of you is suddenly painful.

“No Fred, never!” You step forward, to cup his cheeks. “I love you so much and I can’t wait to marry you.”

A flicker of relief passes his features, before shifting to confusion. “Y/N, what’s really going on love?”

“I thought you were dead.” You reply, biting at the inside of your cheek.

He sighs, heavily. “But I’m not sweetheart.”

“I know that! Logically I do. And I’m so grateful that you’re here and alive and with me. But in here,” you point toward your chest; as you keep talking, voice cracking with emotion. “I was told everyone on that side of the castle was gone. I thought I’d never find your body, or get a chance to say goodbye. I thought I’d never hear your voice again or see you smile. In a matter of seconds my entire world changed. All my plans, everything was gone. I can’t get over you almost dying because losing you would destroy me, okay?”

Fred clenches his jaw, “Y/N, come here.” He pulls you into his arms.

Finally, finally; you allow yourself to break down. Sobbing loudly into his chest, clutching the fabric of his shirt in your fists. “I’m sorry.”

He crushes you to him, “don’t be. I’d be the same way if anything ever happened to you.”

“But you’re not the same way. You handled everything so well, and you’re the one who almost-“

Fred cuts you off, with a reassuring kiss. “I’m rubbish at handling it. I should’ve known it would bother you. I almost died.” He says as if to remind himself. “But I didn’t. For whatever reason, I’m still here with you. I want to live everyday to the fullest and enjoy you. I want to cherish every second of time that I almost didn’t have.”

“But I’m making it impossible for you to do that.” You mumble, under your breath.

Fred takes your face in his hands, forcing you to hold his gaze. “You make it possible. These things take time. We have time now.”

“We have time,” you nod. Leaning into his touch, cherishing the warmth radiating from him. He was alive, and all yours.

“I’m not going anywhere anytime soon.” Fred tells you.

“How do you know?”

“I guess we never really know,” he admits. “But most wizards live to be a terrible age. You’ll likely be stuck with me for years to come.”

“That sounds like a great plan,” you smile.

The dark thoughts will still come, you’re not sure if they’ll ever go away. But as long as Fred is here, you do your best to focus on all the wonderful things that will happen instead.

Taglist: @bforbroadway @summer-writes @lupins-sweater @chaotic-fae-queen @a-mexican-waffle @obsessedwithrandomthings @siriusly-addicted-to-writing @firewhisky-kisses @haphazardhufflepuff @peachesandpinks @iliveiloveiwrite @the-hufflefluffwriter @masterofthedarkness @fific7

Let me know if you’d like to be added or removed!

#stephs200challenge #harry potter #harry potter fanfiction #fred weasley reader insert #fred weasley x y/n #fred weasley x reader #fred weasley x you #fred lives au #harry potter au #fred weasley #fred weasley fanfiction #molly weasley #bill weasley #fleur delacour #battle of hogwarts

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inevitably-johnlocked · 3 years

Note

Hey Steph!!

So I was just wondering what your absolute favourite fic is, because you have friggin AWESOME taste and I would love to read it!

Have an absolutely amazing day!! xx

Anonymous said to inevitably-johnlocked: Hi Steph! I hve the ultimate request. Can you recommend your favourite fic of All Time?

-------

OOOF you guys must’ve read each other’s minds, LOL. Ahhh, Octopus, this is very high praise, so thank you. I’m pleased that my fave reads are also becoming y’all’s faves!

AHHHH this is such a tough one, because I love so many fics. So to start off, here’s some lists you might enjoy:

Top 20 Fave 40K+ w. Fics (April 2017)

Ten Fave Short Johnlock Fics (Easy Reads April 2018)

25 Fave Johnlock One Shots (April 2018)

Top 10 Fave Fics (September 2018)

Top 20 Bookmarks of 2018 (March 2019)

Another Top 10 Fave Fics (June 2019)

Top 30 Read-Again Fics (March 2019)

Top 30 Read-Again Fics Pt. 2 (Sept. 2019)

Top 25 Fave Non-Ao3 Fics (Nov. 2019)

Top 25 Bookmarks of 2019 (Dec. 29/2019)

I’ve read many fics over the years, but even after all this time, I absolutely still have to say that this one is still currently my fave fic ever:

A Promise Made to Be Broken by PlantsAreNeat (E, 37,018 w., 7 Ch. || Fake Relationship, Pining, Slow Burn, RST, Eventual Relationship, POV Sherlock) – A young John makes an ‘if we’re still single at 40, we’ll get together’ pledge to a woman who ends up all wrong for him. She keeps reminding him of the promise, and won’t let go of it. John asks Sherlock to pose as his boyfriend at a family wedding, so as to dash her hopes permanently. Sherlock, who has at last acknowledged his feelings for John, reluctantly agrees despite knowing how painful it will be to ‘have’ John, but not keep him.

I’ve gone back to this fic so often I can pretty much read it on the back of my eyelids. I love the characterizations, and I love how each chapter starts as a flashback to John’s life. It’s so good. It’s fake relationship from Sherlock’s POV, which are rare already, and just the progression of their relationship feels so natural.

Plus, Sherlock has a John in his mind palace that he dresses up like a paper doll. I LOVE IT.

So yeah, please check out that fic. It’s one of my fave of all time. It’s silly and cute and JUST the right length, and I often go back to it if I’ve read a string of fics I just couldn’t get into. <3

I’d love to do a comic version of it, but my time management skills are garbage so I doubt it would ever happen, plus I don’t want to take away from the author so yeah. *shrugs*

Actually, another REALLY close contender, one that I’ve also read a tonne, is this one:

Iris by slashscribe (E, 11,948 w., 1 Ch. || Parentlock, Pining Sherlock, Post-S3) – Sherlock does his best to make John happy when John comes back to 221B with his new baby after the events of Season 3, but Sherlock has a track record of getting things wrong in this area. This story is an exploration of their gradual shift from friends to lovers, told from Sherlock's perspective, full of a lot of pining and lack of emotional awareness.

It was actually my fave BEFORE I read Promise, so yeah, two great fics if you’re looking for a couple shorter fics to read in a pinch.

Actually, let’s do the history, LOL. Here’s a couple of my fave long fics:

Midnight Blue Serenity by BeautifulFiction (E, 151,907 w., 19 Ch. || Friends to Lovers, Gay Bar / For a Case, Drugs, Pining, Case Fic, UST) – When Sherlock infiltrates a club in order to track down a serial killer, his altered appearance is enough to make John question his assumption that Sherlock is beyond his reach. However, is he the only one who appreciates his flatmate's charms, or is Sherlock at risk of becoming the next victim?

This one was my fave BEFORE Iris, but I also go back to it quite often if I want something longer to wrap comfortably around me. Also this one:

Shatter the Darkness (Let the Light In) by MojoFlower (E, 109,683 w., 23 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Genie/Djinn AU || Magical Realism, Kidnapping, Genie Sherlock, First Kiss / Time, Case Fic, H/C, Angst, Clubs, John Whump, Mild DubCon, Hand / Blow Jobs, Torture) – Fairy tales are for those who remember how to dream; not John Watson, broken and hiding from his bleak future in a beige bedsit. But then he discovers a lamp and finds himself in the dangerous riptide of an enigmatic man whose very existence is unbelievable, murder charges against his sister, and the growing pains of feeling alive once more.

The fave fic BEFORE MBS LOL.

AND finally, my VERY FIRST fave Sherlock fic:

The Green Blade by verityburns (T, 72,929 w., 15 Ch. || Casefic, Bromance) – As a serial killer hits the headlines, the police are out of their depth and the next victim is out of time. With faith in Sherlock Holmes at an all time low, this is a case which will push loyalties to the limit...

When I first got into fandom, I read this one IN BETWEEN EVERY FIC I READ. I love it so much. I actually first read it on FFNet. THAT’S how old this one is. I only recently was shown it’s on Ao3 and I was SO happy I was able to have an eBook version of it now! <3

So yeah, check out those fics, LOL. I’ve SO many new faves, honest to goodness, and new fave authors to add to my list, AND I’m CERTAIN that I’ve still to read more of my fics that will be my faves in my 90 pages of MFLs on Ao3 LOL. But yeah, these fics are like coming home to a hot cocoa and warm blankie on a cold night. Not just because of my love for them, but there’s something about a fic that you’ve already ready countless times, and not having to invest too much energy into getting into that world again, but instead just REALLY taking in your favourite parts of those fics and just smiling and feeling all squidgy all over again at your fave parts. <3

That all said, please, authors, never stop writing. I love reading your worlds <3

What’s your fave fics, Lovelies?

#steph replies #johnlock fic recs #my fic recs #fave fics #mindless-octopus

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holidaywishes · 4 years

Text

She’s Adorable

Requested: 👍

Summary/Request: Loved the last writing omg it was so good !! Can I request one where you’re really really shy and Fred takes you to a team party and you sort of become really closed off and only stick to him? Maybe you slowly get used to Steph but after everyone let’s Freddie know that they thought you were adorable and actually really like you? If that makes sense? It’s okay if it doesn’t, thanks love !!

Warning: fluff, a little bit of angst due to insecurity

Author’s Note: I AM SO SORRY that this has taken so long! It’s been in my drafts since I got the ask but I wanted to put out a couple chapters of my Fred series before I wrote this and then it got a little buried. It’s a little short and maybe not exactly what you were asking for but I hope you still like it and that it makes you happy!

masterlist

the other masterlist

Freddie’s P.O.V

You and (Y/N) met about three months ago but you didn’t start dating until about a month ago. Which meant she hadn’t really ‘bonded’ with any of the team or their girlfriends yet but you wanted her to be able to stand her own with them because you knew once they got to know her, they’d love her. She was hard not love.

“They’re going to love you!” you pleaded with her after she rejected your invitation to the team’s Halloween party

“I don’t know, Fred...” she sighed, “I don’t know anyone well enough to like... feel comfortable...”

“You’ll get to know them!” you tried again, “I promise, they’ve all been where you are”

“But they’re not like me. The girls are all confident and like fit in super easily with everyone”

“(Y/N), trust me. They will love you, you don’t have to be nervous.” You continued to plead with her, reassuring her that the team would love her and she’d have a bunch of new friends in both them and the girls, until she eventually agreed

“Okay okay!” she laughed, “our couples costume has to be ah-mazing then”

“Oh.. it will be” you laughed, wrapping your arms around her and kissed her forehead

“What’s your idea?” she asked with a smile

“Peanut Butter and Jelly” you said and she wrinkled her nose up at the idea

“Hmm nope”

“Wonder Woman and Superman”

“Hmm...”

“Beer and a solo cup”

“Creative but no,” she laughed, “we’ll just have to keep thinking about it.” After a couple days of tossing around costume ideas, you and (Y/N) had narrowed it down to Chucky and Tiffany from the Bride of Chucky or

“The twins from the Shining?!” you whined, earning a giggle from her, “you want me to wear a dress?”

“Yeah, it’s time for you to be the sexy one for a change”

“Are the twins from the Shining sexy?” he raised an eyebrow at you and you grimaced at the words

“No, they’re children... okay forget the twins. So I guess that means Chucky and Tiffany!”

“Great! Neither of us have to wear a wig!” He joked

“That’s exactly why I picked it!” she replied

“This is going to be a great party”

“I still don’t know...” she hesitated, “don’t go too far away from me. I might need an out...”

“I got you.”

“What if they don’t like me?” you whined to your best friend, Jennifer, as she helped you with your makeup

“They’re going to love you!” she exclaimed

“That’s what Freddie keeps saying,” you sighed, Jennifer nodding emphatically, “but I don’t know. I’ve met some of the girls when I go to the games and they’re all... they’re just not like me”

“What does that mean?”

“They’re confident without trying,” you started, “I think it has something to do with how pretty they are...”

“HEY!” she yelled and you leaned back in your chair, “you’re beautiful. I don’t want to hear you say that you’re not pretty, okay?”

“You don’t get it..” you tried

“Freddie loves you, he thinks the stars rise and fall with you!

“It’s not him I’m worried about,” you stood up quickly, walking to the kitchen to grab a drink, “it’s the team. Most of them are young and... superficial? I don’t know if that’s the word I wanna use but.. you know what I mean? They’re quick to befriend the girls who are there already because they’re pretty and tall and they fit this mold that all the other NHL wags seem to fit. I don’t. But I really like Freddie and I guess... I don’t know, I guess I’m worried that if his friends don’t like me, he’ll second guess our entire relationship.”

“Sweetie...” Jennifer said as she made her way to give you a side hug and bring you back to the chair to finish your Tiffany makeup, “that’s not going to happen. Yes, this girls fit a mold, but you are so much more than some mold and Freddie knows that.” Just then, the doorbell rings and Freddie lets himself in

“Tiff, baby, where are you?” he yells as he closes the door, laughing as he catches a glimpse of himself in the mirror, “my hair looks crazy...”

“Just try not to stick to him all night okay?” Jen whispers as you turn the corner to meet your boyfriend, who had managed to get the Chucky look just right without any help; or so he says

“Wow. You look... so sexy” he smiled and you rolled your eyes

“Thank you. We should probably get going or we’re gonna be late.”

“Aren’t you gonna compliment me?” he chided

“You look great, babe! Just like a murderer-turned-psychopathic-doll!” you laughed and waved goodbye to your friend as you walked to Freddie’s car. When you got to the party, you asked Freddie to sit with you for a second before you went in

“Just breathe. Everything is going to be fine.” And, as if his words were holding you up, you made your way into the house, ready to show off your confidence.

“FREDDAYYY!” Willy and Penny greeted as you walked through the door, Freddie smiled awkwardly at the tipsy state that Willy already seemed to be in, “you two look great. Chucky and Bride of Chucky?” You nodded with a small smile, clinging to Freddie’s arm

“And you are...?”

“Taco.. Bell” Willy said as he pointed between his and Penny’s costumes

“Clever” Freddie laughed before they walked past you to get another drink

“OH MY GOD! I LOVE THIS!” Stephanie exclaimed as she met the two of you by the couch, “this is such a great costume for you guys!”

“Thanks” you smiled. You had always liked Stephanie, she didn’t seem as uptight as some of the other girls could, which you always attributed to her and Mitch being together from the start. Even still, you weren’t overly familiar with her, “Morticia?” you asked

“Exactly! My Gomez is around here somewhere...” she giggled as she scanned the crowd

“I’ll be right back okay?” Freddie whispered to you, forcing you to squeeze him tightly to let him know that you were still nervous, “I’ll be quick, I promise.” He kissed the top of your head and was gone in an instant

“AH THERE HE IS!” Steph shouted when she finally found Mitch, who was already on his way to her

“HEY!” he said with a smile

“Hey” you repeated, standing awkwardly for a minute

“So.. who are you supposed to be?” he asked to break the silence

“Tiffany... Bride of Chucky...”

“So Freddie must be dressed as Chucky then. That’s awesome”

“Thanks!” you yelled over the music, smiling when the conversation kind of ended there

“We’re gonna go dance, wanna come?” Steph asked and you shook your head

“I’m just gonna wait here for Fred.” They shrugged and left you to sit down. When Freddie didn’t come back right away, you began to feel like it was a mistake for you to come but you still wanted to try

“Hey!” Nick greeted as he plopped down on the couch before. He was new, you were new, maybe you could actually have a conversation with him

“Hi!” you smiled

“I’m Nick!” he said, and you realized he’d completely forgotten who you were, “nice to meet you”

“(Y/N), nice to meet you, too.” You sighed, deciding not to correct him

“So... what are you?” his words were slightly slurred and you realized that he was probably edging on being drunk

“Bride of Chucky” you responded

“FREDDIE’S DRESSED AS CHUCKY!” he laughed, “OH SHIT! THAT MAKES YOU HIS GIRL!” You smiled awkwardly at his realization

“That’s me!”

“I’m sorry! There are so many faces to remember and I might be a little drunk right now” he confessed

“No worries. It’s okay, I completely understand. I’m new too, remember?” you laughed, “I’m just gonna go find something to drink. You need some water?”

“That sounds nice” he sighed and followed you to the kitchen, where you grabbed yourself a glass of punch and Nick a glass of water

“THERE SHE IS! MY BRIDE!” Freddie yelled from across the bar before he made his way to you, “YO TIFF WHERE YOU BEEN?” He laughed at his impression

“I thought you said you were coming right back” you said to him when he finally reached you

“I did.. I said that...” he replied, nodding once to Nick who stood behind you, “but I wanted to see you chat up everyone”

“Oh yeah? And you never thought to save me?” you smiled

“You were doing fine...” he scoffed

“I was sitting alone on the couch for like 20 minutes before Nick here re-introduced himself to me” you said

“I’m sorry, baby, I got caught up talking to people. There were pictures...” he mumbled, “I’m sorry. I’m here now.” The two of you spent the rest of the night together, you glued to his hip, while he spent the majority of the party doing more talking than you’d ever really seen him do. On more than one occasion, you found yourself lost in his smile and his laughter

“So... have you started to drive her crazy yet?” Auston asked suddenly, forcing your head to jerk to look at him

“No” you laughed as you scrunched up your nose at Freddie

“Why would I?” Freddie asked

“Well... I mean.. come on. The late night ‘practices,’ the long stretches without seeing each other, having to fuck over the phone...” you furrowed your brow at the words coming from Freddie’s teammate

“What late night practices?” you smirked, trying to distance yourself from whatever Auston was trying to stir

“You’ll find out when the team’s on the road fo--”

“Alright, that’s enough!” Freddie interrupted, Mo helping him get Auston sobered up

“He’s harmless, you know,” Alannah started, “just lonely. He also doesn’t want to settle down, so seeing Freddie in a relationship has him all confused.” You knew she was probably right and you trusted Freddie, but you had only been with him for a month, so who was to say that he wouldn’t do something while he was on the road. It wasn’t long after Auston’s drunken words that the party wrapped up and you said goodbye to everyone.

“You know what he said... it’s not what you think” Freddie stammered

“What do you mean?”

“Nothing happens on the road”

“I know” you whispered

“I mean some of the guys do stuff but I’ve never..” he started, “I’m not that guy anymore.”

“I know” you repeated, leaning across the centre console to kiss his cheek

Freddie’s P.O.V

You woke up to (Y/N) asleep next to you in your bed and your phone buzzing with a string of one line texts from your friends

“Bring her out more often” Alannah sent

“Why are you hiding her?” Nick said

“I knew I liked her” Mo joked

“Sure, she’s quiet but she’s sweet” Mitch admitted

“I’m not a huge fan, she seems a little stuck up” Auston’s text read and you could only roll your eyes at his words

“She’s adorable” Stephanie said and, for some reason, her approval seem to bring a sense of relief to you that you didn’t know you needed

“You think so?” you sent back as you walked out of the room

“Yes! I know I’ve met her before as just your friend,” she replied, “but seeing her with you was so sweet. Her little face lit up whenever you spoke or made us laugh, like she was so proud. It was so cute”

“I’m glad you guys liked her,” you admitted, “she was nervous you wouldn’t.”

“Well tell her we loved her. Tell her Auston is an idiot because he is.” You laughed at her last response just as (Y/N) woke up, stretching as she walked over to you

“Who are you talking to?” she asked before kissing your neck

“Steph”

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah,” you smiled, “she says that everyone loved you”

“Everyone?”

“Yes. Everyone.”

“I think Auston might have something to say about that” she raised her eyebrow at you

“I told you everyone would love you and it would appear as though I was right. Again.”

“Don’t be too proud of yourself, Fred. It was one party, where everyone was already very drunk”

“It’s the drunks you have to please” you teased and she rolled her eyes

“If you say so”

“I do. Which means I’m right. They loved you, just like I knew they would. What do I get?” you joked

“How about a kiss?” she smiled, walking over to you to lay a small peck on your nose

“How about a lil more?” you teased, pulling her to sit on your lap

“Like what?” she giggled

“Like...” you started, your voice trailing off as you thought about what to ask for, “hmm, how about we spend all day in bed?”

“I like that idea” she smiled, wrapping her arms around your neck, so you could carry her back to bed

“Starting November off right.”

#Frederik Andersen #Freddie Andersen #Frederik Andersen imagine #frederik andersen request #Freddie Andersen imagine #Freddie Andersen request #masterlist #the other masterlist #hockey #nhl #tml #Toronto Maple Leafs

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dontcare77ghj · 4 years

Text

Batfam

Steve x reader x Sam x Bucky x Natasha

I’d like to do a part two with this pairing and their week in Gotham. Let’s see what happens.

"I already said, I'd come home." You said, leaning back on the couch. "When have I ever lied to you?"

"Never," Damian admitted.

"Exactly, and I don't plan on starting now." You assured him. "I will be home in three days, I promise."

"Will you be bringing your partners along?" Your youngest brother asked you.

"I don't think so, Dami." You sighed.

"Are you ashamed of them, Y/N?" Damian quizzed you.

"No, I could never be ashamed of them, any of them." You shook your head.

"Is it us then? Because I could persuade Drake and Todd to behave themselves."

"When you say things like that, it makes me worried you're going to something Dick would not approve of." You laughed. "Leave Jay and Tim alone."

"Well, if you're not ashamed of us, or them, why haven't we met any of them?" Damian pushed you. "You have been with them for three years, sister. Even father wants to meet them."

"That's because dad wants to scare them. As do the rest of you, don't try to deny it. I mentioned Steve's name to Dick and got a very explicit picture of what would happen if he, or any of them, broke my heart." You rolled your eyes.

"If you think Grayson's plan is explicit, you should hear what Todd and I have planned."

"I want to be happy the two of you are getting along, but you just threatened my partners, so not gonna do that." You told him, managing to make the boy laugh ever so slightly.

"If I promise to talk to everyone and ensure they don't cause too large of a scene, will you bring your partners?" Damian asked of you.

"I will ask them tonight." You promised him after a minute. "And I will get back to you with their answer."

"Better get back to me soon. Pennyworth will need to know." Damian reminded you.

"I will. Love you, Dami." You told him.

"Love you too, Y/N."

Hanging up the phone, you let out a sigh and hung your head over the edge of the couch. Damian had made some good points.

You had been with Steve, Buck, Nat, and Sam for three years, and none of them had met your family. You weren't exactly being fair to them or your family. Perhaps it was time you brought the four home.

"Something smells good," Natasha commented, wrapping her arms around your waist.

"Are you talking about the meal, or me?" You smiled as she pressed her nose into your neck.

"Both." She hummed, contently watching you make dinner.

"Dinner's almost ready, can you grab the boys for me?" You asked her.

"Of course." She said, tilting your head back and pressing a kiss to your lips. Natasha moved away from you and stood in the doorway.

"Boys, dinner!" Natasha yelled.

"I could have done that." You rolled your eyes.

"But you asked me to do it," Natasha smirked, taking the prepared plates and putting them on the table.

"You screeched?" Sam asked, entering the room with Steve and Bucky right behind him.

"Don't be an ass." Natasha chided, hitting Sam lightly in the ribs.

"You love my ass," Sam smirked, pulling Natasha into his chest.

"Yes, everyone loves your ass, Sammy," You smiled, bringing the rest of dinner over to the table. "Now, sit your pretty ass down and eat."

"Yes, ma'am," Sam said, sitting at the table.

"What our asses? Should we sit them too?" Bucky asked you.

"Yes, all four of you should sit your pretty asses down and eat." You said, pinching Bucky's ass.

"Cheeky." Bucky grinned, taking his seat.

"This smells delicious, sweetheart." Steve complimented, leaning over to kiss your cheek.

"Tastes even better," Natasha commented, having already started her meal.

"Jason taught me." You said, picking up your knife and fork. "He's the only one apart Alfred who can cook."

"I'm going to have to thank him one day." Bucky moaned appreciatively.

"That could be sooner than you think." You mentioned cutting into your meal, not looking at anyone.

"Care to elaborate, mysh'?" Natasha asked you, sipping her wine.

"It's my father's birthday in three days." You said, looking up. "I already said that I'd come home, and I want you to arrive with me. Stay at the manor and meet my family." You suggested.

"You've gone back to Gotham twice in the past three years," Steve mentioned. "You never seem very happy to go back. What's changed?"

"I miss my brothers." You admitted. "I miss dad. I miss Alfred. My family's fucked up, and we never see each other. We're always arguing about something or other, but everyone's going home for dad's birthday. First time in years that everyone will be alive, and there."

"And you want to bring us?" Sam asked, putting down his cutlery. "Wouldn't that be awkward? If it's just your family?"

"Dick's bringing his wife, Timmy's going to bring Steph." You shrugged. "You don't have to come if you don't want to, I just thought it was time you all meet." You added, looking down at your dinner.

"We're not saying that baby doll," Bucky said, taking one of your hands. "I'd love to meet your family."

"We all would," Steve added, Natasha and Sam nodding in agreement.

"But we just want to make sure this is something you want," Bucky said. "That this isn't just something your family is pressuring you to do."

"No." You shook your head. "This is something I want." You assured them.

"Then we better book tickets for a plane to Gotham." Natasha smiled. "It's time to meet the family."

"We are an hour away, Jay. We'll be there." You said. The five of you had made it to Gotham. Alfred, who you had hugged tightly, had been waiting for you as you exited the airport.

The six of you had piled into the car he'd brought and were on your way back to the manor.

"No, Jay, don't do that. Put Dick on the phone." You sighed, leaning into Sam's side. "Hey, Dick, do me a favor take all the weapons away from Damian and Jay."

"This house is full of weapons. I don't think that'll work." Dick laughed. "I'll keep everyone under control, I promise."

"I'm regretting this." You sighed as Sam chuckled.

"Too late to back out now, baby bird," Dick told you. "We see you when you get home. Love you!"

"Love you too." You said, hanging up the phone. "Is it too late for us to go back to New York?" You asked your partners.

"Yep!" Steve said, resting his head on Bucky's shoulder. "No going back now."

"We should go sightseeing tomorrow," Sam suggested. "You could show us where you used to hang out when you were young."

"You want to explore Gotham?" You asked slowly.

"Well, yeah. I've never been to Gotham before, and now I've got a native as a tour guide." He said, throwing an arm around your shoulders.

"Okay, I'm willing to take the four of you sightseeing, but there are a few things you should know about Gotham." You said, sitting up in your seat.

"So in short, Gotham has a killer crocodile, a scarecrow, a penguin, and a clown running around, causing havoc?" Steve asked after you finished explaining your childhood.

"That is only a couple of the assholes I used to deal with." You told him.

"Why doesn't SHIELD come in and attempt to help?" Natasha asked.

"Nat, we've had the Justice League, Titans, everyone come in and help when they can. New villains spawn faster than you can blink in this place." You said.

"Christ," Bucky muttered.

"I can't believe I'm the one who's bringing this up, but couldn't you just kill them?" Steve asked you.

"Dad has a code." You shook your head. "We get 'em arrested, and we don't kill."

"Though that rule has almost been broken a handful of times." Alfred cut in. "Once by yourself, Miss Y/N."

"You almost killed someone?" Sam asked you in surprise.

"I should've actually killed him." You nodded. "He killed Jason after all. Dad came in and stopped me before I could do it."

"Her brothers almost broke the rule five years ago," Alfred commented. "After the fear toxin incident."

"Fear toxin incident?" Bucky quizzed you, raising a brow.

"I'll explain it later." You said as the car pulled up to the house. "For now, you should prepare, we're here." You smiled, opening the car door.

Grabbing your bags, you were almost bouncing on your feet as you waited for your partners to take their things.

"You look like Peter that time he stole Clint's coffee." Natasha laughed, throwing her bag on her back.

"Okay, two things, that boy is never allowed caffeine again." You said.

"I can agree with that." Steve nodded.

"And two, that just hurts my feelings." You said, causing Bucky to chuckle.

"Of course it does, sweetheart." Steve smiled, throwing an arm over your shoulders and kissing your cheek.

"Come on, let's go, let's go." You continued bouncing.

"How much coffee have you had?" Sam asked, taking Bucky's hand as the six of you began walking up the stairs to the front doors.

"I refuse to answer that." You stuck your tongue out.

"How do you act younger than Damian, Y/N?" A new voice said from the top of the stairs.

"Dick!" You exclaimed, running forward and jumping into your brother's arms.

"Hey, short stack." Dick laughed, spinning you in a circle.

"Oh, shut it." You rolled your eyes as he set you down. "You're a bloody giant."

"Offensive." He scoffed as your partners raced forward.

"Dick, these are my partners Sam Wilson, Bucky Barnes, Natasha Romanoff, and Steve Rogers. Steve, Buck, Tash, Sam, this is my brother Dick Grayson." You stepped to the side, introducing them to one another.

"It's nice to meet you," Natasha said, holding her hand out to your brother.

"You as well." Dick nodded, shaking her hand. Dick smiled as he shook her hand but then turned to each of your boyfriends and stared them down.

"We've heard a lot about you," Steve said.

"Then you know we're all highly trained, some of us with teams of our own." Dick attempted to intimidate Steve.

"Okay, calm down." You said, rolling your eyes. "You can intimidate them later. We've been on a plane for hours and just want to sleep."

"Fine." Dick sighed. "But wait until Tim gets back, there will be group threats."

"Of course, there will be." You kissed his cheek. "Is everyone else here? I want to say hello before we take a nap."

"Damian and Bruce are on a quick patrol. Jason had to go out and deal with something. They'll all be back for dinner." Dick explained as you led your partners inside the house.

"Okay, we'll see you then." You promised. You led your partners up the stairs and gave them a basic tour of their surroundings. "And this is my room." You said, opening the door.

"Who needs a bed this big?" Sam questioned, putting his bags down and collapsing onto the oversized bed.

"This is just a little bigger than the bed we have at home." You told him. "I'm going to apologize for Dick now, as well as the rest of my family."

"Dick wasn't that bad," Natasha said, joining Sam on the bed.

"That's because I was there." You told her. "I can assure you if any of you find yourselves alone with him or any of them, they will be worse."

"What's the age difference between you and all your brothers?" Bucky asked as he looked around your room.

"Dick's two years older than Jason and me, Tim's six years younger than me, and Damian is twelve years younger." You told him.

"Quite an age gap between you and the younger two," Sam mentioned.

"Yeah, and they still act like they're older than me." You snorted.

"Does that have anything to do with the fear toxin incident?" Natasha asked you as you joined them on the bed.

"A little." You nodded. "But they've always acted like that, even before that happened."

"What was the fear toxin incident?" Steve pressed, taking a seat on the edge of the bed.

"I met a boy at a college class. He was sweet and funny, and I really liked him. After two weeks of talking, he wanted to take me out. I thought he really liked me, but it turns out he was working for scarecrow. I was to be the test subject for a new toxin he was working on. Luckily, Jason had been following us and got me out of there." You told them. "I was stuck in my worst nightmares, screaming, for twelve hours."

"Is this boy dead?" Bucky questioned you.

"No, the boys wanted to kill him, but dad stopped them." You said. "We don't kill, severely maim sure, but don't kill."

"At least it's a consistent rule." Bucky nodded, flopping onto the bed. "I'm so tired." He groaned, closing his eyes.

"Well, we have five hours until dinner." You said as you picked up your phone. "Five-hour nap?" You suggested.

"Knew there was a reason I loved you." Natasha smiled, pulling you into her chest.

“Hi, Timmy!" You laughed as he crushed you into his chest. "Dammit, you're taller than me now too."

"Everyone is taller than you." Tim laughed.

"Not everyone. Damian's shorter than me." You denied him. "Tim, meet Natasha, Steve, Bucky, and Sam." You introduced him to your partners who smiled at him.

"Y/N has said a lot of good things about you all." Tim smiled, shaking each of their hands.

"Likewise." Sam nodded.

After the five of you had taken a much-needed nap and freshened up, you'd all made your way into the dining room. You'd been greeted by Dick, Damian, and your father, both of whom you had hugged fiercely. Your father was happy to finally meet your partners and had welcomed them in kind. Damian had greeted you with enthusiasm, well as much enthusiasm as Damian could show, and had been slightly cold towards your partners.

Shortly after, Tim had arrived with Stephanie and Jason in tow. Jason had pulled you into your arms and given your partners a similar greeting to Dick's.

Tim's reaction to your partners made you smile. It was refreshing to see someone greet them without threats.

"Word of warning, ever hurt Y/N, and I will make even the government believe you've killed three world leaders," Tim said, staring each of them down.

"Jesus Christ, Tim." You groaned.

"Understood," Steve said, not flinching as he stared back unwaveringly at Tim.

"I like them, Y/N." Tim chuckled as Bucky pulled you into his side.

"Alfred said to stop intimidating our guests, and that dinner is ready," Barbara said, entering the room.

"Thank Thor for that." You sighed as you all walked back into the dining room.

The seven of you took your seats at the table and began the dinner you'd been dreading for years.

"So, Y/N tells me you're all apart of the Avengers." Bruce started as you all began eating.

"Yes, sir." Steve nodded, gaining a look of respect from your father.

"What kind of war zones are you throwing our sister into?" Damian asked.

"Damian." You narrowed your eyes at your brother. "You promised you'd behave." You said.

"I am behaving." Damian raised his hands in defeat as Jason smirked.

"Sure are demon spawn." He laughed. "Seriously, though, are we talking worse than Gotham?"

"Fewer men in costumes, more Nazi's," Sam explained.

"Also, aliens," Bucky added, causing Sam to nod in agreement.

"And Gods." Natasha nodded.

"You never mentioned anything about aliens, Y/N," Bruce said, turning to face you.

"Or Gods," Tim muttered.

"I'm not an idiot, dad. I know how you would react to that." You said, drinking your wine. "And we won against them, so they're not that big a deal."

“That’s the same thing you said when Harley stabbed you in the stomach.” Dick rolled his eyes.

“It wasn’t that big a deal.” You argued.

“You were holding your insides in with your hands.” Jason reminded you.

“And I lived,it’s fine.” You said, causing everyone around, minus Bruce, to sigh.

“Bruce, do you see what you’ve raised?” Jason asked your father.

“He can’t say shit, he does the same thing.” Tim cut in before Bruce could answer.

“Is it too late for us to go home?” You asked Bucky, who was seated to your left.

"Far too late," Damian said. "I haven't even had a chance to interrogate anyone."

"Neither have I." Jason agreed.

"Why can't you two get along in areas other than threatening my partners?" You sighed.

"Too much effort." Jason shrugged.

Non-reader POV

"I'll be right back." Y/N said, standing from the table. "Please, no-one be dead when I come back." She sighed.

"I'll watch everyone, Y/N," Barbara said as Y/N left the room. The room went silent for five seconds before everyone turned to the Avengers members.

"Let's get a couple things straight." Bruce started. "I'm Batman."

"I am Nightwing and a member of the Justice League," Dick added.

"I'm the Redhood, a member of the Teen Titans.” Jason stated.

"I'm the Red Robin and a skilled hacker." Tim nodded.

"I am Robin, as well as an ex-member of the League of Assasins," Damian said.

"If you hurt her, we will know," Bruce concluded. "We will find you, and we will ensure no-one will find your bodies, understand?"

"Of course, we understand." Sam nodded. "But there are a few things you should know about us. I'm the Falcon."

"I am Captain America."

"I am the Black Widow. A former assassin of the KGB."

"I was the best assassin for HYDRA. I am still the Winter Soldier."

"And none of us would ever want to or will ever hurt Y/N."Sam finished.

"That's what I wanted to hear," Bruce smirked, leaning back in his chair.

"Bab's, I thought you were supposed to be watching them." Y/N sighed as she re-entered the room.

"I was watching them." Barbara defended herself. "And no-one is dead."

"If it makes you feel better," Dick started. "I think you picked some decent partners."

Reader POV

"So, we'll go sightseeing tomorrow?" Bucky checked as the five of you laid in bed later that night.

"Yeah, just before lunch." You hummed, resting on Steve's chest. "We can either have breakfast here or, if my family has scared you off, we could go out."

"Your family is not that bad," Natasha told you. "They could have been much worse."

"Yeah, Damian could have stabbed us." Sam snickered.

"So could have Jason." Bucky pointed out.

"And yet they haven't stabbed, or maimed, any of us in any way," Steve said as Sam intertwined your fingers.

"And I think your father genuinely likes us.” Natasha told you.

“He likes you because you don’t have a penis.” Sam snorted. “The two of you left the room and he had a speech prepared of what he would do to us if we impregnated Y/N.”

“I’ll talk to him in the morning.” You promised him. “Get him and the boys to dial back.”

“I’ve never met the family before.” Bucky commented. “This was good.”

“I’m glad you enjoyed it because your stuck here for four more days.” You smiled drowsily.

“Somehow I don’t think it’ll be that bad.” Natasha said.

The five of you soon drifted off to sleep in your childhood home. You would all be abruptly awoken the next morning by your brothers throwing the doors open but even so, this was a good trip to Gotham.

Taglist

@rvgrsbrns @smilexcaptainx @hopingforbarnes @starlingelliot @piper-koko-barnes-rogers @jelly-fishy-babie @skeletoresinthebasement @agent-barnes40 @reann-loves-sebstan @skadikh

Natasha Romanoff Taglist

@5aftermidnight @ohfuckno

Coming soon

Dean x reader x Cas

Bucky x reader x Natasha

Meg x reader x Cas

Wanda x reader x Vision

Steve x reader x Bucky x Peggy

238 notes · View notes

alarawriting · 4 years

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52 Project #30 (Writeober #15: Mortality): Everybody’s Happy As The Dead Come Home

Ever since my mother died of breast cancer a few years ago, I’ve been making time to go visit my elderly father about once a month. That may be conjuring up the wrong image in your head, so let me clarify. My father’s over 70, but he still has a lot of the energy he had as a younger man. He works as a consultant for the big corporation he spent his entire adult pre-retirement life working for, for about three or four times as much money, and he enjoys it. He’s got an active social life, spending time with friends he had shared with Mom as a couple, and new friends he’s made from his bereavement group or his consulting work. And my sister, the baby of the family, lives with him, and my two younger brothers come to visit him a lot more often, since they live a lot closer than I do. So if you’re imagining a lonely, stooped old man pining away in a house that smells like stale cat food – that’s not my dad, and I can’t imagine it would ever be.

I arrived late on a Friday night, as usual. My sister met me at the door, and actually looked me directly in the eye. Stephanie’s autistic; she never looks anyone in the eye. “Eleanor,” she said, and that was another strange thing, because she almost never calls anyone by name… unless she’s doing it for emphasis. “When you find out, don’t say anything about it,” she said.

“About what?” Most of the time Stephanie makes sense, but every so often she says something that sounds like her mind has jumped ahead in the conversation without realizing all the missing pieces she never bothered to say.

“You’ll know,” she said. “And you’ll want to ask ‘why’ and ‘how’, and I’m telling you that you can’t do that. Don’t ask any questions. Just come talk to me after you’re done.”

“Done with what?” I asked.

And then a voice called me from the TV room. “Lennie? Lennie, is that you?”

Only my mom and dad are allowed to call me Lennie. And that was a woman’s voice. I froze in place.

“Go see her,” Stephanie said, and headed off to her room.

I turned toward the TV room, slowly. “Lennie! Come out and see me!” my mom’s voice called.

I didn’t know whether to be terrified, or to start crying and fling myself into her arms. I walked very slowly, very cautiously, to the edge of the kitchen, where I could see my parents in the TV room. Both of my parents. My dad was smiling.

“Lennie!” my mom said, standing up. She hadn’t been able to stand up without help for months before she died, but here she was, standing up easily. She didn’t look any younger than she had when she died, but she looked healthier. The extreme thinness she’d suffered from at the end after it had metastasized and she’d barely been able to eat was gone; her flesh was filled out, her skin as taut as you could expect from a woman her age, and healthy-looking. Pale, but her natural paleness, not the weird, sallow, almost yellow color it had been at the very end.

“Mom?” I whispered.

“Come here. I need a hug,” Mom said, sounding exactly like she always had – joking, but there was always that note of truth under it. She didn’t wait for me to make my way to her – she never had, not until she was too ill to get up – but came straight for me and gave me a hug, and she smelled like herself. Not like a rotting corpse, not like ozone or nothing or whatever a ghost is supposed to smell like.

When I was a kid, my brother Jeff and I watched the miniseries version of “The Martian Chronicles”. In particular, he was always impressed (and terrified) by the part where the astronauts meet their long-lost loved ones, who turn out to be Martian shapechangers luring them to their deaths. I always wondered, if the people they saw on Mars were dead, how did they fall for it? How did they not know that dead people could not somehow be on Mars?

As I held my mom, who’d been dead a few years now, I understood. They’d wanted to believe. I wanted to believe. Stephanie had warned me not to ask anything – no “how are you not dead”, “how can you be here”, “why are you alive,” nothing like that. I assumed that was what she’d meant, anyway.

“Mom, I’ve been trying to trace some of my past that I’ve forgotten. Do you remember the name of my third grade teacher?”

“Huh.” My mom seemed to be thinking about it. “I think it was Mrs. Wilder, but I’m not a hundred percent sure. Second grade was Ms. Jenner, right? And fourth was Mrs. White?”

“Yeah,” I said. I didn’t, in fact, remember my third grade teacher’s name, and neither did my dad. The Martians in the story had been telepaths; they’d been able to perfectly impersonate the astronauts’ loved ones because they could read the astronauts’ minds. Now I had a piece of information whose answer I didn’t know, and no way to easily confirm it unless Jeff remembered; he was only two years younger than me and had had some of the same teachers. But some of the people I had friended on Facebook were high school classmates, and a tiny number of my high school classmates had also been with me in elementary school, and might remember my third grade teacher’s name.

“I haven’t seen you in so long,” my mom said. “What’s going on in your life?”

“Oh, you know,” I said. “Things are going okay. Mom, if I’d known you were here I’d have brought the kids.”

“You can bring them up next time,” Mom said.

This was so weird. My mom was definitely dead. I had seen her body in the coffin, lying in state, looking nothing like she had in life. But here she was, impossibly, and I was holding an almost normal conversation with her. “Have Jeff or Aaron come over since you’ve… been here?”

“Jeff was here last weekend,” Dad said. “And Aaron lives next door, so he’s been over nearly every day.”

My grandparents used to live next door. When they died, my mom and my uncle inherited the house. My uncle bought out my mom’s share and rented the house out, and my youngest brother ended up renting it. My other brother lives in an apartment down in the city; I’m the odd one out, living in a completely different state, with a husband and kids.

So all of them had known, and none of them had told me. I expected Stephanie and Aaron to never tell me anything, but I was more than a little irritated with Jeff.

“Let me go drop off my stuff,” I said, since I was still carrying my bag.

I went back to Stephanie’s room, which used to be my room, a long time ago. The boys used to room together, but my room was too small for Stephanie to share with me, and she had needed a lot of space of her own… so they’d converted the loft in the garage into a bedroom. It had never been warm in the winter, though, so as soon as I moved out, Stephanie had moved in.

Stephanie was, as usual, on her computer. I shut the door behind me. “Okay. What the hell is going on?”

“She’s not the only one,” Stephanie said, without looking away from her computer. “I’ve been doing research. They’re all over the place. There’s no explanation yet, and apparently none of them will talk about it. I asked Mom and she said I was really rude, and sulked and was really passive-aggressive.”

“So we’re not worried about Mom turning into a Martian shapechanger or vanishing, we’re just worried that she’ll get mad?” To be fair, making Mom mad had always been a thing worth avoiding at all costs. “When did she come back?”

“I don’t know exactly, but presuming that she came to see me right after she came back, it would have been Monday around 3 pm.”

“And no one told me? You have my email address!”

“…It just didn’t feel right, telling you something like this in email. I felt like I should wait for you to be here.”

“And Jeff didn’t? And Aaron didn’t?”

Stephanie shrugged. She still didn’t look away from her computer. “They probably felt the same way.”

“Does Dad… know? Like, does he even remember that Mom is dead, or does he think this is normal?”

“I didn’t ask him.”

I sat down on her bed. “Steph, I’m asking you to make an informed guess. Has he said anything to you that would either suggest that he’s aware this is abnormal, or that he isn’t?”

“I don’t read minds, but I haven’t heard anything from him one way or the other. He’s very happy, though.”

“I got that impression,” I told her. I went to the guest room, which used to belong to the boys, opened up my laptop, and sent Jeff a question on Facebook about my third grade teacher.

Mom appeared while I was debating whether or not to also ask him why the hell he hadn’t told me about her. “Lennie, don’t hide in your room. Come out and talk to me and your dad. You need to catch me up on your life!”

Part of me wanted to break down crying. Part of me wanted to run to the car. Part of me was annoyed the way I always used to be annoyed when my mom wanted to spend time with me and I had stuff to do. And part of me hated myself for being annoyed by my mom for any reason at all. She was back from the dead and I wanted to hide in my room? But I wanted to hide in my room because I wanted to do research to figure out if this was really my mom or not. And what had Stephanie meant by “all over the place”? People all over the place had returned from the dead? Why wasn’t this all over the news?

What I said was, “Okay, mom,” and I went out to the TV room to talk to her.

***

Here I was, having a completely mundane conversation with a dead woman.

Yes, my husband was doing well at his consulting business. Yes, my oldest daughter was doing well in college. My youngest daughter had a rough spot a few years ago but was doing better. The daughter in the middle was putting a lot of time into her music, and was getting really good. I didn’t mention that my oldest daughter had gotten a diagnosis of autism like her aunt, or that my middle daughter was failing all her subjects because all she cared about was music, or that my youngest daughter was openly bisexual and dating a nonbinary teen in her class, because those would be fraught topics around here. My mother would be openly disapproving of the failing in school – as was I, but I wasn’t here to listen to a lecture about what I should be doing differently to make sure Rhiannon passed her classes – and she’d be what she thought counted as supportive about the other things. Are you sure it’s a good idea for Janie to have an autism diagnosis on her medical record? Lots of people will discriminate against her, just ask Stephanie, it’s not a good thing to admit to the world. And if Lori wanted to date a person who claimed to have no gender, good for her, but was she sure it was a good idea to admit to the world that she was bi when the world is so prejudiced? Blah blah blah. No. I wasn’t going there, not with my mother back from the dead.

All the questions I wanted to ask. How? How was she back? Why? Was there an afterlife after all? What was it like? Are you absolutely sure you’re not a telepathic shapechanger who wants to eat us? Is anyone else coming back or is it just you? But I couldn’t do it. My mouth wouldn’t make the words, and I felt like Mom being alive was a soap bubble that might burst any moment. If I said she was dead, would she disappear? I couldn’t take the risk.

Now I knew why Jeff and Aaron hadn’t told me. The compulsion not to talk about it, the fear that talking about the circumstances of her death and her apparently-no-longer-deadness would cause her to stop being no-longer-dead. I wouldn’t be able to tell my husband about this, or my kids, not unless they came here. Not without feeling like Mom might disappear if I did.

Which was probably how Stephanie had gotten away with it, in the beginning. If this was some kind of emotional pressure, something emanating from the presence of a dead woman... Stephanie was typically immune to emotional pressure. Or pretended she was, anyway. She hid behind her monotone and her face that barely expressed anything until she couldn’t, and then she’d go and have a meltdown in the bathroom. But she wanted to please Mom. We all wanted to please Mom. So if Mom had told her she was rude for mentioning the death thing, Stephanie would be unable to mention it again. Because she wouldn’t want Mom to think she was rude.

This felt very much like I was in an episode of the Twilight Zone. Dead mother back to life, check. Weird inexplicable pressure not to talk about it, check. But Mom clearly remembered things that had happened shortly before her death, and showed no evidence of knowing about anything that had happened since, unless it was public knowledge. She talked about interests the girls had had three years ago, interests they’d all outgrown since. She talked about my plan to remodel my own garage – I had completely forgotten that was even a thing we’d planned at one point, because I’d lost my job shortly after Mom died and then the money wasn’t there for the remodel. She didn’t know I was working with my husband in the consulting business now, which a telepath would obviously know because it dominates my life nowadays. Obviously a Martian telepathic shapechanger would have to pretend not to know things that supposedly happened while they were dead, but if I’d forgotten about the garage, what were the odds a telepath could pull it out of my head? There had to be more accessible thoughts in there, after all.

I didn’t know what to ask Mom. How do you feel? That was always a good one, back in the day, because Mom’s chronic illnesses meant there was always something she could complain about, but she wouldn’t do it until she was asked… she’d just quietly resent the fact that no one had asked her. But did dead people still feel things? Would that intrude on the topic I wasn’t supposed to talk about? What’s going on in your life? Oh, nothing much, Lennie, I’m back from the dead, how about you?

So I talked about myself. I was learning to work leather and I’d made myself a wallet, but I left it at home, I could bring it to show her next time. I was also learning to repair dolls. The girls had all abandoned theirs and I felt bad about it, so I was cleaning them up and repairing them and putting them in dioramas. Mom was very interested in both topics, and asked if I could repair some old dolls she had up in the attic. I was pretty sure I’d already done it – if it was the dolls I was thinking of, Dad had given them to me right after Mom died, and they were the ones I’d learned on. But was it safe to talk about? Dad wasn’t saying anything; had he forgotten he gave me the dolls, which was entirely possible, or did he think it wasn’t safe to talk about either?

I’d wanted for three years to be able to tell my mom that she was wrong about all the weight loss advice she’d given me because now it had come out that scientists had never proven that fat made you fat and the low-carb diets were probably better for you than the low-fat ones, but I didn’t know if she could still eat. Also, my mom was back from the dead and I wanted to start an argument with her about a topic I’d always hated when she talked about? Didn’t I have anything better to do? That really kind of made me a shitty person, didn’t it?

When Mom had been dying, I couldn’t talk to her about the future. I didn’t know how to bring myself to talk about things she’d never see. I’d never known how much my conversations with her consisted of me talking about future plans until I couldn’t any more. Now I couldn’t talk about the future or the past, at least not the past three years, and large parts of the present had to be left out too, because I didn’t know what would remind her that she was dead and make her go back to her grave. Even though, logically, I knew that was unlikely to happen because Stephanie had done it and had just gotten a rebuke that that was rude.

At the same time… I knew I had to say something that Mom could talk about, because if I just talked about myself all night, later on she’d probably make some passive-aggressive remarks about how everything always had to be about me. In desperation, I asked her if she’d seen anything good on television lately.

“Oh, I haven’t been watching anything in a while,” Mom said. “It’s been so long since I felt well enough to go anywhere, so I’ve been going for walks, and your father and I have been taking trips to museums and historic sites. We’re going to be going up to Boston next week.”

“I have a client up there,” Dad said, “and they want me to do a training thing. And I was telling them, no, no, Boston’s too far, but I remembered how much your mom loved Boston, so I asked her if she wanted to go and she said yes, so now we’re going. We’re going to fly, though. The days I was willing to drive that kind of distance are long over.”

“You could take the Amtrak.”

Dad made a dismissive gesture. “It’s gotten so expensive. Flying’s actually cheaper.”

“When are you going?”

“Next Wednesday we’re going to fly up there,” Mom said, which said something about her opinion of the future, at least. “Your dad’s got his presentations to do on Thursday and Friday, and I’ll wander around the city, and then we’ll spend Saturday seeing the sights together.”

“There’s this fantastic restaurant I went to last time I was up there on business,” Dad said, “and I checked their web page, and they’re still open. So we’re going to go there.”

So Mom could eat. Or Dad wasn’t afraid of talking about eating with her, anyway. Maybe ruled out vampire, but Martian shapechanger was still on the table.

I didn’t literally believe my mom – or the entity that appeared to be my mom – was a telepathic shapechanger from Mars like in The Martian Chronicles. But it was obvious that something so far outside the norm that it was only imaginable by making references to fantasy and science fiction was happening.

I tried, very carefully, “How have you been feeling, Mom?”

“I’m great!” She laughed. “I haven’t felt this good in ages. Sugar’s under control, I can see pretty well, none of the usual aches and pains… I’m doing pretty good!”

Did she remember she had died of cancer? Did she even remember that she’d died?

It was 2 am before I got to go to bed.

***

6 am and I was up and out the door before there was any chance of my mother or father being awake, assuming my mom even slept anymore. But at the very least, she was in her bedroom with the door closed and no view of the driveway I’d parked my car in.

Do I sound like a terrible daughter when I tell you I’ve never visited my mom’s grave? I haven’t been back there since the funeral. I always knew my mother wasn’t really there – that if any part of her had still existed in any form, it wasn’t trapped in a coffin under six feet of dirt. It made it somewhat difficult to find the graveyard, though, because I couldn’t remember where it was, or its name, or which church it was associated with, and it wasn’t exactly like I could ask my mom. When I finally found the place– it wasn’t that hard in the end, my parents live in a small town and there aren’t many graveyards – it took me half an hour to find her grave.

It seemed undisturbed. But if Mom had been back from the dead since Monday, that would have been time to fill in a grave. I went looking for the caretaker.

They get to work early in the graveyard caretaking business, I guess; I found him pushing a lawnmower over on the other side of the graveyard.

“Can I help you?” he asked.

“This is going to sound stupid,” I said. “But I got an email from a jerk I used to know in high school claiming he was going to dig up my mother’s grave, and I just wanted to make sure nobody’s touched it.”

“Nobody’s touched any of the graves, ma’am,” he assured me. “Aside from a couple of funerals we’ve had this week, no one’s done anything to disturb the ground here at all.”

“Thanks,” I said, “that’s reassuring. He was talking like he was actually going to do it, but I guess he was all talk.”

“Well, if anyone comes by and disturbs any of the graves, we’ll have them arrested,” he said.

I had my answer. My mother had not climbed out of her grave. Which seemed impossible anyway, now that I knew enough about the funeral industry to know exactly how hard it would be to smash a coffin open, let alone dig through six feet of dirt. I couldn’t rule out her turning immaterial and floating out of her grave, but my mom had seemed very material and biological when she’d hugged me. I’d always thought of ghosts as something that were almost never solid enough to interact with the world, if they even existed.

***

If I was going to get up this early, I was going to get a pancake breakfast at the diner. My parents still think sugarless cold cereal is a reasonable thing to eat for breakfast. They were always night owls; I made myself breakfast and school lunch every morning but the first day of school, every year after about third grade. I was also a night owl, once I didn’t have to get up for school anymore, but I used to make my girls a lunch every night and store it in the fridge for them. Now they’re too old and too cool for Mom lunches. They’re eating something, but it might be cafeteria food, lunch they pack for themselves, or for all I know sandwiches from 7-11 or Starbucks with their allowance.

The point is, I hardly ever get a nice breakfast, because I am hardly ever willing to wake up early enough to cook myself one, and my parents certainly weren’t going to. So I went to the diner.

Normally I don’t talk to anyone at a diner, beyond smiling at them and telling them my order in an upbeat, cheerful voice because waitresses get too much shit from too many people for me to add to it inadvertently. Also because I don’t want them to think I’m eating alone because I’m a sad, lonely bitch no one would love; I want them to know I’m doing this because I really, really enjoy not having to socialize. But today I had something I needed to know.

“I’m a writer,” I told the waitress, “and I’m doing research on ghost stories in the area. Have you heard anything, you know, Halloweeny or spooky? Ghosts appearing, dead people walking around, poltergeists, that kind of thing?”

“Can’t say I have, but I’ll ask around, see if any of the girls know any good stories,” the waitress told me.

And then she took my order back to the kitchen, and I surfed the net on my phone while I waited, and then I got my pancakes, and I ate them. I was chasing the last blueberry around on the plate when another waitress approached me. “Stacy told me you were collecting creepy stories for a book?”

“From the local area, yeah.”

“I don’t know if this is the kind of thing you’re looking for, but… my cousin says that a lady on her street, her husband died a few years ago? But she just saw the guy walking with the lady down the street, having a conversation like the guy never died.”

“Do you think you’d be able to give my email to your cousin and have her reach out to me? That sounds like exactly the kind of story I’m looking for.”

“Uh, sure.”

I gave the waitress my email address. This was probably going to come to nothing; I doubted the waitress would even remember to give it to her cousin. But it’d be really good if I could get the details from someone who knew more about it.

***

Jeff’s more of a morning person than I am. I got a response on Facebook, but I had to wait to get back to my parents’ house, where my laptop was, to read it. On mobile, Facebook will only let you read messages if you have the app, which tells Mark Zuckerberg exactly where you are and what you’re doing with your phone, all the time. I don’t have the app. Sometimes this means I can’t read messages on mobile, but I prefer that to having an evil data empire know everything about my movements.

My parents weren’t awake when I got home. Or they were still in their bedroom. They used to do that a lot. Mom’s desk was in there, and Dad had a laptop… which he usually used on Mom’s desk, since she died. I wondered where her machine was, and if she had made a thing about it once she came back.

“I’m not sure I remember what your third grade teacher’s name was… I can barely remember my own third grade teacher. Were they the same? I can’t remember. I think my own teacher’s name was… Wil-something? Wilber? Wilkins? You’d be better off… well, you’re at the house now, or are you back at your home? Kind of important to know, because I could give you some advice about who to ask, but it’d be a different thing if you were at Dad’s house.”

He meant, “You’d be better off asking Mom, but I don’t know if you know Mom is back from the dead or not.” I was pretty sure, anyway.

I responded. “I’m at Dad’s house. Wondering how I’d be able to tell the difference between someone who’s real and a Martian shapechanger. Could the name have been Wilder?”

Five minutes later I got my answer. “Mom isn’t a Martian shapechanger. It was the first thing I thought of, so I checked.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” I asked.

That answer I didn’t get until half an hour later. “I… just didn’t feel right, talking about it in an impersonal medium like the internet. I know you have a cell phone and I probably even have your number somewhere, but I remember you’re not the biggest fan of actual phone calls, so I didn’t want to disturb you.”

I replied with my phone number and the message “Call me.”

And then I had to sit by my phone, doing nothing important, nothing that would engage my attention in any serious way, waiting for him to call. Which took twenty minutes, despite the fact that I could see that he was online.

Finally the phone rang. “You raaaaang?” I answered in my best parody of The Addams Family.

“I’m pretty sure I must have, or you wouldn’t have known to pick up,” Jeff said. “Of course, I might have buzzed. You could have your phone on vibrate. Or maybe I sang, depending on what you have for a ringtone.”

“’You saaaaang?’ doesn’t have the same je ne sais quoi to it.”

“Wow, how long has it been since I heard someone put je ne sais quoi in a sentence? I think we’re old. I think that’s an old person expression now.”

“What’s going on with Mom?” I asked, quietly, in case anyone might be in the hallway to hear me.

Jeff sighed. “I don’t know what is, but I can tell you what isn’t,” he said. “Stephanie confirmed that she eats, sleeps and goes to the bathroom normally, and I confirmed all of that for myself. The toilet in their bedroom is still broken enough that they don’t flush it unless they have to.”

I winced. That was a level of detail I could have done without. “So, not vampire or undead. How did you solve the Martian thing?”

“On Monday, Dad woke up and she was laying next to him in bed. If the goal was to kill him, it would have made more sense to do it then, before he woke up, than to put on this whole elaborate performance.”

“You’re taking me too literally. I’m not worried about aliens trying to take our family off guard so they can kill us. There’s any number of things they could be up to, and they don’t have to be aliens. Invasion of the Body Snatchers. The Stepford Wives. My Little Pony.”

“…My Little Pony?”

“There’s creatures called Changelings that feed on love. They impersonate ponies and take the love that other ponies feel for the ones they’re impersonating, as food.”

“Kind of psychic vampires mashed up with Martian shapechangers.”

“Yeah, but without the telepathy, so they’re not as good at it as you’d think. It’s a children’s show; they have to telegraph to the kids that these aren’t the real ponies. In real life, anyone who did something like that would be more competent.”

“How much verisimilitude do we need, though? She’s got moles in the same places Mom had moles. She’s missing a toenail just like Mom. Things I didn’t consciously think about, things I might not have remembered if you asked me to describe Mom.”

“That just means that if it’s not Mom, it has the ability to rummage deeper into our memories than we’re consciously aware of. That’s why I asked you my third grade teacher’s name. I genuinely don’t remember. Mom would, I’m pretty sure. Dad wouldn’t and Stephanie and Aaron were both too young.”

“I’m not sure I remember, but when you said Wilder, that sounded like it could be right. Do you know anyone from elementary school? Some of them went to high school with us.”

“I have some Facebook friends from high school, and maybe one or two went to the same elementary we did, but I haven’t been able to locate any actual people that I remember from elementary school. They don’t have a Classmates.com thing that works for elementary—”

“It says it does.”

“It lies, there’s nowhere to enter your elementary in your profile. All it lets you put in is high school, and it’s from a drop-down, not even freeform.”

“Huh. Guess I never tried it. I’m still in touch with anyone I cared about from back then.”

“I literally don’t care about anyone from back then, but that makes it hard when you’re trying to figure out your third grade teacher’s name.”

“If she can probe our memories,” Jeff said, “then nothing you or I know, or ever knew, would be safe. You’d have to come up with something to ask her that Dad wouldn’t know, or me, or Aaron, or Steph, or yourself, but that you know Mom would know and that you know someone else who would know it too.”

“I could ask Mariana for something.” My mom’s close friend and high school classmate was one of my Facebook friends. We don’t generally communicate directly with each other, but I follow her posts.

“That’s a good idea.” I heard the sound of a whistling teapot in the background. “That’d be my hot water for my oatmeal. If you get anything from Mariana, can you tell me about it?”

“Yeah.” I’d wanted to tell him about the story I’d heard in the diner, but no one got between Jeff and his oatmeal. “I’ll talk to you later. Probably online. Voice is making me paranoid.”

“I know what you mean. Do you need me to come up this weekend? I could make a day trip tomorrow.”

“That might be a good idea. I want to talk to Aaron, do you know what schedule he’s on?”

“He works nights now, so you’ll want to get him around 2 pm or so.”

“All right. Enjoy your oatmeal.”

“I will!” he said, putting a ridiculous amount of emphasis into it as a joke.

***

Before I could finish writing a message to Mariana – before I could really start, honestly, because how could I explain why I needed what I needed without admitting Mom was back from the dead? – someone knocked on my door. It was Mom. She was wearing one of her usual kind of shapeless but colorful nightgowns, and her hair was not brushed, so it was kind of a wreck. I noticed for the first time that it was grey. Mom had always dyed her hair since she started going grey, and it had still been auburn when she’d died. I’d never seen it fully grey. “Your dad and I are going to the arboretum,” she said. “Do you want to come?”

“Since when have you been into trees, Mom?” My mother had always been fascinated by history, and to some extent natural history like dinosaurs, but I’d never seen her express an interest in nature per se.

“I never was, much,” she admitted, “but the world is so beautiful. I was always more interested in the way humans shape the world than the way it came out of the box, but things like arboretums, Japanese gardens, zoos and aquariums… they’re made of nature, but they’re made by humans, and they say something about the people who chose to make them the way they are. And you know that your dad has always enjoyed nature.” My dad was interested in science, in general, and considered the natural world part of that. He was not exactly the kind of guy who would go camping.

In the past, I would have said “no, thanks.” I was never all that interested in nature myself, certainly not trees – maybe beautiful rocks or interesting landscapes, but looking at trees wouldn’t have seemed interesting to me. I still didn’t care much about trees… but my mom was back from the dead. I’ve gone much stupider and more boring places than an arboretum with her in the past, and now… if this was really her, if she was really alive again, I was going to spend all the time with her that I reasonably could.

“Sure, I’ll go,” I said. “I’ll take my own car, though. Just give me the address.” I always took my own car if I possibly could, because I’d get carsick if I wasn’t the one driving. “Should I ask Stephanie if she wants to come?”

“Sure, you can ask. I doubt she will, though.”

Stephanie, however, surprised me. “Yeah, I’ll go with you. We’ll meet Mom and Dad there?”

“Yeah.” Dad had texted me the address, so I pulled it up in my GPS. “About half an hour from here.”

In the car, she asked me, “Have you found anything out? I know you were looking into the whole Mom thing.”

“Jeff thinks she’s really Mom. We have a plan to get Mariana to give us a question that we don’t know the answer to, but that Mom and Mariana both would, so we can confirm she really knows things and isn’t just reading our minds. And a waitress at the diner said her cousin has seen what looks like someone else coming back from the dead.”

“It’s all over the place, actually,” Stephanie said. “I’m finding reports from everywhere.”

I glanced at her. “Why wouldn’t this be making the news, then? People coming back from the dead!”

“I feel like maybe no one wants to go on the record.” Stephanie looked out the window. “Nothing on Twitter or Facebook. No pictures of dead people on Instagram. I’m seeing things on Reddit and Tumblr – places where people use a consistent pseudonym, not like 4chan, but where that pseudonym can’t be tied to their actual identity. I’ve posted about it in both places, but I can’t make myself tweet about it.”

“Any idea why not?”

“It—” She shrugged, hands exaggeratedly widespread and head canted forward slightly. “It just feels wrong,” she said. “Like… we’re getting away with something. There’s a natural law we’re breaking here. I can post as toomanymushrooms or u/catonahottinroofsundae and no one knows who I am, but if I post as Stephanie Robbins and I tell everyone that my mom Suky Robbins is back from the dead…”

“What if that brought it to the attention of, what, some kind of authorities?”

“Yeah, pretty much. And even if I was just posting under my own name… I don’t have to say Mom’s name. I don’t have to put a mention to her Facebook in a post. But everyone knows my mother’s name, or they could find out from my name if they wanted to.”

“And you think maybe there are a lot of people with these weird feelings?”

“I don’t think so, I know so. A lot of posts explicitly talk about the fact that they can’t bring themselves to say anything in public, or talk about it with their real names on it.”

“Are they all parents?”

“No. It’s all kinds of people. Best friends, siblings, spouses, children… the only pattern I see is that nobody died a long time ago. It’s all, ‘my brother who died last year’ or ‘my aunt who died two years ago’ or something. Longest I’ve seen anyone talk about was a son who died five years ago.”

A thought occurs to me. “I can add something to your pattern, though.”

“Yeah?”

“You’d expect that, even if everyone with a resurrected relative feels this sense of dread about telling anyone about it with their name attached, because they feel it will, I don’t know, maybe cause the dead person to disappear back into their grave… you’d think somebody would do it anyway because they don’t care. Someone whose alcoholic abusive father came back and they wish he’d go away again, someone’s asshole brother, someone’s former best friend who betrayed them. But so far, no one has. How many people have you seen talking about this?”

“It’s hard to say because no one’s using their real names. Someone might post from their main blog and their side blog, or maybe they have a different name on tumblr vs reddit but they posted to both. But I’ve tracked thirteen separate names, and of those, I can tell for a fact there are at least nine unique ones because they talk about different people.”

“Thirteen isn’t ‘all over the place’.”

“I didn’t mean all over the Internet, I meant people coming from all over. I’ve tracked the UK, California, North Dakota, Ontario, France, India and New Zealand. Nobody’s tagging their posts and no one is willing to contribute to a master list, so it’s hard to find anyone outside of the people I follow or the subreddits I’m in, and I don’t know where everyone comes from. But it’s geographically widespread. I suspect it may also be happening in other places where people don’t generally speak English or maybe don’t have Internet access.”

“And what’s their sentiment? Like, are people frightened? Upset? Excited? Weirded out?”

She took a moment to think about it. “They’re happy. People are happy it happened. Weirded out, yes. But happy.”

“No whacked-out conspiracy theories about how it’s the contrails raining down adenochrome or something?”

“Not from the people it’s happened to. There was one flame war I saw where a religious person was saying that the person whose sister was back from the dead had to repudiate her. She’s not really your sister, she’s a demon from Hell sent to trick you, et cetera. And the person whose sister was back turned out to be just as religious, and they threw a holy fit. Literally. A holy fit.” She giggled. “A whole lot of stuff about how the righteous were coming back and Jesus had granted some people eternal life and this was that, and how dare you call these beings demons when they’re obviously blessed by Jesus himself and you’re the kind of person who would have called for Jesus’s crucifixion if you’d been alive then, and all that kind of thing.”

“Did anyone else who’d had returned people say anything?”

“This was Tumblr. None of the people who have had returns are communicating with each other in any way I can see. I reached out to a few on Tumblr private messaging but no one has answered. The only places I’m seeing conversations about it between people with returns have been on Reddit, because it has a forum structure. Tumblr is more like a whole hanging web of disconnected strings.”

“Still, you’d think that someone would be publishing a news article about it. Even if no one is willing to go on the record with their real name…”

“Maybe it’s not enough people. Nine unique instances, maybe up to thirteen, maybe more in places I haven’t surveyed. It’s not like I have access to literally all of Tumblr, after all. But that’s all I can confirm, and what if there isn’t any more?”

“If anyone came back from the dead I would expect the news to take notice.” I turned onto the final road; the arboretum was at the end of this stretch. “I went to the graveyard today. Mom’s grave hasn’t been disturbed. I checked with the groundskeeper. So either Mom’s body floated ethereally through the grave dirt, and her coffin, or her original body is still in there and whatever she is now, it’s not the same as what she was then.”

“It’s too bad we can’t have her exhumed,” Stephanie said.

“It probably wouldn’t tell us much anyway.”

“She’s younger-looking than she was before. Not by much, and the grey hair hides it, but she’s healthier-looking and less wrinkly. And I don’t see any evidence that she still has diabetes, or that she’s taking any pills at all. I haven’t seen her take any insulin shots, or anything.”

“Huh.” She wasn’t restored to her youth, or her hair wouldn’t be grey and there would be no wrinkles at all. She wasn’t restored to what she was at the moment of death, obviously. She wasn’t restored to what she’d have been at the moment of death without the cancer that killed her, if she didn’t have diabetes anymore. I felt like there had to be a pattern here I wasn’t seeing. I really wanted to talk to some of these other people having this experience.

I pulled in to the arboretum’s parking lot. Mom and Dad weren’t there yet; Dad doesn’t drive like an old man, but he doesn’t drive as fast as he used to, either. “Do they do this kind of thing a lot? Arboretums, parks, et cetera?”

“They don’t usually invite me, and I wouldn’t usually come if they did, so I don’t know. They do leave the house a lot.”

Dad’s car pulled in, and he and Mom got out. For the first time I could remember, Mom was actually moving a bit faster than him. Both Mom and Dad were the kind of people who walked quickly everywhere they went, but for a long time, Mom was slowed down by her various illnesses. Dad was still healthy for his age, but he’d slowed down a good bit since Mom’s death – grief was hard on his health, it seemed – and now Mom seemed healthier than he was.

“Did you know there are people who come here from all over just to see our leaves in the autumn?” Mom said.

I did know that; it was typically a factor in making it hard for me to come visit during the autumn. “I think it’s the mountainsides. There’s leaves turning colors all over the country, but not on mountainsides.”

“In California they don’t even consider these mountains,” Mom said. “They call them hills when they come visit.”

“No respect for the elderly,” Dad said.

“Yeah, these young mountains think they’re all that, but wait 100,000 years and see how tall they are then,” Stephanie said.

We strolled around, looking at the trees, reading what it said on the plaques in front of them. American Elm. Yellow Birch. Eastern White Pine. I’d seen trees just like these my whole life, and a good number of them, I’d never known the names.

“You never think about how beautiful the world is,” Mom said. “We’re all rushing through it, trying to accomplish the next thing. Or entertain ourselves. Read a book, watch TV. So few of us really want to interact with nature.”

“Careful, mom, your hippie roots are showing,” I said, teasing.

“I think if my generation had remembered what we were back when we were the hippies, the world would be better off.”

“We didn’t forget, Suky. The hippies were always big news, but you know as well as I do how many people our age just wanted to go punch a clock, buy a house, vote for Ronald Fucking Reagan… We thought we were the generation that would change the world, but it wasn’t our generation, it was us. People like us, who wanted to see a better world and weren’t content to just live like the sheep our parents were… but there’s people like that in every generation. And they’re always outnumbered by the assholes.”

“Actually, they’ve done a study,” Stephanie said. “The reason generations get more conservative as they get older is that at every point, the poor are more likely to die than the rich, and the rich are more conservative than the poor. So by the time you get to middle age, a lot of the people looking for social justice and diversity are dead. And there’s a lot more dead by the time they’re elderly.”

“I don’t buy it,” my dad said. “There’s entirely too many stupid poor people in this country who are brainwashed into supporting causes that help out the rich people and screw themselves over. They’re not living longer than anyone else in this country. The math doesn’t work.”

“Let’s not talk about politics,” Mom said. “I think we all know there’s something more important we ought to be discussing.”

“Mom?” Stephanie said, and looked at her, which is not a thing Stephanie does very often.

“Suky?” Dad said.

I didn’t say anything. I watched as Mom looked up at a tree and said, “It’s time we dealt with the elephant in the room, don’t you think?”

“Are you going to tell us about—” I couldn’t say anything more. I couldn’t bring myself to make the words.

“About the fact that I was dead, and now I’m not?” She looked at all of us. “I think we should talk about it, yes.”

It felt like there were eyes, watching us. I wanted to yell to my mother, to tell her not to talk about it, that someone might hear… but who? And why would it matter?

“Is that something you’re okay with, Suky?” Dad asked.

“I’m fine, but I’m getting the impression the rest of you aren’t,” she said. “Why haven’t any of you brought it up, except Stephanie, the once?”

“Well, you told me it was rude,” Stephanie said.

Mom sighed. “I guess I did. I’m sorry. This isn’t really easy for me either.”

She sat down on a bench, and Dad sat with her. Stephanie and I sat on a short stone wall around a tree. “I suppose I should start by saying, I don’t really know much more than you do. I don’t have any memories of being dead. I woke up in bed, next to your dad, on Monday morning, and for a while I couldn’t remember how I’d gotten there… I assumed I went to bed the previous night, but I couldn’t remember what had happened the night before. I couldn’t pin down anything I remembered as to exactly when it happened, not in the recent past. And when your father woke up, the shock on his face and the fact that he kept asking me if I was really here made me think, wait, the last thing I remember was that I was in a hospital dying of cancer, so why am I here now?”

“So you don’t remember any kind of afterlife?” I asked.

She shook her head. “I believe I had some sort of existence, but I don’t remember anything about it. When I wake up, I have flashes, feelings that I dreamed something about it, but I can’t hold it in my head long enough to write it down or even talk about it. It just… disappears, leaving behind only the memory that something was there a few minutes ago.”

“You know how unlikely the idea that an afterlife exists is, scientifically, though. Right?” Dad said. “Consciousness is an emergent property of a trillion neurons working together. Imagining that there could be some sort of construct that exists outside the brain and body is like imagining that a video game character could be waltzing around in front of us.”

“And yet I’m here,” Mom said.

“Time travel or a Star Trek transporter with some modifications would make more sense than something supernatural, like an afterlife,” Dad said stubbornly.

“It doesn’t matter,” Stephanie said. “If Mom doesn’t remember…”

“Have you had a medical exam?” I asked.

Mom laughed. “I don’t have health insurance anymore. I’m dead, remember? I can’t even begin to figure out how we’re going to address getting me a legal identity again, and to be honest… I can’t know I’ll be around long enough for it to matter.”

“None of us know that,” I said, “about ourselves or anyone else.”

“True, and it’s going to be hard to travel if I don’t have a legal identity. So I suppose I’ll have to address it eventually, if I last that long.”

“Thank God your state ID hasn’t actually expired yet, or there’d be no way we could fly to Boston. The passport’s expired,” Dad said. Mom had been legally blind when she died, so she’d had a state ID rather than a driver’s license.

“Is there any reason you might not? Aside from the things that could kill anyone?” I asked.

Dad said, “Your mother and I discussed… when she first appeared, I found it nearly impossible to talk about the fact that she’d been dead. When she broached the topic, I could talk about it to her, but I couldn’t tell you kids.” He shrugged. “My working theory is that there’s some kind of alien experiment going on or that time travel is somehow involved, but the fact that none of you kids were able to tell each other about it until you knew the other one knew suggests to me that someone with the ability to directly affect human emotions or thought is, for some reason, making it hard to talk about this. Maybe that means it’s a short-lived experiment.”

“Maybe I escaped from hell and no one wants to talk about it for fear the devil will take me back,” Mom said, but she was laughing. Mom had never believed in hell. Dad was an atheist; Mom definitely had strong spiritual beliefs, but they were kind of a package of woo that included reincarnation and ghosts, even though she’d been raised Catholic.

“There are others like you,” Stephanie said. “None of them have talked about it themselves, but family members or friends have talked about it online, under pseudonyms. I haven’t found any evidence that anyone has mentioned anything under their real names.”

“A lot?” Mom was surprised.

“So far I count between nine and thirteen unique individuals, plus Eleanor heard a rumor that someone who might live in town might have come back. We don’t know any details, though.”

“We need to find them,” Mom said. “I need to find them. I have a second chance at life, and I’m not ashamed of it. I won’t be silenced about the fact that I exist.”

“It might not be the best idea, Suky,” Dad said. “There are a lot more crazies out there than there were when you died—”

“—there were plenty of crazies then, Dee—”

“—right, and even then it wouldn’t have been a good idea. There might be some religious nut job who thinks that if you were dead you should stay that way. Or someone else thinks that you know how you came back, and wants to force you to tell them.”

“Those are valid points,” Mom said, nodding. “And to all of those people who might want to harm me because they think I shouldn’t be alive or they think I know how I came back, I say a hearty ‘fuck you.’ I won’t be silent because there are crazy people in the world. I’m not afraid of death, not anymore.”

“You’re going to risk Eleanor’s kids?” Dad asked sharply.

“I agree with Mom,” I said, standing up. “Nobody should have to keep quiet about the fact that they exist. But I have to tell Will.”

Stephanie made a face. My family doesn’t like my husband. They have justifications, but in the past few years, since Mom died, Will’s gone to therapy and has done a lot of work on himself. Mom was the only one in the family ever willing to forgive anything, though, so I’ve never tried to get them to change their minds.

Mom said, “Well, is he still a total asshole?”

“He’s… been trying not to be. He’s in therapy, and we’re doing couples counseling, and he’s working through a lot of baggage from his upbringing.”

“Why not tell him to bring the kids up and join you here, then. Coming back to life, might as well start a clean slate and see where things go from there. And you’re right, he needs to be involved in the discussion. Your girls, too. They all are old enough to understand what’s going on here, and what could happen.”

“You know I will never stand in the way of anything you want,” Dad said, which is the kind of thing Dad says rather than “I love you”. Things like, “If they ever fail to respect you, I will smite them” – talking about us and our treatment of Mom – or “You have always been my worthy opponent.” Yes. Sometimes my father talks like a comic book character.

“I don’t know if it’s a good idea,” Stephanie said, “but I know you taught me to be who I am to the world and fuck anyone who gives me shit about it, so… same principle. I don’t think you could be you and lie about who you are.”

“And we need to involve Jeff and Aaron,” Mom said. “I’ll call them and get them to come here.”

“We turned off your cell phone ages ago,” Dad objected.

“Dee, we still have a land line. I know we do because I hear it ring, and sometimes you even answer it.”

“Oh. Yeah, that’s right, we do.” Dad shook his head. “This world where everyone carries around their phone in their pocket all the time… it’s strange how you get so used to a technological or societal change that you forget that you did it a different way for 67 years.”

Nothing ever stopped my mother when she wanted something strongly enough, if she believed it was right. I hadn’t even thought of the considerations my father brought up before he talked about them, but I’ve never believed it’s okay to hide in conformity and live in fear. I didn’t think Will had ever believed in doing that, either, and my daughters had grown up going to political protests.

“We need to find out more about these other people,” I said to Stephanie on the way home. “See if we can contact them directly, find out if any of the actual returned people are planning on going public like Mom. We could coordinate if they are. Strength in numbers.”

“The religious right are going to crap their pants,” Stephanie said, laughing. “A Deist who believes in reincarnation, is married to an atheist, and has a gay son, came back to life. Jesus Christ hasn’t got a monopoly anymore.”

“That is probably going to be the most fun part of this going public thing,” I said.

***

So now I don’t know what will happen. My husband’s driving up from home with our girls, my oldest younger brother’s on a train, and Mom’s been looking up contact information for journalist friends she had once, checking which ones are still alive, using Facebook – we never deactivated her account – and my dad’s LinkedIn. Stephanie’s found two other people who have family members who came back from the dead, and one of them’s been willing to talk to her in private messaging on Tumblr.

I still have a hard time telling anyone who doesn’t already know, but it turns out, I can write about it without feeling the pressure, the fear. Don’t know if I can post it, yet. I guess we’ll see. I’m hoping that if I can get more information from more people who’ve been through something similar, maybe we’ll find a pattern, a point of commonality… maybe even an explanation for why we all feel this pressure not to talk about it.

Tomorrow we’re all going to talk about whether we’re going to do this or not, but I know my family. What my mom wants, she gets, if it’s possible and if it’s ethical. My husband and my kids are going to be in favor of her going public, and my brothers won’t stand in her way any more than my dad would. So we’re going to do this. The thing we’re really going to talk about is how to keep ourselves safe when we do.

Everything in the world is going to change. I just don’t know exactly how yet.

***

Obligatory notes because I’m so fucking late with this piece:

I have fucked up royally. I went into this without an outline and about 6,000 words in I realized I had attempted to consume a ball of energy larger than my head. This is going to end up being novel length, most likely. I struggled really hard to find a place I could reasonably end it as a short story, and yeah, it is absolutely not an ending. No followup on the Martian shapechanger thing, new idea is brought in and then treated like it’s the climax, protagonist is almost entirely reactive and passive. As a short story, it’s shit.

Unfortunately I found this out after I was already late. Not going to bore everyone with why this was a week late except that it’s allergy season and I’ve been exhausted lately. So there was no time to try to write something else. I hope you found it entertaining, if somewhat frustrating; it’s shit as a short story because it’s plainly a piece of a novel. Which I’m not going to write real soon because I have like 3 novels ahead of this one in the queue, but if I live long enough it will get done.

It’s kinda cute that story #30 falls on the 30th now because I’m late and story #31 is the last of my Spooky 5 Halloween-appropriate stories. But not cute enough to justify how late this is.

BTW, while this is not as autobiographical as “Radio” from Inktober, it is heavily drawn from real life. I altered some things because this is fiction, but the mother and the father in this story are pretty close to real life. Except that my mother hasn’t come back.

#52 project #writeober 2020 #alara's october 2020 prompt fics #spooky5 #late!

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justinalovee · 3 years

Text

Empty souls

0.02

Previous chapter

Jill rolled her eyes as Bellamy, Clarke, and Finn argued about what they should do about the boy who had been speared. Time wasters.

“We need to go now, the longer he’s out there, the less chance we have at saving him.” Clarke pointed out.

Jill watched as Bellamy glanced between the drop-ship his sister was in and the blonde. It was clear he agreed with Clarke but didn’t want to leave Octavia on her own.

“I’ll stay here with Octavia,” Jill said.

“Fine.” Bellamy grumbled, “nobody else leaves this camp. Understand?”

Wells frowned, “Jill can’t control what others do.”

Jill glanced at Wells and shook her head. All his comment was going to do was lead to another argument, even if he meant well.

“I will make sure Octavia does nothing to hurt her leg, but that’s it.” Jill said, staring directly at Bellamy.

The moment became tense as four eyed gazed upon Bellamy waiting for him to argue with Jill. He didn’t.

“Let’s go.”

As they followed Bellamy, Murphy squeezed Jill's hand softly on his way past, while Clarke looked her up and down. The blonde still wasn’t convinced that trusting Jill was a good idea.

______

“You in the hat!” Jill frowned as she turned to face Harrison. What did the prick want now? “Where is she?!” He spat while continuing to walk closer to her.

Jill narrowed her eyes, “where’s who?”

Harrison was now standing inches away from her, “you know who I mean. That little bitch Steph, I tried to take her bracelet, and she kicked me in the balls!”

Shaking her head, Jill smirked, “good. Maybe you will learn to keep your goddamn hands to yourself in future.”

A couple of other boys chuckled, causing.Harrison’s face to turn red. He was embarrassed and that wasn’t something he would let go easily. He yanked Jill's arm causing her to freeze on the spot.

“Harrison that’s enough!”

Both Harrison and Jill turned to see Octavia towards them. The younger Blake looked pissed.

“Stay out of this freak,” Harrison hissed.

Octavia stepped forward, not caring that a small crowd was now forming around them. “Let go of her” she snapped, before pulling Harrison’s arm off her. “Are you okay?” Octavia asked softly.

Jill went to reply when Harrison spat on the ground and cut her off.

“Whatever, the slut will get what’s coming to her soon enough.” Jill stared at him, wide-eyed. She didn’t know what to say. “How long till Steph follows in your slutty footsteps before going on a killing spree.”

Something snapped inside Jill when she heard that. She leaned forward and punched Harrison in the face before kneeing him in the stomach, “if you ever touch Steph again I will rip your balls clean off.”

“I wonder what Bellamy will think of this? A murderer and the crazy bitch from under the floor trying to run this place while he’s gone?” Harrison grinned.

Jill stepped closer to him, “I dare you to go over to Bellamy when he gets back and repeat what you just said about his sister to his face.”

“Pack it in, Harrison!” Atom scowled. His expression softened when he turned his attention to Octavia and Jill, “Are you girls okay?”

“Yeah...I think we are” Octavia answered, smiling at Jill.

Oh that smile. Octavia liked Atom, how nice. Jill smiled back before going to look for Steph.

***

Later on that day the small gang of ‘hero’s’ returned to camp with a dying Jasper, with Bellamy and Murphy closely behind them some kind of enormous cat.

The nighttime was intense. Bellamy gave a speech on how they could do ‘whatever the hell they want’ on the ground, and Murphy was right beside him. Jill was disappointed in him, she didn’t think John would buy into it.

She watched as they made people take off their bracelets for food. Bellamy even punched a guy for trying to get some food without taking his off.

“Hey, you look lonely over here,” Murphy smirked.

“I’m fine.”

When Jill looked up at him, Murphy reached his hand out to give her a stick of food, which she rejected.

“Mines not off yet,” she replied holding her left wrist up, “am I going to get hit next if I take it.”

Murphy frowned at her. “I’d never let anybody touch you!”

“Not even Bellamy?”

John knelt down in front of Jill, running one of his fingers along the edge of her hat.

“He’d be a dead man if he touched you, like I said, I’d never let anybody hurt you. Now eat.” Jill went to protest again, when Murphy shoved the stick in her hand. “Atom told me Harrison gave you a hard time earlier?”

“What are you, my great protector now?” Jill asked teasingly in between bites of meat.

“Yes.”

“John it’s fine...”

“I need to go,” Murphy said, looking over his shoulder.

Jill followed his gaze to see Bellamy glaring at them. What was his problem? “Bellamy sent you over here to get my wristband off, didn’t he?”

The comment took Murphy aback. She was wrong, Bellamy would probably flip for giving her food. “No, he didn’t. Any more problems from Harrison or anyone else you come straight to me, okay?”

“Yeah, fine. Thanks for the grub.”

______

“Isn’t that the girl who slaughtered a guard and her friend?”

“Jillian Slate is more dangerous than a grounder! I don’t want to share a camp with a crazy bitch like her!”

“They should have floated her along with her parents.”

“I heard she had a baby on the ark with a guard.”

“She’s bat shit crazy!”

“Her parents took bribes so they could experiment new drugs on her.”

“I bet she keeps the knife underneath her hat.”

Jill tried to pretend she didn’t care what others said about her, but it was hard to hide her embarrassment during the daytime. She was the girl who went crazy and killed her best friend for no reason. Jill shuffled uncontrollably, she could feel a gaze burning into her. She looked up to notice Bellamy watching her.

Hearing a muffled ‘fucking bitch’ she turned to look at Harrison along with another camp member walking behind her. Shit. She hadn’t seen him since the incident the day before, and he looked like hell. Jill had punched him in the face, but not hard enough to bruise him. Harrison now had a burst lip, a bruised jawline, and two black eyes.

Bellamy watched as the girl who appeared to be bothered by nothing blinked away tears. He saw how Jill’s chest and neck turned red. Bellamy didn’t know her story, but he knew better than to believe gossip spread on the ark. Bellamy rarely gave a shit, but after hearing how she stuck up for Octavia he decided she might be good to have around for his sisters sake. He was strangely drawn to Jill for many reasons.

“Bell” spun to face Octavia coming towards him.

“Any news on Jasper?” He asked.

His sister just shook his head, “no not yet but..”

“Murphy, stop!”

Both siblings turned to see Clarke and Finn trying to pull Murphy off someone. Bellamy stormed over and demanded to know what was going on.

“If you say one more thing about her and I will fucking kill you.” Murphy screamed in a boy called Jack's face.

“It was just a joke, I meant nothing by it!” the boy pleaded before he ran away.

Murphy ignored everyone as they spoke to him. He walked towards Jill, who was staring at him wide-eyed and dragged her by the arm towards his tent.

“Does someone want to tell us what that was about? We already have Jasper to worry about, the last thing anyone needs is Murphy causing drama,” Octavia snapped.

“She’s right, Bellamy, you need to get Murphy under control before he causes a riot.” Clarke preached.

“Sure thing princess,” Bellamy said mockingly, “anything else? No good. Now what caused it?”

“Jake said Jill should have been floated along with her parents.” Wells informed them, frowning.

“And Murphy beat him up over that? You know what, don't answer that. I’m going to check on Jasper, Bell keep your men in line!” Clarke said before storming off.

“I think Jake had it coming,” Octavia shrugged.

Bellamy watched as Murphy pulled Jill into his tent. He wondered what exactly was going on between them. In his eyes, Murphy wasn’t interested in Jill until something happened to her. She was just an excuse for him to start a fight.

______

When Murphy reached his tent, he finally let go of Jill’s arm. Murphy was so angry at what Jack had said he never even realized how tightly he had been holding onto her. Not until he saw his friend rubbing the part he had just let go of.

“Shit, I’m sorry. Are you okay?” He asked, closing his eyes.

Murphy was taken aback when he felt a set of lips pressed against his right cheek. He opened his eyes to see Jill smiling up at him.

“Thank you, nobody has ever stuck up for me like that before.” Jill smiled sadly at him before stepping back.

“Ignore them, they don’t know shit about you. I will fuck up anyone who says anything about you again, hell I’d kill anyone who dares to mess with you.” For once Murphy was being truthful. On the ark he had nobody for a very long time, the only person he truly trusted was Jill, and now he had her back he wouldn’t let anyone threaten that.

He pressed his forehead against hers, “nobody is going to come in here, my tent is off limits. You can take it off.”

Jill leaned back from him and nodded, she pulled the hat off her head and let her long purple hair fall down past her shoulders. Regardless of her hair being covered in sweat from wearing her hat all day, Murphy still ran his fingers through the ends of it. He studied her for a moment.

“What’s going on?”

Murphy stepped back confused, “what do you mean?”

Jill sighed, “You are being a total dick towards others down here, why? I saw what you did to Wells. Did you really need his wrist band that badly?”

Murphy started to laugh, a deep belly laugh that confusd Jill. She didn’t think it was funny.

“Sorry, did I say something amusing?”

Murphy shook his head. “No...you just say what you think, I’d missed that.”

“What about the Wells thing?” Jill asked, now frowning.

“He’s annoying, and I hate him.” Murphy pouted before sighing, there was no point lying to the girl in-front of him. “What was I supposed to do? Say no? Bellamy would have turned on me.”

Jill didn’t know what to say. John was trying to keep in with Bellamy. She couldn’t judge him for that, right? He just wanted to survive.

Murphy moves to look out the flaps of his tent. “I need you to do something for me.”

“What do you desire me to do?”Jill asked, shoving her hair back beneath her hat.

Murphy traced his fingers along her wrist “Let me take your bracelet off.”

“What? Why?” She asked, snapping her wrist back. “I don’t want to, and I don’t agree with you or Mbege forcing others to remove them.”

“That’s why I’m asking!” He snapped back. “If I take this stupid thing off now, then Mbege and Bellamy won’t have a reason to be near you.”

“I thought you said I shouldn’t listen to them?” She eyed him suspiciously.

He stepped closer to her and spoke in a low voice. “I can’t be around all the time to protect you.”

“And what makes you think I need protecting? I’ve looked after myself for years. All on my own.” The last part stung when she saw the look in his eyes.

“Jill listen to me. Most of the people down here are real criminals, people who deserved to be locked up. I don’t trust them, and don’t want them to hurt you to get that metal thing off your wrist...”

“Do you think they would hurt me to get it?” Jill asked quietly.

Murphy sighed, “I honestly don’t know. Things are changing down here fast, and we need to do whatever it takes to survive.” He linked his fingers with Jill. “Bellamy is running this place and is planning making everyone remove them tonight...it’s better to make your enemies close friends.”

“Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.”

“Whatever. Just think about it, please?” Murphy groaned.

Jill shoved his chest playfully. “John Murphy begging me? I never thought I’d see the day.”

Murphy grunted in response to her comment. Jill didn’t seem to release how far Bellamy will go to get control of the camp.

Jill leaning closer to him. “What’s in it for me if I take it off?”

Murphy smirked at her, “you’ll only find out if you do it.”

Jill shoved him playfully again before going to leave his tent, when she felt Murphy grab her hand.

“I think you should sleep with me from now on. I mean at least I’ll know you're safe during the night. You can have the bed and I’ll sleep on the ground.” he said, staring into her gray eyes.

“I can’t, I’m letting Steph stay with me, so I can keep her safe.” Jill smiled. Murphy could be a manipulative asshole but deep down he was good.

Murphy let out a deep sigh. That wasn’t the answer he wanted. “The minute anyone tries anything I want you to come find me, okay?”

“Sure thing, babe. Now we better go before you’re boss comes looking for you.”

Murphy shook his head, smirking before following Jill towards the food tent.

______

Another night of Bellamy, Mbege and Murphy acting like total jackasses was beyond irritating. Murphy wasn’t lying when he said they would force everyone to take off their bracelets. Most people had agreed so far, especially after Mbege punched the one guy who said no.

Jill noticed Wells, Clarke, and Finn all frowning at them burning the bracelets. She had a choice to make, let Murphy take hers off, or refuse with the risk of getting sucked into Wells' argument. She decided to let Murphy take it off.

Jill had been sitting with Steph when they first arrived, but Steph had a panic attack and returned to their tent. Jill felt sorry for her and wished she could make the young girl feel better.

Jill jumped when Bellamy suddenly appeared in front of her. He crouched down to her level. Jill looked away, while lifting her wrist up. She was waiting for the pain to start, but It surprised her that all she could feel was the cold smooth side of the blade before a pinching feeling.

“Ouch, you don’t need to be so rough.”

“Sorry.”

Bellamy was still holding onto her wrist, gently rubbing the part of her wrist he had scratched. Neither of them noticed the way Murphy was glaring over at them.

“Bellamy!”

Octavia called her brother when she saw the look on Murphy’s face. She wasn’t an idiot and knew exactly what her brother was doing. He was trying to get a rise out of him.

The moment Bellamy left, Jill felt like she could breathe again, that was until Clarke sat down next to her. Couldn’t she have a minute to herself?

The blonde pointed towards her wrist. “I’m surprised you let Bellamy take it off.”

Jill shrugged. “Why not? The ark has done nothing for me, and nobody will care if it says I’m dead.”

“What about everybody else? If the others think we are dead, they won’t follow us down. We need to let them know it’s safe.” Clarke said, frowning.

“I just told you I don’t have anyone else on the ark. Why are you even sitting next to me? Aren’t you afraid I might snap and kill you?” Jill watched, amused as Clarke’s face turned red. “Yeah, I heard what you said about me, and it’s not true.”

“I thought...”

“Let’s not be fake, okay? You don’t like me, so don’t pretend to care what I do and don’t try to guilt me into something.”

Jill stormed off towards the gate. She wasn’t sure why, but Clarke’s comments had gotten to her. Jill made sure nobody was watching as she left camp. It was actually quite beautiful in the forest, grounders and radioactive land aside it would have been a nice place to live.

“Jill! What the hell are you doing?”

She spun to see Murphy storming towards her. He looked extremely pissed off.

“I had to get out of there, I couldn’t stand it any longer.” Jill admitted.

Murphy stepped closer to her. “You had me worried, I thought something had happened to you.” He snapped. His harsh expression softened when he saw how sad Jill looked. “I get it, it’s hard trying to fit in when all anybody see’s is the worst in you. How’s the wrist?”

It’s fine. If you want to go back, that’s fine, I just need some time away from it all.” Jill said, looking at the ground.

Murphy reaches out a hand for Jill to take. “Come on, I got something I need to show you.”

______

Murphy led her to a large pool of water, Jill stopped walking as she watched him get closer to it. The thought of entering dark water was making her nervous.

“It’s a natural spring, nothing is going to hurt you I promise.” Murphy said without looking back at her as he began removing his clothes.

“What are you doing?” Jill asked.

“Going for a swim, the water is still warm. I found the place the other night and thought you’d like it.” Murphy shrugged before jumping into the water.

Jill couldn’t help but smile at him as he showed her his trademark cheeky grin. “Turn around then.”

Murphy did as she said but shouted back to her, “it’s dark I wouldn’t see anything anyway..hey what are you doing?”

Jill had stripped down to her underwear and was washing the rest of their clothes.

“I’m glad you are down here...I was worried about you, Jill. Things on the ark weren’t the same without you,” he said softly.

Jill turned to face him. “We used to have so much fun before all that happened.”

“We did. I always wondered how much trouble we would have gotten into if they kept us together.” Murphy grinned.

“I think you are making up for all the trouble we missed out on the ark down here, don’t you?” Jill said, giving him a knowing smile which Murphy smirked at.

He and Jill beamed at each other in a comfortable silence, both just happy to be with each other. So many words unsaid. Jill broke the silence by splashing water into his face before giggling and swimming away.

Murphy just looked at her with an amused look on his face, this was the girl he remembered. Always having fun and laughing, not having a care in the world. No matter how bleak it got.

“Scared you can’t keep up?” she teased him.

Murphy began swimming after her until he eventually caught her. He grabbed her ankle and playfully pulled Jill towards him, grinning. Neither one of them was sure what happened next, but before they knew it they pressed together their lips. Years of flirting, friendship and tension, all coming together at once.

Murphy began kissing Jill's neck, leaving a trail of marks down her until he reached her bra. Murphy wasn’t a virgin, but he felt this was virgin territory.

Jill crashed her lips against his again, while running her fingers through his hair as he squeezed her ass.

Murphy suddenly pulled away.

“John, what’s wrong?” Jill asked, worried.

“I think we should go.” Murphy said bluntly.

Jill said nothing but done as he suggested and got out the water. “What just happened?”

“I thought I heard...”

Jill let out a loud scream. Everything turned red, before it turned dark. She glanced down to see her skin turning a deep shade of red.

Next chapter

#the 100 fandom #the 100 fanfiction #the 100 #john murphy #bellamy blake #john murphy imagine #John Murphy/oc #Bellamy Blake/oc #the 100 imagine #bellamy blake imagine

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hidinggal · 3 years

Text

Bruce's Bat Baby

This is a story I wrote about this post I saw this is my take on the Bruce part.

Bruce and I had met shortly after he had adopted Dick Grayson and quickly fell in love with him and everything about the Wayne heir. We got engaged around the time he adopted Cassandra Cain by this time Jason Todd had lived and died and lived again and the most recent Robin was Tim Drake. I went out most nights I also preferred to stay in and work the coms with Barbara Gordon. Then came Stephanie Brown she was a surprise to they the least but she wasn't a shock like Damian was to the Bat family. Bruce had a biological son. Sure we weren't married but we already had all these kids, it hadn't occurred to me that he might want kids with me. Two years later we got married. We were at a calm and then the conversation of us having kids came back up two months after we got back from out honey moon.

I was sitting on the bed getting ready to crawl under the covers when Bruce came in and looked me in the eyes, “What about another kid?”

“Who’d did you find this time?” I asked wondering if he had found another kid on the side of the street, “Someone else try to steal the tires off the bat mobile.” I crawled across the bed, shoving my feet under the blankets and then the rest of my body. Bruce laid down beside me on top of the blankets, I cocked my head, “What?”

He smiled at me, kissed me on the head and then turned off the lights and the conversation wasn't brought up again.

But two weeks later we had a gala event all the kids went a few of the titans came too, me and Bruce spent most of the night helping Lois and Clark on an article. That night Bruce and I had one too many drinks, we woke up that morning tangled in blankets with Bruce's alarm going off.

He covered me up and kissed me on the head before he left for work, I had the day off. Dick came over from an off shift and after I got showered and changed he got into bed with me and we watched movies while Cassie, Steph, Damian , and Tim were all in school Barbra had work as a librarian. Luke and Duke also had work. So while Alfred cleaned the house Dick and I watched old movies and ate popcorn, Ace came to join us.

Dick fell asleep with his head on my shoulder and I think I fell asleep too because when I woke up to Jason who spent the day doing whatever taking the photo of the two of us, he saw I was awake and without having to say anything he got into bed laying down next to me and grabbing the remote and choosing the next movie. When I woke up again, Dick was gone and so was Jason in there place was Cassie and Tim who were crossed legged at the end of the bed Damian was curled up asleep, all three of them in their school uniforms.

Eventually we got up and moved to the dining room where I made the four of us lunch Alfred wasn't too happy but he cleaned up.

A few days had passed and I was at work at Wayne Enterprises sitting in my office when suddenly a wave of nausea rushed over me. I raced to my private bathroom off from my office and threw up. I sat down on the floor with my head in my hands as another wave hit me.

I didn't tell anyone about that. The sickness began to happen in the morning and Bruce caught on. For the first three or four days I had managed to get out of bed into the bathroom throw up and shower and change, but today Bruce followed me to the bathroom and held my hair back without a word. His large and calloused hands massaged my back as I leaned forward and heaved. When I was done I leaned into his embrace, he had a wet washcloth and wiped my face with it, folding it over he put in on my head as I caught my breath. “How long has this been going on?” Bruce left the washcloth on my head, i leaned my head back and stared at the ceiling, Bruce intertwined his fingers around me.

“A few days.” I went to lean forward and stand up but him hands caught me and with a wet slap the washcloth hit the floor. “Let me up.” it was a quiet whisper those last three words, “Its just the flu.”

“The flu?” He asked as I leaned forward away from his becoming embrace. Bruce placed one hand on my waist keeping me down and one on my forehead, I brought my hands up to his and kept the coolness of his skin on my head. “You're burning up.” He began to make slow movements to stand, “Lets get you into bed.” with one arm on my back and one under my legs he picked me up and carried me to the bed. “ill call you off work and ill tell Alfred to make you breakfast in bed.”

“Go to your meeting” He kissed me on the cheek,

“Ill have Dick check up on you when he gets back.” Bruce leaves for work knowing that after his shift today he wont be going on patrol, he will be crawling into bed with me.

A few minutes later, Alfred walks into the room, I'm sitting up ready for a breakfast tray, and he sets it down, overtop my legs the first thing i do is unroll my napkin and a pregnancy test falls into my hands, I look up at Alfred with my mouth open in shock, ”Master Bruce told me your symptoms, it could just be the flu but it could be a child.” I look away from him and look down at the light blue and purple stick, “Now close your jaw you'll catch a fly, Mistress Anne.”

I utter a quick thanks before he leaves the room and closes the door, I stare at the stick i left on the mattress next to me, outside the door I hear Alfred tell the kids I'm sick and not to bother me before school. I can hear Jason doing the crossword on the bench in the hall outside of my room, my eyes never stray from the stick until I move the tray and head into the bathroom. I pee on the stick and sit on the floor with a timer on my phone set for two minutes.

Me and Bruce always had a family when we started dating he had Dick and I was here when he got everyone else, his own children, Gordon's daughter, i was here when the accidents happened, Babs lost her ability to walk and when Jason died. I was here for them, so maybe if that stick says what i think it says they will all be there for me, I've been apart of this family for so long that sometimes it feels like because they all have the hero thing and yea I do it to but they do it more often and they all have that bonding of shared trauma and because I was raised in a middle class family, I will never have what Bruce and the kids have. My phone begins to buzz without looking I click the phone off and stand up. I look at the little plus sign on the stick. I get in the show and change into new pajamas and by the time I'm coming back into my room to hid the stick in my bedside table, the breakfast tray is gone.

After tucking the stick away on my bedside table I walk out of my room to the kitchen where Dick and Jason are arguing, they both stop when they see me, “Don't stop on my account.”

I open a cabinet but due to the fact that I'm normally waring heels when i'm out of my room and not dark pink bunny slippers I couldn't reach the crackers, Dick saw and without hesitation he grabbed it for me. He then put a hand on my head, “Fevers gone, how ya feeling?”

“Thank you,” I pull the box of crackers out of his hand and head to another set of cabinets to grab the peanut butter, “I'm feeling better.” Trying to contain the smile on my face as I pulled the butter knife out of a drawer. I sat down at the table and the two of them sat with me, “What were you two fighting about?”

The two of them sit at the counter with me and begin to rant about what happened on patrol last night, we laugh together and the moment Alfred sees me he lets me finish eating before he ushers me back to bed, both Jason and Dick wish me good luck as Alfred tucks me in, the two of them go back out on patrol.

I sit in bed with Ace until Bruce comes home, His shoulders are tense so when he sits on the edge of the bed I crawl over to him and begin giving him a shoulder rub. “How are you feeling, Dick said the fevers gone.”

I smile, “Better.” I begin to crawl to my bedside table and I pull the purple and white stick with the faded plus sign out I set it down and go back to rubbing his shoulders. “Turns out it wasn't the flu.”

“Hmm” Bruce just leans into my massage, “What was it? A cold?”

“No” I pull back and grab the stick i then wrap my arms around him putting the plus in his line of sight. “I think we should go to the doctor before we start telling people,” Bruce grabs the stick out of my hands and stands up before turning to look at me, “I know its a lot, I think Alf-” Bruce has the biggest smile on his face, he puts his hands on waist and spins me around the room.

He sets me on the ground, one of my slippers flew off, he kisses me hard, keeping that cheeky grin of his, “Ill call the doctor, we’ll drop the kids off at school, Jason and Dick will patrol again, we will go out to lunch than if its true.” He kisses me again, “We will have a family dinner in a few days.” I'm not sure how long we stood their and hugged and cried I also don't remember going to sleep or driving the kids to school because next thing I know me and Bruce are sitting in the waiting room of the doctors office.

I don't hear the nurse call the name or the doctor introduce herself I vaguely hear her explain what's she's gonna do I'm too busy thinking about when the baby was conceived, I think it was the night of the gala and so does Bruce that was a little under a month ago a little more than twenty two days, we should be able to hear the baby's heartbeat. I put on the hospital gown and Bruce folds my clothes eventually the doctor walks back in.

She places cold gel on my stomach and Bruce's hand is in mine. I turn my head to look at the screen and there it is a small looking peanut shape, “There it is.” The doctor points at the grey and white on the staticky screen and suddenly this is real, this is I sat on the bathroom floor when I knew the truth, I think I have known since that night that there was a baby inside me and I've always been a parent but now Ill actually be a mom, I didn't know I was crying until Bruce wiped away my tears and then we heard it a small and tiny noise that whispered of love and screamed joy in both our ears a little heartbeat.

The doctor spoke to us some more, I got prenatal vitamins and other meds she thought I would need. She told Bruce about everything I would go through and then some, I got changed and we got lunch then headed home. Bruce showed the photos to Alfred before he even had his coat off. Alfred congratulated us, he was going to invited everyone to dinner next week. The two of them left me alone to go plan.

The next week goes by fast the only question I get are why I haven't been out patrolling for the moment I've been shrugging them off but I think Damian is getting suspicious although he hasn't said anything. Bruce has been getting up an hour early so that when I get morning sickness There's towels and bottled water set up in the bathroom for me, He’s also been cutting back on his patrolling shifts and has been telling the kids that's me and him are working on a project for work. When in reality we are working on plans for the nursery, we have kids but we've never had a baby before this was new territory, given we had eight months we had no idea what to do and we still are clueless.

Me and Bruce wore our dinner clothes to work, business causal we were in meetings all day, and eventually time was for dinner, we had made it so that only immediate members of the so called “Bat Clan” were allowed to dinner. Alfred cooked a chicken dinner with biscuits, mashed potatoes and gravy there was corn and peas as well. Dick was in his police uniform and Jason wore his normal clothes but with a tie on top of everything. Tim, Damian, Steph and Cassie were all wearing school uniforms, Duke and Luke also were wearing business casual and Babs was wearing a blouse and skirt.

They brought up old conversations and family photos to Steph's famous food Instagram page, and to the last meme Tim tagged Bruce in. Dick brings up a case he’s currently working on down at the GCPD and Jason says something inappropriate that makes everyone laugh. Cassie doesn't say much but she nods and a smile appears on her face. As the conversation dies down Babs asks the question, “Is there a reason were having family dinner tonight, I don't mind its just-”

“I'm pregnant.” I say the whole table is quiet, both me and Bruce are trying to take in everyone's expressions.

“And during the remaining eight months i will be hanging up the cowl, the justice league doesn't know yet why I'm giving up being batman.”

“This is real?” Jason says eyes wide.

Cassie lets out a laugh and signs congratulations.

“Baby names!” Stephanie pulls a pen out of her pocket and begins writing on her cloth napkin, I let out a laugh as Tim leans over to help her.

“You need boy names too!” Cassie leans over to read the names as Tim yells at Steph.

“Congrats you too.” Dick says nodding his head he then glances at Steph's napkin that is upside down to him, “Does that say Dino Nugget?”

Jason leans over and reads the list, “I don't think Batman is going ot name his child Baby Bat.”

The rest of the evening was spent it a cheerful mood and ended with Bruce showing everyone the ultrasound pictures.

The night was a success now came the hard part, preparation for the baby and the next nine months.

PART 2??? how was this

#bat family headcannons #batfam headcannon #batman #batfam headcannons #bruce wayne #pregancy #dick grayson #jason todd #stephanie brown #cassandra cain #love intrests #damian wayne

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