#some league ninja just trying to get through their guard shift: what the fuck is that WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT

[ikiprian]

The DC Universe is unstable. Danny goes to investigate.

All realities are connected to and accessible from the Infinite Realms Hub through natural portals. These portals dot the surface of random planets within each universe— some are familiar, like alternate versions of Earth, some are wholly unique, like… Well, like nothing else. When Danny’s got downtime, he loves to explore them. Frostbite appreciates his efforts to expand the Infini-Map.

One universe, though, and all its affiliated pluralities has got its ecto-connection on the fritz. (And there are. So many pluralities. The timeline wraps back on itself, it’s duplicated a thousand times over, it keeps crossing over what should be parallels and resets every couple decades or so…) Something is definitely wrong.

Danny goes in as the Infinite Realm’s self-assigned plumber to see what’s what. It’ll be fun!

He pops out the other side screaming, dragging his half-melted body out a Lazarus Pit.

#danny phantom: cosmic handyman (TOP 10 LEAST LUCRATIVE CAREERS 2024) #[vine boom] HAS NO CERTS [vine boom] DID NOT GO TO VOCATIONAL SCHOOL [vine boom] ALREADY DIED TO SAFETY VIOLATIONS NOW BACK FOR ROUND 2 IG #[vine boom x5] #some league ninja just trying to get through their guard shift: what the fuck is that WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT #dpxdc #dcxdp #prompt #danny fenton #and now hes gotta figure out a way to stabilize the portals to go home :) with no allies! i love isolating characters #kipwrite

[flying-nightwing]

Dark Fox (5/7)

Yoooooo I love this chapter, I think it’s my favourite so far. 

Previous - Next 

Pairing: Jason Todd x League!Reader

Word Count: 5836

Warnings: same as previous

Your eyes were closed but you could feel Jason growing restless. 

It was already the middle of the day and you had not gone out once to train. He kept shifting his position, crossing and uncrossing his legs, and opening one eye to see if yours were still shut. He would also occasionally let long sighs of impatience, like a child stuck inside on a sunny summer afternoon. 

It wasn’t that far from the truth, actually.

“Alright” He spoke up, slapping something on his skin. probably a fly. “This is pointless”

You slowly opened your eyes and stared at him. He was sweaty and swatting away bugs around him, and an all too familiar frustration was growing in his eyes. Although you didn’t do this exercise to spite him off especially, you had to admit you did enjoy to rile him up that way. 

“I know that face” He grumbled, and you raised an eyebrow. “You’re enjoying this too much. Is there even a purpose to this?”

“Yes” 

“Then what is it?” He yelled, throwing his hands in the air. “We’ve been sitting here in silence for more than two hours!”

“Should I make it two hours more?” 

“You are evil”

“I’m making you do this because” You began after an over exaggerated eye roll. “This kind of meditation, when done well, allows you to take control of everything in you. When you feel conflicted, angry or need to find strength, you can tap into that power. But you need to find it first”

“Yawn” He pretended to sleep. “When I made the joke about making tea, I had no idea you’d take it literally”

“Don’t act so smug, you could use it” You replied. “And the tea technique as well”

He gasped.

“Now get back in position, palms up resting on your knees” You instructed, and he only crossed his arms against his chest in defiance. “Jason”

“I’m not doing it anymore” He shook his head like a toddler. “It’s as hot as the devil’s asshole and your little bowl of water is turning this hut in a sauna. And how the fuck are you not dying?”

He gestured wildly at your short sleeve base layer and tactical pants, which you thought was already a wild improvement from what you usually did. In fact, winter or summer, you had always worn your full League suit no matter how uncomfortable it could get. You had learned to ignore it a long time ago.

“Because I’ve been dead since 2004” You deadpanned.

It took him some time to react. “Sorry did you just make a joke?”

“No. I’m always serious” You didn’t concede, but you did suppress a smile. “Now focus”

“C’mon” He groaned. “For once let’s do something fun! I’ve earned it, don’t you think?”

You held his stare that had become wide and almost… Pleading? In a puppy-that-wants-treats kind of way. And thinking of it, he did work all for almost a year without really choosing what to do. You guessed you could make an exception for this once.

“What did you have in mind?” You asked tentatively.

“Let’s go swimming” He grinned, and it sparked an idea in your head. 

“Swimming you say?”

--------

“What do you think they’re doing?”

“I don’t know” Dick muttered, glancing at Tim with a bewildered expression. “But I’ve never seen Jay sitting so still for so long before”

“Do you think they can hear us?” Tim asked, eyes still on jason and you. “Pssst, Jason”

“Hey Jason!” Dick called, louder this time. Still no reaction.

“Jaybird!”

“Earth to Todd?”

“What are you idiots doing now?” 

Both men turned around at Damian calling them out.

“Jason and Foxy are sitting face to face on the floor like statues” Tim replied, crossing his arms against his chest. “It’s kind of freaking us out. There are herbs burning or whatever”

“If you call her that to her face she’ll kill you” Damian pointed out, pushing off the wall he was leaning on. 

“I know, she already pushed me out of a window” He sighed as Damian walked past him to look into the room. He noticed the positions, the shallow bowl of water and the sage burning next to it. It clicked in his head it was something his mother had taught him years ago, still the never ending sitting session in silence were hardly forgettable. You? He wasn’t surprised to see you do it from what he had gathered about you so far. Jason, however, he was surprised he would even considering let alone last so long. He was impressed.

“They’re meditating, you morons” He rolled his eyes. “League stuff. Lets you in into your own soul so deep you can tune out the exterior world”

“Sounds freaky” Dick hummed.

“I’m going to test that theory” Tim smirked, taking a few steps in the room.

“And if you do that it’s Jason that’s gonna kill you” Damian shouted as he walked away. 

“Can’t be worse that being thrown out of a window” 

“I swear one of them is actually going to kill you sooner than later” Dick sighed as he followed his brother nevertheless. He figured Tim would stand better chance at living with backup.

Tim tiptoed to Jason, taking good care to stay far away from you and your range. He had no idea if you had a blade hidden somewhere--you probably did--and exactly how fast you would hurl it at him. He needed to give himself a margin of manoeuver. He extended his finger and slowly, so slowly got closer to Jason.

“Don’t. You. Dare” 

He froze mid air, eyes widening. Jason’s eyes were still closed, but apparently he was aware enough to know he was close. He shared a glance with Dick, not willing to run away just yet even though Jason had quite literally blindly deducted his intention. He moved a bit closer again, and just before his finger came in contact with Jason’s ear, he snapped his eyes open and glared so hard at Tim it made him and Dick scatter out of the room. He help his glare a little longer on the room’s threshold before sighing. 

“I kinda miss the quiet of the hut”

You slowly opened your eyes to meet his stare. You would have given him a smile if your mind wasn’t so far away of your head. 

“Found anything?” 

You shook your head at his question, looking away from the concern that was growing on his face. You had tuned into your mind to find how in the hell and back you didn’t just let the arrow fly and ended it for Luthor. You had hesitated, something you didn’t even know was possible for you. Moreover, you had deviated from the only personal goal you ever had, for what? For the lives of people that didn’t matter to you. It was a good thing you didn’t work for the League on that one, because you wouldn’t have made it out alive. 

It was also a miracle Tim hadn’t ratted you going outside of the plan to go after Luthor. You had fully expected a fight when you met with the rest of the group, but he had kept his mouth shut after what went down. It worried you, because the only reason you could think for him doing that was for leverage, and well, you certainly didn’t like the idea of any of these people here having leverage on you. And with the warning Jason gave you about his detective skills, none of this settled right within you. 

“You’ll get another chance”

It was like he was reading your mind. It wasn’t like he didn’t know you better than anyone, and it was not like you were well guarded right now. You were too distracted to hold up your defenses. Still, you were angry at yourself.

“I let him go” You mumbled through gritted teeth. “I’ve never…”

“I know” He breathed out. “Are you okay?”

“Yes” You snapped. You didn’t need his pity. “I just need to remind myself of who I am”

He held your stare for a second, betraying no emotion. “And who is that?”

You gulped, hesitating despite your better judgement. “I am Thaelib fi alzalam, child of the darkness and servant of the demon”

His jaw clenched ever so slightly, but he didn’t say anything more.

--------

“Am I the only one who noticed Jay’s been… Different ever since he brought back the ninja here?” 

Dick looked up from his paperwork and grinned at Tim. “Right? He’s around all the time now”

“Do you think they’re together?” He asked in between two glances at the files in front of him. They were still on the Luthor case, and he had his own side quest to figure out. “She would seem like his type. Cold, snarky, slightly to very murderous, you know”

Dick laughed. “I mean something definitely happened between them, especially since they allegedly spent all this time together. But actually together? Meh”

“Don’t you have anything better to do that gossip about me?”

Both men’s eyes snapped up at the voice that joined the conversation. Jason was standing in the doorframe of the cave, arms crossed against his chest and a scowl on his face. A steaming cup of coffee was rested on his bicep, but he didn’t seem bothered by the heat of the ceramic container.

“Absolutely not” Dick sniggered, making Jason scoff. “So, you two together?” 

Jason’s eyes went from his older brother to Tim, whose head was cocked on the side. He was watching intensely for a reaction, and it made Jason shift on his feet. He did not like when Tim went all detective on him, especially since he had no idea of the reason why he would do it. It was creepy and invasive, and even him wasn’t immune to Tim’s hyper perceptiveness. Jason cleared his throat.

“You think I’m going to answer this?” He challenged Dick, doing his best to ignore Tim’s weird as fuck behaviour.

“Oh come on Jaybird, do a girl a favor and spill the beans!” He pleaded. “We barely know anything of what went down with you two”

“And I intend it to stay that way” He replied, walking to Dick’s rolling chair. “Now move. Alfred sent me to replace you. You’ve been here for hours and he wants you to take a break”

“Aw, okay” He complied as he stood up. “Can’t say no to Alfred”

“What about me?” Tim finally spoke with a small pout. Jason rolled his eyes and walked to his desk, putting down the steaming mug of coffee in front of him. Everybody knew it was pointless to try and pry Tim away from his work, so Alfred had instead sent him down with about seven shots of espresso in a mug. That was enough to change his expression from betrayed to content. 

Jason waited for Dick to leave and propped down in the seat, keeping watch on Tim from the corner of his eye. His fingers skimmed over the paperwork left behind, but he wasn't very interested in it. He only agreed to replace Dick because like his older brother, saying no to Pennyworth was not an option, not a moral one anyway. 

“So” Tim began nonchalantly, pretending to be interested in whatever was in his face at the moment. Jason braced himself for more invasive questions he would not answer. “How did you not kill each other in the first week of training?”

Jason blinked in surprise at the question. He did not expect something so… Impersonal? He seemingly referred to his and your character, which he must have witnessed while being paired with you the previous night. However, he still remained on his guard, because Tim was being weird. Well, weirder than usual that is.

“I guess… We tried?” He said carefully, frowning. “Didn’t work”

“Interesting” He nodded, taking a sip from his coffee. “I’ve noticed her fondness for violence, which makes sense why you would get along”

“Okay just say what you want to say” He sighed, making a vague hand gesture. 

“No it’s just--” He paused and took a breath. “Something weird happened the other day, after she pushed me out of the window”

Jason raised an eyebrow.

“She landed after me and then she just took off” He said with a shrug. “Naturally I went after her because nobody walks out on me. And imagine my surprise when I saw her facing off with none other than Lex Luthor”

Jason’s muscles tensed, but he gave no other reaction. Fuck. 

“I mean she could have killed him, she seemed pretty obsessed with going there or whatever” He kept talking, obviously noticing his brother’s subtle change of attitude. “But then they just held the stare off until the explosion went off and she instead saved a bunch of people that would have otherwise been crushed to death by concrete. Anyway. Now tell me if I got it wrong, but she doesn’t seem like the type to just hesitate, or care about the others, right? I tried to piece it together, the obsession, the hesitation, her weird knowledge of Luthor’s modus operandi, her whole involvement in this for that matters, but I still come short of the little missing piece to the puzzle. It bothers me”

He watched Tim with his mouth slightly agape. He knew it had been a bad idea for you to go after Luthor with Tim nearby, but he didn’t think he’d put the pieces together that quickly, or rather, that you’d let such a slip go noticed. Nonetheless, he wiped away his astonishment away and replaced it with yet another scowl.

“Why are you telling me this?”

“I don’t know, I’d believe you know more than anyone about her”

“I think you’re looking way too much into this, Drake” He dismissed, going back to his papers. “She was raised by the League. Going after a target is her basic instinct, and are you really going to judge her for doing the right thing and saving people?”

“Mhhh” Tim simply hummed, also going back to his own work. Jason gave him one last glance, knowing his deflection wouldn’t hold him back for long. The truth was about to come out, and he feared it wouldn’t be pretty when it did.

--------

“Go on”

Jason narrowed his eyes, his glance slowly going from you to the plank you had lowered above the water and to the post farther into the middle of the river. It rose about seven feet above the surface, and Jason didn’t trust it or your intentions for that matter.

He adjusted the quiver strap and the bow on his shoulder and began carefully reaching the post. Nope, he definitely didn’t trust that setting at all. However, as much as he was mad you had twisted his swimming idea, he was also curious as to what hellish stunt you would make him do this time. He knew you by now, so whatever it was, it would be both dangerous and entertaining. 

He grabbed the post and hoisted himself up by the only step that was carved in the middle of it. He stood up on the small surface, barely large enough to stand comfortably on both feet. He looked at you, and you had already pulled back the plank.

“Hey!” 

You smirked and brought the plank to the other post about twenty feet further down the river. You climbed on it and faced Jason.

“So what now?” He called from his position. “We shoot each other?”

You grabbed an arrow and nocked, but left your bow aimed down at the water. Even from the distance you could see his face drop.

“You’re fucking crazy!” He shouted. “How is this not ending in one of us being dead?”

“You found static meditation too boring” You shouted back. “This should do it to find your balance and inner strength”

���What the fuck am I supposed to do?” 

“Dodge the arrow” You said, lifting your bow and shooting straight at him.

The arrow flew at him, and in his attempt to dodge it, lost balance and landed in the water. He came up with a gasp, and swam back to the wooden post before the strong current could drag him away. He climbed again, all drenched and glaring at you.

“Or fall and get wet”

“Oh, because you’re so good at dodging arrows from a upright tree trunk without falling” He snarked back as he took off his tank top and threw it on the shore.. “I’d love to see you on the other end of these”

For emphasis he raised his own bow. You shrugged and slipped your bow through your arm and head to rest it on your back, and waited for him to shoot. In a blink he nocked his first arrow, aiming from your left shoulder. You leaned out of the way, stable on your post, then slowly returned to your position. You raised your eyebrow in challenge, and oh did he not like that. The next arrow went to your feet, and you simply jumped, landing back solidly on your feet. He shot at the same place again, you jumped, then aimed for your mid section rapidly after. You landed on your left foot and crouched so your right slipped along the post, resting on the step in the middle. Jason paused a moment, eyes wide, before shooting straight at you. You propelled yourself up, then saw a second and third arrow coming your way before you had the time to stabilize yourself. You saved your eminent fall with a side vault and landed gracefully.

“Oh you must be kidding me!”

“Don’t act so surprised” You teased. “You can do that too, Jason. Close your eyes and take a deep breath, don’t think about it too much. Empty your mind and trust your instinct”

You waited as his shoulders went up and down, and his eyes slowly opened. Without waiting you shot an arrow, an easy one to dodge and he did, seemingly on instinct. You shot another, he jumped over it. His landing was wobbly, but he didn’t fall. His eyes lit up like when he found out a game he liked, and he began shooting back at you. You exchanged hits, not once falling, well, until one of you did. 

Two quick arrow of yours managed to make Jason land a bit too far to the right, and he fell in the water. However, he didn’t resurface immediately, which made you lower your bow and search the water for him. You frowned, and only noticed too late the wave of water coming on your side. Jason then climbed on your post and tackled your waist, throwing you straight into the water with him. You hit the water on the side, and swam back to the surface with a gasp.

Jason stared at you with a devious grin, daring you to do something about it. You hooked your bow on your shoulder and lunged. 

You had to admit, sparing in water wasn’t something you had ever done, and the resistance was getting to you. Jason was already better at hand to hand, but now he had the absolute advantage. His longer limbs allowed him to move better and to pull himself up on the river ground if you were to push him down, and the fact that he was only in shorts didn’t impede his movements as much as your heavier clothing. The current was rolling you down the river, and when you hit a shallower part, you couldn’t see the posts anymore. 

You now had water to your midsection, and Jason took the opportunity from your stumbling on the higher river floor. He caught you in his classic headlock, pressing your back against his chest. You stopped struggling then, knowing it was over for you. But he didn’t release you, and you didn’t move either when he slightly loosened his hold.

Both of you were panting from the effort, his chest was heaving quickly on your back. The water made your and Jason’s skin cold, but his breath was warm on the crook of your neck. Usually you would have tapped out, or flipped him over. But you were like in a trance, and you didn’t understand why you couldn’t move away.

Why you wouldn’t move away.

“Gotcha”

His voice sent shiver down your spine.

“Fuck, Jay”

It took you a moment to realize what you said. His breath stilled on your neck, and you gulped. You had never called him just “Jay” before, you didn’t do nicknames. And especially not with that voice, and in that kind of circumstance. You cleared your throat, and he dropped his arm and took a step away.

"I'll…" You trailed off. "I'll go change"

“Sure” His voice wavered in a weird way. “Uh, go on, I’ll catch up later”

You turned around, raising an eyebrow. “Is... Everything alright?”

“Yeah" He said. “I’m just, uh, going for a swim real quick. Another one”

Without another word, he submerged himself in the water.

---------

You had Damian in a headlock when the trail of bat family rushed down the batcave in a hurry, Jason trailing behind seeming way less bothered than the others. You looked up, and this moment of inattention gave Damian the opening to send you flying over him. Your back hit the ground flat, and your confused stare at your own distraction was met by a grimace of disbelief from Damian. Okay, you were truly out of it. 

“Luthor has devanced his plan, we got intel he would move tonight”

You pulled yourself to your feet, suddenly interested in the rush they seemed to be into. You followed Damian out of the cage and met the group halfway, glancing at Jason. He only briefly met your eyes, returning his attention on Bruce afterwards.

“He is going to move the weapon in an underground facility just outside the city, which means we will lose the signal from the tracker” He briefed. “The classic, three vans, only one carrying the package”

“Do we know what it’s even for?” Jason asked.

“I found something about yersinia pestis being injected in certain areas of Gotham” Damian stepped up. “So basically, a plague weapon”

“A plague weapon?” He frowned. “Why would Luthor would ever be interested in bringing back the plague?”

“Wait” Dick perked up, running to the working tables and looking around for something specific. He grabbed a stack of papers and came back. “Here, I saw he made the recent acquisition of a pharmaceutical company that produces, wait for it, gentamicin. It’s a plague treatment”

“So he’s gonna drop the virus on Gotham with that little device?” Jason raised an eyebrow.

“I don’t know--”

“Last year Luthor made the acquisition of a low income housing company mostly operating in the Bowery, Crime Alley and Otisburg” You spoke up, a wary look on your face. “My bet would be that device is to slip the bacteria into the ventilation systems, or the pipes”

“... He did” Dick confirmed, looking through the papers. “That would make sense. He spread the plague at a little scale, he provides the medicine, he wins at every steps”

“He IS trying to slither in the city council” Bruce hummed. “Trying to steal Wayne Enterprises’ seat”

“We need to go now if we don’t wanna miss our shot, Bruce” Dick warned.

“Yes” He snapped out of it. “Three vans. Nightwing, Red Robin, you’ll be assigned to the car that will go down through City Hall District. Robin and I will follow the car going through Gotham proper” He paused, looking at you and Jason. “You two work better together. You’ll go North. I’ll send Dick and Jason the trajectories. Gear up”

Wordlessly, you all went to your own dressing area. Yours was simply a plastic box in a corner with your suit folded, and your weapons on a nearby table. You took a moment longer than usual at the black uniform, but nevertheless put it on piece by piece. The tactical pants, the gloves, the undercoat and the protective layer on it, the belt and the spiked arm bracers. Then the belt, your sword on your back and the arrow quiver crossing above it. You reloaded the shooter on your arm and strapped the sheath on your thigh with your blades, then put on the comm in your ear. 

You grabbed your bow and returned toward the others, who were finishing gearing up as well. Jason came and stood beside you, an unreadable expression on his face. Well, it could be, but you refused to look at him in the face. You instead put on your helmet, the black visor hiding your face. 

“There’s no time to waste, let’s go” Bruce called. “Whatever team finds the van, you stop it and bring back the weapon here”

And with that, you went out. Bruce took the batmobile, while the rest were all on bikes. You and Jason left the cave last, shooting out on the road like two blurs in the night. Your comm was on, tuned on the channel with him only. It took him about five minutes to start talking.

“Tim knows” He said. “Or at least he is close enough to know”

“Doesn’t matter” You clipped back, swerving easily around cars on your way. “This will end soon enough one way or another”

“And you’ll go back to the league?” His voice was bitter, and you could only imagine his expression.

“... Yes” 

“Whatever”

You rode in silence until you reached your hideout point. There was still five minute before the van was scheduled to turn the corner and engage on the one way avenue, and you would execute the plan from then. You both turned different directions to hide in alleys, turning off the lights of your motorcycle. You put one foot down, leaving one hand on the handle. The engine was purring softly under you, warm and ready to take off.

“We’ll attack from the sides” Jason spoke again through the comm. You could see his red helmet on the other side of the street. “We take off the doors quick and clean, if it’s not there we lose them. If it is, I take the van and you cover me”

“Copy that” 

“They should be there in one minute, get ready” 

You adjusted your helmet and readied your explosive arrows. You then crouched on the bike and waited for the van to pass in front of the hideout. You counted the seconds in your head, five, four, three, tw- 

“What the fuck?” You frowned when not one, but three vans heavily escorted with motorcycles sped past you. You and Jason engaged on the road nevertheless, coming up side to side at a safe distance from the vans.

“That wasn’t supposed to happen” He mumbled. “Alright, change of plans. Keep your distances behind them without being seen, I’ll cut them upfront. When I start drawing the escort, blow the doors of each vans. Fuck being subtle”

With that, he parted ways into a smaller street on his right. You remained hidden into traffic, making sure the bikers did not spot you. Not long after, you heard gunshots and they all were drawn at the front, like Jason had planned. You accelerated closer of the last van at the tail. With one hand, you grabbed your bow on top of the handle, waited for the bike to get back straight and slowed down a bit. In a quick movement, you grabbed an explosive arrow and shot on the van doors, immediately regaining your grip on the handle afterwards. The doors flew open, revealing it empty.

You cursed, but swerved nonetheless around the slowing down van and paused in the driver’s blind spot. You knew they’d look for you to pass them, so you got ready with a blade in your hands. You waited a bit more before rolling up to the window and throwing the blade in the guy’s throat before he could shoot you. You repeated the same operation with the next van, also taking down two rogue bikers that had left Jason’s distraction to get to you. That van ended up empty as well.

“Two down, one to go” 

“Alright, hurry up, those fuckers just keep coming from I don’t fucking know where-- FUCK”

“Hang on, I’m almost done”

Nothing in the last van either. You frowned, thinking how easy it had been for you to bust the vans. The bikers guarding the vans surely couldn’t be that stupid to still hover around Jason while you were clearly open, even if there was nothing. But you chased the doubt aside, and instead tuned in the frequency with everyone else

“Our vans are empty”

“So are our” It was Tim who replied a few seconds later. “Wait, vans in plural? B, did you get more vans too?”

“Only one, empty too” 

“Where did your intel come from again?” Tim asked. A moment of silence followed. 

“You and Jason should get out of there, something’s not right on the monitor--”

You lost contact when you were violently hit from the side by a black car. You were projected off your bike and sent rolling down several meters away. Your suit and helmet took most of the fall, ripping and breaking with the rough friction on the asphalt. You visor cracked and the protective plastic lining broke at the base. Your vision was blurry for a second, and your muscles barely responsive. You pushed through the pain anyway and carefully took off your helmet, throwing it away. You looked up and tried to focus on the figure in black coming toward you, and when you did, you gathered your remaining strength and managed a kneeling position. It was Luthor. 

You were about to shoot one of your dart when he shot first, sending  a shockwave through your already weak muscles. You fell forward on all fours with a barely contained scream tearing through your throat. 

“We meet again” His voice was deeper than you expected, and way too calm. You didn’t like it. “I knew if I organized this little parade, you’d come back out there following the masked clowns”

So, it was a setup.

“Where’s the weapon?” You rasped.

“Safe in my underground storing since this morning” He replied smugly. “Don’t beat yourself up, you had no chance. You came too close last time at the lab”

“Kill me now and get over with it”

“Now why would I want to do that? I just wanted to see you from up close” He smirked. “I knew those eyes the second I looked at you the other day. And now that I have you here without that stupid mask, I can see you took more after your mother than I had planned”

You gritted your teeth, panting from the pain of the electrical shock that had gone through you. Hairs were falling out of your braid and sticking to your forehead, yet you didn’t care. You could only glare at him.

“But you’re still my daughter. You belong to me” 

You lunged, but another electric shock sent you back on your knees with a strangled cry. It had been a reflex on your part, since you were usually pretty good a pushing your pain aside. But you had been off ever since your last encounter with him. He got in your head so easily, and now he wouldn’t leave. 

“I am Thaelib fi alzalam” You rasped out. “And I don’t”

“Ah yes, I figured you would deny your name when we finally met” He seemed amused. “And you do, legally speaking. Your mother were under contract to deliver you and walk away. Instead she stole you from me. She stole years of work, for what? So you could become no one”

“You killed her!” You belted out, eyes wide with rage. “You forced us into hiding, she sent me to the League to protect me from you”

“Is that what you think? Or what she told you?” He was becoming impatient. “You were special. You were my first successful genetic clone, but her own selfishness got in the way”

“She wasn’t selfish” You tried to reach for a blade on your thigh, but another shock forced you on your hands. “You were”

“I was?” He put a hand on his chest. “I gave you your superior skills, I gave you your speed, I made you like this. I gave you that gift, that power, that strength, all of it so you could make it out in this world. I did it for you, from a father to his daughter”

You lifted your head a frown on your face. You skills? What was he talking about?

“You didn’t think the League’s training gave you those skills, did you?” He scoffed. “As I told you, you’re special, my girl. I only wished for you to thrive”

“No” You mumbled, narrowing your eyes. Your mother never specified you were enhanced. Did she even know? All that time you thought your successes were from your hard work, but they were really from a genetic modification. You always knew there was something peculiar about you that made you feel like you didn’t exactly belong with the others, and it had just been revealed to you. And what else could he have put inside of you, you weren’t aware about? It made your head spin.

“You’re not one of them, you realize it now” He stalked toward you. “Not the League, not the vigilantes either. Your mother stole you away from what you were made for, and the League merely repressed it. But you can’t fight your nature”

You didn’t look up when he stooped in front of you. You only glanced at your black gloved hands, realizing that all you had suffered only delayed the inevitable. If your mother hadn’t ran away, maybe all of your struggle and pain would have never happened.

“Come with me” He offered. “This internal conflict you have will subside quickly enough once you’re back home, you’ll see”

You ears were ringing as his proposition replayed in your head in loops. Maybe if you agreed he’d stop tormenting you then, maybe he’d leave your head and you could finally rest without obsessing over him. You slowly looked up, but something coming on your side made your eyes widen. Only then the sound reached your ears, and in a quick reflex movement, you rolled away.

Jason was walking toward you, shooting his bullet in rapid fire in Luthor’s direction.

Luthor noticed him half a second later and jumped away, running away and climbing in his black car. He drove away as Jason reached your, his eyes trailed on the retreating black cadillac. Then, he turned to you, the glossing red of his helmet staring back at you.

“You okay?”

You shook your head no.

#jason todd x reader #Jason Todd #jason todd imagine #jason todd reader #red hood #red hood x reader #red hood imagine #red hood reader #dc #dcu #DC Universe #dc imagine #dcu imagine #dc universe imagine #outlaws #outlaws imagine #League of Assassins #League of Shadows #batfam #imagine #dark fox #dark fox 5

[tessdl]

@mcntydcluca @downstvged @cvssndra

tess, peyton, and monty were walking back from what most would call work but with the three of them together, there wasn't much work going on. fnally they were free and they made their way back to the house. as they walked they passed a playground. tess grinned mischievously. "mon i bet you the next round of laundry that i can beat you to the top of that jungle gym."

monty was covered in tomato paste, and if that gave any inclination of how much work they'd done, he didn't know what would. nevertheless, he walked home, his best friends by his side and the fading scent of spaghetti fading behind him. his eyes snapped up, mischief glowing. " you're on, t. " instantly, he was off, daunting to the jungle gym.

six uncooked spaghetti rods made their home behind peyton’s right ear, like a cigarette, but way cooler. bunched together and bound with a bit of cooking string, they promoted a kitchen bad boy aesthetic: something his two best friends bagged him about for a solid half-hour at the close of their kitchen shift. “ you two are children! “ peyton called as monty and tess careened toward the playground. but his legs screeched into motion, too, and soon he hoisted himself up on top of the monkey bars. he was sure to steady his pasta accessory upon landing. “ it’s the de luca showdown of the century, and monty’s in the lead — but oh heck! tess is coming up strong behind him! “  peyton cupped his hands on either side of his lips, emulating a big league announcer. he swung his feet as he watched. “ who’s it gonna be, folks? who’s gonna take the cake ?! “

“listen you cheating sack of shit!” tess yelled, speeding after him. he was a fair fight against her abilities. she debated tackling him but then she pulled ahead and stuck her tongue out as she went. “me! i want cake!” she called to peyton.

the one thing monty could say about his sister was that in everything but charm, she was his equal. same routines, same workouts. it was hard to believe they shared no genetics. “ hey!” he groaned, kicking his legs faster, but he was only barely behind her. “ that’s my cake!” he screeches, jumping and lifting himself over the side of the jungle gym.

peyton watched his favorite morons with pure admiration. only the de luca siblings could spin a day spent cooking vats of spaghetti into one so amusing, his sides now ached with each laugh. " they're beginning the climb –– who's it gonna be?! it's the final countdown !!" peyton raised his hands in a trumpet mockery, humming the melody to the sporting world's most overplayed-yet-equally-as-badass tune.

monty could’ve had her beat if this was just a race on two legs, but climbing? climbing was tess’ specialty. she used to rock climb, she still hiked, and she had a lot of experience climbing in and out of second story windows. getting up a jungle gym was nothing. she reached the top in seconds, throwing her hands up in victory. “sucks to suck, sucker!” she teased, offering her hand down to pull monty the rest of the way up.

he knew his chance at winning was gone once tess hiked up her leg and got to work. she was always a better climber, monty's noodle arms being no help in keeping himself safe. that, and his fear of heights kept him from ever getting into it. nevertheless, he stuck it out til the end. de lucas don't quit. " ah, shove it. " and yet, he still took her hand. " y’know if we were on flat land i would've smoked your ass. "

" if i were involved in this race i would've smoked both your asses, " peyton amended with a grin. he hopped down from his spot on the monkey bars and trotted over to the jungle gym. " facts. " it was almost like this wasn't new ham any more, and they weren't on the cusp of no longer being kids. peyton hoisted himself up onto the jungle gym with ease, swinging his legs over to dangle off the silly rooftop covering the entrance to the slide. " think we'd make it onto the next season of american ninja warrior? "

“sure you would,” tess snorted as peyton climbed to join them. american ninja warrior was intriguing, maybe she’d have them try something like that next, if only to keep their minds off the shit show that was now their lives. “monty would be automatically disqualified for being too ugly,” she teased, ruffling his hair. it was then that tess saw her. cassandra pressman looking cute. even if she had a stick up her ass, there was no denying she was beautiful. it took her all of 3 seconds to hatch a plan. she gave monty a discrete nod and made a few hand gestures to relay the plan. she’d yell, he’d shove. simple yet effective. “hey cassandra!” tess yelled from atop the jungle gym, moving around so monty could sneak past her and shove peyton down toward her. “peyton has a question for you about prom!”

monty swatted at his sister, elbowing her in the side. “ you’re just mean, you know that ? people think we’re twins and you’re calling me ugly. “ monty couldn’t say it out loud, but he knew his best friends were gorgeous, like super model type, but he knew he had his own charm himself. the puppy dog eyes were his trade mark. immediately, monty caught on to his sisters plan, a smirk growing on his lips as they set it in motion. once she called out, monty’s hands flew to send peyton flying down the slide, a chuckle falling from his lips as he moved to offer a high five to his partner in crime.

peyton laughed at tess's dig. " aw, c'mon, this guy's adorable: he'd be a fan fave for sure. " he nudged monty with the toe of his sneaker and turned back to look at tess, but her entire disposition had shifted. " what're you–– " his focus swiveled to hone in on what she'd been looking at, but he was already slipping down the slide, accelerating toward: cassandra. ohshitohshitohshitohshit. wide-eyed, peyton reached the bottom of the slide and stuck the landing. if the definition of stuck was officially changed to nearly tripping over his own feet. " oh, hey! hey, cassandra uh –– " he rubbed the back of his neck and cast her a sheepish smile. his heart was gonna friggin' implode. " what's good? "  smooth.

cassandra was confused to say the least but she couldn’t help but grin at the sight of peyton tumbling toward her. what’s good? that was some slang she hadn’t heard in awhile and realized his friends had caught him off guard so she figured she’d help him out. “i’m doing well, thanks for asking. i heard tess mention prom, did you want to sign up for something?” she happened to already know he was signed up for decorating committee, but kept that bit of information to herself.

did he want to sign up for something? peyton's breath caught in his throat. his expression blanked for a moment as his mind screeched to a halt. " uh..." you idiot. he offered a near-apologetic chuckle, eyes darting to his feet. her feet. the mulch. the swingset. " yeah, actually, i– " fuck, did she know he was already signed up? he couldn't do this. he could feel her eyes burning into him, and his hands felt buzzy, like they might start shaking. he pushed them into the back pockets of his jeans and did the only thing he could do: he smiled through it. " i... was wondering." breathe " if there was still a slot open. for prom.  " jesus christ. " for like... your date? " oh, god. ohgodhe'sdoingthis. ohgodhe'sdonethis. " could i... sign up... for that? " peyton dared to catch her eye again with a hopeful smile, and fought to keep his nerves from tacking on more words.

this was a side of peyton cassandra had never seen before. he was usually so chill, something she wasn't very good at. but now it felt like they switched roles or at the very least like they were sharing one. a slot open for prom. her eyebrows scrunched together in confusion. your date. the scrunched eyebrows raised. she pressed her lips together to hide her smile and pulled out her phone. "hmm, let me see." she pretended to check the list. "no one's signed up for that yet so-" she looked up at him, " you can definitely have that spot if you want."

peyton forgot how to breathe. his lungs nearly collapsed in on themselves as his lips fell agape. she said yes. she said yes. " wh- are you- " a bright grin lit his entire face, practically ear to ear, and if it weren't for the fluttering in his chest, he might have found time to be embarrassed. " really? "  cassandra pressman. said yes. to going to prom. to being his date. " wow, that's, i. wow. thanks. " thanks? peyton brushed a hand through his hair and shifted his weight, attempting to reinstate his natural state of chill. maybe she'd ignore that stupid response. not likely. " so like. i could... i could pick you up.  before? before prom, yeah. if you want? maybe around... i don't know, what time works for you? " holy shit. this was happening. holy. fucking. shit.

cassandra could no longer contain her grin, especially as he rambled. it made her feel better because this was usually how their conversations went, but usually the rambling came from her. she nodded and pretended not to notice the thanks tacked on at the end. “i was hoping before prom, after might be a little... inconvenient?” she did her best not to look straight at him for too long in fear that she’d get distracted and say something stupid. “prom starts at eight, so any time around then is fine. we don’t need to be early or anything.”

peyton ducked his head and laughed. " after's inconvenient, noted. " when he looked up at cassandra again, his eyes sparkled. this was real. he was going to prom with cassandra pressman.  albeit, this prom was... not what west ham high typically put on. but it'd still be awesome. he'd have to recruit tess and monty to find something to wear. " okay, cool. 8ish. you're p– " peyton stopped himself and let out a light chuckle. get it together, man. " that's perfect. "

"perfect," she repeated. she'd managed to get this entire conversation without sounding like an absolute moron and she was trying to keep it that way lest he change his mind. "i'm um- wearing gold if, if that helps?" she semi shrugged. "we don't have to match or anything, i just thought i'd let you know in case you... needed to know that." 

“ gold, “ peyton echoed with a nod. “ that’s cool. “  cool? eugh, dude. really? his eyes darted across her features as she rambled on, smile only growing as the words accrued. yeah, he thought, gold’s a good fit. “ i like knowing that. knowledge is always appreciated. “ jeez. “ is it chill if i match my tie? or, like — is that too much? not enough? “  he’s never taken a real date to a prom before. let alone cassandra. and he’d be damned if he fucked this one up.

"you're welcome to match... that's what people usually do for prom, right? match their date?" date. was she his date or had he asked her as a friend? did he just need someone to go with? she thought about tess. if he needed someone to go with he could've asked tess? did that mean he wanted to go with her or was tess already snagged up by someone?

" oh, they do? "  peyton's hands dipped into his pockets before surfacing less than a second later. his fingers intermingled and broke apart before he finally, finally managed to get them to rest at his sides. " ha. yeah, right, they do. "  did she want this to be a date? he'd asked with that intent, but–– " i mean, that would make sense, right? for us to match? as dates? " he cursed his mouth for running miles ahead of his mind. " i-i... if you... if that's what you... "  he trailed off, hands opening and closing at his sides. god, he's bad at this. " ...envisioned. " a beat. peyton thought he was done speaking, but more words spilled out anyway. " because, that's–– that's what i envisioned. the date. the, uh... date thing. "

she grinned and nodded afraid of what would stumble out of her mouth if she opened it, especially since what he'd said was very much what she wanted. she tried to gather her thoughts and weave them into a coherent sentence but it ended up as more of a list. "prom, eight pm, gold, dates."

peyton beamed. " prom, eight pm, gold, " he echoed back with a definitive nod and a snap. " dates. "  his fingertips buzzed. he wondered if she could hear his pulse from just a few inches away. and then realized, hell, he didn't care –– he'd do a fricken happy dance right now, if he could.  " i'm looking forward to it. "

"great," she beamed. "i'll see you then. unless i see you before then, which is possible. i'm basically everywhere." stop talking cassandra. "okay i'm going to go make sure grizz hasn't already broken everything." she gave him one last smile before rushing off.

" okay. okay, yeah. "  peyton chuckled. did she even know how amazing she was? cassandra was the only person who could manage to run this whole entire town and still find time to be adorable. " i'll see you. "  peyton raised a hand in a tiny wave. as soon as cassandra turned her back, his hands rose to his head and he all but gaped, spinning on his heels. holy shit, he mouthed to himself. holy shit. 

his grin was sinfully bright as he turned toward the jungle gym, where his two best friends still sat, overlooking the whole scene. ten minutes ago, he'd wanted to kill them. now? he wanted to practically kiss their feet. ( except not literally; that'd be... gross. )  with a look of elated disbelief, he spun around once more, as if trying to get re-oriented to real friggin life. " holy shit, " he said aloud this time, smile growing even wider.

monty sat in wonder as he watched the whole thing go down. he couldn't help the grin stretching across his face as his best friend finally turned back towards the de lucas. monty shoved his sister's arm, rattling her in a wave of shock. " tess, he got it. he got it! " he sprung off the jungle gym, arms already wide open. " my man! "

"yes i can see that, i have eyes you lunatic," she huffed, shoving him. she jumped down after him, watching monty practically tackle peyton. "he probably can't breathe yet monty, try not to strangle him before his date."

peyton met monty in a colossal hug, smiling so hard his cheeks ached.  “ dude! dude!! “ he jumped in their embrace and patted monty’s back before breaking away. he felt like he could leap to the freaking moon.  tess teased monty about strangling him before his date and the word drew a breath from his lips. peyton let out a loud laugh in disbelief. “ she said yes — how — how the heck did she say yes ?! “ 

monty ignored his sisters comments, instead continuing to crush the life out of the boy— he just achieved his fucking dream. and he was so proud. “dude!!!” he yelled back, a smile wide on his lips as he relished in the excitement of his friend. “i told you, man. you just had to ask.”

#read more because long #c;cassandra #c;peyton #c;monty