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heroesriseandfall · 1 year

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Dick Grayson & Tim Drake: A Photograph

A photo of my family and you’re in it.

Comic sources:

Batman #441

Secret Origins #50

Batman #436

Batman #441

Secret Origins #50

Secret Origins 80-Page Giant #1, “Little Wing”

Secret Origins 80-Page Giant #1, “Little Wing” [edited]

Secret Origins 80-Page Giant #1, “Little Wing”

Secret Origins #50

Detective Comics #965

52 #31, “The Origin of Robin”

Batman #441 - Cover by George Pérez

Red Robin #12

Secret Origins 80-Page Giant #1, “Little Wing”

Batman #440

Image descriptions in alt text are also copied below read more.

1. Two comic panels from Batman #441 showing 13-year old Tim Drake sitting in a chair at Wayne Manor, with Dick Grayson in front of him and Alfred Pennyworth standing beyond that. They all have serious expressions on their faces. Tim says, “Okay, you won’t take me seriously until I tell you everything. Dick, I don’t want this to hurt you. And I’m really afraid it might.” Dick says, “Tim, just tell your story, please.” Tim reaches into his jacket as if to grab something and says, “All right, all right. Well, first, my name’s Tim Drake…and though you won’t remember it, we’ve met before. I’ve even got a photograph to prove it.”

2. Text from Secret Origins (1986) #50 that says: A woman with a small boy in the front of the grandstand waved to him. All three Graysons trotted to her. “This is Tim’s first time at the circus,” she said, patting the boy’s thin shoulder, “and we were wondering if you’d let us take your photo with him.” “Of course,” Mother replied, smiling. “We’d be delighted.”

3. Comic panels from Batman #436 showing John and Mary Grayson in their yellow, green, and red circus costumes as they walk through the circus with a young Dick Grayson between them. John says, “Dick, I’ve got those tickets for the baseball game monday.” Dick grins up at him and says, “You really got ‘em? Wow! I can’t believe I’m actually going to the World Series.” Someone off-panel says, “Umm, excuse us for interrupting, but—” The Drakes walk right up to the Graysons. Janet is in a pink day dress and Jack is in a suit, holding a very young Tim Drake in his arms. Janet says, “This is Tim’s first time at a circus, and we were wondering if you’d let us take your photo with him?” Mary Grayson puts her hands on Dick’s shoulders as Dick grins up at little Tim, who smiles down at him in response. Mary says, “Of course…we’d be delighted.” They all pose for a picture with the crowds behind them. Jack and Janet stand between John and Mary, while Dick kneels in the front holding young Tim up on his knee. He looks down at Tim, who looks back, and with a smile, Dick says, “Tim, say cheese.”

4. A comic panel from Batman #436 showing Alfred Pennyworth’s hands holding out and gesturing towards a photo as he says, “Gentlemen, and ladies—the very last photo of the Grayson family together. One last moment of happiness.” The photo shows the Grayson and Drake families together in the same poses as the previous image. John and Mary Grayson stand on either side of Jack and Janet Drake, while Dick kneels on one knee with his other knee up, where he is holding young Tim to sit on the knee. The parents are looking forewards, but Dick and Tim are looking at each other. The Graysons are all in their circus costumes, but the Drakes are in suits and Janet a dress.

5. A comic page from Batman #441. The first panel shows Tim Drake, who is sitting in a chair at Wayne Manor and holding up a photo of the Drakes with the Flying Graysons while Dick Grayson is standing in front of Tim’s chair. Tim says, “This was taken on my first trip to the circus—on the day I saw Batman for the first time...On the day your parents were killed.” Dick Grayson looks shocked, and takes the photo as he says, “Oh, my god—my parents.” Alfred Pennyworth, standing behind Dick, says, “I—I know this photograph, that’s you?” Tim looks up at them and says, “Uh-huh. After Bruce Wayne made you his ward, my parents sent it to you. They thought you’d want it. I was only a kid, but I don’t think I’ll ever forget what happened. I had nightmares about it for years. First about your parents, then about Batman. I kept seeing this dark black thing that swooped out of the sky. No, no—let me start at the beginning.” The scene changes to a gold-toned memory of the Drakes walking through Haly’s Circus. Janet is in a light dress, holding Jack’s arm as they grin at each other. Jack is in a suit, holding a young Tim who is also in a suit and has a big smile on his face as he reaches towards a passing Clown. Janet says, “I think you were right, honey—he loves it. Look at him laughing at everything.” Jack replies, “Hey, I said he wasn’t too young.” Janet says, “Okay, I was wrong. But sometimes circuses can frighten kids.” The Drakes walk through the circus, toward where you can see the Flying Graysons walking together. Janet continues, “They’re loud and rowdy, and I remember when I was Timothy’s age I was scared by people wearing costumes. Sue me. I'm a mother. I worry.” Jack says, “You were a girl. Tim’s a boy. That’s the difference.” Janet smiles up at Jack and says, “Sexism, dear? And here I thought you were liberated.” Jack follows Tim’s eyesight toward the smiling Flying Graysons as they walk past, then says, “Okay, okay, I’m sorry. Look, if you’re so worried, there’re a couple of the performers. Let’s take him over there. He’ll see they’re people just like him.”

6. A comic page from Batman #441 showing a gold-toned memory scene with the Flying Graysons, all in acrobatics costumes remniscent of the Robin suit, and the Drakes, who are wearing formal dress. Mary and John are smiling at Dick walking between them as Dick excitedly says, “—I’m actually going to the world series?” Beyond him, Janet and Jack Drake are walking up to them, with Jack holding a very young smiling Tim in his arms. Jack says, “Umm, excuse us for interrupting, but this is Tim’s first time at the circus…and we were wondering if you’d let us take your photo with him?” The two families pose, with Dick on one knee with Tim Drake sitting on his other knee, held up by Dick’s arms. Tim stares at Dick in wonder as Dick smiles at him and says, “Tim, say cheese.” 13-year-old Tim speaks through a narration box to say, “Maybe I knew you were just a kid like me, but I kept staring at you, and your circus costume. It was bright red and green and you seemed so happy in it.” In the memory, Dick pats Tim’s head as he gets ready to leave, and says, “Watch me on the trapeze, Tim. I’m going to do my act—‘specially for you. Be good now.” Then the scene returns to the present, in regular color, showing 13-year-old Tim sitting in Wayne Manor while Alfred and Dick look at him. Tim says, “I don’t remember the clowns or the animals, or anything else. I just remember waiting for you to go on. And then, when you did, I just sat there and watched.”

7. Text from Secret Origins #50 that says: The photo was snapped and the Graysons returned to the darkness of the backstage area and did the stretching exercises Johnny Grayson insisted precede every performance. On the other side of the canvas wall, the crowd was laughing and applauding the clowns’ fireman routine. They heard the ringmaster’s round baritone, amplified and distorted by the loud speakers, booming through the tent. “Ladies and gentlemen, children of all ages—for your entertainment and amusement, doing their death-defying act without benefit of a net—” Johnny kissed his wife and ruffled his son’s hair.

8. A comic panel from Secret Origins 80-Page Giant #1, the fourth story, showing Tim Drake and Dick Grayson sitting on a couch in Dick Grayson’s apartment. Tim is on the left wearing a pink and purple Gotham Knights jersey with a matching hat. He’s pointing at Dick, who’s turned to listen attentively to Tim while wearing a white tank top and gray sweats as he clicks a TV remote. Tim says, “Dick, meeting you—and him—have been the single most defining moments of my life.” The scene changes to the memory of the Drakes and the Flying Graysons posing together in Haly’s Circus while someone who is just a silhouette takes a photo of them. John and Mary are standing on either side of Jack and Janet with wide smiles, each in their red, yellow, and green acrobatics outfits. John’s and Dick’s outfits look particularly remniscent of the Robin outfit. Dick is kneeled in front of the parents with one knee up where young Tim is sitting on his thigh, smiling and looking at Dick. 14-year-old Tim narrates this memory by saying, “Some days I wish I could go back to feeling like that. You promised me that you’d do a quadruple somersault. And you delivered. It was the best day of my life. And then your parents died.”

9. An edited comic panel from Secret Origins 80-Page Giant #1 of very young Tim Drake with his father’s arm on his shoulder, both looking up at John and Mary Grayson falling. John and Mary are in their red, yellow, and green acrobatics costumes, knees bent and arms stretched with one part of hands barely touching. Behind them, their acrobatic lines are snapping. Crowds in the large tent are yelling and pointing up at them. Tim’s face is not visible but he’s clearly watching them fall.

10. A comic panel from Secret Origins 80-Page Giant #1 of nine-year-old Tim Drake staring at a TV screen, on which Robin is visible mid-flip, arms holding his legs tucked in. The Penguin is croached with his back turned to Robin, directly in position for Robin to land on him. Audio from the TV is saying, “Wanted for theft of the Lapis Lazuli Horus Crown, the so-called Penguin was apprehended by the Batman and a young costumed vigilante…” 13-year-old Tim narrates the memory of his younger self, saying: “You gave yourself away with the quad. The ringmaster told the crowd at Haly’s that only three people alive could pull off a jump like that—you and a pair of Russian gymnasts that defected from the Bolshoi to Ringing Brothers. I knew it was you.” Off-panel, Dick Grayson responds to Tim’s recollection by saying, ”Incredible. A nine-year-old kid figures out the best-kept secret on the planet.” In the memory, just beyond young Tim in the background are Jack and Janet Drake at a table, with Jack looking like he’s speaking angrily.

11. Text from Secret Origins #50 that says: Below, the ringmaster was saying, “Ladies and gentlemen, quiet, please, as young Dick Grayson attempts the in-credible…im-possible…quadruple flip of doom!” Dick breathed deeply and slowly, relaxing himself as Johnny had taught him, grabbed the bar, pushed off the platform, letting momentum carry him— But was something wrong? The trapeze didn’t feel right. —and allowed his mind to empty, and there were the few dizzy, exhilarating instants: spin spin spin spin. Feet thudding onto the platform. Roar of applause. Mother’s warm fingers touching his cheek. Ringmaster’s boom: “Let’s hear it, ladies and gentlemen—dauntless Dick Grayson, the boy wonder of the circus!”

12. A comic page from Detective Comics #965 showing a warm-toned scene of 13-year-old Tim Drake talking to a gobsmacked Dick Grayson in Wayne Manor. Tim says, “C’mon, Dick—that flip you did as Robin. It was a quadruple somersault. The circus ringmaster said only three people could do that.” Tim holds up a photo of the Drakes with the Flying Graysons, and continues, “I knew that somersault. Knew it like I knew my own name.” Tim smiles and says, “And it all made sense. Batman showed up at the circus and took you with him. About six months later, Robin made his first appearance. If you were Robin, and you were Bruce Wayne’s ward—I realized Bruce Wayne was batman.” The scene zooms out to show Tim sitting in a chair as Dick and Alfred Pennyworth stare at him. Tim says, “I don’t want to say the rest was easy, because you guys really covered your tracks. But if you go in knowing Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson are Batman and Robin, well, you can find the clues to prove it.”

13. Comic panels from 52 #31, 2nd story, “The Origin of Robin.” 9-year-old Tim Drake is shown from the back, sitting on the floor staring at a TV screen that shows Dick Grayson as Robin, flipping through the air. Tim’s face is reflected in the TV screen, showing his awestruck smile. Various objects are scattered on the floor in front of Tim, including pizza, books, and a magnifying glass. Orange narration boxes say, “The eyes of a fan caught a moment the rest of the world had overlooked. Tim Drake—and Tim Drake alone—had grown up fascinated by the career of an obscure and forgotten child acrobat named Dick Grayson—but when Tim saw Batman’s partner Robin perform Grayson’s signature gymnastic moves, something clicked in Tim’s mind.” The next panel shows Tim in a trenchcoat, expression awestruck as he shines a flashlight through a glass case in which a pristine Robin costume is hanging. The narration boxes continue, “Over the next few years, Tim—through a series of clues and lucky breaks—proved conclusively that Grayson was Robin…or, rather, had been.”

14. George Pérez’s cover art for Batman #441, cropped to focus on the lower half. Dick Grayson, in civilian clothing, is standing in the forefront of the image, with the 80’s Batcave looming around him. He’s looking down with a pensive expression at the Robin costume held in his hands. Behind to the right, Tim Drake (also in civilian clothing) is standing with photographs falling out of his hands in front of Dick’s shoes. The closest photo shows the Flying Graysons posing with the Drake family. The next closest two photos are of Robin and Batman. Beyond Dick and the photos, to the left, is Alfred Pennyworth. Up at the top, partially cropped away, are Batman and Two Face’s lower faces, with a scene of a bridge by Batman’s face and a flipping coin with a scene of Gemini casinio behind it right next to Two Face’s face. In the Batcave, the giant penny, the T-rex, and the massive batcomputer are all on prominent display.

15. Comic panels from Red Robin #12 of Dick Grayson talking to Tim Drake with a blurry aquamarine Batcave behind them. Dick is wearing the chestplate of the Batman suit but no cowl, as he looks intensely (with the slightest smile) toward Tim, who is shirtless, revealing long pink scratches and scars along his shoulder and cheek. Tim, looking up at Dick, says, “Ra’s—” Dick says, “Gone. We swept the place and got nothing. You want to tell me what that was all about?” Tim replies, “It’s...a little complicated. But I think we’re good for a while.” Dick says, “How’d you know? How did you know I’d be there to save you?” Tim smiles up at Dick as he says, “You’re my brother, Dick. You’ll always be there for me.”

16. A comic panel from Secret Origins 80-Page Giant #1 showing Tim drake and Dick Grayson sitting on the couch in Dick’s apartment. Dick is reaching over to mess with Tim’s hair as Tim laughs and leans away, raising his hands to jokingly defend against Dick. Behind them in the apartment is a desk with a computer whose screen is lit up with a woman’s sketchy face. Dick says, “Got a friend visiting.” Barbara Gordon, over Dick’s computer audio, asks, “Anyone I know?” Dick says, “Little brother.”

17. Cropped art from Batman #440 of a cool-toned photograph with the Flying Graysons and the Drake family posing together. The Flying Graysons are all in their acrobatics outfits. John and Dick Grayson’s outfits are styled similarly, looking like a mix of the original Robin suit and Tim Drake’s first Robin suit. John and Mary are stood to either side of the smiling Jack and Janet Drake. Jack is in a suit and his hands are resting on Janet’s arms. Janet is wearing a day dress. In front of all the parents, Dick Grayson is down on one knee, with his left knee up so little Tim Drake can be perched on his thigh. Tim is in a a suit, similar to his father, and he’s looking up at Dick with a broad, awestruck smile. Dick is holding Tim in place with his arms, and instead of looking toward the camera like the parents are, he’s meeting Tim’s eyes with a smile. Behind them all, the crowds of Haly’s Circus are vaguely visible. In the corner by Dick’s right left, 13-year-old Tim Drake’s thumb is resting on the photograph, as if he’s holding it.

#dick grayson #tim drake #batfamily #batfam #batbros #robin iii #bonds: i knew it was you #robin i #the flying graysons #heroesriseandfall #edits #dc comics #i'm a little nuts about their brotherhood maybe just maybe...also i could've added the 'seeing batman for the first time' parallels #but i didn't want this to be about Bruce I just wanted it to be Tim & Dick and their families at the circus <3 #plus it was already getting long RIP i already went past the mobile app image limit.#sorry for the extremely long image descriptions it's meant to be a very visual post and comics have so much in just one page #long post #my edits

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italiansteebie · 11 months

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I think I've kept y'all waiting long enough. Part 2 of this

"we? sorry Eddie, but I think it was you who fucked up this time. we see the way you look at him man, and. if you say he's changed then. I dunno. I guess I believe you."

It's Gareth who says it.

Gareth who's Eddie's main man, his confidant, the robin to well... his Steve.

and that's what makes it worse because he knows the disdain Gareth has for the guy, and here he is, telling Eddie he fucked up by letting him go.

"What do I do?" he asks, voice at a whisper, like he's scared of the answer. "You stop fucking around and make our stupid ass babysitter smile again," and that could only be, Eddie turns, looking for the source of the voice. Yep. Mike wheeler.

Dustin stomps over to him, "dude. we've been over this. Steve likes you. not as a friend, okay? I know you like him too, hell. even max can see it and she's fucking blind!"

"true." and there's max and Lucas, slowly making their way down steve's basement stairs, hands tightly gripping the railing. and now he knows he's got no choice. He's in Steve's basement, with his brats, and the rest of hellfire staring at him wait for him to move, and he knows he can't put this whole thing off like he wants to.

because if he's being honest, he wants to cancel hellfire, send everyone who, make max get up from the seat she just settled in, and run back to the trailer and hide from the world.

but now he's got an audience of people, people who weren't even sure about the guy two seconds ago, who were willing to berate Eddie on his behalf.

so he's got to go make it right. (and maybe he's got to get over the humiliating fact that he too, has become absolutely enamored with Steve Harrington. and he shakes that thought away because it's not humiliating. the guys a real catch, Wayne loves him, and so do his friends apparently, and he's just down right, nice. which Eddie was not expecting).

so he huffs, looking around the room, even max's cloudy eyes are pointed in his direction, waiting. and he bounds up the stairs.

"Steve!" He calls,

"Steve, I need to talk to you,"

and Steve rounds the corner, looking tired, "Eddie, I swear I'll stay out of your hair, you don't have to leave. I- I know you don't like me but, I- I want to prove it to you that I've changed. I-"

Eddie cut him off, "Steve, Steve. you don't need to prove anything I- I was being an asshole. I was embarrassed to have a crush on you,"

"not helping your case, Eddie,"

"I know, I know, ugh! Im not-" he pauses to scrub a hand down his face. "Im not good at this so im just gonna come out and say it. You are- too good for me. you're so fucking nice. I don't get it, and here you are listening to me, and you don't have to! I hurt you and you let me play my stupid game in your basement! you apologized to me. and so. I was scared , okay? because im not stupid, I could see that you liked me, and I- I was so scared that I didn't deserve you that I got mean, and you don't deserve that, not from me, not from anyone and I- I'm just. I can't tell you how sorry, and stupid I feel,"

"ed-"

"no, Steve. let me grovel, okay?"

"Eddie, you don't need to. I- I forgive you."

"You do?"

"Yeah. On one condition,"

"whatever you want, Stevie."

"ask me on a date."

"wh- okay." Eddie breathed out nervously, wiping his palms on his chest, "Steve, would you do me the great honor, of going on a date, with- with me?"

he saw the shaking of steves shoulders, oh god, did he make him cry again? Jesus, what was wrong with him? he was about to open his mouth to apologize, "yes, Eddie," Steve laughed, cutting him off, "I'll go on a date with you," there was a twinkle in his eye, and Eddie almost cried at the thought that he was the one who caused it.

there was an eruption of noise behind him, turns out his audience had followed him, waiting to see the ending. "Kiss!" Dustin called, "Kiss! kiss, kiss, kiss, kiss!" Oh god they were chanting now, and Steve had an expectant look on his face. "Well?"

and there it was, the fairy tale ending.

Eddie pulled Steve in for a sweet kiss, only pulling him closer to deepen it. there were hoops and hollers from the crowd behind him, and once they pulled away from each other, Eddie looked at his friends and even caught a smile on none other than mike wheeler's, king of teen angst, face.

and who knew it would turn out like this? (I did. we all need a happy ending).

Tags: @hyperfixationgoddess

@vhelt @i-have-three-feelings. @queerdeerling @sunfloweringstories

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sweet-villain · 1 year

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Just That Feeling~ 2

Tagging : @secretdryrose @babyela9 @1paire2vans @adaydreamaway08 @poisonedluv @browneyedgirl2-7 @haileighboiaileighboi @pleasantlycrazyworld @tlclick73 @bookshelf-dust @glamourpearlsandpolkadots @moonchildquinn @ceriseheaven @lolalanaie @bibieddiesgf @eggo-segual @djkeruigbbygirl

Part 1

Summary : Things were going great between you and Eddie, but he's been a little distant you and you finally find out why. It takes a turn when you confront him and things aren't so good between the two of you. When Eddie leaves to live his dream as a rockstar, he comes back to visit Wayne to find out you have moved on, and your happy without him. How are you going to react to seeing him back? Will everything work out? Will there be romance between the two of you?

Angst

He stretched his arms out as he stepped out of the bus that stopped right by the trailer, squinted his eyes as he looked around.

He could hear the engine from the bus and the nearby swing his neighbor had that kept squealing like the bolt was ready to come out.

The door swung open from the trailer and out stepped his Uncle, he hasn’t aged a bit but Eddie had messier wild hair, smudged eyeliner underneath his eyes and a scruffy beard added to his face.

His arms are filled with tattoos, even his hands which wasn’t missable. He still looked good, at least that’s what the girls were telling him.

“ It’s been too long, boy. Get over here” Wayne says as he opens his arms for his nephew. Eddie’s eyes widen with as excitement as he raced up to his Uncle and embraced him with his arms.

Eddie gripped the back of his uncle’s shirt as he buried his face into Wayne’s shoulder. He couldn’t believe he was back at Hawkins, back home and where he missed it the most.

The rockstar life is what he always wanted but there was a part of him that still thought of you. Have you moved on?

“ It’s good to be back” Eddie says as he stepped back from Wayne’s arms. Wayne took a good look at him and his eyes got teary.

“ Look at you Mr. Rockstar” Eddie laughed as he looked down at himself.

“ Did you get my letters?” Wayne nodded as he laughed.

“ Every one of them and those damn stickers you added from every city you’ve been. Boy, you know damn well I keep everything you ever made me or bought me in a little box on the shelf”

Eddie didn’t know what to say. He was speechless and filled with love. There was that lingering question he wanted to ask.

Wayne could see the look on his face waiting for him to talk about it. About you.

He glanced down at his boots as silence over took the two. Wayne had been smoking a cigarette as he leaned against the wall.

“ Is she doing okay?” Wayne dropped the cigarette on the ground as he stomped on it.

“ Yeah, she’s doing just fine” Wayne answered as he looked over at Eddie. Wayne didn’t really know how to tell Eddie you’ve moved on and your much happier now. It was like a whole new world had opened up for you.

Eddie nodded his head.

“ So boy, tell me all the food you’ve been talking about through your letters? Where did the other boys drag you?” Wayne thought it would be best to stir the conversation away from you and into something else.

He didn’t Eddie coming back to ruin anything. He was going to find out anyways. Eddie’s eyes brighten as he chuckled and began telling Wayne what he exuded in the letters.

He could see the mood change in Eddie.

Wayne was happy to see Eddie back but he wasn’t sure Eddie was going to handle what’s about to come his way.

It’s been a couple years since Eddie has left for his dream, you heard he has a house in California or somewhere, you don’t remember the name.

Wayne had came into the diner to check in how you were holding up. The first few years without Eddie had been hard and you had cocooned yourself in your room.

You have missed him quite a lot, and the hurtful part was you had to hear it from Wayne that he had been sending him letters and there was no source of contact with you.

It was like he erased himself out of your life and didn’t want to exist in your world. You haven’t forgotten his face or his name as you slowly got back to your feet, there was one person that held your hand through it all.

He had seen every single side of you and held you on the nights where you had trouble sleeping.

From his chestnut fluffy hair to his brown eyes to his moles to his mom stands to his smile to the way he handles himself, to the way he cared about you, to the way he made sure you never stopped laughing to the way he turned into your favorite person.

Steve Harrington became your rock.

He watched as you rounded around the tables making sure everything was alright with the customers and their food.

He had a towel over his shoulder with his arms across his chest while a smile placed on his lips while some of his hair hung in front of his forehead, he had outgrown his facial hair a bit. It did quite suit him and made him look older.

Steve never imagined in his life catching a girl like you as his.

You were Eddie’s girl and he never thought you’d even look his way.

But he became your person, your person that held you up high when you needed someone and he became the person that glued your heart back together.

“ Would you stop staring at your girlfriend and pour us some coffee, man?” Steve was too busy to pay attention to you that he couldn’t hear the giggle from Nancy as she sat in front with one hand supporting her head while the other looked over at you then back to Steve.

“ He’s in love, let him be” Nancy says.

Dustin sighed as he stabbed a fork with his pancakes. He was grumpier than usual since Susie had to go back home, to pack since she was going to be moving here with Dustin.

His curls still buried with a cap on his head as he stared down at his plate mumbling underneath his breath.

“ You have customers, Harrington! We need to be served!” Robin put two hands around her mouth as she shouted to grab Steve’s attention.

Steve finally broke his gaze away from you and looked over to Robin with a glare. He took the towel off his shoulder as he wiped down the counter.

“ There is no need to shout, I’m right here Robin” he says rolling his eyes. You had now walked around the counter and standing next to your boyfriend.

“ Hey guys” you greeted your friends, taking the mug that has been sitting behind Steve.

“ Coffee?”

“ Finally some good service” Dustin says.

“ Oh shut up Henderson” Steve rolled his eyes.

“ Don’t fight, take it outside if you need to “ you kissed Steve’s cheek as his blushed when your lips met his cheek.

“ Steve wouldn’t even last a fight with anyone. Remember Jonathan? Remember Billy?”Mike asked.

You looked over to Max at the mention of her brother, she hesitated on eating her breakfast but continued as if nothing happened.

She was still mourning her brother after everything that had happened in Hawkins, to your friends and now that everything was back to normal, you knew she missed him.

Even if he it was a jerk. Your hand places on top of her in comfort. She looks up giving you a small smile as a thank you. You hadn’t even heard the door opened until silence fills the diner causing you to look up.

There he stood with his hair frizzier than ever, his brown eyes locking on your figure and his arms were filed with ink.

He had the smudge of eyeliner underneath his eyes and a beard that seems to stare right at your face.

He stood there next to Wayne who shot you an apologetic look.

The chairs had turned around and both Mike and Dustin stood up from the chair as they gasped at the sight of their friend.

“ Eddie?” Dustin asked. “ Holy shit” he got off the chair racing towards him. Eddie couldn’t stop staring at you. Eddie’s eyes move to the figure besides you, Steve from the looks of it. He looks a bit different than before.

“ Dustin?” Eddie asked as he dropped his gaze to the one who was speaking to him.

Dustin had that toothy smile he had and those curls. “ Man, I’ve missed you so much” Dustin throws himself into Eddie’s arms as he embraces him.

“ I miss you too” Eddie hugs him back but in his prevail vision he can see you running to the back with Steve heading there too.

The diner has gone silence because everyone’s head turned at the sight of Eddie Munson standing there. Since the band got signed, Eddie Munson has became a whole different name to Hawkins, Indiana.

“ Is she with Steve?” Eddie asks as his eyes linger on the door you walked through hoping you’d pop back in to greet him with a warm smile but the door remained shut.

He turned his head towards Wayne who stood by his side with a guilty look on his face.

He didn’t want to mention to Eddie that you have moved on to Steve of all people. Eddie never imagined that Steve Harrington would get his girl.

“ Is she with Steve?” Eddie asked again, this time more louder.

“ Look son-“ Wayne started to say but Eddie stopped him with his hand up.

“ Why didn’t you tell me? You’ve been sending me letters and yet not in one of them you mentioned her” Wayne glanced down at his shoes.

He had left out the part that you’ve been coming to check on Wayne every weekend to see how he was holding up withe Eddie being gone and making sure he was fed.

“ Did you all knew?” He looked to each of his friends and everyone started back at him with a guilty look on their faces.

“ We didn’t want to hurt you” Robin says as she stands up from her seat. “ You left her… and we didn’t know weather it would be good to mention her”

Eddie nodded his head as his face filled with hurt as he back away to the door.

The squeaky of his boots could be heard through the diner as he turned around and made his way to the door.

The jingle of the bell signal he left the diner and you peeked through the window releasing the breathe you were holding.

You stood up with Steve by your side with a hand of comfort on your back as you looked towards the door and locked eyes with Wayne as his filed with sorrow.

“ It’s okay” Steve reassured you, “ Eddie is just being Eddie”

Steve was just picking up some things from the store that he needed to make dinner for the both of you when he rounded the corner seeing the mane of curls from earlier making his way towards him it looked like.

Eddie stopped in is tracks once he noticed who stood a few feet away from him.

He eyed Steve in the yellow sweatshirt, he grown a stubble out and his hair out grew from the last time they saw each other. Both of them have changed their looks but it’s the familiar anger in both their eyes that wasn’t missable.

“ Harrington” Eddie greeted him with an unamused look on his face.

“ Munson” Steve greeted him with a bored look on his face. Steve wanted to side step Eddie but Eddie followed him in his steps and blocking him from going anywhere.

“ What do you want?” Steve huffed out, “ I have dinner I need to make.”

Eddie eyed the food in Steve’s arms as he tilted his head to the side in wonder what was he making and then remembered he was making dinner for you too.

Suddenly something overcomes Eddie as he takes a hold of Steve’s shoulders and slams him into a stack of cans of vegetables on the shelf. Some fallen down onto the floor hitting both their feet but Eddie doesn’t mind as his brown doe eyes are filled with rage.

Steve’s jaw clenches as he hisses from the pain from his back.

Eddie’s nose twitches as he speaks, “ What do you think your doing? With her? Good old Harrington didn’t have all the charm when I left. It worked for her? Did she throw you a pity party and suddenly you went on your knees begging for her?”

Steve took a deep breathe through his nose and clenched the food in his hands.

“ You don’t know anything about her anymore” Eddie sneered as the grip on Steve tightened. There was a crowd forming around them as people stopped to look what was going on.

“ Yeah? You do? Did all mighty Steve Harrington swoop her off her feet?”

“ She’s mine now, Munson” Steve says as he looks down, “ Let go off me too. Your causing a scene, that wouldn’t be good for your look” Eddie looked around watching as the people crowded and were talking to each other.

He released Steve’s hold but not before pushing him one more time into the shelves. Steve barely got a grip of his footing as he bounced back on his feet, glaring at Eddie.

“ She’s come crawling back to me, Harrington. I mean look at me” he straightened out his leather jacket, it was nice and a new scent hit Steve’s nose causing him to wrinkle it.

“ I’m the rockstar, and I have everything I could give her. And you? Your time is running out.” Eddie laughed.

“ Don’t touch her or look at her, Munson” Steve shouted as Eddie walked backwards into the crowd and disappearing out of sight.

Steve looked around the crowd as he tried to make it through to the register without another glance.

He wasn’t going to let this get to him. Eddie might have the fame and the life he wanted, but Steve has you. That’s all he wanted in his life, someone like you to adore and take care of.

When he walked through the apartment he shared with with bags in his hands, you sat up from the couch seeing the troubled looked on his face.

“ Something happened?” You could always tell if something was bothering Steve, but he walked to the kitchen to set the bags of food down before taking them out and placing them on the counter.

“ Steve?” You called out his name, he heard it but chose to ignore you because he wanted to start on dinner and he knows your going to bug him until he gives in.

You walked around the kitchen to him and wrapped your arms around his back and leaning your head on his back.He tenses up at your touch and stops taking the things out of the bag as his hands grip the counter.

He has som any words on the tip of his tongue but instead he turns around and wraps his arms around you. He kisses on top of your head.

“ Just a long day, I need to start dinner” he says. He doesn’t fully tell you the truth on what happened. It’s been a long day at the diner and seeing Eddie at the store.

You pulled away from him glancing up to see his reaction and if he’s lying to you. But Steve turns around to start dinner without another word. You sighed as you tell Steve your going to take a shower, he hums in agreement as he takes out some pots.

You head upstairs without another word.

The Hide Out hasn’t changed much since the last time you were here, there were more people than the drunks that are usually there and your eyes fallen onto Eddie who was busy in conversation with a girl on his left and there was another one on his right that was rubbing her hand up and down his chest. You rolled your eyes as he happily chatted away with them.

Your line of vision got interrupted by a familiar beaming face.

“ Is that you Y/N?” Gareth asked. He still wore that red flannel that you usually saw him in but it was filled with pins of different bands.

“ In a flash Emerson” He could not help himself but throw his arms around you as he pulled you into his chest.

He squeeze tight as he hugged you. This caught the attention of Eddie as he watched you interact with Gareth like a happy camper.

“ Your hair is really soft, what do you use?” One of the girls that he was holding asked him. He pursed his lips and answered simply, “ Shampoo and conditioner” he says while not breaking eye contact as his nose twitched watching as Jeff walked over and threw his arms around you.

It’s seem like the whole band was reuniting with you expect for him. It was like he was just a blank space in your life right now and he didn’t like it.

“ Is that your girlfriend?” The other asked him. Eddie broke his gaze from you and turned to the girl that asked him.

“ No, she’s not. Are you jealous little one?” He asks. She grin and gripped his thigh.

“ I’m sure I can be better with my mouth than she can” she giggled while Eddie laughed asking her to show him. That’s when your head turned to watch as Eddie played tonsil hockey with some blonde on his arm.

“ Is he always like that?” You asked motioning with your hand towards Eddie. Gareth looked over as he nodded his head.

“ He’s been on girl left and right, he’s a rockstar. What do you expect?” You scoffed.

“Gross” you shivered with disgust. Eddie really thought you’d be giving him the time of day as he made out with some girl he didn’t remember her name even.

You on the other hand, was more interested as Gareth talked about one of the places he visited with Jeff and the both of them had such a great time.

“ You should go with us one day” Jeff offered. “ You’d love traveling around the world”

“ She’s not really the type for traveling” you heard the familiar voice that you dodged every second you count as he sat down across from you with a cigarette in between his lips.

“ Oh and how would you know?” You finally asked breaking the tension or whatever it was between the two of you.

Eddie was surprised you were talking to him and giving him attention that he wanted from the start.

“ Sweetheart, you own a diner. You don’t have much going on in your life. You won’t even handle traveling”

“ Last time I checked, Munson, I didn’t ask your opinion and two, you clearly been sleeping with every chick around the world. Who knows what you might have now?” Eddie smirked as he eyed you up and down.

“ What does my sleeping around have to do with you?” He took out the cigarette from his mouth as he dubbed into the ash tray.

You glared at him as you held back your answer. You didn’t care who he slept with or kissed. It was his life.

“ You jealous sweetheart? You want to sit on daddy’s lap?” He asked leaning forward. “ Daddy has plenty of room for you” he winked. You shivered with disgust.

‘ I have a boyfriend, Edward” he frowned as he remembered that you were dating Steve.

“ The good old Harrington. What did he do that got you hopping on his cock? Did he beg?”

“ Oh fuck you, Edward!” You hissed as you stood up from your chair.

You grabbed the beer that Gareth was drinking and took the glass from his hands as you splashed it against Eddie’s face. He gasped as he stood up feeling the beer drip down his face.

“ Do you know how much this jacket cost????!” He asked as he shook his hair. Little droplets of beer hit his face you scoffed.

“ I could care less about your jacket, you’re a jackass Eddie Munson and always were a jackass. I can’t believe I ever could love someone like you” the words cut deep into Eddie’s heart as his mouth hanged opened staring at you.

He watched as you walk away from the table and out the doors out of the Hide Out.

“ Very nice, you had to ruin it” Jeff says. Eddie grumbles underneath his breath as he glares at Jeff taking his seat back and stealing Jeff’s beer.

“ That was mine!” Jeff shouted, Eddie shrugged as he downed it down before wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. He was going to get you to talk to him again.

The next time Eddie sees you is when he’s standing outside of Wayne’s trailer.

It’s the same trailer that Eddie had grew up in and Wayne never moved away.

There were too many memories inside. Eddie raises his eyebrow when he sees you stepping out of your car with a bag in your hands. Not just one but two.

His eyebrows knit together as he raked his brain trying to figure out why you were here all of sudden.

As you got nearer, he could smell something good inside those bags and stepped in your way when you were trying to get to the door.

“ Move” you spatted, not bothering to glance at him. You wanted to drop this food off that you cooked from him for the week before getting back to work.

Steve had it handled back at the diner and told you to go what you needed to do.

“ What’s in the bag, princess?” He asked taking one finger and hooking it on the bag to look inside but you don’t let him look as you snatch the bag away from him. “ This isn’t for you, Eddie.”

The door to the trailer opened and out stepped Wayne and turning to greet you as he looks over at you from Eddie’s shoulder.

“ Good to see you kid, you didn’t have to bring me anything” he says as he eyes the back knowing what’s inside. Eddie turned his had to glance at Wayne in confusion.

“ What do you mean?” He asks.

Wayne chuckles as he put his hands on his hips.

“ She’s been taking care of me, making sure I’m fed while you have been away. A home cook meal does wonders, boy” Wayne says as he reaches for the bags in your hands.

You offer them underneath Eddie’s arm but he steps aside that Wayne has a better grip on the bags. “ This smells so good” Wayne says sniffing the bags.

“ It’s some of your favorites inside” Wayne pulled away as he smiles. Eddie watches as you two interact, there is a burning inside of him because he didn’t realize you would look after his family even after the two of you ended things.

He always thought that you’d move away from here and live your life out there.

“ Be sure to thank that boy of yours too, I know he helps you” Eddie growls as he hears Wayne.

“ Pretty boy cooks too? He’s the whole package” Eddie says. “ You’ve outdone yourself there, who knew you were into good boys like Steve Harrington? Honestly, was it the hair? His chest hair? His car? His lost puppy look when Nancy left him? Was it the desperation flirting? Hm? What did it take for him to get you”

“ You’re a piece of shit, Munson. You know that?”

Eddie shrugged in response.

“ Son, what’s got into you?” Wayne says. “ You never were like this”

“ I grew some balls and looked at life in a better picture” Eddie answered with a chuckle.

Your jaw clenched as you glared at him. This wasn’t the Eddie Munson you knew. This wasn’t the man you used to love.

“ Boy..” Wayne started to say.

“ No, Wayne. Let him be”

“ Yeah Wayne, let me be” Eddie shrugged.

“ Fame got to his head, who knows what kind of things else got to him? Maybe his dick will fall off from how many girls want to hop on it” Eddie chuckled.

“ You jealous, sweetheart? Sounds like you are. You want a piece of this”

“ Never in my life would I want to date someone like you”

“ You already did, remember?” You pushed past him to your car.

“ That’s right sweetheart, you could never take the heat and you are always walking away. Cat got your tongue?”

You turned around and made your way over to him. He thought you were ready to come to him when he didn’t know that you were going to do what you were going to do.

His face turned to the side as the side of his face beeted red from your hand slapping him across the face.

“ That’s for being a dickhead” you looked over to Wayne as he smiled in amusement and nodded as he motioned to the car. He was telling you to go back to work. That he has this.

Eddie’s eyes blink with tears as he looked back at you and rubbed the side of his face, he wasn’t expecting that. Not one bit.

“ Do I need to show you some whoopin, boy?” Wayne asked and Eddie turned his head to look at his uncle.

“ I have places to be” he answered him. Before Wayne could get his hands on Eddie, Eddie was storming down and making his way down the path.

You were listing off the special when the bell to the diner rang and you haven’t noticed who walked in.

But Steve did, he stopped cleaning the glass in his hands as he set it down giving a glare off to him.

The squeak of the boots hit the diner floor as he made his way to one of the booth a little in the back to stay hidden from the view.

Steve had not taken his eyes off of him as he set down and his eyes lingered on your back which caused Steve to round to make his way over to you.

“ Don’t” he heard Dustin speak out from where he was sitting with a mouthful of fries in his mouth. Steve scrunched up his face in disgust.

“ Okay first of all, don’t chew with your mouth full Henderson. Two, why not?”

He swallowed the fries in his mouth as he took a drink off his milkshake before answering Steve, “ Better?” Steve nodded with his hands on his hips as he tapped his food waiting for Dustin to tell him why he couldn’t walk up to you and notify you that Eddie walked in through the diner.

“ Let her face him on her own and she’s a big girl to fight her own battles” Steve huffed as he watched you talk to the customers with a small chuckle.

At the sound of your chuckle it was like everything washed away as he happily sighed giving you your own time to notice Eddie sitting in the corner.

He went back to getting more menus seeing a couple walk through the doors as he set to greet them.

You were cleaning off the nearby table when you saw in your line of vision the boots, and your eyes traveled up those black pants and eyeing the familiar handcuff belt that he always wore in high school to the shirt underneath he wore to the leather jacket to his fuzzy mane of curls.

“ Are you done checking me out yet or are you going to serve me?” He asks as he lifts up his head meeting your gaze with a slight smirk on his face.

Your lips turned into a deep frown, as you scoffed making your way over to him and getting out your little small note pad that you always carried with you.

“ What do you want?” You asked, not really so kindly like with the other customers. Eddie wasn’t like all the others in the diner.

Eddie leaned back into his seat, “ That is no way to greet a customer. Try again.” He says. You gritted your teeth having a tight grip on the notebook in your hands.

You huffed through your nose really not wanting to do this. You turned your head to meet Steve gaze as his eyes were filled with concern.

It was written on his face if he should come over there to ease things up and pull you away but you shook your head in response knowing what that look is for.

“ Hello, welcome to Hawkins Easy Eats Diner. What can I get you today?” You mumbled holding a smile wile gripping the pen in your hand tightly. Eddie chuckled as he licked his lips, “ Now wasn’t that so hard, sweetheart?”

“ Your not the only customer I need to tend to, hurry up Munson” Eddie tapped his finger against his chin thinking on what he wanted.

He took his sweet time as he looked around the diner noticing Dustin was sitting enjoying his milkshake now as he was trying to distract Steve who’s been eyeing Eddie since he walked in.

There weren’t a lot of people today. Eddie shifted in his seat as he thought about it but his eyes roamed what you looked like at the moment.

“ If your done gawking at my girlfriend, Munson. Now would be a good time to order or get out” Steve growls as he shouts through the diner. You shoot Steve a look and turn back to Eddie.

“ I will have a cheeseburger and fries, with a milkshake” He glared over to Steve as you turned around and make your way to the back shoving the slip of paper into Steve’s chest while you cleaned off Dustin’s plate off the table and going to the back.

Steve brushes past you to the grill.

“ Why do I have to make his food?” He asks while you turned on the sink to soak the dishes in the sink while turning around to face your boyfriend.

“ I saw the way you were looking at him, Steve. He’s just going to eat and go on his merry way and if not, well then I’ll handle it” Steve was about to open his mouth and say something that he was going to handle it.

“ No, you’re not going to say a thing” Steve was about to say something else when you shook your head.

“ We’re not going to kick him out, Hopper will be here and we don’t need to get what happened last week” Steve pouted as he mumbled underneath his breath.

Last week he had to throw out Tommy H with Carol from the diner as they threw the food back at Steve telling him he didn’t make it correctly.

Steve was angry at them and they ended up breaking two tables, some glass and ended up hitting someone else.

Hopper had to come down and break the fight up, he wasn’t too happy about the place and it took a whole two days to fix everything back up.

No one was happy that the diner was closed on those two days. Tommy apologized to you and grumbled to Steve while Carol rolled her eyes at you. They haven’t been back since.

“ I won that fight” Steve mumbles. You shook your head, “ I am going back out there and you stay here and continue making burgers. Everyone seems to love them” Steve grins as he pats his chest.

“ I’m hell of a cook” you rolled your eyes with a chuckle, “ Yeah, Yeah. Just get back to work” He grins and winks playfully.

“ Whatever you say, boss” but before you walk out to the front, he catches your arm and bring you back, wrapping his arm around you as he kisses you.

You smile against his lips, kissing him back. You two were caught up in the moment to not bothering to hear the grill hiss as the burgers were burning. Your eyes got wide.

“ Steve!” You pushed him away motioning to the grill.

“ shit” he says as he flips them, “ my bad” his cheeks beet red as he rubs the back of his neck.

You shook your head walking back out taking some napkins from the stack and rifling where it needs to be refilled.

“ When is my food going to be ready?” You heard Eddie speak out as he drummed his fingers on the table.

“ When it’s ready it will be ready” you rolled your eyes, grabbing the ketchup and putting it onto Eddie’s table since it was missing.

“ Do you love him?” He asks you all of sudden. The question does catch you off guard but you answer him.

“ I do” you nodded not looking over to Eddie as you hurried to the next table to greet the other customers walking in.

Steve walks out with the plate of Eddie’s food as he brings it to you.

“ I am not bringing it to him” Steve shakes his head as he looks at Eddie who kept waving to him like he was happy to see him when

Steve scoffs and walks back into the back taking the piece of paper you gave him for the next order. You glance down at the burger and make your way over to Eddie, dropping the plate in front of him.

“ You could of broke that. That wasn’t nice of you” he says. You rolled your eyes.

“ Eat the damn food Eddie and go” the tone in your voice made a flash of hurt cross his face.

You almost felt guilty seeing it but it vanished when he shoved the food away from him.

“ Put it on the table like a normal person” he demanded. You looked at him in shock from how he was treating you.

He really thought he was in control here when you own this diner with Steve. But everything here was what you worked for and you weren’t about to let some rockstar own it like it was his place. No.

“ Excuse me? Who do you think you are talking to me like that?” He smirked waving a hand over himself. “ Do you know who I am, sweetheart?”

“ I don’t have time for your games, eat your food and leave. Don’t forget to leave a good tip like a good boy” he scoffs as he glances down at his food.

“ Place it nicely on the table first and maybe I will” he sends you a wide smilie thinking he won this time.

But you took the plate and placed it down gently on the table, he was about to speak when you took the bun off and licked it before placing it back down on his burger.

His mouth dropped open at what you had done, he scoffed.

“ Is that good enough for you?”

“ I demand another burger, tell Harrington I don’t want your germs and he has not make me a new one” He puts his arms across his chest as he pouted in his seat.

His stomach growled in hunger.

“ I am waiting” he mumbles seeing you weren’t moving from your spot. Steve walked by with a milkshake in his hands.

“ Stevie?” You called out to him and stopping him from walking to the other table around the corner.

He turned to you just as you grabbed the milkshake from his hands.

“ I could do you one better, Munson” The whole diner gasped as they watched you pour a strawberry milkshake over Eddie’s head drenching his curls in the sweetness.

Eddie gasped as he stood up from his seat but the door flew opened with a cheery Chrissy Cunningham screaming out.

“ I’m getting married this weekend and your all invited” she clasped her arms together before noticing a drenched Eddie Munson shaking with anger.

“ Oh Eddie, when did you get back?” She asks, sweetly. “ You got a little something” she points out.

“ You don’t say” he sarcastically says. Her eyes follow where you stand and rush over to you.

“ I want you to be my maid of honor, Y/N! Please, oh please!” She begs taking your hand in hers.

“ I would love that”

“ Hello!!!” Eddie waved his arms, “ I am drenched in a milkshake. Someone get me a towel. Dustin, get me something” he waves his arms. Dustin eyebrows scrunches together in confusion and points to himself.

“ Are you serious, Eddie?” You asked.

“ Last time I checked, Eddie. I am your friend not your servant or assistant. Get your damn towel yourself and get your head out of your ass because you clearly forgot what it’s like to be a human being and a friend. Go back to where you move to, go back to your music. You’re not wanted here” Dustin’s words hit Eddie like a ton of bricks as he looks around the diner in shame.

“ You may be living the rockstar life, but you are a huge disappointment to those that cared for you” Max steps in as she glares at Eddie.

“ Especially around this diner, that Y/N and Steve build and worked so hard to make” He looks over to Steve with a guilty look on his face and then he locks eyes with you but your walking away from him.

“ Y/N” he calls out your name but you don’t want anything to do with him. You had no idea how to feel at the moment.

“ Just go Munson” Steve says.

Eddie hangs his head as he hurries out the door without casting another look as you watch him leave the diner. You swore you saw tears in his eyes.

#jewls writes #Eddie Munson #Eddie Munson x reader #Eddie Munson x you #Eddie Munson imagine #Eddie Munson angst #Eddie Munson x y/n #Eddie Munson x female reader #Stranger Things x reader

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zeroducks-2 · 2 months

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Let’s talk Helena Wayne bc like it’s criminal that we barely get anything about her and that they completely changed her origin and family (the bertinelli mafia family) to add her into the main comic book line.

im torn bc I love both versions of her :(

But I wanted Dick to share some older siblings trauma with her and for Damian to have that “blood” sibling bc I think that would have completely rocked early Damian’s shit. All his life, he was told to be the true heir of Bruce Wayne, but it turns out he has an OLDER SISTER BRUCE HID FROM TALIA AND RA. Idk I just think that would have crushed his lil murder ego and made for some interesting sibling moments and an interesting dynamic.

Lastly, can we talk about how the Batfam fandom completely stole all of Helena (Bertinelli)’s character traits and gave them to Jason??? Im sorry but when in the material source has Jason ever been super devout and catholic? Helena is the religious one, why am I reading about Jason’s apparent Catholicism in fics and HC dumps? Also Jason (besides his Robin days) has never been this savour and protector of the woman and children of Gotham, that’s very very veryyyyyy clearly a trait from Helena and strongly ties into her backstory as a child who suffered coming from a rich bloodline of syndicate crime. And don’t think this is me bashing on Jason, bc it’s not!! I love Jason Todd - but for who he is. Not for this weird fandom version of him who is either still suffering from the craze the lazarus pit puts you through, or this Joan of Arc of Gotham character either.

I'm gonna be honest with you, this character confuses me a bit. I know that Bruce and Selina got married and had a daughter in their Earth-Two incarnations, and this daughter is Helena Wayne, who's Dick best buddy and a vigilante in her own right called Huntress.

Then I know Helena Bertinelli, daughter of a mafia lord who was introduced in the late 80s in the preboot comic continuity, and was a quite murdery vigilante called Huntress who Bruce didn't accept because she "reminded him of Barbara" (you gotta love DC's excuses for sexism and ableism lol it's not like Barbara was dead just paralyzed. Also it did not look like Bruce gave a shit about it at the end of TKJ that Joker had crippled her - "she reminds him or Barbara". LMAO Bruce).

Then post reboot the title Huntress was given back to Helena Wayne, however Helena Bertinelli is ALSO there and she's ALSO called Huntress? She appears in the Grayson run where Dick is an agent of Spyral, and she seems to be Italian-American but I don't think her origin is the same as in preboot? Also I have no idea about Helena Wayne's continuity post reboot - when she was conceived, who raised her, how did she become a vigilante, neither I have any idea where to find this info.

I agree that if she had been raised by Bruce it could have made for an interesting dynamic amongst the bats and birds. It did in Earth 2 even if only Dick is just there - they're not siblings but they also aren't not siblings? The dynamic is murky and I love murky. Pretty sure it would have changed everything for Damian as well, especially the fact that she would have most likely been the first object of Damian's need to prove himself worthy, instead of Tim.

That being said, not much of what you mentioned is fanon about Jason.

Jason had an arc in which he's a priest. Pretty normal that fans HC him as devout or anyway catholic.

Father Todd in Flashpoint: The World of Flashpoint Vol. 1 - this is an AU in which Jason was never taken in by Bruce and was never Robin.

As for the whole "protector of women and children" thing, you probably know that Jason was born in extreme poverty, his father was in and out of prison and his mother died of overdose. He is very much a child who suffered because of a broken system, and given how harshly he reacts when women and children are the recipient of violence "in his Robin days", is it really that strange that fans assume he carried these traits in adulthood?

We see him being sweet and protective to kids many times, or anyway losing his mcfucking shit when children are being harmed (like in Brothers in Blood). Imo that of Jason caring about vulnerable people is barely a headcanon, and I don't see how this would make him the Joan of Arc of Gotham either - if I'm being honest ALL vigilantes should care about minorities and vulnerable people, it's the other way around that is weird as fuck (like that arc in which Dick almost dies to prevent this guy from shutting down Bludhaven's casinos, like what the hell was Tim Seeley thinking exactly).

That being said, I understand your frustration if the character you like doesn't have recognition. Trust me I do! There's a lot of them for me too, especially female and/or non white characters who had maybe 1 run ages ago and then got forgotten by DC, and I would REALLY LIKE to see them more, and to see them acknowledged more by the fans (from the top of my mind, Jenni Ognats or Patricia Trayce).

But this isn't fandom's fault. As I mentioned before, Helena Bertinelli as a fleshed out character was a thing between 20 and 30 years ago, and most of tumblr's userbase was either very young or not born yet. DC forgot about her, stripped Huntress from her to give it to Helena Wayne, then brought her back but as an agent of Spyral and it really doesn't look like they care. Fans can't be held accountable for the fact that she's simply not there. They didn't "steal" Helena's traits to give them to Jason; this implies a willful and malicious intent from people who saw this character and decided her features fit another character better, and it's obviously not what happened - people barely know Helena Bertinelli exists if at all.

Also - I said this about Jason already and I will repeat it a million times: Jason wasn't picked at random from the sea of DC characters to be people's blorbo, he resonates with fans for a reason. Under the Red Hood is a deeply emotional and relatable arc for many people because it's the story of how a child was failed by every single person who was supposed to protect and guide him, and then was failed again as an adult victim who demanded to be seen and heard and acknowledged, and instead was silenced again. It's heartbreaking to see how many people see this and say "this is me, this is what happened to me", but it is what it is, and most of all there is no taking this away from Jason's fans. DC tried to villainize him, to make him look and sound like a madman, to make him unhinged and deranged and they had Tim suggest that "maybe it's the Lazarus Pit that drove him mad", but it didn't work and fans still love him and still consider him a symbol of how "bad victims" are treated worse than their abusers, and keep being retraumatized by a society that prefers turning a blind eye to violence than deal with the issue at its root.

And lastly, bitching won't get you anywhere. I am the living proof that the right way to make people interested in something is to be passionate about that something. You want more folks to pay attention to Helena Bertinelli, then since DC won't do anything with her, the most effective thing you can do is post about her - write essays, draw her, write fics with her, create webweavings and moodboards, commission this stuff if you don't have the skills. Complaining that she should be the recipient of fandom love won't make anyone more interested in her.

#my asks #long post #yall please stop blaming fandom for DC's sins #'no one cares about my blorbo!' look up and see if your blorbo is anywhere in the source material in the past 10 years #DC has historically culled female characters and minority characters even when their runs were beloved and successful #see Stephanie Brown and Cassandra Cain for an easy accessible example #if it hadn't been for fans yelling about them we probably wouldn't have them AT ALL since DC was adamant in pretending they never existed #despite both of them having had perfectly good selling runs #so no it's not the fans' fault for being sexist #of course there's sexism in fandoms there is sexism everywhere #but it's not that simple and fans aren't responsible for the fuckups of the source material anyway #okay rant over #jason todd #helena wayne #helena bertinelli

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vinelark · 3 months

Text

fic writer meme

thank you [checks notes] @megafaunatic, @cairoscene, @englishsub, @yuebings, and @cafecliche for the tags ilu

1. How many works do you have on Ao3? 15! which is solidly 14 more than i ever expected to have on there when i made the account

2. What's your total Ao3 word count? 277,844

3. What fandoms do you write for? on ao3: mdzs/cql, tgcf, shl, and dc. in groupchats/dms/my own head i’m running wild all over the place

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos? 🐉 this river runs to you 💍 i’ll have you and you’ll have me 🪐 i will be chasing a starlight ⚔️ you’re the trouble that i always find 🌊 a wave crashes to shore

5. Do you respond to comments? not often; i have made multiple attempts to start replying regularly but all have eventually failed in the face of me desperately wanting to show my earnest and genuine appreciation for each comment vs. wanting to hide my blushing face under a pillow every time. also, because of who i am as a person, each time i sat down to do it i ended up spending hours making little progress and eventually decided that i will make an effort to spend those hours writing or commenting on other fics instead. i am honored by each and every one though!!!

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? while i tend to write angst it is always firmly of the “with a happy ending” sort. the one exception is my shortest fic (originally posted on twitter) never been away so long, which is more of an ambiguous/open ending with implied angst. i dooooo outline the eventual happy ending in the endnotes, though. also as it CURRENTLY stands buy back the secrets ends on one hell of an angsty note, but there are two more chapters in the works to fix that.

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? despite the wangxian star trek au having like 20k of deliriously happy post-misunderstanding sex, i think trrty has to have the happiest ending because not only does the fic end happily, but there are also multiple very happy codas in which wwx gets a good night’s sleep, finally gets to bang his dragon boyfriend, and, my personal fav, one by aubreyli where wangxian go flying in a thunderstorm.

8. Do you get hate on fics? not so far, for which i am grateful but mostly lucky.

9. Do you write smut? occasionally; on ao3 there’s the aforementioned trrty coda, plus the aforementioned cowritten wangxian pon farr sequence 💪

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you have written? hmm, i’m not opposed to crossovers—i’ve read some really fun ones (recent fav crossover read here)—but i’d have to be really compelled by both source materials and have a very clear vision for how they interact to want to write one myself. i’ve written a few fandom fusions (aforementioned wangxian star trek au; i also started a wangxian dragon age au but again, no dragon age characters were going to show up, just the world/setting) but no full-on crossovers. i did have one partially drafted wangxian fic that was going to have a hua cheng deus ex machina, alas.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen? not that i’m aware of! it’s not something i really go looking for/concern myself with, but so far, like with fandom hate, i’m grateful to not have encountered it.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? yes! my wangxian wedding fic was translated to russian.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? i co-wrote seventy thousand words of published fic with @feyburner! and probably two hundred thousand words of unpublished fic and outlines and story ideas just for fun. even when we aren’t co-writing we tend to talk through our individual fics with each other so we’re pretty in sync when it comes to writing. i also spent like a year in @cairoscene’s DMs concocting whole outlines/zerodrafts for batfam fics together that i still cherish and reread (notable favs: tim drake ella enchanted au, concept where the waynes are cursed to suddenly feel nothing but apathy about tim and he has to deal with that, story where robin!tim gets de-aged and oops red hood is the first one to show up…). i’d say the OCBFEU is fic-adjacent and cowritten by a group of us. also shoutout to the mdzs threadfic @cafecliche and i brainstormed/zerodrafted where lan qiren gets cursed into an owl and post-cql wei wuxian is the one who unknowingly saves him.

14. What's your all time favorite ship? oh yeah it’s [loud truck goes by]

15. What is a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? cyborg!wwx…i still think of you fondly. the only ao3 fic i’ve ever posted knowing i probably wouldn’t finish it but wanted to share just for fun.

16. What are your writing strengths? pangs… mining little character details for humor (or, more often, for more pangs)… i also think i’ve really improved my action writing/pacing over the last few years.

17. What are your writing weaknesses? i write actual drafts/prose fairly slowly, which can be frustrating for me. also like @yuebings i often get very caught up in trying to perfect one small part of a draft before moving on. ummmm describing outfits/settings for reasons other than immediate plot-relevant details, i’m terrible at that + remembering to do it—i literally make myself do a What Are We Looking At Here Pass while revising sometimes.

18. Thoughts of writing dialogue in another language in fics? i’m not totally sure what this question is asking tbh, but it’s something i think can be done incredibly well—and, like with many things in storytelling, it’s the sort of thing where if you don’t actually speak the second language you need to be willing to put in work beyond a cursory google to try to achieve what you’re doing, and be willing to admit if it’s beyond your capabilities. i really like how the portuguese dialogue in bbts ended up and that’s 100% because @tigerjpg translated it for me and also already understood the scene/concept/characters; without them i would have found a different way to approach that scene. also, stylistically, i personally like when dialogue in other languages isn’t italicized unless there’s a real reason for it to be.

19. First fandom you wrote for? oh it was [a second loud truck whooshes by]

20. Favorite fic you have written? right now it’s bbts, because i think it’s also the fic i’ve had the most fun writing. trrty, though, will always hold a special place in my heart.

and i tag! @tlumeti, @burins, @smilebackwards, @bonesbuckleup, @hearteyeshayley, @sonosvegliato

#this was so fun thank you #also i loved getting tagged so many times because i could immediately go read everyone's writeups #like a very fun trip down memory lane #my fic

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ladykailitha · 1 year

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Ser Stephan of Harring’s Town Part 6

Tag List cap is 20 (which there are still a few slots)

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5

Steve was having a shit day. He had spent the morning with a migraine and had to tell Dustin and Will to find another ride to the arcade. Which Dustin promptly made worse by his screaming.

He had finally gotten the brightness of the world to turn the fuck down so that he could actually see when he found out he was out of his contacts. Which meant glasses.

He went downstairs to make him some peppermint tea to ease his nausea and found that he was out of that, too. He opened the freezer and stuck his head inside hoping to find some kind of relief inside. But the cold only served to lance the pain further into his head and fog his glasses.

He sighed and closed the freezer door softly. Here in his parents’ house there was no middle ground. It was either dark or too bright for his eyes. He sighed. He knew there was a place that he could go that would be perfect. Low lighting, warm, comforting.

Steve lifted his glasses and pinched his nose. He really, really wanted to go. To be free of this hell that was his parents’ house. Fuck it. He dashed up to his bedroom and grabbed the sunglasses that were prescription. He down the stairs and out the door in flash, before he could talk himself out of going.

He needed comfort and he was going to go to his favorite source. He swapped his glasses and pulled out the drive, like hell itself was on his heels.

He pulled up to the trailer and cursed. The van wasn’t there, but the truck was.

Fuck.

He couldn’t drive back, the pain was too much, but he couldn’t sit out here in his car either. He was just going to have to brave the bear in his den.

Steve knocked on the door.

“Come in!” the gruff voice answered.

Steve let himself in and stopped at the sight in front of him. Wayne was at a chess board with a newspaper opened next to him and the board looked as though it was several moves in.

Wayne looked up and smiled. “Hey, Steve. Eddie went out but will be back in a bit if you wanted to wait.”

Steve nodded. He could already feel the stress of being in that house slip from his shoulders and the pain ebb with it. He walked up to the chess board and looked down at the pieces.

“What’s this then?” he asked.

“The newspaper prints an easy and a master chess board and you have to solve the next move,” Wayne explained. “I can usually solve with just the paper, but this was stumping me.”

Steve picked up the bishop and moved it.

Wayne looked down at the board and then back at the paper that held the answer.

“Well, I’ll be damned,” he whistled. “You know how to play, son?”

Steve shrugged. “It’s a war game. Something I am unfortunately well-versed in.”

Wayne grimaced. He had been ‘read in’ regarding the actual hell hole that was this shit town. People might call their home towns that, but only Hawkins was the real deal.

“Who taught you?” he asked before the silence stretched too long.

“My friend, Dustin,” Steve said, moving to sit on the other side of the board. “I think he was trying to teach me as a joke after the first time. Like ‘here’s a game about tactics you could do this!’ type deal. But I found that not only did I enjoy it, I’m really good at it.” He grinned. “He won’t play me anymore because I beat him every time.”

Wayne returned his grin. “Rack up, boy. Show me what you’ve got.”

When Eddie came home about an hour later he repeated Steve’s earlier move of coming to a complete standstill at the sight in front of him.

There was Steve Harrington bent over a chessboard with his uncle and judging from what little Eddie knew the game was actually holding his own against him.

“Steve!”

Steve looked up and smiled. Eddie felt pierced to the soul. Steve was wearing glasses and it was hot.

“Your boy is pretty good,” Wayne said. “We’re having a tie breaker game.”

Eddie’s brain went offline for the briefest moment. “Doth mine ear deceive me or doth my uncle just sayeth that he hath been defeated?”

“Once!” Wayne growled holding up a finger.

“And I think it’s going to be about twice,” Steve said with a grin. He moved his piece. “Check and mate.”

Eddie ran over to the board and stared down at it. Both Munson men looked over at Steve in shock.

Wayne held out his hand. “Good game, son. It’s been awhile since I’ve had anyone beat me.”

Steve shook it. “Same.”

“You are more than welcome to come by anytime and play a couple of rounds,” Wayne said.

Steve looked up at Eddie for permission. “You know you’re welcome here anytime, Stevie, and it’s his trailer, not mine. So if he says you can come by. You come by, you hear?”

Steve grinned. “It would be an honor, sir.”

Wayne smiled warmly. “Just Wayne will do.”

“So to what do I owe this visit, Stevie?” Eddie asked.

“Huh?” Steve asked and then snapped his fingers. “I came over because I had a migraine.”

Eddie boggled.

Wayne blinked at him, stunned. “You mean to tell me that you beat me twice with a migraine?”

Steve looked over at him and blushed. “Well, most of one, anyway.”

Wayne turned to Eddie. “I take it back. I didn’t win anything, if he had been pain free, I would have lost all three times.”

“I’m nearsighted, so it doesn’t really hurt to look at a chessboard,” Steve defended.

“Uh huh,” Wayne said warily. “You come over without that brain of yours trying to do you in and we’ll see how good a player you really are.”

“Yes, Wayne,” Steve said.

“Come on, Steve,” Eddie said, “you can lie on my head and rest that big brain of yours.”

Steve stood up and followed Eddie into the bedroom.

He laid down and curled up under the blankets.

“Is it pretty bad?” Eddie asked.

Steve shrugged. “It comes and goes in waves. Your uncle beat me fair.”

Eddie chuckled. “I’m sure he’ll appreciate that.” He began threading his fingers through Steve’s hair.

Steve hummed. “That feels good.”

Eddie smiled and began to massage Steve’s head.

“Is why I came here,” Steve mumbled. “Always felt comfortable here. Knew the pain would go away faster than at home.”

Eddie almost stopped what he was doing as his brain tried to fill in blanks that weren’t there. He continued to card his fingers through Steve’s silky locks. “So soft.”

Steve reached up and touched the bottom of Eddie’s curls. “I like your hair, too.”

Eddie smiled. “I like that you feel comfortable here.”

Steve let his hand drift down Eddie’s arm to rest on his knee. “I like you.”

Eddie opened his mouth to reply, but it was too late. Steve had fallen asleep.

He leaned down and pressed his lips to Steve’s temple. “I love you.”

Part 7

Tag List: @mightbeasleep @goblin-eddie @gregre369 @idea-less-author @xtkxkrzrizir @azure-and-gold @flanbott @garden-of-gay @tauntedperfume @marvelousforlife @itsfreakingbats

#My writing #stranger things #steddie #dnd #steve's hidden talents #ladykailtiha writes

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avaritia-apotheosis · 8 months

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Juno's Fic Masterlist of DP and DP crossover fics

[ AO3 ] -- [ FFN ]

DPxDC

Phantom Children: Redux | multichapter, on-going

There is no Clockwork there to rewind time after the Nasty Burger explosion. Danny Fenton, having witnessed his friends and family die a fiery death, struggles to cope with his loss and the looming future that awaits him. So when an unlikely source offers a hand to help, he takes it. Three years later, Batman is called upon to help solve a string of impossible murders in Gotham that end up entangling him to the mysteries of Amity Park. [AO3] [FFN]

Hey Brother AU | series, one to multi-shot installments, on-going

Where Danny Fenton dies and is reincarnated as Damian Wayne's older brother and things seem to cascade from there. [AO3 Series] Main story: Hey Brother / It's A Small World ( 1, 2 ) / Shannon Number / Bid a Strong Ghost Stand at the Head ( 1, 2, 3, 4) / Nomen Nescio (1)

They Might Be Giants | oneshot

Alfred Pennyworth receives a phone call and is given custody over his recently orphaned nephew Danny Fenton.

Speed Dial | oneshot

"Please don't tell me you have the fucking King of Ghosts on speed dial."

Monsters at your doorstep | oneshot (with possible continuation)

Bruce falls into a cave of bats and meets the darkness-- or whatever it is that lives inside it.

Danny Phantom

The Man With The Red Right Hand | oneshot

Two weeks after the portal accident, Danny gains the mentorship of a mysterious halfa. [Written for Reality Trip zine ]

Ground Zero | oneshot, 2nd POV

"All you know is that you were screaming." Where the tragedy began. A missing scene from The Ultimate Enemy

The Future is Carved with a No. 2 Pencil | oneshot, 2nd POV

"Question 1. (1 Point) True or False: Your Name is Danny Fenton" A Retelling of TUE in an unconventional format.

Sound the Trumpets (Death Comes a Calling) | oneshot

TUE AU where Clockwork never meddles with the timeline and a lot of character death.

A Kinder World | oneshot

In a kinder world, Danny’s obsession develops into something noble. In a kinder world, Danny knows that ghosts aren’t the personification of evil. This is not that world

Welcome To My Table (Bring Your Hunger) | oneshot, 2nd POV

Speculations on Clockwork's origins. AU where Clockwork is a title and not a name

Take Me Up, Cast Me Away | oneshot

Putting aside the knowledge that he apparently visited King Arthur’s grave in his dreams, what Danny was hearing is that the legendary sword Excalibur did not, in fact, come with a return policy. Written for Ectoimplosion 2023

Other DP Crossovers

The Draugr | oneshot, dpxmarvel (thor: ragnarok)

Legends say that the draugr king served the goddess of death. Loki did not expect Hela's general to be a child.

Politics (Derogatory) | oneshot, dpxatla

Rumors of a wayward spirit reach Aang’s ears. Desperate for a break in his duties as an intermediary between nations, Aang answers the call.

#danny phantom #dpxdc #danny phantom crossovers

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ramsywasalittlelamb · 3 months

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there is still a light that shines on me

Damian Wayne-Centric agere fic, Regressor!Damian, Caregiver!Dick Grayson with a minor mention of Caregiver!Alfred Pennyworth! Sickfic, 980 Words! photos found on pinterest!

Warnings: Fainting, no emetophobia, if I need to add anymore let me know!!

Day 2, Comics Agere Week, Mid-fight Regression/Sickfic

Title from Let It Be - The Beatles

The back of Damian’s eyes burned with a fire-like pain, instinctively making him hiss as he shuts his eyes in protection against the blinding white snow outside his window.

Great. To add onto the fact that he had been feeling fuzzy since yesterday's patrol, now he’s dealing with the aftermath from pushing himself too hard.

He wants to whine, shout with a tantrum, because underneath his skin is buzzing with a need to move, but the fatigue and achy-ness that overloads his body just makes him wince at the thought of being loud and thrashing around. Plus, he’s too old to be throwing fits like that.

Whether he’d admit it or not, he really just wants someone around right now. Even if they laid quietly next to him, which sounded more than ideal right now, he wouldn’t mind, just some kind of cuddle buddy to keep him warm and provide company.

Grayson would be perfect for that.

…

He’s just describing what happens when he regresses.

That explains the fuzziness.

When he shifts to move off the bed, a whimper escapes his closed mouth, forgetting about the fact that his muscles are screaming in agony when he moves an inch.

Once his body settles back into the plush mattress, he begins to think of how he can alert someone for help without moving or shouting, which admittedly, seemed very hard at the moment.

No. He can make it out of bed to go find someone to alert them that he did not feel adequate enough to go on patrol tonight, and he can get medicine for himself for the ever-growing headache that pounds on his skull.

After some extra effort, he props himself up to sit on the edge of his bed, placing his feet on the floor and pushing himself off the bed. The room spins, and suddenly the floor is growing very close to his face at an exceedingly fast rate.

The pitter-patter sound of footsteps urges him awake, the whole world is shaking and twirling around him. He blinks and familiar blue-red Superman logo socks flood his vision, a hand places itself on his back, and then his forehead, the fabric of his hoodie clings to his sweaty back, resulting in a grimace at the sensation.

He blinks again and suddenly he’s being lifted up. He wants to fight, he really does, but it just feels so tiring, and the pair of arms that carry him are so soft and warm. Judging by how gently they hold him too, they aren’t a threat.

He looks around and they’re in the hallway, the large and expensive portraits that hang on the walls seem so much more grand than usual. A rumbling against his arm makes him look over to the source and— Oh. It’s Grayson. He melts further into the arms, nudging his face against the shoulder his cheek rests on, Dick’s sleep shirts are always so cuddly.

“—d. Buddy, I’m gonna need you to stay awake just a little longer.” Dick says, his voice soft as ever, tinged with worry along with his face. Damian makes a noise of confirmation but no further, since the irritation in his throat makes itself known. Maybe he can just close his eyes until they actually need him.

He whines when he feels Dick let go of him, placing him on something cold. He immediately reaches out his sore arms to grab onto Dick, who shushes him as he attempts to pry his hands off of Dick’s shirt.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I just have to go get the thermometer while Alfred gets you some medicine, bud.” Dick tries to reassure him, but all he can think is that Dick is trying to leave him, and he’s never gonna come back if Damian doesn’t even try to keep him.

“Oh, oh no— Sweetheart, don’t cry.” And suddenly Dick is no longer trying to take Damian’s hands off of him, but instead takes him in his arms again, cupping his cheek and wiping away the tears that fell with the thoughts of Dick leaving him.

Damian whines, curling himself up into a ball though his body protests at the movement, tucking his face into the soft fabric of Dick’s shirt. Dick begins brushing his fingers through his hair, gently detangling all the knots that formed overnight and pushing it away from his sweat lined forehead.

He feels himself get shifted in Dick’s embrace, his head being nearly tucked underneath Dick’s chin— and something is prodding at his lips. He opens his blurry eyes, blinking away the fuzzy edges to see Dick looking down at him with a reassuring smile, holding a medicine cup to his lips, while Alfred makes tea on the tray table he’s brought up.

He takes the medicine after a few moments to register what was happening, grimacing at the potent taste and syrup texture, but as always, Alfred swoops in to save the day with a fresh cup of tea— Cardamom, he notes with a smile forming,— and he takes a sip, then a few more, the tea erasing the artificial grape flavor from his mouth.

As he closes his eyes once again, Dick hums in contentment at the sight of Damian’s smile settling on his face, leaning against the headboard of the bed and pulling a blanket over the two of them. He can hear Alfred shuffling around and placing things on the bedside table, before a pacifier gets slotted into his mouth.

He snuggles into Dick’s embrace and the warm blanket with a hum in contentment himself, a kiss being pressed to his forehead as he rhythmically sucks on the pacifier, a familiar plush object being placed in his hands. He takes a deep breath, smiling softer at the scent of cedar wood, rose, and home as he dozes off for the umpteenth time that day.

#comicsagereweek2024 #dc agere #dc agere fic #dc fic #dc comics agere #dc comics fic #dc comics agere fic #batman agere #batman fic #Batman agere fic #dick grayson #Damian Wayne #damian wayne agere #dick grayson agere

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blankerthought · 5 months

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Planning vs Reacting: A Yuri-Yaoi Take On Two Superhero Relationships

By blank

[a/n: putting this essay on here too for convenience and for @aelyris who wanted to see it, you're a gem. also partially going under a cut because i did write like 1.2k on this]

Though many people are aware of western superhero comics- Spiderman, Batman, Superman, to name a few- generally it’s the characters alone who are known. Their relationships to one another are understood through reading the source material, despite them changing from many different interpretations across the decades and writers that have taken it upon themselves to put their own flavor on the text. Of these relationships, this essay shall focus on two specific ones, both of which share the same character of Bruce Wayne (also known as Batman). The oldest relationship has been known for decades since their first meeting in 1939, as it is with another juggernaut of the genre, Superman. The youngest, however, has only been around since 2020, with Ghostmaker’s appearance in Batman #100. This essay looks to expand on these relationships through the lense of yuri and yaoi.

According to what tama (2023) writes in Yaoi is for people who bit their peers in childhood, Yaoi Magazine, Volume 2, our average view of what makes something yuri has been misconstrued and made anew into something more palatable to the general public through online jokes. "And this too is yuri" is a common phrase, repeated many times throughout several online spaces, and most often referring to a simple definition of yuri in which any relationship, as long as it didn't involve two women, could be yuri.

In their essay, tama states that this concept is held primarily by non-yuri fans, because this belief invalidates the basic idea of yuri; that is, passion. Yuri is characterized by intense emotion, thought out, scrutinized and sometimes, though not always, acted upon, between two women. Yuri is, however, not limited to women; yuri is an overwhelming presence of what could be called obsession in a relationship. This is a contrast to yaoi, which is not defined by a lack of passion, but by a lack of thought. Yaoi contrasts so sharply with yuri, the yang to its ying, because it most often presents itself through action. Rushing to, as tama elegantly states, "gripping a cute boy by the back of his neck and shaking him until he whimpers", and not thinking of the consequences of the action.

In the context of superbat (the relationship name for Superman and Batman) and ghostbat (relationship name for Ghostmaker and Batman), it’s clear to see where these characteristics shine through the most. Superman is a smart man, sure, but what matters most is that he is first and foremost kind. Superman is a man of action and reaction, the man who swoops in front of a train to avoid letting it hit a child, not thinking of alternate paths. He’s the light to Batman’s darkness, the action to his planning, the charming country boy to the local orphan billionaire. There are few writers out in the world who have avoided the alluring call of opposite and complementary aesthetics, and superbat as a whole are not among those few examples.

From Action Comics #1000 (Early June 2018) with art by Jim Lee (pencils), Scott Williams (inks), and Hi-Fi Design (colors)

On the other hand, Ghostmaker is a master planner on par with Batman; his rival, his parallel. Many aspects of his life as a vigilante are a direct callback to Batman’s, including The Haunt, a.k.a Batcave 2.0, in which he even stores a Spinosaurus to compare to Batman’s T-Rex (and his is bigger). Every aspect of him is in one way or another intertwined with Batman’s. As is revealed in Batman #100 and elaborated upon in the Batman: The Knight, Ghostmaker and Batman have known each other since they were teenagers, and spent much time learning side-by-side from the greatest masters known from several disciplines. Despite their select differences- namely Ghostmaker’s lack of a moral code and many emotions, in contrast with Batman’s famed rules and his endless emotionality, be that grief, rage, or love- the two are evenly matched and consider each other their equal and rival.

Batman is, himself, an almost immutable center of yuri. He is passion, grief, love, and a thirst for justice that is only fueled more and more by those same emotions. His crusade is born out of an avoidable tragedy that he refuses to let others suffer through, if he can, and his way of accomplishing that relies primarily on his skill and intellect. Batman is known for his million contingencies. He plans ahead, for everything that he possibly can, and that razor-sharp focus lives at the core of who he is, as well as making him a great example of everything yuri is.

An understanding of yaoi is essential to superbat, as is an understanding of yuri to ghostbat. There is little space for rationality in superbat’s actions together, despite Batman’s attempts to direct them; Superman’s emotions and recklessness are rewarded in kind with Batman showing himself in a more vulnerable way towards him, allowing them to circle closer to one another and stand together in the same ground. Despite the many differences between them, their shared emotion, the need to reach out and touch, connecting themselves to one another, is what defines their relationship and marks them as unequivocally yaoi.

Contrastingly, ghostbat is a relationship that balances on a razor wire edge between passion and logic. They’re similar and knowledgeable about each other enough to calculate almost every action and reaction that the other would take, but that almost is what gives them enough space to challenge one another. They’re both planners, people who constantly contemplate what the next step should be. Despite that, many of their interactions are bursting with passion, with their need to have each other’s acknowledgement, the desire to touch but the refusal to do so unless it’s all carefully thought out beforehand. They are obsessed with one another in a way that yuri portrays perfectly.

The use of a primarily eastern concept such as the dichotomy of yuri and yaoi may seem odd in explaining two non-canonical gay relationships in a western comic, but it is ever more prevalent in our present times. Yaoi and yuri are everywhere, after all- even when there is nothing. Perhaps especially where there is nothing. This essay hopes to help explain why this concept is helpful towards the analysis of any relationship, but especially in this, where we are present with drastically different foils that both oppose the same character in different ways. And despite their differences, both pairs reach a state of equilibrium just the same.

Sources:

tama, (2023) Yaoi is for people who bit their peers in childhood, Yaoi Magazine, Vol.2 (tshirt et. al).

Comic Volumes Batman: The Knight (1-10), Batman #100, Batman #109, Superman Action Comics #1000.

A special thanks to the people I spent about twenty minutes explaining yaoi-yuri to, the discord server that got a no context snippet and helped me figure out What Am I Even Saying, and the people I was definitely supposed to be paying attention to today instead of spending that time writing this. I have no regrets.

#lo's stuff #this is both the funniest thing i've written and not funny at all #i HAVE to write more yaoi essays tshirt et al you're all my heroes #anyway #ghostbat #minhkhoa khan #superbat #superman #batman #yaoi academics #i'm making that one a tag i need it for organization purposes #i see too many good yaoi academia not to want to find them again #ghostmaker #dc #yeah i'm maintagging it. look at my yaoi-yuri academic boy

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androxys · 5 months

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Task Force What? An Incomplete (Yet Still Very Long) Guide to Some of the DCU’s Government Groups [Part 3]

If you’re a glutton for punishment like me, or if something in the first two parts seemed exciting and you want to dive in more, here are a variety of suggestions for further reading. While obviously incomplete, hopefully you find something in here you like! This section also doubles as (some of) my sources cited, if you’re into that.

If you just want a TL;DR recommendation, personally, I would say read Suicide Squad (1987) and Checkmate (2006) for a great sampling of DC’s world of spies and politics.

I say it every time, but really, thank you to my editors and beta readers who helped make this happen. I owe y'all one.

Part 1: Organization Descriptions and Histories

Part 2: Timeline

Part 3: Reading Suggestions

Suicide Squad

For the Suicide Squad, you’re in luck, because there are three titles just about them! Suicide Squad (1987) is the first and, in my opinion, the best. It ran for 66 issues and was revived in 2010 for a 67th issue to tie in with the Blackest Night event. This establishes Amanda Waller’s character and details how she put the Suicide Squad together. The entire series would be published in a series of eight books, published 2011-2019.

If you want to read the Janus Directive crossover, mentioned several times here, you’re in luck! It was collected in 2016 as Book 4 of the series reprinting all of SS ‘87. However, if you want to read it in singles, you can do that as such:

Checkmate (1988) #15

Suicide Squad (1987) #27

Checkmate (1988) #16

Suicide Squad (1987) #28

Checkmate (1988) # 17

Manhunter (1988) #14

Firestorm (1982) #86

Suicide Squad (1987) #29

Checkmate (1988) #18

Suicide Squad (1987) #30

Captain Atom (1987) #30

After SS ‘87 ended, their next main book would be Suicide Squad (2001). This series would spin out of the Our Worlds At War crossover, and is set during the time period when Lex Luthor is the U.S. President and Amanda Waller is the Director of Metahuman Affairs. It is collected as Suicide Squad: Casualties of War, published in 2021. This one has much less Waller in it, and is only loosely connected in the final issues to anything that came before it.

The Squad’s last titular series would be Suicide Squad (2007). This book is set during Amanda Waller’s time in Checkmate, and details the Squad’s involvement in Operation: Salvation Run. It was collected in 2008 as Suicide Squad: From the Ashes. Lots of past Squad members return for this one. If this run really grabs you, you can also read Salvation Run (2008). It was collected under the same name in 2008.

Checkmate

Checkmate has had two primary runs in the post-Crisis, New Earth continuity. The first is Checkmate (1988), which covers the Harry Stein era of Checkmate. It ran for 33 issues, with the Janus Directive crossover happening roughly halfway through. This run follows from Checkmate’s first appearance in Action Comics (1938) #598, also in 1988.

Checkmate pops up a few times during the Bruce Wayne: Murderer? and Bruce Wayne: Fugitive comic arcs. These arcs are too long for me to detail them all out here, but they were both collected in 2014 as self-titular books. For Checkmate specific issues, check out Detective Comics (1937) #768-777. This arc deals with David Said working as a Knight for Checkmate, and the organization’s recruitment of Sasha Bordeaux. If you want to see Said working as King, that’s in Gotham Knights (1999) #37-40.

Checkmate would receive its major revamp in 2005, with Maxwell Lord as King. This saga is chronicled in Countdown to Infinite Crisis (2005) #1, The OMAC Project (2005) #1-6, and Infinite Crisis Special: The OMAC Project (2005) #1.

After the events of The OMAC Project and Infinite Crisis, Checkmate would be rechartered as a U.N. organization and receive a new self-titled ongoing series. Checkmate (2006) would run for 31 issues. This series would crossover with Outsiders (2003) with the story CheckOut, which would run

Checkmate (2006) #13

Outsiders (2003) #47

Checkmate (2006) #14

Outsiders (2003) #48

Checkmate (2006) #15

Outsiders (2003) #49

Checkmate (2005) #1-25 is collected, including the CheckOut crossover, in Checkmate by Greg Rucka Books 1 and 2, published in 2017 and 2018, respectively. #26-31 is collected in Checkmate: Chimera published 2009.

Cadmus

Okay, I’m going to cheat a bit here. Before Crisis happened, Jack Kirby created the DNA Project in Superman’s Pal, Jimmy Olsen (1937) #135. You can read that in Superman’s Pal, Jimmy Olsen by Jack Kirby published 2019. A lot of this stayed on after Crisis, and it’s Kirby, so that’s fun.

In New Earth, if you want to read about Cadmus, I sort of have to recommend The Death and Return of Superman story arc. The thing is, that story is giant, and I can’t list all the Cadmus stuff individually. If you’re interested, DC reprinted the entire arc over four books in 2016. These are The Death of Superman, Funeral for a Friend, Reign of the Supermen, and The Return of Superman. This chronicles Cadmus’ response to Superman’s death and the subsequent debut of Superboy. If you’re interested specifically in Superboy’s first appearance escaping Cadmus, that’s in Adventures of Superman (1987) #500.

The Battle for Metropolis and Fall of Metropolis feature Cadmus’ clone virus and its subsequent fallout:

Action Comics (1938) #699

Superman: The Man of Steel (1991) #34

Superman (1987) #90

Adventures of Superman (1987) #513

Action Comics (1938) #700

Superman: The Man of Steel (1991) #35

Superman (1987) #91

Adventures of Superman (1987) #514

Action Comics (1938) #701

Cadmus continues to pop up through Superboy (1994), which is unfortunately generally uncollected. The first ten issues, as well as the Zero Hour #0 special, were collected in 2018 as Superboy: Trouble in Paradise. You can see Superboy suffering from the clone plague a bit in there, which is a nice bit of continuity, though the series doe not officially crossover.

A.P.E.S.

This group exclusively shows up in the pages of Young Justice (1998), which ran for 56 issues. The entire run is collected in five books, published 2017-2020.

Department of Extranormal Operations

The DEO first shows up in Batman (1940) #550, which is also Cameron Chase’s first appearance. This issue serves as a sort of “backdoor pilot” to Chase (1998), which ran for 9 regular issues and a DC One Million tie-in. This series dealt with Chase’s adventures as an agent of the DEO. Cameron Chase and Director Bones would later become major supporting characters in Manhunter (2004).

Evidence of the DEO’s research camps, orphanages, and training groups can be found in various titles. Notably, Young Justice (1998), Relative Heroes (2000), and Titans (1999).

Wonder Woman’s adventures as Diana Prince, agent of the Department of Metahuman Affairs are chronicled in Wonder Woman (2006). The DMA is heavily involved in the “Amazons Attack” storyline that runs #6-13, but be forewarned, that arc is not exactly… loved… by Wonder Woman fans. The story “Who Is Wonder Woman,” which runs #1-5 is good, and Gail Simone’s acclaimed run starts at #14. Make of that information what you will.

Spyral

As mentioned above, Spyral has a bit of a funny publication history, debuting in the New Earth continuity, but then being largely fleshed out in the post-Flashpoint continuity that directly follows from the pre-Flashpoint timeline.

Spyral first appears in Batman Incorporated (2011) #4. The group would continue to appear through Batman Incorporated (2012). Spyral features prominently in Grayson (2014), in which Dick Grayson is forced to give up the Nightwing identity and becomes an agent of Spyral throughout the comic’s twenty issue run, concluding in Nightwing: Rebirth (2016) #1.

#dc comics #amanda waller #sasha bordeaux #suicide squad #checkmate #meta #my writing #chit chat

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