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#the town doesn't trust Batman
flamingpudding · 2 months
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That's our baby hero
Protective Amity Park Au but maybe not like you would think?
Danny's identity wasn't as hidden as Sam, Tucker, Jazz and him thought. His identity was an open secret, in fact his whole town knew that Danny was their hero Phantom, well everyone but his oblivious parents but they were a case of their own. The thing was his entire town knew about his oh so big secret identity and that he was the one trying to save them from ghosts 90% of the time as well as from his own parents crazy inventions at times.
Dash shoving him into lockers like a bully? Danny didn't look good and Dash tried in crude ways to give him reasons to skip classes to rest. It also later was a good move to hide him from snoopy government agents also known as the Guys in White or GIW for short. Really his bullying played perfectly into him finding creative ways to get Danny to skip classes for rest.
Valerie hunting him and other ghosts? Well she was hunting him in the very beginning, but then it became an attempt to make him stop fighting the ghosts on their behalf but in the end it turned into her trying her best to be the support to him that Sam and Tucker couldn't be in a fight. Let alone taking 'night shifts' from him so Danny could get at least a good nights rest every now and then.
Sam's parents the Mansons? Sure they didn't like him that much from the start anyway but most of their anger later stemmed from the danger their daughter was willingly get into to help their reckless teenhero that shouldn't be a hero at his age anyway. Let alone shoulder the responsible for their entire town at the age of 14.
Tuckers parents? They were glad any time Danny stayed over with their son, even attempting to subtitle convince the boys to have more sleepovers at their home. Surely being a hero with ghost powers and living in a house of ghost hunting parents wasn't easy on Danny. They were glad that they could give him some peace at their home. They willingly ignored it when Danny showed up late night in Tuckers room, getting patched up by their son.
The entire town apparently hating him with all these negative newspapers and comments? All fake in a desperate attempt to get the 14 years old teenager with a bad sleeping schedule and powers to stop risking his damned life, half-life. Surely if they appeared not thankful the kid would get the hint and stop playing hero. Like seriously he was a kid! Who's bright idea was it to let a kid fight these dangerous appearing ghosts?! Oh right the poor kids parents were incompetent when it came to ghost hunting and it wasn't like they could just up and do it without destroying the kids confidence. Plus the GIW were no help either.
Vlad becoming Mayor was not exactly their plan but they thought maybe they could use that as some help to convince Danny more that he didn't need to play hero for them just because he got powers now. That didn't turn out like they hoped and THAT plan was dismissed quickly. Especially when the GIW showed up. They learned their lesson sort of quickly after that, at least when it came to people from out of Amity did not mean well.
Lancer, at first when Danny first showed up as Phantom, had attempted to get into contact with the Justice League several times, so that Danny would actually get the professional help he needed and get some sleep at night as well as the time he needed for his schooling so that heroing wouldn't be the only career path he would be forced into. The additional point of getting the kid training too for his powers was also very tempting, there are only so many chemical breakers they could allow the him to break before they HAD to sort of ban him from touching them again.
But when the GIW appeared in their town they stopped trying to reach the Justice League. Suspecting that that was the answer they sent in regards to their SOS calls. Amity Parks protectiveness over their teenheroes that sacrificed to much skyrocketed. They started to sabotage the Agents subtitle. Always working within the limits of the orders and finding the loop holes.
"Oh but we did comply, not our fault that you guys tripped and let Phantom escape."
"Wupp, sorry I got that from the Fentons for self defence, but it looks like I need to work on my aim."
"I am so sorry, my car is stuck! See my tire is popped I can't get out of your vans way."
The fact that Amity Parks weather report was more a report on the ghosts, the Fenton parents and the GIW was all a tactic for them all to keep each other informed so they could execute any step to ensure their -by now- towns sweethearts safety. Even if they still tried to turn the poor kid away from being a hero with all the unnecessary mean comments and articles.
So when one day a hero from the Justice League showed up it was predictable that they all were suspicious of it. Even more so when that hero came with a bunch of teenage heroes. Apparently they were here to investigate a bunch of ignored calls one of the teenheroes found in their call logs. Some of the adults eyed Lancer who in turn was glaring at the heroes fessed up, he hadn't attempted to call them ever since they decided to sent the GIW into their town. Which apparently was more of a cover as these heroes showed an interest in the Fentons research of Ectoplasm pretty quickly.
Well now Batman and his flock of bats and birds were confronted with a very unhappy town that was apparently very protective of their hero and 'accidentally' continued to manage to block them from making contact with said teenhero. And who where these Guys in white suits that tried to suck it up to Batman? Better question why was the entire town suddenly hostile towards them when they started to look into the Fenton Family that had a connection to Lazarus Water?
Meanwhile Danny is confused by his towns newfound favouritism towards Batman and his entourage and how whenever he went to find out what was that about everyone seems to deflect. Even Sam, Tucker and Jazz were confused by what was going on!
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ew-selfish-art · 6 months
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Dpx Dc AU: Ectoplasm is required for Ghosts to be visible to the human eye- And Danny creates his own ectoplasm.
Danny is visiting Jazz in Gotham and its weird how friendly everyone is. Like, the city gets a really bad rapport, everywhere he goes there is someone trying to strike up a conversation or answer his questions about getting around to the tourist spots. A few people even pointed out restaurants and ways to find off the beaten path gems! Jazz seems to role her eyes at him, but when he brings up her 'roommate' being kind of cute she flat out laughs.
Danny then comes to understand the Jazz doesn't have a roommate and that Ghosts in Gotham don't move far from their haunts- He's just been inadvertently turning these undead folks visible by accident of generating abnormal amounts of ectoplasm.
Which, is comforting in a way, he's never walking this dangerous city alone and really, most of the ghosts have been really friendly! They disappear once he's a few blocks away from them anyway.
---
Tim Drake is having a horrible day.
He'd been given intel that one of Black Mask's guys was going to snitch but that he'd died before given the opportunity to reach out to the GCPD. He tracks down the guy's last know whereabouts and yikes. Its next to the Theater. Tim was often grateful for his childhood obsessions, this time it backfired.
Tim and Bruce get into an argument about trust and respect and, worst of all, mental health. And even though Tim was vehemently against Batman accompanying Red Robin to the alleyway - that's exactly what happens.
They arrive and Bruce is closing up faster than a clam in the contaminated Gotham Bay- Clearly being in the Alley bothers him. No fucking shit. RR gets started on collecting evidence, there are a few extra blood splatters and a single left shoe... When a kid walks into the Alley.
"Uh, sorry to intrude-" The kid looks scared shitless, and runs away. And then, all of a sudden, Batman and Robin aren't alone in the Alley.
Tim can hardly believe his eyes as the dead man appears and quickly blabs Black Mask's bank passwords and what the plan had been- and While he's over joyed to have that closure, he turns around to Batman weeping in the arms of his parents.
The ghosts fade, and the emotions are certainly charged as this was never something Bruce or Tim would have ever dreamed of happening. Ghosts in Gotham. Talking, floating, granting closure.
"RR, Bats, come in." Oracle calls into their ears.
"Reporting in, but, uh, we need a minute."
"A minute? We have a case on 4th and-"
"O, we just saw the ghosts of the Waynes. It's going to be a minute."
"...Lots of Ghost reports lately then. Any chance you saw a kid looking like he could be adopted?"
"Yeah, actually, black hair and blue eyes. He was super polite before he ran away."
"We have work to do. Oracle, lets prioritize finding our person of interest and divert Nightwing and Robin to the case on 4th." Batman cut between them on the comms and he sounded... calmer than either of them anticipated.
---
Jazz is no longer laughing when Batman appears at her door explaining that he's looking for Danny (Who already flew away from town to get a good night's sleep before class on Monday). Turns out Danny reunited the man with his dead parents just briefly- and then the second guy appears and mentions how Danny had also given a guy who'd been murdered by a Mob enough time to explain the ongoing threats the city faced.
Jazz just rolls her eyes and says that it's not like the ghosts are going anywhere anytime soon and Danny will visit in another month. When pressed, she just explains that her brother is a weirdo. No of course he doesn't have powers. Gaslight and Girlbosses her way out.
And Jazz thinks that the game is up for at least another month, obviously when Danny visits more shit will stir up, but then this new guy appears.
Unlike the other Bats who are keen on watching her from a distance, the Red Hood knocks on her door. Are her eyebrows all the way into her hairline when Red Hood asks her to send his thanks along to Danny because somehow this whole situation led to his Dad expressing remorse for his actions and apologizing? Yes, yes they are.
But Jazz can smell Dissertation Data off of these vigilantes- Who is she to send them away? Jazz welcomes Red Hood into her place for a cup of tea and a small chat.
The story then devolves into Jazz getting shit done, Danny being cute by proximity and also bringing ghosts to the party, and the Bats having trauma resolve between them.
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bet-on-me-13 · 7 months
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Cass joins Team Phantom
So, we all know how Cass escaped her terrible dad at the age of 8 right? And how she is adopted by Batman at the age of 16-17 right? Well, what happened in between that time?
Cass has been on the run for Years now. She is 13, and at this point she has been on the run for nearly half of her entire life. So it's really no wonder that when she finally got to a relatively safe place after weeks of little food, little rest, and constant attacks by her pursuers, she accidentally fell asleep.
She woke up in a nice comfy bed, in a room that looked like an Astronomy Geek's dream. Once the people who found her noticed she was awake, they explained what had happened.
Their son, a boy named Danny, had found her passed out in their Shed the previous day while cleaning up. He had quickly brought her in and offered his Room so she could rest comfortably.
Cass doesn't really trust them, and tries to run more than once, but her weeks of constant exhaustion have finally caught up with her and she is stuck staying with them until she is fit to leave.
And unfortunately for her, the Fentons are very Endearing.
By the time she is healthy enough to leave, she genuinely wants to stay. So they unofficially adopt her, letting her stay in their house and sharing a room with Jazz (Danny did kind of need his room back, and Jazz was a good sister like that)
She ends up going to the same school as Danny and ends up befriending both of his friends, Tucker and Sam.
The day of the Accident, Cass is right there alongside Tucker and Sam as the Portal kills Danny.
After the Accident, she is a great help in teaching him some calming routines and meditation techniques so he can get a handle on his Powers much easier.
They also find out that standing in front of a Portal as it rips reality apart is just as bad as being inside of it. They all end up extremely liminal and get Powers. Tucker has Technomancy, Sam has Plant Powers, and Cass gets Shadow Manipulation (or whatever you think fits her)
She is having the best time of her life, but unfortunately it can't last forever.
About 2 years after the Accident, the GIW get a lucky shot on Danny. They were using one of the inventions the Fenton's had made before the Reveal (which was a good one) one that made Ghost Powers weaker for easier capture. While it didn't hurt Danny too much, it did weaken him enough that he flickered into his Human Form for just long enough for the GIW Agents to see him.
Now with Danny's identity exposed, the GIW could track down the Identities of the Humans who had been helping him all this time, aka, Tucker, Sam, and Cass.
During a Raid on Fenton Works, they all got seperated somehow.
Danny got injured protecting the Team, and had to be rushed to the Ghost Zone by Jazz, a stray shot from the GIW blowing up the Portal behind them. They ended up in the Far Frozen, to get Danny fixed up.
Tucker was arrested and sent to prison for a little while before a glitch in his cells Security System allowed him an opening to use his Powers to escape.
Sam was chased out of the Town by the GIW and ended up in the Forest nearby. She had to use her Powers to run away, disappearing too deep into the Woods for the GIW to follow.
Cass managed to sneak out, and ended up trying to save Tucker on his way to prison. She failed though, and the GIW chased her all the way to New Jersey before loosing her trail.
This is how she ended up in Gotham, and got adopted by Bruce Wayne. But she would never forget her first Family, and would try for years to see if she could find where they ended up.
Potential Part 2? Maybe, I have some ideas...
What do you think?
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ghostbsuter · 6 months
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Can be read as a continuation of this
.・゜-: ✧ :-
It's been a few weeks, really, since the day he met his biological father.
The oversized hoodie drowned him, a perfect haven while he waits near the entrance to arkham asylum.
The whole week rushed by after the event. His mom, wonderful, black belt, kickass mom had fretted over him the whole time, messaging his therapist not long after and getting an appointment.
His dad had been clingy, giving him bear hugs left and right, it felt nice. Jazz hadn't let him out of her sight for one moment, always searching, always studying.
Man, he loved his family.
"Are you going to visit him?" The gruff voice of Batman asks, and danny shrieks, jumping away as he looks at the vigilante with wide eyes.
"Oh Ancients—! Don't scare me like that!" Danny scolds, hand over his chest and breathing hard.
He can feel the amusement wafting off of Batman. Or something.
Huffing, the child leans against the brickstone pillar holding the gate again.
"No," he ends up answering. "I'm not here to visit... him."
Batman listens quietly, simply standing next to him. He doesn't pressure nor demand anything. If danny thinks more of it, he might get a headache.
"My sister is an intern in Arkham, we're gonna have dinner with Harley and Ivy today." A shrug, and the wind lovingly pushes him.
"Good." The man states, he hesitates a moment before he stretches his arm out towards danny, opening his hand and showcasing the items.
First is a lollipop, famous for being handed over to children after being saved by the bat himself. Second is a pin, in the shape of Batman's signature bat, it had a red button on the other side however.
"It's an emergency alert, in case anything like this happens again." Is quickly explained and Danny takes them, if not a bit tense.
He is unused to the trust the man shows him despite how short their time was spent together. Danny wonders if the bat already snooped around.
"Thanks—"
"Danny!"
His head snaps to the gate opening, brightening up as Jazz runs through and hugs him.
"Jazz!" He eagerly hugs back, thank looks up at her.
"You gotta meet Bat—" He trails off when they turn to the empty spot next to the pair, wind rustling leaves just as he finished. "man..."
Damn batman.
Danny huffs and tugs at Jazz's jacket. "Nevermind then, c'mon let's get a nice present before we visit harley."
Simply bringing her up seems to have Jazz excited. "I still can't believe we're having dinner with THE Dr. Harleen Quinzel!!!"
"And her wife."
"aND THE Dr. Pamela Lillian Isley!!!"
Her enthusiasm is rubbing off on him, he grins, hooking up his arm around hers, and they're skipping towards town, laughing like maniacs.
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mzminola · 1 year
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Bruce sets up an elaborate mindfuck for Tim's birthday in an attempt to make Tim less trusting of even allies, giving him a mental breakdown. Bruce claims this will make Tim a better vigilante.
Tim, upon figuring it out, throws his Robin uniform literally in Bruce's face, cussing him out (like, actually censored swears, which Tim usually doesn't use), and quits. He talks with Steph about how messed up it was, and she empathizes out of her own messed up experiences with Bruce.
An unclear but short time later, probably a few days, Tim un-quits and states to Bruce that he doesn't expect an apology (not because it's unnecessary, but because he knows Bruce).
~
Stephanie returns from presumed death, finds Bruce, and accepts his orders to not reveal herself to everyone else & to take extreme actions to, once again in Bruce's estimate, make Tim a better vigilante.
This includes running around town in her original costume so Tim thinks his dead friend has a copycat, hiring people to attack him, working with a bomber, and even after knocking all that off, not sharing pertinent information about it with Tim, resulting in Tim being caught in an explosion.
Tim yells at Stephanie and says "Don't let me catch you wearing [the Spoiler] costume ever again." When she tracks him down a little later, he refuses to speak with her.
An unclear amount of time later, probably a few months, Tim is willing to work with Stephanie to stop a supervillain plot.
~
Some fans treat Tim's word-choice in the confrontation with Steph as him trying to control her. As him thinking he's got the authority to decide who can and cannot operate as a vigilante, at least in Gotham.
But. Like. One, aside from this one conversation, he takes no actions to stop her. He doesn't steal her gear (like Bruce sometimes steals people's uniform), he doesn't go and tell other people to stop working with her, he doesn't even go snitch to her mom.
Tim just. Tells the friend who got him very badly hurt while mindfucking him that he doesn't want to see her in the field again.
Two, it's a pretty dang similar response to when Bruce mindfucked him in the first example. Tim is the one who insists Batman needs a Robin. And here he is depriving Batman of Robin.
Yet if I tried to claim "Tim quitting Robin is his attempt to control Batman, is Tim acting like he has authority to stop Bruce from being a vigilante" you'd laugh in my face. Because that is a huge leap to make, with convoluted logic, and isn't supported by the rest of the text.
Bruce & Stephanie both screw Tim up really badly.
He confronts them and says he's breaking ties.
Then after a little distance, he goes right back to working with them.
And some people think this is...controlling? Don't get me wrong, Tim has some controlling tendencies, they all do, but it's usually teaming up with Alfred to stop Bruce patrolling while injured, and lying his ass off to everyone so he can do what he wants.
This? Is not that.
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nerdofspades · 2 years
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Okay. DP x DC idea. What if the League met Fenton before they met Phantom. Not in a ghost fight. Not doing anything particularly weird. Just Danny Fenton trying his best.
When they first notice the ghosts of Amity Park they all get a little worried about it, but no one can beat out Batman's paranoia. Ghosts may not have caused too many problems outside of Amity yet, but he doesn't trust that to stay that way. So he researches.
He, of course, finds out about Phantom, but shelves his usual just-in-case-he-turns-evil plans until after he can get some ghostly experts to brief the League. He does some cursory research into Phantom's history and abilities, which of course drags up everything in the Amity News cycle and some references in both Ancient Egypt and Ancient Rome. (So Batsy gives up on the idea of finding out a human civilian identity. Kid's dead and his "life" has been lost to time until he decides to say something.)
But, more importantly, there are no good options for who to ask for lessons in ghost hunting.
First option: the GIW. Absolute morons who have never caught anything stronger than an ectopus, cause more damage to property than the ghosts, and have security so lax it doesn't even take Batman ten seconds to get in. Absolutely not. Not for the watch tower.
Second option: Vlad Co. Owned and operated by billionaire Vlad Masters who runs in the same social circles as Lex Luthor. He has better security than the GIW but the question with him is not whether or not he *could* keep the secret, but whether or not he *would.*
Third option: Dr.s Fenton of FentonWorks. They have the most cutting edge ghost hunting technology and the most published papers. But. Well. A brief survey of the town makes it very clear they are biased at best and bigoted at worst. Not something the League wants to associate with, but they are still the best of the bad options.
Or so they think until Bruce Wayne goes to open contact with them and notices the Fenton children. He knew about them before coming of course. Jasmine Fenton, top of her class with a full ride to Harvard and plans to major in psychology. Has historically been vocal about her distaste for her parent's work. Likely because of Danny. Daniel Fenton is a trouble maker barely scraping by in his classes that had an accident in his parents lab a year ago. Not the brightest and not well behaved, but by all accounts he's got a good heart.
And neither of then are very enthused about his presence in their home. Neither of them seem to care for their parents anti-ghost rhetoric either. Jazz tries to reason with them and Danny just rolls his eyes behind their back. And casually takes apart and fixes one of their inventions.
Bruce quickly makes a minor investing deal with the elder Fentons as cover and a quick way to keep and eye on their research and finds an excuse to get the kids out of the house to talk. Once out, he extends the Justice League's request for training with ghost hunting gear and a project to install anti-ecto security measures in their base(s). Danny is hesitant but agrees.
And Danny is so tired and so done with this crap when he's in the Watch Tower. (He's enamored with the space station for several minutes, but once he gets on track, the League think he's a mini Bruce. All business and telling them not to be idiots.)
He gives them a basic run down of what each item is and how to use it. Common ghostly abilities and power scaling. (Do not call him to consult on a blob ghost, ectopus, or other weak ghostly animal. But they are not to try and fight several of the stronger ghost. A fair amount of this tech will make their afterlives miserable, but won't actually do much beyond annoy them. Superman in particular should stay away from anything strong enough to overshadow. No one wants to fight a possessed Kryptonian.) He gives them plenty of thermoses, guns, nets, and specter deflectors plus some odds and ends for them to test out. And then he starts working on the shield, which he worked on with Tucker to upgrade so it would recognize his ecto signature as friendly (and a couple others like Clockwork, Pandora, Frostbite, and Wulf) so it wouldn't shoot him on the spot.
It would probably take several trips to get everything working properly, by which point Danny has likely made friends with a few League members. And a few of them have probably noticed something weird about him, but they ignore it cause he's a good kid and it's just a little weird. Won't hurt anything.
Constantine takes one look at the kid and is not seen again until months after he finally leaves.
But now they have working ghost defenses and they can protect people if a ghost tries to attack anywhere outside of Amity! (Yes, several ask Danny to install a shield at their personal hideouts as well. Batman tries to figure it out on his own and decides to just ask Danny for now. He'll figure it out eventually, but Fenton schematics are a pain and the power source doesn't look like anything he's ever seen before.)
Eventually everything is done and Danny goes back to his life with a large chunk of cash in his new bank account and a secure line just incase the league needs to consult with him again. Danny thinks that's the end of it until Batman shows up decked out in Fenton gear looking for Phantom.
Continue
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thecruellestmonth · 1 year
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Dick & Jason fic recs
Some of the best fics featuring bickering, bonding, and brotherhood between Dick Grayson and Jason Todd.
"Secrets, Siblings, and Cigarettes" by CrimeAlley1048 - A young Jason Todd finds an uninvited guest at Wayne Manor.
"drawing lines in the sand" by acrobats - When Batman is injured, Nightwing and Robin have to patrol together. The only problem is that they can't stand each other.
"Call Me Hopeless" by incogneat_oh - Dick is so very tired. Love is stored in the brotherhood.
The Art of Bird Metaphor by lowflyingfruit - Batman works alone. Everyone knows that. What Jason's learning is that he also has a penchant for picking up strays. And while Jason's just your common or garden Gotham street rat, Bruce's other stray, Richard, is an ex-assassin for the Court of Owls. An ex-assassin for the Court of Owls who hates Jason's guts. Adjusting to life in Wayne Manor was hard enough already.
"the long lost art of killing it dead" by dustorange - Red Hood is a criminal, so it doesn't make sense why he would bother dragging Nightwing back to Dick Grayson's apartment and bandaging his potentially deadly gunshot wounds. What makes even less sense is why Hood keeps coming back. (AKA another "Dick redeems Red Hood with the power of affection" fic but with even less mental stability.)
"catch and release" by hellsreluctantheir - Dick tries to catch Jason. [Whumptober with hurt Dick]
"Proper Procedures for Undercover Missions" by solomonara - Dick shows off his master detective skills, tracks down Jason, and runs a refresher course on the proper procedure for undercover missions.
"like falling water" by naheka - All Jason wanted to do was take a nap and pull one over on Bruce. Trust Dick to go ahead and ruin everything.
"see my other side" by deepestbluesky- Red Hood rebrands.
"fortune telling and speculative science" by knowsphere - Nightwing and Red Hood face uncertain doom.
"Bow to the Crown" by hauntedlittledoll - Dick is down for the count. Jason delivers a monologue to poor Damian.
"Upside Down" by withthekeyisking - Something that was not on Jason's agenda for the night, but somehow now is: take care of the de-aged version of his big brother, who is—in his tiny mind—apparently running away from juvie.
"Equivalent Exchange" by Lysical - Dick leaned over and pinched his cheek. Jason reached up and swiped at him, scowling. Dick calls in an old favor owed by Jason.
"Oh How the Turntables" by Lysical - Nearly drowning in Gotham Harbor means that it's Dick who is in the care of a concerned sibling. He's not prepared to go down without a fight, though.
"Always Someone Better" by lowflyingfruit - What Jason hadn't known when Batman scooped him off the streets was how much it sucked to be the second and second-best child. Five times Jason felt inferior to Dick, and a reversal he didn't savour like he thought he would.
"Home Intrusion" by daedalusdavinci - Dick feels overwhelmed by depression. Jason is a chaotic blend of unapologetically annoying and insufferably caring. ♡
"A little more heart and soul" by ruesyblues - Dick wants Damian to be happy. He just has no clue how to accomplish that.
Honorable mentions:
"scout's honour" by orphan_account - Jason meets his older brother for the first time. Alternatively: local children solve murders and hate their dad.
"One Bird, Two Bird, Red Bird, Dead Bird" by blacklettered - In which Jason Todd is dead, and Dick is fine.
"lonely town" by TheResurrectionist - Bruce doesn’t kill the Joker. But that was Dick’s little brother, damn it. Major character death, intense grief, death wishes, extreme peril, self-destructive behavior.
"haunt the blood" by wednesday - Hood walks into the warehouse and about a dozen feet in his steps falter. The helmet hides his face, but the way his muscles tense spell out danger in a way that makes Dick instantly wary. He’d rather not get handed over to any masked villains, Hood included.
"Convergence" by meaninglessblah - Dick volunteers to unmask the Red Hood rogue who's been meddling in Roman's business. The enigma Dick finds seems more intent on unmasking him. Villainous Red Hood.
"Pastrami on Rye" by sister_wolf - "You want a sandwich?" Jason Todd -- fucking Jason Todd -- asked off-handedly as he walked into the kitchenette of the small, dingy apartment. "Oh, right, you can't answer right now. Well, I want a sandwich, so you get one too." Hostility, bitterness, villainous Red Hood.
"Not A Brother Not A Friend" by kleine_aster - Nightwing helps the wanted villain Red Hood recover from fear toxin—though they are not brothers, and they are not friends.
"A Christmas Miracle" by Mithen - Damian and Dick go undercover to bust a child-kidnapping ring whose members dress up as Santa Claus.
"provisional kindred soul" - two guys sit on a roof and talk around their childhoods. Warning for crappy dad Bruce.
"New Life, New Leaf" by CrimeAlley1048 - Jason Todd gives the "no killing" rule a try.
"Like Father" by Wisetypewriter - Scarlet & Dick, Scarlet & Jason. Jason, Dick privately recalled, was ironically the one that took after Bruce's adoption addiction the most.
Two Dead Birds by InsaneTrollLogic - There's some lunatic in a red helmet running through Jason's territory. He wants to think it's a copy cat. He's wrong. "UtRH" time travel redux, Jason-centric.
"See No Evil" by cherrysour - Jason has never been great at feelings, and seeing strong, independent Nightwing blind and alone brings up too many of them. Jason never stopped idolizing Dick.
"occam's razor" by BeatriceEagle - An Internet community discusses the mysterious death of a billionaire's son.
"Joking" by CrimeAlley1048 - Dick has to put in entirely too much effort to wish his brother a happy birthday.
"It's Tomb Time" by FleetSparrow - Tiny vignette. When Dick and Jason have to investigate an old tomb, Jason doesn't like it one bit. And makes it known. Repeatedly.
"Save Me From Tears" by Shenanigans - Jason's gift isn't expensive; it's priceless.
"Through Me Tell the Story" by diefleder_tey - Jason takes Dick to his favorite bookstore and tasks him with finding a certain book; it doesn't end like he expects.
"for one more moment" by renecdote - Hurt/comfort, Dick is self-sacrificing, Jason is worried angry.
"Changes" by HoodEx - Dick copes with his depression in a certain way, much to the horror of his family. Jason helps him through it.
"Rumours Of My Death" by WordsAblaze - Dick and Jason end up sharing a messy but much-needed emotional moment in a graveyard. Set during the Spyral arc.
"Down to the Dregs" by firefright - The fallout of the Joker war and Dick getting his memory back is far messier than some in his family would like to acknowledge. But to the surprise of them both, Jason, out of all people, is willing to listen. Content warning: Ric arc, "City of Bane", "The Joker War", and other frustrating canon events referenced.
"the past doesn’t die" by Phidippus - Their lives have never been simple, but Dick and Jason come to find that some bonds last through death.
"Relax" by thebluemango - Dick is cold and bleeding. When he gets rescued, even in his disoriented brain he wants to stay strong for his littlest brothers. Little does he know, he can just relax.
"Fabric Softener" by ceruleon - As the title implies, this story is way soft. Feel-good fluff.
Red X by ilovelegendsalot - A rather painstakingly canon-compliant Teen Titans 2003 cartoon fic, in which Jason Todd steals the Red X suit from his older brother.
Bad Company by LilRedRobinHood - Deathstroke's son is dead and he demands an apprentice to pay off the blood debt--Robin, specifically. While the already-grieving Dark Knight's investigation devolves into a self-destructive spiral, Dick clings stubbornly to his ideals…and somewhere along the line he might end up accidentally befriending his dead brother. Work in progress, last updated in 2022.
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Some Duke Thomas headcanon
This is my personal vision . Please respect
No one of the batkids know how Duke's power actually works, then when Duke says random thing everyone believe in him. If Duke says he can fly, then he can fly, that's that
Duke 100% believes that Cassandra and Damian are cryptids (for different reasons)
In Cass side - there was this day when he was watching a movie when he suddenly felt something sitting next to him, it was Cass. He didn't even see her come in, she didn't even make a sound, she just show up in one blink
In Damian side - there one night were only Duke and Damian in the library, Duke then saw something shiny through the window outside the house, It made him anxious, but Damian just looked at him blankly and said with a morbid calm "can you see them too? Today is a really beautiful night, they are dancing" (Damian can see ghost in canon)
After he finds out about the Cow and Goliath (he still have questions about Goliath) he made the decision not to be impressed by any strange animals in the house, assuming they all belonged to Damian. Do they have a chicken in the dining room? Damian's new pet. Is there a snake around the house? Damian's new pet. Is there an ancient squid-like being dressed as a bat walking around Gotham? Bruce should make a rule about what kind of animal Damian can adopt
Duke knows about the dead Robin club (Steph, Jason and Damian) and I die for some minutes (Tim), he made the decision of not die. Just he don't die. And somehow HE JUST CAN'T DIE.
in the future Duke (when Bruce retire and the kids just vibes) is called "Duke the Immortal" by his brothers
He actually still watches movies with Damian when the boy is in the town, Dick and Steph are the one who join them the most
One time Duke finds Jason's library (that house is HUGE), he still don't figure out who that library belong to but that place is so cozy, he really likes it
Also he and Jason are the street smarth duo
On a patrol they don't even need to use words to understand what the other wants to do, just a few slight signals and everything is solved
Even though he is in charge of patrol during the day, he may still be called "Robin" by the ghotamites (he has mixing feelings about this)
He is definitively not "the normal one", he enjoy the chaos in the same way of the others gremlins, he just never gets caught
Since he was adopted by Bruce, he has a list of heroes and celebrities he wants to meet
Like every Gotham child he admired Batman and Robin, but now that he knows them all... Duke has some regrets...
he realized from day one that neither Jason nor Damian has a warm body, but he never said it out loud for fear of pushing a button
Duke and Dick are the most emotionally intelligent in the house, Duke just don't bring this often
he has a sketchbook and likes to draw about his day, random doodles about the villian, some batshit thing and random things he saw on patrol
He is also, after Dick, who can take care of a kid with no problem
If he has some questions about some vigilant stuff (like the pit, owl people and others crazy stuff) he asked Alfred or Babs. The motive is: he doesn't trust that the others will give him the complete answer (after the "they're big evil" or "the things made boom near them" Duke was tired of asking and decided to go to Alfred to know the correct information)
He doesn't see Bruce as a father, more like a weird uncle, but he really bonds with the kids, he still doesn't know how to label this yet but he enjoys their company
Some batkid headcanon: Damian || Duke || Cassandra || Stephanie || Tim || Jason || Dick
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suzukiblu · 7 months
Text
Excerpt from the next chapter of "think pink", a.k.a "Kon meets pink kryptonite and decides to fuck Tim and his boyfriend about it":
Kon flies into Gotham as surreptitiously as possible, meaning "as thoroughly concealed by the smog and cloud cover as possible", which given the amount of smog and cloud cover usually works out pretty well for him. Today's definitely no less cloudy than usual, and he's landing in the marina in no time. Well–specifically, he's landing in a subtle little out-of-the-way corner of the marina that Tim's previously pointed out to him where his neighbors probably won't notice either a Superboy or a Wonder Girl coming down.
Probably.
Eh, it's whatever. If they notice, Kon'll handle it. Not like he's not used to lying to Gothamites about what the fuck he's doing in their city and why they shouldn't flip the Batsignal over it, after all.
Not that said lies always keep the Batsignal from getting flipped, but still. It's been like fifty-fifty.
Well, sixty-forty . . . ?
Maybe seventy-thirty.
Kon waits 'til nobody's immediately around and super-speeds his ass across the dock to Tim's houseboat. There's an unnecessary amount of security on the thing because Tim is a paranoid little freak and a half and every single Bat alive is literally made of trust issues, but he already knows there's nothing that'll clock him on the deck. Well, nothing aggressive, anyway.
This ain't his first Bat-rodeo, and all that.
He punches in the code for the lock on the door, and the code for the other lock on the door, and the code that'll keep the needles covered in neurotoxin from spraying into his face when he opens said door. They wouldn't actually hurt him, obviously, but Tim would get annoyed if he wasted them.
He seriously wonders how the guy was ever under the impression that Bernard didn't know he was a superhero, but he guesses it's possible Tim assumed his boytoy thought he was, like, somebody's evil henchman or a merc or something.
Or just literally insane. Whichever.
And it is Gotham.
The door swings open, Kon very carefully steps on the correct floorboard, and then he slips inside and heads down into the bowels of the boat, or whatever the inside of a houseboat is called. It's a little cluttered down here but not quite a mess, and Kon's been here as many times as Tim's been willing to let him come but still not nearly often enough.
He has an odd, random thought of just staying, for once, and isn't quite sure where it came from. Which–well, he's staying for the weekend at least, right? Assuming the world doesn't try to end again, anyway.
So maybe not so random.
Sometimes Kon really does want to just hang in Gotham with Tim until Batman runs him out of town, but he never pushes it that far. He doesn't want to deal with that fallout or with Tim coming up to him to tell him he's being too much or too needy or just fucking weird or . . .
Yeah. Well.
Kon cracks into Tim's fridge and steals a can of Zesti. He's a little more of a Soder guy, at least lately, but it tastes better coming out of Tim's fridge anyway. It makes him feel kind of like a normal guy who just goes over to his normal buddies' places to do normal things–whatever those are–and has normal permission to just rifle through their normal food and take whatever.
Technically Kon has permission, in the sense that Tim's never rigged the Zesti to explode in his face, but he's never actually explicitly asked. He wasn't really sure if that was one of those things that normal people ask or one of those things that normal people just do, and now it's a little late to check, so . . .
Kon's life experience has been fucking weird and wildly varied and stupidly fragmented and generally speaking he just begs forgiveness rather than ever ask permission. He's a grown-ass clone, he can do that.
Okay, he's technically only physiologically a grown-ass clone but also he's arguably over a thousand years old, or maybe more like four or five, so whatever. Being a superclone is weird and confusing and his point stands.
Kon sips his stolen Zesti and wanders around the boat, idly avoiding assorted traps and tripwires. He doesn't go into the bedroom, although it's kinda tempting to just go wait in there, possibly without the company of any of his clothes.
He wants to talk to Tim at least a bit before they go full long weekend on this situation, though, and also like . . . meet Bernard as an actual person and not just a voice over the phone or that one random disgustingly cute couple-selfie that Tim had very dorkily and shyly and grudgingly shared in the group chat the last time Bart had actually won a bet against him.
That stupid selfie was adorable. Kon had absolutely saved it and is not a weirdo who just randomly looks at it sometimes. There's a lot of stuff like that on his phone, alright, he's got a whole folder of "shit to look at when the world sucks". Most of it's Krypto being dumb and sweet or the team messing around and being silly together or stuff like that. The one disgustingly cute Tim and Bernard selfie is a mere footnote in that folder.
But it is in that folder.
Like . . . of course it is.
Kon thinks about pulling out his phone and looking at that picture again. He's aware it's a weird thought to be having right now, though, so he doesn't act on it. Kon operates on instinct a lot but he doesn't necessarily trust all his instincts, given his thoroughly fucked up socialization experience and random mind control triggers and the biological influence of a certain gene donor who shall not be named.
Kon hears a pair of accelerated heartbeats approach the boat and feels two people step onto and hurry across the deck above, one's footsteps significantly louder than the other's. He hears a lot of buttons get pushed. Then the door at the top of the stairs yanks open and he glances towards it. Either Tim or a very convincing evil doppelganger of Tim is standing framed in the doorway, looking very slightly flustered and just barely winded. Bernard is clustered up behind him and laughing, and much more winded himself.
Well, that's flattering.
"Hey there," Kon says, and grins up at them.
"We need to establish boundaries, hard no's, and safewords," Tim says immediately, absolute freak that he is. Kon is not even slightly surprised.
"God, you really do just look like that, huh," Bernard marvels, his eyebrows shooting up. He's even cuter when he's not being a cell phone pic, and especially cuter when Kon's being gay. Unsurprisingly, Kon figures. "I always assumed a whole lot of really skilled Photoshop was involved in you. Or at least a whole lot of real good makeup and real precise angles."
"He's annoyingly photogenic, actually, you don't even have to try to make him look good," Tim informs him resignedly. "So you can imagine how he looks when you do try."
"That's a terrifying thought, actually," Bernard says approvingly.
"Safewords, huh?" Kon says as he sets aside his mostly-empty Zesti, not even pretending not to be preening under the compliments. So he's easy; at least he's self-aware. "That sounds promising."
"You were talking about some guy putting you in a collar and keeping you as a pet," Tim says flatly. "We definitely need safewords, I might get carried away."
"Promises, promises," Kon hums, tucking his hands into his jacket pockets and sauntering towards the bottom of the stairs with a wolfish grin that he may or may not have learned from an actual wolf. Like, just speaking of certain beast-men that he's known and all. "I told you, I was feral then. You know I'll be a good boy for you, Rob."
"Ohhhhh we've sure gotten ourselves into something here, huh, babe," Bernard says with a delighted grin as Tim puts a hand over his face and just sort of . . . exhales in that one specific way that he does when it's all going to shit in a fight or on a mission and he just needs to steady himself for that one second before the doors blow in.
Kon likes that, he thinks.
He really likes that, actually.
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littledead-ridinghood · 10 months
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I have personal beef with Lobdell's "hence the name, Red Hood" panel when Jason picks up that poor, abused dog in RH:O. Which logically I know is an off the cuff joke but 1. Lobdell likes to simplify Jason and his motives all the time (which he could’ve been doing here) 2. I’ve seen a lot of people say they don’t get why/the connection/deeper meaning/etc. Jason picked his name or 3. people who want Jason to drop RH & pick up a new vigilante identity without (or before) Jason getting his full circle closure
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(First: can Jason please have a companion again. And can they be given a real name this time? Not Lobdell’s lazy out? Give that man another dog or fuxk, let him pick up a cat that was abandoned in the rain. Please???)
anyway, main attraction:
Within that spread, Scott Lobdell wrote that Jason picked the name because he's awful at naming things and went with the most basic, obvious choice, Red Hood. This is an incredible disservice to why Jason chose to take his mantle specifically.
Imagine you're Batman, a fledgling vigilante who abides by a strict no-kill moral code. It's your first or so year manning the streets of a massive, corrupt city--Gotham--and you still aren't fully sure of what you're doing. The criminal underworld still isn't even convinced you're real. One of the first big cases you bust, a man who calls himself the Red Hood, dies. you play accomplice to the man falling into a vat of chemicals even as you try to save him. He dies. You killed a man due to your own mistakes.
But you didn't. Not really.
The man comes back under a new name--the Joker--and becomes one of your most prominent enemies. The guilt eats you alive. You dub him your greatest failure. The guilt complex and strengthened moral platitudes refuse to let him die, let alone kill the man. Only "saving him" will relieve you of the grief. Your guilt, your grief, God, your god complex, something is too big for you to admit you can't save everyone including the problems you inadvertently create.
You take in a boy, a ward--Dick Grayson--because the city won’t let a single bachelor like Brucie Wayne adopt him. You’re his brother, you’re his spandex-wearing partner, you’re not his father (he has a father, he doesn’t want you to be his father) but you’re also not not his father; it’s complicated. You didn't want him to turn into you and he creates his own mantle--Robin--to honor his parents.
You and him are partners for many years--Batman and Robin: The Dynamic Duo. Until, one day, The Joker shoots him in the shoulder and he falls off a building on live TV. The city’s populace is upheaved, believing Robin is dead. Demanding Batman be held responsible for his negligence, for even having a underaged partner in the first place. You agree. The field is no place for a child, you decide to keep him so. Robin, the child, is dead, killed by the Joker. Dick Grayson, now a man, is alive and blazing his own trail--Nightwing.
So one child-to-man moves on. And one stays behind. Weeks, months, pass and, you refuse to admit it, you're lonely.
You find another boy--Jason Todd (found in the same location and on the anniversary your parents were murdered in the part of town you only visit once a year)--stealing your tires. Not Bruce Wayne's tires. Batman's tires. He makes you laugh, audaciously so. He takes you down with a tire jack and, God, he’s fast and feisty. (He thought you were going to kill him. You don’t loiter on the thought: it makes your stomach turn). You track him down to retrieve your tires. He tells you he doesn't want to be a criminal, he takes what he needs to survive. He's starving.
You try to stay out of it (all you do is check what happened to his missing dad--murdered--and sick mom--heroin was what got her in the end). You push him towards education. He doesn't trust the cops. He doesn't trust the system. He doesn't trust adults. He hardly trusts you. He tells you about a case, that the school is bad, but believes you only half listen--brush him off like every other person in his life. You follow up. He follows up.
You ask him to be Robin. He accepts.
Later, you adopt him.
Dick's mad at you for giving away his title without asking, to a child nonetheless. (“You said the field was no place for a child!”) You snap at him, say you missed him. (You keep telling Gordan that Jason's no child. That he's seen too much, is more experienced than either of them combined. You don't say this to Dick).
He leaves but he gives Jason his number and his blessing. The kid's torn up about it, you can tell (see the doubt eat him alive of if he should be wearing those colors. Your butler? Your father?--Alfred--tells you to stop comparing the boys--good or not).
That doubt sticks with him. That past experience sticks with him. He urges you to help the poorer parts of the city, especially the places where Batman only visits once a year (The first time he goes back after getting Jason isn’t as bad as all the times before). He fights for his people. He’s tied to Gotham in ways you aren’t. Sees things you don’t. Knows things you don’t. People who can’t stand you, love him.
You keep hearing him crying over his dead mother and watch him lose it against rapists. He advocated for the woman that killed the man who murdered 12 women including her sister even though Batman and Robin aren’t supposed to endorse extra judicial work like that. He breaks a man’s collarbone for taking pictures of naked children. He thinks the “Dress-ups” won’t ever stop because Batman’s only weapon is fear and they aren’t afraid. He once said life’s a game. Monopoly, Bruce assumes he means.
Drugs are easier than rape to catch a man on, and the boy is furious that the perpetrator is only being sent back to his home country. ("he'll just hurt the women over there! He won't stop!" He's in hysterics).
A young woman is dead. The boy found her body. A man falls to his death a man is pushed to his death is dead. The boy was the last one to be with him. You bench him, but you forget that you asked him to be Robin first and a son second.
He runs away. A birth mom--Shelia Haywood, you eventually learn. He's missing. It has to wait. The Joker's out again. You have to prevent your greatest failure from becoming bigger. (He shot Barbara earlier this year)
You leave the boy with his birth mom by the warehouse. You have to go after the Joker. The Joker has killed and killed and killed. Will continue to kill. The boy is dead. He killed the boy. The mother says he was good. He's nothing more than broken bones and mangled limbs. She's...not.
Your greatest failure murdered your boy. His body’s already getting cold when you find hi—the body. The corpse. You hold it. Because it’s an it now, not a him.
You go after the Joker. The pilot is shot. You don't try to kill the Joker, but you don't bring him with you as you jump. The helicopter crashes. You don't even think he's dead; unresolved as per usual.
You failed to protect him. You failed. And he’s dead.
Superman pulls you from the ocean.
You go home and Alfred meets you once you get off the plane. He tells you it's not your fault, the boy had it coming. The murdered boy--a Good Solider, buried next to his bio-mother in Gotham Cemetery--is dubbed your new biggest failure.
Dick's in space and would miss the funeral, so you decide instead to not tell him there was a funeral at all. At least someone will still think Jason’s alive. At least someone will keep Jason alive through their belief. It’s not like Dick’ll find out. They weren’t that close anyway (Dick & Jason or you & him?)
When Dick does eventually find out, because of course he obviously does, he's furious. It's the first time you punch your first Robin. (You don't know it yet, but it won't be the last time, not for Dick and not for some other so-called family members.)
Robin is dead. Far deader than Dick Grayson ever was. He did it to himself. He thought it was a game. Dick doesn’t get it. He was better. He was alive.
(You can’t admit he’s become your son out loud. Hardly even in your head. It’s fine. Dick is the same about your fatherhood. Like father, like son)
You blame it on Jason's death. It changed you. He changed you. It's his fault. Everyone follows suit.
You leave the Joker in a body cast for six months. He gets out again. Luckily you have a new Robin--Tim Drake. He's not Jason. You can see it in his eyes that he knows that's a good thing. Gotham doesn’t even know the second one is dead. They believe Tim’s second one. Gordan even asked if he’s finally hit his growth spurt. 4’6 the death certificate said. That’s okay. No one needs to knows.
(Park Row Crime Alley knows. They know who’s theirs and who isn’t. Batman and Robin aren’t welcomed down there anymore)
(The first anniversary you visit your parents yours and his first meeting spot after Jason’s death feels like Ethiopia all over again)
A blonde girl is Robin now--Stephanie Brown. You tell her she's like Jason. She can tell you mean it as a bad thing but never processes it through her mind. You're trying to lure Tim back. A city-wide gang war wrecks Gotham. She's dead. Tortured by Black Mask and died on the operation table.
There's talk around the underworld, unified under Black Mask, a new gang leader's been making waves for months. You just heard about him tonight (a duffle bag full of heads told you): The Red Hood. You know that name. It’s a punch to the gut. Your first failure.
(“You’re getting slow, old man!)
He did what you've been trying to do for years in a matter of weeks: He overtook the entire Gotham underworld. He’s running circles around everyone. He pits you against the underground, keeps you busy, and he gets what he needs to be done Scot-Free. You hardly ever see him around. Only when he wants you to see him, do you. You don’t like things you aren’t in control of.
He doesn't want anyone dealing to kids. He likes bombs, but they're contained. Implosions, not explosions. He kills and is on par with Batman himself (he cut himself free of your line). Red Hood hangs around Crime Alley ("Park Row!" Jason would always respond), but no one there will rat him out to The Batman. They won't talk to you. Some of them even seem to...like having the Red Hood around.
He’s managed to bring down the crime rate of the entire city. Somehow.
It's raining. You can't tell. Jason's alive.
Jason's. Alive.
Jason'salivejason'salivejason'salivejason'salivejason'saliveason'salivejason'sal--
Jason's alive.
And he's killing people. And he's spitting in the face of your "sanctimonious" moral code. He laughed at you when he murdered someone in front of you. ("Just be happy I only killed the Nazi!") You tell him he doesn't get it. He responds the same.
(“You can't stop crime," he says along the lines of "Not with fear. But me...I'm controlling it.")
Jason's never had enough fear.
And now he's crying with a gun to his murderer's head. He says he’s not talking about the other rogues, just him. Just the Joker. He throws you a gun. You won't do it--can't do it. You need to save the Joker. To prove that you can. You need to save Jason. To show him this isn't the way. You can't have any more failures.
(“He took me from you!”)
Jason's going to do it himself, he says. "If you want to stop me, you're going to have to shoot me. Right in the face."
You can't let anyone die. You can't let the Joker die. It's your mission. There's so much blood. The batarang had to have had to knick the carotid artery in his neck. No one could survive it. The Joker is cackling with glee. You hear it in the walls of your skull. The bomb goes off. You don’t hear that at all.
Oh God. You killed your so—
You’re still gone, you think
You see Jason on patrol sometimes. High collar and still branding himself as Red Hood. There’s a red bat on his chest now. You don’t think it’s a compliment. The East End loves him. Jason still can't let the Joker go. Can’t—won’t move on.
Not till he's dead he says.
Take a moment to imagine yourself as a fledgling vigilante--Batman.
— — —
Anyway my meta turned into a 2nd POV fic????? but like that's not the point. The point is: That’s the impact of why Jason chose the name he did. It’s important to me that you all recognize these full-circle story beats. Do you see my vision?
Jason planned everything when he made his big debut. You don't think that dramatic-ass bastard thought about the name? Jason is mocking Bruce: both his fears and failures as a vigilante.
But that throwaway line is one of those really minor details that really bug me because it's so easy to throw out a panel and say “Jason's bad at naming things Haha" It's much harder to commit to "show, not tell" where writers have to trust their readers to get between the lines and figure out long-term connections.
As well as it's just another way Lobdell undermines Jason's goals in UtRH by saying "He couldn't think of anything else" compared to Winick's Jason who is laughing and mocking Bruce by taking up the mantle of Red Hood. Showing he's not afraid of what happened to him. Spitting in the face of the world that burned him and yelling “I’m still here!” Owning it. He's not afraid of Bruce. And he's definitely not afraid of the Joker.
I want Jason to get a new identity one day too but to do so before Jason ever gets his joker closure cuts his story short. (Which is a creative way of saying it’s never gonna happen unfortunately). I think if he gets one before he finishes the story and closes the cycle, it would be the final nail in the “Jason’s a batfamily member” coffin as it would probably be written as “Jason seeing the error of his ways” rather than for himself moving on to heal for himself.
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waterbrand101 · 4 months
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So going with the idea that Amity is cut off from the rest of the world by the GIW. Of course Vlad would know about this and you know he'd probably have a clone on the outside keeping up appearances while he plays super villain in Amity. Well let's say one day when he's badly hurt his clone vanished but he's too busy to notice. Wanna know who does notice though? The entire country is insanely curious as to why this Billionaire seemingly vanished off the face of the earth. Bruce Wayne in particular wants to figure this out he doesn't like or trust Vlad in the slightest and can't help but feel like this is something Batman needs to look into. So obviously Batman is going to go to Vlads big mansion in Wisconsin and find his secret bad guy basement with a whole ass Inter dimensional portal and a tons of papers in regards to Vlads research not only into his apparent superpowers and something called Pariah Dark but also many focused heavily on a young teen named Danny fenton who seems to have similar powers to Vlads and who as far as Batman can tell lives in a town that doesn't exist.
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dairy-farmer · 9 days
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Unknowingly A Meta AU? owo ? Tim with a Dream Manipulation power he doesn't know he has? Because it can effect HIS dreams. And no one ever mentions it.
His parents? Wearing all sorts of gifts and old jewelry from various sites. They are gucci. Completely untouchable. So the few times Baby Tim DOES show up in there dreams as a kid, when they are in house, they write off as "weird but pleasant".
After all? Who doesn't like to dream about playing with your kid? Going to a fantastical theme park or something? Having a family picnic? It's JUST a nice dream, right?
But! Not everyone has such protections.
And Baby Tim? Gets fixated. Curious. Falls asleep wanting to KNOW. Perhaps, thinking about one member of the Wayne family or another. And since his range is growing? Wayne Manor is juuuuust close enough. Barely, at first. Then easily.
And it's innocent at first. Of course it is. He's just a small child, full of questions. Was Mr. Batman like him as a child? Where did Mr. Pennyworth come from? What was living in the circus like? And so? They dream.
Bruce, playing with a child his age, on the lawn as his parents watch on fondly. Alfred, back too his youth, full of mischief as he runs the streets of his little English town along side friends long dead. Made young once more. Dick, laughing, underfoot, as he and his new friend run roughshod all across the setup site. His parents fond but exasperated.
Such meaningful dreams.
Private, though.
No need to mention them. Or realize the whole household is getting such dreams all at the same time.
And the dreams persist. Tim forever having questions. Or just wondering. Not thinking much on WHY he seems to have such vivid dreams. He's always had them. Surely everyone does. Storybooks certainly seem to suggest that.
Dick leaves. Jason comes.
Dick notices he's started having... nightmares. Chaotic, dark, brooding dreams. Of failure and lose. He doesn't connect things... yet.
Jason doesn't fuckin TRUST these happy clappy, golden sunshine n puppies dreams. The fuck is this? The fuck are YOU? Tim doesn't see a reason to lie. It's just a dream, right?
Uh huh.
Riiiight. Say, Timbits, you ever been tested for that Meta gene thingy? Asks Jason, who has clocked what's happening here, basically night one.
No, why? Asks the clueless neighbor kid.
Before Jason can think of a... polite...ish... way to call him thick and his parents dense as bricks, he wakes up. Gets to spend the whole day looking into the Drake's. Finds out the kid is basicly isolated in that great big house of his. Decides he's... NOT gonna be saying anything.
Welcome to dream land, you little weirdo. Just don't scramble his brains or touch stuff he says not too.
Then? Dick visits. Tim is thrilled. And Dick? Gets his first GOOD dream in weeks. No "what if's", no haunting seconds too late, just? Good moments. Everything languid and lit by golden light. Untouchable.
Perfect.
Him and Kori, between missions, exploring each other. Everything pleasure and light. Grinding. Gasping. Groaning in pleasure as they found just the right angle, sweat catching the light like diamonds. She was beautiful. HE never felt more desirable.
But something niggles in his brain. A sense of being watched, that hadn't been there then. Fascinated little eyes. Blue. Not Jason. Poorly hidden in the corner of the room. He... he should be alarmed. Focus. This isn't for little eyes. Should kick him out. But Kori's here. And everything is soft and so GOOD. He keeps getting lost in that instead.
Is aware, so aware, of little eyes that trail his body like eager hands.
It shouldn't make everything better.
But it does.
And NOW? Now Tim has NEW questions. As puberty closes in fast and without mercy.
And Bruce's dreams certainly have answers. His every desire and fantasy laid bare. Past loves, current lovers, fantasies about coworkers. Being watched. A curiosity. An amusement, perhaps? His brain struggles to pull free of the pleasure and focus.
But eventually, his iron will allows it. He HAS trained for this, after all.
He gets the jump on the... imp? Fae? Youthful looking creature. But touching them just pulls him back under. So he kisses them instead. Strips them. Hands finding places that make them squirm. He's not sure HOW he finds himself fucking them, but he never wants to stop.
And after that? Neither does Tim. He'd never imagined THAT was an option! It felt AMAZING. Which leads to all manner of wet dreams. For every Heroic guest Bruce has. During the day? Prim and proper, everything above board. But in SLEEP? They are pounding their new brother/son incoherent.
Just? Imagine them trying to trigger wet dreams? Trying to get attention in the evenings, so he'll think about THEM before bed. Pouting when their dreams were pleasant nothing instead of Tim Time. The guilty PANIC of guests who TOTALLY boned Timmy drooling and fucked stupid in the Dream Space, now having to sit across Batman, and pretend they didn't do that. Not realizing he totally let them.
Can't get caught, if it's not physical! Dream Sex!
-🐼🐼🐼
and they're completely guilt free because its a dream😌😌😌
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lorena12me · 9 months
Text
The Last Grand Theft
Here in AO3
Summary:
In a world where Tim lost his parents and was never Robin, the only ones who reached out to him were Bernard and the Dowd family, Tim owes them for taking him in and Bernard too owes them for allowing him to help the person he loves most in the world. They will go out of their way to show that they are helpful and can be trusted. It doesn't matter if helping pull off muggings and robberies in Gotham City is the way to do it!, it's what you do for family, right?
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
"Speed up, Red, speed up!" yells Prod as he shoots for the car window and Tim hits the pedal and drives in reverse, making the streets just a blur of indistinguishable lights. Tim only has eyes to dodge the vehicles that cut across mid-street as they flee from the greatest threat of a Gothamite criminal.
The Bats.
As a child, Tim had imagined a thousand times to be one of Gotham's protectors, flying through the air as the city shone beneath his feet, growing up and helping under the guidance of the incredible bat and his ever-growing flock of birds, making a name for himself in the world's superhero and vigilante community.
Never in his wildest dreams had he imagined that his parents would end up dead in an attack that Batman and Robin failed to stop when he was fourteen and then he would be sent into the system, spending a couple of years bouncing from house to house until Bernard managed to convince his father and mother to help him.
He would never have guessed that the reason his parents had been so reluctant to take him in wasn't because they hated him or resented his friendship with Bernard...It was because....
"Stop!" shouts Spoiler's female, imposing voice as he tries and fails to fire his grappling hook into the tires of their armored vehicle, flanking them with his motorcycle on the left as Black Bat's shadowy figure swooped in from the right in his own Bat-branded vehicle.
"Holy shit!" Prod or better known as Bernard Dowd, her boyfriend, exclaims as he extends his hand towards the inside of the vehicle, in Tim's direction "Red, the rubber bomb!"
Tim hurries to pass her the little green beads of his own invention, recently perfected and watches as his partner tosses them towards Spoiler's motorcycle and a blast of the synthetic compound gets tangled in the front tire of her Spoiler-Cycle causing her to lose speed and be forced to brake.
One less danger, but Black Bat is still in the race.
The quietest and second most dangerous bat after Batman (Who is being distracted across town by Mr. and Mrs. Dowd) swoops in. He jumps onto the hood of the vehicle and clings with the black claws of his suit to the metal of the car trying to grab Bernard. Tim pulls his friend inside the vehicle and closes the armored window, while both activate the air filtering mechanism of their masks to avoid being sedated with the capsule that Black Bat managed to sneak in before the window finished closing.
Tim begins to shake the vehicle dangerously, trying to dislodge Black Bat from its hood, when they hear on their communicators Mr. and Mrs. Dowd speak.
"Cargo secured Prod, Red, you may return to base."
Both friends look at each other and nod and Bernard presses the red button which causes the car's roof to detach, throwing Black Bat onto the road. Tim made sure to slow down a bit so the vigilante wasn't going to get seriously hurt, but he still grimaces as he sees her bounce several times on the street before they turn the corner and lose sight of her.
"Performing maneuver D-r345" Tim answers the comm.
"Roger, over and out."
The maneuver is basically to lose any trace of the bats and abandon the vehicle in a designated area where the self-destruct mechanism will activate and erase any evidence and clues that the bats could exploit to find them or discover their identities.
Two hours later, civilians Tim and Bernard arrive home as the bats are just finding the smoldering remains of their vehicle.
"We're home, mom, dad!" exclaims Bernard happily as both boys enter the kitchen where a luscious smell is flooding the house
"Welcome, children" smiles Mrs. Dowd warmly as she tastes the food in the slow cooker and nods in satisfaction "Just in time to celebrate children!"
Both boys take their places at the table as Mr. Dowd comes up from the basement with a bottle of expensive wine and laughs jovially.
"Another successful mission, boys" he celebrates "All thanks to you."
"Oh, it's no big deal... Henry" Tim still has trouble addressing the adults in his life by first name, but he tries "You were the ones who stood up to Batman."
"No dear" Mrs. Dowd shakes her head "Without yours and my son's inventions we couldn't have done it, that sticky liquid actually worked pretty well, Batman couldn't get off the ground fast enough to stop us!" she laughs, pleased remembering Batman cursing as he remained glued to the ground and Robin growling in anger when he suffered a similar fate.
Once upon a time, Tim would have imagined using his brains and inventions to help the bats. Now, all his efforts are devoted to sabotaging them so his boyfriend's family can get away with stealing and destroying shit in Gotham.
Whatever. It's not like he owes the Bat or his pack anything, he thinks angrily when he remembers being at his parents' funeral after Batman failed them, alone and lost enduring the hungry gaze of his parents' associates who couldn't wait to divvy up the leftovers of their wealth.
"It will be a small glass for each of you until you turn 18, boys" Mr. Dowd says as he uncorked the bottle and began pouring wine into the glasses "But you deserve to celebrate with us this great achievement boys, I'm proud of you two"
He was definitely proud as the vault in his basement held several bars of gold and diamonds, stolen directly from the Gotham City Bank.
Tim smiled, feeling that refreshing sense of pride that accompanied Bernard's father's praise. He glanced out of the corner of his eye at his boyfriend and realized he was smiling too, because they had both fought so hard to help the family and deserved to have their accomplishments recognized.
"Now we just have to relax, until the next opportunity" Mrs. Dowd says softly as she finishes putting the food on the table and claps her hands to let everyone know that dinner is about to begin "I hope you are concentrating on your studies, boys, although I know I don't have to worry about you, my little geniuses."
Tim smiles and then his mind travels back in time to the moment Bernard called him on his old, broken phone and exclaimed loudly and excitedly that his parents had finally agreed to take him into their home, so he wouldn't keep hopping from foster home to foster home.
He remembers being terribly frightened, carrying only a backpack with what few clothes he had and an old photo of his parents (he had discarded all photos of Batman after they failed him so terribly), only to be taken to the basement that very night and Tim was horrified, thinking they were going to murder him.
"If you're going to be one of us, Timothy" he remembers Mr. Dowd saying in a stern voice "Then you have to know who the Dowd family are."
Then they revealed to him who they were. A gang of bank and museum robbers. At the time they weren't famous enough to have a name of their own, but Tim already knew of a couple of heists committed by them.
"We are trusting you with such an important secret only because our son has begged us to trust you, we expect you to reciprocate in kind" the "and if you don't..." had been heavily implied.
But Tim no longer had anything to lose and his admiration for Batman had died along with his parents, so he welcomed this new life with open arms and strove along with Bernard to prove to the Dowd's that he was useful.
They had both succeeded. Bernard had even confessed to him that since Tim had been with them, his parents had become more proud of Bernard since they had made themselves useful and devised new devices and codes and plans so that the heists managed to get bigger and bigger and the family made their own name.
They had gone from being ordinary thieves to practically Rogues in their own right.
Dinner passed in lively conversation, everyone casually commenting on certain parts of their recent heist, which had gone perfectly and needed a polish for the next opportunity.
Dinner ends and they are both sent to their rooms while Mr. and Mrs. Dowd go down to the basement, probably to count and record the winnings.
Tim and Bernard lie down together (they are allowed to sleep together if they keep the door open) and Bernard rests his head on his boyfriend's chest.
"Do you think we'll be able to quit when we go to college?"
"...I hope so."
They had both talked about it and even though it was a little while before high school was over, neither of them really wanted to devote their lives to crime.
"Just..." Bernard whispers "I think if we keep going like this one day they're going to want more than we can handle and we're all going to get screwed."
"...But we don't want to let them down...we have to reciprocate everything they've done for us" Tim recites, because it's the truth. They can't just abandon them like this, they took care of Tim when no one else would.
Bernard nods, both aware that they can only hope they'll be allowed to get out of it safely, before it's too late.
But six months later, Tim and Bernard were led by Mr. and Mrs. Dowd to the basement base and after putting a stack of folders, index cards and maps on the table, they were given the instructions for their new objective.
"We're going to pull off our biggest heist to date" Mrs. Dowd says, all sharp smiles and hunger on her face.
"What's it all about, Dad?"
"We're going to kidnap one of Bruce Wayne's sons and use him to open his private vault in the Wayne Enterprises building."
Holy Shit.
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providencehq · 2 years
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(ShrikeAU) Yo, so I'm guessing that post-reveal that Batman and the batfam still kind of handle Danny with the kid gloves since they don't have a clue how experienced he actually is. His powers are probably pretty useful in certain situations, but I still don't think Danny is totally honest about his double life, how powerful he actually is, and everything he's been through. They know some things, but Danny is still pretty cagey about his life in Amity and how he came to be Phantom. (1/2)
[2/2] Then one of Danny's old rogues comes to town and starts ripping shit up, and the batfam witness their first REAL ghost fight. They tell Danny to get back and let them handle it, but Danny's had enough and just throws himself into the fight. It's one of the most brutal and vicious battles that they ever witness, and then they realize how little they actually know about him. After the fight, they see how ripped up he is, and actually get a glance at his battle scars and realize he's no greenhorn.
Yea! After things get smoothed over with the less than stellar accidental reveal, the family as a whole do still generally treat him with kid gloves. They know Danny is good enough to be a vigilante, after all they did train him but the whole ghost/meta aspect of him, that has to be a newer development right? They've only been seeing Phantom around Gotham for maybe a year at best, that's not a lot of time to understand new powers. After all, it took Clark Kent years to get a hold of his powers and Duke Thomas has been with them for a few years and is still learning about his powers and how to master them. Because of this, they think he maybe developed his powers just before coming/running away to Gotham.
I can easily image someone like Shulker or Freakshow showing up in Gotham and wreaking havoc. The bats think they might have an up and coming rogue in Gotham and due to unknowns, they leave some of the less experienced members out of the fight, namely Danny. They don't want him to get hurt despite Danny claiming he can easily help, that he knows he can be of use. But his protests don't work and he's kicked off from helping, of course he doesn't listen to them anyways and gets tangled into the fight anyways.
The Bats don't know the full extent of what Danny can do, he is very cagey about his past and hadn't budged much about his time in Amity and later, about being Phantom. They get to see a pretty good picture of what Danny used to be, what Phantom used to be. It'll be a brutal fight for sure, partly because he's trying to prove he'd capable of fighting against rouges but also that he shouldn't be treated like he doesn't know what he can do. The Bats never really see Danny/Shrike/Phantom in fights, he usually tries to talk his way through before fighting, so seeing him go directly to fighting and to an intensity they've never seen before must be a little scary, at least to the point where they failed to know the extent of what Danny, their newest ward, is capable of.
I like to personally think the only one in the whole family who would have seen Danny's scars in any regard would have been Alfred when helping with medical things but he wouldn't say anything to Bruce in order to keep what little trust Danny has with them. So after the fight and getting his costume destroyed, they finally see the damage a teen, a teen who managed to survive by himself until they forced him to accept their help. Must be gut wrenching to realize how hurt he was in the past and to never notice.
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dyinglikeastar · 2 years
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Ghostbat: A Bruce Wayne/Minhkhoa Khan Ship Primer (part 2)
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"I need your help." — Bruce Wayne
Part 1
So, part one covered most of their backstory and the events leading up to Ghostmaker's introduction in Batman #100. I gave a brief summary at the end of part one about what happened when Ghostmaker came to town, I want to dive into that a little deeper just to give the full picture of just how unhinged Bruce is at the moment. If part one was an ode to Minhkhoa, part two is going to focus on Bruce because there are some pretty juicy bits that, in my opinion, just make the ship that much more interesting. Spoilers ahead, if anyone is wanting to avoid them.
Bruce Wayne
So the thing is, Bruce is kind of going through it. Well, Bruce is always going through it, but this time Alfred is dead and thanks to the Joker stealing all his money during Joker war and the government being on his ass about it, Bruce is literally a millionaire instead of a billionaire broke. So, in order to save money/be more efficient/be more connected to the people of Gotham, he leaves Wayne Manor and the batcave behind to live in a brownstone in the city. That means now he has to depend on mini caves and caches throughout the city, Oracle, and actually reaching out to The Family (tm) when it comes to fighting crime. He also can't just blow shit up anytime he wants and have it replaced anymore. <sad face>
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Oh yeah, he also has neighbors now. The Batman has neighbors. My dude is truly going through it. No Alfred, no Batcave, no endless supplies of money, no Selina. Just a guy and his closer-than-appears-in-mirror impending mental breakdown. (If this ship primer turns into a Why I Think Bruce Wayne Is Having a Mid-Life Crisis essay, no it doesn't.)
But seriously. Ghostmaker comes to town, tranq's him, locks him in a room to kill or be killed, thinks, "Hey, what Bruce really needs is to be traumatized more, specifically regarding the deaths of young teenage boys..."
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Kills a whooooole bunch of people, which, you know, Batman is usually kind of...opposed to?
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And they fight for about a minute, then Bruce gives him the old It's Too Easy To Kill speech and pouts at him and the big bad simp Ghostmaker folds like a cheap suit lmao
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Ya'll are embarrassing fr. Not five minutes after he escaped the room where Ghostmaker locked him, Harley, and Clownhunter in until one of them killed the other, Bruce is like baby wait pls don't go lmao EMBARRASSING.
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Anyway, you could call Bruce's general attitude and personality in this new arc character growth and maturity and learning or you could take my route and be like healthy behavior? From Bruce Wayne? It's a red flag for me. Asking for help? MY Bruce Wayne? Just doesn't add up.
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No but seriously, I am literally loving Tynion's Bruce. He is so vulnerable and yet still very Batman. It's weird to see him reaching out and asking for help tbqh, but due to current circumstances it makes complete sense and good for him for not being a complete idiot about it. Still, this is a ship primer and it does seem to be one specific character he prefers to reach out to and it makes me lose my miiiiiiind.
These panels in particular make me want to chew my own face off. Bruce isn't able to use his comms to tell Oracle where he needs a pickup, so he just starts blowing shit up, of course. And of course, he does it in morse code and of course Minhkhoa picks up on it.
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AND THEN.
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This bitch just jumps out of the damn building assuming Minhkhoa will catch his ass.
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Which he does, obviously, because that's his baby girl he's an awesome, very skilled crime fighting super hero.
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Now, I don't know what Minhkhoa's voice sounds like, but what I do know is that, "Oh would you have?" was spoken at least three octaves higher than his usual voice like a hysterical wife. I just love that scene SO MUCH. Bruce just flinging himself out of a building, knowing Minhkhoa is going to catch him. Chef kiss. 10/10. Fuckin perfection.
Also, Babs doesn't seem to like or trust Ghostmaker, which is totally fair, but listen, Bruce ain't having it.
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I literally feel like I'm overdosing on Bruce Wayne ADMITTING HE NEEDS OTHER PEOPLE. Whew. What's that, though? You want more examples of Bruce being vulnerable and trusting and needing his Khoa more than anyone else? I got u, I got u. During the Fear State arc they're dealing with Scarecrow and all his minfucky bullshit and who does he want? Khoa.
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YEEEEEAHHHHHHHH THAT'S THE GOOD SHIT. Bruce Wayne saying I need your help. Holy shit. Yes. Good.
And who, you ask, does Bruce literally trust with his mind? Like, who does he trust to literally look inside and walk around his own goddamn mind and help him unscramble his compromised brain?
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Just the clinical psychopath who's tried to kill him on more than one occasion <333
And who is it that helps figure out what kind of fuckery was going on and brings Bruce back to the land of sanity?
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Yeeeeeeeah. :)
And if I could just scooch in here with a little bonus Khoa love, look at him. Wanting to learn empathy, wanting to understand Bruce better. And Bruce teasing him! God I hate them when will they kiss
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So yeah, for those playing along, that makes three or four times that Bruce Wayne has uttered the words "I need help," without having some kind of emotionally repressed brain explosion over it. Let's see. He:
Asks Minhkhoa not to leave Gotham, to stay and help him with the city.
Doesn't explicity ask for help, but does jump out of a building, trusting that Minhkhoa will catch him.
Straight up asks Minhkhoa for help when he realizes his mind has been compromised by Scarecrow.
And in issue #121 we see this:
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Which leads to Bruce asking Minhkhoa (again, yes he's asked him more than once) to take over leadership of Batman Incorporated. Dick told us that he asked once, years ago, and it didn't go well, but this time Minhkhoa acceps and becomes the new leader and also starts training Clownhunter (instead of killing him! Character growth!) which brings us up to date.
And with that, I shall leave you with a couple of screenshots of Minhkhoa and Bruce being both 8 year old boys and old marrieds:
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Anyway, thanks for reading and I hope someone at least can share in the level of unhinged I am over this ship right now and please feel free to share and spread the gospel of ghostbat. ♥
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therunawaybread · 1 year
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I feel like after what Batman did to Hood in RHATO Bats should absolutely get shit treatment from the family especially after they all find out that the bullet was a blank and Cobblepot is still alive.
But
But
He would really fell the weight of what he did after he sees the retaliation of the Crime Alley on Batman.
Because they would fucking riot.
The Red Hood is very possessive of the Crime Alley. It's his turf.
The bats hardly ever go there. And if they do they're always escorted by Hood.
Rarely you can see Red Robin or Signal with him, but that's like twice a year and only when their current case leads there and they have no other options. People don't dislike them, but they don't like them either. They ignore them for most part and pretend they don't exist.
Robin can hardly ever be seen around Hood and it's when the two of them are the only ones in Gotham. It's suspicious, but Hood seems content, or even happy, when they're together. People don't know him, but they do know he understands lethal violence better than the rest of the bats despite his age. People don't have anything against him. He weirdly puts them at ease.
Nightwing and Red Hood aside from cases like the others can be seen basically once every week when the acrobat is in town crouching on a rooftop and bickering or sitting on the edge and eating fast food. When once Nightwing attempted to pop in and kick some asses on his own people didn't like that. They don't know him. They don't trust him. Hood just drags him out of his territory to god knows where (to one of his safehouses to give him a lecture on how the citizens of the Crime Alley (mainly kids) don't trust him so he makes them uneasy and skittish). For the following time Nightwing doesn't show up at all. They come back to their usual hangouts in about a month from the event. Nightwing doesn't try to come alone anymore. People don't mind him, but they do mind his terrible puns. They hate those.
Spoiler is the only one actually allowed in the Crime Alley without supervision. Despite that she rarely does go alone, usually only after Hood gets badly hurt and can't cover all the ground or go to patrol at all. However they are often seen fooling around, being sassy bitches™ and annoying the shit out of criminals more than actually fighting them. People see the little things in her behavior and manerism that most would miss, hear her accent, though not as thick as Hood's you can clearly recognize that she is Gotham's blood and bone, raised in the parts of the city that shows you her true colors. They like her.
Black Bat sometimes joins them especially when there's food involved. She's quiet. Terrifying to criminals, but always gentle with kids. People don't trust her fully because it's hard to get a read on her but it's nice to have her around from time to time.
Batman however is never seen in the Crime Alley and if he does visit he goes as quickly as he comes. He doesn't understand the Crime Alley. He doesn't have what it takes to protect them. He terrifies everyone with no exceptions. People don't want him in their home. They don't like him.
And then he beats Red Hood into a bloody pulp. They see it live on TV. And their dislike for him sours into pure hate.
Gotham has never seen anti-Batman protests. It's not Metropolis. Gotham loves their vigilantes at best and tolerates them at worst.
However people of the Crime Ally riot after what Batman did to Red Hood.
Their Red Hood
Their Hero
Their Guardian Angel
Someone who makes sure no one sells drugs to kids and even helps some people get out of addiction.
Someone who regularly checks on working girls and boys, scares prickly landlords into giving them more time or straight up helps them pay rent.
Someone who makes sure all the single moms have whatever they need for themselves and their babies, occasionally even babysitting so they can get some well deserved rest.
Someone who leaves clothes and food for street kids to pick up in places only they know about, meets with them sometimes in the evenings before patrol to tutor them in whatever they need help with at school, teach them some self defense moves or simply play some football with them.
Someone who brings rapists to the brink of death with his fists and then turns to the victim, takes off his helmet and does anything to make himself smaller and less scary, talks to them in gentle voice and tries to convince them to go to Dr. Thompkin's clinic to get checked out. He offers walking them there (or home, whichever they choose, he never forces them, he understands) and they always say yes because they trust him.
They depend on him.
They adore him.
And Batman hurt him.
Kicked him out of Gotham like he ever had any right to do that (after all Red Hood is more Gotham than Batman will ever be).
Batman has a case in the Alley for the first time since the Red Hood first appeared and claimed it as his territory. But now Hood's gone so it's on Batman to investigate. Except people don't want him there. They don't care what he has to say. He hurt their guardian so he can go fuck himself. They throw rocks at him whenever he's in range. Someone hit him with a baseball bat and another person straight up just pulled out a gun and was ready to kill him.
Almost every intact wall in Crime Ally is covered with a graffiti of a crossed out bat symbol. (There's also one huge graffiti of Red Hood's helmet with angel wings behind it and two crossed guns under it. It's signed 'Guardian Angel')
Batmobile was covered in all kinds of mysterious substances and scratched up after it was parked a bit too close to Crime Alley.
When he's crouching on an edge of a rooftop an old lady spots him and starts yelling very colorful insults at the man who dared to touch 'our boy'.
After he saves a kid in Browery from his attacker he frowns at him with such hate and distaste, but when he asks six words that feel like a stab through the heart. 'Why did you hurt Uncle Hood?'
And it's not just Crime Ally. Most people from the poorer parts of Gotham protest against him.
He starts to understand how Hood is viewed by people he protects. He's regretting what he's done more and more every day. Bruce finds Jason and basically begs him for forgiveness and for him to come back. Jason (even though he shouldn't have) already forgave him because he has a heart of gold.
But the people of Crime Alley never did.
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