#and Maybe jason (though only post-revival)
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DP x DC Fic Idea
Not me spending an hour figuring out an age chart for a fic I will never write. And then another 5 writing down the whole concept…. Well for those who actually see it, enjoy this behemoth. More posts to follow under #Jay Gale’s brothers
[Age Chart] [Extra Notes]
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Stuff happens and Danny runs to Gotham to escape from the GIW. Standard Batfam crossover. The fact that it hides his presence means the hunters can't find him. It also means he can't leave. At least not yet. His original plan is to recoup (Maybe he's very injured) and eventually find a way to the ghost zone himself. (Wulf and Cujo also can't find him?) So he keeps his head down and gets by. Using his powers at the barest minimum.
A month or so into his stay, the fuckery that revives Jason happens. Danny can tell before it happens that something is about to go down, and with a little effort, can kind of tell the areas it affected. The first person he makes it to is Jason, and using intangibility, is able to pull him out of his grave in time.
Notice I said First person. I don't think that Jason was the only person resurrected at that time. He was just the only one with enough training to remain calm enough in horrible situations; and be able to take stock and dig himself out before he died again.
Danny can still feel the other areas, and knows he has to get to them fast, but he doesn't want to leave this panicking and injured kid by himself. (Jason looks younger than he is due to malnutrition from the streets) (Resurrection only heals death injuries enough for them to not die again right away, the worse the death…)
So as carefully and as quickly as he can, Danny carries Jay with him to the other cemetery. He manages to get to a pair of young twins just in time but… Angst Potential: Because he spent the time to calm down Jason and the twins, he wasn't able to get to the last resurrected before they died a second time. But he keeps this to himself so the others don't feel guilty about needing comfort. Maybe this eats him alive for years, the second chance that could have, but never happened. (The OC’s Here are optional, but they have grown on me, and the bonding Jay and Danny could have from raising 4year old twins is marvellous) (Though as a replacement for them, maybe it could be a de-aged Dani instead?)
He takes them back to the place he’d been staying at, and starts doing his best to take care of them. But I think it is cannon (?) that the Reso leaves them very disoriented and injured, especially Jason. He can't go to the hospital and he can't go to Frostbite yet, he does what he can but he's at a loss of what to do. Eventually he notices that the small amount of ectoplasm he emits seems to be helping, but is not near enough. So he goes to get more.
In this AU lets say that Gotham also has a Lazarus pit under the city. But it is not accessible by normal human means.
In Cannon Jason gets kidnapped by the League of Assassins, and tossed in their personal Lazarus Pit. And going by the headcannon: “Leagues pit is so extremely contaminated from humans taking dips in it it's Absolutely Septic and that's the reason Pit Rage happens”
Danny, who knows how to Not contaminate samples, and knows that submerging a fleshy human wholesale in it is Not A Good Idea Ever. Does Not Do That. But rather he slowly introduced them to enough of it for them to start healing, and while that does prevent pit rage and the worst consequences of becoming liminal; It does mean that it is slow going.
Now Danny is now the sole caretaker of these newly Not Deads who are essentially very sick and need lots of care, when he was barely supporting himself, maybe even before he's fully healed. Angst.
This also means that he can't in good conscience just leave them to go to the Zone, but who knows what would happen if he took them with him. So now he's stuck in Gotham for two reasons. (He becomes one of the sole reasons that the coffee shop on the corner is still in business)
When Jason heals enough for most of the brain fog to leave, he helps out Danny where he can, mostly watching the twins when Danny is out and making food. Anyways, blah blah bonding and raising kids and learning how to Live again ensue (Could be taken as shipping i guess, but i prefer brotherhood here) (No secret relation, as much as i love those, i just want these nerds to find comfort in each other for no other reason than being themselves)
I'm also going to say that Danny is 16 during these events, but thanks to his fathers genetics, he can easily pass as 18 or even 20, so he does.
Resurrection screws with memories, the only thing they can remember, at first, with any detail is their deaths. We could have Jason slowly piece who he was together one memory at a time, OR my favourite; Have him regain everything at once the first time he sees the brand new Robin. Cue angst at being replaced “so easily” (This is how Danny finds out) and refusing to tell Bruce he's back.
Danny’s totally down because of his mistrust of billionaires and also the now engrained “Holy Shit Is That The Bat If He Finds Out I Have Powers He’ll Kick Me Out, I Can't Leave The Safety Of Gotham!”
(Jason: Safety??? In Gotham?! What the hell are you on?!?) (This is how Jason finds out)
Despite being a lot less murdery in this AU, Jason still becomes the Red Hood. Mostly to protect and help his new family, but also because his hero instincts are not muddled by the pit rage. Maybe he sends severed hands to the police instead of heads?
The full mask and modulator mean the Batfam can't recognize him, and he's in no hurry to correct that. However, he also doesn't antagonise them. He has new brothers to protect, and he doesn't want to give the Batfam Incentive to find out about them.
But despite Jason's indifference (He doesn't care. He Doesn’t. He has Danny and the twins and an honestly shitty apartment that still feels like home. And who even cares if there's a New Robin? It's not like it matters to him! He doesn't care he swears) he still becomes sort of friends with the others.
There's a camaraderie between all Gotham vigilantes that's just a hazard of the job. (That purple girl also just won't leave him alone, but she's fun so it's okay.)
Although he does keep a distance from Dick and his replacement. He has a better big brother now, after all. But even Jason admits that having Nightwing as an ally is pretty useful. (Jason missed him so much). And he doesn't need to get closer to the replacement to know why he's such a better Robin, so why bother.
Time passes and they never do figure out who Jason is, though there are some close calls. (Tim has his suspicions but no proof) (He keeps it to himself for now) Most of them consider the Red Hood as an ally by now, except for Bruce, who's still a bit peeved he cant find anything on this guy. Surely they should have found at least one of his safe houses by now. (Danny cackles maniacally in the background)
And then Bruce gets pulled into the time stream, and is presumed dead.
I want to disclaim here that I know practically nothing about this DC plot line. Just that it took about a year for him to get out, and Tim was the only one that didn't believe he was dead. And that this Hush guy played the part of Bruce a few times (Although why convince Gotham that Brucie Wayne was still alive if you thought he was dead? Comic logic I guess.)
But for the purpose of this AU let's say it was caused by something similar to what caused The Resurrection. (which i also know nothing about. Something about superman?)
Danny, Being Danny, goes to check it out like he did last time. But instead of finding Re-Alived people, he also gets pulled into the time stream as well.
Maybe he meets up with Bruce, maybe he doesn't. But he's gone from Gotham now and isn't likely to return for a while. Or maybe he finds his own way out, but because he's no longer in Gotham, the GIW are able to find and capture him. Angst.
With Danny suddenly gone and no way to find him, and Bruce dead with no way to reconcile with him, Jason enters panic mode. “If Danny’s no longer in Gotham then can the hunters find him?? What if they already have him?!?”
The remaining Batfam members learn who Jason is, either because he lets too much slip, or he eventually flat out goes to them for help. There is a re-reunion that no one can really appreciate due to… Well. Everything.
Unfortunately Dick cant help him out much. With his new responsibilities both as Batman and as the new single parent Guardian of Damian. Tim spends his time looking for Bruce, Cass is off doing her own things, and Steph does offer to help, but there's not much they can do with little to no information.
Jason now has to decide if he wants to stay with the twins and hope Danny finds his own way back, or leave them with someone while he starts searching. He could leave them with Dick and Damian, or he could leave them with Roy.
This is about the point where my ideas get a lot less concrete and writable… but ~*Eventually*~ Everyone is reunited and can bond and grow as the Giant and Ridiculous family they were always destined to be :} Just as slightly more functioning people. (or at least Jason is)
I have many more ideas for this, but not a lot of them would fit in this concept post. So expect a separate post for those later.
#dc x dp#dp x dc#Danny Phantom#batman#jason todd#danny fenton#Jay Gale's brothers#this will be the longest thing ive ever posted#and the first post ive ever had to split into multiple parts#for whoever sees this#i hope you enjoy#and also write a fic about it#please please write a fic with this#i would read it so fast
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I’ve been reading a lot of your works and I really enjoy them because I think the characterization I really well done! I do have a question, though. What’s your opinion on a lot of the canon characterizations and tropes that seem ever present on ao3? I really don’t like certain ones like pit madness because I think they’re a little problematic but I’m curious on your opinion because you tend not to include them in your writing
hello !! thank you so much for reading my works <3 i am usually very picky with characterisations, both in fics and in comics, and so i try my best to stick to one and avoid certain things entirely in my writing as well!
as for your question (i'll focus primarily on the discussion of pit madness since it is a wonderful example); i have to agree with your point! i dislike the trope of pit madness, especially when it is focused around jason todd in particular.
in a storytelling perceptive, i think the idea of the lazarus pit on ao3 lacks the complexity it has in the comics (which are also not completely free of criticism), which leads to a lot of messy characterisations and a rather problematic outlook to mental health — and especially, recovery from trauma.
aside from the obvious complaint that in canon, jason is not the only one to have experienced the lazarus pit in the batfam itself (cass, bruce etc) — i think pit madness has become a fanon idea that a lot people use to excuse or undermine his actions and intentions. depending on which storyline of jason's you wish to write or read, his experience prior and post the lazarus pit can vary.
almost always however, there is a brief moment of uncontrollable rage and insanity that almost everyone who uses the lazarus pit will experience. in jason's case, we can say it affects him harder or for longer due to him actually being dead at one point, while someone like ra's al ghul, who uses it frequently, experiences it for shorter and more controllable bursts.
[Batman #243, 1972] the first appearance of 'pit madness'
i assume this idea of the fanon pit madness originates from this brief moment, however it is important to note that after that, pit madness is not actually a thing anyone experiences. jason todd specifically, recovers fairly quickly from this and begins his re-training and plotting to return to gotham (and thus the proceedings of under the red hood).
in fanon (and canon, though it is not a thing brought up as frequently anymore), jason todd's 'pit madness' is something incredibly delicate and i think needs to be approached very carefully. often times you find stories in which he must be 'cured' of his pit madness (that, again, isn't a thing) and the list of things this pit madness has caused end up just being a list of things he has done as a result of a trauma response or revenge against people who have hurt him. all things that might not have been excusable or the right thing to have done, are understandable given the context.
i have never been a fan of that ideology. that the carefully curated plans, backup plans and missions jason todd orchestrates is somehow caused by this evil magical phenomenon as opposed to his true self. jason is a very intelligent boy, and before his death, was trained by bruce — even before they figure out his true identity, batman and nightwing are amazed and threatened by red hood's obvious training and skills.
[Batman Annual #25, 2006]
and so, to me, the pit itself isn't the thing that drives you 'mad'. it is rather, the reconstruction of your body and your mind when you wake up again that is beyond mortal understanding, that drives you 'mad'.
jason todd was tortured and murdered prior to his death, and when revived, was immediately under the impression that his father moved on quickly and didn't see his death as a reason to change his approach to fighting crime. that would drive anyone to do things they maybe wouldn't normally do, but hey, that's the thing with trauma.
jason todd is not under the influence of magical madness. he is a teenager who has experienced incomprehensible trauma and is doing what he must do now to survive a world where he can't be the way he used to. the adults around him failed him and continue to fail him and so he takes matters into his own hands and thus, the red hood is born.
when it's not written in a victim blaming or excusable way (such as an 'explanation' for The Titan Tower Incident with tim) i assume it can be done well, but as a whole it is not something i am a fan of. for jason in particular, i find the inclusion of this 'pit madness' also tends to remove his characters personality and motivations, brushing off situations that are integral to his development and journey as an anti-hero. it brushes off the terrible things he has done, infantalising or just completely disregarding them, or completely villainises his moments of weakness and vulnerability.
i hope this answers your question? i might have got a little carried away,, i have a lot of opinions about canon vs fanon and characterisations in general, so this was really fun for me answer! feel free to ask for clarification on anything written here or anything else you'd like! thank you again :] <3
#jason todd#pit madness#lazarus pit#dc meta#fic meta#is that a thing?#red hood#trauma recovery#canon vs fanon#batfam#anon ask#saki anons
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OH I WATCHED UNDER THE RED HOOD AND WOW I FORGET HOW HORRIBLE IT US WATCHING JASON GETTING BEAT UP W A CROWBAR
all of his actions! are justified i still do not think he was at all in the wrong w becoming like a sort of crime lord. red hood more like slay hood
i will say! that (and maybe the comics go into more depth w the backstory to why he even went after the joker) i kinda like the way they built up his death in the titans.
i will now explain bc it’s actually my favorite arc ever.
jason todd was tossed around in the system, yeah. obviously this causes mistrust w authority, duh. finally, fucking bruce wayne takes him in and suddenly he’s actually helping his community. the community he suffered in and saw others suffering around him and continues to see suffering!! so obviously that’s like so amazing and great.
except. then he starts feeling like batman is holding him on a leash. there isnt total trust both ways — he feels like he’s worth more than anyone is giving him credit for (teen struggles but ur a vigilante!! uh oh).
so when he gets sent to the titans he is really fuckin pissed. it’s just further proof that bruce/batman doesn’t actually believe in him as a proficient fighter (even though, while some of that might be true, im sure bruce wanted him to also gain new perspectives. not the point though).
and then of course he gets fucking traumatized to all hell from almost dying after running off on his own without thinking things through bc yet again he feels chained down. so he’s dealing w that when he gets back go gotham.
and bruce notices! and is like “hey you should go to therapy” but jason already lost some amount of trust so is like “hm no im *fine* let me *fight*” he sees therapy as an admission to weakness etc etc.
he eventually is kinda forced to go (no fight until therapy) and it helps for about a second until he just fuckin. convinces himself that it’s rigged against his favor. so batman totally grounds him and he then he goes to fight the joker alone and. yeah.
but it’s just so?? like?? idk it’s so. it makes so much sense. everyone’s side makes sense and i think that’s why i love it so much. idk how much of this correlates w the comics but the red hood movie did Not go into very mucb detail and i know that wasn’t the point of the movie but it was still a little disappointing somehow. i still super duper enjoyed it though. for sure very much super good movie/gen
and the fight sequences!!! ugh i love love love animated fights. how do they do that??? so much talent.
gotta say, i wasnt expecting so much from titans, fromwhat little ive heard about it. BUT. counterpoint. your honor, you should also watch Batman: Death in the Family. Goes into a lot of why jason went to ethiopia in the first plac e that ties in with him not knowing who he is outside batman, etc.
my main rec for post revival jason is teen titans #29 from either the 2003 or 2007 run i cant rmbr
OK spoilers for death in the family below, thoughPLEASE please pleaseread or watch it its SO worth it. its what shapes Batman into what he is now, changes a Lot of his motivations.
ok ? ok!
in comic canon, jason is a crime alley kid, that hasnt changed, but the difference i think is rhat its batman whi takes him in. he tries to steal the batmobiles tires, and bruce drops on him in full costume to buy him a hamburger and iffer him to stay.
one thing youll see people say is that jason was the angry/violent robin, and while i disagree on that whole thing, it is where most of his and bruces issues stem from pre-death.
he gets benched. he finds out catherine todd isnt his biological mother and in a fit of teenage angst and rebelion, decides flying to ethiopia is the way to deal with that, to try to find his bio mom.
and he does!! him and vruce find her!! only issue is: she sells jason out to the joker, who was blackmailing her.
so jason is there. he wat hed his mother sell him out. hes getting tortured nearly to death, and then you see what happens at the begining of under the red hood, except whatq not shown there is that jason died taking the burnt of thz blast for his mom.
tbe nextcomic is i thunk the ling halloween which introduces tim and a whole lot of iddues, superman has to stop him from killong etc.
what id rec for other post revival jason content is from the 2003 (i think, might be 07?? unsure) teen titans run, issue #29, which has a confrontation with tim that is so. so heartbreaking man. i love it but also holy fucking shitballs.
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My Favorite Books of 2022
I think I did decently well at reading in 2022 and the book I'm reading now, I'm not anticipating finishing before the end of the year (it's The Stand by Stephen King), so now is the best time to post about my favorite books of the year.
This year, I read 80 books. 27 of those were the manga Blue Exorcist, and I'm never sure about whether to really count those in my book count, but I am going to count them as 1 big book for the purpose of this list! So, that takes me down to like 54 books.
So, let's go through my list each month, and pick out favorite book(s) from each month! Maybe I won't have a favorite from some months...
Bold means it was a good I really enjoyed! I
I'm going to hide the list under a keep reading line because otherwise this post might be too long for some people!
January
Dune Messiah -Frank Herbert
A Game of Thrones - George R.R. Martin
Memoirs and Misinformation - Dana Vachon and Jim Carrey
February
Mergers and Acquisitions - Dana Vachon
March
A Long Way to a Small Angry Planet - Becky Chambers
Everyone In This Room Will Someday Be Dead - Emily Austin
Diary of a Bookseller - Shaun Bythell
Call Me By Your Name - Andre Aciman
The Song of Achilles - Madeline Miller
April
I read nothing
May
A Clash of Kings - George R.R. Martin
Almond - Sohn Won-pyung
Human Acts - Hang Kang
Love in the Big City - Sang Young Park
June
Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism - Amanda Montell
Kindred - Octavia E. Butler
July
Blue Exorcist 1-27 - Kazue Kato
Children of Dune - Frank Herbert
Mindhunter: Inside the FBI's Serial Crime Unit - John E. Douglas
Hamnet - Maggie O'Farrell
Columbine - Dave Cullen
August
The Witches: Salem 1692 - Stacy Schiff
Get A Life Chloe Brown - Talia Hibbert
Alias Grace - Margaret Atwood
A Man Called Ove - Fredrik Backman
Shadow and Bone - Leigh Bardugo
The Benefits of Being an Octopus - Ann Braden
Siege and Storm - Leigh Bardugo
World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War - Max Brooks
September
The Plague - Albert Camus
Ruin and Rising - Leigh Bardugo
I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki - Baek Se-hee
Cursed Bunny - Bora Chung
Crying in H Mart- Michelle Zauner
Shoko's Smile - Choi Eunyoung
I'm Glad My Mom Died - Jennette McCurdy
October
IT - Stephen King
Mexican Gothic - Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Know My Name - Chanel Miller
The Last Magician - Lisa Maxwell
The Cat Who Saved Books - Sosuke Natsukawa
November
Carrie - Stephen King
It Ends With Us - Colleen Hoover
The Final Revival of Opal and Nev - Dawnie Walton
They Both Die At The End - Adam Silvera
A Wizard of Earthsea - Ursula K. Le Guin
Salem's Lot - Stephen King
Tokyo Ueno Station - Yu Miri
The Tombs of Atuan - Ursula K. Le Guin
The Devil All The Time - Donald Ray Pollock
December
Circe - Madeline Miller
Babel - R.F. Kuang
Taaqtumi: An Anthology of Arctic Horror Stories - Aviaq Johnston, et al
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo - Taylor Jenkins Reid
Hell Of A Book - Jason Mott
Picking an actual favorite from these is too hard. I read so many great books this year, and obviously some months I read better than others. Actually, I would probably bold more than I have, but I felt bad about bolding more than like 2 per month, though I did do that in like September.
There were only really like 5 or 6 that I didn't really like, but pushed my way through.
I'm quietly aiming for 100 books next year, but I'm not gonna force myself for that, because whenever I aim for goals like that, it just takes the fun out of reading, so I'm going to set my goal at like 5 books and anything more than that is going to be a win for me!
#books#reading#favorite books#best reading#books I liked this year#booklr#text post#personal#goals#book#read#this year#2022
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Hi, I was reading your post about Jason punching Dick in the face when Dick revealed he fake his death was bullshit ( which it was) and it reminded me of an issue/question that has bothered me for sometime.
Why did people believe Dick was actually dead?
I’m not the most avid comic reader so maybe I missed something but it was always weird to me that everyone just accepted this especially given how Bruce was acting or should I say wasn’t acting.
This is a man when his child died another child had to come along and told him sir you are being too violent and emotional you need supervision. When his other child died he went all over the universe to bring him back to life because he knew it was possible ( which was happening at the same time), so why didn’t anyone think it was weird he wasn’t doing that for Dick. Can you imagine Dick really dying that soon after Damian it would be injustice Batman Version. You are telling me that Tim, Jason or Barbara didn’t think it was weird that Bruce didn’t also bring Dick’s corpse to the bring Damian back to life mission or mention it to themselves. Like what more likely Dick dead and Bruce is handling it well or that he fake his death to do something stupid and Dangerous after his partner/brother/ little bit my son the feelings are complicated died after he was knocked out and woke up to his corpse.
Oh man, this is like, the entire nature of my beef?
(Slight derail just to emphasize the fact real quick that Dick DID actually die, he was just revived quickly, but like, the trauma of his death was very real and its not like anyone was clued into Luthor having a resurrection backdoor built into his literal murder of Dick in the actual moment of it happening. So Dick’s death wasn’t fake, and additionally, he didn’t have anything to do with like, telling people about it, because he was literally comatose in the cave and recovering while Bruce was telling people....by the time Dick woke up in the cave, we already know that Alfred at least had already been convinced by Bruce that Dick was dead, so I have a kneejerk need to pushback against the Dick faked his death narrative by reminding people wherever possible that Dick had no agency in the spreading of that narrative.
It happened without him being involved, and the only actual contribution he ever made to it was just not revealing he was alive before Grayson #12, after Bruce like.....emotionally, mentally and physically badgered him into accepting that doing so would be directly harmful to his family and he didn’t want to be the reason more people died when like, people had just died because he ‘let’ himself be captured and interrogated by Power Woman’s Lasso of Submission, did he?
SORRY TO BE PEDANTIC, just wanted to start this off on a clarification, even though I know the aim of your ask was very much in tune with the rest of my response. A lot of people don’t read the actual comics, so like, I’m never gonna skip over an opportunity to emphasize that the shorthand people use to refer to Dick’s death and the year he was with Spyral, is like, literally just shorthand for describing it. Its not actually an accurate description of how all that went down and who had the most hand in it).
BUT ANYWAY. BACK TO THE MEAT OF THE BEEF.
Okay so like, not only was the entire family and Bruce himself giving Dick shit for his death and Spyral, like, PAINFULLY egregious because it was literal victim blaming in every possible sense of the word....
None of it made a LICK of sense with ANY of their characterizations, and they ONLY all accepted it on face value because the Plot Demanded It, and when you're like, no, as a reader I say The Plot Demanded It is not a good enough reason for me to be like well sure, that makes sense......looking at the characters ACTUAL actions at face value pretty much just makes them all look like assholes?
Like, Tim has never gracefully accepted anyone's death. Ever. This is core characterization for him. He will go to the ends of the earth for his loved ones and to bring them back, prove they're not dead, refuse to let death be the final verdict for them. He was tempted to use the Lazarus Pit to bring his parents back to life. He refused to accept Bruce was dead long before he had any proof whatsoever of that theory. He tried to clone his BFF/future-husband Kon in his fucking basement like, dude was two whole inches away from going Full Dark Side in his quest to bring back a lost loved one no matter WHAT the cost.....and then you've got Dick unmasked onscreen, killed offscreen, and Bruce then reporting to the rest of them with zero inflection 'oh Dick's dead now. Its very sad' and Tim's just like, sure. Sounds legit.
I mean?!?!
And you're SO RIGHT ABOUT THE DAMIAN THING! Bruce LITERALLY LITERALLY LITERALLY went BEYOND the ends of the Earth, like, he full on chartered a fucking space ship to fly his whole family out to APOKOLIPS to bring Damian back from the dead by going to EXTREME lengths.....WHILE everyone else thought Dick was dead....
And not a single person looked at Bruce and was like, okay, not that we're not down to do this for Damian because we miss Stabby Smurf something fierce ourselves, but.....what the fuck is UP with you dude? Why aren't you displaying ANY hint of this same kind of energy in regards to your eldest son that you said you watched die right in front of you?
Like....I don't know that we were actually ever told that Dick's coffin was empty or had a fake in it, but like....this family of detectives who refuse to accept death, defy death, COME BACK FROM THE DEAD....not a single one of them said like, okay, if I'm gonna like, ACCEPT accept that Dick is dead and gone for good, I need to at least just see him one last time? That's literally all it would have taken for someone to realize hey something's a little wonky here. Where's the dead body, Pops?
Since when has Jason ever missed an opportunity to prove Bruce is a) full of shit, b) acting like an emotionless robot and all his kids deserve better especially when they've just like....died, c) just factually incorrect and wrong and jumped to a conclusion before it was conclusively proved, d) lying like a liar or e) all of the above?
Nobody even ASKED if Dick's body could be put in a Lazarus Pit? Yeah, Jason wouldn't necessarily recommend it himself, given what it put him through, but actually fuck that, I take that back, because I'm NOT actually of the opinion that Jason full on hates his life and actively spends every second of every day wishing he hadn't been resurrected, even if it had come with a huge buffet of additional trauma and pain.
And that's kinda what's implied when people just take it for granted that he would never be on board with any scenario involving using a Lazarus Pit to bring Dick back, because it suggests that based even just on his own experiences and feelings, he honestly believes Dick would prefer being dead and not have ANY further opportunities to be with his loved ones, his friends, help save the damn world again at some future point.....that Jason, projecting based just off himself, legit feels Dick would rather be dead than have another shot at life even WITH the downsides of Lazarus Pit usage? Nope. Sorry, I don't buy it.
Speaking of not buying it.....you know what was missing from all those soliloquies the others monologued at Dick about how they felt and were hurt and just devastated by his death, to such a point they can't seem to muster a single shred of happiness that he's NOT dead still -
(seriously, Damian was the ONLY person in ALL THE LANDS OF EMOTION-HAVING who expressed ANY kind of positive reaction to having Dick back. We were so fucking cheated of like.....ANY opportunity to have the characters show just how much they valued him by just being fucking HAPPY he was alive, no matter what else was involved....and then most of fandom compounded that by for years being like mmmm, no, Dick didn't get yelled at enough by his family for what HE put THEM through. Needs more yelling. More punching too. Bad Dick. Bad. This is the only way you'll learn not to die and get shipped off on a mission that you don't want but at least is to protect your family after being beaten into it by your dad whilst victim blaming you for dying in the first place. WHEN WILL YOU LEARN TO THINK ABOUT OTHER PEOPLE AND THEIR FEELINGS FOR A CHANGE, DICK?!?)
- But like, BUT I DIGRESS aside....you know what was missing from all those monologues about how hard DICK'S death and ensuing year of basically exile from his loved ones was for EVERYONE BUT HIM?
We never got a single line of explanation as to what everyone else officially thinks even happened to him in the first place?
Like, did Bruce straight up just say oh bad news kids, your brother umm. Expired. Spontaneously. There's no one to blame, he just keeled over, its all very sad.
Is that how that went down?
You're telling me that the explanation of Dick's death didn't come with a single pointed finger at someone for this family of blame-happy vigilantes to like, BLAME for the loss of this brother they all mourned oh so much, they just couldn't help but blame him for all the hurt it caused them?
The family that in every other fic is like OBSESSED with avenging and being avenged and all things vengeful and even tangentially vengeance-y....like didn't ask for a single detail on whomst the fuck deprived us of our brother-having?
Where were the attempts on Luthor's life by Jason (who I mean, yeah I know it was in a previous continuity, but erasing that timeline doesn't erase my awareness of the time Dick killed Jason's murderer so like.....mmm, just saying, woulda been nice)....where was the rage directed at the Crime Syndicate and references to how seriously and personally the Batfam took making sure that they were PUNISHED for all this and would never be free to wreak havoc on their world or their family again? What did they tell Damian when he came back to life, and how are you going to tell me that this fraternal little ball of fury didn't aim himself like a cannonball at whomever the fuck had DARED take HIS Batman from him when Damian wasn't around to have his back?
Not only does everyone else's desire to be avenged start falling really flat the second you factor in hey maybe Dick feels "mmm what about MY avenging" sometimes, and why doesn't anyone ever care about doing that for him.....but also, y'know what REALLY sucks about the ONLY person we actually SEE being blamed for Dick's death and ensuing absence being like....Dick himself?
Not only were his family all super keen on making all of this HIS fault and HIM the bad guy because of how it made them all feeeeeeel (and meanwhile fuck his feelings, am I right Batfam hfaklshfklahfkla).....
They somehow found a way to justify prioritizing this OVER ever even getting around to blaming some villain for his death in the FIRST place, in the entire year or so they thought he was still dead!
Like, you couldn't come up with a single target in all that time, but Dick's back two seconds, and you don't even give him a chance to EXPLAIN before you're punching him, shutting him down with 'I expected better from you' and turning away with 'I don't want to hear it, why am I surprised Dick Grayson disappointed me again'?
afshklfhalfhalfhla
Make it make sense!
And like, it won't, cuz it doesn't, and it never will, and like I said at the top, the ONLY reason it all played out this way is because DC doesn't give a fuck about character development and deemed it necessary to go down this way for the sake of the plot (which was totes worth it, I mean, glad we sacrificed characters for this A+ plot which was clearly the greatest plot of all time and definitely justified every story choice made or not made around it loooool).
BUT.
BUT BUT BUT.
The problem isn't JUST that DC is stupid, even though that is an eternal mood and quite the problem.
Its that the SECOND large parts of fandom decided to play along with DC and just accept the story at face value, only add to it and play into it exactly as it happened in canon with no significant deviations, and like, heaping on the LITERAL abuse from Dick's siblings while ignoring the LITERAL abuse from his father....
THAT....is when all of this becomes relevant.
Because the second people decided TO engage with the reasoning DC gave for what Bruce did and how and what Dick did and how and just not mess with any of that and have it all play out exactly like that...
The second people are like, okay we're FINE with not just dismissing this story as OOC writing that doesn't make any sense, and actually VALIDATING it to various degrees by engaging with it as is....
That's when 'OOC writing' stops being an excuse or explanation for alllll of the above gaps in character logic and actions.
Because its like, when you had abundant chance to REJECT this story and say nope, this was bullshit from start to finish and I'm not here for it, when you were just as capable of transforming literally ANY aspect of this story you didn't like into something that made more sense to you....
And you chose not to.
That's.....accepting it as valid writing. You were like, okay, I'm game to just treat this as a thing that happened, just like they said that happened.
For the chance to give Dick shit for it, see. For the angst, see.
And that's when I'm like okay cool, so when engaging with this story as is and accepting it on face value and just delving into the characters as they were SHOWN interacting with and around these events......for the angst or whatever....
You guys just all decided en masse to just hop, skip and jump over allllllllll the opportunities for angst inherent in examining even ANY SINGLE ONE of the above lapses in judgment or hypocrisy on the parts of the characters (who don't get to be excused by OOC writing if you're not going to call the story an example of OOC writing, whoops).
And its just like, uh, what's up with that?
#lol thank you for this ask tho#I havent gone on a good Spyral rant in months#it does wonders for my pores
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Betrayal
For Maribat March day 7 theme betrayal
Master List
Adrien didn't understand. Why would his lady do this to him? Hadn't they loved each other? One moment he was trying to convince her that they were made for each other, then the next she’s taken his ring away. And the cherry on top, no matter how much he begged, she hadn’t even revealed himself to her.
But that was fine, after all she would eventually see reason, give him back his ring, reveal herself to him, so that they could live happily ever after together.
Only when the next akuma arrived, she did not show up with his ring. She did not show up at all. Instead she came with new miraculous users, and there was someone wearing HIS RING!
Maybe it was a mistake, perhaps she was just trying to make him jealous. But no, in the interview done by Aurore, not Alya, she said that they were all permanent. Including this IMPOSTER! How could she do this to him? How could she betray him like this?
If this was the game she wanted to play, then he would play. He just needed to find someone to be his pawn. Then she would see, and she would come begging.
As he walked into class the next day, he spotted his target. Marinette Dupain-Cheng, sitting in the back of class with Nathaniel. Ever since she switched seats with Lila that’s where she sat. Perhaps he could ask Nath to switch with him.
Marinette was kind, forgiving, and pretty. The perfect person to make Ladybug jealous. He just needed to get her to go out with him. Which unfortunately was easier said than done.
Nath refused to switch seats with him, which was totally unreasonable. Marinette took whatever means necessary to avoid him, during school, at the bakery, and when she was hanging out with her friends. He even tried to get to the bakery super early to walk with her to class and tried to walk her home.
But she either had Nathaniel, Marc, Mireillie, Aurore, and even Kagami at times with her. All of whom got very aggressive whenever he got near.
That was okay though, he would just try a different approach. So he started leaving roses and gifts at her seat. But that didn’t work either, in fact it looked like she was getting annoyed. Like she had a right to be annoyed.
How was he supposed to make Ladybug jealous if she didn’t go out with him. Now he was getting annoyed.
It didn’t help that his father and Natalie were arrested for being Hawkmoth and Mayura. His mother was in their basement in a coma and was thankfully revived. So she started taking care of him.
That was fine, but what was more annoying was that Ladybug wasn’t seen after that. No one from the team was. And she had never come back with his ring. Never come back to apologize or reveal herself.
The nerve of her! And what was worse was that Marinette was no longer seen at school. It wasn’t like her to ditch school, so where was she? He tried asking her parents but apparently she had gotten emancipated.
And none of his friends had any clue where she was. And when he had tried asking her current friends, they refused to tell him!
It wasn’t until years later, married to someone he didn’t love, a woman who only loved his money, that he had stumbled upon an account. Marinette’s tik tok account.
He eagerly pressed a video, wanting to see how miserable her life was now since she had left. What he saw made his blood boil.
There she was with the famous Jason Todd-Wayne, looking happy. Having the nerve to be happy while he was miserable. And apparently she wasn’t even Marinette anymore, she was MARGOT TODD! How dare she move on! How dare she be happy dating some secret girlfriend while he was miserable with his lying, gold-digging wife! It wasn’t fair! IT WASN’T FAIR! IT-
His thought was cut off by a knock at the door. “It’s me Monsieur Agreste.” The sweet voice of his secretary came from the other side of the door. Just what he needed.
“Come in Ashlynn.” As he made his way to the door, Ashlynn walked in. He immediately closed the door, grabbed her waist, and pulled her into a passionate kiss. He would’ve done more if not for her hands pushing him away.
“Not today Adrien, Lila just got home.” She spoke, slightly out of breath.
“I see, shall we continue this later, Ashlynn?” Despite it being a question, there was no other choice in the matter.
“We shall Monsieur.” She replied, walking out the door to go greet his horrible wife. Some days he wished he could get a divorce, but that wouldn’t look good for his already struggling image.
-
“Chloe! I’m home!” Marinette shouted to her lovely girlfriend.
“Pixie, come to the living room! You’re gonna wanna see this!” The voice of Jason Todd came from her living room.
As she made her way to the living room she was met with Chloe and Jason both grinning like maniacs on the couch in front of the TV.
“What are you both watching?” Marinette asked, before she registered that Jason was in her home, “Wait, Jason what are you doing here?”
“Just come watch babe.” Chloe whined, making grabby hands at her girlfriend.
Marinette went and sat down in Chloe’s lap while Jason rewinded the TV. Marinette was about to ask again what was going on when the news person started speaking.
“Famous model, owner of Gabriel Agreste, and son of late Gabriel Agreste, Adrien Agreste has been divorced by his wife Lila Agreste, now Lila Rossi after having an affair with his secretary, Ashlynn Leroy. So far he has yet to comment on the affair or divorce, but this isn’t the first time that the young man has come under fire…”
“Seriously, Lila is actually divorcing him?” Marinette questioned, shocked at this revelation.
“You’re surprised she’s divorcing his money.” Chloe snickered.
“Yeah, yeah. But Jay, that doesn’t explain why you’re here?” Marinette went back to her original question.
“I wanted to see your reaction. And I’m not surprised, apparently this isn’t his first time cheating on her.” Jason answered.
“What poor soul do you think she’ll try to trap next?” Chloe jokingly asked.
“Well lets see…” Jason trailed off.
“I never should’ve let you guys meet.” Marinette muttered, narrowing her eyes at the two of them.
“We were gonna meet one way or another Pixie. She’s your girlfriend and I’m your best friend.” Jason easily replied.
“You two are gonna be the death of me, you know that?” Marinette complained. Jason was about to reply but then the doorbell rang.
“Oh pizza’s here!” Jason raced up to grab the door.
“You ordered pizza!” Marinette exclaimed.
“It’s with my money, don't worry!” Jason yelled back.
“JASON!” Marinette screamed, while Chloe laughed in the background.
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I’m not sure how many people saw the post I made earlier today, but I’ll say it here. While I was writing psycho Adrien I ended up scaring myself as I wrote him. I told my sister and she laughed at me, she’s lucky she doesn’t have these writer problems. On another not, I bet you weren’t expecting that plot twist. But honestly as long as Adrien isn’t dating Ladybug I totally see him as a cheater. But that’s just me.
@maribatmarch-2k21
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THE BEGINNING. A RECAP OF TASK FORCE Z #1.
Reminder: this is a recap; I have a full review of the first issue here!, a post with the context of this book here! AND a review of the story that acted as a prelude to Task Force Z here!
Alright, the first issue starts with Jason asking Quilt Man who he is working for and what is it that they are smuggling. Then we get to see the team work together for the first time, their mission was to find out what they were smuggling. Which was Lazarus Resin, the newest product in Gotham.
We find out that TFZ introduces (partially) the concept of Lazarus Resin to the current timeline and that’s why the people working in Project Halperin don’t “know” much about how it works, but they do know something in particular, “the Lazarus Resin should not come in contact with living tissue”.
Which meant that they had no idea of what would happen if the Lazarus Resin came in contact with a living person. The LR was given to the villains to revive them and then enhance only a little their cognitive abilities, but they were pretty much zombie like. They intended on finding out what would happen if a living person came in contact with the LR though, that’s why one of the doctor ladies watched Jason in the shower after he was getting rid of the residual fluids from Man-Bat.
Later, Jason meets Hanna (red haired lady), who acts like a psychologist and seemed and overall shady person. Jason seemed to not find her shady but instead acted like a protective person with her (Jason has a massive soft spot for women).
When it comes to the team, Jason says that “there is no team” and that he was “barely here on my own free will”, but he knew that his job was to lead the others and to keep them away from harming civilians. He also doesn’t believe in redemption for the villains that Project Halperin is using.
Project Halperin has Crispin as the head of the project but he is under orders from the government who use the TFZ as a secret team of sorts. Crispin is a massive creep, that, we learn from the get go.
Other properties that we get to know about the LR infusion is that it also controls the zombies’ need to eat humans. And let’s just say that maybe they were working with very low doses because they ate everyone in their way.
We also got to see some of Jason’s morals, he was deeply against Crispin and the doctor using scare tactics with Quilt Man, he even threatened Crispin and the other villains over it, so, Jason is back to feeling a certain way about who needs to be punished and how things are done.
Crispin also said this about Jason “I don’t have a problem with you. I have the solution to the problem that is you…”
Jason thinks that the people that are smuggling whatever it is they are smuggling are just crooks so they don’t deserve to be killed. Back at it again with Jason being judge and jury, love to see it.
Jason had no problem with the idea of the LR pills and because he knew that the others needed them, he also had no problem using the pills against them. If they didn’t follow his rules then he wouldn’t give them the pills and they would eventually die again. Which meant that on some level, villains like Bane, Arkham Knight and Man-Bat deserved to suffer or be treated as weapons and not humans.
Mr. Bloom wasn’t dead, like Jason in TFZ #1.
It is revealed that the crooks were smuggling Lazarus Resin and Bloom was the first to mention that it was weird that Crispin was getting them to retrieve something that supposedly they already had, thus revealing his distrust of Crispin.
The leader of these people was Freeze, who seemed not impressed at all when Jason told him that he was arresting him “under the power of the federal Task Force Act”
Yeah, Freeze made fun of Jason for saying that and I have to say, it was a weird thing to say because if they were supposed to be a secret team working for the government, why would you say that it is a federal act?
At the end of the issue shit hits the fan, the team almost eats everybody and Freeze froze everyone. Most of the team was incapacitated, except for Astrid (Arkham Knight) who was approaching Jason’s frozen body with intentions of eating him.
Yeah, that’s “Team Building with Red Hood” right there…
Anyways that’s where the little recap ends, next post will be an overview of the second issue which I didn’t do a review for. This post is mostly for me to remember most of what happened at the start easily but I guess it can help anyone so here you go!
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Of Medea, Jason, and Other Tragedies
Some of you might remember a post I made a little while ago comparing how Quackity and Technoblade fit into the lore of the DSMP. Here are my thoughts via a 3k words of angst:
Read it on AO3
There was nothing left of L’Manburg.
It was something universally understood and known. Something that was never questioned. Something that everyone just accepted so that they could move on and not think about the nation that had too many traitors, too many broken promises, too many memories. It was something that everyone thought they believed so that they wouldn’t go looking for little pieces left behind, pieces that miraculously survived the desimation.
But Quackity knew the truth. Those little pieces could be found without looking too hard, whether it be in the fractured relationships of the SMP or the physical evidence that managed to not become ash at the bottom of a crater. And Quackity, well, he held both of those pieces in the palms of his hands.
In one hand, he held the souls of those fractured by L’Manburg’s memory. Fundy and his desperate need of a stable family, with a past scarred by a father that went mad and nightmares that haunt his waking actions. Sam and his futile attempts at control, gradually being poisoned as he pushes everyone away and tries to single handedly keep the server’s god locked in his own prison. Purpled and his lack of legacy, even in a place he so heavily influenced and his skills so valued yet so dismissed. Foolish and his beautiful builds and broken heart, running away from his destructive past and wanting peace despite the possibility of godhood sitting at his fingertips.
In the other hand, Quackity held a poster, one of the last remaining remnants of the place he had once fiercely declared home. He has no idea how it survived. Most of the physical pieces of L’Manburg that could be found were sections of buildings just far enough away from the explosions, items in random chests, or whatever was on the citizens at the time. Yet somehow, through all the fire and TNT, this poster had survived.
Technoblade. Wanted dead or alive.
Quackity had found it relatively soon after Doomsday, wandering around the crater where L’Manburg once stood. It was slightly singed on the edges and an entire corner was gone, but there it was, lying on the ground innocently, Technoblade’s mocking eyes staring at him with something like satisfaction.
He should have left the thing there. It would have eventually faded away like the rest of L’Manburg with enough time under the elements. Or maybe he should have burned it and forgot it was there in the first place. Whatever he should have done, picking it up, carefully folding it, and stuffing it into his back pocket was definitely not it. But he did. And it stayed with him for a long time.
At first, it was just there, a burning reminder in his back pocket of all he failed to do and what he promised to accomplish. It was there as he built Las Nevadas from the ground up, barely noticeable besides the constant nagging reminder in the back of his thoughts. It was there when he hired Purpled and Technoblade to take care of the Eggpire that had gone on for far too long, growing heavier and heavier each time the Blood God looked at him. It was there when he found out about Kinoko Kingdom for the first time, how the only three people he thought he could trust, the reasons he built Las Nevadas in the first place, left him behind without a second thought.
(The poster didn’t feel heavy then, but it did feel like it was laughing at him. Low and monotone, coming from deep within his memories.
The poster didn’t feel heavy then, but the two rings threaded through a chain around his neck did. They felt like shackles threatening to weigh him down and drown him.
Quackity removed the rings and hid them in a chest after that. Somehow, though, they still felt suffocating).
The poster was there for everything, tucked away in his back pocket, even when he began recruiting members for Las Nevadas. Through Foolish and Fundy, Purpled and Sam, and even through Slime. It knew everything, Quackity would find himself thinking. Of course, there was no way for a poster to know anything, but it didn’t stop the thought.
It wasn’t until after Wilbur visited him with Tommy after his revival (and so many memories of Pogtopia) that he finally took the poster out of his pocket. He was alone at the time (as he always is these days, it feels like, even surrounded by other beings) and in his unfinished casino. Sam had left nearly an hour ago to continue his duties as the Warden at the prison. The echoes of their conversation reverberated through Quackity’s mind.
Technoblade is going to the prison to see Dream tomorrow, he remembers saying. I trust you know what you have to do.
Of course, Sam had replied, the intense green of his eyes sparking in the dim lighting of the casino. You’ve done your part. Now I’ll do mine.
Quackity stared at the glass of whiskey in his hand. It had always Schlatt’s drink of choice, when he was still breathing. The smell reminded Quackity of the long nights he spent as Vice-President to a man barely sober enough to stand, let alone run a country. How many times had he put the smallest amount of poison in Schlatt’s drink, hoping that this time, it would be enough to end him for good? How many days had he spent hiding bruises and putting on fake smiles, wondering if it was all worth it? How many nightmares had he endured, thinking about everything Schlatt did and made him do?
He drank all the whiskey in one go. It burned his throat and pooled like fire in his stomach.
The glass made a satisfying thud on the counter as Quackity set it down. It was then that he finally reached for the poster in his back pocket, holding it almost gently in his scarred hands. He traced the edge of it with his finger, thinking deeply.
Quackity unfolded the poster, one fold at a time. The folds were deep from the sheer amount of time it’s spent in his pocket. It was honestly a miracle that it was still intact, given the state it was in when Quackity found it and the constant strain it’s been under since.
When Quackity finished unfolding the poster, he placed it against the wall and used his empty whiskey glass to hold it up. It looked just like he remembered, even back when the Butcher Army was first created. Sure it was faded and threatened to fold on itself at any moment, but it was still there. The reward, Technoblade’s face, the L’Manburgian flag.
Quackity stared into Technoblade’s red eyes. It was only a drawing, but whoever had done the picture nailed the resemblance to the Blood God. The scar over his eye and lip itched just looking at it.
“You know Technoblade,” Quackity found himself saying. “Before we met, I always had a healthy respect for you. Who didn’t? Everyone was in awe over the Blood God, the most terrifying fighter of our generation, rumored to never be able to die.” He sighed. “Of course, fighting was never my strong suit. You found that out first hand,” he added with some humor, though it felt flat. “Still, a part of me longed to do what you do. Words can only get you so far, get you so much respect.
“They say you should never meet your heroes. Something in that has to be true, because ever since I’ve known you, my life has been nothing but one bitter failure after another.” The poster didn’t reply, and Quackity understood with some absurdity that he was literally talking to a poster as if it were a real being. Still, he continued on.
“Well, maybe that’s giving you too much credit, but it sure feels like that. It’s just,” he trailed off slightly, moving his hands around, trying to figure out some way to articulate his point. Words were supposed to be his weapons, but here, vulnerable and trying to express something that’s been gnawing at him for so long, they scrambled in his throat. “Somehow you come out of every battle, every conflict without a single mark, yet I’m punished for every decision I’ve made since I came to this Primeforsaken SMP.”
And those words, Quackity realized, are when the floodgate inside his chest burst.
“No matter what you do, who you hurt, who you kill, what everyone wants or tries to accomplish, you have never paid for anything you’ve done to the people of this server. I remember when we took down Schlatt with Pogtopia, how you were so insistent that the government had to be taken down, all the while talking about how it was the people’s choice to live how they wanted to live. Well guess what, shithead? The people, L’Manburg, us, we decided that we wanted a government, one that listened to us and one that we could trust. And what did you do once the people made their choice? What did you do after we had called you our friend and said you didn’t have to live by our ways if you didn’t want to? You called us traitors. Said we used you, when all you ever wanted was an excuse to push your own anarchist bullshit down the throat of any server that would give you the time of day. You’re somehow the biggest hypocrite I’ve ever met, even in a world where Dream runs around as the Admin.
“But that’s not even the worst of your sins, isn’t it? I’ve watched you blow up countries with no remorse, execute a child on the whim of a dictator, corrupt and hurt every single person I’ve ever cared about, destroy what I put every ounce of my heart and soul into like it was nothing.”
There were tears aching behind his eyes now. Quackity took a shuddering breath, trying to calm his hurting heart. He thought about Schlatt and his time in Pogtopia, thought about Tubbo and Tommy and Niki and every other L’Manburgian face as they realized the nation they loved was gone at Technoblade and Wilbur’s hands. “And what were your consequences for all of this? What karma did the oh so powerful universe decide you deserved?
“Nothing. Not a single, goddamn thing. For all your violence and bloodshed, you get to live in a nice cottage in the Arctic, filled with friends that celebrate your birthday, and not a single regret.”
Quackity smiled blankly at the poster, raising his hands. By now he was full on pacing in front of it, his shoes making soft noises against the tile. All the while, Technoblade’s red eyes watched his every move.
“But what about me? Prime knows I’m the furthest thing from a saint this server has to offer, but at least I had good intentions. I went against Wilbur during the elections not because I wanted power, but because I saw what he was doing and no one else was going to call him out on his bullshit. I mean, come on! Running a single party election in a so-called democratic nation? Now, that doesn’t mean I didn’t do bad things. I should have left Schlatt the moment I realized just how bad he was. I shouldn’t have waited until after he ruined L’Manburg and executed Tubbo to join Pogtopia. It haunts me every waking moment.” Quackity stopped his pacing for a moment, lost in the memories. Tubbo screaming, the flash and bang of a firework. The explosion of color from the second firework immediately after, because the first one hadn’t been enough. The burning in his chest as he was hit with a firework of his own.
“And then, after you and Wilbur decided to blow it all to kingdom come, I did everything I thought was best for L’Manburg. I helped people. I rebuilt everything you destroyed and made it better. I wanted to hunt you down and make you pay for everything you did.” His scar began to itch again. “But I guess we both know how that turned out.
“And what were my consequences for this? For doing my best, realizing my mistakes, trying to fix them, trying to protect those around me? What karma did the oh so powerful universe decide I deserved?
“Everything. I was punished for everything. Every place I called home, every person I called a friend, every time I fell in love, anything I tried to protect, every time I tried to be happy, I was punished for it. Somehow in this fucked up version of the story, I’m the villain that needs to be punished for their actions, while you’re the blameless hero that gets a happily ever after!”
Quackity was near yelling at this point. It felt good to let out all of his emotions after so long, putting everything into the open even if no one else heard him. He forced himself to calm down slightly, running a hand through his hair.
“Have you ever heard the story of Medea and Jason?” he asked abruptly. The air of the casino seemed to shift uncomfortably with his sudden change of tone, lighter and lower than before. “You probably have, with your obsession with Greek Mythology and shit. You know something interesting about Medea, though? Even though she did horrible, and I mean horrible things, she never lost the favor of the gods. She abandoned her country for some random dude she fell in love with, plotted the murders of her brother and father, as well as murdered a princess with a poison so strong that it killed anyone she touched, and even killed her own children. Yet she doesn’t pay for any of it. Through all of the murder and sorcery, the kept her favor with the gods, and was allowed to have a happy ending. Hell!” Quackity let out a barking laugh. “She doesn’t even die as far as anyone knows! Greek mythology is known for its love of horrible and dramatic deaths, yet of all of the myths she shows up in, never once does it mention her eventually dying, even of old age! Sounds like someone else we know, doesn’t it?”
He paused for a moment, as if expecting a reply. Of course, there was none.
“Now Jason, Jason, on the other hand, we see something interesting. You see, he loses his favor with the gods, specifically his patron Hera, because he was trying to marry another woman even though he was already married to Medea and had two children with her. Can you imagine your patron goddess being the lord of marriage and family, and then you trying to marry another woman? The balls on that man, I’m telling you. The point is, none of his heroic deeds mattered in the end. He lost favor with the gods, lost his wife and children, and ended up dying alone, crushed under the weight of the Argo. The only thing left to immortalize his heroism ended up being the cause of his death.”
Quackity suddenly paused. His words echoed in the casino around him. No longer was he pacing. Instead, he stared long into the distance, as if he could see something through the thick walls. The weight around his neck was nearly unbearable. When he spoke again, it was just above a whisper.
“I guess what I’m trying to say is you are an awful lot like Medea. Doing horrible things left and right with the gods still choosing to favor you, still getting a happy ending despite all the pain and grief you’ve caused. But…” he trailed off, looking back at the poster. It may have been his imagination, but Technoblade’s eyes seemed less mocking, somehow.
“I have hope. Maybe you’re not Medea. Maybe, just maybe, you’re Jason. You’ll do something so terrible that you’ll lose your favor with the gods, lose everything that ever mattered, and you’ll be crushed under the weight of what once proved your worth.” Quackity walked forward, reaching out his hand. His fingertips stopped less than an inch from the surface of the poster, just hovering. Waiting. Contemplating.
“But I can’t wait for that to happen. I can’t wait for the universe to finally decide you’ve lost its favor.”
He dropped his hand. “You once said something, Technoblade. You said: treat others as they have treated you. That was your excuse for everything you’ve done. I tried to enact that saying once before, and I lost a life because of it. This time around…”
Quackity finally snatched the poster from the place on the wall, rattling the glass in the process. He refused to acknowledge that there was the finest tremble in his hands, making the poster shake.
“Well, the universe already made me the villain of this story. Might as well act like one.”
Quackity ripped the poster to shreds, piece by piece, one of the last remaining pieces of L’Manburg destroyed at his hands. Soon it was so shredded that it was unrecognizable, a pile of paper falling softly to his feet. When it was gone, it felt like pressure was relieved from Quackity’s shoulders. For the first time in a long while, he smiled genuinely.
He walked out of the casino, leaving the pile there for another day. He was sure Slime would clean it up without much fuss.
And if the weight around his neck grew to be nearly unbearable-- well, that was no one's knowledge but his own.
#Dream smp#dsmp#mcyt fandom#ao3 fanfic#quackity#dsmp quackity#technoblade#dsmp techno#karlnapity#just mentions of it because i love it and because it further inforces the angst#awesamedude#dsmp awesamdude#greek mythology#jason and medea#tommyinnit#dsmp tommyinnit#tubbo#dsmp tubbo#alex writes#wilbur soot#dsmp wilbur#dsmp dream#dsmp lore
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Marinette Vs Santa: The Final Round
Okay, so it’s 11:38 on Christmas. I promised I would post this today. So I am. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to everyone. Enjoy your present.
The jolly fat man would get his, Marinette swore. She wore a lovely gold, snowflake-embroidered cocktail dress. Her hair was done in a French side braid with voluminous Curls; more than she ever had in her entire life. Honestly, she looked like a princess.
And it would’ve been a win for her if it wasn’t for the circumstances that made it yet another Tie against Santa.
Roy has his hand on the small of her back since they step out of the limo. The forced sweet smile on her face was for the paparazzi that had waited outside the restaurant. When they got inside, and as they were shone to their table, Roy's hand slipped south.
Marinette stiffened and leaned close to Roy and whispered in his ear, “If you don’t get your hand off my butt, I’m going to take off one of my five-inch heels and slit your throat with it.”
Roy’s hand was gone in a flash, “Aww babe,” He said, a little loudly, nodding to the table where his parents’ Oliver and Dinah waited; their eyes watching the young couple’s every move. “You know I can’t keep my hands off you.”
Marinette giggled, as she fought the urge to slam his against a nearby table, “Not in front of your parents. It’s called manners.”
Your lucky homicide is still technically illegal, Marinette thought viciously, and a sure-fire way to get on fat bastard’s naughty list.
He wouldn’t win. No, Marinette had gone too far; been through too much to lose now.
“Thank you, Marinette,” Dinah stood once the two approached. She pulled Marinette into a hug. “I’ve tried to instill etiquette into Roy for years. His last girlfriends and he nearly in trouble for public indecency. Maybe you’ll do a better job than I did.”
Marinette laughed, “I will even if I have to cut off his hand.”
Oliver chuckled, “You’re definitely Bruce’s girl.” The resemblance was uncanny.
After that the fell into an easy conversation.
“That dress is beautiful,” Dinah said. “Who’s the designer?”
Marinette beamed, “I am. I love fashion. It’s my dream,” She explained. “I plan on launching my own company. While there’s always room to learn and enhance my designing skills, I feel as if I have that side at least somewhat covered. However, the business angle is something I need to learn. Which is why I plan on getting my MBA at an Ivy League. I was considering Yale or Princeton.”
“Princeton,” Oliver grinned. “Did you hear that Roy?” Roy rolled his eyes, and once again, regretted being born. “Marinette’s considering Princeton. That’s the top school on his list. Queens have gone there for generations.” He pulled his wife into a hug. “It’s where I knew Dinah was the one.”
Dinah gave Marinette a blank stare, “I couldn’t get rid of him. It was like having bedbugs.” (“Hey!” Oliver cried in protest.) “No matter what I did, he just coming back. The only solution was to burn the entire place down and vanish without a trace. But apparently, that’s illegal or whatever. Stupid.”
“I know, right,” Marinette nodded earnestly. “What’s up with that?”
They had a wonderful dinner. They watched a paparazzi pretending to be a waiter be escorted out of the restaurant. It was great, amazing even. Oliver and Dinah had been perfectly lovely. Roy had acted like a perfect gentleman. Marinette could’ve almost pretended she was actually meeting her boyfriend’s family. She was about to count the entire night as a win until…
“So how many grandkids should I expect in the future,” Oliver asked, a sincere look on his face, though he was snickering inside.
Marinette chocked on her chocolate mousse and ended up in a coughing fit that Dinah helped her with. Roy had met his father’s gaze and gave him his most charming smile, “Seven,” He answered.
“Seven!” Marinette barked out and she looked around frantically as if Ashton Kutcher had revived his hit show and was about to pop out.
Oh, gods; please let me be getting punked, Marinette prayed.
Oliver’s eyebrows went up, “Seven, huh, big family.”
Roy hummed, “the Wayne-Queens certainly will be.”
“You mean the Queen-Waynes,” Oliver corrected, his hackles rising.
“Well, I figured since we’d be living in Gotham,” Roy didn’t even bother to hide his smirk. “We’d go by the Wayne-Queen family. I actually found this great place not too far from Wayne Manor. Plenty of room for the kids, maybe a dog or two; a rose garden. You know how Waynes are about their roses. You can visit whenever.”
Marinette might have momentarily blacked out during this. It was how Marinette knew she had officially lost that round to Santa.
Oliver and Dinah just looked at Roy; their entire bodies stiff.
Dinah took a long drink from her wine glass, “Gotham has such a high crime rate. Have you considered Star City, Marinette?”
“I’ve never been,” Marinette said sweetly. “But I could live anywhere really. I’m pretty open.”
Roy wrapped an arm around her shoulders, “Yes, but I figured you’d want to spend as much time with your family as possible. Jason’s my best friend. I love Gotham. It just works. Besides Bruce Wayne would make an amazing grandpa.”
The grip Oliver had on his dessert fork made Marinette fear for Roy’s life. It was time to step in. “I suppose Robb or Thea would love a big backyard to play in.”
That got the other three’s attention.
“Robb? Thea?” Oliver whispered. His throat was dry. His brain tried to process what was said.
“I wasn’t supposed to say anything. But Roy and I started talking one day and well,” Marinette trailed off. A soft pink blush appeared on Marinette’s face, enhancing her overall innocent aura. She had done background on the Queen family. “Our firstborn; if it’s a boy Robb as in Robert Thomas; for your father and my grandfather. If it’s a girl, Thea Sabine; for your sister and my mother. It was Roy’s idea. He knows how much you loved them.”
It was then that Marinette got to check off one more wish off her list. It had been made as a joke in passing to Chloe and Kagami months ago. They had been having a girls’ night. When Chloe, ever prepared, asked what they wanted for Christmas. They had been watching a Justice League fight on the news. Marinette had laughed and said she wanted to show them up one day; make a superhero cry.
However, watching The Green Arrow tear up while the Black Canary comforted himself, made her think that Santa took her to wish out of context.
Roy was pulled into a big hug by his parents, and he sent her a vicious glare, and mouthed, “What did you do?”
Oliver pulled back, wiped his eyes, and said, “You know; there’s nothing like a spring wedding in Star City.”
Marinette threw down her napkin.
Fuck Santa.
-
The news had a field day. The picture of Marinette in her dress and Roy in his designer suit was what everyone was talking about. The women of the view talked about her outfit. Wendy Williams talked about her outfit. It was as if Marinette was living in another universe.
Nothing could bring her down.
“What the hell?” Jason asked as he picked her up for school. “Why the fuck is Roy spamming me with hate texts. Why the fuck is Oliver arguing with B over visitation rights to his grandchildren? Who the Fuck are Robb and Thea? And why the fuck is Dad asking Aquaman if Atlantis really sunk on its own, or if it had a little help?”
Marinette tiled her head, “Is Papa planning on sinking Star City? And that’s forty dollars for the swear jar.” Her parents had implements after one too many curse words were thrown around.
“Worth it!” Jason said. “And yes, I’ve positive that’s what’s going to happen. It’s gonna be amazing. Also, he’s gonna kill Roy!”
“He deserves it,” Marinette crossed her arms.
“Hey!”
“He put his hand on my butt!”
Jason paused and narrowed his eyes. “Correction. I’m gonna kill Roy.”
Marinette rolled her eyes, but then she realized something. “Aren’t they’re usually two of you? Where’s the other one?” It was the routine. She was always escorted into school by two members of the Wayne family.
Jason smirked, “You’ll see.”
The paparazzi mostly screamed the usual things at her. At that point, she was used to it. It was the few changes at school that she was used to.
Damocles had been fired for bribes and severe negligence. He was replaced by Mendeleev. Bustier had been fired for her role in Marinette’s expulsion without proper procedure and basically catering to bullies while blaming the victim. She replaced by a sterner teacher name Miss Reed. She was by the book and not afraid to call in the higher-ups if something smelled fishy.
The first was any and all forms of bullying in class was no longer tolerated. The school had issued a zero-tolerance policy that the kids in Bustier’s class had felt immediately.
The second was Lila’s supposed medical history. No doctor’s note, no special treatment. It was also required that Lila present a note from her mother regarding any future absences.
The third was Adrien’s being pulled randomly out of class. CPS got involved real fast regarding child labor laws.
The days of her classmates getting away with bloody murder were over. Reed saw everything. Everything.
Alya, who had returned to class always avoided Marinette at all times. Her parents had given her the biggest talking to about respecting others’ right to privacy. Marinette had agreed to drop any legal charges against her former friend provided she adhere to the cease and desist order. The girl knew too much about Marinette. And Marinette needed to make it clear that she would bury the girl in lawsuits before she’d allowed even one-fourth of it to be made public.
Jason had walked her to class. But he didn’t leave. Instead, he went directly to the back of the class and took a seat next to Chloe. He pulled out his phone and proceeded to ignore the curious looks from the students.
The blond eyed the ripped jeans, the overly sized red flannel shirt, and the beat-up leather jacket, “Grunge died in the 90s. Like it deserved.”
Jason, not bothering to look up from his phone, “Paris Hilton said it’s cool that you plagiarized her look.”
Chloe gasped.
Marinette just looked up at the ceiling, knowing exactly how this was going to go. Chloe would not forgive this. Jason was an asshole. It would be war.
Miss Reed walked in and didn’t look twice at Jason.
Marinette narrowed her eyes; something was up.
The class went on without a hitch though until just about the end of the first period…
When Tim and a pretty, brown-haired, tanned skin, an older woman walked in the door. They looked to be having a pleasant conversation.
“Mama,” Lila gasped, her eyes wide. “What are you doing here?” She looked around frantically.
“Ooohhhh,” Marinette nodded. “Yeah, that makes sense.” That was what was happening. Operation: Get That Bitch.
“Oh!” Tim feigned surprised. “I didn’t know your daughter was in my sister’s class, Naomi.”
Naomi had been pleasantly surprised when Tim Drake, the CEO of Wayne Industries reached out to speak to her about potential business ventures in Italy. He was in Paris visiting his sister and wanted an insider perspective on Italy’s economy and tourist information. Her bosses were thrilled. Wayne opening up a site in Italy would do wonders for the overall economic and industrial growth. Then they got to talking about a potential student exchange program that Wayne Industries were willing to fund.
What Tim hadn’t told the Ambassador was that Wayne Industries had been scouting locations in Italy for their new plant for the last ten months. All the research was done. Everything was primed to go. Still, Tim was kind enough to ensure that Naomi Rossi received the credit for getting Wayne Industries on board.
Mrs. Rossi blinked in surprise, “I had no idea either. Lila, we’re here to discuss a potential international exchange program for kids all over the world. Tim wanted to say hello to his sister. Why didn’t you tell me you were friends with Marinette Wayne?”
Marinette leaned forward in her seat. A slow smile spread across her face.
“I, well, I,” Lila struggled to say.
“We’re not the closest, Mrs. Rossi,” Marinette offered. “She’s always so busy, we haven’t had the time.”
“Ahh,” Tim snapped his fingers. “That Lila Rossi. Marinette told me all about her.” He crossed his arms. “Naomi, how was Achu? I haven’t gone yet. But from what Marinette’s told of Lila’s stories, you two go all the time. You become close to the royal family, yes?”
Coldness went down to Naomi Rossi’s spine. She stiffened. Her eyes went to her daughter who had a look of dread on her face. Not this again, she nearly groaned. “There’s been some… confusion,” Mrs. Rossi said, gearing up every ounce of diplomacy she learned in her twenty-year career. Lila was so grounded after this. “A miscommunication, I suppose. My ambassadorship has taken my family to England, Spain, and Japan for a little while, and here in France, of course. However, nowhere else. We have never been to Achu. That is a bit above my paygrade, I’m afraid,” She laughed nervously.
The class was as silent as a library. If Bustier was still there, a few students would’ve started yelling their complaints and cries for explanations. One or two would’ve started screaming at Lila for lying. But Bustier was gone. And the look Reed was giving her class, dared them to try.
Tim chuckled, “Kids. When I was seven I swore I spent the summer in Greece with my parents. I didn’t find out until I was eleven that I was actually in Rome. What can you do?” He gave her his most charming smile. “England, was that where Lila met Jagged Stone? I think he’s from there.”
“Jagged who now?” Naomi asked. “The Rock Star? No, Lila’s never met him. She’s a huge fan though.”
“But he wrote a song about her!” Alya cried out. “She saved his cat from getting hit by a plane!”
Miss Reed, “Alya, please raise your hand and keep to a reasonable level while inside. It will be detention if I have to tell you again.”
Miss Reed and Mendeleiev had agreed to The Wayne's suggestion of revealing Lila’s lies to the class. It was the only way they would believe it and that she could lie her way out of. It was unnatural the way the students trailed after the girl, simpering over grand stories and promises of famous connections. They needed to learn to rely on hard work and their own talent, not on how many famous people they might get to the chance to meet.
“A plane?” Mrs. Rossi asked, an affronted look on her face. “You think I would ever allow my child to be in such danger?” She looked at her daughter. “Your grandmother always said you would be a grand writer with all the stories you tell. You could’ve at least come with a sensible lie.”
“I can explain,” Lila said but whether she was talking to her mother or class was anyone’s guess.
Rose raised her hand, “Lie? Lila can’t be lying. What about all the trips she takes with you? The charity organizations she runs? The famous people she knows like Clara Nightingale who always ask her for help. She’s close friends with Prince Ali. That’s why she’s always away from school. One time she was gone for weeks.”
Naomi Rossi looked at her daughter, who did everything she could to avoid eye contact with her mother. “You told me that the school was closed due to the Akumas. It was a lie.” She looked at the teacher. “If the school wasn’t closed, Lila should have only missed three days of school this semester due to her being ill with the flu. She should have only missed seven to ten days in total last year. I do apologize, my daughter…” She gave Lila a dark look. “Seems to have a talent for tall tales.”
Miss Reed stood up, “It’s a matter for the Principle. Her last teacher overlooked many things and wrote off what she couldn’t. Her schoolwork was done the year before; her grades were good enough to pass. She has not missed too many days so far; a few more than the average student but it happens. Any homework missed can still be made up. She is welcome in my class. However, when you get the chance, I would like make an appointment to discuss with you any medical accommodations she has that need to be addressed.”
Mrs. Rossi crossed her arms, “She never wears her glasses. She has sensitive eyes that prevent her from wearing contacts. Without them, she can’t see more than a few feet ahead of her.” She looked straight at her daughter. “And she knows this.”
Marinette wanted to bang her head against the desk. Why couldn’t Lila just say that? She’d have understood.
Mrs. Rossi looked at the class, “I am so sorry for any trouble my daughter may have caused.” She looked at Tim. “I hope this doesn’t cast a negative light on any prospective business relations.”
Tim shook his head, “Kids will be kids. Let’s continue to speak over lunch.”
“I’ll see you at home, Lila,” Mrs. Rossi said.
Tim grinned, “Marinette, I’ll see you after school. Jason.”
Jason got to leave only to stumble nearly down the stairs. He cast a quick glare at Chloe.
The blond gave him a vicious smirk, “Walk much?”
“Oh it’s on,” Jason hissed.
Marinette rolled her eyes. Last year, she had wished with all her might that her friends would see Lila for who she really was. Now the truth was out. Lila had been exposed.
Regrettably, Marinette had already lost all her friends. And those who were still her friends, already knew the truth. So it wouldn’t change much. She’d had already forgiven her ex-friends a long time ago. Marinette just had to intention of being friends with them again. Still, it was a victory.
Fuck Santa; this round went Marinette.
-
-
The Justice League had been stunned when they learned that the masked hero Ladybug who was protecting Paris in an adorable bright red suit, who seemed to be made of sunshine, rainbows, and happiness was Batman’s daughter. Like so stunned that as soon as they saw her secret Identity of Marinette Dupain-Cheng, and her takedown of monsters twelve times her size; one or two (or twelve) asked Superman to take a DNA test too. Because Bruce Wayne wasn’t the only black-haired Superhero around, and you know things happen.
…Batman hadn’t been happy when Oracle alerted him that someone in the Watch Tower was running his daughter’s DNA against Superman’s.
“How sure are we?” Hal Jordan asked. “The DNA results never came back. How do we know she’s not Big S’s?”
The main members of the Justice League were waiting for Batman and his family to arrive. Then they were would officially be introduced to the hero Ladybug.
Superman glared, “Stop it. Batman already brought out the kryptonite the last time you mentioned it.”
Wonder man nodded, “Her civilian self is the spitting image of Bruce.”
“All of his kids have dark hair and light eyes,” The Flash reminded them. “One of like seven or twelve, or however many he has now, we know for sure is his.”
“They are all his,” Black Canary stated with a growl. She and Oliver had adopted Roy when he was young but that didn’t make the boy any less hers.
Just then the light of the zeta beam sounded and Batman and Ladybug appeared in the room. The clear contrast between the two was startling.
The Dark, brooding, Knight of Gotham dressed in all black with a look on his face that could’ve made Superman wince in fear. Ladybug, dressed in bright red, with a big, cheerful, smile on her face and large blue eyes that looked positively mesmerized by the heroes.
“I brought cookies,” The small girl chirped as she motioned to the goodies in her hands. “And apple pie! It’s a family recipe. I made them myself. I really hope you like them.”
Batman glared worsen to the point where a few Justice League members feared for their lives. The message was clear; they’d like them. Or else.
“I’m sure they’re wonderful,” Diana smiled. “Come on, let me show you where we’ll be meeting.
Marinette tried not to stare in awe at her favorite superhero. “I also brought Vegan. And gluten-free cookies. I wanted to make sure everyone could get some.” She said as she was led away.
The world-renowned heroes visibly cooed at the young hero. She was the most adorable thing they’d ever laid eyes on.
The Flash laughed, “What did you bring, Bats?”
“Death,” Batman growled as stalked after his daughter.
Cyborg swallowed hard. “I’m not saying you’re right,” He told Hal and Barry. “I’m saying for this type of situation; Maury is classier than Jerry Springer.”
Superman groaned. They were going to get him killed.
“Apple pie!” The flash said. “She brought Apple, Clark; it’s a sign from the gods.”
Ladybug briefing them on her hero journey had been riveting. The Justice League had always been aware of Ladybug's existence. Once aware of her, Diana had told them all the history of the Miraculous and how her own mother used to be one of the users. Ladybug, with Chat Noir for a time, handled herself and protected the city well. They saw no reason to interfere. The Justice League had strict rules of interfering with another’s heroes’ turf. They figured if Ladybug needs help, the hero would call on them. They never knew she was a child.
Her age bothered them.
“She can’t protect the city,” Aquaman said. “We’ll need to step in.”
“Excuse me,” Marinette said.
The Flash nodded, “We’ll need to run Intel. I’ll have Vibe take a look at things.”
“Wait! I don’t think you-” Marinette started but was cut off.
“The magic is ancient and powerful,” Hawkman interrupted. “We should call Constantine. Or Doctor Fate perhaps.”
Ladybug shook her head, “That wouldn’t be a good idea!”
Green Lantern waved her off, “It’s fine, kid. We’ll handle it. While we’re at it; consider joining Young Justice or Teen Titans. Get you some training before you call yourself a real hero. Until then stick with the little league team.”
Marinette froze. What did he just say? White-hot anger coursed through her veins.
And to think she always dreamed of meeting the Justice League; of standing face to face with the heroes after having proven herself; proven that she was just as much of a superhero as they. However, Marinette knew she was already a hero. And no one would tell her otherwise.
The round went to Santa. But Marinette would have her due.
Fuck Santa!
Superman said, “We’ll start having unplaced league members scouting the area. They’ll notify us at the first sign of Hawkmoth.”
“ENOUGH!” Marinette yelled. She growled at the heroes. “Who the hell do you think you are?” The silence that followed that question was deafening. “You know nothing of Hawkmoth; saw nothing of what I’ve been through. There is a reason I never called in the league. Superpowered individuals still have emotions; still anger. He can turn any of you into akumas. Get inside your heads; learn who you really are. You’ll be a toy for him. Batman brought me here to meet you; not for you to pretend you know how to do my job.”
She glared at the room and then zeroed in on the Green Lantern. Within seconds, Ladybug had yanked him out of his seat, pulled the ring off his finger, and held by his collar as the man detransformed. “Real Hero? You think I’m not a real hero? I’ve fought monsters nightmares couldn’t even begin to fathom. You want to see what I’m capable of, Glow Stick? How about I take you to the nearest training room and see if you bleed green?”
Batman stood up, “My team will be running point on the Paris situation; following Ladybug lead. You’ll refrain from entering the city of Paris until further notice. That is all.” He looked at his daughter and had to fight to keep the smile off his face. “Ladybug let Green Lantern go, and give him back his ring.”
Ladybug huffed, “I’ll give him back his ring. And then I want ten minutes alone with him.”
Hal gulped.
“No,” Batman said. “We must leave. You have to get ready for Winter break. Next time.”
Ladybug glared and then dropped the hero on the ground. “Next time,” She promised.
Then swiftly the father and daughter duo departed.
Once the two were gone, Wonder Woman chuckled, “Anyone else want to question Ladybug’s Paternity. Anyone?”
Barry had to fight the shivers that went through him. Ladybug had Batman’s glare and knew how to use it. “Nope. Never again.”
-
-
Marinette’s first night in Gotham was memorable. The entire bat family had been waiting for Marinette when she arrived; Bruce, Alfred, Kate, Dick, Barbara, Jason, Cassandra, Tim, Stephanie, Luke, and Damian. Alfred, the man her brothers had deemed their grandfather, had welcomed her with open arms and a dinner that was more like a feast than a simple meal.
On the outside, Wayne manor looked like any home in the neighborhood; quiet, idealistic, and seemingly perfect.
On the inside, as soon as Bruce and Alfred stepped away for a moment, her siblings took her to the Batcave. It was as grand as she always imagined. Then someone (Tim) brought out lightsabers.
Marinette thought it was a fancy version of the toy she used to love so much as a kid; her only complaint was that the plastic swords only came in green, red and the occasional blue. She really wanted a pink one and had put it on her Christmas list for two years straight.
She pressed the button, only for the sword handle to heat up, and a pink laser rises out of it. “Tim?”
“Yeah?”
“…This is a real lightsaber,” The heat from the sword threated to burn or hand a little. Or worse. She’d seen all the movies. She knew how this usually ended up.
“Yep.”
Marinette nodded slowly. Because what the heck.
“Just go with it,” Luke shrugged. “Just-just go with it.” He sounded like a defeated man. A tired one at that.
“Don’t be like that!” Dick smiled, “Family bond time is the best time.”
“Jedi versus Sith?” Marinette just asked.
Tim pointed a bright gold lightsaber at her, “Jedi versus Sith.”
Marinette looked around at the different colored and very, very dangerous lightsabers. There was no way this could possibly go well. And with the way her Kate, aka Batwoman, was smirking there was no way Alfred would consider her proper adult supervision. Someone was going to lose a hand. Or die. Most likely both.
But she wouldn’t back down. This was more or less her eight-year-old self’s dream. It was also likely to get her killed.
…Marinette would take those odds.
“What team am I on?” She asked.
Cassandra shook her head, “Up to you. Good versus is a chose; just a game though,” She cast Stern looks at Jason, Tim, and Damian, who now sported black robes, clearly, by the Darth Maul make up that had somehow appeared on Damian’s face, were clearly Sith Lords.
Santa thought this would scare her. That she would be cowed into submission. Finally admit defeat. Well, Marinette only had one thing to say to that. Two things actually.
“Give in to the dark side, sister,” Damian ordered her. His lightsaber was red and had two sides to it much like the character he matched.
Marinette got into a fighting stance, “Not today.”
And Fuck Santa.
…
Alfred and Bruce were not happy when they finally located the children.
Or the fact that someone had to get their hand reattached.
--
--
It was two to two. Christmas day had arrived. Marinette had expected the worst; had geared up for the worst.
Nothing happened.
Marinette spent the day with her family.
Her parents had even arrived from Paris on the day before Christmas eve.
They shared presents. They sang songs. The entire family was together. It snowed outside. She and all of her siblings had a snowball fight while her parents and Alfred watched from the porch.
It was a perfect Christmas day.
Except for one thing…
Marinette knew the truth.
The perfect day was the result of one thing…
Santa was preparing too. He didn’t back down. The fight wasn’t over yet. He was too busy to mess with her on Christmas Eve or Christmas. Nevertheless, that didn’t mean anything.
Everyone knew the Holiday season didn’t officially end until January 1st.
After New Year’s eve.
That was the final round.
The match to end all matches.
On New Years’ Eve, it would be war.
-
-
Roy wore a tailored tux as he walked her down the carpet, passed the flashing lights of the paparazzi.
Marinette never thought she’d fight the most battle of her life in a ballgown. It was a jaw-dropping, off the shoulder, floor length silver dress with lacy unique floral accents. Her hair was in a side-braid with small forget-me-nots on top of her hair like a crown.
It was her battle armor, and she was ready for anything.
It was a promise, she made to herself.
…
Okay so it turns out, Marinette lied to herself.
She wasn’t ready for anything. She did not stand a chance against Santa. He was a jerk. And she was six-second from throwing in the towel and running off crying.
Marinette had known exactly who was attending the ball. She had memorized every guest on the list. Trying to figure out exactly what the fat guy who throws out her. As soon as she saw exactly which celebrities were coming. She knew.
The first punch had been the man ten-year-old Marinette swore she was going marry. Harry freaking Styles.
But Marinette had prepared herself. It would be a quick conversation and then she wouldn’t speak to him for the rest of the night.
When she met the superstar, Marinette had smiled and laughed; had a good conversation, wasn’t even awkward at all. She wasn’t the overly One Direction obsessed 10-year-old anymore.
It was a hard hit, and the best conversation of her life, but Marinette didn’t go down.
Santa’s next move was a cheap shot, and she stumbled.
Marinette had been trying to find a quiet place to think for herself so could get strengthen up a bit but, to avoid one of her brothers (Dick), she collided straight into Nick Jonas and fell on her butt.
She hadn’t even realized it at first as he helped her up.
“Thank you,” Marinette said kindly, as she brushed off her dress. When she looked up and saw exactly who had collided with, her face turned a bright red. “You’re Nick Jonas,” She squeaked; literally squeaked. She wanted to die.
Nick Jonas. She loved Nick Jonas. She listen to all his songs; even his old Jonas Brothers ones. She had always wanted to meet the singer; she had dreamed about it.
“Yeah,” Nick smiled. “You alright.”
No. Marinette was not alright.
Still, she chirped a quick, “I’m fine.” And introduced herself.
Then he said, “Love your dress.”
“I made it! I can make you one!” Slipped out before she could stop it.
He just laughed though, “How about a suit instead?”
Yeah, so that happened.
And the night just got worse from there.
…
Santa gave her a combo hit; worthy of a champion.
Not many knew but Marinette was a huge Harry Potter fangirl. Hermione Granger was her all-time favorite. She was a hardcore Harmony shipper; Harry/Hermione forever.
Tim knew it though. He was a big-time fan as well. And he thought it would be a great idea to introduce Marinette to the actress who played her favorite character; Emma Watson.
It was not a good idea. At all.
The first words out of Marinette’s mouth upon seeing Emma Watson were literally, “It's leviOsa, not levioSA!”
And it was at the point that Marinette just wanted to call it a night.
Emma had laughed it off, promising she got it all the time.
…
Marinette met Chris Hemsworth and just wouldn’t stop giggling.
Stephanie had to pull her away.
It was then that she knew Santa had her on the ropes.
…
She met Big Time Rush.
The boy band had become internally famous over the last few years. Not as big as One Direction but they still had their dedicated fans. Marinette was one of them
Kendall Knight, James Diamond, Carlos Garcia, and Logan Mitchell. They were all eighteen
It should’ve have been easy. She liked their band but not nearly as much as she liked Harry Styles, or Emma Watson, Or Chris Hemsworth.
Still, she hadn’t seen James asking her to dance coming.
However, Marinette had remained calm and cool.
It’s a pity, she was still such a klutz.
Suffice to say, Marinette wouldn’t be listening to Big Time Rush for a while. And James Diamond wouldn’t be asking strange girls to dance any time soon.
Santa gave her a punch right in the face.
…
She ran into Tom Holland the exact moment she got the hiccups. He did his best to help her get rid of them
…
Marinette had just stuffed an entire cupcake in her mouth when she realized Jennifer Lawrence was standing next to her. It wasn’t too bad. As the blond did the same thing a second later.
…
She pointed at Johnny Depp and said, “Jack Sparrow. You’re Jack Sparrow. Oh my god!!!”
To which he replied, “Captain Jack Sparrow.”
…
Suffice to say, Santa didn’t have Marinette on the robes anymore.
No, Marinette was on the floor; waiting for the referee to call it.
…
It was an hour until the official New Year. Fifteen minutes until Marinette was supposed to perform. She was backstage. Everyone was waiting for her. She promised Tim.
And she found that she just couldn’t do it.
The entire night was too much.
It was all too much.
It was over.
She had lost.
“Rough night?” Roy, her date and pretend boyfriend asked.
Marinette was sitting on a chair, her face in her hands, “You have no idea.”
Roy sat next to her, “Pretty exciting though right?” He didn’t get an answer. “Tim said you met Emma Watson, that had to be awesome.”
“It was embarrassing.”
Roy frowned, “Sabine told me you used to dress up as Hermione Granger all time. You’re saying meeting the Queen herself wasn’t even a little cool?”
Yeah, it had been amazing to meet her in person. “A little cool.”
Roy chuckled, “You met Harry Styles,” He reminded. “And from your blond bestie told me; my only real competition.”
Marinette giggled. “That had been… awesome.” And everything.
“You met Chris Hemsworth,” He added. “Tom Holland, Big Time Rush, and a bunch of other celebs that I’ve been told you were huge fans of. Yeah, you were a little embarrassed.” He shook his head. “But I don’t get it; I’d be so psyched right now if I were you. So why aren’t you.”
Marinette paused.
Why wasn’t she?
Marinette had met people she never even dared to really hope she’d ever meet one day. She wore the most beautiful dress in her entire life; danced with Roy Queen and James Diamond. Joked with Harry Styles. Talked Emma Watson the actress who played the character she loved most out of all the books, tv shows, and movies she’d ever loved.
It was all a matter of perspective really. Marinette was so focused on the bad, she never even realized just how great it was. Santa had thrown the worst at her but was still there. She hadn’t run back to Wayne Manor no matter how much she had wanted to. She stayed strong.
At one point, she knew for certain that she wouldn’t just surrender; after the Chris Hemsworth incident. If Santa wanted to win, he was going to have to knock her out.
“Thanks, Roy,” She said. “I couldn’t wish for a better date.”
It was the most amazing night of her life.
And no one was going to make her feel otherwise.
Marinette stood up, determination on her face.
She had a song to sing.
…
Marinette stood on stage. The crowd looked up at her. Her hands were shaking. Her mouth felt dry. The lights were near blinding. She had changed the song at the last minute. The music was coming from her phone anyway.
Marinette knew the lyrics to the song by heart; had sung it a thousand times in her room to herself.
She could do this.
I will do this, Marinette swore.
The music started. It was her favorite song. And Marinette was going to sing it so loudly, so proudly; they could hear her in the North Pole.
“What if I told you
It was all meant to be
Would you believe me
Would you agree
It's almost that feelin'
That we've met before
So tell me that you don't think I'm crazy
When I tell you love has come and now.”
She was doing it. Marinette was really doing it. She always had a good voice. She had taken singing lessons for a long time. And her teachers always praised her talent. But after one terrible incident, she never thought she’d ever get on stage and sing in front of anyone again.
But there she was.
“A moment like this
Some people wait a lifetime
For a moment like this
Some people search forever…
Honestly, Marinette could fall right on her face and it would stop the euphoric feeling coursing through. This was her victory song.
Jolly Saint Nick had thrown at her more than she ever thought she could take. But she was still standing.
And as long as she was, the big red guy would never win.
For that one special kiss
Oh, I can't believe it's happening to me
Some people wait a lifetime
For a moment like this…”
The music faded. The applause from the audience roared.
…
Marinette and Roy slow danced to something my Celine Dion neither could recognize. The New Year was less than two minutes away.
“You’re looking a lot better,” Roy smirked. He knew he was good at Pep talks to matter what Artemis said.
“I feel better,” Marinette admitted. “It’s been an awesome few weeks.”
“Yeah?” Roy asked as he twirled her around.
Marinette nodded, “Nearly Every. One. Of. My. Christmas wishes came true.” She tried not to growl. Positive outlook after.
“Santa must be out to get you.”
Marinette looked up at Roy with appreciation, “You have no idea.”
“Anything he didn’t get to?” The redhead asked. “Something you can do for yourself first?”
“Countdown to New Years in 10!”
Marinette thought about it for a second but she realized there was. There was one more thing on her list, that she added at the very beginning of Christmas.
“Yeah, there is.” She said. “Do you want to kiss me.”
Roy nodded earnestly.
The crowd counted down. “7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1” And then Marinette kissed Roy.
Balloons came from above. Everyone cheered. But Marinette kept kissing Roy.
She always wanted a New Year’s kiss.
Take that and stick it up your chimney, Santa.
Marinette was officially the winner.
Nevertheless, there was always next year.
But for now, fuck Santa!
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Hey!!!! How do you think Jason and Bubba would be around an s/o with chronic pain? Love your writing!!!!
GOD CHRIST hi, i am revived (i hope), after SO MANY MONTHS.... finally something new.....thank u for ur patience
Disclaimer: I write about characters in the way that I personally interpret them, their personality and behavior. If you don't agree with certain things, I hope that you still find things you can enjoy in my posts!
Jason:
⦁ As someone who doesn't feel any form of pain nowadays, Jason struggles to understand what you're going through. Although he has faint memories of what it's like to be in pain... this man also knows no empathy. Chances are that even if he still knew what pain was really like, he still wouldn't ~get it~.
⦁ Additionally, he has an unfortunately poor understanding of carefulness. He may end up causing you unnecessary pain on accident.. on several occasions.. just by showing affection or generally interacting with you. Eventually he'll learn, but until then he'll always try to find ways to apologize and make it up to you.
⦁ Although he seems like a hopeless case, he'll get better. While you're busy dealing with your chronic pain, Jason will spend his time watching you. How do you deal with the pain? What do you struggle with because of it? He'll essentially study you and your chronic pain - sadly this means that he won't help you at all at first.. unless MAYBE if you tell him to do something specific. Usually though he won't. Hell, you could be curling up in pain and he'll just sort of stand there and look at you. However, Jason does this out of love, of course. He wants to learn how to behave around you, help you the way you help yourself when you're in pain.
⦁ You'd think this man could then come up with own ways to help based on what he's learned but no. No, this guy has an empty head, no thoughts. Let's say you need warmth to deal with your pain, right? You get yourself a jacket. This is what he'll do, exactly that. Not a blanket or something, no. JUST YOUR JACKET AND NOTHING ELSE. Pea brain.
..except one time. One thing Jason can do well is hacking away at things. Therefore, one day, he got the brilliant idea to have YOU hack away at things when you'd get sad, angry and frustrated with your pain. It's an effective way to let off some steam.
Bubba:
⦁ Bubba on the other hand will take any extra precautions to accomodate you.. although those precautions may do absolutely nothing to help you through your pain. He'll do anything he can randomly think of, like making you soup or cutting your meals into small pieces. Maybe he'll bring you extra pillows when going to sleep or he'll hold doors open for you.
But because Bubba can be quite hasty with his actions at times, sometimes he might accidentally hurt you.
⦁ If it's only minor, like a frown worth of pain, Bubba will get slightly aggravated - his movements will get even more hasty and he'll get vocal with whines or similar upset noises. If it's something because of which you actually showcase real pain, he'd get really upset with himself. Pacing around the place, wailing, too caught up with his emotional reaction to pay any attention to you - this is when you'll have to take care of him and calm him down with reassurance and touch.
⦁ Depending on what causes your chronic pain and how noticable this is, Chop Top or even Drayton may tease you because of your struggles. Fear not! Bubba will immediately jump in to defend you, no matter if you return the teases or not. He's a protective man and not even his family gets to be mean to you.
⦁ Another thing he'll do (and he's really good at) is giving you hugs whenever you want or need them. Open up your arms, give him a look or just say something, he'll envelop you in a warm hug in no time! Not only during waking times though, no no, he'll even hold you when you sleep, notably when you're struggling especially bad. Careful, gentle and with lots of love.
#slasher#slashers#slasher imagines#friday the 13th#jason voorhees#the texas chainsaw massacre#leatherface#bubba sawyer
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Rising from the Ashes: Of Surprises and Christmas
So this is Part Ten here is to my Master List and Part Nine. Literally posting this from the only places I have LTE in school
-----------------------------------
The next morning they, Kagami and Marinette, leave because Audrey wants to spend the day with Chloe and since their relationship isn't the best Marinette decided to give them time. She drops her bag off at Master Fu's house, luckily for Marinette, her wig and contacts disappeared as she transforms into Ladybug around midday and sits on the very top of the Eiffel Tower. She sees Alya at the bottom of the tower, so she checks the Ladyblog.
@theLadyblog
'Ladybug is back in Paris! Maybe she came back for Christmas, who is she here to see? Is she here to spend it with a boyfriend, Chat Noir or Viperon maybe?'
She sighs, shutting her yo-yo. She sits there until her stomach rumbles. She flies across the roofs to Master Fu's house. "Would you like me to cook dinner?" Marinette asks, detansforming.
"That would be wonderful," Master Fu said, sipping his honey lemon tea.
"I can make a quiche if that's ok," Marinette said, looking at Fu. He nods in agreement. "What type would you like?"
"Feta and spinach please," he said, taking another sip. She quickly starts making the quiche in silence. When it was done she knelt at the table with Fu. "I'm sorry that I don't celebrate Christmas."
"It's fine, Master Fu. It doesn't matter to me, at least I'm spending Christmas with someone I see as a grandfather," Marinette says, taking a bite.
"Why are you running from your problems?" Master Fu asks.
"Damian, my recent boyfriend, found out I'm Ladybug, but I don't want him to get hurt because of me," Marinette explained, eating another bite.
"Ahhh the burden of the guardian, but Hawkmoth's reign of terror is over. You just need to be wary of your identity. If you trust this Damian then you shouldn't worry about it," Master Fu explains, taking his plate to the kitchen.
"Thank you for your wisdom master," Marinette said, placing the plate in the sink to wash later.
"I'm going to retire to my room. You may make yourself comfortable in the guest room, you know where it is," Master Fu said, sliding his door shut. After Master Fu retired from being the guardian, he sold his massage parlor and moved to a house farther from the middle of the city and changed it to be more of a traditional Chinese house. She went to her room and went to bed, feeling tired.
The next day was Christmas, she gave Master Fu the scarf she had made him. They had a nice tea together and before breakfast, she changed into her red dress, wig, and contacts, knowing that she would go visit her parents' grave later. She made pancakes, an American breakfast Dick recommended, and they ate in a happy chatter. As she was cleaning up from breakfast a knock came from outside. When she opened the door, Damian her prince stood there.
"Marinette? Is that you?" Damian asked, stepping forward.
"Prince? Why are you here?" she asked, stepping back to let him enter.
"I asked you to spend Christmas with me didn't I and to finish what the phone cut off. Angel, I’m in love with you," Damian said, hugging her.
"Marinette, who's at the door?" Master Fu said, coming to the door.
"Master Fu, this is Damian," she said, introducing them. "Damian, this is Master Fu, he's like a grandfather to me."
"Nice to meet you, sir," Damian said, bowing to him out of respect.
"You too, young man," he answered, bowing back.
"I was about to visit my parents, would you like to come, prince?" Marinette asks, putting on her jacket and scarf.
"That would be lovely," he said, holding out her hands.
"Bye, Master Fu, I'll see you later," Marinette said, closing the door behind her.
"So I got to know, why did you run and why are you wearing a wig and contacts? Also, why are you talking in a British accent?" Damian asks, looking her in the eyes.
"I'll tell you when we get there also right now my name is Ann," Marinette said in a British accent just like whenever she talks as Ann. "But what are you doing here? I thought you wanted to spend Christmas with your family."
"That's true but after hearing what you told Superboy, I was so angry at him. Then when you called from Paris I had to come and see you. I also had to tell you that I love you," Damian explained, kissing her head. "I flew out here last night around eleven. I got here this morning around six-thirty."
"How'd you find me though, no one knows of Master Fu," Marinette asked.
"Well I heard you talk about Chloe and you mentioned she was the daughter of the mayor of Paris. I found out where she stayed and she recognized me because of your description. She told me where you were and I found the house from GPS. I didn't want you to think I didn't like you, Angel," Damian said, stopping the walk to hug her.
"Damian, my prince, I love you, but when I heard that you knew my secret I freaked out because for the longest time I had to keep my secret. If I didn't I would've had to give up Tikki. I thought the rule still applied so I ran home to get advice from Master Fu. Dami, I don't want you hurt because of me being a superhero," Marinette said into his shoulder, she then broke away from his grasp and looked up at him. "Wait you said Superboy talked to you. Why would he talked about my problem, unless he was your best friend, Traffic Light boy." She said with a smirk.
"Angel, I knew you are smart," he smirked, leaning down towards her. She leaned up and kissed his cheek. After that, they walk in comfortable silence.
"We're here," She says solemnly. She then leads him to the three snow-covered graves. "This is my mama and papa and that," she points at the third grave. "is supposedly where I lay dead."
"You are perfectly alive though, how do they mess it up that bad?" Damian asks, angrily.
"I was invited to a gala as Ladybug, my parents went home partway through the gala. When they got home something caught on fire and it killed my parents, but since I was out as Ladybug and no one knew where I was they thought I was dead. They thought the fire had burned my body. I couldn't explain where I was and grief fogged my decision so I ended up playing dead," She explains, shuddering at the memory. "You ready to head back to Fu's?"
"If you are, I am," he said, taking her hand. They walk back to Master Fu's house and its twelve already by the time they arrive.
"Master, I think I'm going to go back to Gotham," She greets with a bow.
"I had a feeling that would happen, so I made you tea in to-go cups," Master Fu said, placing the two cups on the table.
"Ok let me grab my stuff quick, I bet we can be there before the manor is awake," she said, walking down the hall towards the guest room.
"She realizes it's six o'clock there right and it's a seven-hour flight, right?" Damian asks, looking at the short man.
Master Fu lets out a laugh looking up at the boy. "Who said anything about flying?" he asked.
Marinette walks back in her wig and contacts packed away and wearing glasses. She kneels and hugs Master Fu. "Damian, could you hold the cups for a minute?" She asks, he takes them and she calls Kaalki's transformation, now Mare standing in front of them, she takes a cup from his hand. "Ready?" he nods, dumbstruck. She calls full forth then looks at Master Fu. "I'll be back for Chinese New Year." She then beckons Damian to follow her.
"Aww we didn't make it before they woke up," Marinette says, looking around the living room of Wayne Manor.
"Demon Spawn, I thought you were in Paris?" Jason says slowly, looking at the two.
"Oh, I just was," Damian said, sipping his tea. "Mar would you be able to tell Fu that his tea is great." He asks as she detransforms.
"Of course I can," she answers, holding his hand.
"So we're not going to talk about how they just walked out of a portal from Paris?" Dick asks, sipping his coffee.
"Oh yes we will, but right now we're doing presents," Bruce said, handing out the pretty presents.
"I have presents for you guys, but they're all at my apartment. Can I give them to you the next time I see you?" Marinette asks sitting down on the couch beside Damian.
"Of course Angel, but you didn't need to get us anything," he said, kissing her head. They open all the presents. Marinette didn't receive anything but she didn't care happy enough just being in Damian's warm embrace. He rubbed small circles into her shoulder, he could not be happier than he is right now. That happiness would have lasted longer if Dick hadn't taken a picture and posted it on Twitter.
@GraysontheDick
'@realDamianWayne thanks for not losing this Sunshine. The Angel and Prince are dating to those who couldn't figure it out. : )'
@GothamOfficailNews
'@realDamianWayne, @realJaSonToDd, @GraysontheDick @BruceWaynetheOffcailMan @TimDrakeConfirmed when will we get a face reveal? When will we get a name or interview? Who is she and how'd she affect the Waynes this much?'
"Dick!" Damian screams, glaring at his brother. "Seriously another picture! You didn't get her face in it right?"
"Why does it matter if I did?" Dick challenged.
"Dick, please tell me you didn't," Marinette said, looking at him with puppy dog eyes.
"I didn't Sunshine, but why does it matter?" Dick asks.
"Maybe some people don't want to lose their privacy," Tim tried, taking a long sip of coffee.
"That and I'm supposed to be dead," Marinette said.
"They are perfect for each other! Damian has been dead before," Jason laughed.
"What does he mean you've been dead before, prince? Marinette asked, looking at Damian.
"I got killed by my clone that my mother made of me and was revived by my grandfather in the Lazarus pool," Damian explained.
"You weren't supposed to say anything," Bruce deadpanned.
"Jason shouldn't have said I had died," Damian retorted.
"I came as soon as I saw the picture," Jon says, bursting through the parlor door.
"Thanks for blabbing, by the way, Jon," Marinette called over her shoulder.
"Oh come on! How'd you know it was me?" Jon pouts, jumping over the back of the couch to sit.
"Seriously, you're asking how I knew even though you only take off a pair of glasses. Amidtitly it took me teleporting to Paris to notice, but I did," Marinette smiled.
"One week, no not even one week of dating and she already figured it out? Where'd you find her from?" Jason asks.
"Paris," he shrugs.
"That's not true, Titus found me in Gotham Park," Marinette corrected. They had breakfast together, well lunch for Marinette, and watched Christmas movies together until a bunch of people showed up for Christmas dinner. The Kents. and Diana showed up. They all ate roast beef for Christmas dinner.
"So if Jon is Superboy, that means his dad is Superman and his mom is Wonder Woman?" Marinette asks, leaning over and whispering in Damian's ear. He laughs.
"No, Superman and Wonderwoman didn't get married, but they're good friends just like the rest of the league," Damian whispered back.
"Damian, I was surprised when Jon told me that you got a girlfriend," Clark said, cutting his roast beef.
"Clark!" Lois said, elbowing his side. "But it is true, dear and such a pretty girl too."
"Titus found her," Damian said, scooping mashed potatoes onto his plate.
"You had your dog fetch you a girl," Clark laughed.
"No, he just tackled her. Then I bought her breakfast as an apology," Damian explained, holding her hand under the table.
"Oh my gosh, it's Diana right?" Marinette whispers into his ear.
"Yes," he whispers back.
"Care to share the secret," Dick whispered in her ear. He got throat punched for surprising her. "Sun... Sunshine, that hurt!"
"Sorry you surprised me!" she said, rubbing his back as he coughed.
"Perfect!" Lois says, clapping. "A girlfriend that's as dangerous as himself." The rest of the dinner went on without a hitch. No one else got hurt. The Kents brought apple pie with vanilla ice-cream and Diana brought cookies. Lois and Clark adore Marinette.
-----------------------------------------------------
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god it really wasn’t as bad as it could have been but it certainly wasn’t the best. I will say it was definitely no where near as horny as everyone is making it out to be.
so first of all, I’m opening with I’m not gonna talk about the ENTIRE movie but just some parts of it but there will definitely be spoilers
I was right about a LOT of stuff going in, like Macavity whisking away a lot of the contenders for rebirth so he could be chosen. I was also right about Taylor Swift not being in the movie for more than five minutes, I was right about Tugger not having a massive role, I was right about Grizabella being given a past with Macavity, and I was right about the dancing being fuckin bad
I was also unfortunately right about Jenny eating her cockroaches and I literally could not look at the screen during her whole number I was so upset I felt so trapped The Gumbie Cat Number Is A Fucking Hostage Situation
H o w e v e r -wheeze-
Over all, it was Cats. It was a really REALLY weird take on Cats, but it was consistent with the stage play save for some changes with characters and pacing. Hooper clearly watched multiple versions of the play to try and get the vision he liked the best. He understood that this would be difficult, and he did what he could to try and get this weird ass musical on screen. There are parts of it I liked, there are parts of it I didn’t care for, and there were parts I astral projected to get away from. But if you go see this movie, you will be seeing Cats as it was when it first arrive on Westend in 1981. Original arrangements of the songs are used as well, for example, Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer is sung as the jazzy and insidious number from the OLC rather than the bouncy and fun 98 version. I don’t think it’s awful but it’s definitely not what younger fans are familiar with.
I think the only issue with the musical arrangements I have was the singing because Hooper once again insisted on having everyone sing live and it really hinders a lot of talented people. Often times I found myself wondering if these people were capable of singing in the slightest. But I think that’s just bad choices on Hooper’s part.
Let’s talk about the Good:
The best part of the film is definitely Skimbleshanks, and not just because he fucks and later kills a man with his supreme tap skills. The visuals are great, this is the only part with actual good dancing, and Steven Macrea has fantastic energy. Skimbleshanks is already one of my favorite numbers in the stage musical, and they get pretty creative with this. It was one of the moments in the movie where I could say for sure I was REALLY having a good time.
Also Les Twins were absolutely a treat to watch. They were funny, talented, clearly having a ton of fun, and played off each other as though they weren’t in a movie, they were just goofing around like real siblings do. I found myself actually missing them when they weren’t on screen
Robbie Fairchild does a decent Munkustrap and has some fun exchanges with the other characters. I also thought Jason Derulo did a wonderful job as Tugger despite not being in the film a lot. He’s self centered, clearly caught up in his own world, and is so obsessed with himself he doesn’t really flirt with anyone or focus a lot on Victoria for too long because he’s just so in love with himself and what he wants. And honestly that is basically just tugger.
The visuals are also really nice. The sets and practical effects help the movie feel more real and bring a great sense of life to this world that is happening right under the human one. The whole movie has this lovely, dream like quality to it, and it helped remind everyone we weren’t supposed to take it so seriously.
There were also a moment with Munkustrap that I thought was really cute, where Jenny complains she’s just as good as Tugger because she can break dance too. You hear Munkustrap chuckle and say “oh yeah? show me.” in a really playful way and it was adorable, even if it resulted in me seeing Rebel Wilson pop and lock,
Lastly, and this is a big one I know a lot of fans were angry about: Misto is implied to like victoria, but it’s never stated that they end up together. Actually a lot of their interactions can be interpreted as Just Friends Being Pals. It’s definitely not as big of a problem as a lot of people were making it out to be, but it’s just not interesting and doesn’t really matter to the plot.
I liked more of it than I was expecting, especially the little shout outs to Eliot’s original drafts of the poems. I’m seeing it again tomorrow with friends so I’ll probably post more about the things I missed (i seriously missed a lot of the gumbie cat number because i was too horrified to look so maybe i will be braver this time)
NOW THE BAD!!!
This is literally the worst fucking Macavity ever and Idris Elba had every right to be as piss drunk as he was at the premier. In fact I’m pretty sure he was drunk for a majority of the film. It’s very clear he is not having a good time, he is not enjoying the story, and he doesn’t want to be there. Granted, I’m willing to place a lot of the blame on Hooper’s take on the story, which required Macavity to be a greater presence, but a lot of what we see is a clowning, pathetic, loser who is throwing a tantrum because he isn’t getting his way and he’s very very naked for most of it. His last moments in the film were so laughable, so embarrassing, and so unbelievably desperate that I could barely watch. There is no dignity in Elba’s performance, and nothing mysterious or threatening about him. It’s not just 2019 Macavity that hurts this movie though, it’s how Macavity changes a massive part of the story with his nonsense, but I’m saving that for last because it’s a big one and I hate it!
Victoria is basically really bland. There was absolutely no reason to try and make this from her perspective. Like Webber and Hooper say they wanted her to serve as the character we see the world through but she’s bland, uninteresting, and just very boring. I understand their reasoning for making her the lead, as Victoria is a very recognizable character and easy to follow in dark lighting and crowded dancing, but she just simply exists to stare in wonder and ask questions that are answered in songs that she will stare in wonder over. If they wanted to have the audience experience the world through a character they probably should have gone with Munkustrap or something considering he’s narrating a majority of the film and knows what’s going on and can explain things a little better. He’s also a stronger character. Victoria is boasted to be this strong but shy little thing who approaches this new world with curiosity and hope and she’s really not. She doesn’t really get the chance to do or say anything that would help with the plot. she barely speaks to anyone but munk or misto, and it is very much a downgrade from her stage counterpart. Frankie Hayward is a very pretty dancer, but she’s not given much to work with and I found myself not caring in the slightest what she was up to.
This also leads into Beautiful Ghosts, which I posted about before so I’ll just leave this here and move on because I’ve said all I can say and I have more important things to talk about regarding Grizabella. to summarize, I was right and the song sucked.
The dancing is lamentable mess as well. God I sometimes forgot they were dancing. They are moving, but it’s not dancing. I would say only Les Twins and Jaih Bote were the clear dancers because they were pretty much the only ones allowed to put their own personal spins on the choreography. I’ve said it so many times and I will say it again Andy Blankenbluer is a fucking awful choreographer. His work is claustrophobic and ugly to look at. You lose the person in the movement but in the sense that you really don’t care if you see them again. Blankenbluer has stated so many times he feels as though audiences don’t have the attention spans for long dances sequences anymore and want more than one thing to see, but for the love of god could you give us something to look at? The dances are quick, ugly, and the moves are put down before they can make a good impression. He has no understanding of how to define a character through movement, which makes telling everyone apart very difficult, especially since the designs are already so unrecognizale. His work was atrocious in the 2016 Cats Revival, but at least he had Gillian Lynne’s original choreography to lean on. Without the backing of better choreographers, his work is downright forgettable.
Now the Big One, the inexcusable and awful part that I hate hate hate: Grizabella.
God I was rooting for her we were all rooting for her. Remember how in the 98 film she’s this broken down, cast aside, character barely hanging by a thread? Yeah in this she not only is given a throw away past where she chooses to side with Macavity for some unknown reason, but she’s chosen as a last resort. Yeah. Remember how I said Macavity’s plot paves the way for the mishandling of a beloved and tragic character. This is it. After Macavity steals literally everyone who is competing for rebirth, after Old D is returned, the Jellicles realize they have no one to choose from for rebirth. Victoria goes outside, brings Grizabella in, they sing memory, and she gets chosen. It is framed in a way that the cats all realize how badly she has it, but oh my god does it come off as heartless, careless and pis aller. Old D has no interaction with Grizabella until this point. The Jellicles don’t really interact with her unless to shoo her away. She is basically a background character for the whole movie. Giving her a past with Macavity was pointless. It never comes up. Macavity never sees her in the film. It’s never stated why she chose him or what she did with him. There is not a shred of dignity in Hudson’s performance, and I fully attribute that to Hooper making all his actors sing on set. Grizabella comes off as pitiable, but not enough to want to see her be reborn. It was downright heartless.
OVERALL!!
I give this movie a 6/10 stars. When they are doing Cats, it’s pretty enjoyable. Not everything I wanted, and some things I genuinely didn’t fucking ask for, but overall it is not as big of a problem as I thought it was going to be. I think if you’re apprehensive or angry about the film, I think you should give it a watch and you’ll either like it or you won’t.
you should definitely not expect the 98 version, because no version will ever be that perfect, but go in with an open mind and give it a chance.
#cats#cats 2019#cats movie#probably the only horn dog scene#was when munk was high out of his mind#and writhing on the table like he was getting rawed to kingdom come#that was certainly a scene i watched with my eyes#and enjoyed
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Jason is a clever bitch and I love him, in RHATO Issue #32
Okay now we’re finally moving Jason closer to the Winick version that I think is most people’s favorite Red hood--it’s not there yet, but we’re seeing the hints. The cleverness, the charm, the unrepentant sass. Oh yes, we are going places, I like what I see.
Let’s dive in here.
Whoever made that post about Jason not even needing a cover story about being dead to revive his identity was kind of prophetic because here his cover is basically, “So I wasn’t actually dead. no more details, that’s it.” Which is pretty dang close.
And I’m not sure how he managed any of this without Bruce or Alfred finding out but that is damn impressive. We know they didn’t know because we see Alfred’s reaction shot to seeing him on TV. If we don’t see him interact with a few of the other Gotham vigilantes, (or at least see a reaction shot of them all like, “What!? Jason?! The guy we had to physically blackmail to attend galas is running a casino with parties every night? That Jason?!) at some point I’m going to be pretty disappointed, to be honest.
Also, as we already knew from the solicitations and previews, Jason is taking over the Iceburg lounge and looking fancy while he does it. I love it. Jason can put on an act with the best of the batboys. Look at this well dressed man! And his hair! He has hair again, praise the Lord, hallelujah!
Completely unrelated note, that reporter has some really fancy cuff earrings or something and I’m jealous.
I’m validated for noticing Suzie Su was behind Jason in the previews. She and her sisters are part of his crew basically. It’s actually nice to see villains/characters return, too often they are just one-shot or one-note baddies but Suzie has been there since New 52 RHATO and she got a bit of humanization in the Annual when we meet her sisters. She’s not just some creepy fat lady that creeps on Jason, she’s a big sister who is trying to do her best for her family and I like that Jason acknowledges that and brings her and her family in on his scheme and even gets them out of the crime business sort-of by giving them mostly legit employment.
The way he has a bunch of ladies following him around kind of reminds me of Dick with the girls from St. Hadrian's a little bit. But they were all super into Dick and these girls don’t seem interested in Jason at all except as like a boss, which I like.
Jason, this is the kind of thing you should ask about! Ugggghh ~
Wingman looked older in the last page of the previous issue for some reason, maybe he’s died his hair or something. So we still don’t know what’s going on with him. I was hoping we’d get something, a hint but we’ve literally got nothing to go on here. I honestly think he has some kind of direct relation to Jason. Either he’s his dad’s mind in a different inmates body, or maybe a lost cousin or brother or something, or has something to do with the future like he came from there. It’s got to be one of those things, nothing else makes sense that I can think of.
LOOK AT MY BEAUTIFUL BOY! JUST LOOK AT HIM. LOOK AT THOSE EYELASHES AND BLUE EYES AND THAT SMILE.
Anyone would be charmed. I think Jason is too much of an introvert to like this kind of public job exactly, but I also think he’d be good at it. Dick might be better, because he’s just a natural extrovert, but Jason is still up there. He’s a good actor, and he really cares about people so he’d take care of those he’s in charge of. Jason would be a good boss.
“Started from the bottom now we’re here,” that’s a Drake lyric.
Could these guys be bigger dorks?
Notice that Jason didn’t kill the guys that were causing trouble, he had Miggs (his nickname for Miguel) roll them off to the docks in a ball made with his powers and those dorks were totally right, the room he made was pretty gucci. You got taste, Miguel.These weren’t necessarily real bad guys, they were just punks, and Jason might be killing again but he doesn’t just kill any idiot that gets in his way or causes trouble.
Also, technically they might have been right about Night cheating, we don’t actually know how ‘legit’ the Su sisters are playing things.
I’m sort of torn on the way the colorist is depicting Miguel’s powers, like I miss the glowiness a little bit from New 52 Teen Titans. These look a little too much like normal bricks? But technically that might be better for Miguel, they can pass as normal bricks instead of a power when they have to. They looked clear or white before when the guys walked in there so maybe he can control their color/transparency and glowiness? I still would like to see them look glowy though.
A few things about Miguel: I think these panels illustrated pretty well what their dynamic is supposed to be. I know Jason called Bizarro his ‘friend’ but let’s be honest here, Bizarro isn’t Jason’s friend--he’s his little brother.
Jason compares Miguel to Bizarro and I think that’s key, he sees Miguel as like a little brother that he wants to help. He’s got powers that he doesn’t understand and people keep coming after him for them. I think with Miguel and Tim it was closer to a friendship of equals at least as far as Miguel saw. He admired and respected Tim as a leader and how he always seemed to know what to do, but in the end Miguel was older than Tim, he didn’t feel like he could completely lean on him. It looks like Miguel may have latched on to Jason in that way, since he has the bat-authority too and actually is older than him and a genuinely caring guy. And look at my boy Jason! He comforts and accepts him immediately, it’s so sweat.
Goddamn it, Jason is a good older brother! He’s the best freaking older brother, damn Bruce and the whole family’s bat-morals, man! You’re all missing this! He could have this with Tim and Damian and Duke and even Steph and Cass! He would love that! He would be so good at that! It’s a goddamn tragedy, is what it is.
Also it’s interesting how Miguel acknowledges the reboots, so are his powers related to reality-warping or something so he can sense it? Or it could just be more of this suggestion that a lot of people in the DC universe right now have memories from the previous continuity, so like it all kind of happened even if it technically didn’t type of thing. I kind of thought Miguel’s powers were energy projections made with his mind, like psionically, but maybe they are literally creating matter or something? I don’t know. I really need to read more New 52 Teen Titans to understand him and his powers.
And that line, “A loaded weapon in the hands of a confused teenager. What could go wrong?”
Wow, Jason, you really went there. Referenced you’re own crazy head-state when you went after Bruce in Under the Hood.
Jason is so self-deprecating, you guys.
“When Alexander saw the breadth of his domain, he wept for there were no more worlds to conquer. “ This is apparently a quote from Die Hard, because of course it is. Jason is literally Jake Peralta from Brooklyn 99 confirmed.
Ugh, Lobdell’s version of Bruce is just such an asshole!
First of all, Jason hasn’t ‘betrayed him’ not even once, he was emotionally compromised and broke their agreement because he was acting on those feelings. He made a mistake. And Bruce cared more about his rules than Jason’s intentions or feelings or any of the good will they’d fostered in the last year or two. He acts like Jason sold him out or lied to him, when he never did any of those things.
Also, I don’t think saying, “stay out of Gotham and never come back or I’ll throw down and toss you in Arkham” is another chance, okay? It’s not like Jason got anything out of that deal, it was just Bruce not wanting to go through the trouble of hunting him down outside of Gotham because he straight-up knew that he wouldn’t be able to!
That Pretty Woman reference...
The funny thing is, Jason is more like the character who says that line than Bruce is. Bruce, kicking Jason out of the bat-family, is the one who is making the mistake. He could have had an ally, had say in what Jason did, had some limited control over him if he’d just forgiven him or talked to him at all, but because of his pride now he has none of that.
Now this, this is my shit right here. JASON HAS BRUCE BY THE BALLS. By going public with his identity he’s effectively made himself untouchable by Bruce. He’s got the identity of every Gotham vigilante in his hands, and honestly I really doubt Jason would ever give them up, even out of spite or hatred, he never did before when he could have, (he didn’t tell Hush Bruce’s identity, he just didn’t deny it when Hush figured it out, and we’re not sure if that’s even canon anymore anyway.) but it’s partly Bruce’s own doubt in Jason that is keeping his hands tied! That and the fact that if even one of his kids is outted as a vigilante it really puts the suspicion on him.
But seriously guys. Smart Jason is what Iive for.
God, Jason calling him dad, but only because he’s ‘playing up the act’ of civilian Jason Todd, has got to hurt Bruce. Assuming Lobdell’s version of Bruce has any actual feelings of affection for Jason, otherwise it probably just grates.
Lol, okay, so the situation seems to be that Jason dropped in to the Iceburg lounge to pay Penguin a visit. Cobblepot went, “Oh no! That damned Red Hood is here, hide me!” Ran into his panic room and locked it and Jason was just like, “Well, isn’t this convenient,” and made it so he couldn’t get back out.
And then presumably gangster-rules applied and Jason just got all his businesses because he said they were his and no one wanted to argue? I guess? Lobdell doesn’t give satisfying explanations, you guys. This is a testament to that.
I’m not going to lie though, this is pretty satisfying.
Alright, so I’m really excited for more you guys. This is not a perfect issue, a lot of things are hand waved, Bruce is acting even more out of character than usual, and we still have no dang clue what’s going on with Wingman, but there are definitely things here I like, and i’m looking forward to more.
#Jason Todd#Red hood#Miguel barragan#Bunker#Wingman#Suzie Su#Su Sisters#Oswald Cobblepot#The Penguin#Bruce Wayne#Batfam#RHATO#Outlaws rebirth#Red Hood And The Outlaws#Issue#32#Spoilers#but not the actual spoiler#meta#reviews
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For that matter, I also kinda wish we saw more of like....characters during the time period Dick was believed dead, looking at Bruce’s behavior and feeling it was just plain WEIRD given how it differed from his behavior after Jason and Damian’s deaths. Did nobody really go....hey, something is fucked up here, that Bruce hardly seems phased that Dick’s dead, when he completely lost his shit the two previous times his sons died?
Tbh, most of my issues with the reactions of various characters to Dick’s return, like....a lot of it has to do with how they made themselves out to be the victims of HIS callous lies or whatever, with zero regard to what he’d suffered and what all of that had cost him, yes, true.
But beyond that, a large gripe of mine is how none of their reactions led to any kind of....awareness about their own past histories with Dick and the double standards they held within their own personal dynamics with him.
The way Jason punched Dick and gave him shit for letting him believe he was dead, that Jason mourned him, grieved for him, that you just don’t do that to your brother, to another Robin....but nowhere in canon or fanon did this ever lead to Jason reflecting on his and Dick’s history together and from this and his experiences here, like....revising his impression of the time HE was believed dead and what Dick must have felt and gone through....when for several years, Jason was off training with the League while Dick still believed him dead, still mourned him, grieved for him, even though Jason could have at any point revealed to him that he was alive.
The way Tim judged Dick for doing what they all would have expected Bruce to do, but never Dick to do.....but nowhere in canon or fanon did this ever lead to Tim reflecting on their past conflicts and examining past expectations he’d held that had led to problems between them. Like the fact that Tim historically has a hard time accepting any loved ones’ deaths, especially in light of how often heroes come back from the dead, and all of that was a huge part of what he cited as his problem with Dick not believing him about Bruce being alive....and yet none of that behavior was on display in Tim’s own reaction to being told Dick was dead.
There was no sign of Tim ever having doubts about Dick being dead, searching for alternative explanations, when the one he and the others were given had to be extremely flimsy at best, just to begin with. That there was no hint of Tim ever having considered going to extreme lengths to bring Dick back, like when he’d tried to clone Kon, or contemplated using the Lazarus Pit to revive his parents, or tirelessly searched around the globe for proof that Bruce was alive even when all he really had at first was a hunch and was looking for anything he could hold up as evidence he was right, when pretty much no one believed him.
The way Barbara said Dick Grayson managed to disappoint her yet again.....but nowhere in canon or fanon did this ever lead to Barbara asking herself or explaining to anyone else just what the hell has Dick ever done to her that counts as such a massive disappointment that her first reaction to seeing one of her oldest friends alive and back from the dead is disappointment, rather than celebration? And that similarly, nowhere in canon or fanon did this ever get examined in reverse, to ask if Barbara has ever been the one disappointing Dick instead - did he maybe hope for her to take his side when Bruce fired him, instead of Barbara continuing to work alongside Batman and offer no actual objection to Bruce giving away a name and title she knew didn’t belong to him, to give out to someone else?
In fanon mergings of timelines, did he maybe resent her for sending him away when Firefly burned down his circus, or other times he tried turning to her but got rebuffed? Again, nothing about Barbara’s reaction, just like Jason and Tim’s, ever led to an honest examination of their dynamic or deepening of it by acknowledging that things are a two way street - instead it was just accepted, noted and moved past, all at face value: Dick’s return after being believed dead was obviously just evidence of him having disappointed her yet again - without even mention of what those previous disappointments on this level were supposed to have been.
Like, I’m just saying....post-Spyral is hardly the only time I think the characters have been too quick to view their dynamics with Dick as a one way street, and them somehow always the ones who are being subjected to his actions, and never the other way around.....but it is one of the most evident examples of it, IMO, and how rarely its picked up on...let alone capitalized on as an opportunity to explore the reverse for a change.
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Falsettos UK time
So I just went to see the UK production of Falsettos last night and kind of wanted to word vomit all my thoughts and key parts of it onto a post so that I can preserve the amazingness in my mind for as long as possible.
Basically, I’ve been obsessed with this show for a while now and it lived up to every expectation possible. The cast were incredible, the singing was outstanding and my mum sobbed solidly through the second act.
FYI - we had the male cover Matthew McKenna as Whizzer (I was a bit worried at first but he was incredible)
This is v v long so read at own risk ig. Also, spoilers!
Four Jews was portraying Jason’s birth (like, the ‘slavery’ was Trina going into labour). It worked really well actually, especially for people who had no idea what the show was about (ie 90% of the audience lmao)
It was also Trina in it more than Jason, but there was this hilarious bit when they did the ‘I’m Mendel!’ etc. section and Trina went ‘I’m-‘ and got cut off
Also Whizzer piggybacked Jason, my heart
Tight Knit Family - as you’d expect I guess, Daniel’s voice was 👌
Also Marvin did ‘friend’ in airquotes and Whizzer did this mega eye roll lmao
Love is Blind - I guess there wasn’t much else different, just that they all stood in the photo frames when Trina sung about them which was a v nice touch ¯\_(ツ)_/
Thrill of First Love - Whizzer was,, a lot more argumentative than I expected I guess? Like, almost a bit aggressive? But overall it was great, they were so snarky and less sexual than the revival (which my asexual ass didn’t mind) apart from one reaaaach. They also had v good chemistry to say it wasn’t Oliver performing.
Marvin At The Psychiatrist - the staging was pretty similar to revival. Whizzer was watching from the top and he made all these offended faces when Marvin and Mendel were talking about him (when they said he was ‘smarmy’ he did this Offended Gay expression it was great). Then Trina started unbuttoning her shirt in Pt. 2 and Mendel got really flustered, it was wild. Everyone was dying from laughter.
Also, ‘it’s queer Mr Marvin… sorry, it’s strange Mr Marvin’ deserves its own shoutout
My Father’s A Homo/Everyone Tells Jason to See A Psychiatrist - Elliot is a star, what more can I say. His voice is soo good as well. When Whizzer arrived Trina and him did this 😒 face at each other.
I’m Breaking Down - I thought no-one could come close to Stephanie’s iconic performance in the revival, but Laura rocked it. She was setting the table for Mendel coming, and it had this mega chaotic energy where she threw the bananas around and screamed ‘shIT’ when they fell onto the floor. For the ‘fulfill his needs’ bit she really aggressively ripped the top of the banana off and peeled it lmao. Also, she was drinking from the wine bottle for one of the choruses and humming, it was amazing.
Jason’s Therapy - Jason was definitely the most mature one in this scene haha. After Mendel did his first dance sequence, Jason just put a hand on his shoulder to stop him and sighed before he said the ‘is this therapy?’ bit.
Marvin and Trina sat drinking at the side of the stage the whole time lmao. When it was the second ‘is this therapy?’ line, they both held up their glasses for the ‘yES!’. Also, for the final bit Marvin, Trina and Whizzer all came on singing into glasses and slapping their legs with plates lmao.
Marriage proposal - I saw a few people saying that this was a bit ~creepy~ rather than cute, and I guess I see what they mean? But they didn’t do the weird vampire wrist grab like the revival, so I guess that’s a plus. Trina was very confused the whole time, bless her, and for the ‘start to cry’ she was like ‘I’m not??’ and then Mendel starting blubbering. Plus, Jason sang the ‘biblical times?’ first one rather than Trina, and Marvin did this Super Sassy ‘bIbLiCaL tImEs’ that was hilarious.
Trina’s Song/March of the Falsettos - This was staged as a nightmare sequence, which brought some sense to the madness of MoTF. Like, when she woke up she continued with the song, it worked really well. I also really liked that they reenacted the wedding scene from 4 Jews as part of it, it really showed Trina’s fear that something bad would happen again.
The Chess Game - Wow, this was... intense. Whizzer was super snarky, so Marvin got mad at him pretty quickly. It was so funny though, especially when it was Whizzer saying the ‘move a pawn’ bit and he sat in his chair like Marvin and acted all stern. Marvin was drinking solidly, so when Whizzer ‘won’ and knocked over a ton of pieces he lobbed the board off stage and hit a few things. Whizzer backed off pretty quick looking scared and Marvin was apologetic until the ‘Whizzer’s supposed to make the dinner’ bit, when he got Whizzer’s suitcase and packed it for him on stage before throwing it at him.
Also, the ‘this had better come to a stop’ was targeted at the liquor bottle.
Making a home – Mendel came on with only a house plant and it got kicked out of the house anyway lmao I relate. The dog bit Jason’s chessboard rip.
The Games I Play – this was performed so well my mum almost cried. It was much softer than any other version I’ve heard and more… spoken? But the notes at the end were belted and spot on, but he still had the slight tremor like he was tearing up. Your heart really went out for Whizzer, especially as the Motel projected on the screens on his side were mirrored by the homely ones on the other.
Marvin Hits Trina – Marvin didn’t tear up the invitation but he did hit a lot of stuff. Mendel also seemed a lot less angry at him when Marvin first came in then the revival – I guess Marvin was somewhat drunk in this. He also looked MAD at Whizzer whenever he sang his bits, apart from when Whizzer chokes up a bit when he says he doesn’t love him, and you see Marvin falter a bit then before he shouts at everyone. The lights went red when he hit Trina, which really added to the effect (although they were a bit late whoops)
I Never Wanted to Love You – Jason was crying and hugging Trina after Marvin hit her, and Mendel came and surrounded them in this big ~protective dad~ way. Marvin looked genuinely sorry as well, which was nice I guess.
Father to Son – The staging of this was really simple – they were just sat on the floor centre stage face-to-face. But it was so heartfelt, and Marvin looked like he was going to cry for most of it. And at first, Jason was a bit hesitant to hug him after what happened before, but you could see how relieved Marvin was when he did.
Falsettoland – Mendel pointed at the audience for the ‘homosexuals’ and ‘mother with children’ lmao. The tiny band was the wedding ring too. Whizzer was introduced back on with ‘homosexual’ and he did this offended ‘really’ gesture it was great. No Nancy Reagan punchbag unfortunately, but the lesbians came on holding signs saying Love Is Love <3. Marvin and Trina seemed a lot more friendly in this too, which was a nice touch!
Year of the Child – Mendel was Too Scared to really disrupt the arguments haha. Trina was fierce, Marvin suggested the caterers really sheepishly and she basically bit his head off it was hilarious. And when the lesbians arrived with the food, she literally said off-mic ‘you’ve got to be kidding me’ to Marvin. At the end, Jason ran off because they were all too ~excited~ and the last part of the song was spent looking for him lmao.
Miracle of Judaism – ‘Jo… what’s the name of that bitch?’ im dead
Baseball Game – Jason had a pretty good swing before Whizzer even arrived to be honest. The lesbians fully got up and yelled at the umpire it was great. Mendel got up to sing his bit, and Marvin and Trina just sort of led him to sit back down and apologised offstage. Whizzer kept teasing Marvin back about the hairline comments, and Marvin just mournfully rubbed his head like ‘I know.’ It was hilarious.
A Day in Falsettoland – Charlotte and Cordelia were the patients and they were both amazing. Mendel wasn’t even sorry about the name. Charlotte literally spat the food back onto Cordelia’s plate, she didn’t even hide it lmao.
‘Maybe in a mile I’ll be okay.’ ‘a mILE?’ Same Mendel. Also, Trina runs with weights?
Raquetball worked really well to say there was such little space on stage. It was nice to see the softer side to Marvin and Whizzer’s relationship, the occasional kisses throughout the game.
Everyone Hates His Parents – it was pretty similar to the revival, except Mendel and Jason both did a mega cartwheel?! I was shocked, it was perfect. Also, Trina cried ‘you’re killing me!’ to Jason after he said he didn’t want the bar mitzvah, which made the ‘kill you mother’ verse a bit more understandable lmao. Also, Trina kept giving Marvin these ‘seriously?’ looks during that whole song.
What More Can I Say - this was so sweet, so Domestic. Marvin was like this happy puppy. Whizzer basically fell asleep reading, and Marvin was taking his glasses off and putting the book aside, it was v sweet
Something Bad is Happening - lovely singing from the lesbians, extra runs! They were So Good together.
When Whizzer collapsed (it was a proper keel over too), Marvin lifted his head and shoulders into lap and sang it straight to him. It was v sweet and sad, Whizzer was crying and apologising to him :’(
Holding to the Ground - this is such a beautiful song, and Laura sounded incredible. They were setting up the set behind her, but there were sirens and a heart monitor came on when they helped Whizzer into the hospital bed.
Days like this - Marvin brought this awful cheesy card, and Whizzer just held it up to the audience like ‘what’. But he kept reading the on Trina and Mendel brought and showing it to Marvin.
The Whizzer/Trina solidarity was v sweet, he kissed her cheek and things when they arrived.
Cancelling the Bar Mitzvah - Jason started properly crying into Trina who cried as well. It was so raw and emotional, you really felt their fear for what is happening.
My only qualm was that they cut part out?? It’s one of my favourite lines, when Mendel sings the ‘becoming a man’ bit :s
Four Unlikely Lovers - now this was heartbreaking. Marvin went and cried at the end of the hospital bed at the beginning, and he sobbed at Whizzer’s ‘our bed’. They were really sweet though, always kissing foreheads or holding hands and things - I don’t think they let go all song. Cordelia and Charlotte also came in holding hands <3
Side note! Whizzer seemed in a lot more pain in this!! Which made me really sad
Something Bad (reprise) - Jason was watching Charlotte sing it instead of Marvin, I guess it was almost like her preparing him for what was going to happen to his Dad too?!
You Gotta Die Sometime - this was sooo well sung, it was pretty soft and then he started breaking down at end instead of belting the note :’’( Until Jason came in and he was like ‘um where’s your parents??’
Jason’s Bar Mitzvah - it had such a nice tight-knit ( ;) ) feeling to it which was really bittersweet. Mendel came in hiding balloons v unsuccessfully behind his back. The took the photo again, which was great (although not bitter they didn’t use the camera effect in that for the line in Everyone Tells Jason to See A Psychiatrist or anything). When Jason sung the prayer, he waved away the book and stood on table v proud. Then Jason sort of beckoned Whizzer over, which made him collapse onto the floor and Jason was taken off screaming for him. It was heartbreaking.
What Would I Do - the one that finally broke me. It was so so sad, Whizzer was still alive collapsed in bed so they sung it to each other and held held hands until he flatlined at end. On stage. My God.
At the end, the rest of the family all crowded around the bed and surrounded Marvin (who was properly sobbing). Mendel blew the candle that had been lit for the Bar Mitzvah out, and the photo they took came up on screen.
So, conclusion, see this show NOW before it ends its ridiculously short run. Honestly. You won’t regret a penny.
#will probably delete later#please excuse the cringy writing of this and the probable bad grammar#it's very late and i'm very very tires#*tired#*sigh*#falsettos#falsettos uk#west end#musical#musicals
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Change
A/N: i meant to post this earlier but i got caught up in Life (being sick, turning 20, visiting family while I’m home from uni). I heard Change by the Revivalists and this was born! It didn’t turn out exactly how I thought and I’m not much for writing action scenes, so bear with me. Here’s some fluffy Jason x Reader in which you work at a bakery and Jason is immediately head over heels ft Tim, Dick, and even Megan. Part 2 is here!
I’m a stranger to your smile, but I have seen some stranger things
“They have the BEST muffins, Jay.”
“Yeah, yeah, I’m sure they do.”
“Tim doesn’t joke around about high quality muffins, Jason.”
“If these muffins aren’t the best muffins I’ve ever had, I will end you. I don’t joke around about missing out on some beauty sleep.”
“Drama queen.” Tim grins and shoves Jason playfully.
Jason can’t fight the smile that pulls at the corner of his mouth. Sometimes, these little moments startle him. He had almost forgotten the way simple, unpolluted happiness could blossom in his chest, leaving him warm and grinning.
However, Jason decides that he can and will fight Tim if the pastry doesn’t prove worthwhile.
Apparently, while he had been stuck between death, revival, slight self-destruction and many forms of manipulation, a quaint bakery had popped up downtown and his brothers sought much solace in its pastries and warm beverages.
“Here we are!” Tim chirps, wrenching open the door and ushering his brothers inside.
Jason is borderline amused by the warm paint colors and cozy booths. An acoustic love song floats from the speakers like lazy clouds in a summer breeze. Paired with the scent of baked bread and soft lighting, the bakery reminds him vaguely of almost every romantic comedy he’s ever seen – and he’s seen a lot, but he doesn’t think anyone could make him admit that aloud. He can’t say he dislikes the wholesome energy, though. It’s a breath of fresh air.
“Oh, Tim! And Dick! Hi!” A girl with auburn hair and a nametag reading ‘Megan’ greets the boys with almost startling enthusiasm, but she radiates a sort of kindness Jason doesn’t see often so he offers her a half-smile and an almost shy nod of acknowledgement.
She beams. “You must be Jason! The boys kept telling me they were gonna bring you by. I was beginning to wonder if you even existed.”
He almost titters and bitterly tells her that he really was nonexistent for a bit, but Tim barks out a laugh and waves his hand flippantly before Jason can divulge a dark chapter of his life to a stranger.
“Jason is a total busy bee, so it was a real struggle. But we got him here!”
Dick throws an arm over Jason’s shoulder and Jason has half a mind to categorize the gesture as comforting before an alarm blares angrily from the doors behind the front counter.
“UH. MEGAN?”
Megan jumps into action. “Excuse me for a moment.”
There are several long moments of commotion, filled with clattering pans, some incoherent yelling, a few colorful profanities, and the scent of burnt dough that spreads through the bakery like molasses.
Dick arches his eyebrows at the door and Tim blinks up at the ceiling expectantly, waiting for the sprinklers to go off. Jason sighs quietly and moves closer to the counter to study the array of pastries because he is no stranger to chaos.
The beeping eventually ceases, followed by Megan’s gentle voice and the door swinging open.
You are absolutely mortified because you really just burnt a loaf of bread, but there are customers to be served, so you must save agonizing over the mishap until after work.
“Um, hi, Tim and company. What can I get for you?”
“Is…everything okay back there? Not a total disaster?” Dick inquires.
From the back room, Megan yells, “ALL ASTER, NO DIS. DON’T WORRY, GRAYSON.”
“I’ve worked here for a few weeks but I’m not always the best at the…baking part…of working in a bakery.” You admit sheepishly.
“No worries, Y/N. Everyone burns bread sometimes.”
You can’t help but laugh at this. The sound is so musical and light, Jason almost gets whiplash from turning to look at you too quickly.
Your hair is mussed, in a surprisingly classy way, and there’s a terribly endearing smudge of flour across your left cheek. Your cheeks are flushed from the slight humiliation and you blush impossibly more when you catch Jason studying you.
You glance away quickly from the weight of curiosity and a kaleidoscope of blue, taking a deep breath. “Thanks, Tim. I can take your order without almost burning the place down. I promise!”
Tim cheerily orders three chocolate chip muffins and a latte. When Dick orders a hot chocolate with skim milk, Tim scoffs.
“And what about you?” You ask Jason, gentle and flustered and somehow a little dangerous.
A shy smile blossoms across your face, reaching your eyes and utterly unraveling Jason’s ability to be rational and coherent. To say he’s caught off guard would be a complete understatement.
He’s absolutely blindsided.
He’s only just met you and (even though you make him feel kind of like dying) the soft curve of your mouth and tender compassion reflected in your eyes make him feel like he’s being brought back to life. Again.
All Jason can think is that, in some impossible way, you are someone he’s never met and someone he’s always known. He’s lived and died and lived again, but the way you make him feel with that smile is like seeing a new color – a color that has always been his favorite.
He recovers quickly from the strange affection now echoing his heartbeat when Dick claps his back rather forcefully.
“I…um…maybe…a-a croissant?”
Upon witnessing the galaxy of emotions swirl in Jason’s gaze, you’d grown very still, entirely flustered and quite self-conscious. If you hadn’t nodded, Dick might have been a bit concerned about your well-being.
“Good choice. Do you, ah, want something to drink?”
Instead of saying bleach, he says, “Just water. Please?”
You nod again, maybe too emphatically. You hope nobody notices the way your hands shake faintly when you drop some change in Dick’s hand. “Perfect. I’ll bring that right out to you.”
The boys settle in a booth diagonal from the register and Jason can still feel his face flaming.
“So… Jay…”
“Drake. Not. A. Word.”
You and Megan bring their order over soon after and Jason keeps his gaze trained steadily on the opposite side of the booth, barely able to mutter ‘thanks’ without imploding.
When you and Megan return to the back, discussing how to decorate a batch of cupcakes, Dick nudges Jason’s foot, wiggling his eyebrows. “Whelmed?”
Jason huffs, letting his hair fall over his eyes a little and biting into what would be the best muffin he’s ever tasted. “Overly.”
—
Jason feels strangely, pleasantly overwhelmed every time you smile at him, but that doesn’t stop him from stopping at the bakery. It’s entirely possible that he shamefully employs Tim’s help to figure out what days you work because he’s too timid to simply ask you.
Jason isn’t lying when he tells Megan that the muffins keep him coming back because Tim wasn’t joking – they really are the best muffins.
But he’s definitely lying when he assures Tim that he’s not stopping by the bakery just because he wants to see you.
You’re not entirely sure why Jason returns time after time, but you find yourself growing quite fond of his quiet laughter, the way his shoulders shake and the corners of his eyes crinkle. He often glances at you through his lashes when you hand him change and that bashful blue gaze leaves you dumbfounded long after he leaves.
One day, almost two months after he tried that first fateful muffin, he walks in wearing a pair of sneakers with two different colored laces – chucks with bright red and deep purple laces. If he was a stranger on the street, you probably would shy away from complimenting the fashion choice, but it was Jason – a regular at the bakery, for Pete’s sake – so you can’t help but gush over the bold color choices. He turns positively pink and stammers a “thank you!”
Soon after, an objective, sensible voice in the back of your head tells you exactly why Jason Todd keeps coming back to the bakery and now, your heart leaps out of your chest every time he’s near.
—
Your suspicions are confirmed in an unconventional way.
After helping Megan close the bakery and repeatedly refusing her offers to walk you home because you have a short walk and a functional bottle of pepper spray.
Pepper spray doesn’t do much for Clay Face, you discover in an unfortunate turn of events.
After a small internal battle, you stop at the tiny corner convenience store to sate your craving for string cheese, gummy worms, and orange juice. The clerk, a teenage girl smacking bubble gum, shoots you a dubious look as she scans your items.
You blink at her, embarrassed. “I’m…treating myself.”
She blows a big, pink bubble and shrugs. You take that as a sign of encouragement.
The air is damp but warm, quiet with the promise of summer. You swing the plastic bag, almost cheerily, and avoid stepping in puddles.
The street becomes unconventionally muddy and you have half a mind to stop peeling the cheese and survey your surroundings. Your features barely knit into a frown before you find yourself suspended in the air.
Several stories off the ground.
Shrieking.
Your stomach has leapt into your throat as you thrash around, flailing your limbs and crying for help. You’re hanging above the street and between towering buildings, wrapped in cold mud and absolute terror.
“Too loud. You’ll wake everyone up.” He grumbles, shaking you like a broken toy.
This remark only intensifies your screaming. You’re not so horrified that you can’t feel a stab of annoyance when your plastic bag and loose change go flying, getting snagged in the shrubbery – shrubbery that appears very tiny from your perch in Clay Face’s grasp.
“What do you – AH! – want from me?” You yelp, quickly growing nauseated.
Clay Face seems to grin, twisted and earthy and dark. “Shark bait.”
He flips you upside down and dangles you by your ankles. If all the blood wasn’t rushing to your head before, it surely was now.
“Come out, come out, wherever you are!”
“Who am I supposed to be shark bait for? Nobody is – “ A sudden, intensely unpleasant mouthful of mud shuts you up.
You would really like for this to be a bad nightmare, but this seems unlikely considering how severely panic seizes your lungs and how awfully your head throbs. You can’t help but wonder if things would be different had you resisted the string cheese.
There’s a flash of red and another streak of blue, followed by a cackle ricocheting off the buildings.
“Just who I wanted to see. And you brought bird friends!”
For a heartbeat, Jason only sees red from the rooftop, wrought with ire and distress at the sight of you hanging limply from the grasp of a villain.
But the red clears when he sees you attempt to emasculate Clay Face with pepper spray and thrash in fury. Fighting is useless, but Jason appreciates the effort.
Dick’s voice crackles in Jason’s ear piece. “Red Hood, I’m gonna need you to focus on one thing.”
Jason squints. “What?” He bites out.
“Robin and I can handle Clay Face – I want you to get Y/N as soon as he’s distracted and take the poor kid to safety. No messing with Clay. Got it?” Dick uses his Big Brother Voice and Jason rolls his eyes.
“Got it, Nightwing.” He nearly scoffs. It’s a struggle because he wants to stick the villain in an oven and watch him dry up into dust, but he knows he must keep himself in check because you and your safety were at stake.
Jason is forced to wait, perched tensely on the rooftop, while Nightwing talks up Clay Face and Robin strategically destabilizes him. He’s on edge – literally and figuratively – and can’t recall the last time he felt like he could lose so much.
He doesn’t have to wait eons to jump into action. When Clay Face tosses your body away to better battle Nightwing, Jason launches himself off of the rooftop with the lithe agility of a cat and has you safely tucked in his arms before you hit the pavement.
Jason breaks the fall and the two of you roll a bit before he recovers and tugs you into an alley, away from the fight and distant sirens.
He asks you in a gasping, frantic voice if you’re okay, gently grasping your shoulders. Even though he holds you securely, you shake like a leaf.
You’re bruised and muddy and beyond overwhelmed, so you only respond by promptly bursting into tears in front of your masked savior with all the force of a broken dam. It takes several long moments for your sobs to form anything remotely coherent and the sight of you so distraught nearly makes Jason lightheaded.
“I just – hiccup – wanted a-a cheese stick-k!” You wail, burying your dirty face in your dirty hands, shoulders shaking. You sniffle noisily. “And I – hiccup – d-definitely didn’t want to spend m-my Thursday night like this! M-making a fool of myself in front of – hiccup – Gotham’s coolest vigilante!”
Jason files that remark away. He’ll have to remember to feel flattered another time.
He tenderly pries your hands away from your face and his fingers are surprisingly warm when they wipe tears and dirt from your cheeks. “Hey, now, relax…breathe with me, alright?”
Tears clinging to your lashes, you nod slowly and follow his breathing. He feels like he stuck a metaphorical pacifier in your mouth and hates that talking to you is so much easier when he can hide behind a mask.
Your eyes flutter shut. Your chin drops to your chest. You block out the crashes and the sirens and even the cold air – chivalrous Red Hood drapes his jacket over your shoulders – to concentrate only on his voice. When you’re less shaky and no longer hyperventilating, you open your eyes again.
The first thing your vision focuses on? A pair of sneakers with mismatched red and purple laces.
Your voice is a little hoarse, but you manage, “I like your shoes, Red Hood.”
Jason is silent for one, two, three seconds before: “Oh, fuck.”
#he walks you home and buys you more string cheese#maybe this warrants a part 2???#jason todd#red hood#jason todd imagine#jason todd x reader#red hood imagine#red hood x reader#dc#dick grayson#tim drake#nightwing#robin#red robin#batman#fluff#change#young justice#young justice imagine#dc imagine#miss martian
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