This Better Be A Sick Rumor…

Love without Sex

I’m doing a Philosophy paper on Asexuality. Please reblog if you think Love without Sex is possible! I really need the data. Like if you think love has to have sex.

This just made my brain go brrr brrr with serotonin

v.2

Issues with Reader Fics

Okay, I’m probably going to be a bit controversial here. Yet, I’m asking you to hear us out, please. Fanfic writers, specifically those who write “x Reader” fics, please read this. My dear friend Jack has already made a post, where I and others have contributed our experiences and feelings towards certain issues with these fics. Those issues still prevail and therefore I’ve decided to make my own post, which is more of a PSA, I think. Anyway. You can and should read Jack’s (@mlmxreader) post here, please. It is long, yes, but it is extremely important and will say a lot of things we will not talk about here again. Now, what this is mostly about is the tagging of those fics. Every single time, we (men and non-binary people) come across Reader fics and they’re tagged with just “Reader”, so, naturally we assume they’ll be gender neutral then. Well, they basically never fucking are. Every time, in the first few sentences or in later paragraphs something like “baby girl, girlfriend, wife, she/her” will come up and it is frustrating, can be triggering (for trans people, like myself, especially because it can cause dysphoria), and is honestly just very excluding and rude. By doing that, you show us that you do not consider anyone but women to read those fics. Even though that isn’t the case. Men who like men exist and we read fics. And we want to be able to read some that don’t make us feel bad or excluded. We’re not asking you to suddenly write Male!Reader fics. We’re asking you to tag properly. If your reader is female, tag it as “Female!Reader” or “Fem!Reader”. It doesn’t take more than two seconds to do that. So, please for the love of everything good, take those two seconds and type in that one word, even the abbreviation is enough. But tag it! Please! Also, please, stop tagging “male reader” or “gender neutral reader” when it’s a female reader. You won’t get more notes from it. All it does is clog the tags and push down fics that are actually targeted towards those groups. So, don’t do that, please, thank you. One thing I personally wanted to ask actually. Why do women read “Male!Reader” fics? This is a genuine question. Why do you, if you’re a woman, read those fics? They aren’t targeted at you, and frankly, I don’t understand it. If I were cis and not dysphoric, I still wouldn’t read “Fem!Reader” fics. They aren’t for me, and I wouldn’t be interested in it, even if those were the only fics for a certain character. So, if anyone could answer me this, genuinely, then I’d actually appreciate that a lot, I’m truly just curious, as I have noticed women reading my “Male!Reader” fics, too. Which is cool, as we’ve said, you may interact, as long as you’re not creepy or fetishistic, but I still don’t understand why you would read that in the first place. Now, onto what my two wonderful friends have said, when I asked them if they had anything to add to this issue, or perhaps overall, still: @iscariot-rising said, “It’s just disrespectful for writers and readers alike to assume that everyone reading their fanfics is inherently female, to the point where for some it has become the standard that any fic has female reader - leading to writers not tagging their fics as female readers or mentioning in their descriptions that reader is female, instead only titeling it as “character x reader”, before then three sentences in referring to reader as some sort of female term. This isn’t just rude, it can also be triggering for people or make them dysphoric, if not just plain uncomfortable. Fandom spaces are something that is shared across all genders and sexualities and it is only courteous to respect this and tag your fics accordingly, since it doesn’t take a long time and saves a lot of trouble for readers.“ And you know what? He is absolutely right and he should say it. You need to listen to us, please. @mlmxreader said a lot, too. For example, he’s mentioned that there is a reluctance to even write Gender Neutral Reader fics, which is true. Even though it would be much easier, to be perfectly honest. Yet, people seem not to do it. Do y'all not want people of different genders to enjoy your fics without feeling excluded? He also said, “oh! yeah! there’s also the whole thing about lingerie, too, like putting men in women’s lingerie and talkin about panties and stuff, which comes off as extremely fetishising (when it’s not written by mlm) as well as just… really gross bc like that stuff can trigger dysphoria and half the time it’s not even tagged? Like it wouldn’t be so bad if y'all tagged it; on top of that, there’s also the whole fact that they assume that all mlm relationships revolve around sex and that that’s all that matters. But then also using (m/n) standing for “male name” instead of (y/n), like, what the FUCK is up with that?? /gen” Again, he is absolutely right. Tag your shit, please. I know it can be tiring to pick out everything relevant, but trust me; you’ll do a lot of people a big fucking favour when you tag your stuff properly. And frankly, I agree with him. I don’t understand the whole ’(m/n)’ thing because if we’re men, our names are automatically male because, well, we’re male. It doesn’t really make sense. That might just be a thing that personally bugs us, though, I honestly don’t know. TLDR; Tag your fics properly, be respectful, don’t assume everyone is female and therefore exclude everyone who isn’t, just say (y/n)???, and yeah, that’s basically it. Just be more considerate, please! That was it. I don’t mean to personally attack anybody, but if you do feel attacked, that probably means that you’re guilty of doing something I’ve listed here, and perhaps should consider changing that. I also wanna note that if you consider sending me threats or hate of any kind, I will delete it and not engage with it. If your first response to this post is something rude and hateful, you should take a step back and reconsider why you’re about to do something so senseless. Does it help you in any way? No, it doesn’t. So, what’s the point, other than acting like a complete dick? Anyway, have a lovely morning/day/night; cheers!

Brian Michael Smith on being the first black trans man listed in People’s “Sexiest Men Alive” list in 2021 (x).

They were definitely cousins

Its finally in my hands i cried and screamed because i was so happy

This honestly is such a good series everything flows so well together and it just perfectly dives into what was needed from the prequel with this one focusing on the relationship the three have while helping each other through the trauma they all experienced.

Would recommend reading 10/10

Cardinal Sins Chapter 5

𓅪 Living with your vigilante boyfriends for the past year has been amazing, well, almost. Butting heads, old wounds resurfacing and a deadly threat still looming overhead could threaten the sanctity of everything you've ever fought for. Will you finally overcome your tainted past and survive the trials and tribulations, or will your relationships and your faith crumble under the pressure?

Rated: M | TW: drowning | 5k Contains: pizza party, arguments, healing, searching for clues fem!Reader x Jason Todd x Roy Harper [masterlist] Previous in Series: Art of Rehabilitating Snowbirds

Chapter 5: Tidal Wave

A few days later, you finally convince Roy to invite Conner over.

Roy’s still been struggling since Cadmus, but each week it has been looking more and more up. However, you can’t help but wonder if he’s just putting on a front.

When you originally brought up the idea of Roy speaking to the Kryptonian, he’d scoffed. That all changed as soon as Lian had heard Auntie Stephanie would be coming as well. From there, it was as good as over for Roy. 

With Jason and Lian on your side, Roy eventually conceded, which is where you stand today. 

“Shit’s gonna be fucking awkward,” Roy mumbles as he reads over the text one more time before hitting send, confirming the meeting in an hour.

Yesterday Roy’d called Conner and invited him over for lunch. Stephanie must’ve already given Conner the rundown from your evening with her because he readily accepted.

Now, here the three of you are, bustling around with last minute arrangements in anticipation of your friend’s arrival.

It’s warm out, which Jason decides means it’s perfect for pizzas. The back deck contains a state-of-the-art pizza oven that you haven’t broken in yet, so it seems like the perfect day to christen it.

Roy’s helping Lian add her toppings when the elevator suddenly dings a few minutes later.

You’re the only one in the kitchen, so you hadn’t seen anyone call up to be let in. You’re less confused when the doors open to reveal Damian and Jon.

“Hey,” you smile, wiping the flour from your hands as you move to greet him. Damian greets you with a kiss on each cheek, with Jon coming up behind him to squeeze the three of you into an inhumanly tight hug. “Jon!” You wheeze until he releases both of you with an airy laugh.

“Are you expecting company?”

By now, Jason and Roy have taken notice of the unexpected visitors and move inside to greet them. Lian races up to Jon, giggling with glee when he immediately lifts her into a dizzying spin that leaves her absolutely ecstatic. 

“Uncle Jon!” she pinches his cheeks as he holds her in his arms. Meanwhile, Damian eyes her with awkwardness oozing from his every chalant movement. Lian doesn’t give him a chance to be awkward because she leaps from Jon’s arms to race toward Damian, “Uncle Dami!”

The little girl latches around his legs, nearly toppling him over upon impact. He pats awkwardly at her shoulder, bending down to give her a side hug in greeting, “Hello there.”

“We were in the neighborhood,” Jon supplies. “Damian and Bruce had a meeting down the street from here so I brought them coffees. As soon as it was done, I figured we’d just stop by and say ‘hi,’ sooo here we are!” he looks around awkwardly at the preparation you have going on. “If we’re intruding, we can totally-“

You wave off his concern easily. The more the merrier. 

“How’s Bruce been?” You ask. You haven’t seen him since the family dinner when you’d first moved in.

“Completely preoccupied with his latest fling. Some rich socialite named Samantha,” Damian doesn’t necessarily seem perturbed nor excited, you can’t exactly get a read on the new woman.

Typical Damian.

The call button rings out before you can answer. You excuse yourself, moving to answer it while Jon and Damian catch up with Jason and Roy.

It was a good call on the pizzas; you smile Jason’s way as if to say so. There’s plenty of extra dough for everyone to make their own and it’ll be easy enough to add on two chairs to the patio table. 

You catch yourself smiling wide.

It feels exciting to be able to hold events in your home. 

Your parents never had any guests over, so this was all new territory for you. It’s completely liberating and only proves how far you’ve come since meeting this rambunctious group.

“Fuck is baby bird doing here?” Steph asks once you let her and her boyfr-… well, her and Conner and Tim up. “Jon!” Stephanie makes a break for the lean man, giving him a tight hug that made his Kryptonian-strength one with you look weak.

The eight of you congregate on the patio as a mess of toppings gets passed around until everyone’s pizzas are in the oven.

As soon as everyone’s seated, Lian insists on pouring everyone lemonade, which means you have to follow behind her with a towel to clean up the spills. She misses Damian’s Jimmy Choo oxfords by a mere centimeter. 

You smile apologetically at him, but he waves you off easily and thanks Lian with a small smile.

Thankfully there’s no food fight this time, you’re in no mood to clean up after a Bat Family pizza battle, but it’s filled with boisterous laughter and wide smiles, nonetheless. 

After a while, Conner and Roy separate from the group. They excuse themselves from the table as they move to chat in the living room. Lian soon follows behind her dad, begging for him to turn on Young Justice for her. After years of watching the show, she still can’t get enough of it and you know you’ll rue the day she grows out of it.

“I’m sure by now we’ve all heard that Wayne Enterprise was broken into last night,” Damian says once everyone’s had their fill of pizza. “Father and I were in Bialya, but we switched flights to arrive back early this morning.”

This doesn’t seem like news to anyone. if anything, it appears to be more of a way for him to break the ice.

“We all know what the feather means, right?” Tim says. “I thought it was a mere legend, a stupid story Bruce told us to freak us out.”

“What was?” Connor questions. 

Stephanie snorts before ominously reciting, “‘Beware the court of owls that watches all the time, gazing from the shadows behind cement and lime. They see you at your heath. They see you in your bed. Take care, beware, or they will send a talon for your head.’” It’s quiet as she finishes, which she uses to fuck with you guys even more, “BOO!”

You hate that you jump but are, at the very least, glad that Jon jumps, too. Thankfully, he shares the heat with you as the table laughs at your plight. 

“Not funny, Brown,” Damian scolds her, seemingly deep in thought.

“You know it’s all just bullshit, right?” she rolls her blue eyes with a smirk. “You’re about 15 years too old to be believing in that, Dami.”

“The Court of Owls is very much real,” Damian looks down at his plate briefly as if reminiscing on something, leaving Stephanie’s chuckles to cease. “Father used to tell me that tale. I wrote it off, too, until I met Talon.” The joking atmosphere at the table quickly dissipates. “He’s the top Court soldier. He came to me when I was vulnerable, young and angry, way before I’d met either of you,” Damian motions toward you and Jon. “My grandfather had been murdered in front of my very eyes and suddenly everything I knew changed from that day forward. Father took me in, but he didn’t have a choice. He hated the way I thought, hated how I was trained to kill, hated how I felt no mercy. Now I realize that Father saw me as much of a project as Talon did. 

"Talon used my prior training to twist my relationship with Father. He corrupted my mind- manipulated it to make me think what was right was wrong. He molded me like clay until I was a primal shell of my former self without me ever realizing the shift. I was a senseless killer under the guise of morality,” he looks so disappointed in himself. Jon won’t allow it, though, as he scoops Damian’s tanned hand into his pale one with a comforting squeeze. “I forgot all my training with Father and Grandfather to follow this… this false idol. Father nearly sent me back to my mother but it was only fair considering I nearly gave away his secret identity to the Court.”

“Why are you telling us all of this?” Tim questions gently.

“Because,” Damian hisses as if it should be obvious. “I don’t want any of you to underestimate the Court, let alone question if they’re real,” his words seem pointedly directed toward Stephanie. “If they’re making moves as big as this, we can’t let our guards down. With all of Father’s extensive data on Gotham, he still has no known record of their base nor any inkling as to who runs it. If the emitter really is in their hands, they’re very much a threat.”

“I can’t help but think it has to do with Joker,” Jason adds solemnly. “He escapes and later that same night, there’s a hit from the Court of Owls? It can’t be a coincidence.”

You can’t help but wonder if Joker is somehow connected to this elusive Court. “If he is, that could explain the chokehold he had on Cadmus,” you say.

The table nods in agreement.

Just what are you dealing with here? This seems way out of your depth now and, looking around at the table, it seems like everyone’s in agreement.

“If he is involved, I won’t hesitate this time,” Jason says, immediately locking eyes with you.

You feel simmering rage stirring within you. What was the point of the apologies if he was just going to bring this same shit up a day later? And in front of your family, too!

Cunt.

Tim seems like he wants to speak but refrains. Even Stephanie seems at a loss for how to address Jason’s rageful resoluteness at the topic.

“Father will disown you,” Damian states what’s on everybody’s minds. 

“You sound like you agree with that decision,” Jason spits.

“It’s his code,” Damian meets Jason’s searing gaze with a practiced coolness. “Everyone knows what they sign up for when it comes to this family. It seems like she’s the only one who has any sense between the two of you,” Damian gestures between you and Jason.

“We did it Bat’s way last time,” he growls. “Now, look. He’s broken out, he’s back. Dangerous equipment has been stolen by a dangerous fable that has even Bruce scared and has possible ties to the clown psychopath. He keeps. coming. back,” Jason slams his fist on the table to emphasize each word. “There’s only one way this ever really ends.”

“Jason,” your brows furrow in concern.

“What? What can you tell me that you haven’t before, that they haven’t before,” Jason shakes his head angrily. “Besides, you don’t actually care whether that fucker lives or not, you just care about what Brucey thinks. Guess what? You’ll never earn his acceptance. None of us have and none of us ever truly will,” Jason gestures wildly at the members of the Bat Family, who hang their heads in response. “You’re blind, babe, if you can’t see it.”

You share a terse smile with the other inhabitants at the table before abruptly getting up.

“Excuse me.”

You don’t bother checking behind you, knowing Jason’s emerald heat is following your every movement as you sidle up to Roy on the couch. You delicately cuddle against him, replaying Jason’s cruel words on repeat while pretending like everything’s fine.

You finally focus in on their conversation somewhat when the patio door slides open and Damian leaves without a word, Jon following awkwardly behind his pissed-off boyfriend. Not even a minute later, Jason follows, storming past the couch to slam your bedroom door shut behind himself.

Roy looks at you questioningly, but you merely encourage him to keep chatting with Conner. 

“This is more important right now, baby.”

“Bat shit?” Conner snorts at his question, seeming to understand from his time spent with the family.

You just kiss Roy’s freckled cheek, shuffling against him until he concedes and puts his arm around you.

The sliding door sounds from behind you as Tim and Stephanie shut the patio door behind them and move to fill the remaining seats on the sectional.

Roy doesn’t seem to notice as he continues on with the topic at hand, “You’re the only other person I know who’s dealt with Cadmus’ cloning bullshit.”

“Definitely different sides of that experience, though,” Conner says. “It took a long time for Superman to get used to me and what I stood for. Well, who I stood for.”

“Lex,” Roy supplies.

“Yeah,” he sounds pained.

“Didn’t he,” Tim starts, then trails off when everyone’s eyes fall on him. “Wasn’t that the one who gave you your arm, Roy?”

“Yeah.”

A heavy silence settles across the room.

“More similar than we thought, then, I guess,” Conner finally pipes up after a few beats of silence.

You’re glad Stephanie mentioned the idea and even more so that Conner agreed. It seems like they’re connecting in a way that’s clearly beneficial to Roy’s continued path toward healing. For the first time since your argument with Jason, you allow yourself to exhale.

At the very least, this part of today was going right.

“You seemed so calm being back in that place,” Roy shakes his head like he can’t believe it. “All I felt was this miserable rage. It was like I was seconds away from an all-out rampage.”

“I hide it well,” Conner shrugs. “Obviously, our situations aren’t exactly the same, but even though I was under mind control for most of it, it doesn’t mean I don’t still get flashes of that place. I still have nightmares about situations I can’t even place and I still feel the feelings I felt throughout.”

Eventually, Jason reemerges from the room to sit beside you in a huff. His arms are crossed, but that only lasts so long before he moves his arm behind Roy’s shoulders, trapping you both against him. He runs an apologetic hand up and down your thigh, though he never actually apologizes.

Typical Jason.

As long as Roy remains somewhat oblivious and more focused on the conversation at hand, you’re content to let it slide. For now, that is.

Roy sighs, “The nightmares make it feel like it’s always happening.” Boy, do you know how that feels. You squeeze his thigh in reassurance, catching his soft eyes as you do. “It’s like no matter how many years pass, no matter how much therapy I go through, it never completely goes away. I feel weak sometimes, but I wish it would go away. I wish that all the progress and work I’ve put in every second of every fucking day could make it disappear completely, but I know it never will and I’ll always have to keep fucking working towards being okay with not being completely okay and, you know what? Part of me isn’t okay with that and I battle with that rage every day.”

“You should know by now that after that rage only comes sadness and emptiness, then.” 

Roy stills minutely before continuing on as if he hadn’t, “Yeah.”

“Your meetings are good, but if you keep it all inside from the people you care about, you’ll only ever make so much progress,” Stephanie pipes up. 

You feel Jason stiffen a bit, knowing Roy felt the same minuscule movement as well. 

Part of you wants to turn around and shove her words down into every crevice of his stubborn brain. It’s like no matter how many times you have the conversation about being open with each other, Jason can never seem to fully grasp the concept in a way that’s beneficial for you or Roy. 

None of you have ever been used to depending on anyone, but that doesn’t mean it still has to be that way. 

“Honestly, what helped me most was having a support system who helped me work through my emotions,” Conner awkwardly rubs at the back of his neck. It’s obvious that he’s not used to talking about his feelings and is only cemented by his next statement. “I’m not very good with emotions even still, but I have people who understand this and still help me work through everything,” Conner looks from Roy to you, then to Jason. “It seems like you’ve got a pretty good support system, too.”

“I do,” Roy says gratefully.

“Lean on them, even us,” Conner says, shooting him a meaningful look. “I promise it’ll get easier.”

•••

Later that week, they finally decide to test the credibility of your visions. 

At a loss for leads, you’d told them about your latest vision of tunnels. Once Roy had confirmed there’d been seismic activity in the area, they decided to test your vision one step further.

So, here the three of you are, suited up in the wee hours of the night to investigate your plagued thoughts. They follow you into the tunnels Tim had pointed out the night he’d played designated driver. 

Your mask and Jason’s offer night vision. Meanwhile, Roy’s tinkered together glasses that offer him not only night vision but a thermal cam and so much more. You’re waiting to get your own mask upgraded by him, but, for right now, night vision alone will do. As soon as you land in the muck, you activate it, looking around the four tunnels surrounding you as Arsenal and Red Hood join you in the murky stream beneath your feet.

“Which way?”

They both look at you like you can somehow psychically summon the answer in your mind on command.

You can’t.

“I don’t fucking know,” you retort more sharply than you’d meant to. “Maybe we should we split up?” you try again, not wanting to start off the night on a bad note.

“You’ve watched enough Scooby Doo with Lian to know that that’s never a good idea.”

“Fair enough,” you laugh. “Maybe try using your thermal cam?”

“Good idea, princess- Cardinal,” Arsenal corrects himself before you can. “Oh, shit. No way,” he trudges toward the right-most tunnel to where you stand. “There’s a small trace over here, but it could just be animals.”

“Humans are animals,” Red Hood points out.

“Angsty ass motherfucker,” you mutter under your breath as you push past him to follow after Arsenal. “Maybe that disposition’s the reason you act like such a dick to the people who support you the most.”

Yeah, you still haven’t fully forgiven him for the stunt he pulled the other day in front of everyone. Though, you suppose forgiving would mean someone, Jason, would have to apologize again. Maybe this time, he’d actually fucking mean it. 

You know that the Joker has always been a sore subject between the two of you, but it shouldn’t be tearing you apart like this if you truly do love each other.

Hood scoffs, “Why are you acting like I don’t fucking care about you?”

Arsenal’s kind enough not to call Hood out on the hypocrisy. Usually, it’s the redhead that can’t help but slip up and bring personal life into the field, but this time, it’s Red Hood.

You continue to kick through the water ahead of him, only faltering slightly at the accusation.

“Because you act like you don’t fucking care,” you retort. After all, how could he apologize and then turn around and spit in your face like he had? The two of you are supposed to be on the same team.

“You don’t know what you’re saying,” he hisses, coming to an audible halt behind you.

“Oh,” You stop as well but remain resolute in staring ahead, “I don’t?”

“Fuck you,” Red Hood grabs at his helmet, ripping it off in frustration. He trudges forward to turn you around so that you’re face to face with his desperate expression that’s partially obstructed by his domino mask, “I’d give my life for you. Either of you!”

His declaration echos about the labyrinth of tunnels that surround the three of you.

It’s by no means a resolution, but at least it’s something.

“We should get our heads back in the game,” Arsenal suggests before you can respond.

Hood searches your masked face a few moments more before putting his helmet back on. This time, he moves ahead of you, leaving you and Arsenal to hobble through the water behind him.

Moss hangs from the cracked cement ceilings and the murky water only deepens the further in you get. 

By the time you reach your next waypoint, it’s up to your mid-calf. You don’t have to ask what the tunnels were used for when you’ve passed by at least three abandoned subway cars. Each one looks more decrepit than the rest, though they still seem mostly intact for how moss-covered and slimy they look.

“The trail looks like it continues up here,” Arsenal points at the tunnel dead ahead. His voice drops, “These are pretty defined trails. Do you think someone’s down here right now?”

“Better safe to assume so,” Red Hood warbles. “Minimal talking for now. Keep quiet and alert.”

The three of you stay still for a few minutes, waiting for a hint of, well, anything. When nothing produces, your trio finally wades deeper into the abandoned subway system.

Sometimes, you pass by a grate that offers the quiet comfort of moonlight, but it disappears just as fast as it appears.

Even though you’re going deeper into the maze of tunnels, the subway cars you’re seeing seem less gunky and more functional. Hood and Arsenal notice, too, as they trudge through the water to inspect them. You follow behind them, noticing a platform that looks like it leads to an old stop.

A sharp pang rings out in your skull as if an anvil’s hitting it. 

That can’t be good.

“I think he knows we’re here,” you say, completely distracted by the pain in your head. You rub at your temples, but nothing seems to help.

“Joker?” Hood questions now sounding on edge.

Though you’d given them shit for asking you for directions earlier, the pounding in your head couldn’t be any clearer of a warning. 

A familiar, sickening nausea sinks into the pit of your stomach as faint laughter echoes about the chambers of your brain. You can’t help but wonder if the ‘two subjects’ the Cadmus scientist had been referring to had anything to do with this feeling… Maybe it had nothing to do with a pregnancy and everything to do with him.

Joker.

Luckily, your partners seem to recognize the severity of the situation. 

Hood and Arsenal survey the area with weapons drawn, but everything remains completely quiet. The only sounds that trickle through the searing pain are the constant drips that seem to get louder and louder the more unbearable the pain in your head becomes.

“He knows we’re here,” you say again before cutting yourself off. “No, he’s here,” you look around fast. “Arsenal, put on your gas mask.” While your mask and Red Hood’s already offered protection against aerosol attacks, Arsenal’s domino mask left him vulnerable to them.

He does as you say and they both wait, Roy with his arrow drawn and Jason with his guns locked and loaded. 

Cackling strikes like a whip, crashing around the rock walls around you as they echo across your ears.

You freeze, trying not to freak out. 

You attempt to pinpoint just where the noise had come from when you see something.

“Look!” you shout. Your partners have taken to circling around you, facing the darkness that surrounds you with weapons pointed, “Up ahead, I think I see someone,” You squint, trying to make out the figure.

More cackling, but it’s not coming from the masked figure you have in your sights. Part of you can’t help but wonder if you’re merely imagining the noise entirely, but you can’t afford to question your sanity right now.

It’s still completely dark inside, but you swear you see the same mask, the same long hair you saw in your first vision. It’s so brief you think you’ve imagined it. That is until a large blast shakes the entire underground facility. 

There’s no time to react before rubble and thousands of tons of water descend upon the three of you. 

You manage a quick breath before you’re pulled under. 

All around you, cement chunks fall from the ceiling like thawing icicles 

When you surface, you’re scrambling. 

Your arms flail around as you attempt to take in your surroundings. The water is easily over 10 feet high now and growing by the minute. If the three of you don’t get out of here soon, you’ll all get trapped and, eventually, drown.

“They blew out the wall to the harbor!” Arsenal’s panicked voice sounds over your comm system. 

Before you have a chance to respond, the ceiling above you gives out. You barely manage a scream as you’re once again plunged underwater and become pinned by the debris. 

You’d attempted to hold your breath, but as soon as you slammed against the concrete, the breath you’d saved easily releases, leaving you with what little oxygen you have left in your already aching lungs. 

Your wet mask plastered against your face isn’t helping anything, nor is the darkness surrounding you. Soon, you find yourself on the verge of panicking.

“I’m in a subway car. Arsenal, do you have eyes on Cardinal?” you hear a deep voice question over the pounding in your head. 

You want to close your eyes so bad, you fight them blinking shut but it’s growing harder with each passing second. You know you’re going to pass out soon. Whether from lack of oxygen or blunt force trauma, you don’t know what will win out first.

“Tracking her now.”

They continue to talk, reaching out to you but you’re already moments away from gulping in the water around you. Your head is killing, your throat burns and the pressure behind your nose tempts you to inhale the liquid around you.

Suddenly, you feel a light tug on your body. You kick lightly, not understanding if this person poses a threat in the daze of your head injury. This time, the person pulls harder and you’re pulled from the rubble.

You break the surface with a gasp, hacking as you gulp down the little amount of air remaining in the tight space. You don’t fight when you feel your savior pull your soaking mask away from your face. No, instead, you gulp in the unrestricted access to oxygen. 

“Arsenal?”

Your comm finally starts to make sense again and you find yourself helping the redhead next to you paddle.

“We’re going to have to go back under, beautiful," you nod, not realizing what he’s talking about until his next statement. “Deep breath, baby," you do as he says but struggle against his overbearing hold when he plunges the two of you back into the inky, wet darkness.

“There’s a portion of the car next to me with the roof still uncovered.”

You suddenly feel the direction change and quickly give up on fighting. It seems like the actual danger is the water and not so much a person. 

You’re losing consciousness and can’t find it in yourself to hold your breath as you had before. Luckily, you surface before you can suck any water into your lungs. 

The redhead- Arsenal, your mind lazily supplies, lifts you onto the exposed top of a subway car. The man soon joins you, panting as he gets to work, removing the emergency exit so the two of you can climb into the vehicle. Roy- Arsenal, you can hardly keep anyone’s name straight right now, scrambles, looking for something, anything, but it’s just the two of you alone in the subway car. 

You quickly drop to the floor, feeling helpless as the pain across your body pulsates with each panicked breath you take. 

Roy says your name as a desperate plea. “This looks bad. This looks really bad,” he mutters to himself as he looks over the limited supplies you have as the subway car begins to take on water. “Stay awake for me, princess. Hood?” he scrambles to use your communication device on account of his getting knocked out. 

“I’m here,” his voice sounds calm under its signature robotic guise. “What’s the situation looking like?”

“We need to get her to the cave ASAP,” he stops stroking your hair to look up at Jason in the next car. 

He’s starting to panic, but Jason needs him to stay calm if you are all going to pull through. He can’t afford to break the glass yet and add another route for water to pour through, but he knows he needs to do something and fast. 

It’s at this moment that the glass begins to crack under the pressure of the harbor water. 

In your dazed mind, you realize you should get up and help Roy look for a way out. You should look at Jason one last time in case it’s the last time you see him, but your body feels broken, your mind even more so. 

“Arsenal,” Jason says over the comms, sounding like it’s the end. 

Roy won’t allow it, though. No, he continues to hobble around the small area of the car. Your clouded eyes follow unfocused as he messes around with the subway controls at the very front of the car. 

“Your car’s attached to this one, Hood. I think I can get us out of here; just hold tight,” he says. At this, Roy pulls down a stubborn lever and the car slowly creaks to life. The ground below you jolts as the wheels begin to spin. Slowly at first, then picking up speed as your car totes Jason’s along the destroyed tracks. “We’ve only got one shot at this, Jay,” you hear from above you as Roy putters about with his arrows.

The cars are taking on too much water, to the point Roy has to haul you up so you don’t drown on the ground. 

“What’s the plan?” your ear buzzes with Jason’s familiar, deep voice. 

Your head feels like it’s splitting in two and the pressure behind your eyes makes you feel like they’re about to bug out of your head, but you try to remain present for a reason you can’t really place right now. 

“We crash another hole in this bitch. Right before we hit, shoot out a window and swim up.”

“That’s our best plan?”

Your head feels like an axe hitting your skull with each word.

“Might be the only one we’ve got.”

You’re holding onto consciousness when you see Roy take an explosive arrow. He shoots out one of your car's windows just as Jason takes his gun to do the same. 

You think you manage to scream that you love them, but too soon after, all that encompasses you is darkness.

A/N: cliffhanger... dun dun duuuunnn

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I'm in love with this art style and combined with the colors it's feels nostalgic in a way

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rewatching old sailor moon and thought of like… disgruntled tuxedo mask!corpse but with unrequited love because i’m a glutton for angst

wc: ~2.2k 

warnings: death of a minor character, implicit knowledge of sailor moon lore, modern twist, unedited

please send in ideas you might have that i could write short blurbs for! this was honestly fun to write. 

It’s a scratch he can’t itch. It’s what has him waking up in cold sweats, confused and moderately annoyed that his hard-earned sleep has been so rudely interrupted. He hates the cape, he hates the itchy suit, he abhors the top hat – and the only things he doesn’t really hate are his baton and endless supply of darkened roses.

The first time he transformed, he was half-asleep and struggling to understand why he was speeding down the highway and parking two blocks away from some random back alley. His pain was relatively dulled, which was surprising, and his body suddenly possessed a world of fighting skills that felt foreign yet familiar. All he could recognize was a slightly disheveled woman cursing and just trying her best against some odd form of demon spawn, and before he knew it, he’d thrown down a dark purple rose and engaged in combat. Once said woman found an opening, she took off her headband/tiara, performed a throw that would put professional frisbee players to shame, and the monster disintegrated into dust.

“Jesus Christ,” he panted, body hunched over and hands on his knees. “What the fuck was that?”

“More like who the fuck are you?”

“Fuck if I know,” he muttered and dusted himself off.  

“What’s with your get-up anyways?” She failed to hide her snickering. “You’re 3 decades behind.”

“Do I look like I want to fight in a suit? Plus, you’re fighting in some rendition of a schoolgirl uniform.” Her black thigh-high boots were killer, but he wasn’t about to give her the satisfaction.

“You should’ve seen what it was before, but I was able to make some changes. Good heads-up for you and—”

“Sailor Moon, are you okay?!”

Oh. So she’s got a talking cat, too. What in fresh hell was going on? Did he take something? But also—“Your name is Sailor Moon?”

“We’re working on the name change,” she grumbled, bending down to let said feline jump up her arm and settle on her shoulder. “Anyways, uh…thanks. I was kind of in a bind, but I’m usually not I swear. Good timing, I guess?”

“If that’s what you wanna call it.” But she was already in the wind, hopping from roof to roof with no inhibitions, and left him completely dumbfounded.

His silly attire dissolved back into his previous clothing as he ambled back towards his car, thought not exactly at his own will. But he shrugged, slid into the car seat, and dialed the only person he could think of who would readily pick up at this ungodly hour of…2:37AM. That was just the start, and he can’t tell if things went downhill from there.

-

He should backtrack.

He met you almost two years ago at a hospital.

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