Jason grace who never knew his birthday for his whole life, until his 16th. The one day he is made aware of his birthday, they fight nymphs, giants, and his friends fall into tartarus. after that, he promised himself that he would never celebrate another birthday, only to never have the chance.
Y'all being in multiple fandoms sucks sometimes, bc sometimes at first glance I'll get Shiro (VLD) mixed up with Jason Todd (Batman comics) (because of their fucking white hair poofs) then get Jason Grace (Percy Jackson) and Jason Todd's manes mixed up.
I will always be furious about how Rick wrote Leo’s reaction to Jason’s death. You gonna look me in the eye and tell me straight to my face that the boy who sacrificed himself and then brought himself back to life so both he and his friend could live isn’t going to get a grief scene about said friend. He’s not going to cry or sit on the floor or at the very least ask for comfort??? That’s all gonna happen off screen????????? Him and Piper should have sat sobbing and holding each other for 2 hours MINIMUM!! Pipers scene is great in my opinion but Leo’s was just so nothingburger
Fun things that Dick Grayson has done in canon but y'all ignore to make him seem like he’s just the comic relief!
- told Superman if he died saving people from the chemo it would be okay because he deserved it
- has called himself poison multiple times
- killed the joker
- has had to be sedated to get to go to sleep - both as nightwing and as batman
- got blackout drunk and tried to get married
- canonically sleeps with people to deal with his problems (issue 103 of 1996 Nightwing I believe is where this is confirmed? It’s around there, after he proposes to Babs)
- there’s more but I’m going off the top of my head so uh,,, yeah. Basically, all of the bats have problems and people sleeping on that is annoying! Not everyone reacts to trauma the same! Just because he seems happy go lucky doesn’t mean that he isn’t just as traumatized as the others! He’s just known to put people first!! Blockbuster literally pointed that out and it’s why his plan was to attack those around him, not Dick himself because Blockbuster knew he would think he deserved it anyway!
Dick is a great portrayal of one way to deal with trauma and mental health issues and people shouldn’t ignore it because his problems literally shape his relationships with his brothers and his exes! They’re a big part of the comics!! If he didn’t have a tendency to isolate himself then Outsiders 2003 wouldn’t have even existed!!
(canonically sleeps with people to deal with his problems (issue 103 of 1996 Nightwing I believe is where this is confirmed? It’s around there, after he proposes to Babs) NOPE DC canon has Dick talking about being a monogamist, about Dick being able to sleep with someone who he has feelings for, had Dick say he didn’t do that when Huntress said theirs was a one-night stand, had Dick tell Kory he cannot carry on their relationship while she was married to that dude in Tamaran. (also issue 93 is where he was raped by Tarantula and in No Man’s Land, DC keeps Tarantula and Dick together raising possibilities of further assaults - any sexual incidents Dick participates in, in proximity to that, should be seen through the prism of that shattering event).
But you know what IS in Issue 103 of Nightwing (1996)? LION TAMER DICK GRAYSON!!!!
I’ve posted about this a fair amount before but since I’ve seen a few posts about this going around lately, I hope no one minds me butting in here to clarify for others…..
Dick ‘sleeping around’ per NW 103, in the direct aftermath of being raped by Tarantula, in NO WAY contradicts him being a serial monogamist by nature.
Rape, like all forms of severe trauma, is by definition a life-altering event. Its strange for long-running patterns of behavior NOT to shift dramatically in the wake of it. And hypersexualization is a very, very common coping mechanism for survivors. Its an attempt to take the medium that was used to hurt us, and regain power over it, emphasize that WE and we alone are deciding to have sex, that we’re engaging even in reckless and frequent sexual encounters by our own choice (even if that choice is directly impacted by trauma we may or may not be willing to accept or acknowledge just yet).
So Dick sleeping around in the aftermath of being raped by Tarantula OR even just after Mirage (and there’s no time limit on how long ‘the aftermath’ might last, its different for everyone and can even recur or not even manifest until years later)……like, this is in no way a mischaracterization of Dick Grayson, to be clear. Because its Dick acting not as the Dick Grayson he normally chooses to be, but a Dick Grayson who was traumatized in a way that left him feeling destabilized and out of control in an area he’s normally in control of….and he’s trying to find ways to reassert or reestablish that control for himself, to feel safe and comfortable again in the fact that this is his choice to make and he is making it now, not anyone else.
Whether or not that’s healthy is not really for anyone else to decide - my only point here is that its a fairly honest depiction of rape aftermath and recovery. The thing about Devin Grayson’s portrayal of Dick in this time period is that whether or not you like that she made the choice to write this storyline…..she actually did a fairly good job of portraying its aftermath realistically….the problem lay in her refusal off the page to call it what it was, and DC’s refusal to ever follow up on it (or Mirage) and address it as what it was on the page either. But Dick’s behavior is not OOC at that time…..its that the fundamental baseline of his reality that his behavior normally was based on SHIFTED….with the inevitable result that his behavior shifted as well.
I totally support people viewing Dick as a serial monogamist by nature and opposed to sleeping around PRE-Mirage and Tarantula, if that’s what they choose given that canon very much supports this interpretation and that any depiction of Dick as Romani must consider the fact that a promiscuous nature is a heavily biased and frequent anti-Romani prejudice, especially with Roma men. (Much like Roma men being prone to having trigger-happy out of control tempers is also a frequent anti-Romani stereotypye BUT I DIGRESS). But yeah, pre-Mirage, there is little to no evidence suggesting that Dick is in any way the player he was sometimes rumored to be even then, and there’s some sizable problems with viewing or writing him that way, given these other elements.
But please please please always keep in mind that from the moment Mirage first raped Dick…..everything changes. Because now you’re not just writing or reading a man operating off his normal world view that he grew into organically and by choice….you’re reading and writing a rape survivor operating off of a sense of loss of control over one of the core, integral components of every person’s identity that we’re all SUPPOSED to be the only one in control of…..and searching for some way, ANY way, to FEEL back in control of that thing, that core part of his identity.
And there is no set expiration date on this struggle, or even necessarily an expiration date at all.
And just please please keep in mind that these two dual representations of Dick are NOT in competition and absolutely can co-exist with both being equally valid and accurate and true.
Ah this! Dick is a serial monogamous in most ways that people write him. He is someone that needs people, but will occasionally pull away to keep from it.
I honestly didn’t think this Post would get as many notes as it did as usually my posts don’t so like, yeah
i’m not hard to please just get me flowers and hold me close and play with my hair and admire me and read my favourite books and watch my favourite movies and binge my favourite shows and adore my peculiarities and have a strong moral compass and dress well and kiss me softly and
— contents: fluff. kissing. profanities. slightly suggestive towards the end. chaos.
✎ᝰ. j's letter... hi. so this is very late for me,,, but here it is!! happy birthday to the one fictional character who brought me the most comfort when i needed it the most<3
ps. a big thank you to my darling elora @somewhereincairparavel for proofreading this for me,,, i love you so much. you've already read it, but still i hope you like it:)
Normally, on a beautiful summer day like this one, your morning would be filled with tranquil silence, heavenly-scented curls of steam wafting off of your warm cup of coffee—or tea of your darling’s preference— and the stillness that only comes in the early hours of day.
However, today, the usual quietness and serenity of your apartment was replaced with hushed chatters that would perhaps– no, scratch that, that would definitely escalate to complete chaos, had you not whispered a sharp “hush!” every five seconds or so.
Why?
Because today was not just any other day. It was Jason’s birthday.
And it was, in your humble opinion, the best day of the year, aside from Christmas!
‘Cause it was the day the love of your life was born, so, of course it was.
“Hey,” a small tap on your shoulder broke your concentrated state. Jolting in surprise, you squeezed the piping a little too hard, light blue frosting gushed out of the bag, leaving an ungraceful blob on the border of the cake.
This cake was your last hope, for you don’t have the time to make another after the previous batch had been burnt to a crisp. As did the batch before that, ‘cause a certain someone had added a cup of salt instead of sugar to the batter by accident.
And you were damned if you were gonna let this cake suffer the same fates.
Whirling around, you swatted a hand to the grinning man’s shoulder. “Leo!” you groaned exasperatedly, still keeping your voice low to not awaken the birthday boy, just a few halls away. “Can you not do that?” you whisper-yelled.
The said man groaned loudly, and you were sure it was purely to spite you. And well, if your warning glare said anything, it was that it’s working. “This is way too early for me.” he complained in a dramatic drawl.
You cocked a brow, doubtful. But as you looked around at the other’s drowsy faces—Frank was a hair away from dropping his head in the bowl of frosting across from you, Hazel was washing the dishes with her eyes closed— you realised that perhaps it was too early.
Even for you. But you had to.
You had to call your friends at 04:30 am to help you get this done quickly. You had to carefully and quietly sneak them inside your apartment at an ungodly hour of the day.
For Jason was the kind of person who wakes at 06:30 on the dot every day. No matter if it’s a weekday day or a weekend.
Jason was, as far as you knew, oblivious and unsuspecting of this small surprise you were throwing for him. He didn’t look at you weird the night before, he—hopefully—hadn’t noticed that you were constantly checking your phone to plan the whole thing in secret with the others, he didn’t ask if anything was wrong.
Actually, he did, as always. You just didn’t know that.
So, now, here you were— stood in the middle of the kitchen, a piping bag in hand, decorating the cake whilst the others were focused on some other things (i.e., in the living room, on timeout, banned from the kitchen after they’d almost burned it down).
Honestly, it was truly a miracle how the chaos hadn’t managed to wake Jason. Maybe the Hynops was on your side just for today.
Although you were sure that he was mostly exaggerating, you nudged the son of Hephaestus teasingly, “Weren’t you the one that insisted to ‘help a friend out’?” He opened his mouth to retaliate, but you cut him off before he could, quoting his words from the texts. “Don’t deny it, I screenshotted it.”
He exhaled in defeat, and rubbed a hand over his face, “Yeah…” he grimaced, looking partly sheepish and regretful, “thought he’d given up that early-waking habit by now.”
You raised a brow, as if to say ‘really?’ Perhaps a lesser man would let go of those habits after years, but not Jason.
“I should’ve known better. What kind of a best friend am I?” he feigned a hurt expression.
From the corner of your eye, you saw Percy, Annabeth, Piper, Thalia, and Nico trickling towards the kitchen like scared little children.
You narrowed your eyes at them, tutting and shielded your cake with an arm. “You’re still banned from the kitchen.” you told them, voice hushed. Though, you supposed it sounded threatening enough by the way they halted on the spot.
Piper chuckled nervously, “Anything we can help you with?” her gaze dropped onto the cake on the counter (or more specifically, the blob of frosting on the edge of the cake). “I can help you with that.” she offered.
“Oh, it’s alright-”
The muffled sound of water running stopped your words.
And it seems that the others heard it too, because, simultaneously, you all froze. Shit. You still needed a few minutes more to get this all ready.
Suddenly, all sets of alerted eyes fixed onto yours expectantly, darting towards you and the source of the sound— your shared bedroom with Jason.
It took you a second but then, it clicked. “Actually, yes, please. Thank you.” you hurriedly gave the piping bag to her. And then, you sped over to your bedroom before Jason could exit it. “Don’t burn down my kitchen,” you managed to say before disappearing down the hall.
Just as you arrived, the door swung open gently, revealing a drowsy, disheveled Jason Grace— shirtless, his sweatpants hanging too low on his waist for your sanity, his golden hair mussed, and his glasses askew.
This man wasn't good for your health, you decided. It wasn't nearly the first time you've seen him in this state, but somehow, each time, it gets you even more flustered.
His eyes set on you, his lips lifting into a soft smile— one that never fails to weaken your knees.
Still slightly panicking, you did the only thing that your overheated mind managed to conjure in your head at that moment.
His lips barely began to form the first half of your name before you took his face in your hands and crashed your lips onto his, sloppily pushing him back inside the bedroom while your foot kicked the door closed behind you.
For a moment, he stilled, seemingly taken aback by your sudden move. But slowly, he relaxed, toned arms slithering around your waist to pull you in, his head tilting to deepen the kiss.
Mint. He tasted like mint.
He pulled away for a moment to rip his glasses off his face as it got in the way, and instinctively, your lips chased for his, a low sound of protest leaving your lips.
Chuckling at your obvious impatience, he gave in to your silent wish and kissed you again, grinning against your lips.
Meanwhile….
In the kitchen, the others chaotically, scuttled around in a silent panic. Unknowing what to do, but knowing that they had to do something. Percy ran around the counter to rummage in a random drawer for the candles, nearly slamming them on the counter when he found them, while Leo’s hands had already flamed to light them.
Piper was panicking to fix the frosting, although the border looked wobbly as her hands shook. Thalia and Annabeth scampered around in search of the scissors when the candles’ stubborn packaging wouldn't open. Frank, also looking quite distressed, took the dam thing and ripped it open with his bare hands when he saw the girls’ struggle.
Maybe a little too forcefully, as it exploded open, the little candles flying out, dropping to the floor like confetti, much to the eight’s horror.
Immediately, they—minus Piper, who, out of surprise, lost control of the bag of frosting and accidentally smeared it awkwardly off the edge of the cake— scampered to quickly pick them off the floor.
Back in the bedroom…
Time stopped, or maybe slowed, or sped up, you weren't aware. But what you were of was his pair of lips, his lips, his lips brushing over your own, you even almost forgot the part that you were supposed to distract him from—
Fuck.
From the surprise.
Right.
A moment passed, the kiss subsided. Slowly, your lips parted from his, your lids fluttering open, letting the swirls of electric blues fill your sight, your foreheads touching.
Jason's mouth split into a dopey grin “Hi, sweetheart.” he whispered breathlessly. His pale cheeks were flushed and in that moment, you couldn't think of anything more endearing.
"Hi," you smiled softly. Oh, you were so in love. "Happy birthday." your hand comes up to brush the slightly damp strands of hair that had fallen into his eyes.
Pausing for a second, his brows pulled together in confusion. "Oh." he muttered, a look of realisation crossing his features. "Wait... oh, yeah, it is. I forgot."
Slowly, a grin bloomed on your lips, laughs spilling from your mouth. He was so cute. you tiptoed to press a small peck on his forehead. "How could you forget your own birthday?"
The flush on his cheeks deepened a shade darker. "I don't know," he shrugged. "I've just never really focused on it."
You frowned in disapproval. “Well, you should, from now on.” you told him, but it sounded more like a demand, really.
The smile on his face returned at the demand. “Okay, okay,” he nodded, leaning forward to plant his lips to your forehead. Pulling back, he asked, eyes searching for yours. “What did you do?’ playful suspicion laced his tone.
You tilted your head innocently. “Hm? Whatever do you mean, my love?” your lips curling slightly to a suppressed smile.
He raised his brow at you, unconvinced. “You have that look on your face, one you get whenever you’re excited,” he said easily, as though he was merely observing the weather.
Butterflies spun around your chest, you felt like you might burst.
But you focused your mind. “Of course I’m excited, love. It’s your birthday.” you insisted, and that part was wholly true. “Now, come on, I made you breakfast.” you tugged on his hand. The lie has been on your mind for months. So, he better believe it.
“A special one?” he asked knowingly, putting his glasses back on.
You tugged on his hand again. “Of course,” Though your hand hovered over the door handle as you realised one thing. “But, uh… you might want to put a shirt on first.” you cleared your throat, face heating up once more, avoiding how his toned abs was on full display–
It was way too early to have these kinds of thoughts.
You exited the bedroom together once he’d put a shirt on. His eyes closed behind his glasses after you told him to, hands intertwined as you guided him over to the dimly lit living room—someone must’ve drawn the curtains to block out the morning light—where the others stood excitedly.
Thalia was the one who held the cake, which looked surprisingly flawless from where you stood, next to Jason. The candles were lit beautifully, the little error with the frosting fixed.
“Okay, ready?” you grinned in anticipation, and so did everyone else in the room. He nodded in response. “Open your eyes.”
His lids fluttered open, and when he saw what’s in front of him, a bright grin spread on his lips. A tint of rose dusting his face.
“Happy birthday!”
You all chorused with identical smiles, watching the colour bloom on the blond’s cheeks grew.
A round of the ‘Happy Birthday’ song ensued; for once, it wasn’t awkward—mostly because Leo was dramaticising the tone, seemingly making his own version— it was filled with laughter.
It was perfect.
When he finally blew out the candles, you gave a small kiss to his cheek. Which resulted in playful gags, and ‘aww’s’ and a thrown tissue from Leo with something along the lines of, “Disgusting. Not in front of the children.” that got two of the finger from you and Jason.
Your friends took turns to give him tight hugs, some hair-ruffling, and birthday wishes for him.
As it was time to cut the cake, a laugh rippled from Jason’s throat when he spotted something. “What happened here?” He turned the cake around, revealing the uneven patch of frosting. All eyes then fell to the one responsible.
She rolled her eyes and shrugged, “What? It’s artistic.” prompting another round of loud laughter to bounce off the walls of your apartment— your neighbours might hate you, but who cares?
The rest of the day went by wonderfully, lots of teasing, recalling old memories, a movie marathon, cooking together while forbidding Jason to enter the kitchen because “you should relax on your birthday,” no matter how much he insisted on helping.
By the evening, your friends said their goodbyes to return to their respective homes, giving both you and your lover hugs and more birthday wishes to the latter before they made their exit, mumbling something about, “giving the lovebirds some space.” and some teasingly suggestive looks from them all.
Once you closed the door to your house, you were surprised by Jason’s hand pulling you back into his arms, his face buried in your shoulder as he hugged you tightly, “Thank you.” he whispered in your ear.
You were quick to return the hug, your hand caressing the back of his head. “Of course, Jase.” you replied softly, chuckling.
He pulled back, meeting your eyes silently, “Gods, it all makes sense now.” he laughed quietly, his hands softly running up and down your spine.
His words confused you. “What?”
“No, it’s just-” he shook his head, “I noticed that you’ve been distant for a few days, I thought something was wrong.” he confessed, his voice lowering to a whisper. “I thought I did something to upset you.”
Your heart squeezed, “Oh, Jase…” you sighed, taking both his hands in yours, “No, love. I’m sorry I made you think that.” You’d been so caught up in planning for his birthday and so focused on keeping it a secret that you hadn’t realised you'd made him worry in the process.
He shook his head again, a small smile on his lips now. “I know it’s silly, I know that now.”
“It’s not silly,” you insisted, staring into his eyes. “I’m sorry for making you worry.”
“It’s okay,” he assured you, his finger smoothing the crease between your brows.
An idea popped into your head after a beat.
“You know…” you said slowly, your eyes still on his; your mind conjuring up the memory of him from earlier. “I still have one more surprise for you.” Your voice dropped to a whisper. That was totally unintentional.
His hands on your back stilled, eyes widening a fraction once he understood the implication. “Oh…”
“Yeah.”
“So…”
Without another word, it was his turn to grab your face and kiss you. So passionately that you almost literally fell to your knees if it weren’t for his other hand steering you away from the door and clumsily ushered you to your bedroom without breaking your kiss.
Yeah, your neighbours will definitely hate you both now.
