I had to hop out of Project Erid for a moment to write a lovely Batfam x Spider!reader. Here's some photos (Picrew) of Elizabeth! I'm going to draw her myself, but right now this is easiest.
I swear. If Aunt May finds out that I almost died for like the fourth time that month and ships me off to her ninth cousins 12 times removed I will use my own webs to hang myself.
I swing down into the alley way next to The Page, and get out of the suit I pride myself on. I haven't seen any other spider suit like this before.
Its basically a hoodie with tights gloves, and a mask. The hoodie is black, with sprawling orange webs that form the spider symbol on my chest, and the tights are black with light orange streaking down the side.
I took a page out of Hobie's book and wear converse (They are surprisingly easy to run and fight in).
But the hoodie is my favorite part. I made it reversible into a normal black, unrecognizable hoodie so that I can just flip it, and keep on going with my day.
That's the part I love about my costume, without the mask or the hoodie, everything else just becomes everyday. I shove the mask into the dark green messenger bag that I brought with me, before skipping into the bookstore.
The familiar smell of pages and ink wafts into my senses, immediately relaxing me.
I browse the book, grabbing a couple that I've been wanting to get. It was just my birthday, so Aunt May gave me some money to buy more books with.
I check out and head for the cafe area, where Hobie, Gwen, MJ, and Peter sit, already deep into a debate about... Something.
MJ is the only person here actually from my universe. He and I have been friends since elementary school. He was there when my parents died, and when Uncle Ben died. I've treated him like hell due to grief, and yet he would still show up.
So when the other spiders showed up, it only made sense to introduce them to him as well.
I sit down at the table, and Hobie sends a nod my way before going back headfirst into the debate. Him, Peter, and MJ are debating about the pro's and cons of Anti-capitilism and how it affects the economy. Again.
"Here, you're going to need it." Gwen hands me a steaming mug of coffee, taking a large sip from her own mug.
"How long?" I set my bags down, and pull out my notebook.
"About thirty minutes. How was patrol?" I shrug, it wasn't bad, but it wasn't fun. I'm still healing from a run in with a Gotham maniac, he called himself the Joker or something.
I open up to the diagram I'm making for a new suit, and start revising it. My suit now is awesome, but I need to figure out a way to hide knives and such in it.
"Get any good books?" MJ asks, having dropped out of the argument.
"Mmh, it's that series I told you about a while ago." He nods, recognition in his eyes.
"Yeah I remember that one, ACO... ACOTAT? ACOTAR? When your done with it I might give it a shot too." I hear Gwen choke on her drink. Me and her have been sharing book recs and have made our own little book club.
"Uhhh, I don't know M, it's ah, how do I put this..." Gwen's down trying to keep from laughing.
"Oh come on, it's just a book about fairies." He brushes it off. Gwen's now starting at him like he just started a challenge.
"Actaully Lizzie, let him read it. I think both he, and we will enjoy his reaction to them." Gwen gives me one of those smirks of hers.
"Well Elizabeth you gonna let me read them or not?" Ugh I hate my full name. It's nothing against the name itself it just feels to formal to be mine. That's why people call me Liz or Lizzie.
"You know what, sure. It'll be fun Markus Jones." I shoot his straight back, making him scowl. Two can play that game.
My phone buzzes with a news alert. That Joker dude escaped, blew up four buildings, and killed over fifty people. shit.
"Uh, I have to go guys, it's an emergency." I stand up quickly, scanning my phone for any other info, and discreetly grabbing my mask from the bag. I'll leave it here with MJ for safe keeping
"You want help?" Peter and Hobie stop their arguing to look at me.
"No, thank though Peter. I'll call if I need something." And with that, I'm sprinting out the door.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The fight was brutal. I won, but I didn't come out unscathed. Turns out I could have used that back up. I walked away from the fight with at least three broken ribs, and deep gashes all over.
That guy fights dirty. I didn't even let him finish his little villain speech and he still almost whooped my ass. Thankfully the others showed up pretty quickly to help.
MJ meets us back at my house, where Hobie has to practically carry me to, while Peter and Gwen look out for any other potential villains.
The front door opens before Peter even has the chance to grasp the handle. In it's frame stands a fuming May. Oh shit.
"Give her to me." There's no kindness in her voice, none of the warm loving May that the group usually knows. In her place is a terrifying woman.
Hobie hands me off without another words, offering me a sympathetic glance.
"Leave." Then she shuts the door on their faces. She pretty much drags go to the couch where she sets me down, and grabs her phone.
"Aunt May I-" The look she gives me could kill.
"Save it. Markus told me everything, he's a good friend like that. We're going to go to the hospital and then I'm making good on my promise." I make a mental note to ask MJ why the hell he told her.
"Can I at least get changed?" I can't help the tone that escapes from my mouth. Jesus she's terrifying right now.
"Just turn your hoodie inside out and leave your mask here." I do as she says, then she drags me to the car. Starting it without a word and driving off.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I'm starting to remember the exact reason why I hate hospitals when the stifling smell that can only be described as sanitary hell hits my nose.
The last time I was in a hopsital, it was watching my father die while I stood by helplessly.
I push that thought from my head as the nurses spot me and start rushing a gurney over to me. They nudge me onto the bed, and whisk me away.
The last thing I see before we round the corner is Aunt May taking a phone call staring after me.
The nurses hook an IV into my arm, before going about patching me up.
They try to insist that I stay, but once Aunt May tells literally tells them to fuck off they let me leave.
I've never heard her swear.
We get into the car once again and continue our journey home. Or at least I thought we were until we passed the exit home. I know better than to comment on that though.
"I hope you know I don't want to do this." She says into the silence "I hate the idea of doing this more than anything. But MJ told me how many times this has happened and..." She looks over at me "And I don't want you to get hurt beyond repair."
I can see tears in her eyes. And for the first time I realize, she's not mad, she's scared. she's scared that she's going to loose me like she did her brother, my dad.
We ride in silence for another hour.
"Bruce, he... He can be harsh, even cold sometimes, and his sons, to be honest I've never met them before. Bruce and I only started speaking after our fathers funeral... He offered to take you in if anything ever happens." we stop in front of a spooky looking manor gate "I know you don't want to leave. But I think this might really be good for you Lizzie Bear."
It dawns on me, she's not just taking me here once a week like therapy or something. She's leaving me here.
"Aunt May-" She holds up a hand tears now streaming down both of our faces.
"Don't Lizzie, please don't fight me on this too." I shut my mouth and nod. We drive up the long twisting road, finally reaching the front door after five minutes of sad silence.
We get out of the car, and Aunt May hands me two bags. Hugging me tightly before walking up to the door with me.
"Your suits in there, but I don't want you using it. Understand?" She says just before knocking. I merely nod, staring at the ground.
I can feel my phone buzzing with texts in my pocket, but I let them go ignored.
The door opens and a kind looking elderly man stands in it, beaming when he see's Aunt May.
"Oh Miss May! It's a pleasure to see you again, please come in." He gestures us inside, and I see two other people waiting for us. A man, looking to be in his late forties, and a young adult, no older than 25.
"It's good to see you as well Alfred." She give him a hug before looking to the two "Bruce, lovely as all ways." She gives him a small smile, and he nods back, before looking to me.
"Is this Elizabeth?" I cringe at the use of my full name. The way he says it, it feels like I'm five being scolded by my mom again.
Before she tried to kill me that is.
"Yes. This is her." Aunt May puts a hand on my shoulder "Please Bruce, please take care of her."
"I will." His eyes never leave mine. They're cold and calculating. As if trying to see into my soul.
Aunt May turns to me one last time, and gives me a big hug. She cups my face and whispers to behave. Then she's gone. Leaving me with three strangers, in a foreign house.
"Elizabeth, this is Dick. He will show you to your rooms, and introduce you to the others." His voice is colder now that Aunt May isn't here.
"Nice to meet you Dick..." I mumble, trying to remember my mannors.
"Your aunt told me you had a habit of getting into fights. I will not tolerate that here. Understood?" Ah so that's the excuse she gave. I nod, letting him know that I understand him.
"Good. You may go now." Dick motions for me to follow, and takes one of my bags from me.
"It'll get better I promise." He breaks the silence, leading me down the twisting halls.
"Mm." I murmur in response. We reach a door and he opens it for me. The walls are painted a dark grey, with nothing on them. There's only a desk, a wardrobe, and a bed in the room.
Dick puts my bag down, and stands there awkwardly with me for a moment.
"Thanks for ah, showing me here." The tension has become absolutely unbearable.
"Yeah. Just, come find me if you need anything." Then he leaves, shutting the door behind him. Leaving me to my thoughts.
My ringtone snaps me out of my thoughts. It's Hobies ringtone. I caught him yelling that at a AI assistant when it wouldn't take his door dash order and made it my ringtone.
"Listen smalls, I don't care where the fuck you are or who you're with but you've gotta respond back to their texts, or else I'll come find you and-" He gets cut off by more yelling.
"GIVE ME THE FUCKING PHONE." MJ yells over everyone. I hear the phone being tossed, and web shooters desperately trying to get it before I hear M's voice.
"Liz, I am so sorry. Your aunt asked me how many times this has happened when she saw the news. I tried to lie but she saw right through it, I am so, so, sorry."
"It's fine M, I know that you meant well." I can practically feel his relief.
"So Lizzie, where even are you?" Peter's voice cuts in, and everyone quiets down.
I tell them about what happened and where I am now. They seem pretty surprised, and Gwen explains who exactly Bruce Wayne is. After the shock dies down, we all sit in silence as I unpack. They all go to their own homes, and we start a face time call.
We laugh, and joke like we usually would, trying to ignore the fact that now I'm hours away, and probably not going to be back for a while.
"Alrihgt. Here's the plan. Every weekend we'll sneak into Gotham and hang out." Gwen says from her desk.
"They don't allow metas, or meta like people." Peter counters "Mj would be the only one who could get in."
I hear Hobie mumble something, before his guitar strums idly in the background.
"And? They don't know who you lot are, so to them, your nothing more than everyday citizens." MJ states matter of factually.
"Alright man, if you say so. Lizzie? We'll see you over the weekend. I gotta log off now, it's pretty late." Gwen says her goodbyes, and the others follow shortly after. It's five am in the morning.
