An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
fic rec! 3.5K Batfam fic
Summary: “Bruce, honestly is this necessary?” Tim fidgeted in the passenger seat of the car uncomfortably. The bandana across his eyes was starting to feel hot, as the summer sun blazed through the windshield. Even with the AC on, the black fabric was quickly heating up.
“Yeah. It’s a surprise. You can’t be surprised if you see where we are going," Bruce answered.
Comments: This is a cute fic of Bruce encouraging Tim to adopt a pet, but this part broke me:
Tim looked back at the puppy. Deaf. Which explained why she hadn’t responded like the others. He looked back at the card. She had had a family but been discarded due to not being good enough. For not being perfect, or what they wanted. Tim bit his lip and sank to the ground in front of her cage. He knew a little something about not being wanted, about being too much trouble than thought worth.
I also really like how while Tim comes to this realization that a pet might be good, Bruce is beside him the whole way, gently answering his questions because he sees Tim's heart so well. It's a good family bonding fic.
Hello, so this is for your video clips prompt request, I of course expect nothing and only send this in the hopes they might strike inspiration.
Running out of gas (me and my mom did this half way to Colorado it was wild™️)
Someone falls into the Missouri River on a pit stop
Gas station snack acquisition
Part 3 of my series that shows short video clips taken during Dick and Robin!Jason’s trip to the mountains.
Read Part 1 and Part 2
Jason trails behind Dick on the shoulder of the highway. He pans the camera away from the cars that are whizzing past them on the left to the empty red jerrycan that Dick’s carrying. He finally settles the shot on the back of Dick’s head.
“People are staring at us!” Jason shouts, unaware that the wind blowing against the microphone distorts the audio.
Dick holds his fringe back with one hand while he looks over his shoulder at the camera. “We ran out of gas and that’s what you’re worried about?”
“I don’t want people to think I’m an idiot just because you wanted to test how long we could go without filling up!”
“And now I know,” Dick grins. “And now you know what to do if you ever run out of gas.”
There’s a pause. The wind crackles through the mic.
“Wait...” Jason grabs at Dick’s billowing shirt. Dick keeps walking with Jason clutched to him. “This isn’t some kind of training exercise is it?” Dick ignores Jason’s insistent tugs. “Is it?”
“That’s for me to know and for you to never find out.”
“Bro, what the fuck!”
“I’m gonna make you carry the jerrycan back if you keep squawking like that.”
“I wouldn’t have to squawk if you hadn’t gotten us into this situation!”
“Jay, chill. We’re almost to the ramp.”
Jason groans and turns the camera around to face himself, revealing his wild hair and disgruntled expression. “You see what I have to deal with here?”
Static
Jason zooms the camera in on the hot rollers where the hot dogs wrapped in pancakes are slowly rotating around.
“I kinda want to try one,” Jason says, turning the camera on Dick who’s filling up a cup of coffee at the drink counter.
Dick turns to see what he’s referring to and scrunches his face in disgust when his eyes land on the meat. “I’m not paying for that crap.”
“I didn’t ask you to,” Jason says hotly. “I can buy it with my own money.”
“I know you can,” Dick says with his hands raised placatingly. “The money’s not the issue here. All I’m saying is that those hot dogs are probably filled with things that are gonna make you feel like shit.”
“You think my stomach of steel can’t handle it?”
“I think that if you wanna blow chunks, be my guest, pal. But if you throw up in my car, you’re scrubbing it out by yourself.”
“Let me guess. You have cleaner in your car right next to the jerrycan, don’t you?”
Dick shrugs and takes a cautious sip of his coffee. “What can I say? That ‘always be prepared’ thing comes in handy sometimes. Now come on. Pick out what you want and let’s blow this joint.”
Static
The sun is shining bright by the time they make it to the park to stretch their legs for a bit. Dick takes the camera and films some of the dogs walking past them while they walk along the bank of the Missouri river. He’s in the middle of filming a cute corgi puppy when Jason strays from his side to peer at the river over the edge of the bank. Dick follows him through the grass, shifting the focus of the camera between Jason and the slow moving water.
“Why don’t you jump in? You could use a bath,” Dick jokes.
“You first. Age before beauty,” Jason says with a grin that slowly morphs into a look of contemplation. “How deep do you think it is?”
“Right here? Probably about three feet.”
“Not too shabby. Next time we should bring some of those pool floats and let the river carry us around all Huckleberry Finn style.”
Dick huffs out a laugh. “Pretty sure they weren’t floating around on a raft for kicks.”
“Did you read the book?”
“Nope. Saw the movie.”
Jason makes a face. “The book’s better than the movie.”
Dick turns the camera around to face both of them as he slings his arm around Jason’s shoulders. “You like reading, huh? I remember seeing lots of books in your room that time I stopped by.”
Jason looks off to the side shyly. “Yeah, I guess... I—” A dog barking close by makes him pause.
“Cooper! Cooper, get back here!”
Dick and Jason both look over their shoulders at the same time a brown blob excitedly launches itself at their backs. The camera goes flying out of Dick’s hand and tumbles across the grass right as a loud splash is heard.
The camera faces the sky while the microphone picks up Dick’s panicked cry of, “Jason!”
“Oh my god!” a woman yells over the sound of Dick throwing himself into the water. “Cooper!”
Barking. Splashing.
Coughing.
“Holy shit! Are you okay?” Dick asks worriedly.
“I’m fine.” Coughing. “Water went up my nose... but I’m—”
“Is he okay?” the woman asks, voice shrill. “I’m so sorry! Cooper got away from me, and I couldn’t catch him before he—”
Water sloshing. Wet shoes squelching in the grass.
“Maybe he wouldn’t have gotten away from you if he was on a leash like he’s supposed to be,” Dick snarls, his voice much louder now that he’s closer to the camera.
“Dick!” Jason hisses, mortified.
“My brother could have hit his head on the rocks at the bottom of the river!” Dick says.
Barking.
“I’m so sorry!” the woman says, clearly frazzled between dealing with Dick’s hostile tone and her barking dog. “I didn’t bring his leash today, and Cooper was just excited and jumped on him. He’s really a sweet dog, and he loves people. He—”
“It’s okay! I’m okay,” Jason stresses. “Really. Don’t worry about it. No harm done or anything.”
“Yeah, right. No harm done,” Dick says.
“Dick! Shut up!”
Barking.
“I should take him home now and get his leash. I really am sorry if he hurt you at all.”
Grumbling.
“Dick!” Jason hisses again.
The sound of feet crunching through the grass is heard before the camera captures Dick peering down at it with a thunderous expression on his face. Water drips off of his hair and onto the lens.
how do you feel about "I thought you were dead" tropes? 👀
A: Love it. Spend my time combing A03 for it.
I have a monkey brain for anything angsty like this. I also absolutely adore it when other characters are just worried out of their minds for one another. It's the ✨ vulnerability ✨ from both the person who was thought to be dead, and the ones who thought they were dead, that really does it for me. Bonus points if there's an argument before it happens :)
Harry and Ron or James and Sirius lost in the castle “if we find the stairs I’ll be really happy.” For the prompt list.
thank u so much!! I’ve never written Harry and Ron before, so I went with them, but I did end up changing the prompt’s wording a little bit. this was a lot of fun <3
---
“I’m pretty sure if we take the next right we’ll end up in the Great Hall. Like, seventy percent sure,” Harry says, peering down the confusing, unknown hallway he and Ron have found themselves in.
Ron shakes his head. “Isn’t that the door that leads to the hallway by the Ravenclaw Tower?”
“I don’t think so?”
“We won’t know unless we look.”
Harry, who’s feeling well good with his back to the wall and the whole hallway splayed out in front of him, knows he’s probably right. But still, he says, “You go do it then.”
Ron does, stepping up to the door and pulling it open like it’s going to bite him. He looks inside, frowning, then turns to say over his shoulder, “It doesn’t lead anywhere!”
“What?” Harry has to see this for himself—he hurries over and looks past Ron, surprised to find a brick wall matching the rest of the decor. “I could’ve sworn it lead to the Great Hall!”
“Maybe you were thinking of a different one,” Ron says hopefully, opening the nearest door. Thank Merlin he doesn’t try to step past the jamb, because apparently, this one opens to nothing in a different way—right into the open air. The next few doors are classrooms, each one dustier than the last.
Harry finds one that simply won’t open at all, and moves on, fed up with it.
“Where the bloody hell are we?” Ron complains.
A voice from down the hall catches their attention, and they hurry toward it, finding a portrait of a sleepy old wizard hanging there. “The door next to me,” he yawns, “will take you to the dungeons!”
Harry and Ron share a look. Finding the dungeons doesn’t sound great, but at least they’d be able to find their way back from there. “Alright then,” Harry says, eyeing the large wooden door.
He tries the knob, Ron right behind him, and immediately slips head-first down an incredibly dusty slide made of marble or something. Harry isn’t exactly paying attention to that, too busy ranting to himself about wizards having magic and not using it for the important things like dusting.
He slams into a door at the bottom some minutes later, Ron’s weight pressing him even harder into the wood.
“Sorry, mate,” Ron says, pushing himself back with very little success.
Harry mumbles it off, feeling around in the pitch black for the doorknob. Finally finding it, he opens it, preparing himself to hit the ground (and probably be knocked into again by his friend). Except somehow, thankfully, Ron manages to fall over beside him rather than on top of him. They both lay there a moment, staring up at the ceiling— they’re definitely in the dungeons, but Harry couldn’t possibly say where.
“If we could just find the stairs, I would be really happy,” Ron says plainly.
Wishing me a happy bday while sitting in your holding cell, aye? I see how it is! Fine, you can come out and roam in the wild to write your angst fest fics once more. But I’m watching you, Wazowski! Alwaaaays watching!
thanks to the amazing @ckbookish for tagging me! Love you! <3
Name: Aurora
Fandoms: Right now? Batman. When I hyperfixate, I hyperfixate.
Where you post: On AO3
Most popular one-shot: (by kudos)
Overall: If Only Someone Loved You - 509 Kudos
This Year: Also If Only Someone Loved You - Mostly because I never wrote OS before this year
most popular multi-chap: (also by kudos)
Overall: 31 Days of Pain - 907 Kudos
From this year: No Choice At All - 583 Kudos
Favorite story you’ve written so far: That is a very hard question to answer. I can give you three answers:
1. Bring On The Monsters - Because I will always love the fairy tale character of that story
2. Stretch Your Wings And Fly - Because it is the story I needed to write with all my heart.
3. The Sorrows Of Healing - Because it is probably the best thing I have ever written regarding grief.
Fic you were nervous to post: On the one hand the two dark fics I have written... on the other hand A Mirror Turned (Echos of A Shattered Soul) because I worked on that thing for months and I think it is the best thing I have written just... talentwise.
How do you choose your titles: That very much depends on the fic. Most of the time, I am just like: THIS SOUNDS FUN! And without much further ado I slap that title on there, and other times I am in a big brainstorming mood, trying to find something that fits. But it is not usually something I lose my mind over.
Do you outline: That depends... Multi-chaps? Generally yeah. One Shots I mostly write with an idea for the ending in mind (or the middle part) and I just go for it.
Complete: 63
In progress: 5 - but only one of them is abandoned.
Coming soon/not yet started: The next chapter of my long fic (Mirrors Turned), another chapter of One Step At A Time, the Christmas Exchange Fic, and the Kinkmas Exchange fic... Oh! And another chapter of the Space Adventure Fic!
Prompts?: Always - though it can take some time until I actually write them.
Upcoming work you’re most excited about: Hm.... there are many things I am working on... but I am probably most interested in writing my pieces for the Kinkmas Exchange - It is something else, that’s for sure!
Thanks again for tagging, CK! <3
And I would love to get to know @boyblunder-thedarkheir, @agapantoblu, and @why-this-kolaveri-machi and @dustorange with this “interview”! As always no pressure though!
Jin, you constantly amaze me. But this is perhaps the line that killed me more than anything. “He sets the phone down, his chest hurting, and leans forward, his face going into his hands. A moment of weakness, in front of civilians no less, but no one comments on it. Sometimes there's good on Gotham, and it's when they're all suffering together. Waiting room respect. Bruce almost laughs from the hopelessness of it all.” From birds fly in different directions. I just can feel it.
Oh boi Birds Fly In Different Directions huh????? Honestly, that fic was a rant fic pretty much. I was finally caught up on Nightwing comics and then they freaking shoot him in the head. I remember sitting and reading as these new characters all decided to be Nightwing while "Ric" was off being angsty and I absolutely hated it. But I also thought the whole amnesia thing??? Really good idea. They're just doing it all incredibly wrong.
I poured a lot of my best writing into that fic. I really sat down for hours editing and re editing and rewriting and it pains me to say that it's gonna stay on hiatus for awhile. I got tired of the constant hate in the fandom and I didn't want to contribute to it and just decided to write what was already good and loved. Maybe I'll pick it up again, because the whole Joker and Punchline thing is pissing me off again.
Im happy you liked that line though!! It was very fun to write, the hopelessness of Bruce's situation and the fear. How good can be found in the worst cities if you look in a hospital waiting room.
