Memorials (or The Lack Thereof)

Memorials (or the lack thereof)

*tiptoes in* Hi. Don’t hit me for not posting a fic please :). Heres one. You can also check out the one that I posted on Aug. 20th. Here’s the angsty Steph I promised in that fic. 

Stephanie knows they doubt her. She knows that they didn’t particularly care about her, that she’s just a suit warmer. 

(She cracks slightly, but marches on.) 

 Steph ignores the way Batman always glowers whenever he comes into the cave to find her training. She ignores the mistrust in Tim’s eyes, always trying to force her into the back seat.

 (She watches from afar as the Wayne Manor lit up in lights for Christmas, a party she wasn’t even told about, much less than invited to.) 

 Stephanie doesn’t miss the way Dick glares at her, disliking the fact that it was her in the suit, not Barbara. Barbara stares distastefully from a distance, not liking how Steph couldn’t be controlled. 

 (Steph picked the short straw again, shivering in the rain as she patrols in the rain. Contrary to a heavy belief, rainfall was the most preferred planning time for criminals. She knows, her dad was one.)

 She soldiers through Damian’s insults over how inadequate she was, ignores his barbs of “Fatgirl”. 

 (She watches on in the shadows when the Batfamily express their distaste for her as they almost beg Cass to come back as Batgirl. She almost wishes she said yes.) 

 Jason sits at the sidelines staring at her with pity. She makes sure to beat it all out the next time they spar, not stopping until that pity was replaced with respect. 

 (By now, Steph is so ruined that she is covered in long, chunky cracks. Parts of her are falling apart, and duct tape is finally deemed necessary.) 

 Alfred gazes on cooly, always too busy with the other boys cuts and bruises to focus on her own. 

(Thankfully she’s studying medicine in Uni, and at Leslie’s.) 

 Stephanie replaces her open eyed cowl with the much more useful ones of night vision. 

 (She had to work several shift to buy those. Steph doesn’t even bother asking Bruce, she already knows the answer to that.)

 She never receives a com.

 (It took months more for her to finally find the time to hack the police radios. Stephanie listens from there.) 

Stephanie was never in the loop of information. 

 (The lack of comradeship is what lead Steph to her end.)

 Barbara sends out a notice to not patrol. After all, the rain was too terrible for any activity. No one thinks to warn Steph. 

 (Across town, Steph suits up, ready for another night of patrol. She jumps out the window, leaving her house.) 

 She doesn’t come back. 

 (Ra’s spots her and alerts the rest of criminal underworld.) 

She didn’t know. 

 (Joker doesn’t laugh with much vulgar as he swiped at her. Even the clown doesn’t think her a worthy opponent.)

 She gave it her all. 

 (It wasn’t enough.) 

 She radioed for help. 

 (No one answered. Steph knocked out Harley.) 

 She fought well. 

 (The growing pile of villains rectified that statement.) 

 She charges forward valiantly. 

 (Ra’s slips out from behind her. He leaves a gift.) 

 She gains hope. 

 (She doesn’t notice the ticking bomb behind her.) 

She dives for the Joker. 

 (She never reached her target.) 

 The explosion ends it all. 

 (She makes sure it takes half of the criminal masterminds with her.) 

 She had taken down a good portion of the criminals before the bomb finishes it all. 

 (No one found her body until the morning.) 

 Stephanie Brown was dead. 

 (She wasn’t given a memorial.)

Aquaman (No, Never)

2009

“What are you going to do for Halloween?” Steph mused as she leaned back on the roof, glancing over towards the boy sitting next to her.

“Too much work. No time for trick or treating, Gotham will blow up that day.” Steph’s jaw dropped.

“Skipping free candy? Are you crazy? Do you not know the amount of people who will be dressing up as a super villain? As you? Come on, you gotta.”

Robin just shook his head.

Steph just rolled her eyes and continued, ignoring the previous comments. “You should go as Superman! Or maybe Green Lantern!”

A mischievous sparkle suddenly entered her eye.

“Or,” her voice drops and Tim glances at her. “Aquaman.”

Tim starts laughing, and she feels a hot glow of warmth inside her.

That day, Steph had promised herself that she will get to see him in an Aquaman costume.

2010

Steph swings over to the window of the Drake house proudly, excited to show Tim her newest achievement. She couldn’t believe Batman actually agreed to letting her become Robin! It was the best Halloween costume ever.

She knocks on the window, and the shape on the bed rolls over, eyes nearly popping out of their sockets.

“Steph?” He hisses, opening the window. “What are you doing in that costume?”

Something is wrong. His tone isn’t right. Why wasn’t he proud of her? Why wasn’t he celebrating with her? It was a huge step forward, that Batman actually trusted her, enough to be Robin!

“I’m Robin now! Aren’t you proud of me?” His eyes harden, and Steph knew she said the wrong thing.

“You’re only going to get yourself killed.” He snaps, and slams the window back down.

Heavy-heartedly, she turns away and slowly trudges home.

2011

Steph rolled over on her bed in Africa and sighs. No, today she will not dress up. The costume will only succeed in ruining her good progress.

She looks again at the picture of her and Tim, before shifting her blankets, and tries to sleep.

2012

Steph jumps from roof to roof, laughing exhilaratingly. This was so much better than candy. She can almost see why Tim had wanted to skip trick or treating for this.

“Hey.” And speak of the devil.

“Hey.” She stopped, eyes moving through the shadows until she found him.

It had been awkward between them. They had come to some kind of agreement over the past few months, but things were still shaky. They didn’t know how to act around each other anymore.

“So I guess I can’t convince you to wear an Aquaman costume, can I?” She said finally.

“No, never.” He says, and they laugh.

Stephanie Brown and her Adventurous Adventures of Sass

It had first started as a complete accident. Stephanie was only trying to say bat-attitude.

With a messed up nose. And a concussion.

What had came out was ‘battitude’.

Her concussed mind had latched onto it, and the more she debated over it, the more she liked it.

Bat attitude was just so hard to say, and it just didn’t roll off the tongue smoothly like battitude did.

It wasn’t just a normal attitude, it was a battitude.

Steph liked it.

The first time Steph purposely used it on someone it had stunned Tim into complete silence.

It had started again with usual ‘no Steph you’re going to get yourself hurt’ 'Steph I have to protect you’ blah blah blah.

“I’m sorry I can’t hear you over your battitude.” She snapped before storming out, silence following her.

Superboy had laughed for hours when she told him and Bart.

The next time she used it, she almost thought that they’d forget to breathe because they were laughing too hard.

When she heard, or rather sensed, Nightwing coming up behind her, she mentally sighed in relief. Because Nightwing happened to be the number on supporter of her and Tim’s relationship, and was always ready to do just about whatever to get his favorite couple back together.

Which meant he usually gave great advice towards Steph, sabotaged Tim’s uniform when she pulled the distress card well enough, and was just the absolute best.

That time Tim’s costume shrunk in the wash wasn’t a complete accident…

“So what was it this time?” Dick asked as he settled down beside her on the edge of the roof.

“Just Tim being his stupid self with his dumb battitude.” It had taken all but three seconds for Dick to start laughing beside her.

“Gotta remember that one.” He said, almost snorting. “Battitude.”

She could hear Barbara in her ear too, letting out a chuckle.

Next time she used it, she managed to shut the brat up for a good ten seconds.

They had been in the batcave, Steph on the computer and Damian sparring, when he brought up her chest size again.

“You have a little something there.” She replies, gesturing at his face, chest, feet, and everything in between. “It’s called your battitude.”

By now, battitude was slowly spreading.

When she used it again, Cass couldn’t breathe and Jason had encouraged her.

It was one of those few and rare days where Gotham was quiet, peaceful and tranquil. Only the minor criminals were out, committing small acts of vandalism.

She had been regaling Cass and Jason with her stories of slapping members of the batfamily, when she let battitude slip out.

Cass choked and Jason sniggered.

“Make sure to use it on the boss man alright?” He tossed out on his way out to take care of an amateur robber.

Finally, finally, she used it on the big man himself, the one and only Batman.

It had been the usual “You can’t listen to orders Steph, pay attention Steph, stop being so reckless Steph’ type thing when she finally snapped. She drew herself up to her full height, blue eyes narrowed dangerously at Bruce.

Alfred casually called down all batfamily members.

“You know what?” She snarled, jabbing her finger into Batman’s armored chest. She hid her wince.

Jason held his breath in anticipation and Tim stared worriedly at her.

“I’m growing sick of you, and your battitude.”

Tim raised his eyebrows, and Dick started snickering. Jason wolf-whistled, causing Tim to glare at him. Damian stared unimpressed, and Barbara suppressed a smile. Cass stared at the scene and Alfred calmly continued sweeping, eyes dancing with mirth.

Batman was stunned into submission that night.

Heart's a Mosaic, Body's a Painting

Stephanie had no problem putting batboys in their place. She slapped Batman for goodness sake, even Jason Todd knew not to mess with her.

Well, all batboys except for her ex. And Damian Wayne on a rampage.

For example, “Father, why must I always patrol with that incompetent oaf, Drake. I wish to be partnered with Grayson.”

And boom. Here she is now, squeezed in a gargoyle sandwich with her ex on a roof.

Oh patrol is lovely. The criminals were determined to smash them in the a pulp, the view was smoggy, terrible, and smoggy, and her partner.

Well her partner.

Her partner was only stonily ignoring her.

Five out of five stars. Would recommend.

“Hey, where are you-”

She swore silently, getting up to follow him. Partners, huh. Could’ve fooled her.

Batgirl landed onto the first thug and showed the second one her fist. There was a satisfying crack! and Steph imagined Tim was there instead.

She ziptied the last guys before looking up and swearing again. Someone had to introduce Red Robin the meaning of partners before she introduced him to her fist.

“Alright, maybe I’m missing something here, but I’m pretty sure partners suggest working together, which you have not…”

She falters when he walks over to her.

“You got hurt,” he says quietly, checking her shoulder.

She flushes, and braces herself for the reprimanding soon to come because shit it was a pretty rookie mistake.

“It’s pretty deep. Let’s go back so we can stitch that up.”

Steph’s head snaps up. No scolding? No lecturing? Had she made that mistake way back then as Spoiler, Tim would’ve already been through his fifth lecture about how she wasn’t ready.

But as they were heading back, Stephanie only had one thought left.

This wasn’t a good idea.

“So,” She says when they’re out of the uniforms and he’s almost done stitching her up and too close too close too close. “Think that’ll leave a big scar?”

“I doubt it. People probably won’t even notice it,” he says, finally done. Steph gets up and inspects the stitches.

“You’re just jealous.”

He rolled his eyes.

“As if,” he says, lifting his shirt. Half of Steph cheers yay six pack! While the other half calmly tells them that it’s nothing new and she can go look at her Shirtless Tim folder later.

Tim points out a long puckered scar. “Poison Ivy gave me that when I got too close to one of her “babies”.

Steph can practically feel the tension between them melting away.

She rolled her eyes. “That little thing? Please. I got this,” she says pointing out the jagged scar on her thigh.

“I got this from breaking up a gang fight.”

He rolled up his sleeve.

“Got this from fending off a hallucinating Batman.

"Bullet wound.”

“Knife wound from Joker.”

“Penguin got overexcited with the katana he found.

"Shrapnel after Harley decided blowing things up was fun.”

She stands up, pushing her hair to the side to reveal the jagged scar stretching across her neck.

“I got this in that encounter with Black Mask. Really makes it hard to wear my hair up…” She stops talking when she’s aware of his presence right behind her.

A tender hand carefully brushes a few excess tendrils of hair aside, and her body tingled from the feather-light touch.

A hand trails across the scar on the back of her neck, tracing it’s shape, and the previous carefree air was casted away.

Steph stopped breathing when she felt a gentle kiss pressed against her scar, over and over again until he covers the entire scar. By the time he’s done, she’s completely tense, jaw clenched shut, nails digging into her palms.

“I know I’ve messed up, but do you think we can, you know…” Tim trails off, stepping away. “Can we… try again?”

Stephanie only allowed herself a second to think before turning around and draping her arms around him.

“Depends. Have you got a scar that beats mine?

As it turns out, he did.

Two Peas in a Pod

A year of Bricktotheface, a year of this blog. Thank you to everyone who have read, and hopefully enjoyed, my stories. This is the second medieval au that none of you asked for. 

War had weathered all of them, Tim noticed. A war with another country was bad. A war within your own country was worse.

But that’s what’s happening in the kingdom of Gotham, as the insane stood themselves up and informed the royals they intended to rule.

He watched King Bruce bear it out for a while, before finally conceding to Richard’s pleas on asking for assistance.

He reached out to the sister kingdom Bludhaven, to the twin queens Dinah and Barbara. Negotiations for an alliance were to begin.

Tim will admit, Bludhaven was a smart tactical choice. They had an infamous, elusive group of independent elite soldiers, as well as multiple connections. Queen Dinah herself was betrothed to King Oliver of the Starling Kingdom, and the soldiers were a force to be reckoned with, part of the royal family themselves. Their army was astounding too. They didn’t tell him much, only that the alliance was going to come in the form of a betrothal.

He saw Richard’s worried eyes and panicked. Bruce wouldn’t marry his heir out would he? Not when he promised them all a chance for true love that he had received himself.

Tim worried as the date that one of the soldiers would arrive came closer and closer…

Until the day came.

“Knight Brown requests entry to negotiate alliances between the kingdom of Bludhaven and the sister Gotham,” A herald announced, nervousness shown as he is face to face with the royal family of the dark Kingdom.

“Send him in.” Bruce commanded.

“But Your Majesty-”

“Send him in.”

Richard sends a look toward Bruce, a reminder to be kind, and Jason stops lounging, sitting straight up. Tim too, was curious as too what the knight looked like.

They were stunned when the a blonde in dark armor walks in, purple accents showing her rank. Not him. Her.

Jason’s eyes are bugging out, Richard’s eyebrows raised, and Bruce’s lips thinned. Tim just stares.

She was beautiful.

The woman drops into a graceful curtesy. Tim wonders if an angel from Heaven itself has decided to come down and greet them. Bruce dips his head in greeting, and they all get up, bowing to the princessknightsoldier representative from Bludhaven. He can see Bruce’s disapproval all through the polite negotiations and finds himself shocked. The knight was perfect, how dare he disapprove. Tim barely pays attention, eyes lingering on the woman as she talks, barely keeping a straight face when she flashes a smile at him.

She was radiant.

Tim wonders if she would be the one for him. He resolved to do his best to get to know her, have her get to know him.

She smiles a lot. Her face lights up when she smiles. She’s delightful. She makes funny remarks. She’s everything they hoped for. She’s everything they needed. She’s everything they wanted.

She’s absolutely amazing.

He kisses her hand softly when they’re introduced. He straightens up-

And forgets where he was. Her eyes, they were stunning, sparkling, amazing. Right there and then, he decides to court her.

Failed Infiltration

Hint, I may have already written part 2, 3,4,5 and 6 to this and I MIGHT post them, but hey who knows.

So I love y'all and I wish you all a happy day and if it’s your birthday today happy birthday (Demi Lovato I’m looking at you) and I hope you enjoy!)

Stephanie Brown examined her new partner in interest. Tall, strong, and very broody, glaring at everyone and everything. This was the one the League of Assassins assigned as her partner?

His fashion sense was horrible, and his cowl looked utterly ridiculous. What did Ra’s even see in him?

Her costume is more tasteful, with dark purple, and a full face mask. Purple contacts covered her usual blue eyes, and her hood on her cloak was up. Definitely more fashionable than Mr. Dark and Broody over there.

However, she couldn’t deny that he had more toys and was well trained, evident from the way he moved.

“So whatcha call yourself?” She said casually, as to not provoke him anymore than she already has. Early she poked fun at his costume and was pinned with a glare that would’ve made a lesser whimper. But Stephanie was no lesser, and the glare was nothing more than a passing itch. Still, it wouldn’t be productive for there to be hostilities between them on their first mission.

“Red Robin.” He said shortly.

“He talks!” She announced dramatically. “Hey, wait isn’t there a little urchin running around in Gotham dressed in traffic light colors calling himself Robin?”

“Shouldn’t you be less talkative?” He seemed tense at all the questions.

“And word on the street is,” she continues,“the urchin is the Lady’s son.” By now Red Robin is definitely annoyed, trying to glare daggers into her. So much for not pissing him off.

“And who are you?” He says, sounding quite emotionless despite his obvious agitation. She was impressed. It was not easy to accomplish such an emotionless voice, especially when one is angry.

“Orchid.”

“The Amethyst Killer?” He asked. She watched him shift and examine her with a new interest. “Shiva’s favorite and most prized apprentice?” Stephanie nodded.

“I expected you to be… More professional.” Her head snapped over. Did he just accuse her of being unprofessional? How dare he insult her in such a way? This time, it was Orchid’s turn to glare coldly onto him.

“At least I don’t look like I have a condom head.” She snapped before mentally gasping. How could she lose her cool?

Orchid took her eyes off Red Robin, and suddenly leapt forward as their targets appeared.

They could bond later, right now she had a job to do. Young Justice was not going to mess with the Light’s meeting. Not this time. Not with her around.