batfam x fantastic four x ultimate spider-man x spider-girl reader
the air in gotham smelled of rain, jet fuel, and exhaust. the breeze was heavy with jet fuel and damp concrete. the 6 year old (name) found that out as she was getting off the plane. she thought the netherlands to be a better place than this sulfurous gothic metropolis.
the air stung her eyes โ she rubbed at her watering eyes. she could not see a thing. her breath becoming shallow as she tried not to allow pungent smell into her lungs.
eight hours on a plane, and this was where she'd ended up. what a shithole.
rolling suitcases rattled across the floor as voices echoed through the terminal in a language she couldn't understand. boarding announcements crackled over the speakers while babies cried and children laughed somewhere nearby.
the airport buzzed with people coming and going, yet she'd never felt more alone.
โ(name)? come on, letโs go! iโm sure your guardian would be worried if you stayed here any longer!โ a kind eyed flight attendant called in dutch.
(name) liked this lady โ she gave her sweets and cake through the long flight and gave her free wifi. though a old man with a belly bigger than his suitcase complained about everything the young girl did.
โcoming!โ she ran towards the lady, she dusted off her clothes before running after the flight attendant. the 6 year old ran as hard as she could, which wasnโt much.
finally she caught up with the lady, her breath ragged. โik haat dit.โ her voice monotone, lips being too pout.
โhere. this is where you have to wait for your guardian to come pick you up. iโm very sorry i cannot stayโ i have to go do my work.โ (name) was sad, she had to go. sheโd rather stay with this lady then go to strangers.
the lady gave (name) one last pat on the head before walking away. โbye..โ (name) spoke. that was the only word of english she knew besides the common greetings.
sighing heavily, (name) unfixed her posture. she remembered her mother tried to teach her english though it failed miserably. a funny moment became of that.
the cold wind whipped against (name)โs bare face as passengers walked past her. the young girl wasn't stupid. she could understand bits and pieces of englishโjust not enough to speak it.
she scanned the crowd. somewhere beyond all these strangers was the person she'd be living with.
there were families reuniting everywhere she looked. children ran into their parents' arms, couples embraced after days apart, and friends laughed as they wheeled their suitcases towards the exit.
she had no one to run to.
well... someone eventually stepped forward.
he was tall. ridiculously tall. dressed in a black overcoat with neatly combed dark hair, looking far too serious to be picking up a six-year-old from the airport.
"...(name) parker?" he asked carefully.
she blinked. nothing. right. he'd forgotten. she didn't speak english.
the silence stretched between them before another man stepped beside him. older. grey-haired. kind eyes. he offered her a warm smile before speaking.
"goedemiddag, juffrouw parker."
(name)'s eyes widened. "...u spreekt nederlands?"
"a little," the older man admitted with an apologetic smile. "i'm afraid i'm rather out of practice."
she didn't care. it was enough.
"mr. wayne is your guardian," he explained gently, gesturing towards the taller man beside him. "my name is alfred pennyworth. i am now your butler as i am to mr wayne."
(name) looked up at the man called bruce wayne. he looked... awkward. like he wasn't sure what he was supposed to do.
she understood that feeling. "...hello," he tried again.
"...i'll take that as progress," he muttered.
alfred hid a smile. the older man reached down and picked up her little backpack before offering her his hand. "shall we?"
(name) looked at his hand for a long moment before taking it. it was warm.
outside, gotham was even greyer than she'd imagined.
rain drizzled from the sky, coating the streets in a dull sheen as yellow taxis splashed through puddles. towering buildings seemed to swallow the little patches of daylight left between them.
"does it always look like this?" she asked quietly in dutch.
alfred chuckled. "always."
a long black car waited at the curb. its door opened before anyone touched it.
"technology," bruce answered automatically.
she didn't understand the word. she climbed inside anyway. the drive was quiet. (name) pressed her forehead against the cool window, watching gotham blur past. people hurried beneath umbrellas. police cars sped through intersections. graffiti covered brick walls.
everywhere she looked felt... tired. she missed home. she missed her mother humming while making breakfast. she missed her father's terrible jokes. she missed hearing dutch everywhere she went.
in fact she missed everything but somehow without realising it, she'd fallen asleep.
"(name)." a gentle voice stirred her awake. she rubbed her eyes. the car wasn't moving anymore. she looked out of the window. her mouth fell open.
wayne manor stood behind enormous iron gates, surrounded by towering trees that stretched towards the cloudy sky, guarded by trees that reached for the sky as far as the eye could see.
it looked less like a house and more like the castles she'd seen in storybooks.
"...people live here?" she whispered.
"are you surprised?," alfred replied not mockingly.
the front doors opened before they even reached them. the entrance hall was bigger than her entire home back in the netherlands; marble floors, towering staircases, paintings that seemed to watch her walk past.
she instinctively stepped closer to alfred. he noticed. he slowed his pace so she wouldn't feel left behind.
bruce noticed too. he wasn't sure why it bothered him.
"i'll show you your room," alfred said.
they climbed what felt like a thousand stairs before stopping outside a white door. alfred pushed it open.
soft afternoon light spilled through tall windows.
there was a neatly made bed, bookshelves waiting to be filled, a wooden desk, a small stuffed lion sitting neatly against the pillows, and a little blue-and-white delftware windmill resting on the windowsill.
it didn't feel like someone else's room. it felt like someone had been waiting for her.
"if there is anything you need," alfred said softly, "all you have to do is ask."
(name) stepped inside slowly. her backpack slipped from her shoulder and landed on the floor with a quiet thud. she turned in a slow circle, taking everything in.
it was beautiful. it wasn't home. butโฆ for the first time since the plane crashโฆ she thought maybe it could be.
the room was quiet. too quiet.
(name) stood beside her suitcase, looking out the window at the endless grey trees surrounding wayne manor. a knock sounded against the half-open door.
before she could turn around, someone walked in. he looked older than her.
maybe thirteen. maybe fourteen.
a piece of white was missing from his smile where one of his front teeth had chipped. "hey."
(name) blinked. "...hello."
the boy's eyebrows shot up. "you know english?"
he scratched the back of his neck. "i'm jason but you can call me jay."
"yeah... forgot." he sighed dramatically before pointing at himself. "jason." then he pointed at her. "(name)?"
she nodded. his face lit up.
"cool! see? we're already communicating."
(name) had absolutely no idea what he'd just said. jason looked around the room before spotting the stuffed bear on the bed. he picked it up.
he held the lion above his head. "name him."
"no?" he made the lion wave at her.
"hello." she couldn't help it. the corners of her mouth twitched. it wasn't quite a smile. but it was close.
jason noticed immediately. "there it is!"
she blinked. he'd said too many words again. walking over, she gently took the bear from his hands.
jason laughed. "i just got here!"
she looked at him with the most serious expression a six-year-old could manage. "...bye."
"...am i getting kicked out?"
a voice cleared from the doorway. "master jason." alfred stood with his hands folded behind his back.
"i believe miss parker has had quite an exhausting day."
"...yeah." jason rubbed the back of his neck. "sorry."
he looked back at (name). "i'll see you tomorrow, okay?"
she didn't understand. but she recognized one word. tomorrow. instead, she gave him a tiny wave. "...bye."
jason grinned. "bye, kid."
as the door closed behind him, (name) looked down at the stuffed lion in her arms. for the first time that day...
wayne manor didn't feel quite as empty.
@bath1lda @dreamayy @ot8srzlover @600bears @leahgokam @nisarelle @songsofvenus @jazz7jazz @angelangeliki @gothamaftermidnight @juninnyxriddle @icenspice @hilaryinumaki1
tumblr wouldnโt allow me tag other people in my comments and i donโt know why so can someone help me and tell me why? ๐ญ
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