Untitled

https://archiveofourown.org/works/88457076

Title: The Prison of No Escape

Rating: Teen

Archive warning: Creator chose not to use archive warnings

Category: Gen

Relationships: Clark Kent & Bruce Wayne, Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne

Characters: Clark Kent, Bruce Wayne

Tags: angst, pre-relationship, pre-Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne, feelings realization, mild hurt/comfort, by which I mean a lot of hurt and mild comfort, comic: superman: red & blue (2021), comic arc: world's finest (1941) #192-193, canon related, cold war, Bruce Wayne is bad at feelings, this is a rough one and it doesn't end as happily as I planned, so don't say I didn't warn you if it hurts you, references to torture but no on-page depiction, references to starvation

Summary:

I’m Superman, right? Superman’s invulnerable. Superman can survive anything.

That was the lie I told myself every night.

- Superman: Red & Blue #1

When Clark is taken captive in the Soviet state of Lubania during the Cold War, Bruce takes it upon himself to save his friend. It takes eight excruciating months of heartache until he finally succeeds. But once Clark is safe, Bruce must come to terms with the fact that even for Superman, the scars of trauma don’t fade easily.

Batgirl (2000) #28

Capes are too dangerous (the Edna Mode argument)

Cape can get caught on things (e.g. branches, mechanical doors, exposed sharp objects)

Heavy capes can reduce mobility (e.g. weighing them down when running and climbing) and get in the way

Capes can be grabbed by an enemy to choke or restrain the wearer

Capes can increase visibility (especially for flying heroes when contrasted with the sky)

Capes can lead to instability and loss of balance at high speeds

Capes can be tactical (the Batman argument)

Capes can conceal movement, making attacks hard to read

Capes give the wearer a dramatic silhouette that can intimidate criminals

Capes can be used as a weapon or tool in a fight (e.g. using it to obstruct an opponents vision, distract them, wrap around a weapon to disarm, or cause an opponent to flinch or create distance)

Capes can be reinforced to provide some small amount of protection against weapons

Capes can be modified into a glider, parachute, or other tool

Capes can obscure body shape to protect secret identities

Capes can provide basic weather protection by using waterproofing for rain or insulation for the cold.

And now for the poll:

Which argument about superhero capes do you find more compelling?

Edna Mode argument

Batman argument

I am allergic to taking sides

Nightwing (2016) #112

Batman and Robin: Year One #2

Robin (1993) #77

A lot of high control groups use this tactic to isolate their members. It’s absolutely not just evangelizing Christians. New age wellness cults often encourage their members to make outlandish and offensive accusations regarding the mental and physical health of other people or their children, because they know that the backlash their members receive will reinforce the idea that the “mainstream” simply has no room for people who like crystals and essential oils. White supremacist cults will seed the vocabulary of new recruits with Nazi dog whistles that fly over those recruits heads, specifically so that they will get clocked as possible neo-Nazis and shunned by anyone who might offer them another perspective and help them to get out before it’s too late. And a lot of left-leaning political cults strongly encourage members to share their views in the most inflammatory ways possible, and then say “you see? everyone outside of this small circle is evil and cannot be relied on” when, inevitably, that produces bad results.

Sometimes I think that activists fall into these patterns completely accidentally, either because they were raised in culturally Christian evangelical environments and never unpacked it, or else because they just aren’t any good at approaching things in a non-inflammatory way and no one’s shown them how.

…But sometimes, these structures emerge in activist circles because those circles are legitimately becoming high control groups.

I think some things to watch out for especially in this regard are:

Are you being directed to behave in an extremely hostile and alienating way? (even if it’s by someone who you trust!)

Does the group you are in immediately shut down any conversation about the effectiveness of an antagonistic strategy? In particular, do they shut that conversation down using in-group stock phrases?

Is experiencing harsh rejection seen as something of a rite of passage?

Do you receive more validation from the group you are in after you have been rejected by someone outside the group than at any other time?

Have you ever been concerned that the antagonistic strategy you are using hurt someone you cared about, only to be quickly advised by members of the group that that person was toxic and that you should actually completely cut them out of your life?

These to me are all pretty significant red flags about the group in question, whatever the specific thing that brings people together there is. If you start noticing them in a group that you are a part of, be that an in-person activist circle or a Discord server or anything in between, take a step back and seriously consider the possibility that the good thing that you joined is turning into something different, and possibly dangerous.

Ok, I actually want to talk about this for a moment.

Jonestown, one of the most infamous cults in history, with a mass suicide / mass murder that left more than 900 people dead of cyanide poisoning, hundreds of whom were children… was a leftist political cult. That fact is an unambiguous and completely undebatable matter of historical record.

This isn’t a footnote in the story of Jonestown, and it isn’t a weird anti-leftist gotcha either. Jonestown attracted people to their cause with anti-segregation and anti-poverty activist work, and they did actual, meaningful good for those causes. The People’s Temple was a leftist org, unambiguously. They created mutual aid networks for food aid, and rent assistance, and job placement services, and clothing donations, and winter heating. They leaned heavily on the Indianapolis Human Rights Commission in order to push desegregation, and led sit-ins and boycotts and protests. They participated in significant voter registration efforts. They led the fight against the eviction of tenants from San Francisco's International Hotel.

People joined The People’s Temple because it was a good thing when they joined it. They didn’t start out as brainwashed cultists, and they didn’t gravitate towards the leadership of Jim Jones out of masochism, or inherent submissiveness, or a perverse love of creeping authoritarianism. They fell in line under Jim Jones because he’d built a community that was genuinely helping people, and was advancing a political cause that seemed worth fighting. They followed Jim Jones because he earned their trust.

Jim Jones then used the trust and the social capital that he had gained from all of the above in order to elevate himself to the status of a messianic figure, and abuse and profit off of his followers. Slowly but surely, he boiled the frog. It was all good – and then it was mostly good – and then, well there was some abuse, but it wasn’t that bad, and it wasn’t really his fault – and then there was a lot of abuse, but the outside world would destroy them if given the chance, so wasn’t it the lesser of the two evils? And then, eventually, it got so bad that hundreds of people poisoned themselves and their children at his command, and murdered everyone in the compound who refused and resisted.

Your cause of choice is not immune from abusers taking advantage of it!

It doesn’t matter if you’re right. It doesn’t matter if your cause is just. It does not matter if your good thing really is a good thing, because there is always the possibility that it will one day be co-opted by a monster. And if the fact that it started good is enough for you to ignore that gradual, subtle change, you could end up in a truly horrible situation.

One of my best friends in undergrad got sucked into a cult. Years later, we talked about it, and he told me something that I’ll never forget which is, it’s only when you look all the way back at things that they seem crazy. You start off with things that are totally normal and innocuous: “we’re stronger together”; “oppression is bad”; “you can accomplish more if you believe in yourself”; “empathy is important and we should all try to bring more of it into our lives”; etc. Then, you move to something that’s just a little step away from that. And then again. And then again. And then again. But it never feels like a big jump, because it’s not! A -> Z is crazy, but A -> B wasn’t, and B -> C wasn’t, and C -> D wasn’t, and…

This friend was smart, and rational, and independent, and normal, and by the time he and his wife left, they’d gone from just thinking that we should all practice more emotional mindfulness, to being terrified that leaving the cult and the cult leader would literally kill them, via the cult leader having magical powers.

If your only analysis is “Where I started was good, and no single step since then has been crazy” that is utterly insufficient to keep you safe.

“B, why don’t we take a break.” Clark drummed his fingers softly on the desk, watching as Bruce used his entire hand to type on the phone screen propped up in front of him.

Bruce made a small hum, the barest acknowledgement that he heard Clark say something to him, but not necessarily that he had listened. He continued to type, his whole body poised like he was in a boxing match so he could hit each letter as fast as his body would let him. It was cute, but when Bruce had been doing it for so long, it started to become something else.

“Bruce,” Clark said his name again, and this time, there was a pause in his typing.

“I don’t need a break, Clark. What would I even do?”

“You’d do nothing. That’s the point of taking a break, B – Doing nothing.” 

“I don’t want to do nothing,” Bruce growled, resuming his typing.

“Do you want to be doing this either?” Clark raised an eyebrow.

“What do you think?” Bruce snarled back, slapping his hand down on the next letter with far more force than necessary.

Clark was silent for a minute, watching as Bruce continued to slap away at the screen, brow furrowed and mouth drawn in a tight frown. Even at this size, Clark was able to see how pale he was, how the skin of his face seemed to want to sink towards his bones. There were bags under his eyes and a tremor to his movements.

“I think-” Clark began, reaching a hand forward to tip the phone flat and pull it away. “-that you’re hungry.”

Bruce chased after the phone for a few steps but quickly tired and slowed to a stop. Clark couldn’t help but smile at the side eye Bruce shot him before crossing his arms with a huff.

“I guess I could eat.”

“Good, now c’mere.” Clark grinned as he reached for Bruce, quietly delighting at the way he let himself be picked up so readily.

He cupped Bruce in his palm, waiting for him to settle and recline against the curve of his fingers. Bruce reached up for Clark’s index finger as he lowered it towards him, crooked just so, to give him good access to the meat of its side. He noticed the small pinprick of Bruce’s bite less than the soft hum he let out against his skin, the slight warmth of his mouth on the side of his finger as he softly suckled against his skin.

Bruce shifted restlessly as he continues to drink, face steadily flushing with color until he’s rosy with it. Clark gently brushed his thumb over Bruce’s body, feeling how warm he has grown, how soft he feels all full of blood, his blood. Bruce panted when he drew back from Clark’s finger, eyes half closed, squirming to find a position that is more comfortable for his full tummy but still allows him to lap at the pinpricks he left behind, gentle kitten-licks to sooth and thank Clark for sharing with him. Clark’s favorite part about Bruce being this size was how full he gets with his feedings, how drowsy and blood-drunk he grows. 

He curled into Clark’s palm, huffing and grunting as he searched for a position to support the weight in his tummy, small hands reaching out to grasp onto Clark’s fingers and hold them close. He kept rubbing him with his thumb, loving the feel of the flushed, full body beneath his finger as Bruce lazily pressed kisses to wherever he could reach. 

When he felt Bruce’s movements slow to a stop, chest slowly rising and falling with each deep breath, Clark brought his hand close to his chest, knowing that Bruce always slept better near the sound of his heart, and floated them to their bedroom to sleep. Bruce would surely complain about the length of their break when he woke up, but Clark knew that it was all a cover for how much he had enjoyed himself. 

Please, keep an eye out for yourself, your loved ones, and your neighbors. Know what rights you have if you are stopped or even detained, citizen or not, because they don’t care.

here is a link to the Native American Rights Foundation with information about what you can do if you are approached by ICE at home, at work, in your car, in public, if you are under the age of 18, as well as listing some of your rights when you have even when you are detained.

and

here is a link to the ACLU's Immigrant's Rights page with information about your rights and how to express them in multiple scenarios including being stopped by ICE while in transit, if you need a lawyer, what to do if you are detained while your immigration case is underway, and challenging a deportation order.

Via @rajaeen1 in Instagram

screenshot of an instagram post by @/rajaeen1 that reads "In the Genocide I lived in a tent unfit even for a dog so, the world rushed to rescue the dog, not me!

I shared my story a year ago with this very loyal dog friend.

Oh, how lucky this dog is. The story went viral in Arabic and international magazines, and was read by more than 5 million people around the world. The story was translated into seven different languages.

At the time, an organization working in the field of animal rights from the Ireland capital, Dublin, contacted me. They wanted to ensure the dog's health and living conditions in the tent we were living in together. I sent the photos, and afterward, I received a great amount of sympathy and a huge emotional response. They seriously began exploring options to evacuate the dog from the Gaza Strip through licensed institutions.

They wanted a better life, a cleaner place, and a wider sky for the dog

Oh my God! no one even pointed out to me!

I was the one living in a tent unfit for even a dog to live in.

From there it's not actually difficult to get the other soldiers onboard with covering up the fact that poor Ping took one for the team and got afflicted by the vagina curse, especially since it would have been all of them if they hadn't gotten the warning ahead of time. So they agree to help him cover it up, because obviously the army's not going to understand.

Mulan: Uh, what boobs? Huh? Where did these come from?

Mushu: *facepalms and thinks quickly* (speaks from the shadows) I AM THE SPIRIT OF THE LAKE! BEWARE MY CURSED WATERS FOR THEY WILL TURN MEN INTO WOMEN!

Mulan: Look-

Ling, Yao, and Chien Po: WE CAN EXPLAIN!!

[One convoluted, chaotic explanation later]

Shang: ...is this why you've all been insisting we don't camp anywhere that doesn't have a lake.

Shang: and then none of you actually swim in it.

Shang: and you all keep jumping at shadows.

Shang: wait a second Ping did this happen before or after you became insanely good at fighting?

Shang: did you get better at fighting after you became a woman.

Shang: are women better at fighting than us.

Mulan: ....uh. well. maybe? no one's ever tried to find out.

Yao: [thinking very fast] y'know Captain it's just so hard to find recruits these days.

Chien Po: Real shortage of men.

Ling: Lots of women, though.

Mulan: [catching on] Without marriage prospects.

Shang: You're right, men. The spirits must have done this in order to show us that we should be recruiting women as fighters.

Mushu [from the shadows, seeing an opportunity to do the funniest thing]: EXACTLY, LI SHANG. I HAVE TRANSFORMED PING INTO A WOMAN BECAUSE YOU HAVE TOO LONG OVERLOOKED THE TRUE WAY TO WIN THE WAR.

Mulan [seeing an opportunity to get all the stories straight]: O Great Spirit, is it reversible?

Mushu: WHY WOULD YOU WISH TO REJECT MY GIFT? I HAVE SEEN YOUR HEART, CHILD, AND HAVE ALREADY ALTERED THE MEMORIES OF EVERYONE WHO KNEW YOU BEFORE YOU LEFT FOR THE ARMY. YOU HAVE ALWAYS BEEN THEIR DAUGHTER.

Li Shang: Welp, the spirits have spoken. Ping - wait is your name still Ping if you're a woman now?

Mulan: Uh. Actually, I was thinking of renaming myself. How do you feel about Mulan?

BONUS:

Mulan [climbing out of the eleventh lake the men have arranged for her to swim in]: Yeah no, it didn't work. Still got boobs. [tries to appear dejected].

Chien Po: If it makes you feel better, they're very nice boobs.