dance with her ghosts

?

“Don’t tell me you’re jealous of Batman, Foxy. If you like solving my riddles that much just say it.” Ed’s lips curled devilishly at the thought of it. Eyes wide as an owl’s. Why was that something he liked the idea of? Of course, he cared a great deal for them both. Foxy was his first true rival. The blueprint to what Ed had been looking for but Batman… he was something entirely different. He was a riddle. The mask pulled him in. He had so many questions and so little answers. Ed thought he had it all figured out but then Batman “died” and Bruce Wayne (his main suspect) remained alive. Travelling outside of Gotham- but “alive”. He had theories that all the evidence was planted and his family hired a double… but he couldn’t prove it. Like all things in Gotham… Batman didn’t remain dead but it still put a wrench in his favourite answer to the riddle. 

“Hmn,” Ed hummed thoughtfully. “I’ve always preferred the smell of lemons.” He answered. The two of them were at odds again. He loved it when they both had two very different answers. He’d admit: Foxy’s choice was a lot more practical. It felt typical of him. He could feel himself grin the moment he said it. He liked how predictable Foxy could be. He was able to read him like he were flipping the pages of a good book. He took comfort in the parts of Lucius that he understood well and he found himself endlessly invested in the parts of him that he didn’t understand yet. He was a beautiful puzzle. Far more satisfying and relaxing then the riddle that Batman was. He simply enjoyed Lucius. His company. The deep calming sound of his voice. His quirks and his intelligence (that nearly matched his own). He really had him considering things sometimes. Things he knew better than to be considering. He killed everyone he thought of like this. Foxy asked if he was alright and Ed glanced down at his shaking hand before looking back at Lucius. His hand reaching out towards him. His stomach flipped at the sight of it. “No… you shouldn’t-” His warning fell flat when Lucius dropped his hand. 

He shook off what just happened and walked over to his wine glass. Deciding it might help take the edge off. Sipping at it after their glasses clinked together. The wine he picked out for this evening was one of his favourites, so he couldn’t stop himself from smiling a little as he tasted it. “Oh?” He looked up curiously when Lucius said he had something to show him. He looked completely endeared to him the moment he said, “You know who you’re talking to right?” Asking the question as if Lucius might not actually know he was speaking to the literal Riddler. Right now. “Please, do show me.” 

-

Lucius smiled faintly. “Well, I’ve always wanted a cape,” he quipped. Was he jealous of Batman, because Ed favored him so much? That would hardly make sense -- then again, nothing much about his relationship with Ed made sense. If anything did, it was the fact that they were both intelligent men, who enjoyed intellectual challenges, and who had never quite fit in. The complete absurdity of the idea that he was envious of Batman being the object of Ed’s focus was compounded by the fact that he knew Bruce Wayne so well. He had known Bruce’s father for god’s sake, and yet there was a twinge of jealousy when he regarded the son. And it had nothing to do with Bruce’s vast fortune, which Lucius could never hope to approach, but the fact that he’d won the wholesale approbation of the Riddler.

“Oh, I like the scent of lemons,” he said. “I have an essential oil diffuser in my office. Lemon essential oil is one of my favorites.” Although once the words were out of his mouth, he realized belatedly that it was more likely than not that Edward already knew this. Ed seemed to know virtually everything else about him. It was hard to keep secrets from a man who unraveled complex wordplay sheerly for the fun of it. He frowned a little as he watched Ed’s expression when he reached for him. Did Ed not want his touch? There was something that made him feel small at the thought of it. He had never been a particularly tactile man, even if one disregarded the fact that he really shouldn’t be so disappointed that Ed didn’t want to touch him. It wasn’t as though he and Edward were together. Or that they should even consider the possibility.

He smiled as Ed spoke. “It was more of a rhetorical question,” he admitted, a light laugh leaving his lips. Of course Ed would know about this. “Hold on,” he said, putting his wine glass down and heading back into the living room. He returned a few moments later with the small box nestled in the palm of his hand. “It isn’t very hard to solve,” he said. At least not for them -- his tone implied. “But it’s rather lovely, don’t you think?”

“It should be known that you alone, Tony Stark, are the reason I could no longer make fun of Natasha for being an Avenger. Now that I know you’re on her ‘friendship squad’ all the enjoyment has been squandered.” Yelena couldn’t very well make fun of Natasha for something her sister was already paying dearly for in the form of a friendship with Tony Stark. “Yes, how did I- a super spy, get into your house? Ask her.” FRIDAY the little voice was called, and though she didn’t sound quite happy Yelena couldn’t help but be fond. The AI was smart. “She’s a robot. She did math.” The damage guaranteed trying to let her out vs the risk taken to let her in. Math was simple. “I don’t know who Moose or Squirrel are, or what a Boris is.” Yelena snatched the pillow from Tony’s face. “I’m looking for Natasha.”

-

Tony raised an eyebrow. “Oh, no,” he deadpanned. “What ever will I do without your good opinion?” He flung an arm over his eyes, humming. “Yuh-huh,” he said. “Anybody can make violent threats against an innocent computer, you know. Watch this.” He pointed vaguely up at the ceiling with his free hand. “Hey, FRIDAY, I’m gonna rip you out of the wall, chop you up into little pieces, and make you into motherboard salsa just so I can feed you to the thresher. I’ll have to build a thresher, since I don’t have one. But it’ll be worth it. Got it?” Yes, sir. “See? Look at that. Easy as pie.” He sighed as his Rocky & Bullwinkle reference went right over her head, not that he’d really expected any different. “She’s not here,” he said, with a little shrug as he sat up. “Sorry, kid.”

?

“It’s a little rude that Batman lets the GCPD handle me sometimes.” He said. Edward had a tough time whenever it happened. It usually occurred when Batman was busy dealing with some other rogue and it boiled his blood. How could he pick some other criminal over him? Didn’t they share a bond? At the very least, the GCPD had Lucius there for him to play with. His other favourite chess partner. Perhaps even, his first favourite. He loved the way Lucius’s mind worked. Ed often found himself hanging close by to his own crime. Just so he could watch the way Foxy furrowed his brow in thought when he read one of Ed’s riddles. His absolute favourite was when he’d get Lucius thinking enough that he’d bring his hand to his lips. That tiny gesture always sent a shiver through his spine. “But I do enjoy when you’re the one solving my riddles, Foxy. …Just don’t tell the Bat.” He finally admitted. He brought a finger to his thin pink lips and shushed him like it was some big secret. 

“Hydrogen peroxide helps with blood stains.” Edward replied. “Or lemon juice.” He kept lemon juice at his own home for that very thing. Lucius had never even been to his home. The thought came to him suddenly and curiously. What would he think of his decor? Would he look at all the nicknacks he gathered over the years and think about how they came into his position? Would he feel as comfortable as Edward felt walking into Lucius’s apartment? Or would the other man feel on edge if he were to come over? He eyed Lucius as he tried to imagine how he might feel if he asked him to come over. He imagined writing him a note. Chez Moi. An intrusive thought came to mind. He recalled writing Kristen a note just like that when he’d finally gathered his courage and asked her out on a date. He could make him dinner… like he had for her. Ask him to stay the night… He brought a hand to clutch the wrist of his shaking right hand. No. He shouldn’t have Foxy over. I can’t do that to him. 

He didn’t understand why Mr. Fox had ever let someone like him in to begin with. Their first and only shared night together had been so sudden and spontaneous. It was completely unexpected of Lucius… only serving as something that drew Ed to him more. He was so curious by him. So interested. The problem was that he was a snake and he tended to bite the people he liked. Foxy was a fool for letting a snake in his home and for being kind enough to help mend his wounds. Not once but twice. His hand finally stopped shaking and he walked closer to him. Taking the other glass in his hand and smiling at his toast. “To you learning how to get blood out of your carpet.” He teased.

-

A faint smile touched Lucius’s lips as Ed spoke. “Even if I handle it?” he quipped. He was almost the resident Riddler expert around the precinct -- it was rare that the rank and file cops ever handled it. They simply didn’t understand, and it was more likely that they would just get themselves killed trying to figure it out. Not that this was something Lucius would say out-loud, or even anything that came from an official decree. It just seemed to…work out that way. He couldn’t help but smile as Ed ended up confirming his words. “No, I won’t,” he said, although he suspected Batman wouldn’t be too fussed about the matter. Not that he would ever actually say so to Ed, thereby avoiding a burst bubble and the emotional upheaval that followed. 

“Lemon juice,” Lucius repeated thoughtfully. “I’ve heard about that, but I usually use the hydrogen peroxide myself.” He’d always found the scent of the chemical comforting. It made him feel as though it was certain to work. But then again, he had always been that way. He preferred his results to be concrete. The stringent smell of hydrogen peroxide, the black and white regiment of numbers marching down the page, the way an invention could begin as an idea and -- with enough intellectual elbow grease -- become fact. Ed was one of the few examples in his life where emotion trumped logic. “Are you alright?” he said, suddenly noticing the way Ed’s hand was shaking. He reached out, as if he would steady Ed with his own touch, but he pulled his hand back before he could actually make contact. 

And yet he wanted to touch him. He wanted to steady that shaking hand. Of course it wasn’t wise, it didn’t make any sense, which wasn’t like him. It was like Ed made him drunk, working on his defenses more subtly and yet more intensely than the wine in his glass. Sometimes, when he met Ed’s dark gaze, it felt like his heart was beating so fast, it was in danger of jackhammering right out of his chest. It wasn’t a feeling that he would call pleasant, and yet…he couldn’t help but laugh as Ed spoke, clinking the glasses together gently. “Slainte,” he commented. “Oh, I have something to show you. Have you ever seen a Medici puzzle box?”

-

“I hate it when you use him against me,” He said with an over dramatic frown. He didn’t like how much interest Peter took in his job. It was dangerous being a cop, especially in Gotham. Even if he wanted to do it for a noble cause. The childhood innocence of just wanting to save people. It was sweet that Peter thought that was what his father did, but in truth- Jim had as much blood on his hands as the monsters he took in. From not being able to save people in time, from wrong calls or even from when he’d go a little too far with criminals. That bright eyed boy scout who wanted to save Gotham walked into the GCPD and never walked back out again. He feared the same for Peter. He watched so many young cadets come into the job and come out on a stretcher. The lucky one’s grew up to be jaded and traumatized. Rarely ever heroes. “Honestly, I hope it’s a phase and he doesn’t follow in my footsteps.” He was sure that Barbara felt the same way. When she leaned in for a kiss, he gave her a quick peck before she said it was a deal and got up to change. He walked over to the fireplace and got a fire going for them before taking a seat beside it and watching the flame grow. Waiting for her to return to him. As much as she waited for him to come home from work… there were rare days where he’d be the one waiting for her. He’d make dinner and sit at the table. Wondering what she was really doing with her club. Trying not to dig too deep into how suspicious she was. While quietly drawing similarities between his own, beautiful wife and the criminals he drug into custody. She came back to him and he smiled at her. Sitting by the fireplace, waiting for her to join him. “You look nice.”

-

Babs sighed, running her fingers through his hair. “I don’t know how else to make you see,” she said. “You don’t seem to care when it’s just about you.” For her part, she wanted something more for both children. Although she sensed it was far too late to change Barbara’s path. Barbara Lee and Jim had been two halves of a whole ever since their daughter was born -- which seemed rather unfair to the woman who had spent nearly two days in labor with her, but that wasn’t really the point. It was her fault with Peter. Jim had been gone for the first year of the boy’s life, and out of fear that Peter would forget his father, she’d turned photo albums into storybooks. Albums crammed with pictures of Jim in his uniform, clippings of his daring achievements, and Jim had become a hero straight out of a fable. Then the mythic figure on the page had become real, yet no less Herculean for all that. At least not to a little boy. “Let’s encourage him to be a doctor,” she quipped. “That’s marginally safer. Or whatever Lucius did at Wayne Enterprises.” She frankly had never paid enough attention to the man to figure out what he did either at his previous job or his current position with the GCPD. She gave his jawline a gentle caress. “You’re his hero, and I don’t want that to change. I want him to take after you,” she said. “Just not in this one thing.” As she returned to his side, she folded her legs gracefully to settle on the floor beside him, snuggling up against his side immediately. “I know, but thank you,” she said, with her customary confidence and a smile. “How was work?” she asked, pouring them both a glass of chardonnay. “Did anybody end up in the ICU today?” She had fallen into talking about his job out of habit. A part of her wondered if that was the best way to keep him invested in her conversation.

?

He apologized. Something that was pretty uncommon to hear from anyone, let alone those who morally opposed him. But then again- Foxy was never really like anyone else. Edward was interested in him the moment the two of them met. He solved one of his riddles. He’d done it so easily, like he’d been finishing Ed’s thought. Rattling off the answer before Ed had even gotten his name. He stood tall and proud and he could just tell by the way he spoke that he was smart. He left a wonderful first impression. Ed was curious about how Lucius viewed their meeting. If he was even interested in why Ed had asked a riddle. If he was stuck in his mind the way that Lucius was stuck in his own. He hoped that he pondered over him. 

“You think?” He asked. Something else that was unusual. A smile forced it’s way on Ed’s face. Tugging at his lips as though the end of them were being tugged by string. He’d always loved compliments. He could never seem to get enough of them. His face softened with how genuine his smile was. Not picking up that Lucius could have at all meant it in a negative way as well. “I will admit, scheming is one of my strong suits.” He was just happy to be told he was good at it. He lifted his head with a bit of pride. 

As Lucius led him towards the kitchen. Edward admired his decor. He’d been there for a little while. Enough time to make this place a home for himself, just like he’d done his last two apartments. Edward admired the cleanliness of his friend’s- no enemy’s- home. It looked nothing like his own. More organized. Everything looked deliberately chosen and it all matched beautifully.  “Hmn… I really am sorry about the blood.” He told him honestly, although his gaze was fixed on a picture frame. His fingers trailed along the edge of it. “However, I really can’t promise that. What if I need you again?” He hadn’t meant to admit that he thought of Lucius as a safe place and someone he’d go to on purpose… but his words slipped out before he could hold his tongue. It was likely best to push passed it and not let Lucius think about what he’d just said. “Anyway!” Ed said before clapping. “Let’s crack open that wine!” 

-

Of course Lucius vividly remembered the night he solved Ed’s riddles, with poor Harvey Bullock dangling into the void at the center of a staircase. (It was likely that Bullock remembered it with even more intensity than he did, but that went without saying.) The answers he’d given Ed hadn’t been precisely the ones he wanted, much to Ed’s frustration -- but they had been correct, nonetheless, something he suspected had thrown Ed for a loop. And, to be fair, Ed was a man of his word, in his own somewhat warped way. Bullock had lived to see another day. (Although he suspected that Bullock wouldn’t see Ed’s behavior that way.)

A faint smile touched his lips as Ed responded. “I do,” he said. It definitely was a thorn in the collective side of the GCPD, the way Ed was so brilliant in his schemes. But the brilliance itself couldn’t be denied, and when it was, that caused more problems than it was worth. He chuckled quietly as Ed spoke. “I know,” he pointed out, another faint smile touching his lips. “Your schemes factor into my job quite often.” There had been times when the GCPD likely wouldn’t have solved some of Ed’s particular capers if Lucius hadn’t been able to help them. Sometimes he wondered if that was because he understood Ed so well. He didn’t want to think too much on that.

He made his way into the kitchen, grabbing a couple of wine glasses and fishing a corkscrew out of a drawer. “You would think I would know how to get any bloodstain out, working with cops,” he quipped. Particularly Jim Gordon. He paused in the act of pulling the cork free of the bottle, trying to ignore the way his heart had picked up speed at Ed’s words. He didn’t think that Ed needed anyone, least of all him. It’s just as a medical waystation, he told himself. Thinking on the fact that the topic of conversation wasn’t the first time he’d patched Ed up. “Here we are,” he said, freeing the cork with a pop and pouring them each an equal measure. “To your health, and my carpet remaining unbloodied,” he said, raising his glass with a faint smile.

@disastri​ -- prompt from here

Conner didn’t move for a long time, waiting out Lois’ reaction. He thought about how he would feel if somebody that he loved were to mysteriously return from the grave after such a length of time and it made it easier to him to understand how all of this could stir up an entire hurricane of emotions for those that had loved him dearly. Finally she was wrapping her arms around him and he didn’t hesitate to return the motion, arms wrapping around her slowly, careful not to crush her. “I missed you too - I missed everybody” he sighed, relaxing in the embrace for a moment. “So…what did I miss?” 

-

Lois couldn’t help but smile a little at the familiar sensation of someone incredibly strong trying to hug her without hurting her. She was sure there was plenty to unpack when it came to the fact that she felt so safe in such a dangerous embrace, but she did. Perhaps it was because she was just so used to them now. Being held by anyone else just felt…flimsy now. She smiled as Conner spoke, shrugging her shoulders. “Oh, not much,” she said. “At least not with me.” She grinned. “I haven’t won any more Pulitzers, if you were wondering.” She paused, looking him over. “Are you hungry? I could make you something.”

@bloodofsalt​ -- prompt from here

Randomized starter for Peter - @herghcsts​

“oh, come on. don’t be so hard on yourself.” Wylder said to Peter, patting him on his shoulder. “I’m sure she’ll stop being mad at you…in like the next year or so.” he tried to joke. Yara was apparently on a rampage again, nothing that they weren’t all used to by now. “Honestly dude, I know she’s hot but is it really worth the headache?”

-

Peter smiled a little as Wylder patted him on the shoulder. He didn’t like for anyone to be angry with him, but especially not someone who was as important to him as Yara. “I know she’ll get over it,” he said. “But I hate it when she’s mad at me.” Not because she was scary, but because he just didn’t like for there to be any discord between them. A faint frown touched his lips. “That’s not the only reason I’m with her,” he said. “She’s smart, and she’s brave. She’s loyal and strong. She’s kind, even if she doesn’t show it in a way people are used to. She makes me laugh.” He shrugged. “She is worth it.”

@disastri​ -- prompt from here

Victor/Sue

Victor watched the other for a moment after all he’d only come over for a social visit since he’d moved here. “You aren’t wrong, after all, I have a need to keep things running just because there is already Stark and Wayne here doesn’t mean the name Doom can’t be placed in the sky as well.,” He chuckled good naturally before shrugging his shoulders “I thought about offering it as housing for a few floors and the others be used for business, Why must you always assume I’m up to no good?” He smirked he knew why but still not everything was some complex evil plan. “I was a very successful ruler of Latveria, I think Gotham can handle me without any issue.”

-

Sue gave him a long, level look. “No, but Tony Stark being here means you have extra incentive to toe the line,” she said, although she knew it essentially was pointless to warn him. He was going to do whatever he wanted to do, whether or not Iron Man was around to stop him. But at least it was comforting to know that the Fantastic Four had someone else on their side. She raised an eyebrow. “And that’s all?” she said dubiously. A faint smile touched her lips as he spoke. “Oh, yes, because your reputation doesn’t throw up any red flags at all,” she said. “That’s my mistake.” She looked over at him again. “If Gotham can’t, we can,” she said. “I don’t want to keep battling you, Victor. You’re better than that.”

@bloodofsalt​ -- prompt from here

@disastri​ -- prompt from here

@ofdisharmcny​​ -- prompt from here

“Good evening Miss Swan.” His favorite customer, not that Will would dare speak such a thing outloud. He was a mechanic, and though he had dreams those were on the backburner for the upcoming future. He needed to focus on his current life, and all he saw when Elizabeth was in sight were stars. It made him want to reach towards those wayward dreams, but he knew better. It was uncouth of him, foolhardy. She was a reminder of the life he would never live, and though the sight of her made him smile it also made his heart clench in all that would never be his. “What could I do for you today? Or are you dropping by to say hello?” It wouldn’t be unheard of for her to do, Elizabeth was kind in that way. Giving him hope when William knew it was no good for him. || @herghcsts​

​

-

Elizabeth smiled softly as Will approached her. She found the young man charming and oddly endearing, as if he were a puppy who had gamboled up to her. And perhaps she had noticed, once in a while, that he was rather handsome -- his eyes were warm, his smile infectious, and most importantly, his manner was incredibly kind. “Will, please, I’ve told you before,” she said, another little smile touching her lips. “You may call me Elizabeth.” She glanced over at him. “Oh, I’m just bringing my car in for a tune-up,” she said. “I wanted to make sure everything was alright before it started making one of those funny clicking noises.”