#scare crow

dude i’d say there like little pretty princesses i mean they kind of look like dresses…

27'th; "your scared of the dark?" "No I just want you near me"

Pairing - scarecrow x reader maybe your put off by the lack of light or maybe it was that Johnathan wasn't near you.

The lab beneath Arkham Asylum was quieter than usual that night, too quiet. The dim yellow lights hummed overhead, casting long shadows over glass vials and half-finished formulas scattered across the metal tables. Most people would have found the place terrifying, rows of chemicals, cages, and masks that belonged to one of Scarecrow’s many experiments.

But you had grown strangely used to it.

You sat curled on the worn couch shoved against the wall of the lab, a thin blanket wrapped around your shoulders as the last of the overhead lights flickered off. Jonathan liked working in the dark, said it helped him think. Said fear was easier to study when you could feel it creeping around the edges of a room.

Still…the darkness felt heavier tonight.

Across the room, Jonathan Crane moved quietly between his workbench and a chalkboard covered in frantic writing. His tall, thin frame cast a long silhouette across the wall, the stitched burlap mask resting beside him rather than on his face. Without it, he looked less like Gotham’s nightmare and more like a tired man chasing another theory.

You shifted on the couch.

The movement didn’t escape him.

Jonathan paused, glancing over his shoulder, sharp eyes catching the way you hugged the blanket closer. A faint smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth as he set down the vial in his hand and walked toward you, footsteps soft against the concrete.

He stopped beside the couch, looming slightly in the dim light.

“Your heart rate increased when the lights went out,” he said calmly, voice low and analytical. “Breathing shallower too.” You rolled your eyes a little, though you couldn't stop the small smile tugging at your lips.

Jonathan tilted his head, studying you like you were one of his experiments.

“Are you frightened?” he asked. Then, with a faintly teasing edge that almost never appeared in his voice, he added,

“Scared of the dark?” You looked up at him, the darkness outlining the sharp angles of his face. “No,” you said quietly. Your hand reached out from the blanket, catching the sleeve of his coat before he could step away.

You gave a small tug. “I just want you near me.” For a moment, Jonathan froze.

It was subtle—most people wouldn’t notice—but you had learned how to read the smallest changes in him. The slight pause in his breathing. The way his eyes softened just a fraction before he masked it again behind that cool, clinical demeanor.

“Fascinating,” he murmured, though his voice had lost some of its usual detachment. “Attachment responses in low-light conditions…”

But he didn’t move away.

Instead, after a moment, he sighed quietly and sat beside you on the couch. The cushion dipped under his weight, his long frame settling stiffly at first, as though he wasn’t entirely sure what to do with himself.

You didn’t hesitate as you leaned against him.

Jonathan went rigid again for half a second before slowly relaxing, one arm awkwardly resting along the back of the couch behind you.

“The dark,” he said after a moment, voice softer now, “is merely the absence of light. Nothing more.” You hummed quietly against his shoulder.

“Maybe,” you said. “But it’s nicer with you in it.”

Jonathan didn’t answer right away, instead, his hand slowly, almost cautiously, moved from the couch to rest lightly over the blanket around your shoulders. Not quite a hug, but close enough.

For someone who studied fear for a living, he found it strange that this… this quiet closeness with you… unsettled him more than any nightmare toxin ever could.

And yet, he made no move to leave your side.

The lab stayed dark.

But neither of you seemed to mind anymore.

Absolutely!

Im so sorry I didn’t do it sooner, I considered adding it to my inktober prompt list* bc i have so few rn, but I feel like itd be really shitty bc its been so long. Close-ups bellow, ALSO Skkrrimm is there bc I like to hc as the fact that they have the same hat idk

*for inktober, I am taking art prompts in my asks from LoA campaigns(stardusts, midnight, witchlight, &icebound) idk im trying something

Ministry “Scare Crow”