#wip2

SO. Let me preface by saying, canon who? Canon is a tragedy and sibling relationships make me weep on a good day, so here I am with my wholesome/fluff/slice-of-life agenda and happy endings magic wand because holy shit, the Batfam is deficient in this area. I am also a sucker for magic, so there's going to be a magical touch to this series.

The heart of this series, the overarching theme, is relationships and hope and it starts with a primordial being, ■■ (that's what I've been calling her, yes it's ORV inspired), being brought into existence because the universe was lonely. My soul sister, let's call her A, once said to me:

“one thing I do think about (when it comes to the topic of hope) is how hope is often triggered in moments of isolation, hoping to one day not be so lonely or hoping to one day be heard, be seen, be understood – but I feel like hope is cultivated the most once within a collective, or within support, or community. Less seeking out hope but generally being more hopeful.”

I'll go into more detail about this particular line of lore eventually (let me know if you want to know more :O), but at the end of the day, ■■ was the first being to be worshipped as a symbol of hope, love and resilience. As civilisation advances, her origin is forgotten and she is reborn into various religions that all remember her differently – Guan Yin, Freyja, Durga, etc.

Dick comes from the last line of ■■ worshippers that remember what she represents (courtesy of his mother o7). As with any higher being (and being a fantasy/action sucker, sue me), per tradition the first born of each generation becomes her vessel and can wield ✨ magic ✨ ohohoho

How does this fit into everything else? Well, it's one of the deciding factors that makes Dick pick family over vigilantism.

I've kicked canon to the curb and squished down the age gaps of our lovely BatFam so that my timeline works out. Dick has 7 amazing years of being an only child before meeting Jason at the age of 14 (Jason is brought home at 12). About a year into staying with them, but prior to Ethiopia (I just shot canon point-blank in my backyard), Jason runs away from home which is the pivoting point for Dick to come to terms with what it means being Robin.

In Robin Wars, each of the Batboys were talking about what it meant to be Robin and Dick's answer, "Robin is Family" really did not help with my emotional investment into this AU. My selective reading took it, and ran away with it cackling. Along with the fact that Robin was a parent's nickname for their son, that he essentially became Robin in honour of his parents, it makes sense for Dick to prioritise his younger brother because family looks out for each other. To him, being Robin is about protecting your loved ones and showing up, and Jason needs that. It's not a hard decision to make at the end of the day.

And there you have it, the context for what birthed this entire mega AU.

It's a massive series I'm planning with three main parts and a shit ton of side adventures. The three main parts are broken up into the prologue (when it was just Alfred, Bruce and Dick), pre-canon (seeing how events change as Dick grows into being an older sibling, giving context for the main story) and the main story (the "current day" you could call it; it's a coming-of-age with heavy occultism and refusal of the call flavourings). I have also thought of what-if's for my what-if AU, I am too deep into this.

So far I've been writing the pre-canon chapters and finished writing some of the side adventures stories. I cannot stop coming up with new prompts for the series and I am just enjoying the writing process tbh haha

I think I've covered the major points of this AU. If you are curious and want to know more about this universe, feel free to ask, I am excited to share and to hear your thoughts! I am also open to prompts too B-)

p.s. I have cherry picked some events from the canon timeline to be a part of this universe. Characterisations are a mix of fanon and canon and whatever homebrew that's going on in my head 🤠✌🏼

This project is in the very early stages of development – everything here is highly variable as I keep working out the details. That said, please send in any questions you like about this project or Phoenix Knight! I’m saving anything to do with PK bugs and fixes until a later date since I’m going to take a break from writing it, but I’m still happy to answer questions about the RO’s and setting.

Summary: Life in Delphi City is pretty much like life anywhere – there’s problems, lots of them, but there’s good points too – maybe a bit fewer. But whatever your feelings are about it - it is home. It is also the city with the highest concentration of super villainy on the planet.

The Guardians are the local superhero team, made up of ‘Paths’ – the people with powers – that are on the side of what is good and right, and approved by the government. Their job is to take care of the villains with powers – and sometimes the ones just smart enough to build doomsday weapons. That kind of thing.

The stuff that’s way above your paygrade.

You might be one of the city’s most skilled detectives but you’re still just a detective. Your bad guys don’t have powers (usually). And messing with one that does ends in a world of pain – kidnapped and experimented on by a previously unknown mad scientist type you’re eventually rescued by a hydrokinetic path.

When your powers are discovered, you’re a chance for the Guardians to snatch up an in-house investigator - a part of the crime fighting process they’d previously been forced to rely on the police and other agencies for. And with people beginning to develop into Paths at previously unheard of rates for some unknown reason, Delphi City needs its Guardians to find the answer.

But now they have you. Formerly one of the best detectives in the city but now... after everything that’s happened, you don’t know what you are, but they have decided what they want you to be:

Their very own Oracle.

marzena’s longing.

tagged by @yikescomma, thank u!

this is the beginning of ‘WIP2′:

     Jesse didn’t mean to run away. But when you are fifteen and have just cut off your hair and dyed what remains the color of rose petals, you prefer to put off the inevitable parental conflict.

WIP 2 of these boys!

Banjo

I promised him I would love him no matter how nasty he is.

Andy: hella tall, skinny and pale, dark brownish-red hair. (Not a ginger PLEASE he’s not a ginger). Hazel-brown eyes, narrow face, v straight & triangular nose. A little like thomas sanders or adam parrish, if you know them. (there are other mcs but its mostly from his pov)

Jesse: very short curly hair, naturally dark brown but dyed pinkish-red. Brown eyes, mixed race (native american, vietnamese, latino and white). Small mouth and nose, roundish ears very slightly stick out. 5′8, always wears leather wristbands and a stack of varying bangles on their wrists.