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Title: Venus
Author: Cold Nostalgia
Fandom/Characters: DC: Batman, Wonder Woman
Rating: PG
Word count: 177
Prompt: Venus (song fic title table)
Summary: Bruce hated chaos.
Gotham was in a state of chaos and Bruce hated chaos. Especially chaos of a divine quality.
“Why is she doing this, Diana?”
Wonder Woman shrugged. “Because she’s bored; because it’s Valentine’s Day and because she can.”
Batman frowned and looked up into the sky. For small moment he imagined he could see a woman’s body form amongst the clouds; young and old, grotesque and beautiful, fair and dark, light and cruel.
Across the street, two men fought to the death over a woman who stood metres away, staring lovingly at her own reflection in a shop window. A cat tried to mate with a dog. Five woman chased a terrified man down the road; five men chased a terrified woman in the opposite direction.
Somewhere overhead a scream rang out, piercing through a wall of screeching sirens.
Bruce sighed. “Sounds like she’d fit right in at Arkham.”
“Perhaps.”
Bruce scowled.
Diana eyed him wearily. “I can still go if you wish.”
Bruce fingered the protective amulet around his neck. “No,” he said grudgingly. “You can stay.”
Title: Lost and Gone Down A Spiral
Author: Cold Nostalgia
Disclaimer: DC owns it all
Fandom: DC Comics, JLA
Characters: Superman, Wonder Woman, Martian Manhunter, JLA
Rating: PG-13
Prompt: Supervillain (Elseworlds table)
Timeline: One week after Death in The Family.
Word count: 776
Summary: AU. It’s never easy when it’s one of your own.
An uneasy silence fell over the inhabitants of The Watchtower as the feed from the Gotham City Police Department slowly trickled in.
Seconds slowed into minutes as Hal’s fingers did an intricate dance over the monitor’s keyboard.
“Well, Hal.” Clark said softly, not really wanting to hear the answer. “Who is it this time?”
Hal turned, a decidedly grim expression etched on his face. “Catwoman.” The Green Lantern stated quietly. “It’s Catwoman.”
Clark froze, hanging on to a lost hope that he hadn’t quite heard Hal correctly, or if he had, then maybe there was an explanation; maybe a third party had been involved, maybe…
“The police got video footage,” Hal chuckled bitterly. “My god, he isn’t even trying to hide it anymore, is he?”
Clark closed his eyes, his mind shifting in a thousand different directions at once, but no matter what way his errant thoughts went they all came back to the same thing: Ultimately, this was his fault. Lois and Diana could deny it all they wanted, could soothe his conscience with placating words that the little boy inside of him wanted nothing more than to hear. It changed nothing.
If Clark had not allowed Bruce to face Joker alone and stayed with him until it was all over then none of it would have ever happened. Instead he’d naively believed that Bruce’s strong, prevailing sense of justice and righteous could somehow burn away the image of Jason Todd’s bloodied and broken body branded into his brain.
What a fool he was…
“Catwoman, eh?” Ollie muttered, piercing the brooding stillness that had once more fallen over the group. “Jesus, what the hell did she do?”
“What she normally does I’d imagine,” said Diana distantly. “Perhaps she went to talk to him. Either way, Batman has sent his message.”
“And what message is that?” Flash asked hotly. “That he’s lost freakin’ mind?”
“No.” Diana said sadly. “He’s sent out a warning. He wants to tell everyone that it doesn’t matter who you are or what you’ve done as long as you’re a criminal, as long as you break the law…” she trailed off with a shake of her head, unable to finish the sentence.
“Has anyone managed to contact Nightwing yet?” asked Flash.
“Nah,” Ollie answered quietly. “Still off world with the rest of the Titans. My god, that poor kid’s in for a world of pain when he gets back.”
The gloomy silence once more returned to room, thickening and isolating each of the heroes already lost in their own thoughts.
“What about Barbara Gordon?” Hal piped up
Dinah’s head shot up. “Please tell me that is a joke.”
Hal shrugged. “She was pretty close to him at one time. Maybe she can reach him, talk him down.”
Dinah’s smile was utterly without humour. “One month after being told she’d never walk again and you want to throw her into this mess!”
“What about his butler?” Diana asked suddenly, cutting off Hal’s reply. “He practically raised him. If anyone could talk Batman down it would be him.”
“I called the mansion several times,” Clark said softly, grateful for her interjection. “There’s no answer.”
Ollie looked sick. “You don’t think he’d—.”
“No!” Clark shouted suddenly. “No,” he amended softly. “He couldn’t. It’s beyond him.”
“You know,” Hal began. “One week ago we would have said the exact same thing about,” he waved his hand, “all of this.”
“I think,” J’onn started. “Our intervention is long past due.” J’onn walked to the centre of the room, gazing intently at each his colleagues. “When Batman lashed out at Joker it was regrettable,” he paused for a moment, “but understandable.” The alien stated quietly. “The next evening,” J’onn went on. “When Batman came across Harvey Dent and took all his rage and all of his pain out on his former friend and Dent later died of internal injuries it was tragic,” he paused again, “but explainable.”
“And then,” J’onn continued. “Two days later when Batman came across Arthur Brown and killed him when he tried to surrender, while we did nothing it was horrendous…and inexcusable.”
“A line was not crossed today, my friends.” The alien stated simply. “It was merely forgotten about.”
“You’re right, J’onn.” Clark said simply, trying to ignore the rawness in his throat as he turned to go. “Too many people have died already and so will many more if we continue to do nothing.”
“Clark,” Diana called after him, he turned to face her and was marginally comforted by the reflected pain in her eyes. “You have an hour,” she said gently. “Then I’m coming after you.”
He smiled wanly. “I know."