[Fanfiction] Smile
Because those drawings from Bruce Timm were just so darn pretty - I totally blame him. 'S got nothing to do with the fact that my words ran away from me snickering and I ended up with 810 words, and it was a bit too long to post as a comment. Hrm. Ah well :P
Title: Smile
Universe: DCAU
Characters: Flash, mentions of his Rogues and especially Piper and Trickster
Summary: You can always tell a lot about someone from the way they smile, they say.
Smile
Aunt Iris always said you could tell a lot about a person from the way they smiled, and it’s very true. Especially, for some reason, where villains are concerned. You’d think being a villain is about anything but smiling, but there always comes a moment where their lips stretch and they get those little crinkles around their eyes and something in their expression becomes unmissable.
Don’t expect them to look less dangerous, however, and if they do, the last thing to do is underestimate them. But they all do, at some point, for some reason or another.
Wally has seen a lot of villains smile. Each and every one of them is different.
The Joker’s insane grin is huge, white and red, and absolutely terrifying. It’s the grin of the monster that used to hide beneath your bed at night, with big teeth and eyes that tell you you’re going to die, slowly, painfully, and in a fun way. So far, his is the worst grin Wally has seen, and he’ll be happy if he never has to see it again. Not that he would back down, ever, but he will put one foot in front of the other with cold dread in his soul.
Speaking of Batman’s villains, Poison Ivy’s smile is every bit the femme fatale. It’s beautiful, beguiling, and lethal. She can make a man - and possibly every life form, regardless of trifling details like species or gender - feel uncomfortably tight and send their guts up in a twist as intricate as her plants. She makes you feel good about the danger you’re in. That’s her deadliest trap.
Scarecrow’s smile is your deepest, most intimate fears all rolled up in one stretch of fabric. Wally likes to dwell on that about as much as he likes to think about the Joker.
Lex Luthor’s only physiological difference with Wally is that he has super-speed and Luthor doesn’t, but when he smiles you suddenly know why he’s at the top and fighting and cheating his way higher still. A shark’s smile is friendlier. Behind the businessman’s cold politeness or slick charm - depending on who he’s talking to when he’s in business - there is a brutal efficiency, a razor-sharp intelligence, and a total lack of moral misgivings. This man can and will do anything necessary to attain his goals.
Those smiles are the reason Wally likes his own turf and his own villains. When they smile, it’s the triumphant grin of the hunter coming down on his prey, the satisfaction of suddenly winning; they’re dangerous, and you really have to keep on your toes to defeat them, but they don’t get personal, and they don’t fight dirty - much. They don’t use civilians as shields, they don’t twist your own fears against you - they’re just blue-collared bank robbers who enjoy the thrill of the chase.
Captain Cold has a small dent in one of his eye-teeth. Sometimes Wally wonders whether he was the one to knock the piece out. Maybe it’s actually got nothing to do with him, but it helps him remember that there’s always consequences to fighting at high speed all over the place. No matter how small.
But of all those smiles, he has to admit there are two he likes best. Not that he’s supposed to - after all, they’re villains, he’s a hero, and it’s not all right that they break into jewellery stores and commit robberies - but there’s something about those two that he just can’t help feeling good about.
Piper and Trickster. The Sultan of Sound and the Master of Mayhem. Well, not really, but those nicknames are fun.
When the Trickster is at his best, his grin is bright, colourful, full of mischief and the potential for great havoc.
When the Pied Piper is in the mood, his smirk is charming, sly, inconspicuously assessing and confident that he can deal with any situation.
Together, they balance each other, each quirk and eccentricity finding its match and becoming a strength. Piper is the perfect straight man to Trickster’s antics. Trickster can always lean on Piper if his world suddenly becomes unfunny.
It really shouldn’t be this way, but for Wally, those two smiles combined mean the promises of adventure, fun and the reassurance that nobody else will be in any real danger. There’s always a safeguard. But it doesn’t mean they will hold back with him. They’ll give their best shot, try their best tricks; but they’ll stay within the limits of deadly force, because it’s not the way the game is played, on either side.
And the game is played with a grin on every face.
Some of the others in the League don’t get that. Wally suspects that those who do actually envy him, just a little.
And really, he wouldn’t have it any other way.
_________________________________________________________________________________________
Yup :o)
Title: Smile
Universe: DCAU
Characters: Flash, mentions of his Rogues and especially Piper and Trickster
Summary: You can always tell a lot about someone from the way they smile, they say.
Smile
Aunt Iris always said you could tell a lot about a person from the way they smiled, and it’s very true. Especially, for some reason, where villains are concerned. You’d think being a villain is about anything but smiling, but there always comes a moment where their lips stretch and they get those little crinkles around their eyes and something in their expression becomes unmissable.
Don’t expect them to look less dangerous, however, and if they do, the last thing to do is underestimate them. But they all do, at some point, for some reason or another.
Wally has seen a lot of villains smile. Each and every one of them is different.
The Joker’s insane grin is huge, white and red, and absolutely terrifying. It’s the grin of the monster that used to hide beneath your bed at night, with big teeth and eyes that tell you you’re going to die, slowly, painfully, and in a fun way. So far, his is the worst grin Wally has seen, and he’ll be happy if he never has to see it again. Not that he would back down, ever, but he will put one foot in front of the other with cold dread in his soul.
Speaking of Batman’s villains, Poison Ivy’s smile is every bit the femme fatale. It’s beautiful, beguiling, and lethal. She can make a man - and possibly every life form, regardless of trifling details like species or gender - feel uncomfortably tight and send their guts up in a twist as intricate as her plants. She makes you feel good about the danger you’re in. That’s her deadliest trap.
Scarecrow’s smile is your deepest, most intimate fears all rolled up in one stretch of fabric. Wally likes to dwell on that about as much as he likes to think about the Joker.
Lex Luthor’s only physiological difference with Wally is that he has super-speed and Luthor doesn’t, but when he smiles you suddenly know why he’s at the top and fighting and cheating his way higher still. A shark’s smile is friendlier. Behind the businessman’s cold politeness or slick charm - depending on who he’s talking to when he’s in business - there is a brutal efficiency, a razor-sharp intelligence, and a total lack of moral misgivings. This man can and will do anything necessary to attain his goals.
Those smiles are the reason Wally likes his own turf and his own villains. When they smile, it’s the triumphant grin of the hunter coming down on his prey, the satisfaction of suddenly winning; they’re dangerous, and you really have to keep on your toes to defeat them, but they don’t get personal, and they don’t fight dirty - much. They don’t use civilians as shields, they don’t twist your own fears against you - they’re just blue-collared bank robbers who enjoy the thrill of the chase.
Captain Cold has a small dent in one of his eye-teeth. Sometimes Wally wonders whether he was the one to knock the piece out. Maybe it’s actually got nothing to do with him, but it helps him remember that there’s always consequences to fighting at high speed all over the place. No matter how small.
But of all those smiles, he has to admit there are two he likes best. Not that he’s supposed to - after all, they’re villains, he’s a hero, and it’s not all right that they break into jewellery stores and commit robberies - but there’s something about those two that he just can’t help feeling good about.
Piper and Trickster. The Sultan of Sound and the Master of Mayhem. Well, not really, but those nicknames are fun.
When the Trickster is at his best, his grin is bright, colourful, full of mischief and the potential for great havoc.
When the Pied Piper is in the mood, his smirk is charming, sly, inconspicuously assessing and confident that he can deal with any situation.
Together, they balance each other, each quirk and eccentricity finding its match and becoming a strength. Piper is the perfect straight man to Trickster’s antics. Trickster can always lean on Piper if his world suddenly becomes unfunny.
It really shouldn’t be this way, but for Wally, those two smiles combined mean the promises of adventure, fun and the reassurance that nobody else will be in any real danger. There’s always a safeguard. But it doesn’t mean they will hold back with him. They’ll give their best shot, try their best tricks; but they’ll stay within the limits of deadly force, because it’s not the way the game is played, on either side.
And the game is played with a grin on every face.
Some of the others in the League don’t get that. Wally suspects that those who do actually envy him, just a little.
And really, he wouldn’t have it any other way.
_________________________________________________________________________________________
Yup :o)