“Congrats on your new position. May I ask what you are doing here..?”
Smiling rather widely at the young man, he marvelled at how much Bruce had grown. Soon enough, he’d be as tall as Edward himself.
“Thank you — rather a surprise, but well-deserved, I’m told. I am simply paying a visit to someone the Mayor hopes will be a valuable ally during these times of transition. May I express that to him, Mister Wayne?”
“Dinner sounds lovely, Eddie.” She purred out his name, taking up his hand and turning herself under it, pressing her back against his chest, her rear against his groin and wrapping his arms around her, swaying.
“And dancing?”
She looked up at him through her long lashes, green eyes sparkling and hopeful.
His smile was as brilliant as a sparkling diamond, its many facets reflected on Ed’s face. His arms wrapped around her securely and he nudged the back of her neck with his nose. The tightness of his tie didn’t escape him — but that could be addressed later.
“Yes, dancing sounds like a wonderful idea. The Mayor has some fantastic records we could play by the fireplace.”
Edward’s answer sent a delicious chill through her and she returned his mischievous grin.
She caressed his face.
“I’d risk my life to find what’s in that brilliant mind of yours, darling~” she tapped a fingertip to his temple. She was kissing distance away. She leaned back.
“Do you have work today or do I have you to myself?” Isabella fixed his tie, teasingly pulling it just a bit too tight.
Ed wanted nothing more than to answer in the negative, but just the thought of work had him groaning and dropping his head to her shoulder. Of course there were so many other things he could only IMAGINE to do that day, yet he refrained from speaking them aloud just yet.
“No, I’m afraid I have quite a bit to do today. Perhaps we can plan for dinner?”
The unspoken question lingered on his tongue, licked away on dry lips as he pulled back to gaze at every part of her face. She could undo him, entirely, and he would ALLOW IT.
Gaze moved quickly, looking at the man beside him as he spoke. It took him a moment, the way his gaze wondered south, locking on those full lips making him take pause, before he actually responded to Edward’s words, shifted so he was on his side, facing the man with a wide grin.
“Oh? I do love the way your mind works, Edward.” his tone was bright as he watched him, lips pulling into a tight line. The word tasted odd on his lips, especially directed towards Nygma. He knew just how deeply the feeling of love ran inside him for the man before him, but he wouldn’t focus on that.
“Do tell me, what has your devious mind come up with this time?”
His own mind whirled in all the worst ways: control, how to obtain it, how to maintain it. All sorts of vicious ways of exerting that control from behind the scenes as Penguin’s devoted right hand. Ed turned a bit to look upon his friend as he described only a fraction of his darker thoughts:
“It’s rather simple, Mister Mayor.” His inflection purposeful, pointed. “Every point of entry into Gotham is being watched by a few of our BEST spies. If any of your interests are shirked or… shall we say otherwise routed, I will hear every whisper, know every single move.”
And of course, what lay unspoken between them was that the Penguin’s interests were HIS interests.
He could feel that deep gaze on him, a small smirk lifting the corner of his lips as he kept his gaze trained on the sky above him, thinking over the words the other has spoken. He couldn’t help but focus on the beauty of the image, of such a well working system, all doing their part, coming together to create one perfect vision. It was what he wanted, what he craved out of those around him.
Glancing over at Edward, he let his smirk grow, sitting up straight as he turned to look at him. “We should do this more. Step away from the city, the politics, the chaos. I like this, just having a moment of peace. And who better to share those moments than with a good friend.” Moving as swiftly as he could, he lowered himself onto the ground, laying out flat on his back.
“So, do tell, what have you been up to while away from me?”
It felt like there was more he should have said, but the moment shifted when Oswald lay back as well. They were side-by-side looking up and he could scarcely remember a time without his friend-turned-employer close by.
“We should, perhaps. As for myself? Aside from the usual paperwork I handle for you, I’ve been… coming up with some ideas you may enjoy.”
The glint of his teeth was bright in the dark night’s sky. He was the sort of person who often brought work home, especially revelling in their sort of work controlling much of the Underworld of Gotham. Even when he was going to bed at night, Ed’s mind wandered to all the ways he could keep the Penguin in power. It was as simple as BREATHING.
He heard it, the tone he used when saying the words, the way he seemed almost dejected by his words. A soft sigh slipped past his lips as he looked back up at the sky above them. He had things to be doing, important things, but he couldn’t find it in himself to actually leave Edward’s side.
That seemed to be the norm with him, desperately fighting between his needs and his wants. With a sigh, he let his gaze slide back over to the slim man next to him, a small grin creasing his lips. “Perhaps I can stay for just a tad bit longer. Always did like the times spent with good company.”
Leaning back on his hands, he sighed, watching the stars for another moment. “Special sort of peace, huh?”
His lips quirked before retuning to a neutral line. A breath of air rushed out as he fell backwards and rested on crossed forearms. If he had a little longer out here, Ed would make the most of it.
“How often do you just LOOK up there? Some people see shapes in the clouds, but I gravitate more towards the stars. Space — all of its various components — it’s all quite fascinating. How they work together like a finely oiled machine.“ Like you and I, went unspoken, but conveyed through the dark depths of his eyes as Edward turned his head to the side to observe his closest friend.
Nothing about his words was inherently untrue, but the latter; well, Ed found himself wanting to bask in the easy perfection of starlight without the rush and madness of Gotham City.
“When I was in the woods doing… well doing things, the simple air of nature really struck me. How many secrets lay in the trunks of trees, or buried beneath the snow? Here, though. This is a special sort of peace I find myself craving at times.”
Drawing his eyes away from the sky, he looked down at his own hand gripping the crisp blades of grass that slipped through his fingers. Oswald was important now and had appearances to uphold, but out here, the other man seemed so much freer. He sighed wistfully, letting the slow wave of emotion roll down his back as he sat up a bit straighter.
“Back to the world of chaos, then?”
Edward TRIED to hide the note of dejected acceptance in his tone, and likely failed.
“ Let me tell you something, you skinny bitch. I will devour you whole if Tabitha gets hurt. I don’t really care what you and Butch get into. But bring Tabitha into it? I’ll set you on fire. ”
Quite unlike himself, Edward doesn’t give in to the jibe, only drags his stare up her face and settles there. A slight glint of light catches his glasses, lending an eerie look that’s been all too common lately.
“And what makes you think I have anything planned that might hurt her? Aside from the fact that she’s hurt people that I CARE ABOUT on many an occasion?”
There were so many AWFUL[good] things he wanted to do, but this merited some- thing special.
“Mister Mayor,” Ed spoke in a husky tone, his smile melting into a smirk he‘d seldom let anyone else see. “Do you beg like this for all of your staff?”
Not giving his new lover much chance to respond, he pulled back and slammed his hips back in, starting a steady rocking motion that was purely second nature. His hands cupped Oswald’s face before he nuzzled into his neck, teeth digging into the beautiful pale flesh, begging to be abused. Amidst the bites, he murmured:
“What a BAD Penguin you’ve been… ignoring your most i m p o r t a n t employee, ignoring your duties to me.”
He wasn’t sure what had overcome him. Perhaps it was this constant longing under his skin for the other man, or maybe it was just the authority Oswald carried — but he couldn’t stop falling headlong into this if he tried.
how she could only wish to help him in such a puzzle but this wasn’t her concern. she had only been called upon for the simple reason of identifying the flowers ed had been given. anything else, while she could possibly lead him in the right direction, to give him meaning and any minor details that could help him find the answers he was starting to look for. she knew not of who he kept close in his life, only what she heard through the grapevine. while she had some sort of idea, she figured it was best to maybe stray away from the idea that it could have been him. she knew nothing of their relationship, not of how close they were. while it seemed oswald may have kept great interest in ed, all she knew was what she observed from the outside.
one thing catches her attention once more, the thought of being of help to the mayor. to use her skill in such a high volume manner, it was exhilarating, and that was simply based on the idea of what possibly laid ahead. ❝ i truly only have the botanical gardens keeping my attention, what research i do have. other than that, i’m free as ever. ❞ nothing seemed to peak her interest anymore, that her life had become somewhat routine, a path only moving forward instead of forking in other directions leading to opportunity. ❝ i could always use some outside work. ❞
He felt his smile growing at the possibilities. Nothing excited him more than planning and organising the perfect scheme. Having both Oswald and Ivy on the same team… the idea brought shivers to his spine.
“Excellent. The mayor will be THRILLED to hear your answer. Would you like to visit the mansion sometime this week to discuss details?”
Naturally, details would include names and faces of people that needed to be gently “coaxed” into place by a potion or pretty face. Edward knew that Ivy had both at her disposal and was ecstatic to potentially be working with her. At least for the moment, the purple buds managed to fall to the back of his mind. A mystery for later.
◘ This blog is selective && private to keep my dash from exploding. However, memes and short starters are fine with just about anyone!
◘ I reserve the right to play only within the fandoms I know, but I'm willing to expand my personal knowledge.
◘ OCs are great! — please have a detailed history/about page.
◘ Mun && muse are well over 18+, so NSFW [gore, violence, kinks, ptsd, etc.] and smut will be present && tagged with the prefix #tw: . Come to me personally for the smut, though.
◘ I'm not an exclusives sort of person, as I think that every incarnation of a character has something special to offer, but I can consider mains if you'd like to shoot me an ask about it.
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