This is beyond helpful... such a lifesaver.
So: you’re new to the DC Comics fandom and are interested in Batman and his family. Maybe you already know a bit about them and are just looking to figure out where to start reading actual comics. Maybe you know nothing. Maybe you know a whole lot about one character but want to start reading more about another one.
Whichever it is, I’m here to help! There’s a wide range of Batman/Batfamily comics (for all ages, moods, and types of people), and I’m happy to meet people where they are and help people dive into comics. On that note, brace yourselves, because this is going to be a long post. Recs start under the cut.
Superhero comics are traditionally written in what’s known as runs; an author gets to have an extended period on an ongoing (or limited) title where they (traditionally) write in 4-8 issue story arcs; think of these arcs as chapters in a potentially never-ending book. These individual issues are colloquially known as floppies. So when I talk about “Tom Taylor’s run” on the Nightwing title, for example, I’m talking about the (as of now) current writer, who’s been the main author on the Nightwing title since March 2021 and whose story arcs begin with Nightwing #78. Every so often, titles end, the principal author on the titles switch up, or they’ll have “guest/interim authors” come in to do single issues or a single story arc.
These story arcs are then collected in hardcovers or ‘trade paperbacks’ (generally referred to as trades, occasionally TPBs); both collect the entire story arc (plus bonus/behind the scenes material, in some cases) in a single paperback/hardback book. Trades are super useful if you want to read an entire story at one time, want to be economical about your comics spending, and/or want to read things in order. Occasionally, if a writer has a particularly long run on a title or a big company event happens, you get published omnibuses that collect an entire event or run (or part of it, if the event is big enough); omnis are very expensive up-front, but ultimately they tend to be good deals and are often curated well. These collections are all generally also released digitally. Frankly, unless you’re into comics collecting, want individual issues for their pretty covers, or are supporting a currently ongoing run, I would default to buying trades/omnibuses where possible. It’s simply cheaper and easier for reading.
List Notes: Each character list is sorted vaguely chronologically according to a combination of IRL publication dates and the character’s personal timeline. Big caveat that these are not all-inclusive reading lists nor are the inclusions inherently indicators of quality; I’m just trying to hit major character highlights. You should also note that many comics contain multiple Batfam members due to the ridiculous number of crossover events and the solid integration of the Batfamily as a whole into each others’ books in the post-90s era. Comic rec tl;drs are given at the end of each character’s list. Most of the links will take you to Amazon/Comixology, but I also talk about various ways to access and read comics at the bottom of this post.
Secondary Note: DC Comics works in three universes: the pre-Crisis universe (everything published from the beginning of DC Comics until the Crisis on Infinite Earths event in 1986), the post-Crisis universe (everything published between 1986 and 2011), and the post-Flashpoint universe (2011-now).
In 2011, DC completely rebooted their universe following the ‘Flashpoint’ event. This new universe (interchangably called the New 52 universe, post-Flashpoint universe, or Prime Earth) drastically changed many characters’ histories, personalities, and relationships with each other (sometimes for the better, most of the time for the worse). The early years of the post-Flashpoint universe are an absolute incoherent mess continuity-wise; DC’s been trying to sort it all out over the past few years with the Rebirth and Infinite Frontier events (with varying degrees of success), and there are definitely some bright bits and pieces, but it is not my favored universe (though I will certainly recommend it where needed or when it’s good).
Now: let’s get started, shall we? Lists below the cut (please click here to view the most updated version of this post on desktop via my blog instead of on mobile/the dashboard, for easy readability and formatting purposes):
Keep reading
Miami
lando: thanks osc!
zak: osc?
lando: that's my nickname!
---
Barcelona
interviewer: osco?
oscar: that's my nickname!
Pairing: Charles Leclerc x fem!devil!reader Summary: When a young driver wants to make a deal with the devil to get his greatest desire you find yourself forgetting what side of Heaven and Hell you are on. Warnings: supernatural themes, mention of deaths (Jules, Hervé & Hubert), angst, fluff WC: 5k
F1 Masterlist || Bonus Scene
16th October 2013 The kid had no business standing at the crossroads. What could a boy need so desperately that he was willing to part with his soul for it? But it wasn’t your place to question, merely to answer.
The boy murmured to himself as he knelt on the gravel and started to dig with a pink trowel he had borrowed from his mothers gardening tools. The quiet mutterings brought you amusement as you thought of the surprise he would get when his doubt was proven wrong and you appeared.
He carefully followed the instructions inked on the page that had been torn from a very old book. He reached up to his dark hair with a small pocket knife and cut away a small patch before laying it in the hole he had made. Turning the knife on himself, he whined as he pricked the tip of his finger and squeezed it until three thick blood drops fell onto the strands of his hair.
You would usually laugh at the poor attempt of the incantation to call upon you but instead you sighed as you grew tired of the theatrics.
“What do you want, kid?”
A small shriek filled the night as he fell back on his ass. “But…but…you…but…”
“Shit, you’re not even old enough to talk properly,” you said as you knelt down to his height. “Go home.”
His mouth snapped closed before scrambling to his feet and wiping the dust that covered his jeans. “Sorry, you gave me a fright. I was expecting…” he looked around and frowned, “never mind. Do you need help?”
“No, do you?”
He looked genuinely concerned as he searched the dark road and you tipped your head to the side before you remembered that to a human you looked like a 21 year old. It didn’t matter that you had roamed the world for a thousand years, your physical form remained the same.
“I guess not,” he sighed as his shoulders slumped and he kicked his vans at the loose stones as he whispered, “it didn’t work anyway.”
“It was your pronunciation, Latin is a tough language. I’ll let you in on a secret, you can say the incantation in any language and it will work.” You leaned in closer and chuckled darkly. “The devil just enjoys torturing people.”
“But…but…”
“Great, we’re back to that, are we?” You rolled your eyes and opened your palm, a ball of fire erupting into the night and the scent of sulphur lingering after the flame burned out. “What did you expect when you called me?”
“You…you’re the…dev…”
“Devil,” you offered as his face paled and he stumbled backwards. “Say it with me. De-vil.”
“You’re the devil? But you look like an angel.”
“More or less, there’s actually a lot of us.” You clapped him on the back and grinned when he jumped. “So what can I do for you, kid?”
“I heard you could grant wishes.”
“I’m not a genie, I’m a dealer,” you said with a shake of your head. “You tell me your dream and I make it happen, for a price.”
He chewed on his lip, his conscience trying to warn him it was a bad idea. “What price?”
You flicked your hand out and the piece of paper on the ground flew into your fingers. “You know the price. How old are you anyway, kid?”
“I’m sixteen, today actually.”
“Congratulations!” You frowned as it didn’t sound quite right and he did the same. “Wait, it’s happy birthday, isn’t it? We don’t exactly have them since we are fallen, not born.”
“That's really sad.”
“Hell help me, you are an emotional one.” You pinched the bridge of your nose as you felt the waves of empathy rolling off the teenager. “Listen, I’m all up for taking souls, it’s my job and I’m pretty good at it, but you seem like a nice guy so I’ll help you out pro bono as long as you don’t cry.”
“Really?” His excitement was almost as infectious as his smile as he grinned at your offer and you could tell that with a few more years of growth and maturity he would be as handsome as those goody-good angels.
“Really. So what’s your dream? And don’t go all ‘Disneyland’ and that shit, make it big.”
“I want to be a Formula One World Champion.”
“Fuck, okay, I said big not gigantic,” you said as you cracked your neck and then your knuckles before rolling your shoulders. “That will take some time to pull off, but we got this, kid.”
“Charles, my name is Charles Leclerc,” he said as he held his hand out. “Do devils have names?”
“Of course we have names, but names have power and I don’t know you well enough to share mine with you.” You shook his hand and he jumped a little at the heat difference since the hellfire made you run hotter than humans. That same heat flickered up your spine as you felt another calling at a crossroad half a world away and so you stepped away. “I’ll check in once a year to see your progress.”
“Wait, that’s it?”
You laughed darkly as thick smoke began to gather at your feet where the earth was opening to your home realm. The teen yelped as a lick of flame encircled his wrist but the scar that appeared just as quickly healed so no one would know he had been marked by the devil. “Goodbye, Charles.”
16th October 2014 “I wasn’t sure you would actually come, I thought you were a figment of my imagination.”
You stepped out of the shadows and looked around the modest home that should have been full of his friends celebrating his 17th birthday. The air was thick with grief and it made your back ache from the weight of it bearing down on you as you watched the teenager stand with his back to you at a bookcase.
“Maybe I am,” you murmured as you walked over to him and saw his eyes fixated on a photo.
Placing the photo back carefully on the shelf he turned and you saw the difference a year had made. “I want to make a deal. My soul, take it.”
“Woah, slow down, Birthday Boy, you don’t know what you are offering.”
“I don’t care, I just need him to be alright.” Tears were swimming in his eyes as he grabbed your hand and squeezed tightly. “Fix Jules, please.”
Unable to resist, you reached out and touched the tear that ran down his cheek. Pain obliterated your chest, crushing your insides as waves of memories flooded your senses until you knew Jules just as well as he did.
For the first time since your fall a thousand years ago, you were envious of the angel you had been. You wanted to be the cause of his hope, but that wasn’t something you could give and you tugged your hand from his hold before they could blister his skin. “I’m sorry, I can’t.”
“Bullshit! You are a dealer, you said so yourself.”
“That’s not how it works, Charles, I’m a devil. Don’t you see? The deals I make are selfish, the things people want for themselves. You want a miracle,” you sighed and felt the familiar ache where your wings once were, “I can’t do those anymore.”
“You got me into Formula Renault.”
“You got yourself there, kid,” you said as you stepped away. “I just whispered a few suggestions to people I knew would listen.”
It was a little more threatening involved but you weren’t going to let him know that. You hadn’t needed to do anything other than get someone to give him a chance since he had the talent to win all on his own.
“There has to be something you can do,” he pleaded, his green eyes swimming with tears.
You sighed as you stepped away, rubbing your temple as if you could actually get a migraine like a human could. “I can’t make any promises, but…let me see what I can do.”
You faded from the room before you could see the hope that filled his face and followed the memory of his visit to Jules, finding yourself in the shadows of a hospital room. The room was empty except for the young man laying on the bed, wires and tubes keeping his breathing steady. You were struck by the pain you felt and knew it wasn’t real but the lingering effects of sharing Charles’ memory of him, but that knowledge still didn’t ease the ache.
“Azrael, come down here.”
It only took a second for the angel to appear and she didn’t look pleased at being called away from her duties.
“You’re not an archangel anymore, you can’t just snap your fingers at me.”
“Obviously I can since you showed,” you pointed out. “I need a favour.”
“You don’t do favours,” she said as she narrowed her eyes.
“I do now. I need you to leave him alone.”
Azrael looked at the comatose man before reaching forward and touching his forehead and shaking her head. “He’s one of ours, he has to come with me soon.”
“You have no sense of time, whatsoever. Soon could be 50 years from now.” You crossed your arms and stared the death angel down. “I’ll deny three souls in exchange for his life.”
“You’d turn down three deals for Jules? Who is he to you?”
“No one, but he means everything to someone else. Do we have a deal?”
“Deal, he has until I next come back down, no more.”
You nodded in agreement hoping her sporadic trips to earth erred on a lengthier time away this round. Unfurling her wings, you felt a pang of jealousy arise as you watched her fade away only to hear the strong beats of her wings carry her higher.
You aparated back to Charles and found him slumped in a leather reading chair, an album of photos open on his lap. Droplets splattered on plastic sleeves, only to smear into streaks as he wiped them away at your arrival.
“I bought him some time,” you said softly as you fell into the seat opposite him. “I can’t say how long because I don’t know but for now he will live.”
Charles dropped the book as he fell to his knees and clutched your hand tightly, the gesture making you uncomfortable. “Thank you,” he choked as his tears hit your knee through the rip in your skinny jeans and turned to steam. He didn’t seem to be affected by the heat radiating off you, he didn’t seem to feel it at all as he closed his eyes and rested his head on your joined hands. “Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me yet, kid,” you said ruefully, pulling your hand back from the touch. “Healing was never my gift. He will have to do that on his own.”
“He will, I know he will,” Charles said with certainty as he rose to his feet. “He’s the strongest man that I know.”
You stood up with a nod and realised this year he was the same height as you, seeing eye to eye after his latest growth spurt.
“I hope you are right,” you said, feeling the floor start to give way beneath you as you willed yourself home. “Until next year, Birthday Boy.”
Charles’ nose wrinkled at the smell of sulphur filling the room and he stepped back at the sight of the black plume swirling around your boots. “You don’t have to wait a year, you can visit anytime.”
“Have you forgotten who I am?” you laughed as the smoke climbed higher.
“Just because you’re the devil, it doesn’t make you bad,” he said with a shy shrug. “You’ve been nothing but kind to me.”
He was right in the fact you had been kind, something no one else would say about you. You couldn’t explain why you were different with him, why you couldn’t treat him like any other advantageous young man wanting to get ahead. There would surely be hell to pay if word ever got out about it.
The smoke reached your throat and pulled you down. “Maybe I made a mistake.”
16th October 2015 Charles would never know it but you had visited him throughout the year. You had kept to the shadows, watching from afar as he graduated to Formula 3 and came one step closer to reaching his dream. You were there by his side when he received the phone call that had devastated him, you had felt Azrael’s presence on the mortal plane and immediately went to him. You didn’t reveal yourself, not when the gut wrenching sound he made had you hate having fallen. You could offer him nothing so you remained hidden, torturing yourself with the knowledge of what could have been.
It was a little before midnight when you arrived at the busy nightclub. You should have just apparated into a bathroom stall but instead you had to produce a fake ID so the bouncer would let you in.
“Guess I can’t call you kid anymore,” you said as you found Charles in the VIP area and took a seat beside him. “Happy Birthday.”
“Who’s this angel, Charles?” his friend asked with a confident grin.
You tipped your head back with a laugh before you recovered enough to say, “You’re barking up the wrong tree there, but you call me D.”
Charles nearly choked on his drink at the snort he gave. “What are you doing here, D? I don’t remember inviting you.”
You leaned closer to see his cheeks flushed pink with the alcohol he was now legally allowed to imbibe in and whispered, “There’s only one place I need an invitation, and despite the name on the door outside - this isn’t Heaven.”
With a huff of annoyance he stood up and made his way out of the VIP area to the packed dance floor. Knowing everyone was completely inebriated you didn’t bother to follow him, instead you suddenly appeared in front of him.
“Leave me alone,” Charles growled as he turned his back, but everywhere he went you were in front of him.
Finally he gave up escaping and you shoved a hand on your hip as you asked, “What’s your problem?”
“My problem? You lied to me, that’s what!” The drink in his hand spilled over the rim of the glass with the angry shaking overtaking his body. “Jules died…and you weren’t even there. You never visited me and…I needed you. I needed to know why!”
You took the glass from him and tipped the liquid back, relishing the burn of the alcohol down your throat as he stared daggers at you. “I don’t have to explain myself to you, mortal.”
“Well, we never made a deal, so there’s no need for you to be here, devil.”
The words hurt more than you cared to admit and the glass shattered in your hand, ichor flowing from the wounds before they could heal as quickly as they came. Charles' eyes widened at the dark liquid coating your palm and he almost looked worried for you but you weren’t looking at him. Your eyes were fixed on your heels, the shoes uncomfortable compared to the boots you normally wore but you had wanted to fit in. For him.
“You’re right,” you muttered as you freed your hair from the constricting hair tie and kicked the shoes off. There was nothing to be done about the tight red dress until you were home, but you would be there soon enough. “Goodbye, Charles.”
16th October 2016 Try as you might, you couldn’t stay away. Unbeknownst to Charles, you regularly checked in to see what his latest accomplishments were. As it was, he was leading the Formula 3 Championship and was a sure graduate to Formula 2. He raced like he had the devil breathing down his neck, pushing the boundaries to the brink of disaster.
Maybe he knew you hadn’t abandoned him, or maybe he just didn’t care. You knew you definitely shouldn’t have cared but still you watched him grow into a man and mature as his career evolved.
16th October 2017 You had nearly started another war the day Azrael came for Charles’ father. For three days you stood ready to fight the angel of death for Charles’ biggest supporter while he visited the hospital to say his goodbyes. He had lied to his father, telling Hervé that he had signed to a Formula 1 team for the next year and you promised to make it happen - with or without a soul to bargain.
It wasn’t a difficult task to achieve, a small incident with Pascal Wehrlein making a seat available in Sauber. All Charles had to do was keep his head in the game and go fast like he always did.
When you watched him celebrate his birthday his eyes had glanced around the room and you wondered if it was you he was looking for. It was only when those green eyes landed on a family photo you pushed the silly thought away, he was just missing his father.
16th October 2018 “How long have you been there?” Charles asked the empty room.
How he sensed your presence, you didn’t know, but since you no longer needed to hide it you let the shadows fall away. Turning away from where he had been styling his hair in the mirror, he leaned against the dresser and crossed his arms over his broad chest.
His room hadn’t changed all that much, Ferrari posters still covered the majority of the walls but they were also joined by some models posing on hoods of cars. The twin bed had been upgraded to a double and was covered in a red and yellow bedspread that clashed with your trademark black outfit as you lay across it.
“How often do you do that?”
“Do what?” you asked innocently as you stared at his ceiling and not his narrowed eyes.
He waved a hand over your leisurely state. “This.”
You got off the bed and stalked across the room to the Formula 1 racer and found you had to look up at him even with the heels on your boots. “Don’t mortals leave home by now? I thought the 21st birthday was some big right of passage.”
You reached for the tub of hair product and sniffed at the vanilla scent before it was swiped from your hand. It smelled edible and there was another scent that was just as good but you weren’t sure what it was or where it was coming from until you leaned closer to him and inhaled.
“I just bought an apartment but it’s not ready for me to move into for a few more weeks. Will you stop that?”
“What is that smell?” Your head was swimming as if you were high but that wasn’t possible. “My head…”
You could barely stand upright as you felt drunk all of a sudden and Charles caught you as you stumbled back. “Sit down,” he said softly as he guided you to the edge of his bed. “Why did you come back?”
Your head lolled onto his shoulder and the room spun as the truth tumbled from your lips. “I never left you,” you admitted, your words slurring as the intoxicating smell left you dazed. “Not when Jules died…or your father, never…”
Charles frowned as your eyes closed and you fell back on his bed. He had spent so long blaming you, being angry at you, believing you had abandoned him when he needed you most but as you murmured in your strange state he realised he had it all wrong.
“D?” he called out as he shook your shoulder. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
You tried to open your eyes but they were too heavy and you curled into a ball as your stomach churned. “Because I shouldn’t care. You’re just a human.”
“But you do care,” he surmised as he grabbed the blanket and draped it over your shivering body.
“Devils don’t care.” You could hardly talk through your chattering teeth, the blanket doing nothing to warm the ice that had seeped into your being.
Charles curled himself up against your back and tightened his arms around the blanket as he tried to warm you. Nothing seemed to work until his voice spoke softly in your ear, “Then maybe you’re not like the others.”
The silence grew and he thought you had passed out when you muttered, “I had nowhere else to go.”
“What do you mean?”
“There was a war…couldn’t choose a side…threw me out.” A yawn silenced your words and you snuggled into his arms, your nose finding that delicious scent strongest on his neck where you nuzzled deeper.
“My cologne,” Charles whispered and you realised you had asked aloud what it was. “You’re like a cat high on catnip.”
“Haven’t been high since I had wings.” You giggled, a sound so unlike you, but it turned to a sad sigh. “I miss my wings.”
Charles brushed your hair back from your face but you didn’t have the strength to open your eyes. “What colour were they?”
“There isn’t a colour to describe them. But you can see it at dawn…look to the east…the last star in the morning sky.”
“The Morningstar?” Charles looked down to see your lips parted with a soft snore and reached into his pocket for his phone. There was no way he was going to leave you in the state you were in, not even for his own birthday party.
16th October 2019 You had thought Azrael had forgotten the deal you made but she made sure to remind you of it when she crossed paths with you at the Belgium GP. Charles’ head had snapped your way the moment he heard the crash and you shook your head sadly. The only reassurance you could give him was that the young driver’s soul was at peace.
Before leaving with her precious cargo, Azrael had given you two months to keep your end of the bargain and you didn’t want to test her patience. The crossroads had been quiet and it took nearly the whole time to find three souls worthy of denying a deal, most people who offered their souls for their greatest desires deserved the eternal damnation in return.
As soon as your task was fulfilled you returned to Charles, to the only place you felt at home. After waking in his arms a year ago you had struggled with the duties expected of you, finding more and more excuses for the downturn in deals. After waking in his arms, you wanted to be more than what you were. You wanted to believe you could be more, like he believed in you.
“D,” Pierre greeted as he joined you at the bar. “Still looking as lovely as ever.”
“Still the charmer.”
His attempt to shift closer to your side was blocked by the heat radiating from you and he pulled back with a frown, brushing the oddity off in his tipsy state. “Where have you been?”
“Here, there, everywhere,” you answered absentmindedly as you felt Charles’ presence before you spotted him. “I travel for work.”
“Let me guess - modelling?”
“Dealing.”
“No way!” His eyebrow shot up and he leaned in to whisper, “Drugs?”
“Not quite,” you said with a laugh. “Something far more lucrative.”
Charles’ hand came to rest on the small of your back and his lips brushed your cheek. “Sorry I’m late, ma diablesse. What are you drinking?”
“I could do with a-” your voice trailed off as a fissure ran through the air and you turned to see what had just walked in the door. “Hold that thought.”
“What’s wrong?” Charles asked but you were already weaving your way through the crowd.
Waves of power rolled off the beast but no one would see the tusks spearing out of its face or the black soulless eyes, they would merely see a mountain of a man and a vibe that warned them to move aside.
“This is a bit out of your territory, Fowler. What are you doing topside?”
The demon looked over your shoulder and smirked. “Heard some interesting rumours.”
“And what rumours were those?”
“That some darling angel was caught up with a mortal, helping out for free. You know the rules. No soul, no deal.” Fowler’s hand snapped out and caught your throat, his claws threatening to tear it out. “Don’t forget who took you in when your family threw you out.”
“Fuck you, I’ve more than paid my debt,” you spat as you grabbed his wrist and seared his skin with the lick of your flames. “Don’t come and threaten me.”
“I don’t have to threaten you,” he chuckled as he cradled his hand to his chest and looked past you to where Charles was pushing his way to your side. “Mortals are so weak, a little accident is all it takes.”
There was no way you could let Fowler return to Hell with the information he had, your weakness, so you did the only thing you could to protect Charles. You rushed the demon as the ground opened, disappearing into the pit with him before Charles could follow. You called all of your power and funnelled it into your fire, pouring it down the demon's throat until he was smothered by the flames and a smoking husk that turned to ash as you crashed to the ground.
“Morningstar, what is the meaning of this?”
You bowed to Beelzebub before kicking away the ash that had settled on your boot and painted a dark smile onto your face. “He interrupted a deal, I couldn’t let that grievance go unpunished. Or did you want me to forgive him?” You challenged him with an arch of your brow until he huffed a sigh and waved the question away with the whip of his tail.
“So where is the contract for the soul?”
“Did you miss the part where I said he interrupted the deal?”
“I’m not sure if I liked you less as an angel or not,” he uttered from his throne of skulls.
“I have that effect.” You started to leave the way you came but a chain snared around your ankle and locked into place before you could escape.
“Not so fast.” You were thrown onto your ass as he yanked the chain and dragged you to the foot of his throne. “I find myself short of an enforcer,” he said as he looked pointedly at the pile of ash you had created.
“So find another,” you growled as you tried to melt the chain but it merely absorbed the heat you poured onto it, “there’s no shortage of brainless fools ready to serve you.”
“But look how that ended,” he laughed. “How about a deal? Ten years as my enforcer for your freedom.”
Freedom. Ten years was nothing, just a blip to an immortal, but you weren’t thinking of yourself. You were thinking what ten years would be for Charles. Would he have a wife and kids? Would he have won his world championship? Would he remember you?
“Two,” you countered.
“Five.”
“Deal, but on one condition.” You stopped fighting the chain and rose to your knees. “I want a soul.”
16th October 2024 You were beyond exhausted when you stumbled into the bedroom, using the last of your strength to find your way back to him. The last five years had been brutal and it was a miracle that you had survived to complete your end of the deal, much to Beelzebub’s chagrin. The bastard had thrown every impossible task your way but you had something he could never understand, hope. And it kept you fighting to the bitter end.
You crashed onto the bed as your legs gave out and he leapt up at the intrusion, the bedside lamp lighting up and illuminating his silhouette as he stared at you wide eyed. “Ma diablesse? You came back…”
“Always, Birthday Boy.” You reached for him, needing to feel him with your own two hands after missing him for five years. It was his face that had kept you alive and you cupped his jaw to pull him closer only to freeze at what you felt. “Charles?”
“What? What is it?” he asked with panic as he placed his hands over yours, holding them tight to his cheeks.
“You have a beard,” you whispered, turning his face to the side to see the styled hair on his jaw. “When did that happen?”
Charles laughed and pulled you into his arms, burying his face in your neck as he crushed you against his chest. “I can’t believe you’re really here.”
“I would have been back sooner but I made a deal with the devil.” You reached into your pocket and pulled out an unassuming medallion. “A soul, my soul.”
Charles frowned in confusion as he trailed a finger over the symbols of an ancient language long forgotten. “What do you mean?”
“No more devil deals, if you’ll have me, I would be human.”
Shock rippled through his features. “You would give up immortality for me?”
“Hell is an eternity without you,” you said before you pressed your forehead to his, sharing his breath of life. “And if I never make it back to Heaven at least I will have had a moment of it here with you.”
Bonus scene here.
Lando Norris + Y/N Leclerc = In Love
LandY/N + Charles Leclerc = One very angry big brother
2.1K
Lando Norris x Reader
Masterlist
"Are you a member of the Leclerc Family? Have you had to put up with these jokers for your entire life? Well you could be entitled to compensation."
Y/N Leclerc had her arms crossed over her chest, sunglasses covering her eyes, as she gestured back at her brothers. It had been incredibly difficult to get Charles and Lorenzo to participate, but Arthur had helped her to convince them.
"Call today and we at the Leclerc Justice Foundation could make you filthy, stinking rich."
The Leclerc brothers nodded their heads, sending sunglasses from the top of their heads to in front of their eyes.
The video was one of Y/N's most viewed on Instagram. It was hilarious, showing off exactly how much fun her brothers were. Y/N spent all of her time following Charles and Arthur around the world.
Her brothers were her everything. Y/N spent more time than she should have in the Ferrari garage with Charles. As his baby sister, she was his everything. Charles didn't bring his WAG to the races, he brought his little sister.
"What's up, Mon petit monstre?" Said Charles as Y/N walked over to him.
She pulled his hat from her head and placed it on her own. "Charlie," she said as she sat in the chair beside him. The hat was much too big on her head, sliding forward over her eyes. Y/N pushed it back and looked at her brother. "Do you think maman would kill me if I got a tattoo?" She asked her older brother.
"If she doesn't, Lorenzo will," Charles answered and went back to scrolling through his phone.
Rolling her eyes, Y/N draped herself over his back. "I ditched Arthur for you, you know," she muttered, giving him back his hat. "Think I made a mistake."
"No, you didn't. I'm way more fun than Arthur is and you know it," he said, finally turning to give her attention.
The youngest Leclerc sibling loved following her brother around Formula One. Mainly, she loved his friends, the other drivers she saw walking around the paddock. Of course, Charles had that rule around the paddock: No going near his little sister.
Everybody listened to that rule, everybody but Y/N. She didn't listen to her brother because, well, where was the fun in that.
Y/N avoided Max and Pierre. She wouldnt dare flirt with them. They were Charles' best friends and the first people he would murder. So, her next target?
Lando Norris was interesting to Y/N Leclerc. She had no other word for it, just interesting. Different from anybody she'd met before. Full of life and excitement. Y/N didn't know much about him until her brother introduced them (And then threatened Lando's life when he was caught flirting).
What Charles didn't know was that the flirting had continued behind his back. And Y/N was loving every second of it.
"Danny thinks I should get a tattoo," Y/N said, somewhat bitterly. "He thinks I should get a little cat on my hip."
Charles gave her something close to a glare. "No, Y/N, you're not getting a tattoo," he said, putting an end to the conversation.
But Y/N didn't much care about what her brother was saying. Not when none other than Lando Norris walked past. Her eyes snagged on his body, but she didn't let her gaze linger.
Her brother could never know. That was what the fun was, keeping things a secret from her brother. There was a certain thrill that came along with keeping things hidden. The less Charles knew, the better.
Arthur Leclerc had always prided himself on knowing Y/N the best out of all of the brothers. This wasn't entirely true though. He was slightly too young to be as protective if Y/N as Charles and Lorenzo were. He pulled her hair and pushed her around while Charles and Lorenzo helped her to cross the street. Arthur thought the most, but he didn't know quite as much as Charles and Lorenzo.
Arthur, though, was the first to work out about Y/N and Lando. Well, it was less working out and more accidentally walking in on the both of them post coitus.
It had taken Y/N a lot of time, money and love to stop Arthur from spilling everything to Charles and Lorenzo. She knew what would happen; they'd go into crazy protective brother mode and send her back to Monaco to be watched over by their mother.
If Arthur, Charles and Lorenzo got their way, Y/N would never date. She had to hide her first couple of boyfriends from her brothers, which sucked because a few of them were only with her to meet the Charles Leclerc.
While Y/N was watching Lando, her gaze a secret, Lando was staring at her through her sunglasses. He was too busy staring, almost running into a wall as he did so. They were supposed to meet later that night and Lando couldn't wait.
"Do you think you could go and bother somebody else?" Asked Charles as Y/N stole his hat yet again.
Y/N shook her head. But when she put her finger to her head in mock thought. "Well, I guess I could go and bother one of your friends, then," she said. "Maybe Carlos or Pierre or Esteban," she teased and walked away.
The fact that Charles didn't see his little sister for the rest of the day was... worrying. She was off doing god knows what, disturbing whoever. At least she wasn't causing chaos in the Ferrari garage anymore.
Y/N checked her phone. A text from Arthur, using their secret code, asking if she was seeing 'You-Know-Who' tonight. She messaged him back a quote from Harry Potter and then answered his question. Yes. Yes she would be seeing 'You-Know-Who' tonight. She'd be seeing him right now, in fact.
Hands covered her eyes. "Guess who," said a voice.
"Oh Carlos! I've been waiting for you all day!" Y/N cried and turned around, a wide smile on her face.
When she saw Lando standing there, her smile dropped. But it didn't last long. The smile was back on her face as she stepped into his embrace. "Hey," she said in a singsong voice as she looked up at him.
"Carlos, huh?" Lando tightened his grip on her, rocking from side to side as he held her.
Y/N shrugged her shoulders and struggled her arms out of his grip. She wrapped her arms around his neck and played with his hair. "Just wanted to piss you off," she said and kissed him.
Lando refused to let go of her. "So, we on for tonight?" He asked, releasing his grip slightly.
As Y/N nodded her head, her phone went off. She reluctantly stepped away from Lando and answered her phone. "What the hell do you want?" She snapped at her older brother.
"Just wondering where you are, mon petit monstre," Charles answered.
Turns out Charles started to worry while Y/N wasn't causing chaos in the Ferrari garage. She was either missing or getting bad ideas from Danny.
"I'm fine," she somewhat snapped. "I'll be back soon." Hanging up the phone, Y/N placed it back in her pocket and turned to Lando. "Sorry, Lan," she muttered and wrapped her arms back around his neck. "I've got to go before Charles comes looking."
Lando let out a sigh and kissed her. "Okay. I'll meet you in your hotel room later," he said and kissed her once again. Lando released Y/N and walked away. She waited one minute before following him.
***
Y/N waited in her hotel room, sat on her bed in her favourite set of underwear. It was black with little neon yellow/green stars on it. The same neon yellow/green as Lando's LN4 logo.
There was a knock at her hotel room door. A specific knock that she and Lando had come up with so they knew it was them and nobody else. After the knock the hotel room door opened and Lando stepped in (Y/N had given him her spare key card).
"Wow," said Lando as he stepped into the room. "Wow, wow, wow." He pushed the door shut behind him and leaned against it. "How did I get so lucky?"
"Just shut up and come here," she said and grabbed a hold of him. Y/N pulled him close and pressed her lips against his.
Lando was underneath her, his shirt off as they made out. His hands roamed her body touching her waist and running his hand down her back, towards her ass. "My god," he muttered as he pulled away. "You're incredible."
"I know," Y/N said and returned to kissing him.
Suddenly, there was a knock at her door. Y/N and Lando froze. "Y/N? It's Charles!"
"Shit, fuck, shit!" Y/N whispered as she jumped away from Lando. She grabbed his shirt and pulled it on as Lando climbed off of the bed. "Hide somewhere!"
"Where?"
"I don't know!"
They were frantic, running around to try and make things look normal. Y/N made the bed look as though she had just climbed out of it while Lando hid on the floor beside it. The bed was between him and the door hiding his body.
Running to the door, Y/N checked one last time that everything was normal and pulled it open. "Hey, Charlie," she said, breathless. "What can I do for you?"
Charles walked into the room and sat on Y/N's bed. "Something's up with you," he said and looked at his sister. "There's something you're hiding and you've got Arthur in on it too."
But then Charles took a closer look at what Y/N was wearing. "Is that an LN4 shirt?"
"Maybe," she said and looked away from her brother. "I think Lando's merch is cool."
Charles shook his head. "Just tell me what's going on with you, please! I'm worried about you!"
"Well don't be! I'm a big girl and I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself," she said.
There was a sneeze, a sneeze neither of the Leclerc siblings let out. Charles looked around the room. "Is somebody else here?" He asked and stood up.
"No!" Y/N cried, rushing over to the other side of the bed. Where Lando was hiding. Probably a bad idea, considering Charles now knew exactly where to look.
He stared for a full minute at the McLaren driver laying on the floor. "Lando," he said and gently kicked his foot. "What are you doing here?"
Lando was laying face down. It looked rather uncomfortable, but Charles wasn't ready to let him up just yet. "What are you doing here in my sisters room?"
Lando didn't answer.
"Lando?"
The McLaren driver pushed him up into a more comfortable position. "Oh, hey, Charles. What're you doing here?"
"I have every right to be here, you?"
"I..."
Y/N grabbed a hold of her brother. "Charles, he's dating me. We're dating."
Charles got up and left the room.
"Well, that went brilliantly," said Lando as he finally got to his feet. But Y/N was just staring at the door. At the door her brother had just left through. "Y/N?" He said, placing a hand on her back.
She just kept staring at the door. "He hates me."
"No, he doesn't."
"Yes, he does."
Y/N didn't speak to her brother until the next day, when she was down in the Ferrari garage, trying to get her to speak to him. "Come on Charles, you're overreacting," she said as she sat beside him.
"He's not going to talk," said Carlos as he came to sit beside her, sandwiching her in between the two Ferrari drivers.
Y/N turned her attention towards the Spanish driver. "Did he tell you?"
Carlos shook his head. "Lando did," he answered. "He's very happy."
Suddenly, Charles sat back and looked at his little sister. He stared at her, his green eyes staring into her soul. "Do you really love him?" He asked.
Y/N nodded her head. "Yeah, Charlie, I really do."
"Does he love you?"
"Yes!" Carlos answered for her.
Charles relaxed. He placed his hands behind his head and looked up at the ceiling. "I'm going to say this one time and one time only, you and Lando have my approval. If he ever does anything to hurt you, Arthur, Lorenzo and I will murder him."
"That works for me."
I cannot believe there are actually people who have the audacity to call themselves “fans” of Formula 1 and then turn around and rationalize drivers having to get bodyguards because of death threats
I am sick to my stomach seeing these so-called “fans” with large platforms say that it is deserved because of things that happened on the track
I don’t care how poor of a team-player you think a driver is or how many of their racing decisions you disagree with … there is never an excuse for this kind of disgusting behavior
It is horrifying how some “fans” willfully choose to dehumanize drivers that they dislike instead of realizing that they are human beings too
Summary: After a jet ski accident on holiday Lando learns just how much y/n means to him and how impossible it feels to have to leave her for a race.
Very freckled reader!
I was going to make this a car accident story, but that felt a little too cliche and I know Lando has been out on jet skis before so we're running with that.
Having Max and his friends all out on a yacht in Monaco is a pretty great way to spend his day. Especially when he gets to have his girlfriend there in a bikini. Or it was great until he notices one of his friends checking her out then he called on her and quietly asked if she might put something else on. Though he excused it as her not wanting to get too cold.
"Are you sure you don't want someone with you?" Lando asks as he clips the buckle of her life vest on.
"I've been on a jet ski before, Lan. I think I can handle it." Y/n smiles brightly before she kisses him. "I'll be fine."
"Ok, if you insist. But I want some photos of us on there together before the end of the day." Lando laughs then watching her climb on.
"I promise. So long as you're getting some with your future husband too." Y/n grins gesturing to Max who puts his middle finger up to her earning a kiss to be blown in his direction. "Love you too Max, even if you're constantly trying to steal my boyfriend. I respect he was yours first."
Max and y/n have that classic best friend and girlfriend friendship that forms resembling that more of siblings who can't get along.
Lando moves back to sit on the sun bed with Max looking at something while y/n and a couple of her friends ride around on the jet skis.
Things take a bad turn within a matter of seconds.
There's some yelling, a thud and splash before it's followed by screams. At least that's how things happened from Lando's perspective on the deck of the yacht.
She hit the bow of the yacht when the jet ski steering locked. They dragged her out the water and called for an ambulance to meet them at the dock while doing everything as instructed. But inevitably it all lead to the same thing.
Hospital with hours of scans, tests and trying to stitch up the head wound which hadn't let up bleeding much at all due. Although they tried to slow it.
"She'll wake up, it's just sedatives keeping her asleep now." The doctor explains while Lando pulls a seat to the side of her bed. "But there's no reason to suggest the head injury would be anything more than a concussion and maybe a bit of memory lapse."
"Thank you for everything. Really." Lando states with a rough voice that gives away how much emotion he's trying to withhold. The doctor leaves and Lando shifts a little in his seat as Max looks at his friend who has been a shell of a person. "You don't have to stay mate, it's late. You should get some rest."
"What about you? You leave for a flight tomorrow." Max mumbles earning a glare that just about threatens to end their friendship there and then. "Alright, I'll see you later."
Then Lando is left alone with y/n.
He just looks at her, the harsh fluorescent lighting of the room.
His eyes scan across her face looking at the cinnamon dusting of freckled covering her slightly sun burnt skin. Without thinking about it, he finds himself trying to count the freckles to pass the time, pausing when he has to figure out if it's two freckles merged together or just one bigger freckle. Then his mind drifts to thinking about how the cooler weather in the winter makes since of them fade. Although they've only been together 7 months, having started dating in winter when her freckles were much less.
In the winter she has 168 freckles across her nose and cheeks.
The idea of only having spent part of one winter and part of one summer with her nearly makes him break into a cold sweat.
Suddenly before he knows it, nearly two hours have passed and he is knocked from his dreaded thoughts when y/n pulls her hand from his grip and raises it to the bandaged stitches on her head.
"What the hell?" Y/n croaks as then shooting up to sit making Lando stand and try to make her focus on him.
"It's ok, it's ok. You...you hit your head when the steering locked on the jet ski. You got stitches. You just need to lie down." Lando explains quickly making her swallow thickly. "You've been out for a couple hours."
"It hurts. My head, it hurts." Y/n mumbles lying back down with Lando's guidance.
"I'll get a nurse. See if they can give you anything."
After getting her something to help with the pain, Lando sighs rubbing his hands together nervously.
"You have to go. I'll be out of here by the time the race weekend is over." Y/n states reading his mind even with a head injury. "I'm not going to hold it against you, Lando."
"I'd hold it against me." Lando murmurs before sighing softly. "You know you had 168 freckles on your face when we met and now you've got like...way over 300. I couldn't even count them all."
Y/n can't stop her smile then opening her arms which means him lean over and hug her.
"You still have to go, Lando..."
"I know."
-
Lando hates being in the paddock without y/n. All he wants is to get her there but the doctor said travelling in a plane wouldn't be the best for her. So instead, he's just texting her every 5 minutes to make sure she's ok.
Though he left Max with her so he feels somewhat reassured that she's being cared for. The two might fight like siblings but Max will take care of her like a brother too and if Lando asks for him to do it then you can be sure he'll keep her safe.
"Lando..." Jon sighs seeing Lando return to his drivers room after the qualifying debrief and just begin to fall apart. "She's ok. I checked on her every 5 minutes like you've been doing and I called to make sure she was watching."
Lando nods before rubbing his hand over his face then trying to hide it as his emotions overwhelm him. He's never cried over a girl like this before and he's not enjoying it.
"Alright, y/n can you talk to him?" Jon sighs after getting her on FaceTime.
"Baby? What's going on? Why are you so upset?" Y/n frowns through the screen.
"Baby, I wish you were here. It's horrible being here without you." Lando states hating the sound of his voice. "I need you here."
"It's less than 48 hours before you see me again and you'll be working or sleeping for most of that." Y/n smiles lightly but Lando still looks completely unsatisfied with that. "It'll fly by and you can stay on FaceTime with me until you're asleep if you want."
"You'd stay on FaceTime with me all that time?"
"Of course I would. I miss you too...even if I can't memorise how many freckles you have because you don't have any." Y/n teases while Lando rolls his eyes a little at her.
So they do spend the rest of the night on FaceTime. Max making continuous and and frequent appearances on y/n's side. He does earn himself a warning to not be hugging or getting too cosy with y/n, much to both Max and y/n's honesty.
"How you going to say that when she won't shut up about you?" Max laughs then wincing when she clearly elbows him out of shot. "Ah, vicious."
"Ok, bedtime. Come on." Y/n yawns unknowing that while still on FaceTime her boyfriend is texting Max telling him to check on her every so often which earns a thumbs up through the screen that y/n thankfully doesn't notice. "Can I give Max a hug goodnight?"
"Fine. If you must." Lando hums while she laughs a little and leans down hugging Max before she stands up blowing him a kiss and heading up to her room. "We're staying on the phone right?"
"Yes."
Unsurprisingly they both fall asleep pretty quickly and when Max checks on them after heaving silence for 15 minutes. He ends the call and pauses since y/n is a weirdly silent sleeper, he also carefully checks her pulse. Then sighing in relief when he feels the gently thudding.
-
Lando didn't make the podium but he tended to all the post-race demands before taking off faster than the cars when the lights go out.
He didn't tell y/n that he'd be coming back so quickly. So when he walks into his apartment to find y/n's tear stained cheeks as she sleeps against Max who is away and playing on the games consoles. Lando's only hoping Max didn't ignore his girlfriend crying because of the game.
"Max, what the hell?" Lando hisses gesturing to the sleeping body beside Max.
Max only looks down looking confused for a moment before he laughs a little and nods.
"She missed you and told me she just needed to cry it out." Max explains making Lando's inside churn with emotion, his own eyes getting a little shinier.
"Ok, baby. Let's get you away from the man who will let you cry while he plays...are you playing Spider-man?"
"It's a good game." Max argues quietly while Lando gently pulls y/n up as Max grimaces. "She was crying pretty hard at one point but when she went quiet I checked for a pulse to make sure she was alive."
"Right, thanks." Lando hums sarcastically before he manages to finally pull her up into his arms, slightly stirring with a mumble of incoherent words. "Night man, I'll see you in the morning. And really thank you for staying with her and keeping me in the loop."
"It's not problem, you know I do love her like family by this point and I didn't enjoy seeing her hurt any more than you did. But see you tomorrow, mate." Max nods as Lando disappear feeling the approval and validation of Max worrying for y/n being the final nail in the coffin.
Lando loves this girl and he will for the rest of his life.
Lando falls asleep, pulling her tight against himself but not without a quick shower, just to really clean off travelling so soon after a race.
Morning comes and goes with neither of them shifting. Too at peace in each other's hold to move, despite y/n not actually being conscious of the fact it's Lando who is half-suffocating her with hold tight his hold has been on her all night.
Lando does wake up first and he takes the time to count the stitches on her head. 9.
9 stitches.
Y/n suddenly shifts, moving and groaning as she almost seems to try and escape his hold before she groans, then after a sharp inhale she suddenly leans forward closing in on his t-shirt before inhaling like she can only breathe air filtered through the fabric.
"You're home." She whispers making him laugh a little.
"You got that from smelling me?"
"You always smell the best. So yeah." Y/n grins still keeping her eyes closed as she nuzzles down into him. "Max smells nothing like you."
"Are you saying he stinks? Because I'll tell him and never let him live it down."
"No. He just doesn't smell like you and you are my favourite person in the world." Y/n shrugs innocently then wincing a little when Lando brushes her hair back and his fingers run over her stitches.
"I'm sorry, does it still hurt?"
"No. I just...hate knowing I'll have a scar there from it." Y/n mumbles finally looking up at Lando and connecting their gaze. "I'll get over it, so long as I have you to wake up to. It sucked missing the race."
"It sucked not having you there for the race. I couldn't get back here fast enough." Lando smiles then kissing her. "and for the record, stitches and scar or not I love you and I want you with me all the time. I'd squeeze you in the car with me for races if I could...and if it was safe."
Y/n pouts a little, tears lining her eyes before she sighs softly and kisses her with a grin.
"I love you, baby." Landowhipsers really wanting to emphasise the fact he loves this girl more than he know a person could love another person.
He'd give her everything, every penny he owns and every belonging he has if she asked him for it. But he knows she wouldn't because she just loves him without everything else.
"I love you too, baby." Y/n sighs then reaching over to the clock to check the time. "Is Max still here?"
"Yes. Somewhere."
"It's 3 in the afternoon, we've just left him out there."
"He's capable of taking care of himself...more of the time."
Y/n hums deciding that she's happy for Max to be left if it means she can stay tucked up in here as long as possible with Lando to make up for lost time over the weekend.
doubt to the point u cannot bring yourself to vent to people who swear they can be trusted/will listen to you
whats worse is that two parts of you are debating if they're right
—the mark of athena
—the chalice of the gods
Xavi: "So lap time deleted for Verstappen."
Charles: "For fucks sake, tell me the name before."
Xavi: VERSTAPPEN LAP TIME DELETED."
Charles: "Yeah, well I had a heart attack in the meantime."
Now Sam has NEVER questioned his sexuality like..ever.
And while fighting with team ironman, Sam doesn't really get to appreciate Tony, nor as he really hung around the man.
But one day, when everyone's signed the accords and the other avengers are trying to get back into Tonys good books like:
Natasha: I found that one Italian roast, stark. The one that you really like.
(And it's a really expensive brand shes payed with her own money flashing a small smile at him)
Tony simply raises and eyebrow
"I take decaf at the moment." He says dismissively.
Or Clint
"Hey, man. What did the-" and Clint gets cut off,
"Knock knock Barton" tony asks looking up from his starkpad
"Who's there, gorgeous?" He teased
"My tired legs. Stop dick riding." He snapped at him (Peter taught him that phrase)
The whole team gets ripped a new one,
One days Sam walks in, makes himself some coffee and starts drinking when stark walks in.
Tony simply glances at the mug and back at Sam, the man was dressed in a black tank top, sweaty and with loose sweatpants and simply goes,
"That's my cup, Wilson."
Sam splutters and looks at the cup, it being ironman merchandise and looking back up at Tony
"Ah, don't stress bird brain, your fine, drink out of it whenever you want sweet cheeks." He shrugged his muscles flexing for a second as he walked off
And Sam was totally staring at that ass.