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“Tweet Tweet! I’m home my pretties!” Oswald’s normal greeting echoed through the silent halls of Cobblepot Manor. “Eddie? You home?” Setting down the bag of groceries in the doorway, Oswald peered into the nearby rooms. Ed should be home, Oswald had only stepped out for less than an hour. Completely forgetting the groceries, he ventured further into the home, anxiously seeking out his boyfriend.
“Eddie? Come out, come out, wherever you are!” He nervously tittered after sweeping through Ed’s recently converted workroom. It was unlike Ed to leave without telling him.
Passing by one of his umbrella stands, he reached for a simple bladed umbrella, wielding it cautiously. If the batman had gotten Edward there was a good chance he was sticking around to catch Oswald.
Continuing his search, a slim beam of light caught his attention. Turning toward the warm glow seeping out from under one of the guest bathroom doors.
Gently knocking, he awaited an answer. “Eddie? Are you in there?” Slowly he pulled open the door with an elongated screech from the ancient hinges.
Walking into the bathroom, Oswald’s eyes widened as he beheld the visage before him.
Edward stood in front of the mirror, desperately trying to cover himself, despite being fully clothed. A gorgeous green dress draped his spindly form, complete with panty hose and high heeled shoes. Horrified eyes were dolled up with eyeshadow and fake lashes instead of his normal eyeliner.
“Oswald,” He stammered, backing into the counter. “I can explain.”
“What’s there to explain, beautiful?” Oswald purred, flirtation lacing every syllable spoken.
Edward visibly relaxed at the welcomed reception of his appearance, yet as Oswald sauntered over to his stunning boyfriend, anxiety once again stiffened his joints and quickened his pulse.
Oswald drank in the sight of his boyfriend, taking in every detail similarly to appreciating a well decorated cake before enjoying a slice. Eyeing the emerald ring sported on Ed’s slim fingers, Oswald brought Edward’s hand to his lips to bestow a gentle kiss on his bedazzled digits.
“Not what I was expecting to come home to, but I can’t say I’m disappointed. What’s the occasion?” Oz teased, following it up with another kiss, this time bestowed on Ed’s wrist.
“Just. . .trying something new I guess.” Ed’s usually pale face was now tinged with pink, his eyes still not meeting Oswald’s.
Chalking it up to nerves or embarrassment, Oswald continued his ministrations, kissing his way up Edward’s arm until the taller man had to bend down so his stout partner could make his way to his neck and face.
“Feel free to try this again.” Oswald whispered in his ear, the feeling of his hot breath sending a shiver down Ed’s spine.
Ed’s shock could not be hidden. “You. . .like this?”
Oz bit his lip and tried to pull what he considered to be his most seductive face. “Eddie, you have no idea how much I like this. But here, let me try to show you~”
Pulling Ed into a heated kiss, Oz was determined not to let go until one of them passed out from lack of air. Ed eventually pulled away to catch his breath, but nearly exhausted any chance of that when he caught sight of Oswald. Edward’s perfectly done lipstick now smeared across Oswald’s face. If it wasn’t so endearing, Ed probably would have passed out laughing. Syndactyl digits fiddled with the straps on Edward’s dress, sliding the strap down the Riddler’s shoulder, and placed kisses along the newly exposed skin. Gentle kisses quickly turned to love bites and hickeys dappling Ed’s skin that left the taller man gasping and calling for more.
Edward still felt a little tense in his arms, and Oswald was determined to cast aside every doubt and discomfort Ed might be feeling.
“My pretty boy.” Oswald cooed.
Edward froze. Unsure what he’d said wrong, he released himself from their shared embrace to look at his partner.
Tears began welling in Ed’s eyes as he sunk down to the floor, a slight tremble taking up residence in his thin frame.
Oswald was at a loss. “Eddie? What did I do wrong?”
Dark streaks began to line his face as tears ran through his makeup. “Nothing. You didn’t do anything wrong.” Ed choked out, breathing heavily to try and stop the onslaught of tears.
Wiping away the mascara hewn tears, Oswald tried to get Edward to face him.
“Eddie, what’s wrong?”
Shaky breaths left Edward as he attempted to communicate what was wrong, but for once the Riddler found himself without a voice.
Oswald placed a kiss on top of Ed’s head, running his fused fingers through long dark hair. He could wait; he just needed Edward to know it was going to be ok.
“What if I didn’t want to be your boy anymore?” Edward managed to sob out.
Oswald’s blood ran cold.
“Are…Are you breaking up with me?” Oswald’s eyes widened, trying to connect the dots and get the bigger picture of what he could have done to make Edward want to leave. He loved Edward more than anyone or anything.
Edward looked up in shock and quickly held Oswald tight. “NO! Of course not. I love you, Oswald.” Edward reassured.
Feeling the hot flash of panic slowly fade, Oswald returned to Ed’s original question. “Then, what do you mean by-?”
“I mean-“ Edward steeled himself for the next bit. “What if I didn’t want to be a man anymore?”
Oh.
Oswald had not expected this.
Looking back however, maybe he should have.
Shaking off the shock, Oz brought himself back to the matter at hand.
“What about it? You’re still going to be you aren’t you? Even if you change your name or your body, you’re still going to be the Riddler I know and love.”Oswald placed a kiss on his partner’s forehead.
The Riddler’s eyes renewed themselves with tears, this time from happiness.
“Thank you. I love you, Oswald.”
Oswald hummed as his partner buried their face in his chest. “So, what am I to call you, beautiful love of mine?”
The Riddler paused. “I-I’ve been toying with the name Edie.”
“Edie.” Oswald tried the name out, drawing out the vowels excessively until it produced a huff of laughter from The Riddler. “It’s beautiful. And how am I to refer to my beloved Edie?”
Edie shrugged. “I’ve been toying with a lot of things. She and her feel right, but so does being referred to as they or them, so maybe either of those?”
“Perfect.” Oswald pressed their noses together, glad that Edie wasn’t crying anymore, but one thing still bothered him.
“Edie,” He whispered, “Why were you scared to tell me?”
Edie knew Oswald was trans. It was blatantly obvious in their more intimate moments. So why was she so scared to tell him? Did she think he would react poorly?
Her eyes shifted away, lower lip trembling in distress.
“My father caught me wearing one of my mother’s old dresses from before she left.” Edie looked down in shame. “It took me a couple weeks to recover from the beating he gave me.”
If there was any chance in the world that Edie’s father was still alive, Oswald vowed to hunt him down and repay him for every beating he’d ever given the gorgeous woman before him.
“Edie.” Oswald tilted her head up to look at him. “You know I would never hurt you like that, right?”
“I know.” She croaked out, tears attempting to return again. “But I was so scared.”
“I know, honey, I know. You were so brave for telling me.” Oswald rocked her gently, petting her hair and giving the occasional kiss.
Wiping away rogue tears, she cried, “Weren’t you scared when you came out?”
The question gave Oswald pause. When he honestly thought about it he wasn’t sure he ever had really come out to anyone. His parents had fought tooth and nail to get him to dress and behave as a proper lady but soon gave up. It was just one more thing to add on to the pile of reasons he was a disappointment. They both died before he had transitioned. Any romantic partner he’d had across the years had either been completely fine with it and needed no explanation or was cast aside, unable to handle his attractiveness.
“Not sure I ever really came out. People either figured it out and got with the program, or they didn’t.” Oz chuckled, remembering the few people that recalled that the Cobblepot family had birthed a baby girl and insisted to the people around them that the man with facial hair in front of them, was in fact, a woman. The wild looks from other members of high society nearly got those individuals a one way ticket to the looney bin for fear of hallucinations.
“Really? How?” Envy clearly tinged Edie’s voice, but Oz ignored it and answered his question.
“Told you before. I made sure everyone knew I was a boy when I was very young. No one ever really got the chance to meet the little girl my parents insisted they had.”
Silence fell between them as they both ruminated on everything.
“It must have been hard. Growing up that way.” Edie murmured, holding onto one of Oswald’s flippers.
“Maybe. I don’t know, it could have been worse.” He dismissed, rubbing his thumb in circles over Edie’s slender hand.
She sighed, snuggling into her plush boyfriend. “It could have been better too.”
Oswald shrugged. “Yeah, it could have been, but it’s better now.”
Visions of what felt like a past life flickered before Edie’s eyes. Images of an unloving father, a backstabbing girlfriend, and an unfulfilling work life all showed their ugly face before slipping into oblivion, replaced by memories of Oswald. Her loving boyfriend who never strayed in his loyalty, who respected and even helped with her exciting heists and exploits.
A smile crept over her face.
“Yeah, it is better now.”