AUTHOR'S NOTE: I am a Zatara fan, I am not going to lie to you. You probably figured that out because of my story Eternal Leo. Anyway, this is an entirely separate story. I love that he has a wife, Sindella Zatara. But, I like the idea of him having romantic relationships with others. I will change his age, gender, anything about him so he can have relationships with other members of the League, Team, civilians who know, and just for the heck of it, the Light. No incest- meaning no ZataraXZatanna or ZataraXAquaman/Orin; due to the twobeing distantly related in the comics so I apply that to my Young Justice stories with the same principle but their cousins. Rated T to be safe. Idea inspired by the story Everyone Loves Wally by Kiwisan13.

Multi-opt 1: Lawrence "Crusher" Crock/SportsmasterX Giovanni "John" Zatara.

Pairing Name: Tradetricks.

Prompt: Tastes Like Cloth/Tastes like Italian.

Summary: Giovanni is being harassed by his fellow Justice Leaguers for being gay and, unable to take it, he goes for the "cowards way out", but is saved by an unlikely person.

Ages: Lawrence is 55 and Giovanni is 40

Chapter Rating: High T.

Triggers: Mentioning suicide, attempted suicide, bullying, mentions of prostitution

Giovanni didn't know why he decided to come out to his friends. He thought it was a good idea, until he actually did it. He was being teased relentlessly by some and others were avoiding him like he was the plague, most of the team was acting like that, even his own daughter on some days, and he didn't know if he could take it anymore.

Two moths later, he walked into the common room of the Watch Tower just in time to get a water balloon thrown smack dab in the middle of his face. "Agh!" It hurt so bad that he walked out of the room. He knew he couldn't take it anymore. He knew being gay was against his religion, and he was going to hell for loving his own gender, but was going there worse than here? Where everyone was either mean to him or ignored him, including his own child?

He took the Zeta out of the Tower and into Gotham. What did it matter where he died, he figured. Just as long as he was dead. This was the coward's way out, according to his religion, but it seemed like the only option. That way Zatanna got what she always wanted: space. She had god parents, so she would be well taken care of. The male league members didn't have to worry about 'catching the gay'. It would be a public service.

He checked into one of the worst hotels in Gotham under the name of John Smith, and old alias from way back, bought a gun using that same name, and placed it to his head, about to fire.

"I wouldn't do that." A gruff voice said from the direction of the window. sitting halfway in the room was a man in black with a dark gray hockey mask on.

The younger man set the gun lower. "Why not? I'm an outcast to my friends, my religion, and my daughter can't decide if she likes having a faggot for a father or not," his voice cracked as the gun found its way to the edge of the bed. "And I don't know what else to do."

Lawrence sighed. He had been looking for a fight, but instead he found a middle aged man in a crisis who was hurting and conflicted between his life, everyone else's opinions of him, and his religion. He moved all the way into the room, glad to get off of the windowsill because it was hurting a few places. He sat down on the bed next to the hero, who looked too damaged to do anything, even to end his own suffering on this plain.

He took the mask off, no longer Sportsmaster. Just Lawrence Crock. "So, when did all of this start?" Why did he ask that? Why did he suddenly care?

Giovanni didn't talk at first, but after a few moments, he did. "It.. It started a while back. I was undercover as a male stripper, I didn't like it at first, but after a while, it felt good. I was flirted with, there were a lot of girls who flirted with me, but most of the people who did were men."

"Get to the point." Lawrence didn't have time to listen to this much of a story when he wanted to bust some stuff up.

"Anyway, the op was a bust, but I found that I liked it, and I liked the look of a lot of those men, and how it felt to be complimented like that and so I told my friends an daughter I might be gay and they turned their backs on me." It still hurt, that was why he had shed a tear. "So, here I am."

"My god, you are pathetic." Lawrence said, gripping Giovanni by his jaw and turning him so they were face to face. "Listen, you have everything going for you, you have friends, you have a daughter, you have a home. If your so-called friends don't like you because your deciding to come out to them as something that scares them, then go find some new friends. Don't waste your time on people who don't care about you."

He let the younger man's jaw go. "If your daughter down't come around at first, give her time. She'll adjust, and before you know it, you both will be talking about guys together like you've been doing that for a long time. If your religion doesn't accept you for who you are, either go find a new one or stop going. If God is truly the only one who can judge you, then let that be so. Don't let what others think or say affect how you live your life. It may not seem like it, but the only one who can truly run your life is you."

A light seemed to go off in Giovanni's head. Maybe Lawrence was right. No, he was. A smile crossed his face. "Thank you."

Lawrence stood up, hockey mask in hand. "Don't mention it." He glared at Giovanni, seriously don't mention it-!"

Giovanni quickly stood up and kissed Lawrence's lips before he backed away. "My lips are sealed." He said with a smile, ignoring the taste of warm cloth on his lips.

Lawrence gave the Italian a glare as he grabbed him by the front of his jacket. "Don't you dare do that again."

Though, if asked by anyone if his first time kissing a man was enjoyable, he would lie and say he hated the way the black mustache brushed against his upper lip and actually caused it to tickle, or that he despised the faint taste of Parmesan cheese and tomato sauce on his lips. He threw the younger man into the wall, causing him to hit his head and pass out. He left the room, but not before leaving a small parting gift.

Giovanni woke up in the bed of the hotel room the next morning, to find his head hurt like hell and, upon looking at the bedside table, he saw a hockey puck with a cell phone number on it and the words "call me when you get the chance, Cheese Lips." Needless to say, Giovanni felt better about himself from that day on. And called Lawrence on almost a weekly basis, and meeting up when he could, finding that he was slowly falling for the madman in the hockey mask, unaware that Lawrence was falling for the Italian in a suit.

PAIRINGS ARE OPEN. LIST ANY AND ALL THAT APPLY USING THIS GUIDELINE! For acceptance please put the words fur ball somewhere in the form and I will pick the one that I like best. Acceptance words change with each chapter.

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