#Breaking into one of Vlads office in Gotham

[seronefada]

"Batman come closer I'm dying"

Dp/DC promp

Danny and his friends were checking some things out in Gotham.

They just heard of Batman, but he sounds kinda suspicious to them.

They want to keep a low profile, so they break in one of Vlads office, and sneak out again.

But Batman catch up to them.

Danny doesn't want to use his powers to clearly.

But his friends need to run with the informations they stole.

So Danny gets over to plan b.

He puts his hands on his chest. Then starting to slow down his pulse and his breathing.

"Batman help im dying."

Batman turns to to person who is starting to sink to the ground. The thief he's almost a child.

His puls is falling rapidly, his breathing is slowing. The child is dying, he needs to do something.

The other two just run off, but Batman stays by the boy, he can hunt the two an other time.

"Don't worry kid, I'm here I'm gonna help you." Batmans head is racing what can he do, chest compression doesn't seem to help. Does the boy have a heart failure? He needs to do something.

Batman doesn't want to give up, but nothing seems to work.

Suddenly the boy opens his eyes and says:" look man I just wanted to distract you, but now I feel guilty about it."

Batman just stares at him for a moment. The boys sit up again and looks normal again. Batman checks his puls but there is nothing. "I need to take you to the hospital."

"no, breathing and heart beating is optional since my dead. I'm fine. I just needed you to don't chase my friend's. But I actually feel guilty, since you seem so nice. And didn't even hesitate to help me. Should I treat you to a coffee?"

[ailithnight]

A King In Arkham

Henceforth, you will need an AO3 account to read this there.

Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Danny was having a very confusing week.

It started with being kidnapped from his room in Arkham by a human tank that called himself Red X. Red X took him to a "safehouse" which was actually a repurposed warehouse. Then fed him the first non-hospital meal he'd had had in months.

Danny is a bit ashamed to admit he moaned at the first bite of a burger from the local fast food franchise. He'd all but forgotten how good food could be. Despite the mask, Danny got the impression that X was giving him a look at the sound. What kind of look, Danny wasn't sure.

Confusion or amusement would make sense. Danny could certainly imagine himself confused or amused if he heard someone moan into their Nasty Meal. But for some reason, some instinct told him that the emotion behind the look was closer to anger with an undercurrent of sorrow. Which Danny just couldn't wrap his head around. What about him appreciating a good burger could make X angry and/or sad?

Then again, maybe Danny shouldn't bother trying to wrap his head around Red X's behavior at all. The whole experience with him made no sense. He kidnaps Danny, apparently as a favor for someone who wasn't Vlad. Feeds his victim and puts him in bed. (Its too soft, too warm, Danny can't sleep in it. X gives him another one of those weird looks when he finds Danny splayed out, not quite dozing on the cool concrete floor.)

And the next day just, drops Danny off in some random woman's office at the Gotham Gazette's headquarters. Leaving him there at the ass crack of dawn like his job was done, instead of meeting with anyone to hand Danny off to whoever he'd been kindnapped for. Nothing about his interactions with Red X made any sense.

But of course, that was just the start of the week.

The woman who came in to find Danny in her office then proceeded to, well, scream first, which was an entirely justified reaction to finding an Arkham patient in you office the day after a break out. But then, instead of turning him over to the authorities, she gave him a bottle of water and proceeded to spend the next several hours 'interviewing' him. It was afternnon before she finally called security to have Danny returned to Arkham. If he hadn't still been so used to skipped meals from his time Before, he's sure his body would have been protesting the extended interview loudly.

Once the police picked him up, they interrogated him for another few hours about how he escaped. Danny was nothing but honest, though of course they didn't believe him. No one did these days. But that's okay. Eventually they were able to pull the Arkham security tapes to corroborate Danny's story. Once the saw it for themselves, they finally relented and called a transport truck to take Danny home.

Of course, then the Arkham guards had to spend an hour reprimanding him for the 'escape attempt'. He tells them earnestly that he had nothing to do with his own kidnapping. No one believes that of course. It seems they think that Danny's previous good behavior was a manipulation tactic.

They tell him no one will be falling for that again. That's fine. They tell him he's lost privileges for a month. That's fine too. Tell him he's lucky they don't move him to the max security wing. Danny doesn't think he'd mind if they did.

Finally, finally, they let him go back to his room around 7:30. It's a couple hours yet until lights out, but Danny doesn't care. He almost collapses into the thin mattress. It is by no objective means comfortable. But it is familiar. And Danny finds comfort in that. He falls asleep easily.

Some hours later, after lights out, Danny jolts awake from a... dream? It wasn't quite a good dream, but it wasn't quite The Nightmare either. It's already slipping out of his mind, but he has the vague sense it involved X and burgers and a chill creeping in his throat.

It must couldn't have been an entirely pleasant dream. For one, Danny doesn't get good dreams anymore. For another, he opens his eyes to a familiar black void hovering above him, the pit in his stomach deepening with her lingering touch.

As much as her presence makes his sins weigh heavier on his soul, Danny can't help but give Spectra a small smile. That... startles her, he thinks. In an instant, the cool hand leaching warmth and resonating with that hollow ache inside him is gone. He misses it.

The next morning, Danny has a new therapist, again. Seeing this one is a punch in the gut. There aren't really a bunch of similarities. Just blue-green eyes and long red hair. But just those 2 is enough to hurt. To remember that Jazz will never get to be here, sitting in that chair, talking to her patients, making Arkham a better place like she'd wanted ever since she heard Harley Quinn's story. Jazz will never get to chase her dreams and it's all his fault.

Danny tries, he really does and even mostly succeeds, to not get lost in his own head while they go through the normal routine. It's always the same question. Except... this time it deviates. Dr. Sparrow doesn't press at the self harm issue like all the others. She presses her lips, clearly dissatisfied with Danny's answer, but she lets it slide.

"Would you like to talk about the break out, Danny?" For the first time in 3 long months, Danny has heard a new question. Of course it's that one, but still, it's new. Danny can't decide whether or not he likes it. He shrugs.

"It happened. I got kidnapped." Dr. Sparrow is looking at him weird. She doesn't look unhappy or doubtful. In fact, she almost looks understanding, like she believes him. She looks too much like Jazz. It hurts. Danny looks away.

"You understand why it is difficult to believe you were an unwilling victim, don't you, Danny?" He shrugs. "Not only are very few people privy to the information that you are a patient here, but security footage also doesn't show you putting up any kind of a fight against your supposed kidnapper." She even sounds like Jazz, presenting her logical arguments.

"I... I don't know what you want me to say." She sighs.

"I just want to understand. I can't help you if you don't talk to me, Danny." I can't help you if you don't talk to me, Little Brother. Danny can't help the full body flinch. Anger, misplaced aggression surges under his skin. It feels like ice in his veins.

"Understand what! Everyone I love is dead because of me! Because I tried to take one shortcut and couldn't handle the consequences! And this! This is the better outcome! This time I won't hurt any more people." The reminder of what his grief causes makes the anger evaporate, leaving behind that familiar hollowness. "That's all that matters. As long as I don't get anyone else killed... Vlad is the only one who could hurt me in any way that matters. S'long as I don't end up with him, I don't care."

Danny is pretty sure he knows what J- Dr. Sparrow is going to say about that. He doesn't want to hear it. He can't stand to hear it. So he lets his mind slip away. When he tunes back in, the guard is there to escort him back to 26B. He glances at Dr. Sparrow. Her grim frown and worried eyes are too familiar. It makes the hollowness shudder, a spark of oh so dangerous care catching inside.. He wants to... he needs to...

"I'm sorry, Dr. Sparrow. For shutting down." Her eyes widen, concern vanishing into shock. "You remind me of my sister. She wanted to be a psychologist here too." With that, he turns around and lets the guard lead him back to his room.

The rest of the day is mostly a haze to Danny. He's peripherally aware of someone bringing around lunch, then later dinner. Danny briefly picks at the food, but he doesn't think he's hungry.

The third day starts with them telling him Dr. Sparrow cancelled there therapy session. She won't be seeing him anymore.

That's good.

She doesn't need to waste her valuable care on him. She's better off treating someone who could actually get better. Someone who can do more than just not cause trouble. Someone worthy of a life outside of Arkham.

It'll take them at least a day or 2 to assign him a new doctor. Danny expects the rest of the day to be a blur in his room. But some time after lunch, a guard comes and escorts him to a section of the hospital Danny has never been before. The visitation wing. There, waiting in a small privacy room, is the Head Doctor, the Cheif of Security, and a stranger in a trench coat who for some reason makes Danny's skin crawl with a desire to get very far away very fast.

The Cheif of Security looks at Trench Vibes, clearly disgruntled. "Is this really necessary?"

Trench Vibes responds in a heavy British accent. "Official Justice League Dark business, mate." Danny's surprise is almost enough for him to actually feel it. "Word has it, kid's got ghosts. I'm just hear to check up on that." Head Doctpr sputters a moment.

"Surely you don't mean to imply the ghost's could actually exist? Ghosts are not real, sir." Trench Vibes snorts.

"Sure. Next you'll tell me that magic ain't real either." Head Doctor opens his mouth to rebut, but then a golden light swirls around Trench Vibes' fingertips and that seems to make the Doctor rethink a few things. "Now, if you'll give me a few minutes with the kid, then I'll be out of your hair." He waits for the Doctor, Chief, and guard to all leave the room before he even looks at Danny. "I really hope I don't have to be the one to tell you your a little bit dead, kid."

"Danny."

"John Constantine."

Welp, no reason to lie here. ". . . I know I'm half ghost."

"Good. Well, not good that you're half dead, but good that you know. That would not be a fun conversation. Not that this one is much better. You're being haunted?"

"Not much anymore. It's okay." Trench Vibes, John Constantine, just gives Danny a disbelieving look. "Honest Mr. Constantine. I think they're getting bored since I won't fight them anymore."

"Anymore?"

"I'm from Amity Park. Ghost fights were a pretty regular thing there."

"I'm sorry, what? You're telling me there's a town under seige by ghosts and we didn't know about it?"

"You didn't... know? I mean, it's probably fine now. The ghosts mostly came to give me grief. Plus, I'm sure Vlad has dismantled my parent's portal by now."

"Portal?"

"To the Ghost Zone."

"Your parents had a portal to the Infinite Realms!?"

"Is that what you call the swirling green place?" Mr. Constantine sighs. He reaches a hand into his coat, but comes up empty. Whatever he was reaching for must have been confiscated before he could bring it into the hospital.

"So let me get this straight. Your parents opened a portal to the... Ghost Zone. No doubt flooded your whole town with enough ambient ecto to allow powerful physical manifestations. You somehow ended up half dead. Ghost start appearing. They fight you, you fight back, and now that you've left this Amity Park, those ghosts followed you here to continue haunting you."

"Pretty much."

"Why did you stop fighting back?"

". . . We aren't in Amity anymore. They can't hurt anyone."

"They've been hurting you." Trench Vibes has a scathing deadpan. If Danny could muster any feeling, he might be ashamed. Of course, as it were the closest thing he's experiencing to feeling right now is that prickling sensation that he should not be anywhere near Mr. Constantine.

"They can't hurt anyone that matters." Mr. Constantine abruptly stands.

"Nope. Nope, nope, nope. I am not equipped for this. I am reporting back to the Bat and then I guess I'm going to Illinois to figure out what the hell happened and why Dark didn't know about it." Mr. Constantine vanishes in a flash of light. A few seconds later, the guard comes and takes Danny back to his room.

At some point during day 4, Walker visits. Again, the surprise is almost strong enough to break through the cold hollow feeling in his chest. Almost. Walker had only visited once, the day they sent him here, to gloat over seeing the Halfa Punk finally imprisoned for his crimes.

The warden glances around his empty room, then settles for staring at Danny. Time passes, lunch and dinner a blur where Danny, for the 4th day in a row, barely eats a third of each meal. Walker is stares at him the whole time. It's kind of creepy and Danny almost wants to snap at him. Almost. Instead he lies on. his cot and traces cracks in his ceiling like he's looking at constellations. Finally, just after lights out, Walker does more than stare. He speaks.

"Effective immediately, your previous sentencing has been overturned and all other charges are dropped. You are no longer Wanted, punk. Keep your nose clean. I never want to see you in my prison again." Danny spends most of the night thinking about Walker's change of heart and not being wanted as a ghost anymore.

The fifth day is mostly normal. Spectra shows back up. Danny doesn't make the mistake of smiling at her or acknowledging her at all really. He doesn't want to scare her off again. He missed her. She seems upset. She practically gouges his heart out with the ferocity with which she plunges her clawed hand into his chest to feast. She's not in the slightest gentle with how she drags more and more misery from him, through him. Danny doesn't mind the ache. He's just happy, to whatever empty extent he can be happy, that someone is reaping some meager benefit from his still beating heart.

Day 6 passes much the same with Spectra hovering over him the whole day.

Finally, day 7. The final day to finish out the most disorienting week of Danny's short life. The grand finale of confusion starts with Danny back in the visitation wing. Spectra stays with him right up until they walk into that same little room from 3 days ago, where Danny sees Mr. Kincaid, the social worker he met once when he arrived in Gotham, and a man in a fancy business suit. Mr. Business stands up and smiles, looking for all the world like Danny had made his day by walking in the room.

"Hello Danny, my name is Bruce Wayne."

[animeredhead101]

Minor Ships DP x DC Crossover

Duke Thomas / Danny Fenton

You Are a Monster (But So Am I) by TheWrittingOwl :

Gotham was not known for its snowy weather. Sure, they'd get decent snowfall in time for Christmas, and they often fell victim to the east coast blizzards, but never had they had snow earlier than Thanksgiving. Of course, it's while Duke is doing his Halloween patrol that a freak blizzard hits Gotham. As he waits for someone to relieve him for the night patrol, he comes across something... strange in the snow. The weather may be strange, but it is still Halloween. AKA 5 Times Duke denies he's a monster fucker and 1 Time he kisses the monster Word Count: 16,046 Completed

Cassandra Cain / Danny Fenton

lex luthor's ascent from supervillainy to fatherhood by halfgone(milkywxy) :

Based on this Tumblr prompt.

Lex Luthor has recently acquired a son. Weapon? Parole officer? ...Lex now has a teenaged god and he'll be damned if someone tries to take the kid away from him.

Word Count: 519,936 On-going

I wasn't expecting this fic but I love it! I usually hate Lex Luthor but I love how the author developed his character with Danny. One of my new favorites for sure!

Kon-El | Conner Kent / Danny Fenton

play it cool for you by aschriles :

Just because Tim had gone and got himself a boyfriend didn't mean Kon had to go and get himself a... whatever the heck he and Danny had going on. Fuck buddies. They were fuck buddies. Word Count: 18,409 Completed

Eat the Acid by DisillusionedDanny :

When Elle decided to introduce Danny to her new clone friend Conner, she was expecting a new brother. Not a new brother-in-law. Tie that in with some clone chaos, best friends Vlad and Lex, and a baby, and Conner and Danny are in for a ride of a lifetime. It could have only been fate that caused them to meet when they did.

Word Count:24,788 Completed

Seeing Double by Scififan33 :

What do you do when you find out you aren't who you always thought? Jazz knew it was the chance to get Danny away from their Phantom obsessed parents and Danny was just in shock. Hopefully, he'd be allowed to explain but why would he want Danny around? Word Count: 20,098 On-going What do you do when you find out you aren't who you always thought? Jazz knew it was the chance to get Danny away from their Phantom obsessed parents and Danny was just in shock. Hopefully, he'd be allowed to explain but why would he want Danny around? Word Count: 20,098 On-going

Thomas Wayne / Danny Fenton

Mourning a Young Soul Leads to Shared Custody by Olive_of_Vanders :

Danny was given a choice.

Become King or parent a ghost kid. Ghost kid sounded a lot more easier to him.

Word Count: 41,929 Completed

John Constantine / Danny Fenton

Completed

And My Exes, They Haunt Me by JoyLess_NightSky :

"Look, mate-" "Don't call me mate. That's weird." "Right. Your highness-" "That's even weirder. But, fine. Go on?" John sighed, obviously done with the interruptions. "This isn't just about us, luv. Alright? I get why you're angry, but me mates need ya. Heck, the whole bloody damn world needs ya! The twat that came through is very much about to do the whole bloody world domination schtick ya kept Pariah from doin'. That ain't something you're alright with, is it now?" The summoned man gave Constantine an unimpressed look. "If it's you asking? I might make an exception." OR: The Justice League is in over their heads with the new enemy. They need help, and Constantine may know a guy. But the guy… doesn't really like Constantine a lot right now. Word Count: 2,914

On-going

Lair of the Mysterious Reaper by Joshua2000 :

Danny's lair is the House of Mystery. When he enters it for the first time, he finds John Constantine and Zatanna Zatara occupying it. Between being the ghost king, the reaper of the souls of heroes and keeper of the balance Danny really needs a break. Based on a series of prompts by Sleepy (LonelyLittleWhiteRabbit) Original prompt here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/45336712/chapters/114063079#workskin

Word Count: 6,815

Like and Survive- Phantom’s Guide to Young Hero Survival by robinasnyder :

When the world becomes aware of teenaged superheroes there is an immediate and fierce wave of backlash and controversy. That's where Phantom comes in. Phantom saved the world from a meteor fifteen years back; an impressive feat back in the day but now that meteors threatening all life on earth is such a common event that hardly anyone thinks about it. Phantom is considered an old timer who deals with a small city and nowhere else. When he begins uploading videos with advice for young heroes, he hopes a few new heroes might avoid some of the pain he went through. He's shocked at just how popular his advice suddenly becomes. Word Count: 306,940

[impyssadobsessions]

Raising Phantom Chpt 9

Jazz sighed as she sent a text to Danny and Vlad, running her fingers through her hair. She had PLANNED and PROMISED to be home by dinner. Glancing at the clock on the school computer, it was already ten minutes past eight o'clock. She hoped Danny wouldn't be too upset, she really didn't mean to.. to-be like their parents.

Oh god. Jazz leaned back in her chair, staring at the ceiling. She clenched her fist repeatedly, trying to calm herself down. Tears painfully pricking at her eyes. Trying her best to avoid breaking down. There were still a few students in the computer room.

She wasn't like her parents. She reminded herself, trying to ignore the doubt in her inner voice. She really meant to be home and she told them she'd be late. Maddie and Jack sometimes forget to even do that when they were busy. But they worked in the basement. Just a staircase away. Stop!

She shook her head. She sat up focusing on the screen, clicking print on her report. She was turning in her work for her classes for the week as well as chatting with her teachers, when one of her professor's refused to accept the format of her work for him. So she had to go and change every single one.

Jazz rubbed her eyes and got up to grab the report from the printer. Borrowing a stapler and returning to logout of the computer. He also demanded it to be in paper. She never in her life disliked a teacher, but he was the first.

Though she had to admit to herself, it wasn't all because of work and school she was late. Talking to Sam and Tucker was very therapeutic. Of course they didn't like that she left Danny with Vlad, but they understood that she needed her space. Encouraged it, even.

“Tch. Of course, the only time I would have loved to go to one of those stuck up rich parties.” Sam muttered, upset to miss the chaos. “Oof. Luckily I don't think Mr. Wayne would remember you. So at least you still have a future job!” Tucker has said, trying to get her to look on the bright side for her, “Annnnd if he does, then no offense, but I don't know you-OW! Sam! I was just kidding!” Jazz suppressed a chuckle with a smile at the memory. Despite having been Danny's friends, they closely became hers too. More so since... She shook her head, looking straight on, she marched back to her professor's office to hand him her work.. again. Refusing to focus on another thought that wasn't on what was around her.

Then it was time to head home.

The walk back was peaceful, well relatively. It was getting dark, which meant danger, but the streets were crowded enough where it didn't feel terrifying. The shops still were lit, and their displays proudly shown in the windows.

Jazz stared at them as she walked by. She never was much of a window shopper before, but after living in Gotham, it had quite an appeal. She smiled as she passed a jewelry shop that had beautiful necklaces on display, clear that they were only for show as the real products lay protected inside. One of the necklaces reminded her of Dora's amulet.

Danny had explained to her one day, after he took her to various allies across the ghost zone. So she knew who to contact if he needed it. Dora was a sweetheart, but the amulet could cause her to turn into a dragon when upset. Jazz liked having tea with her. They'll have to make a trip to see them, next time she takes Danny to Frostbite for a check up.

Another reason she was working with Vlad. Vlad had a working portal and Danny couldn't rely on conventional medicines. Neither could she. She reminded herself, as she walked past a closed pharmacy.

She did worry about what would happen if she got hurt, if they tried to take her to hospital. Or worse, did get murdered. She felt a sharp pang in her heart. She clenched at the strap of her bag. Jazz glanced back at the windows, trying to avoid that thought.

Death wasn't an easy concept. Accepting it was hard. She wanted to believe it wasn't something that happened as often as it did, despite the evidence around her. Even at times she forgot that Danny had actually-

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAhhhhhhhhhhh!!” a blood curdling scream broke Jazz from her window shopping and her thoughts.

Jazz slapped her back against the wall, as a car came tumbling through the street. She peaked around the corner, hearing the growls and terrified screams. People were trying to flee the streets as another car was picked up by a giant reptilian man. Killer-Croc.

Jazz furrowed her brows, having studied a lot of the reoccurring rogues of Gotham. After-all, her chosen future workplace, she needed to be informed about all the potential patients. She kept to the corner, watching the behavior of the man as he tossed the car into a building.

Killer-Croc was an unfortunate soul, cursed with a body that looks far more monstrous than human. Jazz felt empathy for the giant reptilian. The parallels between him and ghosts were so similar. Creatures that deserve to be treated with the same rights as humans yet both denied based on how they look or how powerful they were. People feared them and used their fear to cast judgment.

Jazz yelped as she rolled out the way of a light pole being swung into the corner of the building she was at. It bounced and flipped into the street, smashing down a traffic light with it. But just like ghosts, there were some merits to their fear. It was a sad fate.

Fate was cruel like that.

The red-headed woman jerked as a motorcycle whipped down the street, jumping over the crushed poles that laid on the street. It skidded to a stop. There was no mistaking the red helmet vigilante that perched on the bike.

“Croc! Don't make me do this same song and dance!” Red Hood yelled, immediately cursing as he jumped off his bike, dodging another car tossed his way.

Killer-Croc was still rampaging, without making any attempts to verbally communicate. Growls and roars coming from the man. People kept running by her, screaming. Jazz should leave, but something felt wrong. She couldn't do anything about it though. She SHOULDN'T do anything about it.

She watched as Red Hood disappeared around the corner, assuming he was running towards the man. Her eyes glanced up as she noticed another vigilante land on the building opposite of her. She had to let them do their job, one day she'll get to do hers. So, she steadied herself off the building and decided to cut through the alleyway to her right.

That had to be the hardest thing about living in Gotham. Having to standby and watch instead of trying to help, especially when she just imagines Danny in their place. Danny, or Phantom as he called his hero persona, the ghost boy that took on everything without knowing how bad it would get. Took every punch, every shot, and every weight on his shoulders to protect people around them. Ghosts and Ghost Hunters included.

She felt tears prick her eyes, making it hard to see. She rubbed her face as she continued to run to the other street. It didn't help that the buildings and cars were now on fire. Smoke filtering into the alleyway. She wanted to be home to hug Danny. She should have been home. She needed-

“What's the rush girlie? Don't like the show?” There was a click of a gun.

Jazz froze, putting her hands up. She didn't know how good of an aim they had, but they sounded way too close to miss. She turned her head slowly to look behind her. There stood a man in a trench coat and a fedora covering his face in shadow.

“You haven't even seen the best part, yet~”

She could see a hint of a grin on his face. A cold dread in her bones. He walked up to her and threw an arm around her shoulders, bringing her close to him. His gun pressed to her neck. She could see him more clearly, but refused to do so. The red mouth and the cracking white paint of his neck was more than enough for her.

“Come on, I'll get you front row seats! Generous as I am. It'll be a blast.”

----------------------------@w@ '''

Danny poked at the cold lasagna on his plate as he kicked his feet that dangled. His stomach was in knots. Jazz had called them at five exclaiming she was going to be late, and then texted that she was about to leave around eight. Vlad was pacing around the living room, his plate empty on the coffee table with an empty wine glass. Both of them were growing anxious.

Danny was torn as part of him wanted to go and find her right now, but the other part was clearly reminded of how she was before she left. He didn't want to bother her... she said that she'll be fine. And Jazz was always right... He squinted at his food as if it gave him a questionable look back.

He shook his head and stared at Vlad. He had to admit, Vlad wasn't... so bad.. at least not all the time. Today was actually kind of fun, even if they were both crippled by worry at the moment. Honestly, they didn't even know it was time for dinner by the time Jazz called.

They had flown across the sea all the way to Italy and back. They haunted a grapevine yard and visited old buildings. Something Danny didn't think he would be interested in, but being able to explore endlessly was fun. Danny even found an old toy that was hidden in between the walls. Danny phased it out and gave it to a ghost girl he saw. She was fun to play with too.

Maybe this is how Danielle must have felt traveling? Maybe she'll take him one time.

Though Vlad was upset that Danny had insisted they still get food from the restaurant back in Gotham, but folded as Danny reminded he promised Jazz. And maybe his puppy eyes might have helped. So they had settled on a compromise... which ended up with the fridge being filled with Italian cuisine from both the restaurant and various places in Italy. Vlad even got himself some expensive wine.

His eyes glanced at the bottle on the coffee table. It was already empty.

He glanced back at his food. He hardly had taken a bite. At first they were worried they would get home after Jazz and be scolded for their impromptu trip, even if they brought back souvenirs and food. So once they managed to make it back, they scrambled to get everything put up and set out as if they had been waiting on his sister to return the whole time.

Danny was even ready to get his pajamas on and go to bed, but Vlad insisted they wait. Then they waited. Vlad told him to go ahead and eat, Jasmine would be upset if they didn't, but Danny didn't feel like it now. He poked at his food again. He felt a familiar sting to his eyes as he tried to keep his breathing stable.

It was dumb to be so scared. She was fine. She had to be. Yet, Vlad's conversation with him earlier in the day just reignited the fear into his mind. If she...

He heard a deep sigh, and a pat on his shoulder. “Hurry up and eat Daniel. Please. We'll wait another thirty minutes and then go search for her. Her stubbornness be damned.”

“No pastry swears?” Danny sniffed as he stabbed his fork into the lasagna, ripping a bite size from it.

“I'm too tired and not buzzed enough to care. Though I would appreciate it if we it kept between us, hmm?” Vlad returned to his pacing. He would call her if he wasn't worried the call would get her in more danger.

Danny snorted as he forced himself to take a bite, rubbing his eyes. He wasn't going to promise, but he was also too tired to care. It would be funny to out Vlad for cursing, but only if Jazz hadn't been so upset today. He just wanted his sister home already. He took another bite, mechanically. All he wanted was to hug her right now, embarrassing as it was to admit.

He snorted again to himself, reaching for his glass of milk that was starting to warm up from being left out. He blamed it on being so young again, that he wanted his “mom”. Even if the circumstances were different. She was his sister.

A loud boom thundered across the city. Only sound after was Danny's fork dropping onto the floor.

[currentfandomkick]

Ways to add angst: have Red Hood see some of his dead men and think Danny is using targeted hallucinations to run away.

Have Ace be one of Danny’s Ghost friends and haunt Batman’s dreams specifically thinking it would help him realize Ellie and Danny are experiments who are managing to have their own life. This is not how that works out and now Bruce is on team Super Soldier Serum.

Damian is Ellie’s rival and is aware Danny was a teen parent. He’s also vaguely aware of Ellie’s hatred for her other parent (Vlad) and assumes Danny’s a transman (in canon his human design has wide hips while ghost has narrow being Damian main evidence) . Dealer’s choice on if that is true or not. What Damian does know is Ellie and her Dad had been experimented on at some point, as Ellie mentioned her other brothers were killed because of her asshole Father (she loved them, and is not forgetting them.) bonus of Damian having seen her take ED before as ‘if i don’t, i could die. My dad found this keeps me from dying, so like, meta diabetes with a side effect of melting instead of comas.”

Damian is fully aware Ellie needs that medicine, and thinks Danny is going to switch it out with this super soldier serum (for other metas) in an attempt to perfect it and profit while taking care of Ellie.

Tim and Oracle find out about Amity Black Out Park and are convinced Danny and Ellie are escaped experiments intent in revenge. Tim thinks Danny is building an army to destroy their previous tormentors, and is all for it. Oracle doesnt trust them not to have intense collateral damage and to not endanger a large number of civilians.

Bonus of Amity Park being in a literal war with GIW and Fentons at the time led by Red Huntress, Tucker and Sam as well as all under 30 residents as active combatants.

Tim goes to check it out and sees an active warzone irl. He does confirm to red hood/Jason the super soldier serum is possible given the active war zone coverup by the gov, but he’s not sure since he’s seen similar injections used on these glowing metas to heal them.

Jason is assuming Danny is bringing that war to gotham or working on making this resistance group more independent.

Bruce is convinced it has to be a super solider serum while Damian, kept put of the loop as no one connected Ellie his classmate to LabCoat, noted her worry as ‘look, the offical meds run out soon and Dad thinks he’s got it covered but… just don’t let then lie if i have a funeral, okay? I’m a menace by choice and will find a way to haunt you if you let them try the whole ‘god has another angel’ stuff.’

So Damian is watching his friend be in a ‘may die soon’ sitch and gets a sample of her meds to Tim. Tim has confirmation the ‘soldier serum’ is also medicine but can’t recreate it. Jason thinks Danny is part of a resistance (Danny doesnt even know its going on) and Bruce thinks Danny is using Ellie as an experiment.

Oracle is the only one doing reg gotham work while Nightwing is only brought up to Damian’s speed as “Grayson how do you comfort a friend who may die as she cannot get the treatment she needs?”

Lots of angst esp if Batman destroys the serum in an attempt to prevent another Ace incident (despite Ace’s warning) while Jason destroyed the notes by accident in a different bust (lab was by a drug dealer and explosions hit danny’s lab. Notes are aflame.)

Damian gets to lose it as they doomed his friend to dying. Ellie is just. Numb. Danny having a break down. Jason feels horrible as he was on the fence before while Batman realizes he basically killed a 12 yr old by destroying her meds because he thought they were a super-soldier serum (they are basically caffine shots for some, IV drip for some ghosts and for liminals its a like getting 100% oxygen for faster healing and more power activation for a few hours).

Damian and Tim work using Danny’s memory and the lab assistant (a ghost of probs scarecrow’s hench) to make a new batch for Ellie in a race against the clock while Danny is trying to spend more time with Ellie as it may be her last few days.

Misunderstandings really really suck

So heres the deal, it's a normal Vivisection AU where Danny had to run away to Gotham after his parents try to kill him, and let's say that he takes Ellie with him too.

They stay there for a few years and after a while they manage to establish a little life for themselves. Danny is running a small Shop that makes them enough money to live comfortably in the apartment right above his Shop, meanwhile Ellie is going to Gotham Metro Academy on a scholarship because she is really smart and they managed to fake some school records for her when they were making themselves new Identities.

(Side Note: Danny is now 26, while Ellie hasn't started aging yet and still looks 12, but she will begin to soon since she just hit her 12th birthday)

Danny also runs a small Ghost Shop out of his store, just selling small bits of Distilled Ectoplasm or Ecto-Infused Treats to the local Ghosts in return for small favors or help around the shop.

But here's the thing. Ellie is still an unstable Clone, even if they did managed to find a reliable treatment in the form of Ecto-Dejecto. But Danny's parents were the only ones who knew how to make that stuff, and the Ecto-Dejecto they stole all those years ago is beginning to run out.

Danny begins to work tirelessly trying to replicate it, diving full on into his Mad Scientist side to try and find a way to make more ED for Ellie. He manages to make some prototypes, but he is nowhere near confident that they are good enough.

He decides to call in some favors from the local Ghosts. He calls the ones he is confident will survive this and asks them to try out his Ecto Dejecto to see if it will work for Ellie, but he does warn them that there will probably be unexpected side effects that they will probably not like.

The Ghosts agree to do it, because in the years that the Fenton's have lived there they have grown extremely attached to Ellie. She is like a little sister or daughter for many of them, they would throw away their afterlives if it meant helping her.

For most of the samples, the ED doesn't work at all. Some of them work for a single moment before cutting out, others don't do anything, and some have crazy effects that affect them for a little while before disappearing abruptly. One guy turned into a Dog, not the worst outcome but not the intended one. Another began to glow brightly and couldn't turn it off, that one lasted for an hour.

They keep testing them, out in the nearby Alley since they don't want to destroy the house or Danny's makeshift Lab, for a few weeks.

They problem comes when they are spotted one night by Red Hood.

...

Jason was crossing the Rooftops while on Patrol. He was going a little farther than his normal patrol range, since he had the time and he wanted to make sure there was no trouble in the nearby areas either.

As he was about to hop from one rooftop to another, he got a weird feeling. It was strange, he didn't feel anything on his skin, he didn't smell anything, he didn't even hear anything, but he somehow knew that there was something strange happening in the nearby Alley. It was like he could sense it.

Peeking over the edge of the rooftop, he saw a group of about 10 people. It was a bunch of strange looking people with green-ish skin, and one normal looking person. The normal looking one was wearing a lab coat, and seemed to be about 25 yrs old. Jason felt like there was something off about that guy, but he couldn't place exactly what. He was holding a box of something in his hand, and talking to the group.

"Ok guys, I'm really confident this time!" He said, "I think one of these may be the one!"

The man placed the box on a nearby Dumpster and opened it up, taking out a strange glowing green Vial. He handed it to one of the Greenish people and watched as they injected themselves with it.

Jason watched as they began to glow slightly before their arms suddenly grew to be longer than they were tall. The Man in the Lab Coat sighed in discontent, before saying "Ok, not that one. But we still have a few to try out!"

Jason watched as one by one the people below injected themselves with the green Liquid, each of them having some strange phenomenon happen to them before moving on to the next. The strange thing was that none of them seemed to be concerned with the changes, just commenting on it felt before moving on.

Finally, they got to the last person in line. As they injected themselves, Jason felt a sense of Anticipation well up in his gut. He didn't know why, but he felt like this was going to he important.

He was proven right as the Man who had injected himself began to glow brightly. Jason was overwhelmed with the sense of Pure Power coming from him. It was intense, he didn't know how, but he could actually feel the man begin to grow stronger and stronger. The feeling was nearly suffocating, but he managed to regain his senses long enough to hear Lab Coat laugh maniacally. He looked over to see that the entire group was enthusiastically high-fiving and fist-bumping eachother, all cheering at the success.

"Hahaha! Yes! Finally!" Labcoat Cheered, "It's done! Once I make some more, we'll be able to-"

The overwhelming power suddenly cut out. It was so abrupt that even the people below didn't speak for some time. They all just stood on slight shock before Labcoat spoke up, "Ok...ok this is fine. All I need to do is take that formula and find a way to make the effect Permanent. After that we're all set." He said, a thoughtful expression on his face, "I think we'll be good to go within a Week!"

The group of people muttered in agreement, and Labcoat thanked them all for a bit before they all began to walk away. It seemed like the meeting was over.

Jason took a moment to collect himself, before deciding to follow some of the group so he could question them. Unfortunately, everybody he followed disappeared into thin air after a short time.

It occurred to him that he hadn't tried to intervene at all. Usually he would have jumped down and beaten them all black and blue for testing drugs right in front of him, but he didn't this time. Why? He also realized that he should have followed the Lab Coat guy first, not waited until it was his last option. Why did he not go after that guy instantly? Why did he hesitate? Was it something to do with that Ominous Feeling that led him to the meeting in the first place? There was just something about the guy that made Jason feel inexplicably sacred of him.

Either way, he needed to tell the others.

Because from what he had seen, a Mad Scientist had been working with a group of Metahumans to create a Super Soldier Drug right there in Gotham, and they needed to stop them.

[avaritia-apotheosis]

Phantom Children Ch.4

In Which: exposition for exposition's sake exists, and Vlad looks way more suspcious than he ought

| AO3 | Prologue | 3 | [4] | 5

VLADIMIR MASTERS. Human male in his mid-forties, and most notably the founder and CEO of VladCo, a billion-dollar industry that mostly specializes in manufacturing weapons and technology. Graduated summa cum laude from the University of Wisconsin despite having to drop out due to a lab accident in his second year, landing him in the hospital. Despite being based primarily in Wisconsin, he made an unexpected move to Amity Park Illinois shortly after reuniting with his college friends Drs. Madeline and Jack Fenton.

Not even a year later, Masters ran for mayor of Amity Park and won the election by a landslide. Suspicious, considering Masters being an unknown and the former mayor Montez being quite popular. It’s during Masters’ tenure in office that reports of ghost attacks to the Justice League steadily died down.

“Why?” Damian asked.

Barbara shrugged, pulling up a few files on the screen. “I originally had a theory that related to VladCo’s buyout of Axion Labs—a technological research and manufacturing company that’s mostly local to Amity—being a factor. Within the last couple of years, they had been experimenting with highly volatile chemicals with hallucinogenic properties. Amity had always been known for being extremely superstitious with its ghosts, and if Axion Labs had somehow accidentally released that chemical into the city, well…” She leaned back into her chair, hand twisting in the air. “You could bet how that ended up. The hysteria around ghosts only grew worse in the last two years, with suspected sightings from once every few weeks to multiple in a single day. Early attempts to capture sightings were unsuccessful, and soon enough Amity Park was just written off.”

Much like the mass hysteria surrounding the urban legend of the kuchisake-onna in Japan in the late 1970s, Bruce thought. He pulled up some news footage from Amity Park dated a few years back of citizens being interviewed about their ghostly encounters. Beside these videos were a few photos taken by a shaky camera, showing bright blurs of light streaking across the sky or vaguely humanoid shapes rising from the ground.

“So VladCo., bought out Axion Labs, improved its security, and slowly helped detoxify the town?” Damian shifted his weight onto his other leg and crossed his arms.

“That’s what I thought, but—”

“But the ghosts ended up being real.” Bruce pulled up a video of a field reporter-slash-weatherman taking cover as a figure dropped from the sky, breaking through the walls of a building. The figure—features distorted by an eerie glow—shot out of the rubble just in time before a green blast hit it.

Oracle enlarged other news footage with a few taps on her keyboard. Beings zooming through the air. Massive plants erupting from the ground. Technology coming to life. Each video more worrying than the last, and most showing some footage of a figure bathed in a white glow. “I’d be hard pressed to call any of these faked.”

It begged the question as to how Amity Park survived this long unscathed. Since, if he remembered correctly, even the Dark Leaguers tended to avoid Amity Park like the plague. “They have their own heroes, then?”

“Think along the lines of vigilantes with unofficial support.” A few more files popped up on screen. One showcased a female in a full-length black and red body suit on top of a hover board. The other was a male; young, perhaps a teenager, with white hair and a black and white suit. Hazmat? “The Red Huntress and the Phantom of Amity Park.”

“Partners?”

“More like enemies working on the same turf. Sources place Phantom as appearing first, though it seems Red Huntress has more government support in the end despite there being no official statement. They seem to be the most effective ghost hunters in town, though far from the only ones. The Fentons of Fenton Works are also acting as ghost hunters, though their track record of success leans more towards their anti-ghost tech than any hunting. The town’s even attracted visitors from the Ghost Investigation Ward; a side branch of Cadmus though a now defunct organization.”

“This doesn’t make sense,” Damian said. “If anything, this should be more than enough reason for a League intervention. Why the Justice League didn’t come sooner is the real question here.”

Bruce’s lips thinned. “That’s because we were warned off it.”

“What?”

While there was no rule against heroes entering another hero’s city, there were certain unspoken rules that demanded that JL members avoid claimed cities or stay just outside of city lines until given permission to enter. Some were especially strict about it such as Batman’s ‘no metas or outsiders’ rule. Others were more lenient, simply requesting a warning before entering.

Amity Park, despite having no listed heroes in the database, was marked with heavy ‘Do Not Interact’ warnings for humans and metas alike.

“Justice League Dark said that under no circumstances should the League interfere in Amity. The situation was never explicitly laid out for us except to say that everything was being handled.”

“Oh yeah,” Oracle chimed. “Constantine even had it bolded, underlined, italicized, and in all caps. The occult community was very clear about everyone staying away—and apparently this decision had support from Amity Park too.” She pulled up another document. “That’s probably what led to the decline in their ghost reports, actually. Amity’s claims were considered bogus and brushed aside. No one outside their town—not even their sister town of Elmerton—believed them, so they simply stopped asking for help.”

Strangely, it reminded Bruce of Gotham. Both cities existed in its own isolated sphere, unwilling to let any outsiders interfere in its business.

“It’s safe to assume, then, that whatever Ra’s al Ghul wants with Amity, it has to do with these ghosts. Do we have anyway to contact the town’s vigilantes?”

Oracle shook her head. “Ghost attacks within the past few months have slowly died down along with sightings of Phantom and Red Huntress. Your best bet is asking Masters directly.”

Damian glowered. “Masters blatantly sent out an invitation for Batman to my father. How do we know that Masters hasn’t somehow found our secret identities?”

“Unlikely,” Bruce said. “Vlad Masters, despite his wealth, has done well to keep a low profile. He’s met Bruce Wayne a total of three times within the last decade and Batman not at all.” That, and with the kind of spyware Batman has, he’d be able to tell when, where, and who was trying to dig deep into Batman’s past. Masters hadn’t even registered as a ping.

“Besides, there’s always a few rumors of Wayne Enterprise’s involvement with Batman. All this tech has to come from somewhere, no?”

“How long is Masters staying in Gotham?”

“Umm…” Oracle leaned forward in her chain and flipped through a half-dozen windows. “Going by his reservations at the Gotham Royal Hotel, he’s leaving tomorrow.”

Bruce pivoted on his heel, heading deeper into the Cave. “We better make this count, then.”

------

According to Oracle’s intel, Vlad Masters was staying at one of the executive suites in the Gotham Royal Hotel. A titanic structure with forty-eight floors, two towers, and the gothic aesthetic that never seemed to leave Gotham’s architecture.

Scaling the building as well as entering the suite proved no challenge for Batman and Robin. But upon entrance, it was abundantly clear that the room was vacant.

“Are you sure you guys are in the right room?” Bruce could hear the clicking of Oracle’s keys through their comms. “Masters had reserved the suite on the west tower.”

“Yes we’re in the correct room, Gordon,” Robin hissed.

“Codenames only, Robin.”

Robin clicked his tongue, sweeping the common room for any hidden bugs or cameras as Batman scouted out the rest of the room. The bed was made to hotel standard and the bathroom towels all completely replaced. There were no clothes in the hotel closet or dresser.

The only thing left that indicated occupancy of the room was an unmarked manila envelope unsubtly tucked within a pillowcase.

Robin tensed at the sight of it. “A detonator of some sort?”

Batman rotated the package, holding it up to his scanner. “Doesn’t seem to be. Regardless, it might be better to take it back to the Batcave and locate Masters ag—” The envelope started ringing. A standard ringtone found in most phones. Quickly, but carefully, Batman opened the manila envelope and dumped its contents onto the bed. A ringing burner phone and a flash drive came tumbling out.

Batman threw the flash drive at Robin before answering the phone, holding it up against his ear but saying nothing.

Silence. Then, Masters’ voice filtered in through the phone with a strange echo-like quality. “Good evening, Batman! I’m so glad my invitation managed to get passed along.”

Batman growled into the speaker, “What do you want, Masters?” He signaled Robin to do another sweep of the room for any signs of Masters they might have missed.

“I sincerely apologize for not being there to meet you myself; incredibly rude of me, I know. But it cannot be helped, the shadows are growing ever bolder.”

“So, you are aware then, of the League of Assassins’ presence in Amity Park?”

“A league of assassins? What a terrifying notion that is.” Batman frowned. It was unlikely that they had misread his words at the gala, so why was he acting unaware now? Could he be watched? “Why such a group would appear in my little town, I wouldn’t even dare to guess.”

Robin came back into the room and signaled back ‘negative.’

“Why did you call for us, Mayor Masters?”

“Do you know what is so very tragic, Batman?”

“This is strange,” Oracle said. “I can’t pick up his signal. He’s not appearing on any of my cameras, either.”

“When someone so young dies much to soon.” A pause. “Could you even imagine such a thing? A parent burying their own child.”

Batman could. He had no need to even imagine it because he lived it.

“Some very close friends of mine have been weighed down by the shadows of death and I require help in providing them the closure they need.”

“Are the Fentons the targets, then?”

Masters paused. Then let out a breathy laugh over the phone. “Oh, if only it were that simple.”

“So a different target.”

“Everything you need to know is in the flash drive I’ve enclosed in that envelope Whether you take up the case is entirely up to you—though I do hope you take it. Regardless, if he is not returned soon then I assure you that a disaster unlike any you have seen before will arrive.”

Batman narrowed his eyes. “Is that a threat, Masters?”

“No,” He laughed. “That was no threat. That was promise.”

The phone line disconnected just as Oracle exclaimed that she finally found Masters boarding his flight back to Amity Pak.

[violetsmoak]

Appetence [11/?]

AO3 Link:https://archiveofourown.org/works/20251420/chapters/47997634

Blanket Disclaimer

Summary: Red Robin is investigating the disappearance of a friend and stumbles into a spot of supernatural trouble. He doesn’t expect to be saved by Jason Todd, miraculously alive five years after his death and now with the inexplicable ability to commune with the dead. Meanwhile, when Jason returned to Gotham he meant to maintain a low profile and not get involved with Bat business. That was before he found out how hot his Replacement is.

Rating: PG-13 (rating may change later)

JayTimBingo Prompts This Chapter: #haunting #paranormal investigator

First Chapter

Beta Reader: I’ll get back to you on that.

Author’s Note: I decided to upload this today instead of tomorrow as I have a final paper due Friday and if I'm gonna concentrate on finishing it and not writing fanfic, I need to put this up now :P Enjoy the BatFam feels.

________________________________________________________________

 A day later and Jason is still stewing in anger—and, if he’s being honest—a bit of hurt. Even after reuniting, even after listening to what Jason had to say, and trying to get him to come home—Bruce still can’t be convinced to deal with the Joker.

Or at the very least stand aside and let Jason do it.

It’s like he’s trying to protect my non-existent virtue or some kind of innocence I never really had.

Does Bruce even actually remember him anymore? Or has he built up some false memory in his head that’s turned the boy Jason was into some clone of Dick?

The obvious, adult way of finding out would be to drive over to the manor and go for Round Two in confronting Bruce, but that’s a journey he’s not ready to take yet. Especially since the emotionally stunted man child that is the Dark Knight might take that as Jason coming to grovel for forgiveness, which just…no.

It’s decided. Jason will sit and sulk in his office and pretend Bruce and all of his Bat-drama doesn’t exist. He has work to do, anyhow.

The phone rings and Jason smirks.

“Like I said,” he tells himself smugly and picks it up, leaning back in his chair with his feet on the desk. “Beyond Investigations, Victor Shelley speaking.”

“First of all, you have a really warped sense of humor choosing that as your civilian identity,” a familiar voice tells him, and Jason’s stomach flips a little as he nearly slides off his chair.

“Well, if it isn’t my esteemed former stalker,” he drawls, then winces because it’s not exactly his best line. “You can’t tell me it’s not funny, in the gallows kind of way.”

“If you wanted gallows, I’m surprised you didn’t go with Vlad Stoker,” Tim Drake remarks.

“That would be cliché. And Stoker’s overrated. Also, he once demanded all the gay writers be imprisoned, which ain’t cool,” Jason replies with an easy enjoyment. “But I doubt you’re calling to talk early horror literature with me. Gotta say, it’s the first time I’ve ever waited more than two days for someone to call me when I give them my number.”

Shit. That was a little more flirting than he intended.

“That leads to second of all,” Tim says, either missing the innuendo or ignoring it completely. “Care to explain why, after you asked me not to say anything to B about you being here, you ratted me out to him?”

That’s…not what he was expecting. Jason sits up, suddenly serious. “Ratted you out? What are you talking about?”

“He came back home after that thing downtown with Freeze yesterday completely shaken because he ran into you, and apparently you let it slip that I knew you were back and didn’t tell anyone.”

There’s more than a little irritation in Tim’s voice there, and Jason’s heart picks up a bit in worry. He thinks back to the encounter the night before, trying to figure out when he would have outed Tim. He can’t think of anything.

Then he remembers his parting words.

The blood rushes to his face.

If Bruce figured out he was talking about Tim with such a throwaway comment, he worries what else he might have inferred.

Don’t think about it too closely. Worry about putting Tim in his crosshairs.  

He groans. “Sorry, my bad.”

“Apparently I should have been the one asking for a week’s grace,” Tim goes on dryly.

“Honestly, I wasn’t thinking,” Jason tells him. “Talkin’ to B always gets my blood pressure up, and then my mouth just starts to run.”

“No kidding.”

“He didn’t give you too much trouble, did he?”

There’s a pause, and then, “No more than normal. A couple of years ago that sort of thing would have really messed with my head, but these days I can deal.”

“What happened a couple of years ago?”

Tim pauses again, and even though Jason can’t sense auras or ghosts through telephone lines, he’s pretty sure that the dark aura constantly surrounding the younger man is behind that.

“Let’s just say I learned that Brue can be myopic about certain things,” Tim says at last. “Either he’s entirely focused on what’s right in front of him, or some arbitrary future end game. He doesn’t really…absorb the things that happen between those two points.”

Jason blinks. “That’s a scary kind of accurate.”

“That’s what I do. I think and I know things.”

Jason can’t hold back a scoff.

“Did you…did you just misquote Game of Thrones?”

Tim lets out a somewhat startled laugh. “I guess I did. Totally unintentional, I promise. Although, you get points for catching it.”

“Points for what? Is there a prize?”

 “Even if there was, I’d be keeping it. I’m still ticked off at you for telling on me to B.”

“And I still feel bad about that. I owe you a drink.”

No, no you don’t. No drinks, no nothing. Off-limits, remember?

“Still not old enough to drink, Jason,” Tim replies, voice sounding less irritated and weary and more…amused? Fond even?

Then he hangs up, leaving Jason staring at the receiver of his phone in puzzled frustration.

“This isn’t going to end well for me, is it?”

“No,” Sheila tells him from where she’s lingering across the room, “it’s not.”

Jason lets his head fall onto his desk.

With the ice now broken with Tim and Bruce (or at least as broken as it can get given the latter’s inability to process anything resembling emotions), Jason pretty knows his days of privacy are likely at an end.

He completely expects the requisite visitations of various Family members who will no doubt have been told he’s alive.

Both the ones I knew and the one I didn’t…

If he weren’t pretending indifference, he would have expected Dick to be the first to show up, all passion and anger. He doesn’t have many memories of his predecessor-slash-older-brother-figure where he wasn’t furious about something—almost always Bruce related. To Jason, he only seemed to have two settings: coddling and wanting to pick a fight.

Jason’s not sure which of those he wants to encounter just now.

Turns out his intuition about Dick being his first visit is completely off.  

Instead, he wakes one night from a dead sleep by a sense of presence, both physical and spectral.

There’s a kid standing at the edge of his futon, swathed in Robin’s colors but with the aura of a predator lying in wait. He can’t be more than twelve, and there’s just something about the set of his shoulders and clench of his jaw that screams Bruce.

He’s also not alone.

Outside the open window that the kid obviously used to break in, a ghostly figure in a voluminous green robe looms, hissing imprecations at Jason’s wards from the decapitated head it holds in its hands.

Jason blinks, intrigue cutting through his sleep-dulled senses. Considering the kid is Talia’s, he obviously has some League of Assassins training. Given that, Jason would have expected there to be a lot more ghosts following the kid around. Either he hasn’t killed very many people beyond the one by the window, or the ones he has didn’t leave anything unfinished.

Either way, this brat’s dangerous.

“You know who I am?” Robin challenges although it’s more a statement of fact.

“Chip off the old block is what you are,” Jason grumbles, sitting up—slowly, in case the hard-looking kid thinks he’s about to try something. He’d rather not get into another Wayne beatdown so soon after his encounter with Bruce. “Did he actually teach you the menacing-people-in-the-dark thing, or is it genetic?”

“What is your purpose for returning to Gotham?” the boy demands, ignoring the question.

“Best chili dogs in the world,” Jason shoots back, reaching for the small table beside his fold-out bed and the carton of cigarettes there.

“Stow your flippant remarks, Todd, I will have my answer whether you give it voluntarily or after I’ve loosened a few of your teeth.”

“Big words for someone probably still losing their own baby teeth. What are you, six?”

“I won’t tolerate any attempts to shove your way back into Father’s life,” the boy insists. “We already have one failure lingering about where he shouldn’t be, no need for a second.” He pauses, tilts his head to one side, and his mouth pulls into a cold smirk. “Or rather, you were the first, weren’t you?”

Jason narrows his eyes. “You know there’s a headless guy in a green curtain following you around, right? I’d think really hard about what B considers a failure before throwing that word at other people.”

The kid’s mouth goes white around the edges—touchy subject, apparently—and moves into a crouch like he’s about to dive across the room. He pauses though, fingers touching his hear, and then scowls.

“That Daddy calling you out for missing curfew?” Jason prods.

“This isn’t over!” the kid snaps, and then like he’s making a point, whips a Batarang at Jason’s face.

By the time Jason’s reached up to catch it, the brat and his ghost have vanished.

“Well, that was fun,” Jason mutters, bemused and confident he won’t be getting back to sleep any time soon.

He spends the rest of the night and early morning first checking emails and then researching. John sent him a bunch of information on kodoku, the technique Jason couldn’t remember in conjunction with the thing attracting negative energy to Tim.

It’s not exactly what he was thinking of, but even if it doesn’t help him figure out that conundrum, it might offer an inkling or two of how to deal with the ever-present Joker problem.

Need to read up on it more before I can know for sure.

His stomach growls and he decides to table it for now. There’s a 24-hour breakfast place down the street actually does bangers and mash, which he’s been craving since leaving London.

Instead, there’s a knock at the door.

Guess I’m putting off breakfast for a bit longer. Oh well. Potential client.

Jason forces himself to put on a normal, welcoming face and goes to open the door.  

What he doesn’t expect to find is a certain English butler standing in the shitty hallway just outside his office, with a bulky canvas bag in his arms and a disapproving look on his face that only just falters as their eyes meet.

It’s as if the air has been punched out of Jason’s lungs because if there’s anyone he has missed than anyone else since he’s been away, it’s Alfred.

“Master Jason,” the older man says, somehow managing to keep his voice from wavering, and god, he sounds the same. “I am sure in instilled at least a rudimentary etiquette into you as a boy. Therefore, you can imagine my disappointment upon learning you have been in Gotham for several weeks now and did not come to call at the manor.”

Jason can’t hold back the slightly hysterical chuckle at that, because trust Alfred to act like he’s been on some kind of extended vacation, instead of six feet under and insane. Yet, it doesn’t feel as dismissive or repressing as it would from Bruce.

“You know me, Alf,” he says through a suddenly dry mouth. “That stuff never took.”

“So it would seem.”

They exchange looks, both sizing up the other and then Alfred raises an eyebrow. Jason shakes his head like a sleepwalker and indicates the older man should come in.

Alfred moves smoothly across the threshold of the tiny office, frowning at the disarray (and mostly at the futon).

“Given the fact you’ve only recently, er, moved in, I thought it best to arrive with provisions.”

He sets the paper bag down on Jason’s desk and removes a box containing a hot plate, a kettle and what appears to be a package of tea. Though his back is turned, there’s a tension in his shoulders and a minor tremor that, when Jason cranes his head, he realizes are from shaking hands.

When Alfred turns around, Jason can’t hold back from reaching over and enveloping him in a hug.

It’s so different from the awkward thing with Bruce, and even though Alfred has never been the hugging type, he holds Jason just as tightly.

They stay like that for several moments, before Alfred speaks again, his voice tense like he’s speaking around a lump in his throat. “You have certainly grown into your various limbs, my boy.”

“Yeah…yeah, I guess I did…”

Jason tells Alfred everything.

He doesn’t skip any of the details the way he did with Tim and, to an extent, with Bruce. Because the fact is, he doesn’t know Tim, not really, and he knows Bruce too well. Alfred won’t look at him with pity or as something damaged; there’s pain in the way he watches Jason, but also an overwhelming and unquestionable relief.

Alfred isn’t one to cry, but his eyes gleam wetly as Jason relates how he woke in his coffin and the trial of digging himself out.

“I didn’t remember it for a while,” he admits. “Mostly it’s what comes back in nightmares. I guess it’s so clear because it’s the only thing that happened to me for another year. I was in a coma for about as long.”

“And no one knew who you were,” Alfred murmurs dully. “Everyone thought you were already dead.”

“…yeah.”

“My dear boy…if we had known…”

“Can’t change the past, Alf,” Jason shrugs, trying to play it off. “And even if you had known, I wasn’t me for a long time. Wouldn’t have wanted you to go through that.”

“And yet…somehow, you rallied,” Alfred says, determined. “You recovered.”

“I guess you could say that,” Jason says with a bitter twist of the mouth. “Not sure people would call seeing ghosts ‘recovered’.” He exhales. “I do see ‘em, Alf—all the time. I didn’t know what it was I the beginning, and…that made things harder. I was so out of it; I couldn’t tell when I was talking to someone alive or someone dead. Everyone at the hospitals thought I was insane. Bet you can guess what happened next.”

“Master Timothy…was reluctant to tell me when I asked,” the old man admits. “I’m astounded anyone in the system would have thought Arkham of all places was the appropriate place for you.” He clenches his fists together, no doubt imagining using them on whoever made that particular decision. “But Mr. Constantine, he rescued you?”

“Yeah,” Jason leans back, crossing his arms. “If he hadn’t shown up, I’d still be rotting away there. It was completely by chance, too. An old mate of his called in a favor with him, wanted to prove his sister was possessed and not bat-shit crazy.” Alfred shoots him a reprimanding look and Jason shrugs. “Sorry. Anyway, turns out she was crazy. John was keen to get out of there as soon as possible and happened to pass my room on the way out—he heard me talking to one of my many spectral roommates. He could sense the energy and when he went to look, he could see ‘em too.”

“And thus discovered that your supposed insanity was not quite so clear-cut,” Alfred determines, looking a mite triumphant.

“Not exactly. I’d been driven almost beyond the point of no return by then. If I’d been there much longer, it’d have been too late. But John could tell I was a medium. He decided I wasn’t supposed to be there and busted me out—then decided it’d be dangerous to let me wander around on my own like that. Been with him ever since. Three years of trying to heal what that asshat clown did to my brain and train myself not to lose it when I get rushed by a stampede of dead people.”

“Then I can only be grateful to him,” Alfred says. “Should you speak to Mr. Constantine in the near future, do tell him he will always have a place to stay at the manor should he need it.”

Jason laughs. “I don’t see him coming out this way any time soon. And I doubt B would be open to that arrangement.”

“You let me worry about Master Bruce. As for you—is there any point in reminding you that you also have a place to stay should you tire of this…urban setting?”

“This is my home, Alf,” Jason replies, at least halfway apologetic. “The manor might have...become that if I’d been there longer. Maybe.” He spares a moment’s thought for the little boy that wanted nothing more than to become Batman when he grew up. “But not now. I’m too—I’ve got my own mission now.”

Alfred nods, mouth turned downward. Jason tries to pretend he doesn’t notice the sad gleam in his eye.

“In the hope that your mission is not so all-consuming as Master Bruce’s, I shall still keep a guestroom at the ready. I…suspect returning to your old room would harm more than heal.”

And this is why Jason always loved Alfred. He gets it. Even when he’s hoping for the impossible.

“Guess I can live with that,” Jason says.

 “I do expect you to call for dinner at some point in the future. Perhaps not until you’re more settled. But surely you can sacrifice an hour or two for a pot roast dinner.”

Jason’s mouth immediately waters.

“Oh, that’s playing dirty, old man,” he tells him seriously.

“Having lived in Gotham this long, it’s hardly a surprise that I, too, can affect nefariousness when the occasion calls for it.” There’s a buzzing sound and Alfred digs into his pocket for his mobile phone and then heaves a sigh in a very familiar way. “Master Damian’s school. I’m afraid I must attend to this.”

“Ten o’clock and he’s already in trouble,” Jason whistles. “Beating my old record, huh?”

“You have no idea,” Alfred agrees seriously. He stands then, looks like he wants to hug Jason again but manages to keep control of himself this time. “Seeing you again is a gift, Master Jason. I hope you will allow me to impose on your hospitality again in the future?”

“You’re welcome here any time,” Jason says, warm and sincere. “I’m…it’s really good to see you again, Alf.”

The old man nods then continues to gaze at Jason a few beats longer, as if to make sure he really is seeing him, and then heads for the door. Jason sees him out, watches him until he vanishes around the corner, and then sags heavily against the doorpost to his office.

A bone-deep exhaustion that has nothing to do with sleep deprivation washes over him.

“'Stay under the radar’, I said,” he mutters to himself. “'Don’t let the Family know I’m here'. That was the plan. There was a reason for the plan…”

A reason that was supposed to guard against an estranged father and attractive replacement and loving butler.

(Well, to be fair, he didn’t know that ‘attractive replacement’ was on his list, but it clearly should have been.)

At least I got the really hard reunions out of the way. Except for Barbie, but I doubt she’d drag herself up a flight of stairs just to see me. Might be able to avoid that one a bit longer…

Honestly, he's kind of afraid of having to look Barbara Gordon in the eyes. There's so much pain between them, all caused by the same evil.

As it turns out, Jason’s next visitor is somehow more overwhelming. Or at least starts out that way.

He’s shuffling through the hallway to his door with a bag of take-out that evening, and suddenly the air becomes cold and suffocating. Jason winces, tries to breathe slow and measured against the cold.

“Whoever you are, can you just…stay where you are for a minute?” he grunts, fumbling with his keys to jimmy the door open. Silence is the only response, but he takes that as acquiescence.

Well, that’s rare. A creepy stalker that actually listens.

He practically falls into the office, the constricted sensation in his lungs vanishing as soon as he crosses the threshold.

Wards are still working. Good.

“Okay, you can come in now,” he says, putting his groceries on his desk and turning around.

He almost does a double-take.

The person that glides into his office is a small Asian girl, maybe an inch or two shorter than Tim, and deceptively dainty looking. Deceptive, because Jason can see the ghosts crowding the hallway behind her, clawing at the doorway and keening and cursing at her in a myriad of languages.

“How in the hell does someone that looks like you have that big a body count?” he asks, halfway between impressed and horrified.

The girl’s face remains blank, but her eyes skitter away, as if in shame. Jason immediately feels like a tool.

“Sorry,” he mumbles. “Didn’t mean it that way. It’s just…you’re just a kid.”

“Older than you,” she tells him in clear but accented English. She cocks her head to one side, studying him in a way that is almost as invasive as any of the mind-readers he met while working for John. And then she smiles and says, “Little brother.”

Whatever he expected, that wasn’t it. Jason blinks.

“…What.”

She points to herself. “Cassandra. Wayne.”

“Wayne,” he repeats, and then makes the connection and snorts. “Of course. Most people collect stamps. B collects orphans.” He wanders over to his desk and sits down heavily. “What’d he bring you in for? Me, it was boosting tires off the Batmobile.”

Cassandra Wayne’s eyes widen in surprise and then sparkle with amusement and delight.

“So, what brings you here? Come to stare at the clan screw-up?”

“Curious,” she tells him.

“About?”

“They said you see…differently,” she says.

“That’s one way to put it.”

“It’s…comforting,” she says, hesitating on the word like she’s not sure it’s the right one.

“Why’s that?”

“I see different too.”

Jason eyes her, then the myriad ghosts lingering beyond the words. He nods, serious. “I bet you do.”

She smiles at him.

He kind of can’t help be charmed by her, despite the vicious insults being hurled at her by her ghostly entourage.

“Tell you what,” he says. “Close that door so I can hear myself think, and you can stay for supper. I’ve got too much for just me.” He nods at the bags which contain what was supposed to be both tonight’s meal and tomorrow’s lunch. “Not sure if you eat souvlaki, but—”

“I eat anything,” she replies and sits in one of the chairs by his desk.

“Same here,” Jason agrees, handing her one of the Styrofoam containers. “Just promise me you won’t eat it with a fork and knife.”

She makes a face. “I am not Bruce.”

“Thank the gods for small miracles…”

To Be Continued

________________________________________________________________

I want to know what you think of my story! Leave kudos, a comment or if writing comments isn’t something you’re comfortable with, as many of these (or other emojis) as you want and let me know how you feel!

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Reblogging is also majorly appreciated!

[sp00pygal]

Darn it anon, you are on to something, and now my brain won't shut up until I write it. To be clear, this is not nessicarily cannon to Gil's arkham Guard storyline, if you want you can consider it a "What if"; or perhaps how things could have happened somewhere out in the many alternative universes and realms in DPX DC. This will be a short oneshot, a window into a moment between moments.

The angels claimed they were here to save humanity. They said so on TV. The president had everyone working in full cooperation with the thanagrian army, people had united all over the world to help build the warp gate, even the justice league had been doing their part. Danny had been miles away from the action. Amity was a small town, but she needed protection from the ghosts all the same. The bigger heros could help with the gate, or so Danny had thought.

When the ships started firing, Danny wasn't even fighting ghosts. He and jazz had finally gotten a chance to have a movie night together while his sister was home from Gotham University for the break, just the two of them like it used to be when they were little. Their parents had been the ones fighting the ghosts. It was just box ghost, so Danny hadn't felt the need to intervene. Sam and Tucker, much to Danny's chagrin had both gotten detention while they covered for his ghostly activities, but he swore he'd make it up to them.

The movie was suddenly interupted by an emerging broadcast. The TV showed Lance Thunder reporting as the ships fired lasers on the innocent civilians of Amity Park. Red huntress, Jack, and Maddie were in the center of the fray, fighting for their town. But their weapons were meant to fight ghosts, not aliens. All Danny could do was watch in horror as they were vaporized. The camera turned on Mayor Masters, Lance asking for guidance. But Vlad didn't hear. His eyes were fixed on the spot where his best friends had just died. There was a flash and Plasmius stood where Vlad had been, before taking off and swearing vengeance. He'd lasted 15 seconds before he was gone too Then the invaders started taking out buildings. The mayor's office. The library. The highschool.

It was all Jasmine could do to keep her brother calm by this point He was all she had left. It was all Danny could do to throw up a sheild and protect his sister as the invaders systematically took out their house next. She was all he had now. Everyone and everything else they had known and loved was gone. Destroyed by heartless invaders from the stars Danny had loved. Amity Park was Dead.

As the Thanagrian ships flew away to continue their conquest elsewhere, Jazz looked Danny in the eyes, and whispered in a broken voice "are... are you going to leave too?" She glanced down through the holes in the rubble, down to their parents lab where the portal was sparking, but miraculously still in tact, the green light bathing the forsaken ashes of their home.

For a terrible moment, Danny was silent in thought. He knew the dead could return, and it was within his power as king to reach into the infinite realms and create the town anew. And all it would cost was his place in the mortal plane. His sister.

Danny smiled at Jazz tiredly, finally lowering his protective shield as the portal sputtered and slowly died out. "Hey. I'm right here. We gotta finish our movie night still, right? "

Jazz turned her gaze over at the hopelessly broken TV, returned her brother's weary smile, and hugged him as they both broke down in sobs.

You know the original Justice League Cartoon of the 2000's, or more specifically when Hawkgirl's people invaded with the end goal of sacrificing earth to when their little war? Can you imagine what might have happened if this occured during the time when Danny was a guard at Arkham? Like aliens have invaded, the Justice League had been imprisoned and Danny decides to lend a hand.

I had to call the High Council and ask what the heck you were talking about (thanks @sp00pygal for the info!) and omg the angst potential is amazing.

Imagine Danny first interaction with people from beyond the stars is an invasion. It would break him to pieces (more than what he is now in my interpretation, but it doesn't have to be in my fic's universe lmao). The poor boy.

In the High Council’s words: “I'm just imagining the look on Danny's face, the boy who wanted to be an astronaut and see the stars, fade as he watched the invasion on TV and people from the stars invaded indiscriminately and threatened everyone he loved”

And of course he would help. He might be the Ghost King but that doesn't mean he wants to see the living be enslaved and/or killed.

Also this could be a funny point to start an Arkham Guard Danny fic! Anon you might be onto something here 👀

[glitchyghoul]

20 minutes later in the corner store diner. Two slices of apple pie and a large cup of black coffee. It was a two for one deal… Clark was really starting to rub off on him.

Taking a sip of coffee, Batman asks “So, you going to tell me what that was all about?”

“Look I’m sorry about playing possum thing

You’re not going to send me to jail or something are you?” The boy mumbles out before looking down and taking a large bite of pie.

“That depends on what you tell me, Daniel Fenton” he says knowing full well he’s not sending the kid to jail. Bruce, slowly slid a glass of water over to the other side of the table.

The teen chocked on his pie and had to take a few moments to clear his throat

“H-how do you know my na— I mean whose Danny? I’ve never heard of a name like that, definitely haven’t ever met any Dannie’s before. I’ll let you know if I see one but you definitely got the wrong person there buddy”

Convincing, real convincing. If it weren’t for his training (read getting repeatedly pranked by Dick and Barbara all hours of the day and night) he might have let out a laugh but Bruce settled for hiding a small smirk behind his mug instead. He let Danny stew in his panic and embarrassment for a few seconds longer before showing the boy mercy by speaking up.

“I know who you are and while I didn’t expect you to be a meta, I’m not really the kind of person to go spreading around that kind of information”

Danny relaxed slightly but there was still a wary look in his eyes and shoulders.

“So what do you want with me then”

“Can I ask you a question Danny?”

“Okay…” Danny trailed off.

“Don’t you think it was odd that I just happened to be in the same place at the same time as you and your accomplices?” Bruce said before taking a bite of pie. It’s not as good as Clark’s parent’s pie but it was pretty tasty all things considered.

Batman watched and waited as the gears turned in the boy’s head. It took a few minutes before Danny spoke up again but Bruce cut him off.

“I know I’m missing something, and I have a hunch that piece of the puzzle is something you know all too well. This is bigger than just a few million going missing from billionaires’ bank accounts, isn’t it” Batman says with confidence, a determined set in his jaw.

Danny leveled his gaze at Batman. It seemed as if the boy was looking straight through him, straight through his very soul. He spoke up,

“And if it was something bigger, what would you gain from getting involved in it?”

“If people are being hurt than I have to help, I have the means and resources to do it. Especially, when my city is in the middle of it” it wasn’t an answer to the question, exactly, but Bruce hoped it would get his message across.

“And if it wasn’t just your city?” It wasn’t just his city and they both knew it.

“All the more reason to bring him down”

“And if it isn’t just humans that need protection?”

That made Batman pause for half a second before he saw the boy’s face. He was still too tense and wary, but Danny had the same determination and desperation he saw in the mirror, and in the eyes of all his teammates and friends eyes when talking about their city’s and people. He didn’t even have to think of the words he said next.

“Human or otherwise it doesn’t matter, we are hero’s we help people regardless”

Danny continued to stare Batman down, searching him for any signs of deceit. Bruce have sworn his eyes were glowing green but the moment he turned to look at them more closely, Danny sat straight up and grinned at him with a toothy expression. It seemed like Danny had found what he was looking for and that he liked what he saw.

“How would you like to come to Amity Park? We are hosting an Autumn Festival next week, it would be great to have a member of the Justice League to come celebrate with us”

Crimes been slow in Gotham lately and Brucie Wayne hasn’t had a chance for a good vacation in a long time. This was going to be fun.

"Batman come closer I'm dying"

Dp/DC promp

Danny and his friends were checking some things out in Gotham.

They just heard of Batman, but he sounds kinda suspicious to them.

They want to keep a low profile, so they break in one of Vlads office, and sneak out again.

But Batman catch up to them.

Danny doesn't want to use his powers to clearly.

But his friends need to run with the informations they stole.

So Danny gets over to plan b.

He puts his hands on his chest. Then starting to slow down his pulse and his breathing.

"Batman help im dying."

Batman turns to to person who is starting to sink to the ground. The thief he's almost a child.

His puls is falling rapidly, his breathing is slowing. The child is dying, he needs to do something.

The other two just run off, but Batman stays by the boy, he can hunt the two an other time.

"Don't worry kid, I'm here I'm gonna help you." Batmans head is racing what can he do, chest compression doesn't seem to help. Does the boy have a heart failure? He needs to do something.

Batman doesn't want to give up, but nothing seems to work.

Suddenly the boy opens his eyes and says:" look man I just wanted to distract you, but now I feel guilty about it."

Batman just stares at him for a moment. The boys sit up again and looks normal again. Batman checks his puls but there is nothing. "I need to take you to the hospital."

"no, breathing and heart beating is optional since my dead. I'm fine. I just needed you to don't chase my friend's. But I actually feel guilty, since you seem so nice. And didn't even hesitate to help me. Should I treat you to a coffee?"