#Bruce came down shortly after

[angstandhappiness]

LMAO YES

While funny and common having Bruce not knowing things that his kids do in fanfics, would be even funnier having him always knowing, but as long it doesn't affect him or give more work to Alfred, he just supports.

Kids planning a hidden game of paintball at the watchtower? Bruce leaves some hi tech paint gum next to the zeta and a memo saying who is there that day and a bonus to annoy someone

I mean, this person has a point! That's MY Bruce Wayne, he is the world's greatest detective after all, he knows exactly what they are doing, he just finds it funny. He took it from Alfred btw, because Alfred knows everything and if he acts like he doesn't, it's an official permission.

[ailithnight]

My brain has served me a delightful scene this morning.

Imagining a point shortly after Jason has officially been brought back to life and therefore is getting pulled into Wayne galas again. (Possibly even at his reintroduction gala, or at least one not long after.) And causing a scene/scandal for shits and giggles.

Some snobbish socialite making the comment, either to Bruce if they are that stupid or close enough to be overheard if they are marginally less stupid, "Should have left that one in the cemetery, eh?"

And for one moment, just a moment, the Brucie mask slips, and it takes ever ounce of self-awareness and restraint in his body for Bruce not to default to his training, to Batman, because How Dare You! How dare you say that about his son. The boy he lost. The boy he grieved. How dare you even insinuate he should be anything less than ecstatic, relieved, grateful that his son came back at all. Mischief and scandal and rough edges and all. Bruce loves him. How dare you imply he should wish his son was still dead.

And Jason, seeing Bruce-Batman-Dad snap, lose control, break a rich snob's nose in his defense; well it certainly doesn't fix their fucked up relationship. But it does marginally improve it. At least knocks Bruce several names down on his shitlist. Makes it a tiny bit tolerable to be around him for a few months.

[redflagshipwriter]

Mama Bat 8: Hungry

Masterpost

Danny would prefer to strike that unfortunate incident from the record and his memory. As soon as he figured out how to cause selective brain damage, it was all over for the mortifying ordeal of being perceived in weakness. He swung his legs miserably over the bathroom counter’s edge and pretended very hard that he was alone in Amity Park where no one noticed or cared if he threw up. 

He was still in the room where Cass had hustled him to clean off his face and see if there would be an encore. He’d had to make a tactical retreat away from the toilet to higher ground when big bats flapped in after him. Presumably they’d learnt that he threw up when Cass went to get whatever supplies one needed to clean partially digested yogurt off antique carpet. Ancestral carpet. Probably made of some nutty rich person material like, uh, hair from the manes of prize-winning horses.

Somehow, Danny cringed even harder. He needed brain damage immediately, please.

“And you’re certain that you don’t need to visit a medical facility?” 

Batman brooded in the literal way that a chicken brooded. Danny tightened his grip on the counter just that little bit more so that no one could drag him into a nest and sit on him. “Wouldn’t do any good,” he said shortly. It came out a little too mean. He tried to correct his voice to be nicer. “Thanks. Tho.” Danny cleared his throat.

“Tt.” Damian expelled air against his front teeth and glowered at his father. “He looks terrible. You cannot believe this.”

Wait, what? Danny blinked down at Uncle Damian, betrayed. “I look terrible?” he echoed. What the hell? Criticism, from Dames? That was new and it sucked a lot.

Bruce got a pinched look. “Danny, honey, you have been looking a little…” He trailed off. “Unwell.”

‘That would be the lack of ectoplasm,’ Danny thought snidely. He kept his mouth firmly shut and turned away. Unfortunately, he caught his reflection in the bathroom mirror and winced at it. He did look pretty wan and thin. It was hard to put a finger on what was off about his appearance, but it was sort of… deathly.

He was putting on weight again thanks to Alfred and Damian’s monitoring of his diet, but it was just a fact that he wasn’t really suited to this environment. Too human to survive in the big Green yonder, too undead to get by on bread alone.

‘...How does Jason do it? His vibes are rank and ghastly as shit,’ Danny thought enviously. ‘He screams BITCH I'M ABOUT TO COMMIT AN INTERDIMENSIONAL WAR CRIME constantly. It’s pretty fucking impressive. An aura like that is not sustained by creme anglaise and goulash. He has to have access to ecto somewhere.’ 

Danny really should have wondered that before. Jason had to be like, the most liminal human being around who wasn’t a halfa. He definitely needed ecto. Where was he getting it? Danny hadn’t really consciously thought about it, but… He felt himself tinge a little green again.

‘Was I feeding off of his ambient ectoplasm when he was here yesterday?’

His mouth filled his saliva that still tasted both sour and like toothpaste. Danny swallowed it with effort. He did not think of how good ecto tasted after you’d been denied and drained. He did not think about the sense memory of how living ecto would indent and then give with a juicy pop around his teeth, splash the inside of his mouth-

Danny buried his face in his hands and tried not to look like he was going to throw up again. Because he was not going to do that. He was not going to eat Jason and he was not going to throw up.

“Danny.” Bruce somehow made his huge strong guy vibes less intense. Danny reluctantly made eye contact to see that the guy kinda had homeless Labrador eyes at the moment. Big. Begging. Full of love and grandfatherly support that he's just waiting for you to accept. “Can I ask you a question?” 

Ugh. Yuck. Feelings.

Danny fidgeted, flexing and tensing his feet. “Yeah,” he said, after a too-long silence. “What's up?”

Damian crossed his arms over his chest, radiating intensely negative child energy into the room.

“Is there something that I'm not providing for you that would help you?” Bruce's voice was excruciatingly gentle.

Danny went stiff. 

Okay, maybe Batman wasn't a big dummy. Danny broke eye contact to look at his knees. His new jeans didn't have the usual tears over his knees. He stared at the weave, picking out an individual line of thread. Everything was so weird now. He was weird now. He’d made sense before but now he was the thing that was wrong and out of place. If he was more normal he could admit that he needed help. He could say what it was, if it wasn’t so freakish and he wasn’t struck silent by the knot in his gut.

“Whatever you need,” Bruce quietly promised. He lowered himself more to Danny's level. “I know a family who all need sunlamps to survive the winter. I have a friend who travels with his own fish tank of fresh ocean water whenever he’s on land.”

That didn’t sound very human. 

Danny sniffed. Ugh, his nose was leaking. He wiped at it with the back of a hand. “Like that tentacle horror guy from the pirate movie?’ 

Bruce's lips twitched. “Exactly like that,” he lied gravely.

He took a shaky breath in. He licked his lips. He glanced up and caught sight of Damian. Sweet, prickly Damian. The preteen was glowering as if that would hide how concerned he was. 

‘He’s a kid. That's a whole ass child. I’m not telling him I'm an existential horror that is tempted to commit cannibalism. Especially not when I’d have to admit that his big brother smells like a whole graveyard buffet.’

Damian sure talked a lot of shit, but he loved his family. A lot. He would have feelings that were way too big for his body about his ‘nephew’ needing to eat something like his big brother Jason. 

Not that Jason was a something. He was a person. Jason was definitely a someone. Danny winced away from that train of thought.

“Danny?” Bruce was barely audible. Danny blinked back to awareness to see that the man was tightly leashed in place by his self control. It was obvious that Bruce very badly wanted to take three steps closer and touch Danny. Danny drew his legs up onto the counter and hid his face between his knees. He didn’t want to look at anyone, he didn’t want to feel pressured to say anything. 

The new posture was convenient because it hid that he was starting to cry. He trembled with the effort to stay silent and mop his tears directly onto the new jeans that smelled like someone else’s laundry detergent..

He was being stupid. That was classic Danny. He hid things that didn’t need to be and he accidentally told people what should be secrets. Was he ever going to get it right? He should just tell them. Tell them! He tried to berate himself into working up the nerve but his jaw might as well have been wired shut in a morgue.

The bathroom went silent. Danny waited and waited for someone to say something. He frowned after a while even as he began to relax. Then he deliberately listened. 

It sounded like he was alone. 

It didn’t seem right, though. It took him a few moments to ping onto what he knew that disproved that. There was a warm, quiet presence about a foot to his left waiting patiently. It wasn’t quite ghostly, even though it was totally silent.

Danny sniffled on his next inhalation.

Cass didn’t say anything.

He lifted his head to see for certain that Bruce and Damian had left the room. They probably hadn’t gone far.

‘She must have asked them to get out when she came back.’

The room spun around him, blurred through his eyelashes. It might as well have been a dream. There was no harm in a dream.

“I need ectoplasm,” Danny admitted. Cass didn’t say anything or touch him. There was no pressure. He could float away if he wanted to. It was safe to admit it now. “That’s what I’m missing. And I can’t get it here. That’s why I came to Gotham. It’s not really easy to get on the living side of things. But Gotham is kinda liminal, so there’s some hotspots.” He paused. He wasn’t sure why. The air felt fragile.

Suddenly, he knew he didn’t want her to say anything yet. Danny swallowed and rushed on. “It’s, uh. What ghosts are made of.” His voice was so raspy that it didn’t even sound like him. “Jason has a lot, actually. But I don’t anymore. So. I need some.”

Cass leaned over very deliberately to put her arm over his shoulder. It was warm and real. The weight of it would keep him from floating away. He could feel the slight flex of her bicep muscles.

He swallowed. He leaned into her.

“We’ll get you what you need,” Cass promised. Simple as that.

[jasmines-library]

Survivors Guilt

WHUMPTOBER DAY 9: ALT prompt: Survivors Guilt

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Summary: When jason dies after taking your place, you experience survivor's guilt.

Word count: 1k

MASTERLIST ⛤ WHUMPTOBER 2024

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You should have died that day. His screams will forever be ingrained in your consciousness; whispering away in the back of your mind. Weaving their way through the cracks like a stubborn weed. You should have died that day, but Jason’s pleading to take your place was enough to satisfy the sadistic man before you. The way his eyes twinkled with a sadistic gleam made you feel sick. You have tried. Tried impossibly hard to get the Joker to leave Jason alone. Tried to tell them that you would take the torture as you were supposed to. But Jay was far too caring for his own good and his pleas to spare you amused the Joker more than you did. Your shreeks of terror and your desperate cries; the ones that ricocheted off of the walls satisfied the Joker. But they would never bring more of a grin to his face than watching the light leave Jason’s eyes. 

By the time Bruce arrived it was already too late. Jason’s heart had long stopped beating. But once they had untied you, they had to drag you away from his body to tend to your injuries. 

You didn’t sleep for weeks after that. You would often wake up in the night screaming for him. You couldn't so much as close your eyes without seeing him. It was like he was haunting you. A ghostly reminder that he died to save you. Because of you. That it should have been you. The guilt hung heavily over your head, weighing you down. And you began to change. It eventually got to the point where you practically refused to sleep. Or rather couldn’t. It was much easier to force yourself to stay awake than to Soon you became more withdrawn. You stopped making appearances at breakfast and dinner and it grew increasingly harder for anyone to find you anywhere other than inside your bedroom. Slowly, you began to lose interest in the things you were so interested in before. You didn’t have the energy to even think about doing them.

The other members of the family noticed of course. At first they had decided to give you some space, offering support when they thought you needed it. They knew they were grieving. They were grieving too. But as the weeks passed they slowly began to notice your withdrawn nature. They missed your lively presence and just seeing your face. 

Late one afternoon, there was a knock on your bedroom door. You tried to ignore it first. Hoping that you could pretend to be asleep and that whoever it was would go away. But then the knock came again followed by your name. 

You could tell that it was Dick on the other side of the door and from his tone of voice you knew he was worried. Of course he was worried. And there was just something about the way he said your name that forced you to get up out of bed and crack open the door. 

Dick seemed rather startled when you opened the door. Truthfully, he hadn't expected you to. But he wasn’t alone. Tim and Damian were with him. 

“Hey….” he said gently. “Do you mind if we come in?”

You hesitated for a moment but let them in reluctantly before shuffling onto your bed.

“Where you been, princess?” Tim asked you “We’ve not seen you. You doing okay?”

“Yeah…” you responded quietly. “Just been…….busy.”

It was a complete lie. You hadn’t been doing much of anything, you couldn’t bring yourself to. Tim frowned a little, but didn’t comment on the matter, instead he placed a hand on your knee, rubbing over the skin gently with the pad of his thumb. 

“You've been sleeping okay?” Damian asked you. The bags under your eyes were far from subtle. 

“...better.” You just answered shortly. That guilt still hung heavy above your head. 

“Good.” a sliver of a smile appeared on Dick’s face before it morphed into a sad look. “We’re worried about you, kid.”

“I’m fine.” You tried to dismiss them. 

Tim tilted his head at you. “You don’t have to keep it bottled up, sweetheart. Talk to us.”

You opened your mouth to speak, but your words failed you. You were scared to open up.

Dick squeezed your hand. “It's alright. Tell us how you’re feeling. We’re listening.”

“I…..it should have been me.” Your words cut through the silence. Honest. And brutal. Raw and real. “He begged him to leave me alone. And he–”

“Shh…” Dick tried to soothe you. “It’s alright. You're okay.”

“Its not okay! he died because of me!”

Damian shook his head. “No. Don’t think like that. Jason died because the Joker is sick.”

“He took my place!” You said. You were on the verge of crying. You could feel the tears prickling at the back of your eyes. They could see the guilt you were experiencing. 

“What happened was not your fault. You hear me?”

“I should have tried harder.”

“No. No sweetheart….” Dick shushed you. “You couldn’t have done anything. The Joker had his mind made up. No one could have done anything to have stopped him. But Jay did what he did because he loved you. Not because you didn’t try hard enough to stop him.”

That was what pushed you over the edge. The tears began to flow. Dick pulled you close to his chest, wrapping you up tightly in his arms as you wept. Tim ran his fingers gently through your hair as Damian laced your fingers with his and traced gentle, soft circles on the back of your hand. 

“Shh…we’ve got you…. It's okay ....”

The three boys held you close, reassuring you and letting you cry. 

“We’re here for you sweetheart.” Tim said. “We’re always gonna be here for you.

“We’re gonna work through this together, okay? It might take us a little while but that’s okay.” Dick explained to you gently. “We’re here for you, kid. Always and forever”

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<- DAY EIGHT ⛤ DAY TEN ->

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TAGS:

@hearts4robs @kingshitonly @alicedawitchbish @hell-o-kittys @azure-drag0ness @harleycao @thewhispersofthewaves @batfamsstuff @xxrougefangxx @rosecentury @noisymutantherelol @killxz @rhiodes @inlovewhithafairytale @that-wannabe-vangoghgurl @canthavetoomuchchaos

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[auroreliis]

Platonic Yandere!Batfam

Summary: The Batfamily wants to spend time with you, so they force you to watch a film with them.

CW: no warnings

(slightly edited; not proofread)

The sound of keyboard clatter filled the room as your eyes stayed glued to the screen in front of you. Its luminescence stung at your eyes, yet you chose to disregard the uncomfortable sensation, instead opting to blink the dryness away. You were too desperate to distract yourself with video games to notice the tall figure entering your room. You only realized your bedroom door had even been opened when the light from the hallway hit the wall in front of you. The sudden illumination of your room had caught your attention as your heart skipped a few beats. You didn't hear a thing. How were they always so quiet? You glanced at the large shadow cast by whoever entered the room. After briefly scanning over the muscular silhouette you narrowed it down to two people: Jason or Bruce. The fact that anyone bothered you at all was bad enough so you chose to shift your focus back onto the bright screen and pretend you didn't notice how much brighter your previously dark room had gotten.

You were almost convinced that it had worked, when you were suddenly proven wrong. "Your siblings want to watch a film. I figured you should also be invited. Perhaps this way you can spend more time with them", a deep voice spoke. It was Bruce. Your face scrunched up immediately. You did not like that suggestion. Your fingers rested on the keyboard while you were trying to come up with a response. He definitely knew you were avoiding them. You had stopped being completely disobedient, but you did vanish from sight whenever you had the chance to. Declining the offer was what first came to mind, but deep down you knew it wasn't really an offer. Even if you refused, they would drag you down to the living room, you could cry, kick and scream all you want, but there was no escaping their suffocating embraces. So you agreed, albeit begrudgingly. Seemingly satisfied with your reply he smiled at you and gestured towards the hallway, waiting for you to exit your room.

His hand was placed on your shoulder the whole trip to the living room. You wanted to complain about it, but he would need to hear a really good excuse to oblige and you couldn't think of anything other than "It feels restricting", so you chose to keep your mouth shut and endure it. You didn't even need to enter the living room to hear the chaos coming from inside. You couldn't make out a lot of words, as most of the sounds were just screaming, but you did come to the conclusion that they simply had troubles choosing a film to watch. You stopped abruptly, causing Bruce to turn to you and ask, "Is everything okay? Are they too loud? Wait here, I'll tell them to quiet down." With that he left, only to return shortly after, guiding you to the large room. They didn't seem to pay much attention to your appearance until Damian spoke, "I'm sitting next to them!"

Immediately you were dragged to the middle of the sofa, where you were currently sandwiched between Jason and Dick. "Not fair! You sat next to them last time, too!" said Tim, who was clearly not happy with being seated away from you. "Well, I sat down first. Maybe if you had been quicker, you would've gotten this spot", Jason retorted. "Let's not fight, there will always be a next time!" said Dick happily, as he wrapped his arms around your waist. You slightly cringed at the contact before a groan reminded you of the ongoing argument between the siblings. "That's easy for you to say. You sit next to them every time", Tim spoke again, not wanting to lose the argument. "Yes. It's my turn to sit next to them" added Damian. Before the dispute could evolve, Bruce spoke and reminded everyone that this was supposed to be a calm Movie Night. After that, they all managed to shut up.

Tim, after bitterly sitting down next to Jason, asked what kind of film you should watch and the next dilemma ensued: Jason desperately wanted to watch a scary film, claiming that he wanted to see you scared. Dick, on the other hand, was very eager to watch a lighthearted, family-friendly film. Both Damian and Jason were not pleased with that suggestion. It took Bruce intervening once again for the Movie Night to proceed. Jason, in control of the remote, turned on a scary film and didn't let anyone complain.

Much to your dismay, the film was full of jump-scares, unnerving scenes, gore and violence. Before you knew it, you were clinging to Jason and Dick out of fear. Every now and then you glanced away from the television, only to see a smug grin adorning Jason's face, as he pulled you closer to himself. Dick, conversely, wore an expression of distress after noticing how tightly you were gripping his arms. You failed to notice how bitter Tim and Damian looked after not being able to sit next to you. Bruce was also a bit disappointed, but he didn't let that show.

The film ended and the screen faded to black. They turned the lights on and you were left there, paralyzed by fear. Jason, wanting to appear like a kind older brother, offered to let you sleep in his room for the night (or longer, if you wanted to). Although you were scared, you declined. You almost missed how all the others exhaled in relief. There was no way you would be caught accepting their affection, especially not when it was Jason. He would most certainly tease you and your leftover pride would most certainly shatter.

So here you were, laying in your bed with your back pressed against the mattress in order to have a clear view of any possible attackers. It had been a few hours since you first tried to fall asleep. The film you watched with your family shook you to your core. The gore filled scenes replayed in your mind all night long until you decided that this was futile.

Getting out of bed, you slipped on your slightly oversized slippers and made your way into the hall. Now it was time to decide whose door you would knock on. Although you really didn't want to admit it, you were scared and tired, so you contemplated your choices.

You could go to Dick's room, but you would need to prepare yourself accordingly. You wouldn't be able to drink anything, because once he had you in his grasp, he definitely wouldn't let you go for a bathroom break. You would also need to prepare yourself to be throw around like a sack of potatoes, because that guy cannot sleep in one position for the whole night. Overall, not worth it.

Jason was an option, but not the best choice. The only reason you watched a scary film in the first place, was because he wanted you to seek his protection and the only reason you didn't want to let him have that was spite. Besides, he was already smug enough, no need to add fuel to an explosion. Hard pass.

Tim is...probably the best option. He's sly enough to know not to tease you too much and can also resist being clingy most of the time. Your only concern was that he would still be up at this time.

And then there was Damian. He wasn't weak per se, but clinging to a twelve year old somehow hurt your pride more than clinging to Jason.

Tim it is.

Making your way to Tim's room was much more uncomfortable than you expected. You kept looking over you shoulder, not being able to escape the feeling of being watched. By the time you were in front of Tim's door, you had almost been sprinting.

You were about to knock on the door when a very enthusiastic Tim opened it and all but dragged you inside. You were pushed onto the bed and told to make yourself comfortable. He swiftly turned off all his devices and joined you.

It took you a few minutes to process the situation you were in, since his actions had been so fast. You were in Tim's bed. His chest was pressed against your back. His arms were wrapped securely around your waist and his face was tickling the back of your neck.

Not what you would consider ideal circumstances, but at least you knew he would keep this a secret between the two of you, right?

[starry-bi-sky]

tales of the passerine - danny fenton being bruce wayne's first kid

okay okay. so this is like a continuation/elaboration of my oneshot/prompt i wrote about the idea that Danny was the first batkid. We have a lot of aus where he joins the family after the rest of the bats do, right? So hey! Lets shake things up a bit. Danny is the first to be adopted by Bruce Wayne.

Danny's parents and unfortunately Jazz die shortly after the events of TUE -- how so? I was gonna say an ecto-filter explosion, that would call back to the TUE explosion and trauma behind that. But lets do something new! Carbon-monoxide poisoning.

It's not too unexpected for something to break in the Fenton house, especially with the Fenton parents' questionable understanding of proper weapon handling and lab safety. The water heater broke from a stray shot by one of the weapons, and was promptly MacGyver'd incorrectly. Danny went to stay with Tucker for a guys' night, and came back to a dead silent house.

(Danny's neighbors got a very unfortunate shock when he ran to the next house over in hysterics.)

There was a lot of shuffling around with CPS, the police. People had to be called in to handle the equipment in the lab, and the GIW was rumoring to show up in aid to clearing the scene. When Danny heard of that, he immediately went and dismantled the ghost portal to the best of his abilities. He burned the physical blueprints of all his parents' inventions, their blueprints on the ghost portal, and their most dangerous weapons were destroyed beyond recognition. Anything to prevent the GIW from getting their hands on his parents' tech.

It opened up another investigation, but he was not under the list of suspects. He was placed in the care of Vlad Masters, where they then went back to the rebuilt castle mansion in Wisconsin. Danny, terrified of the future that has once passed and may do so again, shuts down in his grief. Inadvertently, he ends up somewhat repressing his ghost half. Something Vlad, who is grieving Madeline but relishing in Jack's demise and his custody of Daniel, is not very happy with.

Vlad's... gone into a bit of a mental health spiral. He's becoming increasingly possessive over Daniel, the final remnants of his friends and a liminal being like him. He doesn't like that Danny's repressing his ghost half -- both out of genuine concern as a ghost, but also because of his desire to control Danny and groom him into the perfect son. If you ever had a phase where you read Dark SBI found family fics, first off; me too bro, and second off; those are the vibes I'm thinking of.

Danny's mentally shut down from grief! And fear. He's dropped into a bad depressive state -- paralyzed with grief and the terror of the inevitable. Clockwork saved his parents because he believes in second chances, but what's the point of that when his family ended up dead anyways? Danny doesn't wanna believe that he's destined to become evil, and he's holding out onto that hope, but it's a thin line, and he feels utterly hopeless and trapped. He hasn't used his powers or ghost form since he trashed the lab, and Vlad has alarms set up to prevent him from trying to escape.

He's also unintentionally cut off Sam and Tucker -- both of whom are so scared and concerned for Danny too, and are trying their damndest to reach out to him. He keeps ignoring their texts. Danny basically haunts Vlad's manor. He goes out to eat if he has to, attends parties Vlad drags him to, and stays in his room all day if he can.

At parties, Vlad doesn't allow Danny to leave his side, or really talk to anyone -- not that Danny wants to. A product of Vlad's increasing possessiveness. Well, he almost doesn't let Danny leave his side. Danny has a habit of slipping off to hide somewhere for the parties whenever he can, and Vlad reluctantly allows it so long as he stays alone.

This becomes an advantage when eventually, Bruce Wayne returns to Gotham after missing for years, and holds a bright charity ball to celebrate the return. Vlad has been chomping at the bits to get his hands on Wayne Industries, and with the return of its owner there is no better opportunity to wipe out his rival. He goes, and he as normal, brings Daniel with him.

Vlad thinks Wayne will bleed his little heart out for Daniel's poor orphan sob story -- he's a fellow orphan himself, after all. He's not wrong; Wayne's little heart will bleed, just not in the way that benefits him.

Bruce sees Vlad and Danny approaching before they're even close enough to introduce themselves - and like with many of the children he will soon come to care for, it's like someone set a mirror into the past right in front of him.

Danny Fenton's suit is tailor-made for him, and despite the fact that it's his perfect size, the sag in his shoulders, the ducked down head, and the way he hunches into himself all pictures the image of a child in shoes too big for him. There's a far away, glazed over look in his eyes and grief marble-cut into the lines of his face. There's not enough makeup in the world that will hide the dark circles under his eyes.

("My nephew, Daniel Fenton." Vlad's hands are possessive on Danny's shoulders. Bruce immediately notices the way the boy tenses under his touch. "His parents passed recently, and as his godfather I was designated his guardian.") ("I'm so sorry, the loss must've been terrible.") ("Yes, carbon-monoxide poisoning caused it. Daniel was out with friends, when he came home... they had already passed.") (Bruce immediately dislikes that Vlad shared the details of their death unprompted -- he likes it even less when Danny flinches at the reminder and hunches into himself.)

Danny runs off at some point earlier into the charity. At this point, parties are still being held at Wayne Manor (because iirc google search mentioned that was a thing at first before it was changed), so he disappears and hides in one of the empty rooms nearby. It just so happens to be the same room Bruce Wayne hides in when he needs a break from all of the socialization.

Thus begins a long, long process of trust. Bruce can't reveal his hand as being smarter than he looks, but he can be compassionate. Kindness needs no measure of intelligence. He keeps Danny company for as long as he can before he runs the risk of being found.

Rinse and repeat. Vlad insistently wants Wayne Industries, and he'll go to as many Wayne parties as he can to get his hooks into the man. The problem is that Bruce Wayne is never alone, and getting him alone is impossible. Finding him too. It's like the man never stops moving. Always talking to someone, always circling somewhere. He orbits around the room as if he isn't the sun of the Gotham Elite's solar system.

Danny's had such repetitive behavior that Vlad never thinks to believe that Bruce Wayne is disappearing to go talk to him. That "Vlad's" son is even interacting with him at all. Danny never gives him a reason to think so, and neither does Bruce.

Danny doesn't actually acknowledge Bruce until a handful of parties in, where he hands Bruce a small slip of paper he smuggled in that says; "don't trust Vlad". Danny's face stays carefully blank, but he's so tense that his hands are trembling, and he's purposely looking away from him. Bruce plasters a smile onto his face, slips the paper into his pocket, and tells him "okay".

(he's been busy with his own goals with the mafia, but he sets aside time to investigate Vlad Masters. He was holding off. Until now.)

Danny does eventually start speaking to Bruce, he's starting to really like the guy. He's starting to see a little hope, even as Vlad is starting to get more and more agitated with him the more he refuses to use his powers.

He reaches out to Sam and Tucker again, and starts trying to reconnect with them. Vlad has spyware on his phone, and he limits the amount of times he can talk to them. A weird parental control lock of some sort that leaves a time limit on how long he can talk to them for. 30 minutes. Danny doesn't tell them anything about Mr. Wayne.

Danny, slowly, wants out of here, and he's slowly gathering the motivation to do it. Vlad is genuinely scaring him -- and Danny wonders just how truthful the past-future Vlad was when he told him that Danny wanted his ghost half separate. He starts trying to come up with an escape plan.

Vlad has anti-ghost wards everywhere around the mansion, and while they're always on, they boost to full power at sunset. The doors and windows are always locked, all main exits have alarms set on them. The only reason it's not super extensive is because Danny hasn't tried leaving at all yet, so Vlad hasn't had to tighten anything.

At night, Vlad locks the door to his room and puts up an anti-ghost ward around the room. The mansion is on the outside westward side of Madison, more entrenched in rural Wisconsin. The closest town is a four-way stop sign with one house on three corners, and an open bar on the fourth. Not much to go.

He refuses to go to Sam and Tucker; Vlad would look there first. It's too dangerous. Vlad would sound alarm bells and have a manhunt looking for him, Danny can't risk going just anywhere. Too much risk of being found, sold out, or caught. There's really nowhere for him to hide.

Until there is. Bruce is telling Danny about the history of Wayne Manor, and says, as casually as saying the weather; "The manor has dozens of empty rooms, I'm sure Alfred wouldn't mind filling another one if he could." And quietly, hesitantly, Bruce places a careful hand on Danny's shoulder, unrestrictive and gentle; "He wouldn't mind getting one ready for you if you need one."

And there it is. There's his out.

Danny, just as quietly, replies; "I'll keep that in mind."

The ball starts rolling.

Now I've been trying to summarize this au as much as possible for length convenience, but Vlad has been steadily growing more and more controlling. More emotionally manipulative. More agitated at Danny for not using his powers.

He wants Wayne Industries under his thumb but he's been steadily growing more and more concerned with Danny. He's started grabbing him, yanking him around, shaking him; trying to goad him into using his powers. He gets angry when Danny doesn't react, or tells him he doesn't want to use his powers. He hasn't outright attacked him, but he's getting there. This has been happening over the time it takes for Bruce to indirectly offer Danny sanctuary at his home.

It all comes to a head when Vlad stops going to parties at all -- something Danny has to pretend he isn't upset about -- because Vlad doesn't want him around other people anymore. Vlad rarely goes now without him, and only leaves to go to a Wayne function or to handle something at VladCo.

Danny can't wait for Vlad to leave long enough to escape. So he leaves during the night of a big storm. Vlad's locked him in his room, but Danny doesn't bother trying to go for it; he goes to the alarmed window instead. Danny's been repressing his ghost half so long that he can't access his powers immediately anymore -- he can feel it, he knows its there, but he can't quite reach it.

He breaks the lock by hand.

Immediately the alarm goes off through the entire castle, filling the room with red, and he scrambles for the rope the Wisconsin Ghost left for him a few months back. Danny's already out and climbing down the side of the castle before Vlad even reaches his door -- the only good thing about the entire room being ghost-proof is that Vlad can't get in that way.

The rope ends before it reaches the bottom, and he's still twenty feet in the air. It won't kill him if he lands it right. Danny takes his chances, and drops. He breaks his ankle, but he survives.

And he fucking books it to the back garden. He hears Vlad shrieking over the thunder and rain.

I'll save the full experience for a future oneshot, but Danny makes it out into the nearby woods and forcibly experiences what it's like to be in a horror game, trying to hide from the thing that's hunting you. There's only one thing going through his mind; "i'm going to die"

I have this mental image for this scene. Very stereotypical horror imo. Where Danny is hiding behind a tree, with a hand over his mouth, and Vlad is a few feet away from him, glowing ominously red through the trees, trying to search for him.

Danny doesn't get away from this unscathed, but he does get away alive. That's all he could ask for. He gets away by getting his ghost half awakened long enough to transform into Phantom and fly to Gotham.

But he gets to Wayne Manor, he gets to Bruce. Or, at least, Alfred answers the door from his insistent pounding. Danny's just in tears and Alfred gets him in the living room, wrapped in a towel, with ice on his swollen leg before he has to step out and alert Bruce.

Bruce already breaks multiple traffic laws on a nightly basis. And that's just with the sheer existence of the batmobile itself, not including the speeding and military artillery attached. He breaks double the amount trying to speed back to the cave and get out of the suit.

Right off the bat: Bruce will know, at least before Dick enters the picture, about danny's powers. He'll figure out something considering the fact that Danny traveled from Wisconsin to New York in a single night. That'll be a bit of complicated affair, but I've already got something in mind.

Actually it'll probably be very soon after Danny joins the family, because Bruce tries to offer to fight for custody for Danny - the state Danny was in at arrival is clear enough evidence for a trial. But Danny immediately shuts it down, says it's not going to work and then Vlad will know Danny's with him and he won't be safe. He tells him that Vlad cannot know Danny was with Bruce.

Danny's biggest regret was not telling his parents he was a halfa, and while he doesn't want to tell mister wayne (yet), he does tell him about Vlad being one. He needs to know why Danny can't be seen with Bruce. So he tells him, and Danny's current plan is to just hide out from Vlad until he turns 18. That way, he has no more legal jurisdiction over him. After that? He's not sure.

And to wrap this up, since this has already gotten very long and I can make more posts about this au later; I've thought about it, and I'm going to say that Danny does become a vigilante before Dick enters the scene. He goes by, as you probably guessed; Nightingale. "Gale" for short.

[aealzx]

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Prologue | AO3

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It took some time to get Jazz to calm down enough that the others didn’t feel like they might scare her again accidentally. But by that time Alfred had come upstairs to fetch everyone for lunch, so they decided to wait just a little longer before they started looking more into Danny’s condition. Maybe after a good cry and hearty meal Jazz would be more at ease with the investigations. And once Damian was able to convince Jazz to leave the bedroom by having Titus and Ace watch over Danny they were all heading to the dining room.

“You guys didn’t find anything you like?” Tucker asked when he and Sam joined them again with Stephanie and Duke alongside them.

“Got distracted by the dogs,” Danielle claimed, knowing he was wondering why she and Jazz were still wearing the clothes they got from the safehouse. It was only part of the truth, but she didn’t want to dig into the mess that they were still trying to smooth over. Jazz didn’t need more opinions on her behavior to worry over.

“They have dogs?” Tucker asked, looking around in interest.

“Yeah, they’re watching over Danny while we get lunch,” Danielle confirmed, having to pause when they entered the dining room and noticed a few unfamiliar faces.

“Heyyyy, welcome back guys,” Stephanie chimed, cheerfully skipping slightly over to the four newcomers.

“YOU!” Tim accused, pointing his finger at Stephanie, offense saturating his posture. “You were supposed to come with us, and you ditched us! Do you know how annoying it was to pretend like Clark had no idea that I knew that he knew about the kids but I wasn’t going to say anything even if he asked?”

“Uhhhh…. No, because I have no idea what you just said,” Stephanie retorted shamelessly. “Also of course I ditched you. I knew you could handle it and I wanted to see how long everyone could last pretending the kids didn’t know them. They lasted about a minute and a half, if you were wondering.”

Tim seemed about to scold Stephanie more, but then got sidetracked by her announcement of the time it took. “Wow, that fast? What gave everyone away?”

“Jay jay,” Stephanie admitted easily. “Dani picked him out like a red apple in a barrel of grapes.”

“Hey! You’re the one that laughed first, so I say you get the blame,” Jason retorted, already finding a chair to claim for lunch.

“She knew it was you before I laughed,” Stephanie countered.

While they bickered Tim rolled his eyes and followed Cass’ lead in more formally introducing themselves to Jazz and the others. “Hey. Good to see you guys are settling in okay. My name is Tim, and this is Cass,” he greeted, holding a hand out to each of the four.

“The one in the black and red that wasn’t Jason?” Jazz asked, just to clarify.

“And you’re the one that almost dislocated my arm after I kicked you in the ribs when we first met. Nice,” Sam recognized, taking Cass’ offered hand and giving her a mildly amused smile.

It could have been seen as an accusatory comment, but Cass could easily see Sam wasn't feeling malicious about it. So Cass just nodded with a smile, shaking Sam’s hand before pointing at her face. “I like your makeup. Steph’s?”

“Yeah, I asked if I could borrow some since she had the colors I like. I have to say I’m really loving the lip gloss,” Sam confirmed. It was nice to feel more like herself again, having her hair brushed and pulled into an elastic, and face properly decorated.

“It looks good. So you like black and purple, and not just black?” Tim added, noting that Sam was also wearing purple in her clothes.

“As long as it’s dark enough,” Sam confirmed.

“Okay, so are we just supposed to keep pretending we don’t know about them, or are you going to introduce us?” The question came from one of the others who had returned with Cass and Tim, leaning in towards Dick after having conversed with him shortly and whispering loudly.

Dick just snickered, but Bruce was the one that responded first. “You two weren’t supposed to be here until this evening,” he chided, giving the two of them a stern stare.

“Ehhhhh, afternoon, evening, it’s only a few hours apart,” the blonde visitor dismissed, shrugging. “We figured we'd just follow the family home. Besides, this way we can get a headstart on what you wanted us for.”

“And we get some of Alfred’s cooking,” his companion chimed in, snatching a small sandwich from the platter.

“Iiii knew that’s why you followed Tim home,” Dick grinned, folding his arms and shaking his head at his friend. “Wally, this is Jazz, Sam, Tucker, and Dani with an I,” he finally gave in, gesturing to each of the guests in turn. “Guys this is my friend, Wally, and his mentor Barry.”

“Nice to meet you,” Barry greeted, offering his hand.

“Finally,” Wally chimed in, the sandwich already gone.

“Yeaah figures you already knew. Stalker,” Tim jabbed at Wally, earning a snort from Danielle.

“Stalker? What earned you that nickname?” Danielle asked, knowing there was a story behind it if they were still friends despite the accusation.

“Wally gets bored, so checks in on all of his friends throughout the day,” Dick explained, starting to usher everyone to join the others at the lunch table.

“Only because my friends like to get shot at, stabbed, thrown off buildings, and engage in various other activities that are generally detrimental to their health,” Wally counters, flicking the bandage on Dick’s head. “Seriously. I just checked on you this morning and then you went and got attacked by Slade.”

“Should have been on time instead of early then,” Dick brushed off, “We handled it.”

“Well, as far as the Justice League is concerned, you did. But I’m betting she helped,” Wally snickered, pointing at Danielle.

“You bet I did,” Danielle confirmed proudly while dishing up her plate with way more food than the others.

“Aw, you have a new sidekick, Dick,” Wally snickered, then noticed just how much food Danielle had. “Hey wait- She’s not another speedster is she? You’re not replacing me are you?”

The accusation caused Dick to snort, shoving his hand in Wally’s face. “As if,” he declined with a huff. “She’s not a speedster. Just eats a lot.”

“Bet I could eat more than you,” Danielle challenged, not fully knowing what she was getting into.

Wally belted a laugh at the response, but didn’t immediately turn her down. “HA! I doubt it, but it’s been a while since someone tried. You’re on!” he accepted, even if he wouldn’t actually compete with her. No one else would get any lunch if he ate everything he could after all.

While Dick and Sam shifted away from the two children who started devouring their food as Stephanie started taking pictures, Sam looked over to Barry. “So… why are you here?”

Instead of answering Sam, Barry just passed her question onto Bruce by also looking to the man for an answer. Tim told them to stop by this evening, but he hadn’t told them why.

“Barry works as a forensic chemist. I wanted a second opinion on the analysis I have of ectoplasm,” Bruce responded easily. He wasn’t above using the resources he had, especially when someone’s health was on the line.

“Ectoplasm?” Barry repeated, face scrunching in confusion. “Why would I know anything about that? Shouldn’t you ask someone like John for ghost related stuff?”

“No,” Bruce answered simply, not caring to elaborate while Jazz and the others could overhear, even if Jazz was currently updating Sam and Tucker about the diluted ectoplasm that he had managed to obtain.

It wasn’t much of an answer, but having known Bruce for as long as he did Barry wondered if it was because of reasons better not discussed right then. “Fair enough. Sure, I’ll take a look,” he agreed with a shrug, filing the conversation away for later and returning to the meal.

______________

The rest of lunch was just another meal at the Wayne Manor. Once everyone had finished eating, with Wally deliberately making the challenge with Dani a slight win on his side, the kids helped Alfred clean up. Bruce was quick to head back upstairs with Leslie, Barry and Jazz, eager to start making more progress on getting Danny taken care of. It ended up being like they had thought, and now that Jazz had had a moment to cry and be comforted, and a good meal in her belly, she was a lot more patient and receptive to their explanations. It helped that Barry could explain the more chemical side of things when Leslie’s medical knowledge wasn’t quite enough. Because of them Jazz was easily able to accept them using a burn cream Bruce had added a plant toxin neutralizer to on Danny’s injury when Leslie changed the bandages and inspected it this time. And, with a little more explanation for why a blood draw was necessary for a metabolic panel to make sure they weren’t giving Danny too much vitamins as well as to help Bruce and Barry isolate a true sample of ectoplasm, Jazz allowed them to fill the vials they needed. Though it did take longer than Leslie was used to considering the ice fueled stasis appeared to be slowing his blood flow as well.

Something they would soon find was a good thing for more than just prolonging any natural deterioration from being in a coma.

“Huh, so this is the substance you’re looking for,” Barry commented, the tiny sample of blood enlarged under the microscope he was gazing into. Even without having seen various forms of contaminated blood and having to pick apart the details before, it was easy to focus on the brightly glowing green substance.

“Yes,” Bruce confirmed. “When the others treated the kids the first time they were able to get dead tissue samples from all of them, but only enough to run DNA tests to try to pinpoint their identities. There was residue of ectoplasm in the samples, but this was all I was able to gather for it based on that,” he recapped, passing the bottle with the remainder of the diluted ectoplasm to Barry when he looked up.

“Makes sense why she said it was like skim milk,” Barry noted, looking at the bottle as well as the microscope images of its substance that Bruce had pulled up on the computer. “I have to admit, I don’t think it’s a chemical. At least not in the sense that I’m used to. It isn’t like anything I’ve seen before- honestly it looks more like the magic saturated fragments I run across sometimes working on League stuff. You sure you don’t want to contact John, or even Zatana about this?”

“Constantine is an exorcist,” Bruce reminded tersely, “Manipulative personality aside, I don’t think bringing a ghost hunter to help with an injured ghost child would be a wise decision, nor make a good impression on the others.” Not to mention he just didn’t want to deal with the magic user if he could help it. “And Zatanna is trying to keep her distance from the Justice League. I’d like to respect that.”

“Good point,” Barry agreed with a wince, refraining from commenting that Bruce was doing surprisingly well about not completely avoiding the supernatural part of this situation.

“Should I contact Raven then?” Damian spoke up from where he’d been silently watching the process. He was curious about how this ectoplasm substance was apparently so different from the Lazarus pit water, but the current conversation had made him think of his friend.

“Raven?” Bruce repeated, prompting Damian to continue.

“She’s an experienced mage, who is also familiar with living and traveling between dimensions, like Zatara. She also has high empathy, and is closer to the others in age. They might be more receptive to her,” Damian responded.

Bruce was silent as he thought about the proposal, but eventually nodded. While Bruce knew Zatanna would help if she found out it was for Danny, someone who was severely injured, he would still respect her need for a break since they had other options.

“Bruce,” Leslie suddenly called over to them as Damian turned to his phone, sounding tense, borderline afraid. “Is that antitoxin you made safe for intravenous injection?” she prompted when Barry and Bruce paused to listen to her.

Instead of answering her immediately, Bruce stole the microscope from Barry and adjusted the dials. It was hard to tell at first, but there was definitely something else unfamiliar in the blood other than the ectoplasm. Something much smaller, but familiar enough to Bruce from his studies of the blood blossom toxin while he was trying to create an antitoxin. “...It hasn’t been tested for that. We shouldn’t risk it with the state he’s in,” Bruce finally answered, pulling back from the microscope with a furrowed brow as he realized what had Leslie so stressed.

“What’s wrong?” Barry asked, taking a peek at the microscope again, but figuring he should just ask to see if they would give him a quick answer.

“The toxin is in Danny’s bloodstream,” Leslie responded, raising her hands to her arms in stressed discomfort. “That topical cream isn’t going to be effective enough.” And they didn’t have an antitoxin they could give Danny either.

“Ohhh, that’s not good,” Barry agreed. So that’s what the bright red substance he’d seen was. “You said this toxin doesn’t exist in our dimension?” he asked, getting a confirming nod and hum from Bruce. “Trying to figure out an antitoxin injection would take way too long then. What other options do we have? Dialysis? If we can’t neutralize it then we should try to strip it out, yeah?”

“Dialysis is for fluids. But…,” Leslie half corrected, but the question did bring up another possibility. She had to take a moment to consider the effects it might have though, speaking up semi hesitantly. “Hemoperfusion could potentially work if we can find which resin the toxin will attach to.”

“Hemoperfusion resin, got it,” Barry nodded, ready to run off and find whatever he could get for them to test. They already had some of Danny’s blood, they could just test it under the microscope to make sure they were using the proper resin. But Bruce reached out to grab his shoulder.

“Hang on Barry. We agreed to talk to Jazz first before we tried anything with Danny. Don’t run off just yet,” Bruce scolded lightly, ignoring the subtly pleased expression Leslie got about him sticking to his promise to keep Jazz included.

“I’m worried about the side effects as well. If he needs ectoplasm then we have to make sure the resin doesn't also filter that out. And it’s common for hemoperfusion to strip out a percentage of platelets, white blood cells, and other components of blood that should stay,” Leslie admitted. There was a reason hemoperfusion wasn’t commonly used.

“We can monitor him closely during and after the treatment. And we can ask Danielle if she’s willing to give some of her blood for a transfusion if he ends up too deficient in anything,” Bruce offered as a potential course of action if the side effects were too much. Low platelets, blood sugar, or the like was better than being poisoned.

“Danielle?” Leslie asked, extremely uncomfortable with asking someone so young for a blood donation when they should have been looking for a compatible adult.

“Danielle is a clone. Obvious differences aside, she and Danny have the closest DNA match we could ever get. Plus her blood is already saturated with ectoplasm, so we won’t risk diluting what he already has,” Bruce responded, though it seemed just mentioning Danielle was a clone was enough for Leslie to understand.

“Very well,” Leslie sighed, accepting the proposed course of action. “Let’s talk with Jazz then.”

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IIiiiii hit this story WAY too hard in the beginning and gave myself a slight burnout X'DDD whoops. And then this part just did not want to make pretty words in my head or on page, so I'm just dumping it like an overcooked potato

Having too many characters in a scene is haaaard yo. Also Wally seems to have an inconsistent appearance, so I hope he looks okay 8'D

I learned that hemoperfusion is a thing that exists because of researching for this X'DD

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@op-sys-chaos, @kirasigncomics,

[quadrantadvisor]

DP x DC, revenant!Jason Todd

Shortly after meeting, Danny and Jason have a late night conversation about what it means to come back. 1281 words

On AO3

-

Danny woke groggily, in a dark place that he didn't recognize, and took a moment to get his bearings.

He felt the warning ache in his neck that came from being propped up against an arm rest. There were two sources of dim light in the room—the glow of city street lights, muffled behind a curtain, and the green eyes of the man whose lap Danny's feet were propped on.

Right. Danny hadn’t meant to fall asleep on the revenant’s—on Jason’s—couch, but they’d been talking for so long, he must’ve dozed off.

Jason had had so many questions, about ectoplasm, about the zone, about Danny’s own experiences. Danny had done his best to clear up everything he could. A revenant may not be quite the same as he was, but still, it made Danny happy to be able to pass on his hard won knowledge and maybe save someone else a bit of the hurt and confusion that he’d gone through. It was what he’d always wished someone would do for him.

Jason was slumped into the couch, but he didn’t look relaxed. Danny examined his still profile, cast in strange shadows by its own green glow, and wondered how long it had been since he’d moved.

Danny shifted slightly, purposefully producing the fabric sounds of a body against upholstery, to make sure Jason knew he was awake. No reaction. Danny gave him one more moment, then asked, “You okay?”

Jason didn’t look at him when he answered, “You told me I’m basically possessing my own corpse, and I’m supposed to not be upset about that?”

Really, Danny should’ve predicted something like that. How long had he spent, trying to pretend that death hadn’t really touched him? It wasn’t an easy thing to accept.

“What’s the difference between a body and a corpse?” Danny asked.

Jason’s eyes snapped to Danny, their glow intensifying. “I am not dealing with riddle bullshit right now, I swear to-”

“No, I’m being serious,” Danny interrupted, pulling his feet from Jason’s lap and sitting himself up. “There’s one difference between a corpse and a living body, and that’s that someone is living in it. Jason—” he reached out, gripping one of Jason’s hands in his “—you’re alive. That’s what matters. The rest is details.”

Jason’s shoulders bent inwards, his other hand raising to rub at his chest. “You don’t get it,” he said, quiet. “People don’t just come back from what they did to me. It doesn’t make any sense.”

“However you died, it’s not-”

Jason huffed an ugly sound, a short and bitter laugh that Danny hurt to hear. “Is it crazy that that isn’t even what I was talking about? I meant after.” The motion on his chest was repetitive, like he was tracing something underneath his shirt, and Danny got the sinking feeling that he knew just what sort of scar it might be. “I was gone, okay? I was gone, and this body was still here. And they took it, and they cut it open and rummaged around inside to figure out what happened. Which is—” he cut off, sniffed, and Danny gripped his hand tighter “—which is stupid, right? It’s not like it wasn’t obvious.” His fingers twitched, and he continued, haltingly, “I mean, I’ve read the report. Pulled it off his stupid files. The smoke inhalation did me in. After everything that happened, it was the smoke.”

Jasons’ hand pulled out of Danny’s, and they both rose to cover his face, cutting off the glow while he curled in on himself even tighter. His voice was slightly muffled when he said, “And then they had to ship me home, right? So they bled me dry and pumped me full of formaldehyde, and they prettied me up so they could pretend I wasn’t just some empty thing, and Bruce held the tiniest most depressing little funeral known to man and put my ass in the ground, and I had to wake up down there.” His words and his breaths were coming too quick, and Danny didn’t know how to help. He didn’t want Jason to stop, not when it seemed like he needed to say all of this, but he could see just how badly the revenant was hurting.

“But you did wake up,” he whispered.

“Woke up in my own mutilated corpse!” Jason snarled. “Everything I’ve forgotten, and that memory is still crystal fucking clear! It stank in there, like death and vinegar and mud, and it was so small, and I couldn’t even try to scream for help because they sewed my fucking mouth shut—!” He broke off into a sob, and Danny couldn’t stand it anymore, had to lean into Jason’s side and wrap an arm around him as he shook with all the emotion he couldn’t reign in.

“Okay,” Danny said. Not you’re okay, just okay. “Okay, so that’s the most horrible thing I’ve ever heard, and I regularly hang out with a guy who wants to skin me.”

Jason sniffed. “What?”

“Nevermind. It’s just-”

“No, I think we should go back to the skinning thing-”

“I just don’t want you to let it define you,” Danny interrupted. “I did that. I got into my head about it, the whole ��being dead’ thing, feeling like I was…” Danny gave himself a second, swallowed, “like some sort of freak. A thing that didn’t belong anywhere. But I’m still alive, and you’re alive, and even if we weren’t, it wouldn’t matter, because we’re still here, and as long as you’re here you can find something that’s worth staying for.” Danny rubbed what he hoped was a soothing pattern into Jason’s admittedly impressive bicep.

Jason let out a sigh. “I must really be pathetic if you’ve gotta pep talk me like that, huh?” he said, and Danny pretended not to see him wiping at his eyes. “Sorry,” he added, “about all this. I’ve got some shit I haven’t dealt with, and this ‘revenant’ stuff brought it up pretty bad.”

“I get it,” Danny said, and hoped Jason could tell how much he meant it.

Jason sighed again, heavy, like he was trying to release something else with his breath, and said, “It still doesn’t make any sense. Logically, I can’t be alive. Where did my blood come from?”

Danny shrugged. “Do you have blood?”

“I definitely have blood. I’ve seen a lot of it.”

That gave Danny pause. “Just like, around?” he asked.

“Yeah,” Jason said, deadpan. “I’ve got a surplus, so I like to leave some here and there, make sure everyone gets a chance to appreciate it.”

“I have no idea how much you’re joking and it frightens me,” Danny told him.

“Weak,” Jason replied.

“Anyways, you gotta not think about it too much. The interdimensional goop is already logic-defying, and you’re mixing magic with it with your special soul willpower or something. Your brain will explode if you try to make it make sense.”

Jason huffed a little laugh, bouncing Danny on his shoulder, and this time it made him feel lighter. “Can I just say that I hate that I’m full of interdimensional goop?”

“Valid,” Danny said.

Even without looking at Jason, Danny could tell that he just rolled his eyes by the way the soft green light moved.

Danny had his ear pressed to Jason’s shoulder, feeling his warmth, and if he focused, he could just make out the revenant’s pulse. Personally, Danny thought it was pretty cool to be full of magic and goop and blood. Much cooler than Danny, who was way more science goop than magic goop. They’d have to compare notes on that sometime.

Maybe Jason would come around to it.

[dolphin-writer]

Story Idea That May Never Be Written

Danny almost 18, decides to leave home, Tucker has a new identity ready for him and everything. With help of Jazz he plans to finish his hs classes online.

Right before he leaves his parents find out/he got sloppy/ his mom freaks but his dad stops her and just hugs danny. He is confused, guilty, and hurt by maddies reaction. Tells danny he’ll handle maddy and to just go as he planed

Danny moves to Gothem, for its high ecto levels and basically chill not give a fuck attatude. And other than the petty crime which he knows he can handle it will be great. He finishes his hs classes and gets a job at a mechanics shop.

Jazz is in college in Metropolis as she thinks the rivalry between the sister cities is interesting to study. And now she can use it as an excuse to visit Gotham and Danny.

Sam and Tucker graduate and move to college. Sam goes to Gotham U where Danny is taking night classes as he is now a full time mechanic at the shop. Tucker is at MIT, working at a tech help store.

A year and a half after he ran Danny gets a message from his dad. Jack is now living in Metropolis near Jazz. Maddy lost it, something about everything hitting her at once, the knowledge that her son died in her machine and that she continued trying to end him for years after, and all the things Phantom had to do hit her at once and shifted something in her mind. She was not sane anymore. She wanted to get Danny legally marked as dead because a part of her knew he died. Jack tried to fight it until Jazz told him that it would be good for Danny to lose that last tie so he finally agreed. Shortly after Jack had her assessed and committed to the hospital and then pleaded to the courts for a divorce so he could focus on his last remaining child Jazz instead of watching Maddy rot away. The courts granted it and Maddy became ward of the state. Jack moved to Metropolis and got a job in helping design security systems. 

By the time Sam and Tucker were graduating Danny had risen to running the shop only below the owner. Sam got a job with a Dr. Pamala Islie working on keeping plants from going extinct and trying to revive ones that were. Tucker was still working part time at that tech repair shop but was really working on getting his own tech/coding business more widespread. 

Danny finished his night classes shortly after them and got a good pay raise with it. Right around this time a big bomb hit Gotham in the form of Gothams Prince Bruce Wayne had returned. No one officially knew where he had gone, lots had begun to doubt he would come back saying he was probably dead. So it was a shock to everyone. And soon gotham gossip came to life with the stories of the himbo playboy. Danny could care less but it was fun getting Sam wound up about him. 

Tuckers business officially took off with big names using it such as (Queen Industries, and other companies associated with future heroes) he moved permanently to Metropolis to be close but refused to move to Gotham saying the lack of sun would kill his complexion, which sam returned with like you spend any time outside anyway?

As a year passed Wayne Enterprise started expanding, small at first building up their departments before adding new ones. Then the Martha Wayne Foundation hit the streets. Founding food kitchens and clinics and pharmacies that were cheap to free for anyone. It made a difference for some. Danny started to question the Bruce Wynes' himbo status as it was clear that this wasn’t just a pr move.

Then two years after the circus that was Bruce Wayne's return as the city quieted back down to its normal levels, the people began to hear about a monster, a demon that had been hunting the criminals of Gotham, a shadow that would leave criminals tied up for the police to find. He was a story that word of, would not spread outside of Gothams borders. Now this was something Danny watched and listened for news of. This creature or man was taking over the city little by little and Danny was protective of the city that had become his home. But he was retired and happy so he waited and observed.

Eventually they got a name, Batman. The cost for them gaming the name was that villains, not just criminals were popping out of the woodwork every other week. It was getting concerning to team Phantom, and all of Gotham in general. The press started to blame Batman for these villains' existence, calling him a menace and demanding his arrest. And Danny was conflicted. This man, for he was just a normal human as far as they could figure, was trying his best to save people, stop a problem that was not his fault but he probably felt responsible for, and now the city was against him for it. Danny did not enjoy the parallels and the reminder of his old life, but he sympathized with Batman and became a very vocal supporter of him. 

Eventually others joined Danny in his support of Batman. Eventually the people calling for his arrest were drowned out by those thanking him for trying to protect them. Eventually the police stopped chasing him and started working with him, even asking for help at times.

Time passed Gotham adjusted, as it always does. Danny was getting bored, he loved the mechanic shop it had become his baby, he trained the new hires and even got a couple to tinker and build things with him. But he got home and was bored, so he started experimenting with baking. He had learned how to cook over his time of living in Gotham and quite enjoyed making food for his family, Sam was always stopping by to raid his fridge since he started experimenting with making vegan food. They even got Tucker to admit to liking it. So the natural next step was trying baking. His first few attempts weren’t a disaster but they weren’t very good either. But as time passed he got better but then he faced a different issue. What to do with all the deserts. Everyone he knew was given some, and then the rest were donated to a food kitchen. At Jazzes' suggestion Danny applied to work part time at a small bakery. It was right on the outskirts of Crime alley run by a couple of older ladies and their son. Danny got to bake and work on improving recipes and they got to sell what he made. Though they did try to set him up with their son several times after finding out Danny was bi. So life settled.

Then Batman got a partner, a child partner, and Danny got upset. He had been a child vigilante, he had barely survived being a chile vigilante. Danny who took in and trained as many street kids as he could at the shop. Danny who proudly watched those kids become adults and make it in Gotham. Danny who kept an eye on all the heroes popping up around the globe, and knew that none of them had brought kids into it. Danny who thought about “his” kids as he dug into Robin and realized that Batman was trying to protect the kid in the ways he knew how, and that Robin probably just like his kids didn’t really listen when you tell them no if they’ve set their mind on it. So Danny was still worried but no longer upset with Batman. 

Then Bruce Wayne started showing up at the bakery.

Bruce is a total dork who struggles with basic human interactions at times. So at a cafe/bakery he tells the 17yo cashier, “Compliments to the chief” like a weirdo. She awkwardly hollers back to Danny, who comes out confused.

Bruce has oh fuck hes hot.

*story happens in between but I don't know what*

Something happens Danny speeds away on his bike. Eventually taking it off a bridge into the water before going invisible and flying to his dads in Metropolis. He goes to the realms to lay low for two weeks after visiting with his dad for a couple days. He has to come back because one of his kids is getting married

Bruce who is crushing on Danny, is worried and talks to people. The ladies at the bakery point him in the direction of the mechanic shop. No one there is worried, they say Danny built that bike from the ground up, he has complete control of it, it couldn’t do something if he didn’t want it to. Plus Jerramy is getting married next month and Danny wouldn’t miss that, he’ll be back.  Bruce thinks these people are delusional and still worries and tries to find anything. He finds nothing but dick and Alfred have figured out that he definitely doesn’t have a crush guys, the mission. 

Danny shows up two and a half weeks later just in time to pick up his suit for the wedding. Bruce is kinda losing it. 

[storydays]

Baby Mine

Bruce/Brandi X Daughter! Reader

Bruce groaned as he massaged his temples. He's had this heavy pressure in his head for the last few weeks. At first he thought it was stress..But today, it was a throbbing pressure he'd only ever felt when he inhaled sharply, catching his wife's attention from where she was cooking breakfast. "Something wrong, darling?" wondered Brandi.

Bruce didn't answer, instead he reached into his hair carefully, grimacing from how sensitive his hair was, and stopped shortly when he felt the familiar shape of an egg nestled tightly between his purple locks.

"Bruce?" Brandi called as she turned the stove off, and turned her full attention to her husband. "I-It's an egg." whispered the Troll, feeling a large grin spred across his face. "My love! It's an egg! We're having a baby!" Bruce laughed with glee, his wife leaning down with an amused smile. She kissed her husband's cheek, causing his blue eyes to meet her warm brown eyes.

"We're having another baby." She agreed.

*Timeskip to after Trolls 3 events*

The other Brozone members' and the Pop sisters watched as Bruce worked with his wife, and maneuvered around their 13 kids' chaos. "Bruce, you really should be resting." Brandi commented as she passed out more drinks. "Hon, I'm fine. The baby is fine, too. Their not set to hatch for a few more days." Bruce waved her comment off, as he passed the group's drinks and food out.

"Baby?" Floyd asked. Bruce winced...he forgot to mention the little darling in his hair to his siblings. His tail flicked nervously, but before he could attempt to lie his way out of the situation, Cove and LaBreezey came up with their notebook and crayons and a determined looks on their faces.

Oh no, it was observation time.

Ever since Bruce's two oldest children learned their dad can have babies differently then their relatives on their mother's side, they've been keeping notes, and asking questions about full Trolls' anatomy.

"Yep! And according to our notes, baby 14 should be hatching any day now!" LaBreezy chirped excitedly, as Cove gently checked their Dad's hair to check on the egg, ignoring their dad's hiss of pain and irritation.

Bruce managed to let his oldest child peer at the egg for all of 10 seconds before pulling away with a warning hiss. Cove nodded thoughtfully, before writing something down.

"Are you sure they're okay? I mean, after what Velvet and Veneer did?" Branch asked, fidgeting with his fingers, before Poppy took one of his hands and squeezed in reassurance.

Bruce smiled at his youngest brother, "Yeah, B. I'm fine. when the doctor from Pop Village came to check on Floyd, I pulled her aside and she looked me and the egg over, and--" Bruce let out a groan, dropping the spoon in his hand and holding his head.

Brandi was by his side in an instant and shooed the children away. "Go play, kids. " Turning to her hunched over husband, she leaned down to face him. "Darling, color?" she whispered.

"Red." he whimpered, tail angrily moving about. Moving quickly, but gently, Brandi scooped him and said something to a nearby waiter who nodded. Casting a glace towards the concerned Trolls by the bar, she told them firmly, "Stay here. I'll be right back."

Brozone shared a look and waited nervously for news about their brother and unborn niece or nephew.

After waiting for a good two hours, the Trolls had enough and stormed into the back where his brother's house was connected to the restaurant, and actually ran into Brandi, quite literally. Her eyes widen, before she knelt and allowed them to climb on her hand, bringing them eye level.

"Bruce will be fine. The baby is fine, but it was honestly rough on both of their bodies. They're sleeping right now, and you can come see them in a little bit."

"Mom?" called Freddy as his siblings stood behind him looking worried for their family.

Brandi set the Trolls down and knelt in front of her kids, allowing them to squish in her arms.

"Daddy's okay, he's just really tired. He'll be up in a little bit. The baby is also okay, they also need to sleep a little." She cooed, kissing all their foreheads.

"Mom, is it a boy or girl?" Windy asked, tilting his head. Brandi smiled.

"It's a........"

@cobiplayz

[jpmarvel90]

Biggest Mistake

Masterlist Natasha Masterlist

Relationship: Natasha x Reader

Summary: Breaking up with Y/n when she got the offer to join the Avengers, Natasha cut all ties with her ex girlfriend. What will happen when she sees her many years later?

Word Count: 5856

Y/n's POV:

Hearing my beautiful daughters laugh was my favourite thing. She was 4 years old and the apple of my eye. I would do anything for her. This morning we were getting ready for our day out to the park. I had it all planned out, we were going to go to the play park and then my best friend was going to join us for a picnic by the pond where Mia would be able to feed the ducks after.

I had grabbed a couple of Mia's toys to keep her entertained and finish packing up all of the food ready to head out. Mia was excitedly sat in the lounge clinging onto her favourite teddy. It had been given to her by her Auntie Maria the day she was born, and she was never without it.

I walked over and bent down to pick up the excited 4 year old. "Are you ready for our adventure at the park princess?" I asked as she snuggled into my side. "I want to feed the duckies!" She squealed and it made my heart melt. "Ok, come on then, let's get going." I said, grabbing the cooler backpack of food and my bag.

We made out way down to the car and I strapped Mia in. As we drove, we sang along to our favourite Disney songs and in this moment, I was at my happiest. Mia was my entire world and to see her happy and healthy was the only thing I ever wanted in life.

Once we arrive, we quickly make our way over to the kids play area. It's a warm LA morning, perfect for everything we want to do today. Mia quickly makes her way over to the park and is running around trying everything she could. I sat on the bench next to the park and watched her as she enjoyed herself, happily joining in with the other kids as well.

I always felt that I wasn't quite enough for Mia. It was tough being a single mom, especially when Mia was a miracle child. You see, I used to work for SHIELD and was really good friends with Bruce Banner. I was good at science and worked with him in his lab on a number of occasions.

When I had started at SHIELD as a new agent, Natasha Romanoff had not long been recruited. We ended up moving through the ranks together and ended up in a relationship. I adored her and I saw myself spending the rest of my life with her. We were together for 4 years and had decided to start a family together. This is where Bruce came in.

One day when I was working in the lab with him, I had told him how Nat and I were looking to have a child and discussed the process of IVF. It was at this point he offered to look into a way that we could have a child that was biologically both of ours. When I told Natasha she was incredibly happy.

It took a few months before Bruce was able to perfect the procedure. Turns out that was the easy part. As Nat was unable to have kids, it was down to me carry the baby. We went through 8 tries and none were taking. There was no medical reason why, some would just not take, others would and then I would miscarry early on in the pregnancy.

Just as I had gone through the procedure for the ninth time, Nat was offered a place with the newly formed Avengers. I was so excited for her. No matter how much good she had done in the world, she always felt that she had to make up for her past. The Avengers would give her the perfect opportunity for that. What I didn't realise is that this would result in the end of our relationship.

I came home from work one evening and Nat had packed up all of her stuff and was sat waiting by the front door. "Nat, what's all this?" I asked nervously. "I'm leaving Y/n." She said shortly. It caught me so off guard. "I'm sorry what?" I said almost in a chuckle. "I need to focus all of my energy on working with the Avengers. I can't have any distractions anymore. I've packed all my stuff up. You can stay here as long as you want." She said in such a cold manner.

This wasn't the Nat I knew. I knew how ambitious she was with work, and I would never have stood in the way of that, she knew that. My heart was breaking that the woman that I loved more than anything in this world was leaving me. "Is this some sick joke? We're trying for a kid Natasha! You can't just leave." I yelled, my anger taking over.

"We've tried so many times and it's not working Y/n. It's clearly not meant to be. I can make a difference here and I can't do that if I'm being held back." She defended. That felt like a punch to the stomach. "Ok so maybe we can't have a kid this way, but we talked about adopting if it didn't work. What's changed Nat?" I asked, tears starting to fall down my face.

She stood up and grabbed her bags making her way to the door. "I don't love you anymore Y/n." Her words cut through me like a knife. There was no emotion. 4 years and this is how it all ends. I consider going after her, but I know Nat. When she has made up her mind, there is nothing you can do to change it.

I called my best friend Maria who was over within minutes. I knew Maria from my time at SHEILD. She had worked her way up to be Fury's second and I was incredible proud of her. She spent the evening cursing off Natasha and telling me I could do better.

Knowing that I couldn't bare to be around Nat after everything that had happened, I requested a transfer to the LA branch, much to Maria's frustration. Thankfully it was granted, and I was packed and moved within a week. Before I left, I went to visit Bruce for a check up after the finally attempt. My heart broke when Bruce told me that the initial test showed that it was likely that the attempt had been unsuccessful.

Usually, he would do the test a few weeks later than this as the test is more accurate, but as I was leaving, he agreed to do it early. I thanked him for all the effort he had gone through to try and help Nat and I have a kid. He was sorry for how everything had ended, and I promised to keep in touch.

I had been in LA for 6 weeks when I started to throw up and feel run down. I hadn't noticed that I had missed my period as everything had been so stressful with the breakup and subsequent move. Everything was pointing to the fact that I was pregnant, but I didn't want to get my hopes up. I called Bruce and he flew out and met me at the lab in LA where he confirmed that I was indeed pregnant with Nat's baby. Well, this was awkward.

I tried to get into contact with Nat, but she blocked all my attempts to contact her. I even asked Maria to try to talk to her, but she was quickly shut down. I knew I wouldn't get back with Nat, but she had a right to know that she had a kid. After I exhausted all opportunities of telling her, I gave up and came to terms with being a single mom.

Maria was there for me the whole way and took a temporary transfer to LA to support me. I decided to leave SHIELD as it wasn't safe to have a job like that and a kid. Thankfully Bruce was able to set me up with a friend of his who gave me a job in their lab. I loved the job, and they were very understanding of my situation.

So now, here I am with my beautiful 4-year-old daughter, waiting for my best friend to join us for lunch. Mia looked a lot like me, apart for her green eyes and gorgeous smile. Her personality, however, was very much like Natasha's. She was smart, strong, stubborn but also incredible kind and loving. She was the best of both of us.

Mia had tired herself out on the play park, so we made our way to the pond. I found a good spot under a tree which provided us some shade from the afternoon sun. Whilst I was getting the food out of the cooler, I heard Mia call out. "AUNTIE MARIA!" I looked up to see Mia run full pelt at Maria who picked her up and spun her around. "Hi there little Monkey!" She greeted, walking over to join me on the picnic blanket.

Maria knelt down and placed Mia on the blanket and then lent over to pulled me in a hug, placing a kiss on my forehead. "Hi Y/n/n. You do not know how much I've been looking forward to this weekend." She said, laying flat on her back, letting out an exaggerated huff. "Work is manic as ever then?" I asked with a chuckle, passing her a plate.

She sat up and perked up when she saw the array of food in front of her. "It's just been endless missions since the fight in Sokovia. A weekend with my two favourite girls is well needed." She said, rolling over and giving Mia a tickle.  "Well, Mia couldn't wait for you to visit. I don't think you'll be getting a restful weekend!" I joked.

We spent the rest of the afternoon eating the rest of the food, feeding the ducks, and playing around in the park. We were all really tired from the running around, so the evening was spent watching movies and eating take out in our pyjamas. We were halfway through Toy Story when there was a knock at the door. "Are you expecting anyone?" Maria asked as we both peered up at the door. "No, I'm a lonely single mom, no one ever visits me." I respond.

I pull myself up from the sofa to answer the door and chuckle as Maria makes her way to her bag to grab her gun. "Seriously Maria, please don't shot my neighbours." I tease, which just earns an eye roll. Unclipping the chain and turning the lock, I'm frozen to the spot as I open the door and see the person stood in front of me. "Hi Y/n."

Nat's POV:

5 years ago, I made the biggest mistake of my life. I broke up with the woman that I was madly in love with. But at the time, I thought it was the right decision. As soon as I was offered a place with the Avengers initiative, I knew it was a chance to help clear my ledger. It was an opportunity I couldn't say no to, and I thought that it was something I couldn't do along side being in a loving relationship with a kid.

I was heartbroken when all of our tries for a child had been unsuccessful. But I guess it was all a blessing in disguise. I lied when I told Y/n that I didn't love her anymore. But I knew it was the only way to make her not fight for me. I stupidly put work first without even entertaining the idea of being able to juggle both. It's so stupid when I see Clint do it with relative ease.

At first Y/n left me alone and I was gratefully for that. But then about 2 months after she kept trying to get a hold of me. I ignored or blocked every method she used to talk to me. I had to focus. Maria even tried to talk to me, but I quickly told her to back off, not wanting to hear it.

It wasn't until the battle of New York, that I realised the mistake that I had made. At the beginning, I was able to bury myself in work and ignore all my feelings. But when I saw the apartment block that Y/n and I shared, get flattened, I realised that I had no idea where she was or if she was even safe. It gave me this feeling of complete helplessness. I felt sick to my stomach at the thoughts of something happening to her.

After we won, I tried to find her, but she had left SHIELD and New York. I regretted that I had ever let her go. She was the most incredible person I had ever met. I just wish I had put her first all those years ago like she did me.

Wanda, Steve and I had been sent on a recon mission in LA. There was a possible Hydra agent living a normal life waiting for his moment to attack. He had a wife and kids, and we were going to find out as much info as we could. We had been here for a week and were now staking him out at the park with his family. Whilst Steve was jogging around, Wanda and I were sat at the café by the pond. We had spent a couple hours observing their movements and were getting ready to leave when Wanda grabbed my arm.

"Oh my God is that Y/n?" She said in shock. I looked over to where she was staring and sure enough, there was Y/n setting up a picnic blanket under a tree. My heart then stopped when I saw he pick up a little girl and place her on the mat. I couldn't speak, my feet were rooted to the spot.

Wanda was able to pull me in the direction a bench where we could sit and observe her. She looked amazing. It looked like she hadn't aged at all in the last 5 years. Her hair was her natural brown colour which looked really good. When we were together, she always had her hair dyed blonde. I was trying to work out the relationship that Y/n had to the child. I couldn't see the child very well, but she looked similar to Y/n.

It broke my heart to think that she has probably gotten married and had a family of her own now. I had missed my chance. "AUNTIE MARIA!" We heard the little child shout. That's when we noticed Agent Hill making her way over to the duo. Wanda and I both sat there shocked. I knew that Y/n and Maria were best friends, but why didn't Maria tell me Y/n had a family?

We watched as they ate and then started to chase each other around. By this point Steve had joined us and had the same reaction that we did. Y/n was currently "it" and was chasing the little girl around who was giggle. God that's a cute laugh. As Y/n caught her she started tickling her causing the child to yell out "STOP IT MAMA!" And there it was. It was her daughter. They looked happy. I guess that's what was important.

After Y/n had left the park, we remained on the bench. I couldn't bring myself to move so both Steve and Wanda stayed with me to comfort me. They both knew how much I wanted to try and reconcile with Y/n over the last few years. "She must have moved on pretty quickly if she's got a kid that old." Steve said with a slightly judgemental tone.

It was in the moment that it clicked. "How old would you say she is?" I asked. They both guessed around 4 and that was exactly the answer I didn't want. "Oh my God. I need to call Bruce." I said in a panic. I fumbled around in my pocket and dialled his number. It rang a couple of times before he answered.

Bruce: Hi Nat, how's the mission going?

Nat: Boring, but that's not the reason I'm calling.

I was very short on the phone. I had a feeling that he had been hiding things from me and I just wanted to know the truth.

Bruce: Ok. Straight to business. What is it you need?

I took a deep breath before asking my question.

Nat: Did Y/n carry on trying to have a baby after we broke up?

I rushed the question out and my heart was pounding whilst I waited for his response.

Bruce: No she didn't.

His answer was short and didn't help me at all until my slow mind started to catch up.

Nat: It was successful, wasn't it? The last time we tried.

I could feel tears starting to sting my eyes as Steve and Wanda sat with confused looks on their faces.

Bruce: Yes. But Nat, you shouldn't be having this conversation with me.

Nat: Then who am I meant to have it with. I've got a kid I didn't know about. How could she not tell me?!

I shouted down the phone, my anger filling me. I couldn't believe that she was pregnant, and she didn't tell me. I had a right to know that I had a kid.

Bruce: Nat, she tried to tell you but you shut down every form of communication with her. You even told Maria that you didn't want anything to do with her and that nothing would change your mind. I understand that you're angry, but you left Y/n. She's had to deal with this all on her own for the last 4 years because the person she was in love with decided she didn't love her any more.

I hadn't heard Bruce get frustrated like this before. Him and Y/n were close and he had gone out of his way to help us when we were trying to have kids. He was right. I had shut her out. I had no one to blame but myself.

Nat: Do you know where she lives?

Bruce: Nat, I don't think that's...

Nat: No Bruce, I need to try and make it right. Please just give me her address.

Bruce: Fine, but if you hurt her even more Nat, I'll make sure you don't get any opportunity to be in that kids life.

Nat: I promise you Bruce, I never want to hurt her again.

I hung up and was met by a text from Bruce with Y/n's address. I looked up and saw Wanda and Steve looking at me waiting for answers. "The little girl...she's mine." I whispered, tears now starting to fall. I heard Wanda let out a small gasp. "What are you going to do?" Steve asked, whilst Wanda placed her arm around my shoulder. "I need to go and see her. Can I take some time this evening?" I asked Steve.

He quickly nodded. "Of course, Wanda and I can write the report and if needed, do the stake out tomorrow. You focus on Y/n and your daughter." He smiled. That felt weird. My daughter. But what if Y/n doesn't want me in their life. I've not exactly done anything to deserve it.

Later that evening I pull up at the house in the suburbs. I'm incredibly nervous, what if she just slams the door in my face? Plucking the small amount of courage that I have I make my way up the pathway to the door. I ring the bell and hear muffled talking from inside. When Y/n opens the door, she looks like she's seen a ghost. "Hi Y/n." Is all I'm able to get out.

We stand in the doorway for a moment before Y/n seems to snap out of her trance. "What are you doing here Natasha?" She asked. Her voice was cold. "I-uh. Could we talk?" I asked tentatively. She sighed but nodded. Moving away from the door she gestured for me to come in. I noticed that Agent Hill was stood in the hallway, her gun clutched in her hand and her jaw clenched.

"Maria, can you take Mia upstairs please?" Y/n asked to which Hill complied with instantly. Mia, what a beautiful name. Hill made her way to the sofa and picked up the little girl, making her way upstairs. I wanted nothing more than to get a proper look at her and to hold her, but I knew I had to earn that. I turned my attention to Y/n who had made her way into the kitchen to grab a beer.

"Want one?" She asked holding one out in my direction. "Thanks." I said as I grabbed it, cracking open the top. The silence was awkward. I hadn't seen Y/n since the day since we broke up and I missed her and her touch. "I'm sorry." I mumble. Y/n looks up at me from her seat at the kitchen island. She doesn't say anything, clearly waiting for me to continue.

I took a deep breath. "I made a big mistake when I left you. I was so focused on making up for everything in my past that I gave up the one thing that I had ever loved." I started, but Y/n just laughed. "I know you have no reason to believe me but I never stopped loving you. I only said I didn't to make the breakup easier for me. I've been trying to find you since the battle of New York, but when I realised how you were gone, I accepted that I had to let you go." I said, with sorrow in my voice.

I can't get a read on Y/n. I have always been able to understand what she is feeling but in this moment, I have no idea. "So why are you here now?" She asked, taking a swig of her beer. "To be honest it was a coincidence, but I'm so happy it happened. We were on a stake out in the park when I saw you there with um, with your daughter." I briefly explained, hesitating when bringing up Mia. "Y/n I never should have left you and I certainly should never have shut you out when you tried to get into contact." I said, trying to convey how sorry I was. "If I had known why I would have come to you straight away." I carried on.

"But would you have stayed had you known? The day you left, you made it pretty clear that having a family would have been an inconvenience to you." Y/n spoke calmly. I couldn't answer her, she was right. "Her name is Mia by the way. She was born on the 9th of July, weighing 6 pounds 3 ounces. I was in labour for 18 hours. She is the best thing in my life. In fact, the best thing to ever happen in my life. You missed out on that." She said, getting up and moving into the lounge.

I got up and followed her like a lost puppy. She was right, I had missed out on so much. "When I saw you in the park earlier, you looked happy. I thought that you had found someone else and started a family. That felt like a dagger to my heart. But when I found out she was mine, I felt so incredible happy. It was short lived though when I remembered that I had missed out on the first 4 years of her life." I said through tears. "I should have been there for you during your pregnancy getting all of your cravings. I should have been there holding your hand whilst you were in labour and I should have been there to watch her grow up. I will forever hate myself for missing that."

Y/n looked up at me. "What is it that you want Nat?" She asked almost frustrated. "You." I said without a hesitation.  "I want you and to be in Mia's life. For us to be a family."  Y/n just scoffed. "You can be apart of her life if that's something you want." "And us?" I asked hopefully. "There isn't an us Natasha. You broke my heart. You can't just walk in here and expect me to turn around and jump back into a relationship with you. But I will never stop you seeing you daughter if that's what you want."

I did want Mia in my life. But I want us to be a family. I love Y/n with ever fibre of my being, and I decide that I am going to do everything in my power to fix this so we can be that family we had always planned to be. "Of course, I want to be in her life. But I'm going to fight for you too. I was stupid 5 years ago. Give me a chance and I'll show you how much I still love you." Y/n shook her head at my words.

"I don't know Nat." She started. I quickly made my way in front of her. I was on my knees holding her hands in my mine, tears falling down my face. "You are the love of my life. I should have put you first instead of my own desire for redemption. I know what I did was terrible and I can't take it back. But I'll show to you that I can be the best Mom and, eventually, partner that you deserve. Please, just let me fight for you." I plead gripping her hands tightly.

I notice that Y/n is crying but she quickly pulls her hand away to wipe the tears. She doesn't answer me but instead asks a question I've been dying for. "Do you want to meet your daughter?" The biggest smile came across my face. "Yes, please, I would love to." Y/n called out to Maria to bring Mia down. I stood up and wiped my face and then straightened out my clothes. Y/n met them at the bottom of the stairs picked Mia up.

My heart was pounding in my chest as Y/n got closer. She placed Mia on the floor and knelt down to her height. "Mia, do you remember when I told you about your other Mom?" She asked. Mia nodded and rubbed at her tired eyes. "Yes Mama. You said she was saving the world." I smiled, at the thought that Y/n had talked about me, making my heart grow. "Well, she's finally come home, and she would like to meet you now. Is that ok?" Again, Mia nodded and Y/n turned her to face me.

"Natasha, this is your daughter Mia." I walked over, trying to fight the tears threatening to fall. "Hi Sweetheart. I'm your Mommy." I said in a whisper. Mia reached out and put her cute little hand on my cheek. Finally getting a good look at her, I can see how much she looks like Y/n. She is beautiful, just like her Mama. But her eyes, it's like looking into my own. "Hi, my name is Mia and I'm 4." She said in a cute little voice.

I laugh at her introduction as does Y/n. "Well, aren't you a big girl. I'm sorry I wasn't here earlier." I said starting to cry. Mia leaned forward and wiped away my tears which only made them fall harder. "Don't cry Mommy." "Can I give you a hug?" I asked, also giving Y/n a quick glance for her approval. Mia held her arms open, and I picked her up and held her closer to me.

This was the best feeling in the world. Holding my daughter for the first time. "I love you dorogoy. I promise I'm going to be here for you for the rest of your life." I give her a squeeze and then pull away slightly so I can look at her again. I can't believe I have a daughter.

I spend the next couple of weeks in LA. I stayed at a hotel, so I didn't overwhelm Mia or overcrowd Y/n. I saw them both everyday and I loved every minute of it. Y/n was incredible, and it only made me want to fix things even more. I knew these next few months would be difficult. I couldn't just leave the Avengers as I had a contract, so I was heading back to New York.

It was my last night in LA and I was sat at Y/n's cleaning up after she had cooked us and amazing meal. I really missed her cooking. Whilst I was washing up Y/n lent up against the counter. "I've been thinking about the future." Y/n said, causing a bit of anxiety to creep in. "Ok." I reply, drying my hands on the towel giving her my full attention.

"Mia has loved seeing you every day the past couple of weeks. But not knowing when she'll see you again is difficult. I think she is worried she won't see you again." Y/n started. I went to interrupt but she held out her hand. "No, let me finish. You've already missed out on so much of her life, it's not fair that you miss out on more. So I wanted to know what you would think if we moved back to New York so you could still see Mia around your work schedule?" Y/n asked, her eyes dropping to her hands.

The biggest grin was on my face. I couldn't believe that she was willing to do that. "I would love that. It would be amazing to have you both near me all the time. But I don't want you to uproot your life for me." I said, understanding that she has created a life for herself here in. "LA has never been home for me Natasha. I ran because I couldn't bare to see you everyday with work. Then the little booger came along and my life remained here. You deserve to have her in your life as much as me. Besides, I may have already spoken to Bruce who offer me a job in his lab...."

I couldn't contain my excitement when she said that. I couldn't control my actions and I rushed to Y/n picking her up and twirling her around. As I placed her on the floor I leaned in a placed a gentle kiss on her lips. I quickly came to my senses and pulled away. "I'm so sorry. I-I shouldn't have done that." I stuttered. Y/n is just stood there slightly shellshocked. "No, you're ok. That was, uh, that was nice. Just unexpected"

We both giggle whilst still stood close to each other. "I meant what I said a few weeks ago. I want us to be a family. You have been doing this on your own when I should have been by your side. I can't change the past but I can affect the future. You both deserve it. I know it's going to take time, but I love you Y/n. I want us to have the house we always talked about and maybe a brother or sister for Mia in the future. I don't expect you to say yes now, but I hope that you can see how serious I am and that I'm all in for this to work." I run off a mini speech, wanting to express all of the feelings that I have.

I notice that Y/n eyes have gone glossy. "I wanted to hate you when you left me. But when I held Mia in my arms the first time, all I wanted was you beside me. When I failed to get in contact with you again, I closed myself off, believing that it was always going to just be me and Mia. I want to be mad and angry at you, but then I see you with Mia and it reminds me of when we used to stay up late talking about the family we wanted. You're right, I can't jump right back in, but I want us to get back to where we were. Mia deserves to live in a happy and loving home." Y/n's words warm my heart knowing that I still have a chance to have my family.

I step closer to Y/n and take her hand in mine. "We go at your pace. When you get to New York, we'll work out a routine that's best for Mia and go from there ok?" She nods and I can't help but to lean forward and capture her lips again. This time, she kisses back. My hands raise up to her neck, my thumb gently caressing her jawline whilst hers rest on my waist.

Our kiss is short lived though when we hear little footsteps running down the stairs. "Mama, Mommy, can you read me a story pwease?!" Mia shouts as she reaches the bottom of the stairs. Y/n and I quickly pull away and let out a chuckle. "Of course Princess, we'll be right there." Y/n replies, whilst we don't break eye contact. I am going to marry this woman.

Y/n and Mia moved back to New York and I shared my time between the compound and Y/n's. As well as spending time with Mia to make up for lost time, I also started to take Y/n out on dates again. I wanted to do things right and decided to start from scratch. When the Avengers found out about Mia they were all excited to become Aunties and Uncles. Wanda was particularly amazing as she would happily watch Mia whilst I worked to win Y/n back.

After 6 months Y/n and I were officially back together and I moved out of the compound to live with her and Mia. A year later I proposed, and we married in a small ceremony with our family and friends 2 months after and then we found the perfect house down by the lake outside the city but still close enough for us to work.

Now I'm sat on the porch watching Mia run around after Wanda, who was a frequent visitor. "Here you go love." Y/n said whilst handing me a beer. I quickly jumped out of my seat, "Here let me help you. You should be resting" I said as I guided Y/n to the space next to me on love seat. "You don't need to fuss Nat. I'm pregnant not crippled." She joked as she huffed taking he weight of her feet.

I put my arm around her shoulder and pulled her close to me, resting my hand on her bump. "Thank you for giving me everything I ever could have asked for." I whisper in to her hair as I place a small kiss. Y/n turned to look at me, her eyes full of love. "Thank you for coming back to us." She said in response. In this moment I was complete.

[natsgrave]

PICK UP LINES | natasha romanoff

a/n: this is my first time posting and using tumblr, so i don't really know how this shit work, lol. also, i'm not good with summaries and english is not my first language, forgive me. i do not give permission for my work to be copied or translated on other sites. plagiarism is a crime!! masterlist whispers of heartache m.list

Y/N'S POV I was looking at Natasha while she's talking to Bruce seriously, I was wondering if should I do the thing that I saw earlier. A couple exchanging some corny pick up lines. I've been hiding my feelings for her for like a year or two now. Well, what can I say? I'm not really a vocal person and she's very hard to approach.

A cold-hearted ex-assassin spy, how am I supposed to tell her that I'm in love with her? It's hard! She's hard to read and I don't want to ruin what we have now, I don't want her to be uncomfortable and feel weird around me after I confess. Why is it just so impossible?

"Y/LN!!" someone shouted snapping out from my thoughts. I look around and saw Bucky standing at the corner. He made his way towards me and sat down before flashing me a smile.

"What can I do for you, Buck?" I asked.

"Why are you looking at Nat?" He asked with a smirk, and I can feel my face turns red. I'm blushing, oh my god!

"I'm not." I lied as I cleared my throat. He puts his hand on mine and smiled at me genuinely, "It's okay, I'll support you with anything and I'll suggest go get your girl." He said and poke my side making me giggle.

"Bucky stop! It tickles!" I said between laughter but he didn't stop.

While you and Bucky are having your fun, your laughter and giggles caught Natasha's attention. Her heart tightened when she saw you with Bucky, happy. Not that she doesn't want you to be happy, but she want it to be her. She wants to make you happy and give you everything. But she didn't know that you and him are just friends, and to be honest she's the one you're in love with.

"Okay, Bucky! Stop, please, I can't take it anymore!" and finally, he stopped while I start to catch my breathe. I wiped the tear that came out from my eyes because of laughter. Bucky pulled me into a warm embrace and whisper to me, "Go, tell her that you love her before it's too late." He encouraged me before pulling away. I smiled at him and nod. He mess with my hair a little before walking away.

Shortly after Bucky left, I look over where Nat and Bruce are and found Natasha already staring at me. When our eyes met, she turned away quickly and walks out causing me to tilt my head because of confusion. What happened to her? I shrugged my shoulder and start thinking about something to confess my love for her with positive things on my head to boast my confidence.

The night comes, and all of us gathered in the lounge. I was sitting on Bucky's right side while Steve is on the other side of him. Natasha is sitting beside Bruce, talking again about only god knows what. Wanda is with Vision cooking something, while Tony and Clint are just messing around.

I keep stealing glances at Natasha and I'm glad she haven't noticed it yet. But, unlucky me, Bucky notice what I'm doing and nudges my shoulder.

"What the hell are you doing? Talk to her!" He whisper shout.

"You know it's not that easy, right?" I whispered back and he rolled his eyes to me before looking at Natasha. I grab my drink before hearing Bucky cleared his throat making me look at him, confused.

"Hey, Nat." He calls out. Natasha instantly dropped his conversation with Bruce and look at him, "Why?" She asked. I took a sip from my drink while waiting for his response. "Y/N wants to talk to you." He said hiding his smirk while I choke out from my drink. I gave him a look and he just smirked at me, "What the hell, Buck!?" I whispered and slap his arm, not the metal one because I'm not stupid. He just shrugged and lean back to the couch before I turn my gaze over to Natasha and found her eyeing me already causing me to blush and a smirk forms into her lips. SHE DIDN'T EVEN TRIED TO HIDE IT!

"What do you want, Y/N?" She asked with her raspy voice and I swear to god, her voice is enough to kill me. Clearing my throat, I asked and pointed outside, "Can we talk in private, please?" She nods and start to walk outside with me following her behind but before that I look at Bucky and he mouthed a "welcome." I rolled my eyes and give him a finger.

Once we're outside I felt myself getting nervous every passing second and my palm starting to sweat. She turned around and looks at me, "What is it, Y/N?" I took a deep breath and think about what I'm going to do, having second thoughts. Should I really do this? This is going to be so embarrassing and will probably ruin our friendship! 

"Y/N?" She speaks again.

"I just wanted to ask if you're a bank loan?" Natasha's eyebrows furrowed as her eyes looked at me confused, "What?" she asked.

"Because you got my interest." I finished before mentally cursing myself for the stupid and corny pick up line that I spill.

"What are you doing?" She asked hiding her smile.

"I'm trying to be sweet, just give me a sec." I said lifting my pointy finger and think about something else. She kept silent waiting for me to embarrassed myself even more.

"Are you a time traveler? Because I see you in my future." Once again, myself received a mentally cursed from me. Natasha let out a giggle which she tried to cover with cough. I smiled to myself knowing I'm doing good even though I'm embarrassing myself in front of the that girl I like.

"Your hands look heavy, can I hold it for you?" I blurt out and this time with confidence. She shakes her head and smiles, "Why are you doing this exactly?"

"I, uhm— I like you, Nat. Actually, no, scratch that. I love you, Nat. I don't know when and how but one day, I just woke up and suddenly felt this, I've been in love with you for a year now, and I'm not expecting you to like me back. I just want you to know what I feel because everyday, it's getting hard to hide it anymore. I don't know if you're with Bruce because of how close you two are but please, after this don't ignore me, distance yourself from me or feel weird around me. Even you don't feel the same, I still want to be your friend. It's fine by me." I rumble and catch my breathe. She looks at me searching my eyes if I'm telling the truth.

Once she's satisfied she flashed me a genuine smile and walks closely to me before taking my hand, not breaking the eye contact.

"Your lips look lonely would they like to meet mine?" She said and smirked at me.

I feel my face start to heat up, and turning into a crimson red.

"Th-That was nice." I said and nervously chuckled.

"You look so cute when you're nervous, but, I'm serious." She softy said and flashing me another smile. My eyes widen and pointed myself, "You like me too?" I asked with a shocked tone still pointing at myself. She nods and pulled my neck as our lips locked.

Her soft and sweet lips, I grab her waist to pull her closer to me. She wrapped her hands around my neck and pulled away, resting our foreheads together.

"I love you too, Y/N." She confessed causing a smile to form into my face and hugs her tight which she gladly returned.

"You don't know how much this meant to me, Nat. I'm so happy." I mumbled, feeling her giggles.

"I am too, I thought you and Bucky are together because you guys are so close."

"I can say the same with you and Bruce." I replied not pulling away from the hug and walks impossibly close to her.

"You can't get any closer, baby." She chuckled.

I cupped her face and pecked her lips, "Why is your pick up lines are so good and sound so descent, while mine sounds so cringe and corny?" I asked teasingly. She poked my nose before cupping my cheeks, "It's actually sweet, I like it and I love you." She smiled. "Let's go back inside, I think they're looking for us already." I said and starts pulling her back inside. Before we can enter, she stops at the door and turned me around before kissing me. When she pulled away, she smiled at me cheekily which received a giggle from me. We walked back hand in hand causing everyone to notice us.

They gaze goes from us going down to our hands. Bucky let out a very loud cheer, screaming "yes" over and over again all the while Wanda gasp, and smiles form into others faces. I look at Natasha and she did the same.

"I love you, Natasha Romanoff."

"I love you too, Y/N Y/LN."

[redflagshipwriter]

Batmom Cass preview post for Colin!!

This is 600 words as a thank-you for starting my fund to replace my laptop! I am so so appreciative. There's actually... no Cass in this particular section, but I thought it was probably best to share the next scene. Chapter 8: post reveal (about ten minutes after heaving his guts on very expensive carpet)

Danny would prefer to strike that unfortunate incident from the record and his memory. As soon as he figured out how to cause selective brain damage, it was all over for the mortifying ordeal of being perceived in weakness. He swung his legs miserably over the bathroom counter’s edge and pretended very hard that he was alone in Amity Park where no one noticed or cared if he threw up. 

He was still in the room where Cass had hustled him to clean off his face and see if there would be an encore. He’d had to make a tactical retreat away from the toilet to higher ground when big fussy bats flapped in after him. Presumably they’d learnt that he threw up when Cass went to get whatever supplies one needed to clean partially digested yogurt off antique carpet. Ancestral carpet. Probably made of some nutty rich person material like, uh, hair from the manes of prize-winning horses.

Somehow, Danny cringed even harder. He needed brain damage immediately, please.

“And you’re certain that you don’t need to visit a medical facility?” 

Batman brooded in the literal way that a chicken brooded. Danny tightened his grip on the counter just that little bit more so that no one could drag him into a nest and sit on him. “Wouldn’t do any good,” he said shortly. It came out a little too mean. He tried to correct his voice to be nicer. “Thanks. Tho.” Danny cleared his throat.

“Tt.” Damian expelled air against his front teeth and glowered at his father. “He looks terrible. You cannot believe this.”

Wait, what? Danny blinked down at Uncle Damian, betrayed. “I look terrible?” he echoed. What the hell? Criticism, from Dames?

Bruce got a pinched look. “Danny, honey, you have been looking a little…” He trailed off. “Unwell.”

‘That would be the lack of ectoplasm,’ Danny thought snidely. He kept his mouth firmly shut and turned away. Unfortunately, he caught his reflection in the bathroom mirror and winced at it. He did look pretty wan and thin. It was hard to put a finger on what was off about his appearance, but it was sort of… deathly.

He was putting on weight again thanks to Alfred and Damian’s monitoring of his diet, but it was just a fact that he wasn’t really suited to this environment. Too human to survive in the big Green yonder, too undead to get by on bread and roast beef alone.

‘...How does Jason do it? An aura like that is not sustained by creme anglaise and goulash. He has to have access to ecto somewhere.’ 

Danny really should have wondered that before. Jason had to be like, the most liminal human being around who wasn’t a halfa. He definitely needed ecto. Where was he getting it? Danny hadn’t really consciously thought about it, but… He felt himself tinge a little green again.

‘Was I feeding off of his ambient ectoplasm when he was here yesterday?’

His mouth filled his saliva that still tasted both sour and like toothpaste. Danny swallowed it with effort. He did not think of how good ecto tasted after you’d been denied and drained. He did not think about the sense memory of how living ecto would indent and then give with a juicy pop around his teeth, splash the inside of his mouth-

Danny buried his face in his hands and tried not to look like he was going to throw up again. Because he was not going to do that. He was not going to eat Jason and he was not going to throw up.

[suzukiblu]

WIP excerpt for lottie behind the cut; a pocketful of Kons. ( chrono || non-chrono )

“Uh,” Tim says, staring at the Batcomputer’s main monitor and trying not to look freaked out. “Is that . . . ?” 

Stud scowls at the monitor and the picture of the man wearing a red cape and . . . most of Superman’s face displayed on it. 

Well. Some of Superman’s face, anyway. 

“No one knows who he is,” Bruce says. “He appeared three hours ago in Metropolis claiming to be Superman.” 

“The costume doesn’t match,” Dick says, glancing at Stud. “And, you know, the cyborg parts definitely don’t match.” 

“Pockets reflect the self-image of their owners,” Bruce reminds him neutrally. “Assistive devices and prosthetics don’t always translate. Especially newer ones.” 

Red looks unimpressed. Dick grimaces a little. 

“I mean, if he is Superman, they would be pretty recent . . .” he says, then trails off with another grimace. 

“I guess,” Tim says, trying not to grimace himself. “But he doesn’t have Laney, does he?” 

“Or a Robin,” Dick puts in. 

“We don’t know when he last slept or if he might be concealing a Pocket somewhere,” Bruce says, looking back to the screen. “And either way, more minor incidents than being beaten to death have damaged Pockets’ connections to their origin points and soulmates.” 

Tim really, really hopes Stud came from Supergirl. Even if she accidentally dated Lex Luthor for a while or whatever. That is just way, way preferable a thing to deal with right now. He doesn’t know who this cyborg version of Superman is, but the guy gives him the creeps. Like–just something about him looks wrong. 

Maybe he’s just being an asshole with unconscious biases and it’s all the prosthetics and machinery throwing him off, he half-hopes. It might just be that. He could get over that. Adjust. Work on himself a little and figure it out. 

He’s never felt unsettled like this looking at Cyborg, though, and he’s seen him plenty of times. He and Dick work together all the time. 

So it’s kind of hard to blame the prosthetics and machinery, considering. 

“Okay, fair,” Dick allows, wincing a little. “You really think he could hide a Pocket, though? It’s not like you can get that far from them.” 

“He has at least two limbs that are fully or almost fully prosthetic and half his torso and head are metal, and we have no idea what’s actually contained in any of those parts,” Tim points out, scanning the accompanying footage on the opposite side of the screen of the man in action. “He could hide a Pocket in a compartment built into his body no problem. Especially, uh–a smaller one.” 

Superman never hid Laney before, just dressed her up in a simple little costume of her own, but if this is Superman . . . well, dying can change a lot of things. 

But if Lois Lane hasn’t reported Smallville returning to the Justice League . . . 

Then again, they don’t know when she last slept either. Pockets only turn up when their owners sleep, one way or the other, and all of human history hasn’t managed to catch one appearing. Cameras short out or blip or just don’t record anything, witnesses get distracted or drift off, and nothing ever gets figured out. 

And a Pocket his size would be . . . well. Not that hard to conceal, probably. 

Tim can’t imagine a Pocket of himself wouldn’t understand that request, if whoever this is or isn’t made it of him. He’s very intimately familiar with the need for secrets. 

If this is his soulmate, though . . . 

He really doesn’t know what to think of that idea. 

“Two-day go-bags,” Bruce orders shortly, never taking his eyes off the footage on the screen. “Reconvene in twenty.” 

Tim glances at Dick; Dick glances back at him. 

“On it,” they both say, and take off. 

Neither bothers asking where they’re going. 

Stud flies after Tim, grumbling to himself in Pocket-talk, but Tim knows as much about what he’s saying as he does about where they’re all about to end up. 

.

.

.

Cassie stares down at her phone in confusion, and Cas peers at the screen from his seat on her shoulder. There’s a jerky, erratically-filmed livestream playing on it on her Twitter feed, and that’s . . . Superman? 

There’s footage of Superman on Twitter, she means. Live footage. He looks a little different–there’s black in his costume, and his hair is short and slicked back, and he’s wearing a visor–but he’s definitely Superman, big red cape and all. 

At least–she thinks he is. 

His face is kind of . . . 

There’s something . . . empty in his face. 

Cassie resists the weird urge to hide Cas from the sight of him, because–well, that’s him, isn’t it? That’s who he came from. The costume doesn’t exactly match, but it’s got black in it too, and they’ve both got the S-shield and cape. And . . . 

Well. It has to be him, doesn’t it? 

Who else could it be? 

The comments are all losing their minds about the footage, and Cassie feels uneasy watching it. The look on Superman’s face is just . . . it’s just really . . . 

She knew Superman was coming back, obviously. She’s got Cas, after all, so it’s not like it’s a surprise to see him. The only surprising thing is that Cas showed up before he did. 

So she doesn’t know why she feels . . . off, kind of, seeing Superman alive and well. She’d expect to be nervous or anxious, maybe, but not . . . 

She’s unsettled, she thinks. It’s–unsettled. 

Yeah. 

That’s . . . weird. 

Superman darts out of the camera’s view in a blur of speed, and Cassie hears something explode in the distance. Whoever’s recording shrieks, and so do a few people around them. 

Cas leans further over her shoulder with a frown. 

“Cassie?” a voice calls from downstairs, and Cassie instinctively bristles and tightens her grip on her phone. It’s her mom. “Diana’s back!” 

. . . fine. That’s–whatever. 

Fine.

[sunnie-angel]

In the Shade of the Sun

jason todd x gn!reader

summary: a twin that can’t shake the feeling of being second best and a jason todd that’s all too familiar with always being compared to someone else

tags: angst

rating teen | wc: 2.1k

a/n: a response to a lovely ask partially inspired by this snack fic i wrote a while ago

Comparison has followed you since the minute you were born a twin. Earlier in fact, when the first few ultrasounds revealed a pair of heartbeats where there should have been only one. You’ve always been them-and-you, inseparable from the sibling that came into the world with you. You love them — how could you not love them? — but there are times when you also hate them a little bit too, for there never being a Them and a You. They don’t mean to shine so bright, to suck up all the air in the room leaving you to feel like a cheap knockoff bargain version of them. The twin that’s there too sounds about right, a nickname that whispers through your ears when rooms full of people seem to gravitate towards them.

Jason Todd has always been the second Wayne child, ever since he entered Bruce’s life. He was the second Robin shortly after, a title he can’t seem to shake no matter how long it’s been or how many different identities he’s tried on since. The unwanted son, three times over, the unwanted sidekick, unable to follow orders and constantly letting their emotions get the best of them. There’s a time when the idea of always coming second, of never being someone’s first choice, chokes the air out of his lungs. There’s a time when he chooses to make the first wound, to not care about being cared for. After all, with brothers like the Golden Boy and the Drake Heir, how can a screwup from Crime Alley compete? No, much better kill hope in its flowerbed and learn to expect nothing.

The moment Jason Todd lays eyes on you, he swears he can feel the stirrings of hope, buried deep underground but not yet dead. He reminds himself that it’s childish to wish someone would pick him for once, that bone deep longing to be someone’s priority nothing more than a trick of the mind and the effect of his drink.

The moment you lay eyes on Jason Todd, it feels like everyone in the room can see just how deeply interested you are in him. A gala, a college house party, the local dive bar — none of it matters anymore, fades into the backdrop of one of the most gorgeous and aloof men you’ve ever laid eyes. He’s the centre of so many hard gazes and lingering looks, people crowding along the periphery of his notice. There’s a room full of people and every one of them has taken notice of him, yet the only thing he seems to have noticed is the perspiration on his beer. He’s got a drink in his hand, dark glass of the long-necked bottle catching the light as he turns it between his fingers. What would it be like, you wonder, to have all of that single minded focus on you?

Your twin nudges you, makes some sort of mumbled remark about the handsome stranger that you don’t quite catch over the force of your fascination. They go off, pulling you along in the wake of their personality, ready to make friends and charm strangers. Your eyes never leave the stranger’s broad back, itching to see more and almost certain that no one will notice you trailing along with your brighter twin. By chance he glances up, eyes locking with yours. Staring back, you decide you may as well learn what his eye colour is if he’s already going to think you rude.

It goes quickly after that, a definitive clink as he sets down his beer, a few long strides before he’s standing in front of you asking to buy you a drink, you staring helplessly at your twin who only makes wide eyed shooing motions at you. The whole time he’s only got eyes for you. You agree, still shocked that this man would choose to make conversation with you out of everyone else present, but more than grateful to take this chance before he inevitably realizes that there’s really a better, shinier version of you holding court by the bar. Conversation starts in drips and drabs, soda sipped between off beat answers and interrupted questions. Jason tries though, and that more than anything has you slipping him your number with the promise of seeing him again.

Jason tucks that piece of paper away into the inside breast pocket of his leather jacket and smiles. Makes him feel good to know that just like Dick he can make someone blush and trip over their tongue, but also that people still have the same capacity to do that to him too. He’s had beautiful dates before, but none that had made him so giddy at the mere prospect of getting to know them more and to be known by them. It sobers his mood a bit, to know that the closer you get the less you’ll like what you see, but for now he’ll enjoy this and you.

The next time you see Jason, you’re determined to act like your twin would. After all, they’ve always been successful at getting people to like them and you both look similar enough that the same things should work for you too. It goes terribly. Their mannerisms fit like an ill-sized coat on you. Wrong and uncomfortable, a discordant note in every one of your sentences, you end up excusing yourself to the bathroom almost in tears. It takes staring at your reflection in the bathroom mirror to check how red your eyes have gotten to make you catalogue all of your differences. The way your noses slope ever so slightly differently, the subtle difference in the shade of your irises, the crest of your brow bone curving where theirs flattens. You rejoin him fully yourself, thinking that at least he’ll only be rejecting you for yourself and not for all the ways you’ve not been able to measure up to your twin. Instead the air between you eases into something comfortable and affectionate.

Jason listens to you the way no one has ever listened to you before. He turns his whole body to you, head cocked on a slight angle to catch each word that you breathe out. An old head injury as a child, he explains, one that makes it harder to filter out ambient noise that he’s learned to overcome if he tilts his head just so. He is listening, he promises, it might not look like it always but he’s listening to you. He asks you to repeat yourself if he doesn’t catch something, makes a point of making sure you get heard in your own words. Ordinarily, this is where your twin would step in to paraphrase you at a louder volume. But he wants to hear you. If someone cuts you off in a social setting, he’ll bring the conversation back to you. Every thought you’ve had and every point you want to make gets heard. Jason cares about what you have to say because it is you — and no one else — saying it.

Jason is well aware that not all of your interests are aligned. He’s not seen all the movies you have, or heard about most of your niche topics of interest, but he’s come to care about them because you care about them. He listens to you because the joy on your face at noticing he cared about what you cared about has taken root in his own chest. Jason notices the way you hesitate and your face falls when someone interrupts you or summarily dismisses your opinions. He works to get your voice heard because in any scenario he will always choose you over anyone else. He remembers what it was like to work his way back into the family fold and to feel like the weight of his words went unrecognized and unheeded.

For both of you, the thought of introducing each other to your respective families is like the sword of Damocles hanging over your heads. Jason has a home full of brothers, each of them more capable than him in so many areas (and none of them having the same stupidity to get themselves trickery to being killed). He’s more nervous about introducing you to Dick (who he is mature enough to admit is a handsome idiot if only in his own mind), Tim (who is downright terrifying when it comes to strategy and tech, with a trust fund to match), and Damian (the kid’s got a few years yet before he’s competing for your heart but Jason swears he’s a much more talented Robin than he ever was) than he is about trusting you with the Red Hood. On your part, you think about introducing Jason to your twin and get paralyzed by how the inevitable comparison will leave you looking so inadequate. You’ve learned to live in the shadow they cast, their achievements standing tall beside them, but this is one thing you can’t bear to come second place in. Jason’s chosen you, but how long will that last when presented with someone that doesn’t have your flaws?

Your unknowingly shared fears lead the both of you to become snippy, testing the waters to see how far you can push before they stop choosing you. Things come to ahead when Jason asks you why you treat him like a secret, like something to hide away when all he wants to do is show the world — and your family — just how lucky he is. Why you won’t share him with your self-professed other half, if that means you aren’t as serious about this love of yours as he is. He doesn’t tell you what it costs him to say that out loud. How each word is like a frost come early, turning everything in its wake brittle and fragile.

There’s tears and snot and possibly too many used tissues to be sanitary before all your insecurities can be let out. Hung out for scrutiny under Jason’s piercing stare.

“It’s not that I don’t love them, or that I hate having a twin. It’s just that it never feels like there’s a real me if I’m not compared to them. And even then, it’s not like I can outshine them. I feel like I’m constantly running behind them, trying to catch up with them with my hand outstretched to reach them, but I never will. Always the one a half-step behind, too slow too small too not enough of everything that gives them that spark. And I didn’t want you to see everything I’m not and realize that there’s a better version of me out there.” (This of course, is not put so eloquently or said particularly coherently but rather through a choked throat and a runny nose that would out even the worst allergies to shame. He holds you through it all.)

“You know I’m just as scared of you meetin’ my family too? Every one of my parents found somethin’ to love more than me. A better brother, a better soldier, a better memory of me. And now I’ve got who knows how many adopted siblings and I’m still the black sheep of that family and I’ve gotta introduce you to all those perfect people and hope somehow you’ll still wanna choose me? I accepted a long time ago I wasn’t gonna be anyone’s priority until you came and waltzed your way into my life. You’re the only one that’s ever chosen me and kept on choosin’ me and everyday I wake up terrified it’ll be the day you stop.”

That conversation is the first of many, each one feeling like 10 rounds with Gotham’s worst villains. But after there’s always a sense of healing, acrid wounds finally draining of all their poison. Insecurities run deep in both of you, the constant fact you wake up to each other a surprise. The constant litany of what ifs eventually begins to run a little quieter. Comparisons you make in your own head become a little less harsh. You don’t always believe Jason when he says he loves you best, but that’s alright for now. You know now that one day you could believe it, every day a step closer to when you can hear it and not feel that twinge of doubt. Jason flinched in the beginning when you said you’d keep choosing him until tomorrow became yesterday. He flinches a little less now, even managed to press a kiss to your forehead every time you say it.

Eventually you do introduce each other to your families. When Jason mouths I love you best over the head of your twin, it plays to rest lurking doubts you thought had been banished months ago. When you link your arm with his and tell him, I don’t see what’s so great about all your brothers anyway, he barks out an incredulous laugh and squeezes you closer.

[lazycats-stuff]

Hello I was wondering if you could do a Batfam x teen reader, where the reader is like Lara croft from Tom Raider. The reader love going on adventure to ancient ruin and collect artefacts. The story is up to you, of course!

Thanks you for your amazing writing!

(sorry, English isn't my first language)

I can do it! I remember watching Angelina Jolie in the role, I loved it! Thanks for the compliment anon. Don't worry, English isn't my first language too.

Summary: (Y/N) loved collecting artefacts. It can come in helpful sometimes.

Warnings: looking for the Holy Lance, mentions of Jesus and religious content, Matthias Vogel is here as an enemy, (Y/N) is scared of him, mentions of near death experience, Bruce is a protective dad.

Out of all the children he has, Bruce sees (Y/N) the least. He comes here for a few weeks and then he is of on another adventure. Bruce was very skeptical of him, but to say that would be hypocritical is an understatement.

So Bruce taught him every skill he knows to help him on his adventures. The boys did so too and they were always interested in what he collected. They all listened to the stories with a lot of interest and Bruce made a little museum in the manor.

Bruce knew that (Y/N) would do this for as long as he lives, because he was always adventures, even when he was a kid. Bruce had so much scares with him and a few gray hairs to prove it.

At the moment, (Y/N) was back home in USA, Gotham, New Jersey. He was sleeping in his room, knocked out from exhaustion. Bruce picked him up from the airport late last night while others were getting ready to go on patrol.

Bruce decided to leave (Y/N) sleeping and the others were going to be surprised. Damian loved his older brother to death and he missed him during his adventures, even though Damian would rather die than to admit it.

Bruce was in the kitchen, drinking the coffee that Alfred has prepared for him. He waited for his sons to come down. (Y/N) would probably come down in a few hours at best, but he did sleep through the entire flight. Maybe he could come down during breakfast.

" I see you are more relaxed master Bruce. " Alfred noted, turned to the stove, making some eggs for him.

" I am. (Y/N) is back and I can finally feel more relaxed. " Bruce explained and Alfred raised his brow.

" He is? "

" Yes, we came back when the others were getting ready for patrol. It will be a nice surprise. "

" Where was he this time? " Alfred asked.

" He was in Egypt. He looked for a temple and something that I can't even pronounce. " Bruce said and Alfred nodded, serving him the eggs.

The others were getting down too and the piled into the kitchen. There were quiet murmurs of good mornings and a grunt from Jason.

" I miss (Y/N). " Dick said, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

" Me too. " Tim chimed in, already having a cup of coffee in hands.

Jason just sighed quietly, not in the mood to talk. He was never and never will be a morning person. " Where is he anyway father? "

" Egypt. " Bruce answered shortly, sipping more of his coffee. Damian just nodded, rubbing his eyes too. He yawned behind his hand, thanking Alfred for bringing him the food.

" Good morning. "

Four heads whipped to look at the entrance door, all various stages of shock. Dick leapt from his chair, embracing his brother tightly. Jason followed after blinking a few times and Tim and Damian nearly trampled over one another to embrace their brother.

(Y/N) smiled, trying to breathe.

" I love you both, but you kind of need to let me go. " (Y/N) wheezed out and they did let him go, sitting back down at their spots.

" When did you come back? " Damian asked, pouring him some coffee.

" You were going on patrol on at the time. " (Y/N) explained and everyone but Alfred looked at Bruce.

" I wanted to surprise you all. " Bruce just explained and there were a few huffs heard. He chuckled at the displeasure of not knowing where their brother is.

" And what did you find? " Jason asked and (Y/N) started talking. Bruce hid his smile behind his mug. He knew that it would be like this for another few weeks before (Y/N) goes on another adventure.

" Wow. And Bruce brought you here without telling us. " Jason said, giving Bruce a mock glare.

" He was exhausted and he needed his sleep. " Bruce explained himself and Jason just shook his head.

" Does it really matter? It's a nice surprise. " Alfred chimed in and Jason had to agree. It was nice to see his brother.

" Where do you think you are going next? " Tim asked and (Y/N) tilted his head in thought.

" I don't know. Maybe find the Arc of the Covenant or something like that. " Everyone laughed at that and (Y/N) with them. Maybe he should embark on such religious adventure. Especially in regard to the Catholic Church. Maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea to find that Arc.

" Maybe you should. " Jason noted.

" Maybe I will and go down in history as the person who found the Arc of the Covenant. " (Y/N) laughed as he drank his coffee. Maybe he should.

" And then we can claim more fame. " Tim joked, sending the table into an another wave of laughter.

(Y/N)'s mask itched on his face as he walked with Bruce through the Zeta tube. He only wore when he was needed for the Justice League as an expert on ancient artefacts. They had an expert on magical artifacts and then they had (Y/N).

Bruce wanted to protect (Y/N)'s identity since they had new heroes coming to the League. (Y/N) sighed quietly, adjusting the mask. He just wanted to rip this mask off, but he couldn't due to Bruce.

" Just an hour or so and then you can go home. " Bruce said, not ever looking back as they walked through the halls to the conference room. Apparently they had some rumors about the power that the Holy Lance has.

The Lance also had some blood of Jesus Christ when he was crucified and according to some magic wielders there is also mind control in the mix too.

It was something that the Justice League wanted to have, to safe keep, away from the League of Light, considering that if it fell into wrong hands, there would be a lot of chaos and terror from the Light.

(Y/N) has heard of it and has heard it's legend, but there were already lances claiming to be the holy one, so he didn't really bother with searching one. Apparently there is one under the St. Peter's Basilica and there is one in Vienna too.

(Y/N) shook his head as he saw Superman and Wonder Woman. The trio exchanged hugs and some kisses, at least on Wonder Woman's side. (Y/N) was considered a nephew and that meant that they worried for him when he was away on his adventures.

When ever (Y/N) was out on his adventures, Superman listened intently. Clark told (Y/N) a few years back that if he was ever in trouble that didn't seem like he could get out of, call.

It has only happened once and not even Bruce knows about. (Y/N) didn't want to worry him.

" Oh my dear nephew, where have you been? " She asked, leading him to the conference room, leaving the two men behind. Wonder Woman loved (Y/N) a lot and she often complained that she wasn't seeing him enough, but she knew that going on adventures is his pure passion.

She is not going to take that away from him. She is not evil.

The two fell into a nice conversation, sitting next to each other. Bruce and Clark stepped in, along side Hal, Victor, Barry and Arthur. They also got visibly excited at the sight of their rarely seen bat kid. There were pats on the back and some side hugs.

" Okay, now that we have all gathered here, we can start. " Batman said and everyone grumbled.

" We see this kid rarely as it is and you want to work? You are cruel. " Green Lantern grumbled, Flash nodding in agreement. Cyborg and Aquaman agreed, but they didn't voice it.

" This is an important meeting for an important mission. We have no time to waste. "

(Y/N) suppressed a chuckle. To him, his father was always funny when he was trying to sound so strict and scary. (Y/N) knew early on that Batman and Bruce Wayne are two different people. And when you live with him long enough, it becomes funny.

" Now, what we are looking for is this lance. " Bruce said, pressing a few buttons to show a picture on the screen. " It's supposedly a lance that was used to stab Jesus Christ during his crucifixion. It's supposed to have some blood of Jesus on it. But the reason why we are looking for it's because it has a power. Mind control. " Bruce paused, nodding to (Y/N).

" There are about 3 lances claiming to be the Holy Lance. One is Rome, on is in Krakow and the other one is in Vienna. But there is no proof that they are the real deal. The information that I have says that it could be found in Armenia. Fun fact, Hitler was obsessed with it. " (Y/N) said, tapping on the screen. It's a photograph of a cave.

" Now, this is the place where it's supposed to be, but it's not confirmed. With the help of my dad, we intercepted intel from Matthias Vogel. He is a treasure hunter and a leader of mercenaries. They haven't confirmed it yet, but I did. I talked to my sources and friends and I have confirmed it. Do you have an idea what the cave is?" (Y/N) asked, shifting in his chair.

" The tomb of Jesus. " Superman chimed in.

" You are correct. He is officially buried in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, but the body can't be traced back to Jesus. The Church was built near the crucifixion site, according to the Bible. " (Y/N) finished and everyone else was shocked at the knowledge that (Y/N) showed. Holy shit.

" Wow. " Flash said, making (Y/N) chuckle.

" Yeah, I know. " (Y/N) said and Bruce had to suppress a smile. (Y/N) was his boy.

" We are going first thing tomorrow. " Batman announced and the meeting was over. The father son duo looked at each. Bruce knew that Vogel is (Y/N)'s enemy and that worried him. (Y/N) is a skilled person, but this is something that Bruce would never take lightly.

(Y/N) was trained very well and he managed to take Deathstroke once, but Vogel nearly killed (Y/N) once. That was the time that Bruce doesn't know about Superman's help. (Y/N) came home a bit wrecked, but he did tell Bruce that Vogel has tried to kill him. He didn't know about Superman's help and (Y/N) lied to Bruce about the extent of his injuries.

Everyone left Bruce and (Y/N) alone and (Y/N) walked up to Bruce who was still sitting down.

" We have to bring Robin. " (Y/N) said quietly, leaning down to hug Bruce. He knew that his dad was angry about the near death experience and Bruce gave him a hug.

" We will. I'm more concerned about Vogel. If Robin finds out about him, he is going to kill him. " Bruce replied, just as quietly. He didn't want to think about it.

He was just happy to have his son alive and well.

The flight to Armenia went through without a hitch. It was easy and the ride to the cave, where Jesus is supposed to be buried. Matthias Vogel was nowhere to be seen and (Y/N) wanted to keep it that way. Damian sat down next to (Y/N) in the car and he could understand how freeing this is.

Thankfully, they went in the autumn, when the weather is was just perfect. Not to hot and not to cold. Damian already made a note to ask (Y/N) to join in on one adventure.

" Here it is. " (Y/N) announced, looking through the sunglasses. Damian and (Y/N) jumped out, walking towards it. Batman and the others followed close behind. Hal made some light with his ring and Cyborg analyzed it with his vision.

" It seems to be going deeper. If we move the big rock, then we will be able to get through. " He said, looking around.

Superman quickly moved it and Batman went first. Everything was quiet at first, before (Y/N) heard a familiar voice.

" It's here. It's a shame that (Y/N) isn't here. " Matthias Vogel said and (Y/N) froze. Flash took them all out. They were knocked out within a second.

They didn't see them coming.

" Okay, lets take the lance and go. This is one of the easier missions we have ever had. I don't want to mess it up. " Robin said and (Y/N) took the Lance.

(Y/N) still felt uneasy at the voice of Mathias Vogel. He didn't want to know what the sentence meant and he didn't want to guess. He woke up in the middle of the night, gasping for air.

He felt scared for the first time in a year. He stood up on shaky legs as he went to Bruce's room. He tried to breath normally, but he couldn't.

The nightmare took everything out of him as he opened the door quietly. Bruce lifted his head up, opening his eyes. (Y/N) didn't have to say anything, he just lifted the covers up.

(Y/N) closed the door behind himself, before crawling under them. Bruce wrapped him up in the warm covers, bringing him closer to him. He gave him a kiss on the head before (Y/N) buried his head into Bruce's chest.

" Nothing will happen to you. " Bruce said quietly in the dark, as if he knew what has scared (Y/N).

(Y/N) teared up a little and Bruce embraced him tightly. (Y/N) closed his eyes once more as he tried sleep.

(Y/N) and Bruce fell asleep, (Y/N) feeling safe in his father's arms.