#DP Fluff

[danis-artss]

Ectober day 11 !

Day 10 might come later... or tmrw.. idk man

Dark and stormy night ? Yeah nah this gon be cozy

[dailyplanetmetropolis]

Super Pet Lovers: Heroes Spotted Once Again Petting Local Dogs

5 January 2025

Written by Theodore Williams

If you’ve lived in Metropolis for more than 5 minutes, there are a few things you will learn about our local beloved aliens.

Firstly, despite proclaiming to be from an entirely different planet, one destroyed long ago, they are almost all simultaneously Midwestern. Secondly, as long as the Sun shines there will be one nearby - ready to stop a mugging or merely picking up a Batburger from the newly opened Metropolis chain.

However, most importantly, is that every single one of our heroes is an avid animal lover.

Almost every single month, without fail, there has been a new sighting of a Super at the local dog park, or saving a grateful cat from a tree, or the ever-famous instance of a snake attempting to strangle Superwoman at Metropolis Zoo.

Supergirl outside Centennial Park petting a cocker spaniel, 2025 (Image: @BlueBedo_ on L)

And yet again have the Super Pet Lovers hit! Supergirl has been spotted in New Troy petting a cocker spaniel outside Centennial Park. It had been a slow day on Wednesday for crime, with no manipulative supervillains or fire-breathing Kaijus causing any havoc, so it only makes sense that our local heroes would take a small break.

This isn’t the first time recently, however, that a Super has been spotted with their hands in canine fur. Just last week none other than Superboy (the older one, not the younger one - that’s Superman Two. Yes. We know.) was seen outside the WayneTech Laboratories building in downtown Metropolis playing Tug-O-War with a rottweiler.

“I was just taking Daisy out for a walk when suddenly Superboy showed up and said he’d give me his hotdog if he could play with her for a bit.” dog owner Scarlett Crawford told the Planet. “Obviously when a superhero asks to play with your dog you say ‘yes’. Also I was, like, super hungry. Pun intended.”

The love of animals shared amongst the heroes is not news to anybody, I’m sure. After all, we all remember when Krypto the Superdog was first introduced to the general public back in 2012. In a single week, #Krypto and #Superdog were both trending on L (previously known as ‘Twitter’ before being bought by ex-president Alexander Luthor) and the bright young pup was plastered on every news site - including the Daily Planet! It seems only right that Metropolis’ favourite children would share our love of animals.

Subscribe to the Daily Planet Tumblr page for more stories like this!

[corkinavoid]

DPxDC Ring of Rage? More Like Ring of Engage [pt.2]

[<- part 1 | part 3 ->]

Tim doesn't remember what happened. What he does remember is that he was in the middle of an apocalypse with no idea how to survive it, a few of his friends and family dead, and clinging to the last possible resort with no hope it would actually make a difference.

He remembers thinking whatever happened next could not be worse than what he's already been through.

And then, he remembers an unfamiliar voice, a cheeky grin, and a light so bright he had to squint his eyes shut not to be blinded.

When he opened them again, he was back in the Cave, and, as he found out a few moments later, when a panicking Dick ran up to him and attempted to squeeze the dear life out of his body with a crushing hug, back in time by three weeks. With the whole recollection of what happened before- Well, after that.

And, it was not only him who got to keep all the important memories. The rest of the Bats remembered everything as well, and the League, and even a few others, all of whom were somehow connected to said apocalypse, which had not yet happened.

Tim looked down to the Ring.

He did not tell anyone why or how they got a second chance.

A month later, with the crisis safely averted and his anxiety buzzing under his skin, Tim locked himself up in the Nest, pressed his lips to the cold metal on his finger once again, and whispered a quiet, "Thank you."

He did not know what he expected in response, but certainly not a snort right by his ear and an incorporeal voice that seemed to come from every direction at once.

"You're welcome." It was not ominous, not solemn or anything of sorts. If anything, the voice sounded like Duke whenever Tim thanked him for a fresh cup of coffee the boy brought to the Cave for him. Entirely unbothered and offhanded, and a little bit fond, like somehow saving Tim's whole world was not a big deal.

Well, maybe it wasn't, for whoever the voice belonged to.

Tim looked at the Ring again. Then, he looked around, not sure how to proceed. As far as his analysis went, the King - because who else it might have been? - did not want anything in return, nor did they intend on keeping in contact. And, technically, that was probably a good thing. Because, yeah, right, any normal and sane person would prefer to stay away from getting unnecessarily involved with beings of immeasurable power.

However, Tim did not think of himself as either normal or sane.

So, he clicked his tongue, annoyed and on the verge of pouting, "Really? That's it? 'You're welcome'?"

For a second, nothing happened.

Then, there was a startled, surprised snort of laughter, and, a moment later, a boy floating in the air a few feet away from Tim.

Tim blinked. The supposed almighty monarch of Infinite Realms, Keeper or Worlds and whatever, did not look particularly kingly. If anything, he looked very much unkingly.

Not much older than Tim - so, twenty or somewhat around it - wearing something that he'd expect Jason to wear on a daily basis. Cargo pants, an unzipped jacket with its sleeves rolled up, a t-shirt with some rock band logo, none of which exactly screamed 'royalty' to Tim. There was a matter of floating, of course, and the boy's hair was so white that it actually hurt to look at it directly, but other than that, the King looked...

Almost absurdly normal.

He was also holding a big, although already half-empty cup of bobba milk tea, and lazily reclining in the air without a care in the world.

"You want some?" The boy asked when he caught Tim staring at his drink.

Tim blinked. The vision of a floating boy in his living room did not disappear.

"I, um," he stammered over words, searching for any kind of answer, and then shook his head, "No, thanks?" The words came out more like a question than a statement. The boy pursed his lips and shrugged.

"Your loss. It's from the best place ever," he paused, looking up to the ceiling and frowning, "I don't think it exists in this timeline."

Tim shakes his head again, like trying to kickstart his thought process. It doesn't work.

"So, you're..." he trails off, and the boy startles before moving in the air and shifting so his feet actually touch the ground. His hair and jacket still both act like gravity doesn't exist.

"Oh, right. I forgot I never introduced myself," he gives Tim a sheepish grin, "It's kind of strange, seeing that I did spend about three years around you. I'm Danny, or Phantom," he offers Tim a hand and then tilts his head slightly, "But never Daniel, for the record."

That is honestly too much information in just three sentences. Tim shakes the offered hand - which is way too cold to be actual human hand - mostly on reflex.

"I'm Tim," he adds dumbly, and Danny grins.

"Yeah, I know."

Which brings Tim back to what the boy said before, and he frowns.

"Wait, you said you've spent three years around me?" That means, since around the time Tim first put the Ring on, if he is not mistaken. The boy rubs the back of his neck.

"Yeah, well, I wanted to see who you were before I made myself known, but your family is a really nosy bunch, and you're quite literally never alone, and I kind of didn't want to scare you, so..."

"So you stalked me for three years," Tim finishes the sentence when Danny trails off. The boy grimaces and makes a so-so expression.

"I mean, you all did think I was some kind of an eldritch monster that's going to spirit you away or something. Showing up unannounced would be awkward at the least," he reasons. Tim can't argue with it when he puts it that way.

So, instead, he reaches for the cup in Danny’s hand and snatches it away, taking a sip before the boy is able to protest. It does taste like the best bobba he tried, so there's that.

"Are you?" He asks, tapping the straw on his chin as Danny floats up again, seemingly unbothered about the stolen drink. Looks like keeping his feet on the floor is either uncomfortable or rather unnatural for him.

"Am I what?" Danny raises one eyebrow.

"An eldritch monster?" Tim clarifies, and, between one moment and another, the sight of the semi-normal, albeit floating, guy in front of him distorts like a glitching video. Glimpses of bright, neon green eyes, sharp, inhuman teeth, and shadows crawling around the room fill Tim's vision, making him gasp sharply, but all of that is gone as soon as he blinks. Danny shrugs.

"I can be," he admits easily, "But most of the times, I'm not."

Tim looks at him thoughtfully, narrowing his eyes and taking another long sip of the drink. The bobba pearls taste vaguely like mango when he chews them.

On one hand, this is a very much unknown, possibly dangerous magic creature. On the other, the creature's name is Danny, and he does have a good taste for food, so how bad can it really be?

"Cool," he shrugs finally, offering the cup back, "Wanna go out some time?"

Danny smiles so bright that Tim can't help but return it and takes the almost empty drink, his fingers brushing over Tim's.

"I thought you'd never ask," he snorts.

[sakuravalelp]

A dream land - DP X DC Prompt

Okay, so I was thinking about that episode "Perchance to dream" where Bruce is trapped in a dream world and this, even thought really different, came to my mind.

Danny is king or prince of the infinite realms. He's been working on personalizing/decorating his castle in the infinite realms. When he feels someone walking just outside the castles walls. The thing is, that someone isn't a denizen, they aren't in a corporeal body, but he can feel that they are very much alive and feel distinctly human. He approaches the person to ask why and how they are in the infinite realms, but they fade away before he gets the opportunity.

Clockwork, who was with him at the moment, tells him that the visitor from the living, was just the soul projection of someone that was sleeping, and then refuses to elaborate further. Since it's something that was to do with sleeping, Danny decides to go and ask Nocturn, it seemed like a reasonable assumption that he was the one at fault for the soul projection.

Contrary to what he thought, Nocturn informed Danny that Sleeping soul projection was a natural phenomenon that he didn't control. The land of dreams, ("My domain" - Nocturn reminds him), was in the infinite realm after all, and those who have been close to death sometimes slipped they're whole soul instead of just their mind, and ended up all over the infinite realms.

It isn't too different from a lucid dream for them, the body gets all the benefit of the sleep, the mind feels rested if they had a good time in the realms. Except, if they hurt their soul too bad during their little trip, it would have real consequences. Loosing memories, abilities regression, migraine, pain that reflects the soul damage, all either temporary until the soul healed, or permanent and deteriorating, and in some occasions finishing in the persons death. In the latter, the soul is usually too damaged and cease it's existence, or have enough ectoplasm and emotion to form into ghosts with crack cores whose existence is instantly in danger.

Danny clearly didn't like the image that was painted to him, so he asked Nocturn if there was really nothing that he could do. It took a lot of talking and convincing, but eventually Nocturn admitted he could be able to direct the soul projecting to appear on a certain place, but he refused to babysit anyone. Which was enough for Danny, all he needed to do was make another expansion in his castle.

He decided to make a garden to receive their soul projecting guests. The garden was enormous, with all kinds of spaced within it. Playgrounds, picnic spaces, soft benches, tables with ghost and space teamed board games, fountains, and of course, the beautiful flowers that surrounded and decorated the place. Once he got ghosts with gardening, protection and caring obsessions on the place to look out for the souls, he was ready to receive them. It took him by surprise the amount of people that came, the garden was never crowded, but was never empty either, and souls of all ages and places were visiting at all times.

He kept expanding the garden as he heard of new things their guests wished for. He enjoyed spending time in the middle of the garden where souls passed by but rarely appeared, it was calm, but not completly quite with the background noice of the soul enjoying their dreams, and he could do the more mundane king/prince work. Until, he starts getting a regular visitor on his little space of the garden.

Choose the DC character you prefer, my idea is for people who hasn't died in the past but has been in the doors of death (so died and came back would be disqualified but you do as you prefer), but I'm going with Tim.

The soul of a boy around his age appears just in front of him, as usual when he greets new arriving soul, he welcomes him with a gentle smile and tells him he is free to explore the garden. A ghost taker is assign to him. The soul, as usual, seems confused and like he wished to asks questions, but seems content to ask them to his tour guide, and Danny continues with his own duties.

But then, the same soul continues to appear in the same place every two or three days, they exchange greetings and every time talk for a bit longer before the boy leaves to explore once more. It's rear to have multiple visits from one soul, even more so for said soul to appear in the same place every time. By the four time, Danny decides to take a break on his royal duties and accompany his new friend.

~ They get close, and have cute scenes, Tim asks a lot of questions and Danny answers and not-answers a lot of questions ~

One day, Tim shows up as usual, but he is in full Red Robin costume, and well, Danny wasn't expecting an identity reveal.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

On the Bats side:

There's an attack of some villain that's able to put Red Robin (or character of your choice) on a sleeping beauty type of sleep while carrying a serious injury, were he stays sleep until teammates or backup gets him out of it. The event affects his soul, making him disconnect partially from the land of dreams and making his soul sleep project almost every time he sleeps.

Tim starts sleeping more often. It's worrying at first, Bruce being paranoid does every test in the book, despite Tim saying he's just finding sleep easier now. But, he was just affected by sleeping magic and suddenly his sleeping easier? Seems like a side effect, and that makes it worrying.

Tim's health in general improve, just like he's concentration and productivity. Who would have thought that working rested actually was more productive than working on less than three hours of sleep and missing obvious details and clues due to how tired you are.

With everything not only being okay, but better than before, paranoia about Tim's new sleeping schedule soon dies, and instead is replaced with teasing about how he used to refuse to rest kicking and screaming, and now he may sleep more than any of them.

On Tim's side, he's loving being able to soul project so often. He knew from the start he was in a different dimension, and he just wanted to know the hows, whys, and everything else. So far, he seems to do it at least once every three days, and he's even gone two times in a row a couple of times.

The garden had a lot of things to do, but Tim doesn't care about that, he's more interested in all the information he's getting. The first 3 times he was given different ghost nanny's, who were more focus on entertaining him and didn't really answer direct question. But then king/prince Phantom decided to accompany him personally, and everything went smoother. He was going back to get to know more about this new world, and maybe to know more about the cute prince/king too. He might also have gotten some better looking pajamas.

Now, he has a mission that takes more than a couple days with some people in his team that hasn't yet sen his face. He didn't realize how difficult it would be to do all nighters after getting used to a sleep schedule. He would usually try to go as long as possible without sleeping, but he decides that he should take advantage of the safety of where they're staying and sleep a bit too. He ended up soul projecting in full Red Robin costume. He tried to play it cool, maybe Phantom wouldn't know it was him.

"Red Robin, even if you didn't appear on the same spot as always, I can feel your soul. I know who you are."

[entity-of-the-rift]

Birdritch

Inspired by

This is not from any scene written by @clockwayswrites

tried something different and wanted to leave it with a sketch like pen strokes.

But yeah!! Have a ANGRY birb with random baddie and spicy baby!

[breannasfluff]

Etiquette Lessons

@writingmask Hope you enjoy your gift!

Alfred Pennyworth has a lot of jobs in the Wayne Manor—some stranger than others. One that falls to him with each new addition in the house: etiquette training. As a butler, this shouldn’t be a difficult lesson. Because this is Wayne’s brood, it is an…experience.

“Master Richard, flipping off the stairs to make an entrance is not acceptable at a Gala. Nor is using the chandeliers as a trapeze; you are not the dinner entertainment.”

“Master Jason, kindly return the silverware to the table instead of your pocket. I am happy to find you something else to…hold on to rather than my silver dining set.”

“Master Timothy, this is an informal event. While proper manners are a sign of good breeding, the formality is laying it on a bit thick.”

“Master Damian, knives are for cutting your food. You will not need to assassinate your dinner partner.”

“Master Duke, simply ignore anything else your family does at the dinner table and you will do just fine.”

And now there’s a new teen sitting at the dining table, being instructed on etiquette for formal events.

“Master Danny, you do not need to spear your meatloaf as if this is a jousting match. Try adjusting your hold to wrap around the handle like so, instead.” Alfred holds up his own utensil to demonstrate.

Danny Fenton, the most recent addition hanging around Wayne Manor, does not look convinced.

“It is not going to come alive and bite you,” Alfred tries again.

“Shows what you know.”

The grumble is low enough he’s not supposed to hear it, so Alfred lets it pass. It’s certainly not the worst thing grumbled at him during family lessons.

Danny stabs his meatloaf with the correct grip while massacring it with the accompanying knife.

Read the rest here!

[avocado-writing]

Could you write the idea of Logan proposing and how the engagement, the planning and the wedding is like?

minors dni. oh, if it’s worst Logan? He’d be so worried, man. Really beating himself up over it. Is he too old for you, can you do better, would you laugh at him? Is he just locking you into a prison sentence by asking? And then the second he pop the question you burst into tears while sobbing “yes”, throwing yourself into his arms with such force that he’s knocked over.

It’s not a big ceremony. You only have a few people to invite (Wade immediately enlists himself as your best man/maid of honour, you have no choice) and the two of you don’t want anything too crazy anyway. You go to a registry office to sign the papers, you wearing something cute and second hand, him in jeans and a dress shirt. You’ve hired a bar for the reception and it’s been decked out in flowers and banners, and all your friends watch on happily as you drag him up for dance after dance, just because you want him to be close to you. You dance with all your friends actually - in fact Wade made you learn one of the ones from breakfast club to do with him - you boogie with Al, grab Laura’s hands and have a little groove together. She can’t stop giggling and Logan’s heart is so full watching you have fun with everyone who loves you so, so much… and sort of has to accept the fact that they love him too.

A local bakery did your cake and you convince Logan to cut your first slice with one of his claws. He spears a mouthful on the end of it and you carefully bite it off, eyes full of the promise of what you’re going to do later.

and you do. You don’t drink too much and neither does he, because you’re giddy on the vibes anyway, and you fall into bed that night. Hands everywhere. Kisses messy. He pins you to the mattress and you hold his face in your hands, whispering about how perfect he is, how much you love him, how fucking happy you are. He fucks you soft and slow, forehead against yours, wanting to hear every noise you make as he makes you come again and again.

“my husband,” you keep whispering, and nothing’s made him feel that good for a long time.

[starry-bi-sky]

i've mentioned in a few past posts about an au where Danny is a variant of Jason Todd. I haven't made a post about it yet because I need a good rhythm flowing however i've been listening to Gladiator by Jann and I have been having thoughts.

but first, let me set the au:

Danny Fenton is Jason Todd, or at least, a variant of him. A him from a universe separate to the major Batman timeline - but still Jason Todd, down to the structure of his face and his name itself. The only thing that changes, is who picks him up - and, that he follows old Batman canon, and was an orphan. Jason Todd steals the tires off the batmobile and wallops Batman with his tirejack, and then runs off. Shortly after, he gets picked up by the Fentons.

(Customary line break,,,, word count check: 5k)

And his name changes from Jason Todd to Danny Fenton. He doesn't care much for the new name change, it stems from his mute refusal to share his name to the people that picked him up; an attempt to make him untraceable should he get away from them, and to keep something of his to himself. So they name him something new. He grows to like it enough as he acclimates to his new family.

(He hangs onto the name Jason Todd like a secret - he may be 'Danny Fenton' now, but he'll never forget his time on Gotham's streets. He'll always be Jason Todd.)

(Jazz is the only one who he tells his name to in the family - she affectionately calls him Jay whenever she wants.)

He becomes friends with Sam and Tucker and deals with Dash and his bullying. And when Danny steps in during a fight between Dash and another student, Dash gives him a bleeding nose and mockingly says, "Do you think you're Robin just because you're from Gotham, Fenton?"

Jason looks him in the eyes and he bares his teeth, "Why not?" he asks, spitting blood, "being Robin gives me magic."

The nickname sticks. It's supposed to be an insult; Daniel Fenton is not Robin, he'll never be Robin. Not now, not in a million years. Jason Todd has always wanted to be Robin, so he takes the insult and wears it proudly. He buys a school varsity jacket and painstakingly undos the stitching of all the school's motif on it. On the breast of it, he embroiders in a black circle with the Boy Wonder "R" on it instead. It's not good stitching, but the next day Danny wears it down to breakfast and into school.

In normal au canon, Daniel Jason Todd-Fenton (its a mouthful, just call him Danny) only meets the Waynes after he becomes Phantom - an event that leans more towards Daniel Fenton's accident than Jason Todd's death, but traumatizes him all the same. (Is it too much to want to be mourned? His best friends like to deny that he died - and Danny - Jason? - wishes they wouldn't, even if he did come back.)

(The accident embitters him, even more when his parents don't seem to pick up on it. He stops calling himself Danny Fenton - he's always been Jason Todd. It shows itself in his ghostly form. He doesn't want to wear the thing he died in, not in something that belongs to the Fentons, and his suit reflects that.)

In this timeline, Daniel Jason Todd-Fenton, aged 13, meets Dick Grayson and Bruce Wayne after a mishap with magic on the other end of the reality sends the three of them careening through time and space, and spat back out on the other end, in a world not their own. And together.

Danny is paired with a very confused Bruce Wayne and Richard Grayson. Luckily, there's a few heroes there to help them. Danny can hardly comprehend the idea that he's in another universe - he doesn't know why Dick Grayson and Bruce Wayne are seemingly handling it well.

On their way to a secondary base with the heroes, Danny turns to Bruce Wayne and asks, "So, is it part of rich-person training that you're just totally chill with being sent into another universe, or are you just weird?"

Bruce Wayne huffs at him, rather than get offended, and he smiles that dumb lopsided billionaire smile that Danny's seen on every vogue magazine he's been in. "I'm not so worried with these skilled heroes here to help us get home."

Danny silently concludes that he's just weird. At least Dick Grayson is biting back a smile behind him. "Riiiight..." He says, dragging the vowel out dryly.

When they get to that secondary location -- a safehouse that one of the heroes had set up -- the three of them are sat in a living room-like room while one hero, Zatanna, goes and calls someone from the Justice League. The other two heroes stay with the three of them.

Within a few hours, Danny is face to face with Batman - someone who he hasn't seen since he whacked him in the stomach with a tire iron - and Nightwing. For a moment, Danny swears that the both of them look almost spooked by him.

Batman stares at him for a moment when he enters, and then he goes to speak with Bruce Wayne. Danny doesn't care enough to hear what they're talking about, he pulls out his phone as Nightwing goes to speak with Dick Grayson.

"Are you a fan of Robin, little man?" Someone says, and when Danny looks up he locks eyes with Dick Grayson -- who is leaning around Nightwing to talk to him, the both of them are smiling. And considering who Nightwing was, Danny finds himself turning pink to the ears.

But he will not hide his jacket. He forces a grin through his embarrassment, "Hell yeah, man, Robin's cool." He says, and pushes his arms down to pull out the hem of his letterman, showing off the emblem. "I made it m'self out of a school varsity after the A-Listers started callin' me Robin."

"A-Listers?"

"Popular kids," Danny corrects, loosing his hold on the hem and brushing invisible wrinkles out of the embroidery. "They didn't like that I kept stepping in when they were bullying. Dash asked me if i thought I was Robin because I was from Gotham."

Dick Grayson looks intrigued -- and concerned, and he leans forward onto his knees and raises an eyebrow. "What did you say?"

And Danny grins a shark-like thing, straightening back his shoulders with a burning sort of smug pride and all the sharpness of broken glass left in Crime Alley. "I told him being Robin gave me magic, and then I punched him."

Dick Grayson's smile widens, splitting into showing teeth as he leans back into his seat. Danny isn't sure why he's so delighted - but Nightwing looks incredibly amused, and he suddenly remembers that the Robin himself was there in front of him.

Danny's face burns anew and his arms fold themselves in front of him once again.

"I don't think I ever caught your name, Robin." Dick Grayson goes, his voice thick with laughter, and Nightwing steps off to the side as Batman and Bruce Wayne walk over to join them both. They're just close enough that Danny can see Bruce Wayne raise an eyebrow at them both.

"It's Jason." Danny says before he can think about it, and barely stops himself from frowning at himself for the slip. He amends himself, glancing over at Batman and Bruce as they get closer. "But everyone calls me Danny."

Dick Grayson's head recoils slightly, and he looks a little surprised. "Why Danny?" He asks.

"Why Dick?" He shoots back, and Bruce and Dick both smile at him, with Dick Grayson shrugging with an expression that looks like 'you've got a point.'

In the end, the three of them - yes, three - get sent to this world's Wayne Manor, and Danny is bewildered by that decision to include himself -- he's not a Wayne. Why not just send him to the Fentons?

Batman tells him that the Fentons don't exist in this world, and Danny falls silent. "Oh." He says quietly, a pit growing in his stomach with an ill-kind of dread. He can't keep Batman's gaze, looking away with unease.

No Fentons in this world. No Fentons. Where was he then, in the grand scheme of things? Where was he in this world? What happened to Jason Todd? Was he even alive? He can't keep the worry off his face, and he jumps when a hand lands on his shoulder. When he looks up, Dick Grayson squeezes him gently.

Dick Grayson is steadily beginning to remind him of his sister.

-

They end up driving back in the Batmobile. It's such a shock to Danny that he momentarily forgets the lack of Fentons. He makes a laugh sound, actually, and immediately he covers his hand with his mouth and stares at the car -- tank? with his teeth sunk into his lower lip.

"Jason?" Dick says, and hearing his name being spoken feels like someone touched him with a livewire. It's weird, it's foreign - he hates, in some way, that it's foreign - and it's so nice. Yes, that's me.

He drops his hand immediately. "Sorry." He says, realizing he'd stopped in his tracks, "I -uh, was just surprised."

"It's not every day someone sees the Batmobile." Dick agrees. Nightwing has his back to them but Danny swears he sees his shoulders shaking a little.

"Yeah," Danny nods slowly, dragging his eyes over the batmobile as Batman opens the driver's side and gets in. He thinks for a moment, of what he should say next - whether to admit that he's seen it before, or to pretend that he's seeing it for the first time. Snd as Nightwing opens the door for him, Bruce, and Dick, he chooses the funnier option; "The last time I saw it, I was stealing its tires."

To his surprise and unsurprise, Danny only gets two pairs of eyes on him. Nightwing gets into the passenger seat as both Bruce and Dick turn their gaze onto him; Dick's eyes big like they were going to bulge out of his head.

"You what!?"

So Danny tells an amazed Dick Grayson that he hit Batman with a tire iron after he stole his tires - something he is very proud about and also incredibly embarrassed about when he retells what happened in the backseat of the batmobile, with Batman and Nightwing listening in from the front seat.

(Bruce Wayne doesn't ever tell Dick shit, he's going to lord this over Bruce's head the moment they are alone.)

"Please tell me this didn't happen in this world." Danny groans behind his palms as he sinks into his seat. Dick Grayson is killing himself laughing on his left, and he saw Bruce Wayne stifling a smile before he obscured his vision with his hands.

Much to his luck, its Batman himself who speaks next, (Danny was being mostly rhetorical). "It did." He says, and his voice sounds like the rumble of the earth before a stampede. It will never not throw Danny off every time he hears it. "It takes quite a lot of spunk to steal the tires off the batmobile."

He can't believe it. Batman is making fun of him. Fucking, Batman.

He wants to die with embarrassment. He groans even louder as Dick Grayson's laughter crescendoes. Danny risks a peak through his fingers, he doesn't know whether to regret it or not because he can just barely see Batman smirk very faintly from his position in the middle.

(His world axis tilts five degree leftways seeing it; like someone dunked a bucket of ice water on him.)

"He ended up being adopted by the Bruce Wayne of this world."

Danny's hands drop with his jaw into his lap. Dick Grayson on his left chokes on his laughter and careens into a coughing fit. Bruce Wayne on his right chokes on air, and quickly recovers himself with a cough behind a closed fist.

"What?" Danny croaks.

-

Apparently, Bruce Wayne's family is much larger in this world than it is in his. Danny can barely wrap his head around the idea that he ends up adopted by the man, but now he has to learn that Wayne had several children in this world?

He's still not wrapped his head around it when the three of them wind up at Wayne Manor, finally, or even when he's standing in front of him himself. For his effort, Bruce Wayne does a good job at looking unruffled by it.

God, he's weird. Danny's starting to quite like it, actually. How human of him.

He still can't wrap his head around it when he meets the rest of Bruce Wayne's children, all of whom are already aware of the three of them. Danny thinks that someone from the Justice League might've alerted them before they got here.

It makes sense, he supposes.

It helps that they are just as weirded out as he is. A boy named Tim Drake sees him for the first time and blurts out; "Oh wow, you're tiny." In a tone like he's just seen a two-headed snake burst out of the ground.

Danny is still offended. He's still growing. It's not his fault he spent twelve years of his life malnourished. "I'm gonna be taller than you," he tells him seriously, "and when I do I'm gonna kick your ass."

Tim snorts at him.

The other Bruce Wayne -- Mr. Wayne's -- youngest looks at him up and down with a face of carefully controlled judgement. His name is Damian, he's Bruce Wayne's only biological son. Danny can't believe that there's only one.

If anything, Bruce Wayne himself looks surprised too.

"Todd, yes?" Damian says, his green eyes narrowed at him.

Danny feels like the specimen under his parents' microscope, he feels like he's standing on a platform that's being slowly spun by scientists. He looks over at Bruce Wayne in confusion, and then back at Damian. "I- yes?"

Damian Wayne nods, and then leaves.

Danny does not once see himself. That is unsettling in and of itself - surely Jason Todd would have been told about another version of himself in this world, wouldn't he? How old is he here? An adult, probably. Danny doesn't know if he wants to see him. What does he look like when he's grown up? He pulls his Robin jacket around him a little tighter, like a cocoon, like a shield.

"It's weird to hear them call me Jason Todd." He says aloud to himself, and it leaves a weight behind in his chest that shouldn't hurt the way it does. It shouldn't be weird to be called your name. It shouldn't cobweb up your throat to hear your name being said. It was his name. It was his.

-

Danny acclimates to the manor slowly. The house is big, massive. He's never been in a house so large before, he feels like a stray cat being taken in for the first time, again. He and Bruce and Dick Grayson are all given their own separate rooms - one of many inside this mansion - and the sheer size of his bedroom is bigger than his living room and kitchen combined.

it's daunting. Danny sits outside on the balcony and stares at the stars he can see - Wayne Manor is far enough away from Gotham that its light pollution doesn't obscure the sky here like it did in the heart of it.

Danny finds the constellations he can find and wishes he had his books with him. He finds the library the next day and buries himself in the back, curling up into a comfy armchair next and inhaling each book he can get his hands on.

Tim Drake wanders past him at some point, Danny would have missed him if it weren't for the fact that Drake stared at him strangely when he saw him. He walks away when he realizes Danny was staring back.

It's a rinse and repeat for the next few days. Danny doesn't go to meals, he sneaks food from the kitchen afterwards, and then buries himself in hundreds of books in the library.

Dick Grayson, the one from his world, goes and finds him three days later. Danny's eyes hurt with strain by then, but he is furiously halfway through a Jane Austen novel when Dick sits down across from him.

"Have you been here all day?" Dick asks, he drapes himself across the side of his chair, contorting himself into a position that Danny doesn't think is comfortable when he looks up at him.

Not that he looks up at him long - he hums absently and goes back to reading. Frowning when he realizes he lost his place on the page.

Dick Grayson raises an eyebrow, "Have you at least eaten anything?"

Danny hums. No, he hasn't, and he hadn't thought about eating all day. Until now that is, his frown ever deepening as his stomach pangs with a deep hunger.

"That's not healthy."

"Mhm."

"Are you going to eat something?"

"Mhhh."

And this gets Dick to frown. He straightens himself up, propping onto his elbows to stare at Danny. "Jason." He says strongly. And it's that that gets Danny to finally look up from his page, jumping like he'd again been poked with a live wire as he stares at Dick with wide eyes.

"Yes?"

"Put the book down." Dick orders, gesturing towards the side table next to Danny with a nod. "And come eat something." There's very little room for argument in his voice, he sounds like Jazz when she's trying to parent him, but instead he actually sounds authoritative. Not bossy.

Danny still frowns at him. "You're not the boss of me." He says, sinking back into his chair with a thumb bookmarking his page.

Dick gives him a look and makes a decisive noise, swaggling his head side to side while he does. "I'm pretty sure that for as long as we're here, me and B actually are the boss of you."

He's never really liked authority figures, not ones that tried to boss him around, that is. Danny doubles down, his lips curling into a shadow of a scowl. "Just because you're my brother in another world doesn't mean you can act like it."

"That's not what I mean and you know it."

"I don't want to go eat."

"It's not good for you to skip meals."

"Quit talking like Jazz."

"Danny."

Danny sinks his teeth into his lip and scowls darkly at him, shrinking into the back of his armchair in hopes that it'll swallow him whole. The idea of going into that large fucking dining room fills him with a dread that makes him completely forget his appetite.

"Your fucking- dining room is- it's too big." He grits out, finally closing his book and hugging it tightly to his chest.

Dick blinks at him. "What?"

"You heard me! It's too big. This whole place is too big. It's- what do you even do with this much space? I don't know how this- other me ever lived here."

Dick Grayson surprises him, and his expression softens. "Oh," he says, "I get it."

"You do?" The tension bleeds slowly out of Danny's shoulders

"Yeah, I felt the same way when I first moved in with Bruce. I lived with the circus for most of my life, but I slept in a trailer." He says. And he talks more.

The end result of their conversation ends with Dick Grayson offering to let Danny sit across or next to him during mealtimes, and that he can talk to him if he starts getting uneasy. But he can't keep skipping meals - it was making them all worried.

Danny agrees, and Dick takes him down to the kitchens for food.

"They look at me weirdly too." He grumbles as they leave the library, Danny's book returned to the shelf where it belonged. When Dick looks at him curiously, he scrunches his nose up. "The - your other siblings. They look at me like I'm- I'm someone else. S'weird."

"Isn't that a good thing?" Dick asks, "You are someone else."

Dany shrugs, staring at the ground with a heavy frown. "I don't know."

-

Danny seeks out Dick more after that. And vice versa. Dick reminds Danny of Jazz, and he latches onto the familiarity like a leech. If Dick is bothered by it, he doesn't show it, whether he's talking to his other world's self, to the Bruce's, or to one of the other Wayne kids.

Damian Wayne seems particularly keen to seek him out, Danny finds. He thinks it means that they're close in this world, and that Damian wants to see more of what a young Dick is like. That's what he would do, at least.

He takes up on Dick's offer of seating near him during dinner, and finds an open spot across from him. Unless he has something to show him, then he sits next to him.

("You can call me Jason." He tells him one day when they're in the Wayne's massive, fuck-off gym and they're both climbing over the jungle gym. Dick's showing him how to be more flexible. It's the most Danny's worked out ever, he likes the burn it gives him.

Dick looks at him in surprise, "Really?" he's doing a handstand on the bars and Danny's more than a little jealous at his balance.

"Yeah, dipshit," he says, rolling his eyes, "I'll even let you call me Jay, it's my nickname."

Dick happily takes him up on that offer, and much to Danny's embarrassment, starts calling him Jaybird. All because of his stupid Robin jacket.)

Danny has yet to meet his other self still, it's scaring him a little. Where was he? And matter of fact, how long until he could go back to his home dimension? The three of them hadn't gotten any updates since they arrived.

Speaking of, he was starting to talk to Bruce more, it was just... strange. Even stranger than talking to Dick. Bruce Wayne in another life would have been his adoptive father, Danny can't wrap his head around it for the life of him.

Whatever did Bruce Wayne see in Jason Todd that made him worth adopting? He's too afraid of the answer to ask. They start talking more after they run into each other late at night. Danny had been hit with a bout of insomnia and was going to the library.

He ran into Bruce on the way. He was just.. staring, out the window, with a faraway look in his eye. He didn't even look startled to see Danny standing there.

Danny asks him if he wants to go to the library with him. It was out of panic. He isn't expecting Bruce Wayne to agree, and they walk there in suffocating silence. Danny keeps looking at him from the corner of his eye.

("You're staring?" Bruce doesn't sound upset, Danny jumps anyway.

"Yeah, sorry." his voice sounds stilted, "it's just..." his jaw wires itself shut for a spell, "...you looked like you were about to disappear."

"Ah.")

When they reach the library, Danny leads Bruce Wayne into the science section and takes out books upon books about stars. He leads him over to the armchair and fire and they both sit down on the ground.

"When I lived in Gotham I would stargaze." Danny says, it's the first thing he can think of. Bruce Wayne looks at him quizzically. "Well, I would try to. The sky's too polluted for that. Mostly I would just watch the skyline and try and spot Batman and Robin, was the same thing."

That cracks a smile out of Bruce. It's a small one, barely there. "I hardly think the two are comparable."

Danny is still serious. "Not to me."

He goes on, talking about how after he was adopted he got his hands on every star book he could find. He loves english and he loves to read, but something about the stars drew him in like a song. He rambles about every star fact he knows with Bruce Wayne.

Bruce Wayne surprises him by telling him facts he didn't know. Danny soaks it up like a sponge, listening intently to him speak. And when they run out of star books to talk about, Danny tells Bruce that it was his turn to find something for them to talk about.

Bruce Wayne smiles again at him, a sly little thing like Danny's challenged him, and gets up. He comes back with a stack of film books, and they spend the next few hours going through them. Bruce Wayne rattles off every single movie fun fact he knows, and there is so much that he knows.

Danny is in awe, and moves to press against Bruce's side to see the stuff he points at in his books.

"You're smarter than people give you credit for." He says at some point, when his eyes hurt from being open for too long and his head leans against Bruce's arm for support. It follows with a jaw-cracking yawn that he tries and fails to stifle.

"Thank you, Danny." Bruce says, his voice soft and soothing and not helping with Danny's weighing exhaustion. His eyes drift, and then jerk open. "Do you want to go back to your room? You look tired, chum."

He bites back a smile at the nickname, and fails to keep it bitten. "No, no, I'm awake." He mumbles, shaking his head slowly. "I wanna hear-" he yawns again, "-hear you talking."

Danny swears he can hear the smile in Bruce's voice as he speaks; "Alright. Now, where was I?"

In the end, Danny falls asleep on the floor of the library next to Bruce Wayne. He doesn't even realize it until he wakes up the next morning. But it's not to worry, Bruce Wayne fell asleep too, an arm thrown around Danny protectively like he was his own kid.

This becomes a thing for them soon enough. When neither of them can sleep, they go to the library and talk and talk about whatever comes to mind.

There comes the dreaded night after they've finished whatever book they were looking at when Bruce, the little shit, turns to Danny and goes; "You never mentioned what happened after you hit Batman with a tire iron."

Danny groans, big and dramatic, burying his head in his arms, and ignores the low chuckle. "I thought he was gonna chase me down for sure." He complains, his voice muffled by his arms.

"Why did you hit him with a tire iron?"

The look Bruce gets is one of pure disbelief. "If Mothman suddenly showed up behind you while you were taking the wheels off his ride, you'd hit him too!"

"Last time I checked, Mothman isn't real." Bruce told him amusedly, and Danny flops over onto his back to stare him down. His arms sprawl out like a starfish, intentionally hitting Bruce in the shoulder.

"You don't know that, Batman's a cryptid and he's real."

Bruce roars with laughter, and Danny preens like a bird.

That next morning when Bruce passes by him for breakfast, he reaches over and ruffles his hair. It's the same thing he does for Dick every morning. It's the first of many, and it gets many stares from the surrounding family.

Bruce has a newspaper tucked under his arm, and when he sits down Danny stands up and skedaddles over to him, leaning over the side of his chair to peer at the paper.

"Any cryptids spotted, Buzz?" He asks, getting a startled laugh out of Bruce, who looks up at him.

"Buzz?"

"Well, yeah," and Danny states it as matter-of-fact. He gestures his head at Dick Grayson. "Dick calls you 'B', and B is for bees, and I can't just call you Bees, that's dumb. So; Buzz."

He grins triumphantly when Bruce laughs quietly, his shoulders shaking imperceptibly. "I know," he tilts his head up proudly, "I'm a genius."

Now he's actually laughing, dropping his head into one of his hands and trying to quiet himself as much as possible. Danny is positively beaming, ignoring the stares of the other Waynes as he flounces back to his seat just as the other Mister Wayne enters the room.

-

When Jason Daniel Fenton Todd meets Jason Todd for the first time, they both just stare at each other.

Danny recognizes himself immediately in the library, and he freezes up. His tongue ties to the roof of his mouth, and he's unsure of what to say.

He doesn't need to say anything at all, because when Jason Todd looks up and they lock eyes, they both just stare. And stare. Jason Todd is a large, hulk of a man, built like a brick shithouse, with a tired, traumatized look in his eyes and a white streak in his black curls. The same black curls that Danny himself has.

He has no idea what to say. Or if he should turn back around and leave.

Jason Todd sighs at him, "I know they told me you and another world's Bruce and Dickie were here," he says, but it sounds like he's talking to himself. Even moreso when he mutters half-heartedly, "-but I was hoping I wouldn't run into you."

Danny feels small next to him. He doesn't know why. "Sorry." He says lamely, his one foot skips back, "I can leave if you want." It's unlike him to be meek, he thinks. Not after years of Gotham living and dealing with the likes of Dash and his Jerk Jocks.

But this also isn't the streets, and this isn't other kids being dicks. Jason Todd shakes his head, and gestures with one large arm for Danny to come over. "You don't need to do that, you were coming to read, right?"

He nods, and tentatively makes his way over. When Jason looks at him, he sees him cast his eyes over his Robin jacket - he wears it everyday. Danny sees him narrow his eyes, just slightly. But he says nothing.

It's... a strange conversation. Interaction. Jason Todd doesn't talk to him much, and if he does it's stilted and awkward, like he doesn't know how to treat him. Like he's holding him at arm's length.

Jason's getting tired of being treated like a ghost.

They talk about their books. They compare lives. Jason Todd was picked up a few days after he stole the wheels of the batmobile. He wasn't an orphan, he lived with his mom and his stepdad before he lived with Bruce. They both like to read, only Danny has an interest in the stars.

("What do your adoptive parents do?" Jason Todd asks him, one arm slung over the back of the armchair, he looks relaxed. He looks tense. Danny feels like he's back in Crime Alley again.

"They're 'ectologists'." He says, making air quotes over the word. He rolls his eyes, "Ghost hunters. They study the dead and all things afterlife."

Jason Todd makes a dry laugh huff, a sarcastic half-smile on his face. He doesn't explain why he does, Danny doesn't ask why. It doesn't seem like his business.)

Danny wants to ask him where he got that white streak in his hair. It doesn't feel right. It feels like his parents' lab, and that isn't right. Nothing ever feels like his parents' lab.

Jason Todd leaves first after giving him a few book recommendations. Danny isn't sure how to rate the experience. Being in Jason Todd's presence was like standing in a liminal space. An empty parking lot at night. When he leaves it feels like much the same thing.

He struggles to read his books afterwards, unable to shake the feeling of being haunted.

[starsintheskyandtheeye]

Respect for the Dead

By Lois Lane and Clark Kent

1,436 words

By now most of the world has been shaken by the news.

Ghosts are real! And ghosts are in danger! The original publication written by Lois Lane can be found here but we are not here to follow that well trodden avenue of discussion.

Here at the Daily Planet we have elected to focus on speaking to the ghosts themselves, rather than debate their existence alongside our fellow papers. During the hunt for the new source of Kryptonite that sparked this discovery Lois Lane made contact with one Danny Phantom. Originally he chose to anonymous but since the outpouring of support from much of the world he has since chosen to come forward publicly.

Given that the ghostly teenager is operating as a hero similar to our own Superman much of his personal history could not be shared. What was safe to share however was very different from what this reporting team had been expecting.

We had gone in prepared to hear the story of what caused a ghost that looks like a schoolboy to lead a life of ghostly vigilantism.

What we got was sweetly sarcastic individual giving us amusing anecdotes of his start as a hero, descriptions of the stranger habits he's gained since his death, and many many tips on how to politely interact with a ghost. At our confusion (who knew there were so many different types of ghost!) Phantom went on to explain and correct several common misconceptions about ghosts. So without further ado; here are the highlights of that discussion.

We begin with what was given to us as the number one rule of human/ghost etiquette. Never ask the individual, be they glowing werewolf, ghostly lunch-lady, or undead rock star, about the circumstances of their death.

It seems simple does it not? A matter of everyday politeness, and yet that is the number one reason for communication breakdowns between ectoplasmic entities and still living humans. Fortunately for the health of the interview this reporting team did not make that mistake. Phantom did not explain the nature of the offense but did not need to. It was clear that the, until then, friendly conversation would have ended abruptly if we had gone any farther down that path.

What we were encouraged (and warned) to talk to a ghost about was their obsession. As Phantom explained, "It's what drives a ghost, why we are still here, or why we formed at all."

When asked about his own obsession Phantom laughed a bit and said, "I'm a bit young for a ghost, so I don't really have one yet, I bounce around a lot. My doctor, he's a yeti, says it's normal for me though! The options are all over the place though. I know one ghost that haunts the high school to prevent bullying, a really nice guy. Another just wants to have her music heard by the world. Unfortunately her music brainwashes people to love her so we aren't super close. Or another that is all about granting wishes, but not in a singing blue genie way, in a fairy tale way, it's a mess whenever she gets over here."

That seems to be a common theme in ghostly/human interaction. Ghosts largely mean no harm but the pursuit of their own obsessions can have devastating effects on any that stand between them and their goal. Something to keep in mind if you're ordering pizza when the Box Ghost is at large.

Hoping it wouldn't cross into the realm of ghostly faux pas we went on to ask how old Phantom is. Once again Phantom seemed somewhat awkward although no more than what seemed to be his baseline when talking to (self claimed) famous reporters, saying only, "Time works differently in the realms. It can be really weird sometimes, you'll be talking to someone that looks like a toddler only to learn that they were last in a human world during the 1400s or something."

As Phantom continued to share however, the everlasting aspect seemed to be the least interesting part of the Infinite Realms, or the Ghost Zone as the Doctors Fenton, previously mentioned as ghostly experts here, call the place where the vast majority of ghosts dwell.

Ghostly yetis practicing medicine, while certainly not the least of the inhabitants were just the start. Phantom went on to share with us a sampling of the being he has encountered in his travels, medieval women moonlighting as temperamental dragons, the very concept of time, a warden of any ghosts that cross his path, and of course the ubiquitous creepy toddler so often featured on the silver screen.

According to Phantom up until extremely recently (whether by ghostly or human terms we were unable to determine) the Infinite Realms was closed off from our own home except for the occasional haunting. Which was explained to us by the telling of what was, to Phantom, a very funny joke about pop culture influencing ghost culture as people died and brought it over with them. From this we can glean several things. That the realms of the living and the dead have never been so far apart as it would have seemed to the living. That the near future will hold many changes as major religions, governments, and the common people hear what the dead have to say as they weigh in on what respect for the dead really means. And that while many things do translate, ghostly humor is not one of them.

Although of course that may be that, despite his real age being possibly many times our own - combined, Phantom is still eternally a teenager. And a teenagers jokes are often incomprehensible to any who do not share that state.

When asked about the sudden ghostly interest in our own living Earth Phantom had this to say, "Lots of ghosts want to go to the lands of the living. Especially anyone that used to be alive themselves. And anyone that didn't is curious what the fuss is about. Earth is so different from the ghost zone but it's still where a lot of us came from. If someone gets a chance to hop through the portal they'll go, to see how things have changed, or to keep things from changing, or just to stretch their obsessions. Really it's a chance to go home, just for a little while," he said, reminding us that for all they look like aliens ghosts are just as human as you or I.

With a few caveats.

The portal Phantom spoke of is an invention by the Doctors Fenton, Ectobiologists. Up until recently Jack and Maddie Fenton had been the worlds foremost ghostly experts, building a portal to the "Ghost Zone" in order to study what up until recently had been considered to be a non-sentient classification of emotional ectoplasmic imprintation.

We spoke to the researchers after our interview with Phantom, at his request. Despite the recent evidence come to light the couple remain the foremost (living) human scientists in the field. When asked about the setback to their work they had this to say, "We were devastated of course. To learn that we won't be able to study spooks -" Jack Fenton broke off there, at an extremely well executed elbow jab from Maddie Fenton who then said. "We got an extreme tunnel vision, a hazard of obsessive science. We were told we were wrong about the existence of ghosts for so long that we forgot to check that we were correct about their nature. We look forward to pivoting to ghostly anthropology and human/ghost interaction technology."

Ultimately we did not learn any groundbreaking secrets, but then if a ghost willing to go on record ( a written record at least, our recorded transcript of the conversation was near unusable due to static) you sit down and listen. We can never anticipate what a reader will take from an article but if we could make a suggestion? In this reporting teams opinion, the balance of ghost and human realms is not unlike the inversion of a mirror. We are reflections of one another. Opposite, yes, and dangerous to one another for it, but ultimately we are all the same. After all what is a ghost but emotion and ectoplasm (according to current science)? And for all that we try to rise above it, what is a human but emotion and flesh?

Fin.

Coming Soon!

Keep an eye out for top ten tips on ghostly interaction and interviews with the Justice League on diplomatic efforts with GHOSTLY ROYALTY!!

[poke-me-with-a-stick]

The researchers are doing their damn hardest to not intervene when Prince Fluffy in near death

Meanwhile Danny slide down in a steep yet rocky snow hill as it's fun

Researchers, biting their nails as they watch from a safe distance: Should we call Robin and Superboy? The other penguins won't let us close enough! He's going to get hurt!

Danny, who has been using intangibility to glide through sharp stones all day: Wow! I never knew being a penguin was so much fun! This is better than sledding with a toboggan! Maybe I should try from that way taller hill next?

Researchers: Prince Fluff! No! That's not a hill, that's a cliff!

[phantomwithbreakfast]

⋆⁺₊❅. —— HAPPY HOLIDAYS! —— ⋆⁺₊❅.

Some fluff—lighthearted.

⋆⁺₊❅. ——————— ⋆⁺₊❅.

You were walking home, the snow falling gently around you, when you saw him—Phantom.

His white hair glowing faintly in the dim winter evening, his eyes like emerald embers in the cold. But tonight, there was something… different. A bright crimson Christmas hat sat askew on his head, and his entire body was wrapped in twinkling green lights, reflecting off the falling snow.

You paused, unsure whether to approach him or just keep walking. But something about the way he floated with legs crossed neatly, just inched above a bench—slightly hunched, murmuring to himself—made you stay. He didn’t seem like the invincible ghost boy everyone talked about. He looked… almost human.

“I’m so adorned, it’s ridiculous,” you heard him mutter, the words carrying a touch of sarcasm. “Like hanging twinkle lights on a wreck and calling it cheerful.”

A smile tugged at your lips despite yourself, though your heart ached at the sadness in his voice. You took a cautious step forward, the faint crunch of snow beneath your feet drawing his attention. His head snapped up, and for a moment, his glowing green eyes met yours.

“Oh! Uh, hi,” he said, startled, before giving you a small, sheepish wave with his left hand, which was tangled in the lights.

You froze.

His voice was soft and echoing—it made your heart flutter. You couldn’t say a word. You just stood there, feeling nervousness with a touch of shyness.

He tilted his head, studying you, and his expression softened into something warmer.

“Even though I hate Christmas…” he started, his tone playful but still tinged with something heavier. “I still wish you happy holidays.”

Those words made you smile, and you finally managed to respond.

“Yeah, for you too, Phantom.”

He smiled back, but there was something fragile about it—like it might crack if you looked too closely. He lowered his hand and fiddled with the lights, his gaze falling to the snow laying on the ground.

You took another step closer, your curiosity overtaking your nerves.

“Are you… okay?” you asked softly.

“I’m fine,” he said quickly, but his voice wavered, the faintest crack giving him away.

“You don’t really look… fine,” you said gently, feeling a pang of concern.

The burden in his expression, the way his fingers nervously twisted the lights—it sent a faint ache through your chest, a quiet kind of heartbreak.

He looked up at you again, his brows pulling together.

“Why would you think that?” he asked, his voice defensive but not unkind. “Is it the glowing lights? The festive hat? Or maybe the whole ghost thing?”

You laughed softly, his sarcasm breaking through some of your nervousness.

“No,” you said, shaking your head. “It’s just… I don’t know. I can see it. It’s like you’re carrying something. And because you said… you hate Christmas.”

He stared at you for a moment, his emerald eyes searching yours. Then, with a quiet sigh, he glanced down again.

“It’s not a big deal,” he mumbled, his voice softer now.

You took another careful step closer, closing the fragile distance, that you could see the faint glow of his aura reflected in your breath.

“It seems like a big deal,” you said, your voice barely above a whisper.

For a little moment, he didn’t say anything.

Then, slowly, he lifted his gaze to meet yours. His glowing eyes, catching the light of the falling snow, were so close now—brighter than you’d ever imagined, as if they could see straight through you.

“Why… why do you care?” he asked quietly, his voice soft but hesitant, almost vulnerable.

You felt your cheeks flush, the question catching you off guard.

“I uh—I just… I do,” you said, your voice trembling slightly. “I guess I just care because… it’s you.”

A faint smile touched his lips—not the trembling, fragile smile from before, but something more real.

“Thanks,” he said softly with an unfamiliar warmth.

You smiled back, your nerves melting away as the snow continued to fall around you.

In that tiny moment, it didn’t matter that he was a ghost—a hero. You felt like you really saw him—not Phantom, the ghost boy… but just… him.

“Why are you even out here?” he asked suddenly.

The echo of his voice still sent a shiver through you, but his tone wasn’t accusing—just curious, maybe a little wary.

“I… I was just heading home,” you said, your words coming out in a rush. “Family dinner. You know… holiday stuff.”

He nodded faintly, though his gaze dipped to the ground again, his fingers resuming their absent twisting of the lights.

“But… what about you?” you asked, the words rolling over your lips before you could stop them. “Why are you here, all… weirdly dressed up?”

His lips twitched into a half-smile, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes.

“Thought I’d try something new,” he said, his tone wry. “Blend in, maybe. Turns out, I’m still just… me.”

The quiet way he said it made your chest ache again. You hesitated, then spoke softly. “I think it suits you.”

His head shot up, his eyes widening slightly.

“What?”

“The lights,” you said quickly, feeling heat rise to your cheeks, your pulse quickening. “The hat, the whole… thing. It suits you.”

He just stared at you, and you worried you’d said something wrong. But then his expression softened, and the faintest color seemed to bloom across his pale face.

“Oh, right. Thanks, I guess,” he murmured, his voice barely above a whisper.

The short silence wasn’t awkward—it was warm, like the snow around you had suddenly stopped being cold. You didn’t know what possessed you, but you found yourself reaching out, your right fingers brushing against the strand of lights tangled around his wrist.

“Can I…?” you asked, your voice trembling slightly.

He blinked, looking at your hand, then back at you. Slowly, he nodded, and you gently untangled the strand, careful not to tug too hard. His skin—if you could call it that—felt cold and you couldn’t help the way your breath caught.

“There,” you said softly, holding up the freed strand. “That’s better.”

“Thanks,” he said again, his voice just above a echoed whisper.

When your eyes met his again, there was something different in his gaze. The sadness lingering in his reflective eyes was still there, but it was softer now, edged with something you couldn’t quite place.

“You’re not what I expected,” he said suddenly, his voice thoughtful.

“What do you mean?”

“Most people would’ve screamed. Or run. Or tried to… I don’t know… fight me.” He let out a soft laugh, shaking his head. “But you… you didn’t.”

“Well,” you said, your voice trembling with nervous warmth, “you’re not what I expected either.”

He tilted his head, his gaze curious.

“How so?”

“You’re, uh…” You hesitated, searching for the right words. “You’re more… human than I thought you’d be.”

For a long moment, he didn’t say anything. But then he smiled—a real, genuine smile this time, one that lit up his face almost as brightly as the aura around him.

After that, he softly chuckled.

“Maybe,” he said, still smiling. “But… you’re the first person who’s ever noticed.”

You felt your cheeks flush, your heart skipping a beat as his gaze lingered on you. It felt like the rest of the world had faded away.

You shifted slightly, watching as Phantom tilted his head back to glance up at the falling snow, soft—wistful.

“It’s funny,” he murmured, his voice so quiet it felt like he was speaking more to himself than to you. “Snow looks so… peaceful. Like it could cover everything bad in the world and make it go away. But it doesn’t. It just hides it for a while.”

The sadness in his voice tugged at you again, a hollow ache settling in your chest.

“But maybe,” you said softly, “even if it doesn’t make the bad things go away, it can still make things… beautiful. At least for a little while.”

He glanced at you, his glowing eyes narrowing slightly in thought. He said nothing, and you wondered if you’d overstepped. But then he smiled—a small, crooked smile.

“You really think that?” he asked.

You nodded. “Yeah. I do.”

He held your gaze for a long moment, and something in his expression shifted. It wasn’t just sadness anymore—it was something gentler, something vulnerable.

“You’re really… different,” he said finally, “In a good way.”

You felt your cheeks flush again at his words, a warmth spreading through you despite the cold.

“So are you,” you murmured, barely loud enough for him to hear.

His smile grew slightly more, but before he could say anything else, a sudden gust of wind blew through the air, carrying with it a flurry of snowflakes. You shivered, pulling your jacket tighter around you, and Phantom’s expression shifted to something almost… protective.

“You’re freezing,” he said, frowning slightly. “Why are you even out here in the cold anyway?”

You hesitated, glancing down at your feet.

“I told you—I was heading home. But then I saw you, and I just…” You trailed off, unsure how to finish that sentence. How could you explain the pull you’d felt when you saw him, the way you couldn’t just walk past?

Phantom’s frown softened, and he glanced down at the lights still tangled around his arms and hands.

“Well,” he said after a moment, his voice lighter, almost teasing, “I guess I’m lucky you stopped. It’s not every day someone saves me from my own bad decorating skills.”

You couldn’t help but laugh, the sound weaving through the flurry of snowflakes dancing in the air.

“I don’t know,” you said, grinning. “I think you pull it off.”

“Yeah?” He raised an eyebrow, his smirk playful now. “You think the ghostly Christmas tree look is working for me?”

You nodded. “It’s definitely… unique,” you said, your voice warm.

He just looked at you, and the playful smirk softened into something quieter. “Thanks,” he said, his voice gentle. “For… you know. Staying.”

“You don’t have to thank me,” you replied, your words coming out a little softer than you expected. “I wanted to.”

Phantom’s expression grew thoughtful again. He landed with his feet on the ground and took a small step closer.

“I should probably let you get home,” he said, though he didn’t move to leave. “It’s freezing for you out here.”

“It is,” you admitted, though you weren’t ready for this to end. “But… I don’t mind.”

He smiled at that, it felt like the weight in his eyes had lifted just a little.

“Me neither,” he said quietly.

As the snow continued to fall around you, you realized you could stay in this moment forever.

“But really, you should go home,” he said, his voice soft but firm. “I don’t mind the cold—it’s kind of… my thing. You know, my core stuff.”

He didn’t mean it as a joke, but something about the awkward way he said it made you laugh anyway, the sound slipping out before you could stop yourself.

Your laughter rang out, catching him off guard. He blinked at you, his green eyes wide, and for a moment, he looked almost shy.

“What?” he asked, his lips twitching as though he might smile again.

“It’s just… the way you said that,” you managed between giggles. “Core stuff? Really? That’s what you’re going with?”

“Hey!” he said, his voice lifting, kind of mock-offended. “I thought it sounded cool. Ghostly. Mysterious. Y’know?”

You shook your head, still smiling, and he crossed his arms over his chest, pretending to pout. But then, just as you were about to reply, a gust of wind rushed past, carrying with it a drift of snowflakes.

A sharp cracking sound echoed harsh through the air, and your gaze snapped upward just in time to see a large branch, heavy with snow, splintering above you.

“Look out!” Phantom’s voice was sharp and urgent.

In a blur of white and cheerful lights, he rushed forward, his arms wrapping around you as he lifted you effortlessly off the ground. The world tilted, snow swirling around you in a dizzying haze, and you felt the rush of cold air as he carried you higher, away from the falling branch.

It crashed into the ground below with a dull thud, sending up a puff of snow, but you barely noticed. Your breath caught as you realized you were hovering in midair, his arms secure around your waist, his bright aura wrapping you in soft light.

“You okay?” he asked, his voice so close now, his concern evident as he looked down at you.

You nodded, your heart pounding from both the near-miss and the sudden realization of how close he was. “Y—yeah,” you said, your voice barely above a whisper.

The snow continued to fall around you, catching in his white-snow hair and glowing faintly in the light of his aura. His green eyes searched yours, and you felt warmth bloom in your chest despite the freezing air.

“You didn’t have to—” you started, but he cut you off with a small, crooked smile.

“Of course I did,” he said simply.

The honesty in his voice made your breath hitch, and you realized how much he cared—not only about saving people, but also you.

Slowly, he descended, lowering you gently back to the ground. His arms lingered for a moment longer than necessary before he finally stepped back, his aura fading slightly as he smiled down at you.

“You should really go home now,” he said softly, his tone teasing but warm. “Before I have to rescue you from something else.”

You laughed, your heart still racing, and nodded. “Okay. But… thank you.”

He shrugged, his smile turning lopsided. “It’s what I do.”

You hesitated, your gaze lingering on his for a moment longer, and then, impulsively, you reached out, brushing a bit of snow from his shoulder. His eyes widened slightly, and you swore you saw the faintest hint of a blush on his face.

“Happy holidays, Phantom,” you said softly, your voice filled with warmth.

“Happy holidays,” he replied, his voice quiet and echoed, but sincere.

And with that, he shot up into the air, disappearing into the swirling snowflakes. You stood there, your heart still fluttering, and smiled to yourself.

Maybe the holidays weren’t so bad after all this time.

——————— ⋆⁺₊❅.

🎵 “I want you to know, that I’m never leaving, ‘cause I’m Mister Snow, ‘til death will be freezing. You are my home, my home for all seasons, so come on, lets go. — My snowman and me.” 🎵

——————— ⋆⁺₊❅.

Some fluff? I don’t know. First time trying the you-POV (second person). Written in the quiet hours when I should’ve been sleeping… insomnia is kicking hard.

——————— ⋆⁺₊❅.

Single shots from the art:

I was a bit lazy with the line art again… but here we are. I think I might be getting closer to finding my style—though I’m not entirely sure yet. If I weren’t feeling so lazy and depressed at the moment, I know this could’ve turned out better…

[dead3ve]

Neil Perry x fem!shy!reader

Summary: When Welton's sister school burns down, the female students end up residing at Welton as well. Neil Perry, one of Welton's finest, begins to take a liking to one of the quieter ladies.

Warnings: This is a first post :) reader referred to as female, lady, girl. gender neutral (they/them) pronouns used. No use of y/n. shy reader insert

Neil Perry was waiting outside of the ladies' quarters. The refurbished section of Welton now dedicated to the housing of the new female teachers and students was so affectionately named the 'ladies' quarters' thanks to one Charlie Dalton. The same Dalton that had forced Neil to wait for a certain lady to exit her room. With a book in hand, Neil contemplated whether or not the girl would like his attempts of flirting.

Neil had taken a liking to this girl. They were quiet, but knowledgeable. He knew this because Neil sat next to them for his beloved English class with Mr Keating, where whenever a question was asked a whispered and correct answer comes from the desk to his left. Once, Neil caught their eye when they were whispering the correct answer. They blushed and turned to look straight down at their desk for the rest of the lesson. Neil did not wish to offend them, just to simply admire them and their mind. So, after class he caught them by the elbow, and asked "Why don't you speak in class? Your answers are always right." Neil was left holding onto the elbow of the girl whilst they looked up at him with eyes so full of longing, and a mouth sealed shut by the restraints of fear.

They responded with a meek "I'm not always right."

Neil watched the girl pull away from his hold and hurry along after their friends, each of the ladies' heavy, uniformed skirts grazing the others' as they walked to their next class.

Neil looked down at the book he had bought for the girl in his hands. A special edition of one of their favorites, according to their friends, who all giggled at Neil's shy appreciation of the girl.

Down the hall, the thick clunk of school shoes approached Neil. He looked up after being in a romantic daze. He saw them. In their regular school skirt and button up shirt. They wore a cardigan though. Autumn had entered the hallways of the school. Neil stepped into the middle of the quiet hallway.

"Hi." Neil said. The girl faltered in her walking. Slowing her approach, seeming like they were questioning that Neil was actually there to see them.

"Hi." The girl began to speed up again, once they realized he was here to speak to them.

They stopped in front of him and smiled. Big and shy and bright all at the same time. The book in Neil's hands caught the girl's attention. The colors were so clearly representing a certain franchise and the picture on the front seemed to depict a familiar character. Neil noticed their eyes wandering and smiled at their silent curiosity. He held the book out to her.

"It's for you." Neil said with a smile on his lips as the girl went to take it cautiously with a small grin. Not because they were scared of Neil, but because they did not know if they were overstepping. They were very interested in the boy, after all.

Neil, realizing that they might not understand the display of affection being attempted, decided to pull the book back to himself before they could take it.

"It's yours, I promise. But I am giving it to you because I like you, and maybe we could go get a coffee sometime?" By the end of the sentence, Neil was losing confidence. His voice grew higher, making a slight crack in the middle of the word "sometime".

Unbeknownst to Neil, who was looking down at the cover of the book held in his hands, they were beginning to smile wider as he grew more nervous. Eventually the girl took the book from Neil and began to walk away from him. Neil stopped thinking. Stopped moving. Did they not like him? Was the book the only valuable thing presented? Did Neil get the wrong idea?

"You said it would be mine. I'd like to read it so I can tell you about it on our coffee date." They spoke loud enough for Neil to hear. He was stood maybe 2 meters away, back turned from the girl. They spoke loud enough so Neil had to have heard them.

Neil turned and took a breath when he saw them looking at him already with a bashful grin and pink cheeks. The book clutched against her chest. Neil took two paces towards the girl. He pushed some fallen hair behind her ear, making her pink cheeks turn red. Neil asked:

"Sit next to me in study hall?"

[dailyplanetmetropolis]

BatWayne: Everyone's Favorite Celebrity x Hero Ship!

11 January 2025

Written by Augusta M. Barlow

Ask your friends, your mother, the random old man living down the street, about BatWayne and everyone will say “Yeah, I’ve heard of that!” But just what is this “BatWayne” and how did it become so popular?

BatWayne is the colloquial term for the well-known ship between famous celebrity and public icon Bruce Thomas Wayne, and the rarely seen urban legend vigilante of Gotham City, Batman. The ship was first created after rumors of Batman’s existence began to circulate in Gotham City two and a half decades ago. However, it quickly rose to prominence following Batman’s first crashing of Bruce Wayne’s biannual charity gala. Bruce Wayne had disappeared in the commotion of Batman battling the supervillain Penguin’s goons, only to later resurface with the claim that Batman had locked him in a side room for his own safety. The internet, predictably, exploded.

Another notable BatWayne moment is when Bruce Wayne was spotted being saved by Spoiler, one of the Gotham vigilantes that people theorize is one of Batman’s children. Spoiler was reportedly very friendly to Wayne, and very familiar around him, leading fans of BatWayne to speculate that Wayne and Spoiler had previously interacted. Perhaps it was when Batman introduced his partner to his children?

Fans of the celebrity ship also point to the fact that Bruce Wayne’s children have some of the highest kidnapping rescue times in Gotham City, even down to just a few minutes! When Timothy Jackson Drake-Wayne, Bruce Wayne’s fourth adopted child and the young CEO of Wayne Enterprises was kidnapped off the street three months ago, he was rescued by Nightwing in only four minutes. The kidnappers’ van hadn’t even made it two blocks. Why would the Wayne children apparently be so much more heavily watched than the other citizens of the city, unless Batman and his colleagues saw them as family because of Batman and Bruce Wayne’s relationship?

Timothy Drake-Wayne being carried by Nightwing after a kidnapping, 2025 (Image: @BlueBedo_ on L)

Finally, fans have pointed out that Bruce Wayne appears to have a much more favorable view of Gotham’s resident vigilantes than most of the grim city’s elite. Other top members of society have repeatedly criticized Batman’s near free-reign, with the failure of the GCPD to hunt him down, and how almost all of their parties seem to now end in a Bat fighting with a supervillain. However, when Bruce Wayne was asked about his opinion on the Gotham vigilantes, he said that “I believe they are doing good work. Gotham is a hard city to live in, and the Bats are trying their own methods to help the people. It isn’t legal and has very little oversight, but many other cities have similar issues with their own heroes. Look at Superman or The Flash. They also aren’t overseen by their police departments, and work largely independently like Batman, but their intentions are known to be good. I believe the same of Batman.” Maybe the reason Bruce Wayne was so defensive of Batman’s intentions is because he’s secretly dating him and didn’t want to attack his partner?

There are, of course, a multitude of other reasons people ship BatWayne, such as the way Batman carried Bruce Wayne the single time we’ve seen him save the billionaire, the huge charity donations that Wayne gives to clean up Batman’s property damage, and the numerous interactions between their respective children. However, while this ship is extremely popular, we will likely, unfortunately, never see confirmation of it. Batman remains a very private hero, despite being a founding member of the Justice League, and Bruce Wayne maintains his billionaire playboy appearance. So sorry to all their loyal fans out there. Maybe one day your dreams will come true!

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[corkinavoid]

DDxDC Cold Fingers

Written for: Flufftober, prompt 7. Hoodie Weather

"I'm home!" Danny's voice comes from the door right after the click of the lock. Tim just hums in response, too caught up in reading the file on his tablet. He really needs to finish the report today, this case has been closed for three days now-

Something cold touches his stomach, and Tim yelps in surprise, kicking his foot on reflex. Danny dodges easily, taking a step back and laughing.

"You and your cold fingers," Tim huffs, sliding down on the couch and tugging the hem of his hoodie lower and over his knees, so his sneaky boyfriend won't have a chance to steal his warmth anymore.

Danny pouts and tries anyway, putting his palms on Tim's knees - he can feel the cold even through his pj-pants - and sliding them up slowly.

"You know I love you, Tim," he says, an innocent look in his eyes and a ton of mischief in his voice. Tim slaps his hands and moves back on the couch, out of Danny's range.

"I do, but keep your hands away from me," he warns. Danny seems to miss the warning entirely, climbing up on the couch and moving his fingers in a menacing manner.

"But it's so cold out there," he whines, trying to get closer, as Tim keeps fighting him, while still holding the tablet in his hands. "I need some warmth. And love. And-"

Tim places his foot right in the center of Danny's chest, keeping him from coming closer. By this time, he is almost laying down on the couch, and the position is really stupid. Just like his boyfriend's grin and his attempts to get his hands under Tim's hoodie.

"And I worked really hard on warming myself up," Tim argues. Which is, actually, true: it's been raining since yesterday, so Tim wisely stayed inside, bundled up in blankets and working from home. Except for patrol, but that's a whole different story. "I'm not sharing it with someone who hadn't put a token of effort in it."

Danny pouts, but sighs and steps away. Tim keeps a suspicious eye on him, but, after a few seconds, he slowly goes back to his report.

A big mistake.

The next moment, Danny all but falls on top of him, and his ice cold hands are under Tim's hoodie and all over his naked stomach and ribs, and Tim is squealing, hitting him on the shoulders and wriggling out of his grip. Danny is laughing, squeezing him in a hug that sends chilly shivers down Tim's spine.

"Cold-cold-cold, Danny, no, stop!" He gasps for air, but his boyfriend just chuckles and showers his face in tiny, quick and cold kisses. Tim shakes his head, dodging and trying to get rid of them just to prove a point.

"But ple-e-ease," Danny whines, still smiling so wide Tim is afraid his face is going to crack.

"You're..." he huffs, out of breath because of all the fighting. And then, breathes out, slumping down and going lax on the couch, "...Insufferable."

Danny's eyes are brighter than stars, and his hair is a mess. Tim runs a hand through it - yup, wet from the rain, because someone forgot his umbrella again - and raises an eyebrow.

"What am I getting in return?"

"My eternal love," Danny answers immediately, his not so cold anymore hands rubbing slow circles over Tim's skin. He shivers again, but this time, it's not because of the temperature.

"Like I don't already have that," he rolls his eyes, but he knows he is smiling.

"M-yeah?" His dork of a boyfriend hums, and then leans down, finally giving him a proper kiss. This one is not cold, it's soft and warm, slowly heating Tim from inside out until he is all out of breath again.

And Danny's hands also feel almost hot under his hoodie.

Tim smiles, wrapping his arms around Danny's neck.

"Welcome home," he greets, content and nearly melting under his boyfriend's touch. Right until a horrible though strikes him, and his face drops, "Wait, where's my tablet?!"

[ohmyenjolrass]

take a chance on me | charlie dalton x fem!reader

summary: charlie dalton is obsessed with you and he mans up to ask you out on a date. you are secretly in love with him, but you can tell his intentions almost immediately.

pairings: charlie dalton x fem!reader

word count: 0.5k

warnings: none, but welton is a boys and girls school.

n/a: i was really looking forward to write something with charlie, and i am so excited for this one. i really hope you enjoy it. feel free to request anything! as always, english is not my first language, so there might be some mistakes, sorry in advance x

masterlist :)

"i'm gonna ask her out", charlie repeated for the thousandth time, staring at you from the other side of the common room.

"yeah, right.", knox teased him. "you always say the same thing but you never really do it."

"and also, what if y/n doesn't like you back?", wondered neil.

but charlie's ego was too big to break like that. and also, he had noticed how your eyes fixated on him when he wasn't looking, so, at least, you were interested in him.

"you can mock me all that you want, but i am going to do it.", charlie said, as he stood up. the rest of his friends stared at him in disbelief, with their mouths open.

you saw him approaching your group of friends and returned your sight to your latin homework, playing dumb. you knew your friends couldn't tell, but your heart rate was alarmingly fast as charlie was closer.

"hey, girls", he greeted you and your friends. "do you mind if i steal y/n from you one sec?"

you knew charlie wasn't asking for permission, he hardly ever did, so you stood up, closing your notebook. "what is it, charlie?"

"just a thing i wanted to ask you. come with me?"

you followed him to the corridor, which was empty, and waited for him to start talking. you and charlie weren't exactly friends, but you liked him. he was funny, and smart, and didn't have any problems to cause some trouble in school. he was also devastatingly charming, and every single girl in school would agree on that.

"so...", he started. "how was your day?"

"did you actually dragged me out of the common room to ask me about my day?", you laughed.

charlie fidgeted with the collar of his school shirt. "actually i wanted to ask you something."

"ask away, i'm not gonna bite you.", you said, jokingly.

"i was wondering if you had any plans this friday evening.", charlie said, and you flustered to your ears. your cheeks were so warm you even wondered if it was possible to be that red.

don't be an idiot, y/n. come on, woman up, you thought.

"um, no. i don't think so. why?"

"would you like to go out? like, with me?", he asked, and you could tell that he was blushing too. it was a rare sight to see charlie dalton blushing, but it was a very cute one.

"sure, yeah.", you replied, your hands trembling. you couldn't believe that. "anything planned?"

"i thought we could go to the cinema? if you're up to it."

"yeah. i love the movies.", a weird silence formed between the two of you, both too happy to say anything. then, you cleared your throat. "so, friday, 6pm?"

"perfect. i'll pick you up on your dorm."

you nodded, going back into the common room. a few moments later, charlie entered too, sitting with his friends. you could see his face between todd's and meeks' shoulders. he noticed you staring and winked at you. you lowered your head back to your homework.

and friday couldn't come fast enough.

[phantomposting]

Ayo it's time for another half asleep sleep deprived prompt rant let's gooooo! Please excuse any typos or grammar errors I haven't slept more than 2hrs in the past 24hrs and I'm suffering from a hard-core bout of insomnia and a accidentally burned myself. But anyways let's get into the rant starting with trigger warnings!

TW: BLOOD, VOMIT, SICKNESS, FOOD INSECURITY, ABUSE

-----------------------------------

So I have been absolutely obsessed with blood blossoms used in angst fics since I first joined the fandom. I also see them as a great way to make a fun sickfic or a amazing tool for darker fics to use to trap or harm our favorite boyo. I read.the most amazing blood blossom poisoning fic recently tho and it absolutely gave me the brain itch again to theorize more about blood blossom aus!

So in this au Tim Drake and Danny are dating they've been doing well for the most part but when Tim asks to meet Danny's parent's he's super avoident of it. It's been making Tim feel as if Danny doesn't see this as a serious relationship that or he's hiding something and Tim needs to figure out what.

Danny of course as Vlad's godson is the heir to his company even tho he definitely doesn't want it. Atleast getting dragged into rich people shenanigans led to Danny meeting his boyfriend whom he is absolutely head over heels for.

Tim keeps asking to meet his parents but Danny doesn't want them to ruin things. They don't even know how old he is anymore for Ancients sake. They've acted like he isn't even there since Jazz went to college Danny's had to fend for himself and them essentially turning into a bit of a parent/guardian for them. Paying bills, making sure they eat, ect. But he can only do so much and between it all he doesn't get much time or enough money to eat as often as he should. It's a real mess. He definitely doesn't want Tim seeing that and worrying either so he keeps coming up with excuses to make sure the Fenton parents never meet him or his family.

Vlad is super upset with Danny for getting so close with his biggest competition. He continously demands the boy behave and to dump that leech before he swipes all of Vlad's hard work from right under his nose. Danny could absolutely care less. The boy is really getting on Vlad's final nerve being his sweet Madeline's kid means nothing if he's just going to act like another Jack. The world absolutely needs no more Jack's in it.

Finally cutting his losses with this kid Vlad devises a plan to once and for all get rid of the little brat. He will take blood blossom extract and poison the useless heir of his at the next gala.

The ingredient tho extremely rare can be common for the super wealthy. It's always been quite the nuisance for him but now there's finally a perk to that damn flower. None will be the wiser the death will be ruled as either an allergic reaction to a rare ingredient the child had never encountered enough to know of or they'll learn of Daniel's ghost side and not anyone will care thinking a ghost had taken the poor kids place.

Vlad will get pity among his peers and possibly finally gain the chance to overshadow the Wayne's and finally take them out of the game once and for all. Maddie will blame Jack for such a accident vlad will be sure to make it so. With nothing left to hold her back and a newly loveless marriage she will finally turn to him they'll create a new family with the perfect son and nothing will stop him from living his happily ever after. It was the perfect plan in Vlad's mind.

So the next Gala comes around. Danny and Tim have a big and accidentally rather public argument about Danny's parent's and this leads Danny to storm off alone to try and cool off. This ends up being the perfect time for Vlad to corner the boy.

He gives Danny an ultimatum dump Tim and join him or else. Danny refuses. " oh nieve little badger... you really should have taken me up on the offer." He shakes his head as he pins the boy to the wall by the collar of his shirt and injects him with the poison.

Soon Danny is left alone curled in a writhing ball of pain upon the floor as the blood blossoms burn at his insides ripping him apart from inside to out. A silent ball of agony as he doesn't know what to do. He can't risk anyone finding out about his ghostly side not even Tim. He can't access his powers. He can't escape. All feels hopeless and he feels doomed to fade here.

Meanwhile Tim begins to get worried usually Danny takes a bit of time but he always comes back pretty quickly then both apologize for the argument and move on. Tim's definitely feeling pretty guilty for this one pushing him so hard. He just wants this relationship to be as normal as it can be. For once in his life he's having a pretty average civilian life and weirdly enough he's thriving with it. He understands tho that some people aren't on good terms with their parents but Danny always only ever really says nice things about his parents and its starting to make Tim feel like he's just not good enough to meet them.

But either way Tim begins to worry he drove Danny off so he goes to look for him to apologize for pushing him so hard. He wasn't really expecting to find Danny in a secluded room all alone curled up against a wall looking smaller than he's ever looked before. Almost looking as if he were hiding tears. It honestly broke Tim's heart to see him like this. Tim definitely wasn't expecting that when he started to apologize that Danny would look up at him with way too much blood to be okay dripping from his nose.

Danny was bleeding quite a bit. His eyes were unfocused and Lazarus green and absolutely filled with fear. Tears dripped down his far too pale cheeks as he tried to focus on Tim. His breathing was harsh and heavy and clearly pained. He looked as if he were in agony.

This immediately sends Tim into panic mode. Wtf happened while he was gone? How did he get into contact with Lazarus water?? Is his boyfriend dying??? Tim starts going into hero mode trying to figure out how to help Danny. They make a quick stealthy escape of the gala and Danny refuses a hospital trip. Tim won't push too hard cause clearly Lazarus water is somewhere in the mix.

So they go to the only person Tim can think of. Doctor Leslie! There's a lot of panic from everyone and delirious rambling from Danny until eventually they finally figure out he's been poisoned. Somehow miraculously they manage to cure said poison and save Tim's boyfriend.

Or so they think turns out they only really slow/pause the blood blossoms effects. Danny has extensive physical damage from the blood blossoms eating away at everything and Tim thinks Danny was poisoned with Lazarus water. He makes Danny stay with him in his apartment for awhile to monitor him and his condition and keep his eye out for the one that poisoned him and keep him safe.

Vlad makes a huge stink about Danny going missing leading to some big search for the missing heir. Its all a huge mess!

Slowly over time this sickfic with tons of sweet fluff moments and stuff would reveal why Danny isn't keen on introducing his parents to Tim. Tim would learn Danny's parent's are super neglectful and possibly downright evil judging by all the scars his poor boyfriend is left with. Not to mention he's far too thin! Thinner than Tim expected cause with his clothes on sure he looks rather slim but you would never guess the poor guynwas just skin and bone. Its deeply worrying.

There would be lots of moments where Danny is avoident on details and it only makes Tim's detective brain itch more for answers. Slowly but surely they learn aswell that Danny's body is never going to fully work the same either. Over time they even realize it's very Slowly worsening making them discover the blood blossom isn't fully cured.

Then comes the big search for a cure and Tim going full mama bird for his bf! We also get a slow ghost reveal, giw reveal, and reveal that Vlad's evil and Tim is absolutely going to rip that man apart for doing this to his poor boyfriend.

There's absolutely tons th8s fic could cover and it's absolutely dealer's choice on what and how they would want to cover it! I would absolutely go feral to see this prompt used :D you could even get into some league of assassin's chaos or giw chaos with everything else going on! The possibilities are endless :D