#batman sees this ghost kid and must adopt him

[kawarikisaki]

Well since i got tricked into the fandom anyway, may as well make art about it.

I made a page 2

[methoughtsphantom]

HELL YEAH CROWN PRINCE PHANTOM whose ectoplasmic signature readings are obviously higher than that of his dad’s, who’s still filtering the corrupted ectoplasm and that takes time, (which is why he only wears the crown and not the ring.) So imagine, imagine that the imaginary of the vengeful angel was only visible to Danny, just like the crown, like imperceptible to human eyes kinda thing. To Batman Red Hood is just another ecto-entity who caught him off guard, and so he has to be better prepared. He goes see the JLD to ask for more information about these entities. They tell him one is the ghost king. Cuz mages can get a read in signatures and one is off the charts level powerful, or maybe Batman just had a scanner I dunno, point is Batman wrongly deduces whose the ghost king in this situation. After all, only one was able to actually display a tangible supernatural form and readings that remained steady during the scan. ((Jason’s are unreliable, funky if he’s not trying and bitch-you-better-start-running if he is.))

So. Batman wants to summon the ghost king. He doesn’t see a reason to involve the JL, just him and Constantine, who’s like ?? I heard there was new management, but…so new that the king’s a literal child?? okay I gotta see this. im putting a bunch of binds and spells so the ghost won’t be able to cross the summoning circle. Like Constantine just has Batman’s initial assessment and a power chart. Bruce’s detailed report indicates the kid has no experience on battle combat and instead just heavily relies on his powers (list of known powers not conclusive), but is still a threat that knows his and his associates secret identity. Curiously, the Bat also put that the kid is heavily suspected of being emotionally compromised.

Anyways

They expect a child.

They get the Red Hood.

Red Hood, who is still a bat, and still trained with assassins. Motherfucker whose ectoplasm readings are again so funky he can pass through the summoning’s restrains and binds as if they are not there. He’s such a little shit about how he’s sprinting the whole thing. He’s ghost adjacent enough he can turn intangible. He’s an expert on combat who can fucking predict what the bat’s planning to pull because he fought alongside him. Dramatic bitch saw Batman and immediately went to throw hands. Especially when the the Bat tries to pull off a gun on him.

Jason: oh so you’re using guns now??? you’re really such a hypocrite!!

Batman: I’m not the one whose letting a child cover for their criminal activities!!

…

Batman, at some point: I would never hurt my own son!!

Jason:

Jason: 🤡

…

Batman: how do you know our identities???

Jason, who didn’t know B knew he knew and who also had a pretty hardcore pretty little liars phase ✨: two can keep a secret if one of them is dead. bitch.

Batman:

Batman: this is confirmation. a dead figure from my past told him i’m Batman

…..

Batman, who’s still trying to see an angle to the Red Hood: You are obviously unfit to take care of a child

Jason:

Danny, 15 and thoroughly done with everyone's crap, steals the Crown of Fire and the Skeleton Key and uses the later to find a suitable new High King for the Infinite Realms. The key (also known as Deaths kay) acted like a sort of Infi-map but lacked the limitations of needing a natural portal to spawn in that time/location and could get you past any wards/protections no mater how powerful.

The key spawns him just in front of the form of a sleeping Jason Todd, and Danny decided he wasn't going to question the magical keys judgment and just plops the crown on a bleary and startled Jasons head.

The crown burned for this guy, signaling that it found him worthy and that was more than enough for Danny.

With no context whatsoever, Danny looked Jason in the eye, burning neon green meeting with wide greenish blue, "You're our king now."

Then he vanished.

Jason later finds that the Lazarus entity left behind a handmade pamphlet. It was immensely unhelpful.

[alienzil]

Okay so I saw this post and you know the types of fics where adult Danny moves to Gotham and winds up emotionally adopting one or more of bat kids or accidentally coparenting with Bruce (with or without a relationship between them)? I had the thought, what if Danny parented the bat kids but he started doing it out of spite?

Like, Danny moves to Gotham and runs into Batman and Robin one night while out for a late night flight and drops down to the rooftop to say hi.

Bruce sees this 5'6" twink that looks like a stiff breeze could knock him over and is so obviously new in town and thinks Gotham is going to eat him alive, he needs to leave before he gets killed.

Batman: Looming menacingly and in his deepest scariest Batman voice, "Leave. Metas aren't allowed in Gotham."

Danny: Offend! Excuse?! Who does this guy think he is?! 😡 Danny was trying to be polite here! "First of all, I'm not a meta. Second of all, rude much?!"

Batman: Does scariest bat glare. "Leave." Swoops off into the night.

Robin (Damian): "My father is correct. You should leave the city for your own safety."

Danny sees this tiny vigilante child with fierce expression and a sword and is just like awww, so cute! 😍 Then he noticed Robin had a small cut on his arm and his inner gremlin activates. If the rude flying furry can't take care of his own kid properly, Danny will do it better!

He bandages up Damian's arm, gives him a cookie and teaches him a neat sword trick before sending him on his way with a hug telling him he needs his sleep.

Danny goes out of his way to run into the bat kids and be the absolute best dad.

He takes Nightwing flying and throws him in the air so Nightwing can do all the fanciest acrobatic tricks.

He tracks down Red Hood and starts a book club with him (Danny may or may not have used his connection with Ghost Writer to get ahold of some rare books).

He eats waffles with Spoiler and trys out weird topping combinations that make them both make faces and laugh.

He makes new gadgets for Red Robin but carefully breaks them just a little bit and takes them to the teen so they can fix them together (it's enrichment!). He always insists RR keep them as a reward.

He follows Signal around during the day invisibly, making faces and doing tricks only Signal can see (he made him laugh in front of the police at a crime scene twice!).

All of the kids get his attention and love and Danny smugly thinks how Batman must be absolutely seething about his kids bonding with Danny and Batman missing out on all of it.

Danny started it out of spite but he does wind up genuinely loving the bat kids.

Batman definetly hates it when the kids are bonding with Danny and is extremely jealous (sulky Batman brooding in his cave about it).

Bruce's repeated attempts to intimidate Danny into leaving Gotham don't work and him telling his kids to stay away from Danny had zero effect (the terrible children don't listen to him at all).

So Bruce starts spending more time with the kids to compete against Danny. The bat kids love it and (little gremlins that they are) use the two of them against each other constantly.

Bruce:"Sorry Tim, I can't make it to your photography exhibit this weekend, there's a meeting with the Justice League."

Tim:"Oh that's fine... I'll just ask Danny to come." 😏

Bruce: Narrows his eyes and grits his teeth, "Actually, the Justice League needs to have contingencies in place to manage without my input. This would be a good time to test their capabilities. I'll skip the meeting and come to your exhibit."

With both of them competing to spend more time with the kids it leads to the two of them spending time with each other to be around the kids more.

After Damian catches a terrible flu bug, Danny spends an entire weekend at the manor babying him. This is when Bruce finds out Danny has known their secret identities for months and tries to get mad about it but Alfred puts his foot down, raises a judgmental eyebrow in Bruce's direction that puts a stop to that nonsense and sets up Danny with his own room in the family wing.

Eventually, Danny gets to the point where he spends most of his nights at the manor and he and Bruce consult each other on all major household decisions.

The whole family is at the manor one morning including Danny. Bruce has a meeting at WE and he and Danny are absently discussing their plans for the day at the breakfast table.

Bruce: " The meeting should take most of the morning and then I have paperwork this afternoon and a scheduled walk through on one of the new engineering projects. I probably won't be done by the time school let's out. Can you pick up Damian today?"

Danny: "That shouldn't be a problem. Would you mind swinging by the bookstore on the way home and getting my preorder? Jay and I just finished rereading the first book and we were wanting to start the second tonight before you all go on patrol. I'd rather not try to make it to the bookstore in school rush hour traffic"

Bruce: "Sure."

Stephanie watches Danny reach out and absently straighten Bruce's tie as they both get up to leave. Bruce grabs Danny's coffee thermos and hands it to him while they walk out the door.

Stephanie: "Sooo, bets on how long until they realize they're basically married?"

[tales-of-the-ghost-zone]

A few months before Danny gets his powers, while on a trip to Gotham with his family (maybe there was a ghost convention or something). While in Gotham Danny some how figures out that Bruce Wayne is Batman. I don’t know how he figures it out, but he does. When they get back to Amity Danny jokingly makes a power point presentation for his parents about why they should put in their will that if something ever happened to them Bruce Wayne would get custody of him (and Jazz if she’s still underage at the time).

A couple of his points are:

He’s a billionaire so you know he’ll be able to afford to take care of me and Jazz

He has a mansion so lots of space and big rooms

He’s got a butler

He’s already well known for adopting black haired blue eyed children so he probs wouldn’t be opposed to taking me in

He’s got kids of his own already so me and Jazz would get more siblings!!

He’s Batman

Danny did the whole power point as a joke but his parents actually took it kind of seriously. Cause up to this point neither one of them had thought about what would happen to Danny and Jazz if the both of them where to die. So they make a will and put in it that if they both die then Bruce Wayne gets custody of their kids. And then they all promptly forget about it.

Two years later Bruce Wayne gets a call from a man claiming to be the executor of the Fenton will and that Bruce’s presence is requested in Amity Park for the reading of the Fenton will. Bruce is wracking his brain trying to remember who the Fenton’s are and if how he knows them. But the man is coming up blank (cause he’s never actually met them before). He goes to the will reading and is shocked to hear that the Fenton’s, two people he’s never met before, have left custody of their 16yo son to him.

Danny is just as shocked because holy shit that power point was a joke. He didn’t mean for his parents to actually take it seriously and do that!!! And Vlad is pissed. He was sure he was gonna get custody of Danny after killing off the Fenton parents! Bruce is trying to figure out why these two strangers left their son to him. He’s watching Danny with eagle eyes trying to figure the kid out. And he sees the way Danny flinches whenever Vlad gets close or puts his hand on Danny’s shoulder.

Vlad tries to convince Bruce it would be better for Danny if Bruce gave up custody to him(Vlad). He’s know the boy for two years after all and he was actually a family friend. Danny meanwhile is silently shaking his head and giving Bruce pleading eyes silently begging him not to let Vlad take him. Bruce just tells Vlad that the Fenton’s must have had a good reason for giving him(Bruce) custody instead of giving it to Vlad, and he’s going to abide by the Fenton’s wishes.

Bruce leaves with Danny and once in the limo he asks Danny if he’s ever met him or his parents before. Poor Danny has to explain how he jokingly made a power point about why his parents should leave custody of him to Bruce in the event of their deaths, and how he never thought his parents would actually take it seriously. But hey at least he doesn’t have to go live with Vlad now!

[animeredhead101]

Bruce Wayne / Danny Fenton Masterlist

Complete

Bask in Our Cosmic Insignificance by DisillusionedDanny :

After Lady Gotham sends a lost and alone King Phantom to check on a little boy Danny Fenton finds himself the new guardian "angel" of a six year old boy. Tim Drake. Word Count: 33,632

Of loss, longing and long duration. by Olive_of_Vanders :

Danny and Bruce were once in love, yet like all things it came to an end.

... So why are the Wayne kids still visiting him?

Word Count: 5,211

The Story of Us by DisillusionedDanny :

Danny Fenton and Bruce Wayne have been best friends since they were children. Of course, sometimes friendships fizzle out without anyone meaning for it to happen. People grow up, they change, they become Batman. Thankfully, Fate has a way of bringing people back together. When the Supers are poisoned by Lex Luthor with no treatment in sight, John Constantine suggests that they summon the strongest healer in the Infinite Realms to see if they can possibly heal the supers. For the first time in twenty years, Bruce Wayne finds himself face-to-face with Danny Fenton once more. Only now, his dorky childhood best friend is a lot more attractive than he remembers. Word Count: 33,030

Sweet Dreams (Are Made of These) by DisillusionedDanny for Olive_of_Vanders :

Danny Fenton has realized that his husband has a bit of an adoption problem. His only rule? No kid vigilantes.

Word Count: 3,712

The Prettiest Star by DisillusionedDanny :

After meeting the Ghost King for the first time, Bruce Wayne falls irrevocably in love. Next thing he knows, they're married and he has to introduce his immortal husband to his kids and pseudo adoptive father. Danny is just happy to be a part of a family again. Two hundred years of being alone is a long time. But now, he has nine little stars that will bring him love and companionship. He's also excited to get to be the cool step dad to a bunch of vigilantes. Word Count: 23,724

On-going

Of Ghosts and Bindings by MarshmallowBun :

Bruce gets knocked out as he is leaving a fundraiser, he wakes up tied down in a summoning circle. Next thing he knows there is a green portal being ripped into reality above him as a beautiful starry mist begins to leak out and form into a humanoid shape. Bruce cant help but think how beautiful this creature looks. Word Count: 21,872

Bird Buddies by MarshmallowBun :

Danny works at the Watchtower as a Technician/Mechanic, although being scouted out specifically by the Big Black Bat himself seems to make it hard for him to get along with his higher ups apparently.

Along the way danny gets a traffic light colored duckling that follows him around every-once-in-a-while.

Reposted from my Tumblr @minnesota-fats

Word Count: 33,071

Reunion of the Decade by Phantomworks :

"The bat kids meet Danny while they spy on the 'Bruce's Exes annual reunion'. Normally, they wouldn't notice him but is not any time that you see someone fistfight Talia Al Ghul" Word Count: 4,257

Phantoms and Foes by Zylev :

Krypton was dying long before it exploded. After a lab accident at 14 gave Danny ice powers, he used them for good to try and stop crime as the first hero of Krypton. But when thousands of years of mining the core of Krypton finally caught up to the planet, General Zod evacuated Krypton to the Phantom Zone before it exploded. Little did Zod know he led the Kryptonians to a slaughter. Years later, Danny is the only Kryptonian left alive when Kal-El finds the Phantom Projector and brings him to Earth. Danny must now adjust to having new powers and life on a planet that is completely different than Krypton and the Phantom Zone.

Word Count: 121,723

[amaramizuki666]

Dp x dc crossover

Imagine instead of like danny moving to Gotham to get away from hero stuff jason moves to amity park to get away from batman for awhile. And then jason and danny meet out of costume and danny notices jason has a slowly forming ghost core and is like "baby ghost, must adopt" and just draggs jason into his life and is trying to teach jason the ropes of being a ghost and Jason has no idea what's going on, but hes going along with it because danny reminds him of the kids back at the narrows who like to play games with jason. So Jason is just chill with it till he sees phantom getting attacked/kidnapped by the GIW and steps in. And after he beats the GIW phantom switches to his human form and Jason is like "wait what-"

[thatoctokittenclutchinganotebook]

I’ve read a lot of AUs where DAnny Fenton gets adopted by the Bats (actually what got me to watch Danny Phantom in the first place) but what if it was Dani who was taken in? This little ghost girl, who looks a lot younger than Danny, is flying around Gotham and has various encounters with the Bats, but keeps flying away or running away. They don’t realise at first that both her forms are one person. Jason looks out for the street kids in Gotham, and this one avoids all the gangs. She’s gone to Gotham to hide out from Vlad, because he’s afraid of going into Batman’s city.  She stays away from Batman herself as much as she can. She doesn’t want to be forced out of Gotham. Phantom (she uses that name still) is hardly seen, except at night committing very minor crimes (like for food, or mischief like breaking into an aquarium to see all the animals at night).  Dani is seen at homeless shelters and in the streets, always vanishing before anyone can approach her. Until she starts destabilising again.  It’s hard to get news from Amity in Gotham. A lot of things just don’t seem to get out. She tries to fly there, to get to Danny, but she’s destabilising and falls. One of the Batfam (I’m not sure who - Duke or Cass?) finds her and tries to help her.  “A kid, a meta I think, she’s almost dissolving and reforming-” They take her to the Justice League. They manage to use a form of stasis to keep her from destabilising completely, but are at a loss about how to save her.  Except for a theory that ectoplasm might be related to Lazarus water. She’s in stasis, but I would handwave it (like all comic books science) so she can talk but not move beyond that. She’s conscious but not able to use her powers. She and Damian have a combative relationship that becomes a grudging respect. I’m not sure how it would get to this point, but I have the idea of Damian stealing Lazarus water for her, believing it will help her. Bruce, during all this, would be looking for clues to her identity. Not to return her to a family she ran away from, but to find out if they know how to help her. He doesn’t find anything except a missing persons report for a Daniel Fenton, and some pleas broadcast on television funded by Vlad Masters (the most suspicious millionaire after Lex Luthor).  Dani is clearly not Danny, because she’s younger etc. But Bruce also finds records of a Danny Phantom. If he hadn’t seen Dani’s two forms, he wouldn’t have realised that Danny Phantom and Danny Fenton were the same. He has this time. And the two ghost hunters who were Danny Fenton’s parents must know something. Danny was identified as having ectoplasm in his body by the Guys in white, and he was carted off to be “cured” by them. Maddie did not approve. Jack did, because he’s a huge fan of them. During their attempted to “cure” him, they nearly kill him and cause him t come close to destabilising. He loses control of his powers and they discover he’s Danny Phantom. He lets loose with a ghostly wail and causes an ice storm through amity park. He, and other ghostly or “ecto-contaminated” prisoners make a break for the Ghost portal with help from Jazz, Sam and Tucker.  Once inside, Danny tells Jazz, Sam and Tucker they should leave, because he’s got to make sure the GIW can’t get in, and that no more ghosts can haunt Amity Park. They refuse. They’re pretty sure they’d be next on the list to be “cured”, anyway. Jazz had moved out at this point, having become 18. Danny uses all his remaining strength to help the others through the portal before turning back to destroy it. He nearly kills himself doing it, and falls into a deep unconsciousness. He spends nearly a year being cared for by Frostbite before he recovers enough to leave.

Danielle is not going to tell these superheroes or millionaires about ghosts or the ghost portal. She’s certain that if they know for sure she’s part ghost, she’ll be in big trouble because of the anti-ecto laws. She lets it slip to one of the other kids that it’s illegal for her to exist (Damian? Jon? I could set it in a different time and have it be a Titan?).  Bruce arranges a Bat-Burglary of Fentonworks. Jason sets off a Ghost Alarm. No one knows why. They can’t find anything that they think would work, but do find a weirdly encrypted set of files on the computer that had belonged to the missing Danny Fenton. They take them. The Fentons are woken by the alarm, but are restrained by whichever disguised Batfam member is there. Valerie also hears the alarm. Hoping it’s Danny (she knows his identity by this point), but fearing that someone’s managed to reopen the ghost portal, she heads towards there. After a complicated confrontation, she’s taken to see Dani. She explains how they helped her before. They treat her with the ecto-dejector, but they know now that it might only be a temporary fix. Dani is furious that Valerie has revealed she’s part ghost. Valerie’s like “They were searching Fentonworks, they already knew.” Valerie and Dani end up being pals. Dani and Valerie both end up joining whichever young superhero team is in place - the Teen Titans or Young Justice - and Bruce Wayne, Oliver Queen (if he’s still rich?) and Mento (can’t remember his real name) fund the repealing of the Anti-ecto laws. Tucker has figured out a way to, with help from the infinimap and clockwork, get signals from outside the ghost zone. Sam, Jazz and Tucker are all developing powers at this point due to the ongoing exposure to the Ghost zone, so know it’s not safe to leave. Possibly one of them actually died and became a ghost, and has really strong powers?

Danny finds out when he sees his “little cousin” on the news. The Fentons raise a fuss, saying that she’s a ghost, and the Justice League close ranks around her. Dani yells at them on live TV that they got Danny killed by the Guys in white, revealing his identity (she genuinely thinks he’s dead).  Danny is prepared to fly out and protect her with everything he’s got, but the Justice League are protecting her. WHen asked why they are breaking the Anti-ecto laws, they make a statement that those laws are unjust and that Danielle Phantom is a child, not a monster. The Fentons do not come across well. Danny doesn’t leave, doesn’t dare leave, until the Anti-Ecto laws are repealed. Even then, he’s scared it’s a trick.  He leaves, and tries to find a safe way to approach Dani. The Boo-merang finds him first. Not because it was set off on purpose, but because it’s still keyed to his ecto signature. While he was in the ghost zone, with no stable portals, it functioned like a normal boomerang. The Batkids (possibly Duke?) are messing around with it when it flies off in a bizarre direction. THey follow. They see Danny Phantom, a little dazed and rubbing his head but gearing up to fight. Dani runs past the others to hug him. Dani Wayne is the adopted child of Bruce Wayne, with a whole host of siblings. That doesn’t mean she isn’t delighted to have her “cousin” back.  Danny can’t do the secret identity thing anymore, after everything was revealed, and ends up splitting his time between one of the super teams and the Ghost Zone. Close on Frostbite whispering “Did anyone ever tell him that he’s the Ghost King?” I’ll probably never end up writing this, because I never have the spoons or time to write anymore, but writing out the idea was really fun. If anyone wants to “adopt” the idea let me know :D

[crazybth]

Interesting Crossover - Batman X My hero academia

In MHA, people said quirkless people can not be a hero. And heroes must have the license to perform heroic actions.

Batman is a hero without superpowers (Except he's rich 🤑) yet he is one of the most dangerous people in JL and a vigilante.

Not long time ago I read in fanfiction of Batman in MHA and it stuck in my head since then. The timeline is when Allmight is still young and Batman fights All for One with Nana.

He may have nothing but Batman is Batman. He won't stop fighting crime although he's in a different place and society ain't allow him to fight. The new vigilantes terrorize criminals and plant fear into their minds, The Dark Knight, The Batman.

Thanks for this fanfic. I enjoyed reading it and love to share it with you guys. What I like about this fic is...

"What if people didn't know Batman is quirkless."

Because, you know, a secret is a valuable asset. Imagine people theorizing what his quirk would be. Bat quirk, teleportation(that famous Batman vanishing trick haha), or even fear quirk. All for One doesn't imagine him fighting with a quirkless person at all.

What I want to add to the idea is...

I think it would be fun to see him transported from the DC universe in the timeline of Izuku's era.

And 'what if Batman took Izuku in and trained him to be his new Robin in this world'

Izuku who was told by many people quirkless can not be a hero. Until he met the Batman.

The Bat is an urban legend that happened to appear two years before the main timeline. People who see him, criminals said they were defeated by a ghost, a demon, a shadow that looked like a bat. At first, the police thought it was some sort of nonsense. But one day, the man in black clade armor looks like the bat appears and manages to take down a big villain. Now witnesses and records show to the world this bat is real and is a vigilante. They tried to track him down but before they could blink, he vanished in the thin air.

Izuku sees on the news that new vigilantes are helping defeat many villains and criminals. At first, he has fun analyzing and theorizing the vigilante's quirk. But somehow, he comes across the vigilante.

Batman shows Izuku a ton of ways to defeat people without superpowers.

Batman is the dad with the adopting kid issue and Izuku didn't have a dad in his life. PERFECT COMBINATION. Father and son relationship supremacy! Bruce gets blinded by a ray of sunshine 3 times a day. Remind him of Dick+Tim

And many more that would be interesting for Batman's interest in the MHA world. Such as>>>

Superhuman society, norm, and prejudice. (he would kick people's asses for sure)

Hero License and hero being paid (He still doesn't give a shit about the license. He is BATMAN.)

Heroes thought about Batman (Others might be skeptical of his method. Eraserhead might like him, I guess. And Stian, hmm, he could possibly see Batman as a real hero.)

Batman beats both villains and heroes. 😆

Batman smacks some parental sense in Endeavor

The New Wayne enterprise he established in this world supports the Support Department, I-Island, and many more (Medicine, security, engineering, etc.) for helping produce his gears and armor in secret and also improve many things he can do for people.

Batman might come up with the idea of creating a superhero team like JL. Because I think having only All might as a symbol of peace is a heavy burden and unstable. So having a team, with pillars from many places and backgrounds would be better for supporting society.

Batman showed off his detective skills and outsmarted everyone.

P.S. Let me know what you guys think. ^ V ^ b

[hisuian-history-makers]

Well. We know that the Fenton extended family are really affectionate people physically and just emotionally. So, I could see them treating Jack like any other blood related family member.

Now—think of what the Wayne brother’s share ironically. Bruce studied many different obscure topics in order to become Batman. Including some occult and otherwise supernatural stuff.

Jack Fenton’s whole career spawns from a fascination with ghosts. Even if he was inspired by his adopted family, he enthusiastically hunts down proof alongside Maddie. Can you imagine how weirded out Danny feels knowing his dad comes from old money? (Plus the whole being kidnapped as a newborn baby thing too.)

And, in this shared universe, I feel like Sam or Tucker would catch onto the fact Bruce Wayne is pretty suspicious. He’s always ducking out of formal occasions to deal with something. Pretty buff for a rich dude—Vlad’s rich yet built like a twig unless in his Plasmius form. Jason Todd died mysteriously years ago under his care, Tim Drake took over as Wayne Enterprises CEO for a short while, he has several kids (emotionally adopted for most of them), and he tends to go on vacations a lot only to come back injured.

That last one they had to comb through the Wayne Kids’ social accounts for. Even then it was only vague references toward him being out of action. Feel like they connected the dots to the Wayne Family being involved with vigilantism but not who is who. To be fair there are several people in the family—and most of the Gotham heroes are hard to get on camera.

Tucker’s working theories: Batman is sponsored by Bruce Wayne, related to him, or they are in a relationship. Sam’s theories: Bruce is Batman!

(I kinda got away from Danny but I think his best friends would react strangely to learning this. Vlad must be seething in this universe.)

—All I have for now, @ladydisasterinthemaking

Might make a fanfiction out of this.

This idea came to me yesterday while I was taking a break from my studies.

What if Jack Fenton is not the clone or half-brother of Bruce Wayne. What if he was the stolen twin brother of Bruce Wayne, and their parents thought he died a few hours after he was born because someone wanted the Waynes to suffer. Thomas and Martha were too heartbroken to ever speak about the death of their son. Then Damian and Danny meet in Gotham during Casper High’s field trip. Damian thinks Bruce had a child with another woman, and he’s p*ssed off about it. Danny insists that he wasn’t some billionaire’s child, and that his parents are both loyal to each other. Then Danny shows Damian a picture of his parents. Now Damian thinks his father was cloned instead. They call the whole Fenton family in Gotham. They do a DNA test. Bruce finds out. Turns out, Jack’s kidnappers took him as far away as they can manage, which was in Minnesota. They dropped him on an orphanage and his adoptive parents eventually took him in as their child (as an infant). Bruce is freaking out. The batfam is in chaos. Alfred is heartbroken, but is doing his best to support the Wayne family. Damian has been appeased. At least this boy isn’t an usurper.

I know this breaks like a lot of lore from Danny Phantom. This is just a ‘what if’ and a random idea.

[phantoms-lair]

BatFam Snippet

"Danny, we need to talk."

Danny was already stressed with having to deal with Vlad having been there earlier. Wayne having to talk to him in that tone sent his anxiety through the roof. "What about?"

"Your past. As Danny Fenton and Phantom."

"No-you can't-you can't know-" But obviously he did. Danny had messed up and he was known and it was over, it was all over.

"Danny breath," Bruce commanded. "I want to help you."

"That's what he said." Danny was hyperventilating. "I can help you with your powers. I can help you. Well, the last time a millionaire we a secret identity and underground lair expressed a desire to help me and adopt me, I ended up in a power nullification box while he tried to kill my Dad, so no thank you!"

Bruce didn't have time to unpack all that, even if some things suddenly made a horrible kind of sense. Staying in Wayne Manor must have been traumatic for him. He hadn't expected Danny to know he was Batman, or that it would actually make it harder for the kid to trust him.

"Danny, I've read your parents' thesis on ghosts." Danny flinched. "And they read like a hate crime. One that it sadly looks like the government has bought into." That was a new description. "What do you mean a hate crime?"

"These beings, though capable of rational thought, are other. They don't have real emotions, can't feel pain, and only exist to cause suffering to humans, therefore it's not only perfectly fine to do horrible things to them but morally justifiable to kill them," Bruce summarized. "It's exactly the kind of rational people use to commit atrocities on each other. And while I certainly don't wish your parents dead." Facing professional censure, yes. But not dead. "Given your abilities I don't think you're be safe in that environment, much as I wouldn't trust people who champion conversion therapy with the well being of a queer teenager. And I don't think you feel safe there either, or you wouldn't be trying to hide on the streets of Gotham."

"They love me," Danny protested weakly.

"But they don't love all of you."

Danny wilted.

"Danny, right now there are two factions trying to claim you, your parents and Vlad." He assumed from what Danny had said earlier. "And neither would be safe places for you. And you can't tell child services why without putting a bigger target on your back for a certain government agency."

"I'm sure you can handle yourself in a fight, but a legal battle is something else. I have the double bonus of being a very public figure who'd be hard to make disappear and a good legal department. I can keep you safe until you're no longer in danger, then help you find a new home."

That caught Danny's attention. "A new home?"

Bruce raised an eyebrow. "You've made it very clear you're not happy here. Once your physical well being is assured, the priority is your emotional well being. And if here isn't a good place for you, I want to find somewhere that it." That was...Vlad would never give him up. Never. "Ideally, where would you place me?" "With Superman's parents." Bruce answered without hesitation. "Superman's parents?" Danny asked in disbelief. Bruce shrugged. "They have experience taking care of metahuman children. They're very humble and down to Earth. Their farm has plenty of space for you to fly. And one only has to see the son they already raised to know it's a good loving home. But that said, they are getting on in years and I don't know that they'd be up for raising another teenager. But you asked for the ideal and that would be it."

Okay, this was a lot he needed to go over. But...later. "Okay, but before we tackle anything else, there's something I need to tell you about Vlad..."

[ckbookish]

BATMAN BINGO MASTER POST 2020

1 "I thought you were dead.": I Still See Your Ghost 

Today was just not Dick's day. First he overslept his alarm and was late to work. Amy had been less than impressed at his tardiness... Then He had bungled what should have been an easy take town... But the straw that broke the camel's back was Tim. Dick had forgotten to call Tim. 

2 Friendly fire: Fratricide 

Jason was pissed. No, Jason was enraged. Yeah, he was enraged at the whole mess his family-- if that’s even what they were to each other anymore-- had gotten him in. It was meant to be a simple night. Break in. Torch the drugs. Maybe shoot a couple of people and go home. But no, Batman heard about his plans and decided that arson was too extreme. “Someone could get hurt.” Well someone had gotten hurt, a lot of someones. 

3 Hypothermia: Weekend Commute 

Dick Grayson makes his way home during the first snow fall of the year, when he finds himself confused and cold, miles from home.

Chapter two Bruce's perspective.

4 Superman: Bringer of the Dawn

The Aftermath of when the Joker shoots Dick.

or

Where do you go when your family tells you to get out?

5 Shot: The Gratitude Trap

Bruce finds himself in the dark, a place he never thought he would be when it came to Clark Kent and Dick Grayson. Yet here he is digging for answers, because he is too scared to pick up the phone and call. 

6 Two-face: The Better Choice 

How do you reconcile the man who was once your friend with the monster he has become? Bruce reflects on how the man he once called his best friend changed. How could the man who helped him foster Dick, hold that baseball bat? 

7 Drowning: Omori’s Law

Deep in the sewer's under Gotham, Batman is trapped. There is no back up, no Robin. He is faced with the single truth that he tried to teach each of his partners... You have to save yourself. 

  8 Found Family: A Restoration from a Resilient Heart

Dick just wants to not be alone with the shadows in the house. Bruce doesn't realize he has lived with them for far to long, and maybe he doesn't have to anymore.

9 Adoption: The Irrefutable Truth

When he reached the reception, he found himself looking around a fairly empty room. There were a few call girls in the corner filling out forms, an older woman holding a dog, a kid that looked about twelve and a middle aged man who looked like he was ready to cry. He knew no one. Dick was about to turn around and head back to his desk when the on duty officer called out to him. Officer O’Conner was one of his fellow rookies, he had a thick accent. Dick thought he might be from Louisiana. “Grayson! Why didn’t you say your brother was coming to see you?” Dick looked at him with his mouth slightly open. There was no way he heard that right. “My what?” 

10 Bruises: Mr. Wayne

Tim is new to this. He's only been Robin for a little over six months. It was going well. But now he was going to be fired. Batman wouldn't want a partner who got caught at school with a black eye. Would he?

11 Bruce is dead: You Have One Saved Message 

Gotham gossip columns spread lies and smear good people's names. But yet Damian can't help but think maybe this mornings article was true.  That despite all his claims of being the true son of Bruce Wayne, he was in fact the only unwanted one.

12 CPR: Vital Signs 

Robin wakes to find him and Batman in an exploded factory. With Batman injured and the building burning around them, Dick struggles to get them both to safety.   

13 Dad:  Storge 

Bruce could have sworn his spirit had left him momentarily.  The sudden hollowness that filled him couldn’t be explained in any other way. 

 “Your dad must have his hands full with you.”  Elizabeth Ribbons leaned forward and patted Dick’s shoulder, as he reached for yet another slice of cheesecake from a passing waiter’s tray.  

Bruce fixed his eyes on the ice sculpture that hid him from view.  It suddenly seemed like the most interesting design in the world.  The soft lines of the ice on the otherwise insignificant over sized swan seemed like a lead shield...  Because Dick would read it easily in his expression. He wanted to be Dick’s dad.  But he wasn’t. 

14 Stealing the Batmobile: T-Minus Six Hours

Some days Tim is sure that he’s gonna be killed. Usually it’s some luck shot or near miss that made his life flash before his eyes. Not today though. Today he was positive Bruce was going to kill him. Yes, today was the day that Timothy Jackson Drake was going to be put down. He’s not sure that even Nightwing could save him. He was going to go down in history as the first sidekick to be murdered by their mentor. Because the Batmobile was definitely not where he’d parked it.

15 Wayne Enterprises: Amidst the Absence of Meaning 

Bruce is worried. He's running on less than three hours of sleep, and way too many cups of coffee. He had messed up. That much was obvious. The question was would Dick forgive him?

A gruesome night on patrol bleeds into Bruce's work day and now all he can wonder is if this is the thing that will push Dick over the edge? Had he finally seen to much pain?

16 Ransom: Sum of My Worth

The ring of the phone seemed to echo through the manor’s still too quiet long, winding halls, and everyone present collectively held their breath. Bruce lunged for the phone.   

17 Secret Injury: Hiding in Pain Sight

“What?” Dick asked sharper than he meant to. He was tired.

“Nothing.” Tim said with a small smirk. “Heavy is the head.”

Dick closed his eyes, glad that Tim couldn’t see them. He was so sick of this. Tim, Jason, Damian and Cass all didn’t think he was good enough, well Cass hadn’t said that, but Dick could read her. They didn’t think he was up to the job. Well they didn’t need to tell him that. He knew it.

18 Superboy: An Interlude in Breathing 

Tim looked out over the water in a daze. Bruce and Dick had gone somewhere below deck and he was alone. Well there were strangers on the ship mingling and talking excitedly--but Tim gave them no notice. Instead he watched the water lap up against the hull and crash down back to meet the dark, cold waters. They were far enough out that he could no longer see the shore. It was just endless expenses of sea and sky. Something tickled his neck and he started, only to realize he had been crying. It was only a tear slipping under his collar.

The days after the battle of Infinite Crisis

19 Betrayed: Smother

She took another drag of the cigarette, letting the smoke roll in her lungs for a long moment before allowing it hiss out between her teeth. The screams from the warehouse weren’t completely muffled by the distance, or the walls. Perhaps she was only imagining them. But then, sounds like that, she didn’t think she could dream up. She jumped after a particularly high pitched yelp. “Get a grip.” She dropped the cigarette and pulled out another. Her hand shook as she lit it. “It’s just some random kid. He’s not--” She bit back a sob. She didn’t deserve to cry. She had no right to tears, not when it was her fault.   

20 Crowbar: Breaklights

The mail fell to the ground and the paper smacked the tiles hard.  The sound in reality couldn’t have been all that loud, but it seemed to echo around the entryway.  Bruce didn’t look at the dropped bills and the invitation to a fundraiser for the new Gotham women’s shelter.  He was too fixated on the small stamp with the queen of England's head on it.  Wolverhampton.  

The large envelope was far heavier then it should have been.  Bruce could feel bile crawling up his throat.  

He had forgotten.

21 Deathstroke: Debts and Dues

There were some things that were never pleasant, getting caught in the snow without socks, losing your keys, and not being able to remember the name of a song. Having a gun pointed at your chest, Dick felt, qualified as extremely unpleasant. He stood stock still. The barrel of the gun was still hot, it burned slightly as it dug into his sternum. Even with his uniform he could still feel the heat left over from previous rounds fired. He didn’t flinch. He couldn’t flinch. “Move.” “You know I can’t.” Dick wondered if Slade had the guts to do it.   

22 Mission Gone Wrong: Murmur in the Quiet Hours

Superman? Clark froze. He knew that voice. But-- he had never heard it sounding so sad. Was that-- no. Clark dove for his phone, still on the counter from when he got home last night. The screen was black. Dead. Clark swore and dropped it. He was in his coat and shoes before it hit the counter top.   

23 Kidnapped:  Chum 

Dick trumped through the leaves, stopping his feet roughly. He relished the sound of the crunch beneath his shoes as he tread on the brown, dead leaves before him. He felt rather justified in his satisfaction. After all the world had taken so much from him, why wouldn’t he do his best to crush it in return. The woods were cool and as he went deeper into them they grew darker. The sun had long set, and the sky was quickly vanishing as the trees grew thicker. Wayne Manor was far behind him. He was never going back. He hated those pristine walls, those old floor boards. He hated the quiet. He hated the stuffy furniture and the rules and the vases and pictures. He hated his new guardian and that… that… Dick couldn’t remember what Alfred was called, but he hated it. The bag on his back felt heavy. It had everything Dick owned in it. Well and a toothbrush that Alfred had given him. But he didn’t think that was really stealing. 

24 Riddler: Seeking Silence on Shortwaves

Normally Dick would be happy to listen to Tim talk. In fact, Dick thought it was one of his favorite sounds in the world. Tim rarely allowed himself to be excited about things. Hearing him speak so freely and openly to Bruce and him about his plans was refreshing. Dick only wished it wouldn’t be at the cost of his life.

Batman hadn't always been so strict about talking unnecessarily over comms. When it was just two of them it hadn't mattered, their walkie talkie system had always worked. But now that Nightwing and Robin were in Gotham, it seems insane that they never realized: if only one person can talk over the radio at a time... how could they call for help?

25 Mr. Freeze: Glimpsing the Sun While Trapped in the Rime

He almost called Bruce between his fourth and fifth class. He pulled his phone out, leaning against his locker, and half dialed his number when a warm hand fell on his shoulder. “Hey.” Dick spun around and blinked back black spots as his body protested the sudden movement. A blaze of red hair filled his vision and Dick felt a small fire build in his chest. His face split into a wide smile.

After a run in with Mr. Freeze Dick finds himself feeling odd at school, but he can't go home, not when Barbara's asked him to drive her to Betty's party after school.

[sykhle]

Okay but, Cujos first victim? Really a criminal, Bad People™ extraordinaire. Use your imagination on what exactly they did but somehoe someway they also hurt/target kids.

Jason? Hears about this. Sees this absolute trash of a human being mauled by an apparently eldritch dog.

And you know what? Keeps the children safe, has an owner he is fiercely protective of, who is prime adoption bait and RADIATES younger sibling energy.

Clearly a good boi. Look at those eyes.

Jason sees no problem. He has also killed those who are irredemeable. He gets it.

'No B, there is clearly NO problem, you leave this poor dog alone, now! *ushers them into Crime Alley* SEE? They're on MY turf, you are Not wanted, go back. Shoo.'

(the crime alley kids ALSO support this, cause glowing green cute ghost dog. Don't tell me you wouldn't want to pet him.)

Damian?

Sees the green puppy. Who, according to Father, is apparently the newest Gotham Serial Killer.

But that can't be. He is too smol. Must be pet. And adopted. Obviously, puppy is innocent, how could such a tiny thing leave those claw marks?

...

Damian Sees Cujo grow big. Which. Hm.

Okay, MAYBE the claw marks fit. But look at his first victim, that is clearly a Criminal™. Poor dog just wants to justice. Yes, such a good boi. Continue.

(is there any evidence about illegal activities of all of Cujos other victims? If not:

Damian: Clearly the dog only targets bad people. It doesn't matter if there is no evidence for the others. Just means they were good enough criminals that they did Not leave any evidence for us to find. He is a hero. I shall adopt him. He will get along with Titus.

Batman: no-

Damian: oh, so YOU get to drag in crime fighting strays and declare them part of the family but when I DO IT-

Also, all of Gotham sees Robin seething that he cannot pet the dog. Standing on a rooftop just outside of Crime Alley and just absolutely livid while Red Hood is laughing while giving Cujo belly rubs.

Then he sees Danny, the owner of Cujo. With black hair and blue eyes.

...he shall get Father to adopt this one, for access to Cujo. He supposes, that when a new sibling will gain him access to a dog, then it is acceptable.

We all love eldritch abomination Danny but consider: Pseudo-psychopomp Danny & his eldritch puppy.

Whereas Danny doesn't know how he ended up in Gotham with Cujo, this small ghost puppy that seemingly would act as his guard dog. It doesn't help that Cujo was the one who was behind all the serial murders in Gotham, where corpses are found unrecognizable and seemingly mauled to death by a canine.

("Cujo is a good boy! It's just that they're bad people...I think...?")

It also doesn't help that he got somewhat adopted in the process.

[beepboopthesnoop]

Batfam Ghost AU

(Based off the American Horror Story Ghost rules) However, I have altered them so that ghosts can go out at night but they must return to the house. They also must have died on the grounds of the house.

Alfred is the oldest ghost in both age and the fact that he's been stuck in the house serving the Wayne's since the 1910's. Bruce was cared for by Alfred but his parents couldn't see Alfred because he didn't want to make himself officially known to them. Bruce's parents die in an Alleyway in the 1950's but Bruce travelled and trained. He became Batman and died in the 1970's before he could make himself known as Batman. He realized he could hunt at night as Batman and as technology furthered he could create fake Wayne's and eventually reestablish himself into society with lavish parties.

In the 90's Dick's parents were killed. He hunted their killer but when he found him couldn't go through with it and the guy shot him. Bruce found him as Batman but, Bruce is a big bleeding heart and let the kid have a choice about whether he wants to live. Surprisingly, Dick doesn't die that day and Alfred heals him at the manor. Bruce adopts Dick. And eventually, becomes Robin but dies later on a Young Justice mission when he's round 21 and the leader. Kid Flash rushes him back to the manor where he dies.

Jason dies as a kid, dies as Robin. Bruce tries to rush him back but they think it's too late and he died before he had a chance to reach the manor. He's in the manor but angry at his death and refuses to make himself known until Tim is adopted. Jason is resurrected by the league and still becomes Red Hood. He's still alive. He leaves the manor as he pleases and refuses to come back for a long time, the pit still in his system.

Tim is another alive family member. For all his genius of figuring out who Batman and Robin are he never suspects that they're ghosts. He just feels awful when no one ever comes to parent-teacher interviews. It really enforces his imposter syndrome.

Finally, Damian. Damian is half-dead. A zombie but sentient. Half-deads can interact in both worlds of the living and the dead. His mother is also half-dead and that's why he was able to be born.

[currentfandomkick]

Marinette did not sign up for this part 8

first part here previous part here ao3 here

update at last!

--

Marinette almost screamed when she saw the knitting needles on her balcony. It wasn’t even her birthday yet. Was he around? Taunting her?

School wasn’t helping. She kept her eyes on the windows.

It didn’t help her team was scanning the area constantly… and she was certain that Kagami somehow got out of school as she could spot Ryuuko before school even started, and her shadow had’t moved often.

Alya, Nino and Adrien weren’t leaving her side. Kim had taken to joining them (and with him, Max and Alix) with Kim determined to get Marinette to wear one of his hoodies since “you look cold.”

She knew that was code. ‘Let me help.’ She wasn’t sure this was something safe for them to help with.

“Thanks but I’m good!” was highly ineffective.

Before lunch Kim had his hoodie on her. It made it harder to find her with the change from her usual outfits once Adrien and Alix stole her hairbands.

They were doing a plain sight disguise. She knew it.

Going to Alix’s after school helped a bit with that.

She still felt eyes on her. She couldn’t tell who’s.

Alix was the one to break out the guardian translations with her dad. The Kubdels knew more than most of her team—time travel side effects after all. It was a big part of why she could trust them in the first place: Alix wanted to help and her father knew there would be a Ladybug in Paris before giving Alix the family heirloom. When Marinette saw it after studying the miraculous for a bit and asking Fu if there could be two rabbit miraculouses… it lead to Fu merging the two (from two separate timelines).

In the one Mr. Kubdel was from, a girl named Bridgette took up the role of Ladybug and was followed around by a questionable Black Cat. Mr. Kubdel’s grandfather prevented that timeline from happening—changing key events and all—but was prepared for the chances another rabbit would be needed. His son was not a good fit… (poor research, questionable retention, and overall bad at delicate work) meanwhile Alix had street art done quickly and intricately, fast reflexes, and adored learning history to the point some topics had been re-written in the curriculum for “the complete BS this hack is pushing” and “obvious refusal to stick to the facts” among other objections with heavily cited and sourced works to back up her claims. To a truly terrifying degree.

Its also why once they were out of sight, Alix and Mr. Kubdel and her escaped to one of the secret passaged kept off the current schematics for Miraculous related reasons (escape without being seen leaving) and Alix brought them into her burrow sans ‘time windows’ for her peace of mind.

“What do you want us to do Ladybug?” Bunnix asked.

That was the question…

They tracked that the issue began with what let Robin identify her in the first place. The most likely culprit was the flaming akuma… if Alix went as Bunnix and helped Ladybug catch the butterfly or got it someone else, then Robin would never have identified her, and their current situation wouldn’t be happening.

She wouldn’t be hunted by the Ghosts of Gotham.

But then… her team wouldn’t exist, not as it does.

Chat wouldn’t know who she is.

She wouldn’t exist.

She… she wasn’t willing to give that up.

“We’re not undoing the past.”

Bunnix nodded, gliding around the empty space.

Mr. Kubdel opened and closed his mouth before finally offering his own suggestion. “Perhaps, we could capture them.”

Marinette ran over that option. It wasn’t bad. Not by a long shot… but the capture would deprive Gotham of its vigilantes…

“We only keep Robin, any others captured are cut loose as soon as possible and removed.”

“But Robin is the one that knows your identity,” Bunnix reminded her.

“The others probably figured it out already. But that’s not why we’re keeping him.”

Mr. Kubdel gestured for her to clue them in.

“Remember what the Aesir and Vanir did to end their dispute?”

Mr. Kubdel searched his memories until it hit him. “Ah. That.”

Marinette nodded. “Add in a game of chase, move to the home turf, and we have our plan.”

“And you’re bait?” Bunnix checked, no longer moving about as she absorbed the plan.

--

If you were a civilian in Paris, you might catch sight of what must be someone’s idea of a joke. As not only were there Big Justice Members running around with your local heroes—who up until this point had only worked with one other group (Quantics) who were Europe-based.

But seeing some guy in black with a bluebird on his chest go head to head with Rena, Miss Sting and a very pissed off Monkey King and Pegasus (since when does he get mad like that? Kid looks like he’s going to end Bluebird) was not a sight you were able to process at the moment. Wonder Woman joining the group was the cherry on top. and Carapace was moving civilians out of the way and sometimes caging them all in Shelter.

You also catch an enraged Chat Noir and Ryuuko tearing after some fashion disaster in a cape down the street. A cape for godsake. In broad daylight. Green Lantern was flying after them, and since when does Chat’s suit… move? Like, you’re pretty sure that’s not normal… at all.

Ryuuko and Fashion Disaster (FD for short) are sword fighting. Chat is attacking FD at any opening. Viperion is with them, sometimes shouting directions. Green Lantern seems to be keeping the fight from spilling over.

A check on the Miraculous News App shows pics of Fashion Disaster trying to get too close to the baker’s daughter. You know, the one that kind of slips the heroes snacks and is seen with Chat randomly at her balcony? The one you’re 30% sure he’s crushing on and in some war with Ryuuko for the heart of. Why else would the two be seen so often around it?—Akuma school is across the street.

You blink a few times when you realize that baker’s daughter is visibly scared of FD (and you’d be too if a random Mask with a sword showed up) and apparently had Bunnix with her at the time to help move faster.

That meant whatever happened in another time had to be bad…

Bunnix mentioned that in the world where she went Princess Justice there wasn’t much to stop her…

You can see why the team is a tad… okay, really overzealous. You’re pretty sure Chat tried to cataclysm FD after Ryuuko sent him flying with the air attack.

You manage to get a better view (For the People! and not to mock the villain later—no siree!) of the Bluebird fight. Dude gets taken down by a combination of things in short sucession—Monkey King landing a hit with his power, Wonder Woman’s lasso (through a portal—good on you Pegasus!) that he got pulled through, a flute to the head by Best Girl Rena, and paralyzed by your favorite striped heroine.

The take down shocked FD and Green Lantern caged the guy (teen? Kid? They look small.) and moved them over by Wonder Woman and her group, some of whom dispersed to recharge.

Never claim Bruce is not a dedicated parent. The best? He hopes not. The worst? He has met Stephanie’s parents, and he is far from them. And Cas’s. And he knows he’s not as bad as Rah’s. He is dedicated (and a serial adopters, but shhh). How does he know this?

He managed to reactivate his kid’s trackers and noted where they intersected and looked into properties, deeds, and children in the school across from the bakery Stephanie and Cass had taken to camping out in when not at their hotel rooms. So far, he narrowed down his daughter to three possible candidates—Mireille Caquet, Marinette Dupain-Cheng and Laura Pretre. The only three girls in the age range he suspects Ladybug is in (he paid attention to the early videos and crossed her references, videogames and knowledge of the teens’ involved (re: knowing their names before the class became an akuma gold mine).  They are also the only three from his candidate pool who were adopted or single mother of the right age to have caught his younger self’s attention—a few interviews of the heroes let slip that Ladybug’s parents and her team’s parents are unaware of what they do, and her vicious support for child support and adoptive parents in a few akuma instances gave credit to her belonging to one of those two groups.

It was between Marinette and Laura in his opinion—they both ran a fashion boutique online. Mireille was a model the two shared, but still a possibility.

Jason was helped him narrow it down—a consolation for being stuck in bed and not allowed on patrol for the night. Apparently he was also trying to call off the identity search in-person to prevent any accidental identity reveals and prevent further stressing of “Lady Bat”.

Bruce may have smiled at the nickname. He doubted his daughter would appreciate it, but nicknames had a strange habit of sticking if Jason gave it… for better or worse in Tim’s case. (He was glad that Replacement was replaced with Tiny Tim, Timbo and Timmy).

He also noted that the girls were intent on Gabriel Agreste being Hawkmoth… and had a strange obsession with his relationship to Mayura given their search histories. Tim was still deciding between designers, and he did note that Marinette ranked highly on there… which was both a relief and terrifying.

That meant everyone but his daughter’s “business conduct supervisor” (Adrien Agreste, only son of Gabriel Agreste, primary candidate as Hawkmoth) had been akumatized and someone she had to personally fight while they hurled who knew what at her. He doubted it was good for her mental health. (Not that he has much room to talk, but still.)

Damian and Dick were refusing to respond to his messages, and likely engaged in something.

Until Green Lantern lit up his screen with a pained look. “Bats, this is not what I meant by get your house in order.”

The view panned to Nightwing and Robin currently held by a very pissed off Wonder Woman. With Chat Noir glaring at Robin, something off with his suit.

Batman sighed deeply. “I told you those two weren’t responding since Robin returned with Red Hood last night.”

Green Lantern looked at someone off screen, clearly taking commands from them.

“Uh, yeah… We’re having Supergirl get the other three back Stateside. Miss Sting and Chat want to interrogate these two since Robin was caught around a civilian they keep an eye on.”

Batman could hear what wasn’t being said. Robin went to talk to Ladybug’s civilian identity and it blew up in his face.

“… are any of you allowed to be present to monitor the interrogation?”

He doubted the teens would get violent. (he hoped) but there were too many unknowns.

A hiss from Chat Noir ended his ‘not likely to get violent’ train of thought. His one of his sons was caught stalking their leader, who he has previously tried to kill, and another aimed a gun at a member of their team. Violence was on the table.

And he couldn’t do a damn thing about it.

“Ladybug will choose who comes.”

Robin looked up at him from the background. “Permission to ask Father a question?”

There was a moment when everyone turned to the figure off screen, likely Miss Sting given Ladybug’s refusal to be in the Justice League’s presence.

Robin turned back to the screen, Hal moving closer to give him a better view of Robin. HE was largely unbruised on his face and his breathing was even. Positive indicators.

“Am I allowed to unmask?”

Batman froze. Jason looked up from his spot. He could feel Babs choking on something in shock.

Hal and Diana reacted somehow, but they weren’t in screen.

He meant to do this far later. When she adjusted. To her alone, and later let her team know. ease them into it—there was no knowing one of their identities without knowing the rest. Not with how Ladybug’s mind worked. And he doubted she kept many secrets from her team.

“…I am not opposed to it. Preferably keep it to those you trust with that knowledge alone.”

Robin nodded. “Understood Father.”

--

When Ladybug showed up, she could feel everyone’s eyes on her. She ignored it as best she could, especially the silent Nightwing and Robin… possible assassins. Sent by her biological father who never even met her. it was going to be a long plan execution (and gods, she still needed to double check on the Hawkmoth as Gabriel theory and work out how to remove him from the company without screwing over a decent chunk of the fashion industry workers from design, store front to manufacturers and suppliers. And emotional whiplash of Hawkmoth trying to kill his own son twice. And the times he tried to manipulate her into Princess Justice and have it Stick in the timeline).

All it took was one look at Pegasus. One look and she blocked all the other issues swimming in her mind.

“Ah, we’re going there then… It’s a good thing Cowboy is resting for the moment…” Pegasus shook his head. “Voyage!”

Ladybug looked them over.

“Chat, Miss Sting, Rena, and Pegasus, I need you with me. The rest of you, patrol or return to civilian life until I return. If you come across an akuma, jar them. Contact us if you need a fix only.”

Carapace nodded, looking over at Kim and Alix. “We won’t let you down.”

Ladybug nodded, her eyes narrowing at the two League members present. She was still debating contacting the ‘only in an emergency do you contact this rogue branch’ group… they were once lead by a Chat Noir candidate, or still were… she wasn’t clear on that detail. What she did know is they went by League of Shadows in the book, but it was noted they favored violent forms of destruction, and she wasn’t sure if they needed that method… didn’t want them to need it either.

But the book stated the Amazons were loyal to Ladybugs. “Wonder Woman, please ensure the Bats are out of my city before we return.”

“Of course Ladybug.”

She turned to the Green Lantern. A shakier alliance with the lanterns historically, but also known to tell the Ghosts of Gotham off, and so far he’s shown a high favor of her team’s stance over his technical ally’s. Perhaps a personal grudge, or maybe the Justice League operated more like Gabriel’s company—a chain of command, specific roles somewhat dependent on each other, and no one had to like one another…

Wonder Woman was better to ensure the Bats left.

Green Lantern was the one holding Robin in his ring. And his “Core” as the book said, was most responsive to Ladybug who didn’t hesitate to protect others and themselves at once. That they showed a level of comradery during times when the Order followed philosophies that could be linked the idea of “personal and individual impact upon others with one’s actions and choice” was the exact wording.

She hoped she was doing this right.

“Green Lantern, if you would be so kind as to come with us and bring Murder Robin? You are free to roam once we get there, but don’t try to locate where on earth we are then. It’s the one place Hawkmoth hasn’t been able to reach, and I’d like to keep it that way.”

Green Lantern and Robin both agreed readily.

Nightwing looked like he really wanted to argue. A lot.

Wonder Woman somehow kept him from speaking as they left.

Marinette could finally breath when they entered the Temple. She wasn’t able to bring back the Guardians. She could bring back their scrolls, the library, the training rooms. It also meant they were far from Paris, from Hawkmoth’s reach, and that now the real plan had to be put in action… how to keep the bats out of Paris and her secret identity a secret. (Hawkmoth could wait. She needed time to work that out, and once she was sure, once the nagging doubt and what ifs stopped plaguing her… then she’d look for that solution… maybe Adrien could inherit early or they could arrange for his father to be caught committing tax fraud or something after getting Nooroo and Duusuu? Anything to ensure he was punished for his actions and that Adrien isn’t caught in the crossfire. She can’t lose the literal other half of her soul. She just. Can’t.)

Ladybug paused when she looked over Chat. His suit was… moving. Shadows were moving on his suit. That. That can’t be good.

“Chat, bring Murder Robin somewhere he can’t find a weapon, Miss Sting, make sure no one attacks anyone in any way, am I clear?”

Miss Sting gave a curt Nod while Chat hissed, but relented easily enough.

Green Lantern put a hand on her shoulder while Pegasus ran off to the library, likely to check up on his own additions to the place… bringing it into the twenty-first century was not easy.

“Going to check-in with what’s going on with your Cat?”

Ladybug glanced at him. “He’s my partner.”

“Pretty sure that’s what a Black cat is for a Ladybug,” Green Lantern said.

Ladybug didn’t respond, moving away from him and Rena to message Alix to find out what shadows have to do with the Black Cat… and if she needs to worry about a second Atlantis event.

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

so things are happening because Mari is Smart Strategist, Protect Mari Squad is a force to be reckoned with (teen superheros love local baker daughter that gives them food and lets them hang out), Kubdels Know Their Timelines (Sort of) and Wonder Woman and Hal know better than pissing of a Ladybug while Bruce is off Suffering and Putting Shit Together.

and yeah, Damian is both the one who started this, and the one that Marinette wants to confront, (plus respects her secret ID rights unlike Certain Bats who made it a competition) so he gets First Meet rights in the way None Of Them Wanted.

anyone who wants to add to the madness, feel free to comment possible things and i'll see what sticks and doesn't.

fight scenes are Not My Best so i tried where I could (Sorry to batfam fans who wanted Dick to be Badass. he's up against Diana and four miraculous members directly PLUS carapace 'i am locking you into this space now' shelter? he's good but its Wonder Woman and five demi-god level heroes raised on adapt and overcome heroing. long battle but he was going to lose.) Damian's fight is left up to interpretation but Team-Work makes the Dream Work for this story.

@heldtogetherbysafetypins @laurcad123 @raisuke06 @chaosace@jeminiikrystal @toodaloo-kangaroo @kris-pines04 @bisha43rbs @izang

[red-winters]

*Batfam fic-recs

*Some are Tim Drake Centric

**Some links are not working in mobile (and ONLY mobile) for some reason? And some titles that were bolded in the original post are ALSO not displaying on mobile correctly. Idk what to do about that, but you can still look up the fic, I guess.

The Bat’s Crest - livierambles

Note: I will always keep recommending this fic. It’s epic, thrilling, and hilarious and sometimes angsty. Also, everyone is confused, including the ones doing the confusing. Maybe especially the ones doing the confusing. Also, some Tim and Damian bonding, which is always nice.

Summary: Tragedy strikes the hero community when Bruce Wayne commits a crime so heinous even the best start asking for blood. However, as the heroes try to recover from the hit and carry out justice for their friends, a random assortment of people start acting oddly, including the current Speedy Tim Drake, a child hostage in Gotham, and a young man from an unremarkable circus amongst others. All of them seem intent on saving Bruce Wayne from the grasp of the Justice League for no apparent reason, going as far as betraying their previous allegiances.

Unknown to the Justice League, these people are equally confused. Clearly they're stuck in another dimension, but how do they get back? How did they even get here? Who else is stuck in this world? And how long will Tim's patience last? Back home, the Bat was a planetary symbol that struck fear in the hearts of criminals. In this new world, it has no meaning, save for the handful of stranded souls.

In the Shadows - Kieron_ODuibhir

(shortened) Summary:

“I’m not like you.”

The cowl still looked like something he was wearing, but Clark knew it was not. It flexed like skin when Batman narrowed his blank white eyes and said, “I can see you know that.” 

Chirp - AmariT

Summary: Every piece of the signal Tim unlocked revealed more locks, and by the time he broke through the last one, he was already mentally rehearsing his many upcoming talk show appearances. 'Yes,' he told the interviewer, 'it was difficult for me, a ten-year-old genius, to break open the worldwide alien conspiracy. That's why it took a whole hour.'

When the crackling audio started, he expected some weird alien language. Maybe squawks and high-pitched squeals mixed with musical woofs. Maybe they wouldn't talk at all, and images would beam directly into his mind. Maybe they'd talk in practiced English with a Midwestern drawl like their other resident alien.

Instead he heard a low, guttural voice growling out of his computer speakers. "Robin," it said. "Are you in position?"

A Better Cage - Mangaluva

Note: I was absolutely DELIGHTED to see a Young Justice Crossover with the Justice Lords (Earth-50) from the animated Justice League series, which is near and dear to my heart. I admit I haven’t really had much time to hunker down and read this, but even skimming, it’s an intriguing piece of work. Also, Justice Lords.

Summary: Wally's grateful to have woken up at all, really. He just doesn't know what to make of the world he's woken up in. At least they want to find a way to his world as much as he does, if not exactly for the same reasons...

Common People - AmariT

Note: The Bat boys are all Bruce’s blood sons, but it still feels very much like a found family. I haven’t really read everything in this series, but I feel the author has an amazing grip on all the characters. Lovely and heartwarming.

Summary: His whole life, Jason’s mom had told him his dad was Bruce Wayne, but he’d never been dumb enough to actually believe it. They lived in a rundown, one-room apartment in the worst part of town, and in every single picture he’d ever seen of that rich bastard he was wearing a suit or sipping champagne worth more than everything they’d ever owned.

But if he wasn’t Bruce Wayne’s kid, then what the hell was he doing sitting outside the man’s office in Wayne Towers?

Red Robin and the Hood - momoejaku

Note: Haven’t read this in a while, but it made an impression. Though it’s a fic set during the Red Robin arc, it very much is about both Tim and Jason. Plus, it fleshes out the Pru and Z a bit more, too.

Summary: Bruce Wayne is dead. Superman brought back his body, and the family mourned him, holding a quiet funeral in secret so that the legacy of Batman could live on. But not everyone has been able to put him to rest.

Reeling from the loss of Bruce, his identity as Robin and his trust in his family, Tim Drake sets out on a personal quest that will take him across the world to prove what he knows in his heart: that Bruce Wayne is alive.

Though intending to make his way alone, Tim reluctantly accepts help from his predecessor, Jason Todd, who knows from personal experience that death is not always as final as it seems.

Together, they are Red Robin and the Hood.

Liminal Spaces - Calamityjim

Note: Skimmed this only since I’ve been busy, BUT it does look well-written, and I’m always a sucker for alternate dimension/dimension travel intervention-type of fix-its. It’s a very specific trope.

Summary:

Bruce's habit of collecting strays is not limited by dimension.

Or

When Young Justice Batman comes across an angsty, seemingly abandoned by his Batman Tim Drake, he decides to step up to the plate and parent the crap out of him.

Little Bird’s Vengeance - KatHarkness-Katara

Note: Crossover with Avengers. Awesome fic with Tim and Jason and some Outsider POV (via the Avengers) of these dimensional stragglers. I think Tim’s team shows up in the later chapters, too. If you’re reading on mobile, it’s still very much worth reading despite FF.net’s horrible format and abundance of advertisements in the mobile version.

Summary: Why is life never simple? Red Robin's ended up worlds away from home once again, and now what's he to do? What do the Avengers want from him; do SHIELD have another agenda; and is there any way back? Pre-New 52. No slash. Rated for inevitable language/violent themes.

A Displaced Red Robin - dragonprincess1988

Note: Worth reading despite FF.net’s horrible format and abundance of advertisements in the mobile version. Well-written fic! EMOTIONS! I love them. Younger Dick Grayson is adorable, Tim is a competent fixer-upper for other people but not so much himself. He’s kind of angsty and making YJ Dick want to keep him (and YJ Bruce, too, if you read between the lines). On the plus side, seems like he’s making good friends with Young Justice Roy. This fic was written before certain episodes of YJ came out, though, and the fic reflects/will continue to reflect that. Still, I give it five stars.

Author’s Summary: Tim gets transported to the cartoon Young Justice world, and he's not sure he knows how to deal with it. Attention: If you want to know about Artemis or people from Tim's world the final note on my profile is for you. Also, a special thank you to angel-gidget over at Tumblr, who made the wonderful cover art for this story.

The Till-then From the Ever Since - Keiron O_Duibhir

Note: Fandom classic. Definitely a must-read for Batfam fans, in my humble opinion.

Summary: It began, or seemed to begin, with Jason.

Usually that would have meant something in the order of fire and explosion and probably at least one gunshot wound, but for once (as Tim said, sourly), it wasn't actually Jason's fault.

The Wayne Family Ghost - pupeez4eva

Note: Please read this. Especially if you’re sad or anxious or just have time. I couldn’t stop laughing. It’s my go-to cheer-up fic. Absolutely hysterical.

Summary: In which Bruce realizes that having a legally dead son, who regularly hangs around the family, might be slightly problematic. 

Bloodline - chibi_nightowl

Note: Complicated family dynamics, this time centering around Tim, Selina, Bruce and, surprisingly, Damian. Jason and Dick make an appearance as supportive big bros, too. It works. Take a read, it isn’t that long.

Summary:

“Mr. Drake, I can’t think of a better way to say this, so I’ll just be blunt. This file is for your first adoption. By the Drakes.”

Tim blinked. “My what?”

“You were adopted as a newborn by Jack and Janet Drake.”

“Excuse me, but what the fuck are you talking about?”

Talon!Tim AU Series by keeptogethernow

Note: Found family, from a different angle. Cool fic and well-written.

Summary of Tso’ape Mumbichi, first in the series: Ten years ago, two people made a deal with the devil--unlimited funds in exchange for their child. And now it's time to pay up. But there's no way to ensure that the child will cooperate.

Shutterbug Series by goldkirk

Note: Exactly what it says on the tin! Found family.

Summary:

Tim Drake is thirteen, runs the famous BatWatch blog that has spiraled hilariously out of control, has absentee parents that suit his purposes just fine, is training himself to run the streets at night, and is doing absolutely peachy, thank you.

Alfred and Jason disagree, and get Dick and Bruce involved in figuring out their weird next door neighbor kid’s life. Everything goes uphill from there.

Thursday’s Child - anthalogia

Note: Well-written and has found family and Tiny!Tim? Automatic win.

Summary:

He’s not the first child with nowhere else to go that Bruce Wayne has taken in. Dick Grayson was the first and the most high-profile – because no one would have thought Bruce Wayne was interested in ever raising a child, let alone the orphaned son of circus performers – but Jason was maybe just as much of a shock to society for being a street kid who came out of seemingly nowhere. Tim Drake is ordinary by comparison – his parents died in a plane accident. He can’t think of anything very special about him except that he met Bruce a few times when his parents hosted parties to keep in touch with Gotham society.

Or, tiny Tim Drake is adopted by the Waynes a little earlier than scheduled.

We’re Not Driving (How did we get here?) - TimTheToaster

Note: Short and sweet, a little angsty, and then very sweet.

Summary:

Tim stared at his phone, as if that would change what was on the screen.

Dick Grayson @FlyingDGrayson

It took some doing, and in some cases a little blackmail, but we've finally got the whole family together for a movie night! #WayneManor #movienight #familytime #schedulingisanightmare

15 minutes ago

Take It Back Now Y’all - TimTheToaster

Note: And Tiny!Jason has made his appearance. Also, Tim, I am begging you to please take care of yourself—ah, Bruce has made his appearance. Interesting. Also, I gotta say this author is good.

Summary:

There was absolutely no way this sunshine was from Gotham in April.

Not possible.

Which meant, Tim was no longer in Gotham, in April.

(In which Tim finds himself in the past, and tries to do the right thing. It's more complicated than he'd like.)

Takes a Little Time, Takes a Lotta Twine (To Get Us Back Together) - TimTheToaster

Note: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, beginning of reconciliation, and brotherhood. A satisfying, cathartic moment during the Red Robin arc to soothe your heart.

Summary:

Tim was in Gotham.

Tim had pretty specifically been avoiding thinking about Dick as much as possible for the last few weeks.

For the last year, really. No need to open that can of carnivorous worms.

Dick had other plans.

Everybody’s Heard (Bird is the Word) - TimTheToaster

Red Robin Era ANGST, but like, deliciously well-written. Also, protective Dad Bruce is always epic. Light bashing of Green Arrow and BC, though. But considering the situation (in this fic), kind of warranted.

Summary:

5 times Batman heard other heroes talking about his wayward brother,

And 1 time they were talking about his son.

A Choice to Make - scorbusfics

Note: fresh and interesting premise! Cool world building, too.

Summary: They have to choose. Dick and Bruce have to choose one person each to save, and one to disappear through the door.

“Send one of us,” Dick says fiercely, not for the first time. His face is dark and angry and desperate, eyes flicking from brother to brother. “Send one of us instead. I won’t choose.”

“Neither will I,” Bruce says.

But Tim knows.

Secret Places - RenaRoo

It’s ANGST, but the author knows how to use it well. Also, Jason’s line at the end killed me. Damn.

Summary: Tim Drake goes missing. The search to find him begins.

[ellana-ravenwood]

Jason Todd and the Haunted Manor - Jason Todd x Batmom

Synopsis : Jason Todd, 8 and three quarter years old, is 100% sure Wayne Manor is haunted. And that the ghosts HATE him. 

I wrote a few fics with only Damian and Batmom, or Tim and Batmom...but never just Dick or Jason. Which I thought I should fix. So here’s a little mom/son bonding with Jason, based on a headcanon I’ve had for years about mister Todd. I also very much like pre-death Jay who was such a brat and yet so cute, and affection/attention starved <3. So...here it is, hope you’ll like it : 

My masterlist blog : @ella-ravenwood-archives

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                                                    ******

When he was a kid, Jason used to run as fast as he could from his bedroom to the one you shared with Bruce, and jump in between you and your husband, terrified.

For the longest time, you never really thought much about it.

After all, Dick too, in the early months (even years) of living with you and Bruce at the Manor, sneaked into your bed at night, and settled himself inbeetween the both of you.

Your eldest son used to have night terrors. Used to wake up after nightmares of re-living his parents’ death. He always woke up with a start, mouth open on a soundless scream. So distressed and afraid that no noise could get out of his mouth. And then, more often than not with tears in his eyes, he would drag himself across the Manor to come and shyly enter the master’s bedroom.

At first, he stood there for a long time, and waited for you or Bruce to eventually notice him (which you always did, feeling someone watching you in your sleep, and therefor waking up) and tell him he could come sleep with you. More than once, you woke up with a start as you saw his little silhouette in the opening of the door, peaking in, unsure if he was allowed to enter or not.

But overtime, he stopped asking and just took the habit to climb into bed with you two, and settle himself comfortably in there.

Bruce would often grumble because Dick basically pushed him away from you (and wasn’t particularly delicate about it), took his arms off of you, so he could sneak in the middle…but he didn’t actually mind, of course. 

As long as he could feel one of his loved one’s warmth near him, Bruce Wayne could sleep soundly.

Ever since his parents’ death, sleep never really quite came to him when alone. As a child he used to ask for Alfred to stay with him. But then when he grew up…he had to wait years before you finally saved him. And before he could sleep properly once again.

It’s one of the reason he always let Dick sneak into bed, because him too remembers a time where he woke up in the middle of the night, sweating and in tears, and wishing for someone to be there to hold him. 

Naturally, if he could give the kid this safety…Then he would. 

Bruce never  “half-assed” anything, you often said. And you were right. When he decided to adopt Dick, you could be sure that he’d do his best to be the parent figure the little one needed. Which came as a surprise to so many people who didn’t know him outside of « work related » things.

He remembers the shock on Clark’s face, when Dick, 9 years old, came up the League’s Watchtower for the first time. First of all, who knew Batman had a son ?! And a wife, since that day you followed too…neither you nor Bruce could quite remember why you all went up that day, but you did. 

To be honest, it was probably because Dick asked and no matter what Bruce said, he was never really good at refusing something to his kids. 

But what shocked Clark the most was how patient he was with the kid. Dick asked three hundred questions a minute, and Bruce answered each and everyone of them, even the kinda embarassing/silly ones like “were does the water go when you flush the toilet, since we’re in space ?”. 

At that time, Bruce an Clark’s friendship just started to bud, so Superman had no idea that the big, scary, unforgiving and cold Batman could be so…sweet ? 

At some point, Bruce went to check something on the computer, and you were left with Dick and Clark (it was the beginning of the League, there wasn’t many people up that tower yet, and Bart and Diana were probably busy with their own things…oh the good old days, now, the place was always bustling with activities). 

The bags under your eyes must have been bigger than you thought, because Clark asked you if you were alright. You simply said you were tired, and that’s when you got a bit scared that you broke the allmighty Man of Steel. 

Dick said it was probably his fault that you didn’t sleep well, because he snuck in your bed again and was always quite an agitated sleeper. He was pretty sure he punched Br-Batman in the nose…

Clark just stared at the both of you, unable to wrap his head around the fact that Batman, THE Batman, who never smiled, cracked a joke, who was always serious and focused and all…let his kid climb into bed after a nightmare ? 

You never understood why Clark couldn’t believe that fact. Bruce, when he was Batman, wasn’t the real Bruce. And of course that in the intimacy of his own home, he would be more tender and nice. Especially to his son. 

And to Bruce ? Who knew how it felt to be a little kid, all alone and scared and wanting some reassurance and a good hug ? Of course he’d let the boy climb in bed if he needed comfort, he could really relate to him.

Yes, in the early years of Dick living in the Manor, he used to often sneak into bed with you and Bruce. It lasted for quite a while, before he could finally sleep again. Before the nightmares became rare, if non-existant. Before he finally felt like he was safe and loved once more, like he had a family again.

So when Jason started to jump into bed as well, in the middle of the night, you didn’t think much of it either.

You just assumed he too, needed to feel safe and warm. God only knew how much that child needed it.

And just like with Dick, you never minded it. You and Bruce would both welcome him inbetween you any time he wanted.

He always told you “I had a nightmare” and you never thought much of it. This was exactly the same scenario than with your eldest son.

Exactly the same scenario ? Not quite.

Jason never waited at the door of your room, too shy to come in and say he had a nightmare. He immediately jumped in bed, looking terrified. 

You just assumed, at the time, that his nightmares were more “conventional”. Unlike Dick, Jason didn’t witness his parents’ murder, though he didn’t have an easy childhood either and god knew what he saw, living in the streets ?

Adding to the fact he never hesitated to jump in your bed, he also never came calmly from his room to yours. You and Bruce would often be awake by the time he’d arrive in your bedroom, because you’d hear his little feet pound the floor as he ran full speed from his room to yours ! 

You knew he tried to stay silent, to move stealthily, but you always heard how hurriedly he’d come over, running as fast as he could. 

Dick would calmly walk from his room to yours (both their rooms were pretty close from yours. Later, they’d change and move to the West Wing, as far as possible from your bedroom for…  « reasons », but at the beginning, you made sure they were close in case…Well, in case they needed you late at night), Jason would rush, in a panic. That was a pretty big difference, that at the time, you didn’t really pay attention to.

But again, given the history of the boy and such, you never once questioned why he looked so scared when he came in your room. He said he had a nightmare. You accepted his explanation and would rock him back to sleep, or sandwich him between you and Bruce, warm and safe.

You would never, EVER have guessed that the reason your son, that you always thought to be so brave and without any fear, ran to your bedroom at night was because…He was certain that Wayne Manor was haunted.

And that the ghosts HATED him.

************

The first night Jason spend at Wayne Manor was also his first encounter with them. Which made sense, of course they’d come to him as soon as he arrived !

Bruce was out on patrol, but he kissed him goodnight before leaving. This was still the very early days of Jason becoming your son, but already the boy accepted that kiss. 

Thanks to his experience with Dick, Bruce wasn’t as lost as he used to be when faced with kids (even if lately, as Dick left to join the “Teen Titans”, his relationship with his father wasn’t the best…your eldest rarely stayed in the Manor anymore, prefering to be away in the Titans’ headquarter. Actually, it had been months since last time Dick stayed the night home, and he only came to see you and Alfred and…oh, but that was another story), and this said experience made it easier for Bruce to instantly bond with his new son.

Well, not quite instantly. When he saw that little kid steal the Batmobile’s tyres, Bruce wasn’t really amused…

And Jason ? Jason craved love and attention so much that although he was suspicious at first because everything seemed too good to be true, he ended up letting things happening pretty easily. Well, just like any 8 years old who just wanted to be cared about. 

Plus, he was very excited at the idea of being the new Robin, even if he wouldn’t wear the costume for  quite a while (about a year, in fact, and only after intensive training with his father).

That first night started really well. 

He got a kiss from his new dad (who was, by the way, supposedly known to not show affection much…but something told Jason that was just appearances, and that the Batman was much sweeter than he’d let on), a goodnight snack from that great guy called Alfred (he made him his favorite cookies ! And he was allowed to eat it in bed !), and his new mom…

His new mom (the only one that acted like a mom to him really), you, read him a bed time story. Which turned into two bed time stories, because you really couldn’t resist how cute he looked asking for more. 

After the fifth story, you decided it was enough and made the boy promise he wouldn’t tell anything to his father (Bruce would NEVER let it go that you just didn’t seem to be able to say « no » when kids gave you their best puppy eyes…).

It was 10 pm when you left him, after a few kisses goodnight and a tickle war (you really were weak in front of his cuteness, and the only way you found to escape him asking for another story was to tickle him until he begged you to stop  and forgot all about books). 

You went back to your room, making sure he knew you weren’t far (you’d usually be down in the Batcave but you and Alfred made an agreement that you’d each take turn down there, even more so when the kids were young. There was NO WAY you’d let them alone in the house at night, even if technically you were not far, just right under them...).

And for the first two hours, nothing happened. 

Until the giant clock’s gong, that was in the living room, resonated in the entire house. Jason wasn’t quite sure if it was the clock or…something else, that woke him up at that exact moment. 

But what he knew, is that all of a sudden, he was wide awake while he was sleeping peacefully just a few seconds ago. In a real bed, for the first time in a very VERY long time.

He sat up, wondering if maybe he just heard Bruce coming back from being Batman ? If it was him, then he wanted to greet him back, no matter if the man was going to scold him because it was late ! 

Jason threw his cover off of him, and jumped on his feet. Ah and he was definitely hearing footsteps in the corridor, they were coming right in front of his room now ! Excitedly, Jason ran to his door and flung it open and…Nothing. 

And no one.

“Bruce ?”

No answer. Jason flicked his eyes to his digital alarm clock and a thought invaded his head…Midnight ? It was much too early for Batman to stop patrolling ! Bruce would only come back up in the early hours of the morning !

Maybe he heard you walking back to your room in the corridor ? Sure it was weird that the footsteps immediately stopped as soon as he opened the door, but maybe you just went back in your room at that exact same time ! 

Were you still awake ? Maybe he could convince you that he couldn’t sleep, and you’d read him some more stories ? Curious, he went to your bedroom. 

The light in was definitely switched off. He opened the door slowly, and…you weren’t there. Mm. But the footsteps definitely went in that direction ! Maybe it was Alfred ? Oh oh, or maybe you went to get a drink, or maybe you couldn’t sleep and was walking around the manor ?

He closed the door to your room again, and looked around in the dark corridor. 

Jason has never been afraid of the dark, he had much more worries as a kid than monsters lurking in the shadows. He had very real monsters, back home…

So when he took a look on both sides of the corridor, he wasn’t scared at all. And didn’t feel the need to switch the light on. Even more so since he had no idea where the light switch was in that long ass corridor anyway ?

But though he wasn’t scared, he had a strange uneasy feeling in his chest. And suddenly, all he wanted to do was to look for you. Make sure you were still here.

He turned towards where he thought the footsteps went, and started to walk…The creasing sound of his bedroom door slowly closing made him stop dead in his track. 

He turned around, and in the dim light of the moon, definitely saw the door inexorably closing by itself ! In the last few inches left, the door slammed shut, making him jump in the air, and without really knowing why, he started to run towards where he thought you were.

Did he left his window open ? It was a bit hot today, in that warm summer night, but he couldn’t quite remember if he left the window open or not…

He ran down the corridor. 

Now he could go downstairs, or continue further and up to the next level but…Why would you go upstairs at this time of the night ? There was only guest rooms and unused bathrooms !

Sure you told him sometimes you walked around when you couldn’t sleep, but you also said you’d often go in the living room to watch a movie…

Down, or up ?

It seemed easier to go down, and so Jason rushed down the stairs, almost falling over in his hurry. 

Something really didn’t feel right, but he wasn’t sure what. He knew that it wasn’t the fear of you abandoning him and not being in the house, because deep down, he knew neither you nor Bruce would ever do that ! 

So why was he so freaked out ? He couldn’t even remember the last time he was this afraid ! 

The door of his room closing was probably just because he really did forget to close his window, and the footsteps ? It was most likely you, of course ! Or maybe just his imagination ! After all, this was an old house where the wood always creaked and cracked.

Just as he was thinking that, he heard a sinister cracking sound right behind him. 

What was that ? The steps right ? They were made of wood too so it was totally normal, right ?

He was now downstairs in the foyer, and everything seemed so different at this time of the day…Jason’s never been afraid fo the dark, as he had his own very real monsters back home. But here ? With his new family, in his new home ? There were no monsters anymore, and yet…yet the shadows stretched in ways that he never noticed before.

Pausing just for a second as he realized how scary the night could be, he started to hurry down the next corridor again, still looking for you. The living room right ? It was that next room on the left, right ?

Jason wasn’t quite sure. 

Alfred showed him around earlier in the day, but there were so many rooms, he didn’t remember everything. He remembered where the kitchen was, where his room and yours were, and also the toilet (one of them) but the living room.

Jason flung the door he thought led to the living room open and…It wasnt’ the living room. It was…god knew what kind of room. 

It had a pool table and a desk, and that was the only things Jason could see.

Suddenly extra aware of how dark everything was, he looked for a light switch.

In the long corridors, he couldn’t find where the switches were. But here…here he found it immediately and flipped it up. 

Light poured in the room, and the boy sighed in relief.

Ok. Well, this wasn’t the living room, but it was an interesting place nonetheless. He could stay here for a few minutes, collect his thought and try to remember where the hell was the living room ?

He was- 

The light flicked once, twice, buzzed and then...turned off.

Jason was completely in the dark again. He had taken a few steps in the room and turned around so fast he got a little lightheaded. 

Was that why he saw a figure at the door frame ? Probably. Hopefully. One thing was sure, is that it wasn’t you. 

The only light now was coming from the corridor and the open door, as for some reasons every curtains in the room Jason ended in were closed (the boy later found out that it used to be Bruce’s father office, and except for Alfred who went there to dust things over from times to times, no one ever entered it). 

But slowly, once again, Jason saw the door closing by itself. And this time there was no window open for sure !! 

He rushed to the door, but was too late, it was already closed and couldn’t goddamn budge no matter how much he tried to open it ! He tried to get the light to turn on again, but no matter how many times he flipped the switch, he was still in the dark. 

And as he was fighting to get the door open, came the moment he realized that the fear at the back of his mind that he tried to ignore by rationalizing what happened so far...was the truth. 

As he heard someone breathe right next to his ear ! And what kind of rationalized reason could explain such an event ? 

Jason screamed. At the top of his lungs. 

It seemed like hours went by, as he was properly terrified and unable to open the door ! But realistically, only a few seconds happened when...

The door opened. 

Jason got blinded by the light pouring in from the corridor. And warm arms wrapped around him. At first, he fought them, afraid that it would be “them”, until he realized...

You. 

It was you. 

He recognized your soothing voice trying to calm him down, and the way your hands were slowly caressing his hair. 

You did that too, the first time you met him, after Bruce scared the hell out of him by tying him up in the bat cave when he found him staling the bat mobile’s tyres (long story short, you weren’t happy and though Bruce explained his reasoning, you scolded him for a long time, and soothed that poor boy you didn’t even know for even longer). 

Jason let go of all his emotions at the same time, the fear stacking up all of a sudden in the past few minutes leaving his body as he fell in your arms and cried on your shoulder. 

You carried him back up, and he got scared you were about to put him back in his bed, all alone..but you got him all the way to your bedroom, and made room for him in your bed. 

He fell asleep in your arms, feeling safe and warm, and wondering if he had just dreamt those events or not ? 

************

He woke up when he heard Bruce’s voice, but didn’t open his eyes, listening in to the conversation you were having with your husband. 

“-such a softie.” 

Were the words that woke him up. 

“Maybe I am, but...you should’ve seen him my Broosh, he was so scared !”

“What happened ?”

“I’m not sure. I found him screaming in your father’s office. The lightbulb got out, and I think in his panic he was trying to open the door inward while for some random reason, that door was build to open outward.” 

...Outward ? Jason recalled himself opening it inward for sure ! 

“Really ? What was he doing in my father’s office ?” 

“I don’t know ? Probably couldn’t sleep and went wandering around. Like I do when I can’t sleep ?” 

“What do you think scared him ?” 

“Well, thinking you’re locked up in a dark room in a house like yours would be enough to scare any kid, my heart.” 

It would indeed scare any kid. But not Jason. Jason’s never been afraid of the dark, and never believed in...in...

“That is true. I hope-I hope he’ll be ok.” 

Bruce’s worries soothed the little boy’s heart a little bit more. It made him feel better, that he was cared for. Even if he just discovered that...That...

“He will. It’s his first night here, it’s a bit overwhelming you know ? This is very new. And your house is scary. Dick too ended up in our bed, I recall.” 

“That he did. And stop calling it “my” house, I’ll have you know it’s yours too...and his.” 

Jason felt a large hand softly ruffling his hair, and almost gave the fact that he was awake away by smiling. But he held it in, as he didn’t want to explain why he ended up in that dark room all alone in the middle of the night. 

He felt the bed shift, and guessed Bruce was climbing into it. Some added warmth wrapped around him, and he knew Bruce climbed into it. 

And Jason fell back asleep, feeling safe and loved. 

His first night in the Manor wasn’t a complete disaster. It was actually pretty good, really...If we forgot the fact he just discovered that ghosts were real ! 

************

Over the next few weeks, Jason tried to rationalize and find explanation about that first scary night. But the more he thought about it, the more there wasn’t any explanations !

And as days after days, he spend more time in the house, he found that...Something fishy was definitely going on.

When it was daylight, even if he was alone, everything was alright. Nothing weird happened. But as soon as the night fell, as soon as things got dark...All hell broke loose !

Jason saw objects moving on their own, doors opening and closing, and he kept hearing footsteps in the corridors at night, over and over, even if he knew no one was there !

Voices too, sometimes, calling him in his sleep and waking him up ! 

To him, and his 8 years old mind...it proved that ghosts were real. And apparently, those ones didn’t like him very much !

Sometimes, when he was really tired, he’d sleep through the night without hearing anything. Sometimes, the ghosts left him alone. 

But sometimes, it seemed they were particularly angry and kept messing around with him, scaring him to death ! Those times...those times were the moment he ran from his room to yours, and snuck into bed with you and Bruce. 

He never screamed, as he was sure that’s exactly what the ghosts wanted and didn’t want to give them satisfaction...But he was afraid, oh so afraid. 

Night after night, he waited for them. 

It was worst when they didn’t show up. It was proof to Jason that they were just being mean to him. Playing with his expectations, his stress. 

The boy didn’t dare talk to you about it, because it was clear neither you nor Bruce ever noticed that ghosts roamed the manor ! Dick, who occasionally came to the house, when Bruce was away, never noticed either, given how he reacted when Jason asked if he believed in ghost. 

His older brother just laughed, believing the boy was just joking around...No one who witnessed what Jason witnessed could react like that at the word “ghost”. 

Afraid that they’d think he’s crazy, or a wimp...He didn’t say a word. He stayed silent, running in fear to his parents’ bedroom whenever the ghosts were going too far. He suffered in silence, not daring to tell to anyone that sometimes, not all the times, ghosts who hated him were keeping him up all night. 

************

About a month after he moved in with you and Bruce, Jason asked his dad about his house and its history, and the man strangely didn’t know much about it ! Except for the date it was built in, and which of his ancestors did it…Bruce added he never really cared for Wayne Manor’s history, but that he was pretty sure there was books, or rather, registers about it somewhere in the library. 

When he asked Jason why he wanted to know, the boy simply said he was curious. And Bruce was content with that explanation, after all, Jason did ask a lot of questions about a lot of things.

That very same day, Jason went to the house’s massive and well furnished library, and started his research, determined to know who were those ghosts that hindered his sleep !

He found a few books talking about the Wayne family, and man did sometimes things turned gruesome ! When he asked Bruce about the alleged murders and such surrounding some of his oldest family members, the man simply shrugged and said that his family was one of the first in Gotham, almost build the city single-handedly along a few other families, and always been rich. 

And whenever there was money, power and fame ? There was terrible stories and awful things happening. Bruce then proceeded to reassure the boy that his family hadn’t been like that in at least a century, and blahblahblah...But Jason didn’t need the reassurance. 

He knew Bruce was a good man. He knew his parents were good people too, and his grandparents too...No, what he wanted to know what was the possibility of one of the “bad” Wayne still lingering in their manor ?

Who was coming at night to haunt him ? And why were they haunting only him ?! After a lot of research, Jason was pretty sure he knew who were the ghosts that had something against him. 

He was pretty sure that the leader of the pack was one particular angry man...

Theodore Hamish Wayne. 

He was a ruthless businessman and politician, whose opponents tended to just...”disappear”. It was rumored he killed his own son-in-law because the man was a nobody with no money, and dared marrying his daughter in secret ! 

Of course, nothing was ever proved...but if even his own daughter was sure he was the culprit ? Chances were, he was. He just had the power and money to make evidence...”disappear” too. 

To make things worst, and that’s what made Jason think he didn’t go into the after-life, the man died in odd circumstances...in what was now Bruce’s father old office ! 

“Odd circumstances.” It seemed like it was a suicide, and people would understand why he did it as at that time he was an old and bitter lonely man that everyone abandoned...But things in the police report didn’t make sense. However, he was such a hated man that no one looked further into it. 

His daughter took back Wayne Inc, and the family became beloved again, after a few decades of Theodore spreading fear all across Gotham City. 

Since Theodore’s daughter took back the entire family’s estate, the Wayne family stayed well loved, all the way to Bruce now. But before him ? There were some nasty people. And good old Theo ? He was definitely the worst one. 

There were others too, that died in and around the Manor that could still be here. And none of them were great people. All of them were pretty arrogant, and proud of being Waynes and...All of a sudden, Jason thought he understood why they were being so mean to him in particular ! 

He was a street kid ! 

He was exactly the kind of person Theodore’s daughter married ! The kind of person the first few Waynes made “disappear” when they got too close from their family ! The kind of person that would bring shame to them if associated with them !

He was a nobody ! A POOR nobody ! 

How could they accept him becoming part of their prestigious family ? 

But of course. That’s why no one else could feel the ghosts ! That’s why they only attacked him when he was alone ! 

You might come from a poor neighborhood too, but when Bruce married you, you were already a famous (and wealthy) author ! Good enough to be a Wayne. 

And Dick ? He was from a family of circus performers, which didn’t sound great on paper but...Didn’t Dick once said his mom had some royal blood from eastern Europe or something ? Was that enough to be worthy of becoming a Wayne ? Plus, technically Dick wasn’t actually adopted, but was Bruce’s ward. It wasn’t quite the same thing. 

But Jason ? There was official adoption papers. And though he didn’t change his last name (yet ?), he was officially a Wayne. 

And how could a man like Theodore, or the likes of him, accept this ? 

Yes. Young 8 years Old Jason Todd was sure of it. 

The ghosts in Wayne Manor were usually discreet, because they didn’t mind the house’s inhabitants. But a good-for-nothing nobody like him ? Living there ? In one of the biggest room ? And daring to become part of the family ?! 

Of course, that would cause a raucous. And make them angry. 

Yes. Yes that was the only explanation ! 

************

“I live here now. Wether you like it or not ! I’m-I’m Bruce’s son ! I am ! He’s my dad ! And this will NEVER change so you’d...You’d better leave me alone !” 

Jason said at the footstep he was hearing from the corridor. And as soon as he ended his sentence, the footsteps stopped. Right in front of his door. 

“I live here and I’m not going anywhere ! This is my home !” 

And it was true. Even with the “occasional haunting”, he still considered Wayne Manor as his home. And he loved this house...when it was daylight, or when he was with his loved ones. 

Ah. But nothing could be perfect, right ? His life now that he had a new family HAD to have at least one flaw. And if that flaw were ghosts...

The boy grabbed his flashlight, and lit the entrance to his room. When the flashlight started to flicker. No, no not again ! 

The door slowly opened, his favorite book, that he was currently reading and that was sitting on his desk, fell down on the floor heavily. 

“I’m-I’m Bruce’s son ! And (Y/N)’s ! I live here ! You can’t do anything about it ! You won’t make me run away !” 

Jason was sure by now that the ghosts only ever came to try and make him leave. That they were terrifying him so he wouldn’t want to stay. 

He looked on the internet to see how he could get rid of the ghosts, but it seemed that whatever unfinished business they had, it was too late now...they’ve all been dead for too long. 

Ugh. Why couldn’t the nice one stay behind ? Well...The nice one didn’t really had unfinished business, really. 

One thing the boy was sure of though, is that they were just trying to scare him so he would leave the estate, leave the family they deemed him not worthy of. 

Even at that age, Jason kinda agreed with them. Even then, he had big confidence issues, and always seemed to think he didn’t deserve to have things (years of neglect and people telling him he was nothing were the cause of it all). 

“I’m-I’m not afraid of you ok ? You can’t make me leave ! I finally have a family ! I won’t ever leave ! I don’t care what you think of me ! I know you can’t hurt me ! You can only scare me ! Move small object ! And never very far ! I’m not afraid, I’M NOT AFRAID !” 

As if to confirm his suspicions that the ghosts weren’t “powerful enough” to truly hurt him, his blanket slowly lifted and flew across the room. 

This fact should have made him feel better, made him feel less afraid, because now, he knew they couldn’t actually hurt him. After all, by then he’d been in the house for six months, it was pretty obvious the best they could do was scare him ! 

But the mere fact that some old nasty people’s ghosts were in his bedroom send shivers down his spine. It was an uncontrollable (and understandable) phobia. Reasons had nothing to do with any of it. And when he heard his name, softly spoken into the wind, followed by the words “leave”...Jason jumped out of bed and ran to yours and Bruce’s room, utterly scared. 

So much for trying to show them they couldn’t scare him huh ? But he was only a little boy. He could only take so much...

Even knowing they couldn’t actually hurt him, he was still scared. Phobias didn’t need to be rational, after all. And he was still scared. Even more so since it played on the extra fears that he wasn’t worth anything, and that he didn’t deserve a family as great as you and Bruce...

************

Today, Jason was very proud of himself.

He aced a test in school, and it was one he was very unsure about ! He even told his parents that he probably screwed it up…But he didn’t !

As he raced through the Manor, he couldn’t find anyone though ! 

Ah. Of course. His dad was probably still at work, and you had an office in Gotham City center where you went to write (you also had one in the house, but you hated staying alone in there, and Jason totally understood that ! So when he was at school, and Bruce at work, and Alfred god knew where…you’d go write in that office space. Jason loved going there, it smelled like you. Like books and coffee. It felt safe, and when he was there, surrounded by all your warmth, he felt so loved. Like it never happened before in his life !!).

Alfred was nowhere to be seen either. Oh but of course, we were Wednesday ! He always went grocery shopping on Wednesdays. Though he’d usually be back by the time Jason would be home. But today, something must have taken more time than usual.

Oh well, Jason would just go play video games in the living room and…No.

It was raining outside today, and everything was gray and dark. Which meant the house was full of somber places and blackness. Dark corners and shadows.

And suddenly, Jason’s breath quicken. Because that meant…

That meant he was at their mercy !

Them !

The ghosts !

The ghosts that hated him !

He hadn’t seen them in a while, mainly because he was Robin now, and was out most nights. So this would be a perfect opportunity for them to...

The door to Bruce’s father’s office (Jason didn’t even notice he had stopped right in front of it) slowly opened, creaking in a sinister way as it did. 

No. No no no no NO ! 

They left him alone for so long, he thought maybe they forgot about him. Or accepted him. But the actual reason was that he’d always go to bed when the first light of the day went up, and they had no powers, during the day. 

Except when it was dark and moody like right now. When it almost looked like it was evening while it was only 3 pm. 

The door to Bruce’s father’s office was finally opened, and the voice that scared him the most in the world whispered...”Jaaassooooon”. 

And that was it. Jason, no matter how much he tried to rationalize everything, or to act as if they didn’t scare him, couldn’t control himself. And he had to get out of here !! 

He ran towards the front door, ready to wait in the rain if he had to. He was looking behind him, and saw a small vase fall on the floor...they were close ! And though he knew they couldn’t really hurt him, the mere fact they existed scared him to death ! 

Ghosts, over time, became his one true phobia ! He could deal with a lot of things, especially since he was Robin now...but revenants ? No. No. And no. 

He almost reached the front door when it opened. Was it them ?! 

No. No it wasn’t. It was you. You coming home. And being extra confused when you were greeted by a strong hug by your son. 

He always greeted you warmly, but never quite...Like that. 

Even less so with tears in his eyes, and looking so scared ! 

“Jason ? Jason what is it ? What is it ? Did something happen at school ?” 

In his state of pure fear, he didn’t take the time to think, as he answered :

“No, no it’s...it’s the ghosts !” 

He would never have talked about it normally. But right there, as they took him by surprise after being absent for so long...the words just spilled from his mouth. And he told you everything. How, for the past few years, they haunted him and taunted his sleep. 

The real reason he ran to your bedroom so many times. 

But how it almost all stopped when he became Robin, because he wasn’t at home most of the time during the night, and if he was, you or Alfred or even Bruce during his nights off were always around. 

He told you how whenever someone else was there, even if it was dark, they wouldn’t show up. How his family, you, Bruce, Alfred and Dick when he was there...were fending off the ghosts. 

How when he wasn’t all alone in the dark, they never came. 

And why they hated him particularly so. Because he was a nobody, unworthy of bearing the name “Wayne” ! 

And as he told you the stories of ghosts, of Theodore Hamish Wayne and his nasty friends, of how scared he was sometimes etc etc...

Well, you weren’t sure you quite believed Wayne Manor was haunted. After all, you never witnessed anything. Sure, sometimes, you felt a bit uneasy when you were alone. Shivers ran down your spine for no reasons. But it never went further than that, an old big house giving you kind of the creep sometimes. 

But what you were sure of, is that wether it was real or not, it affected your boy. And you hated that. You hated that so much. 

To you, it seemed like he created those ghosts in his head, to symbolize his deep fear of being abandoned, of being all alone again. But to him ? To him it was clear all this was real. 

Oh but he believed in it so much, that you started to wonder if you had it right. Were the ghosts just the way Jason’s portrayed his true fears (the attack always kind of happened as he was asleep or almost asleep, it could very well be in his imagination, or sleep paralysis or something...except today he was clearly wide awake...), or were they real ? 

You probably would never know, as it seemed your presence warded them off. And you certainly weren’t going to tell him you had your doubts. 

And so you reassured him. You consoled him. You told him you’d always be there, and that those ghosts could never dislodge him from your heart.

“It’s ok little bird, it’s ok. You’re safe here, with me.”

“I’m sorry.” 

“There’s nothing to be sorry about.” 

“You must think I’m nuts...”

“I most certainly don’t think that. You’re not crazy Jason, ok ? Nobody gets that scared over nothing. Nobody.” 

“So you believe me ?” 

“Yes.”

“Promise ?” 

You didn’t hesitate one second as you answered, because even if the ghosts weren’t actually ghosts, you knew he was telling you the truth. That those things truly happened to him, wether in his head or not didn’t matter.  

“Promise. Because even if I never see those ghosts, to you, they’re very real. And they’re total jerks. And- And you know what ?” 

Jason was sniffling only a little now, slowly getting over his fear. Thanks to you. 

“Wh-What ?”  

You stood up, and brought him with you in the middle of the foyer. You couldn’t quite pick him up anymore, as he was a much too tall 11 years old boy...But you could still definitely hold him close ! 

You stood there, in the middle of the foyer, glaring at the entire house, and finally said : 

“Hey ! Theodore and whatever are your names !? The ghosts haunting Wayne Manor ! Ya better stay away from my son, or I’ll whip your stupid ectoplasmic ass fissa !”

For a few seconds, Jason was afraid you just annoyed them and it would get worst...But then you continued. Telling them exactly what you’d do to them, and nothing sounded very nice. 

In the end, he couldn’t help but laugh at how imaginative you got, thinking of all the ways you could make GHOSTS’ life miserable ! 

And now... 

Now you knew. And you didn’t mock him at all, on the contrary. Jason felt like a weight was leaving his shoulders, because now...now he wasn’t the only one knowing about Wayne Manor’s haunting ! 

And since that day, things got a little easier. 

But at the same time, Jason discovered that he hated to be alone in the house whenever it was too dark outside, which didn’t just include nights, but also gloomy rainy days. 

He always found a way to avoid those situations, in big parts thanks to his Robin work, but also thanks to you, and how understanding you were. 

It really didn’t matter, if the ghosts were real or not. You’d be there for your son no matter what. 

************

Even if he rarely saw them now, the thought that Wayne Manor was haunted never left him. He still hated being alone in it. Especially when it was dark.

But hey, at least nowadays, you knew about it. More importantly, you believed him. He was pretty sure that at first, you didn’t really...But as the years went by, you ended up truly believing him.  

As you said, more than once you got unexplained shivers or bad feelings while walking around the house, and only felt comfortable when you were with your family...you liked to be alone, but when you needed “alone time”, you’d leave the house and go to your office in town, where you wrote all your books. You also had an office back home, but only used it when one of your son, or your husband was there too. 

Yes. By the time he entered his teen years, Jason came to closure with the fact that there was ghosts in Wayne Manor, and that they didn’t like him very much. But you know what ? They’d have to deal with it. 

Because he was NEVER going to leave. 

NEVER. 

This was his home too now. Not just theirs. 

They’d just have to deal with it. 

************

You thought about the ghosts in Wayne Manor, as you roamed its corridors very late at night, tears in your eyes. 

Jason had been gone for almost a year now, but your heart was still bleeding. 

15. He was only 15. 

You thought about how he was so convinced that the house was haunted, and right now...Oh right now you really wished ghosts were truly real. Because then maybe...Maybe he’d come talk to you again ? Maybe he’d come back to you, even if he was just...just...just a ghost...

A little wind went through your air as you walked in the corridor, and you wondered if you left a window opened somewhere ?

************

Present day : 

Jason, as he was fixing himself a snack in the kitchen, in the middle of the night, thought that his old nemesis, the ghosts of Wayne Manor, must have believed they won. 

After all, he haven’t stayed the night at the house in almost a decade now. First because he was dead for a while (bad business). And second because when he came back to life, he was lost and hated his father so much...He didn’t intend to ever come back home. 

And it wasn’t because of the ghosts, it wasn't. 

But tonight, after he finally understood and forgive his dad and  they celebrated his forty-fifth birthday, and as they were all reunited for the first time in ages...He finally decided to stay over. It was so rare, they were all together, and not on patrol (they left the night under the watchful eyes of Batwoman...her alone could handle things for one night, and if she couldn’t, she could always call them). 

But, remembering his old ennemies, he made sure to not be alone in a room ! He somehow managed to convince Dick to share a bedroom, even if there were definitely enough rooms in the Manor for all of them. 

He gave the excuse that he wanted to “remember old times” when Dick finally came back home (shortly before Jay’s death) and Jason would sneak into his room and they’d play video games too late and fall asleep...Already at that time, Jason snuck in because of the ghosts. His brother’s presence kept them away. 

He was too old, at that time, to sneak in yours and Bruce’s bed. He knew. Settling for his brother was fine. Because even if he could somewhat deal with the ghosts now...he still really hated being alone in the Manor. 

The secret was well kept. You never told anyone that Jason strongly believed in ghosts, and that he was sure the Manor was haunted.

And Jason never told anyone else but you. That even now...

Even after his death and resurrection.

Even after he grew up, changed.

Even as an adult…

Jason still hates being alone in Wayne Manor at night.

Actually, he hated it even more after his death. 

He couldn’t quite remember much from between the moment he died and the one Ras Al’Ghul threw him in a Lazarus pit, but sometimes, he had flashbacks of what he thought must be the afterlife. 

With someone kinda looking like Bruce but not being him (he was pretty sure it must be his father), and a woman who reminded him a lot of you but that wasn’t you (probably a certain Martha Wayne…). 

Which to him, confirmed the existence of ghosts. If there was something after death…Plus, in the meantime, he also met  a certain John Constantine and that dude had so many stories ! Though he never quite dared asking him to exorcise Wayne Manor. 

He really didn’t want anyone to know how much of a chicken he really was (damn misplaced pride, you hated it…and it was unfortunately a flaw ALL of your children + your husband had).

Yes. Even now, as a grown man, Jason would avoid as best he could being alone in the Manor when it was dark. 

In broad daylight ? He never minded. Nothing ever happened in the light. 

But at night ? Yeah. No. 

Which is why, right now, as he was fixing himself and Dick a snack, he was going extra fast so he would stay the least amount of time on his own in the kitchen. Why did he even made the offer to be the one getting the snacks ?!

The lights weren't flickering, and he hadn’t seen any ghosts in years (mainly because he never stayed after dark in the house), but still. STILL !! 

And as he heard footsteps behind him, but turned and saw no one...he jumped into the air, shoved all the snacks in his arms and ran as if his life depended on it back to his brother’s room, who in the meantime, had been invaded by his younger siblings too.

The next day, as Bruce would do his daily reviewing of the security cameras he placed all around the house (avoiding his children’s bedroom of course...or so he says), he got a bit confused by footage of Jason, being in the kitchen around 3 am, and suddenly running away, looking scared, as Alfred the cat walked in...

Bruce swore that sometimes, Jason did things that he didn’t understand. More than once, over the years, he saw him run away hurriedly from a room, or talk to no one in particular...Ah, his son was probably a hell of a sleepwalker !

_________________________________

Just a little thing written in a very short amount of time. Because of reasons. Next story will be a long ass one so ya know... :). I hope you liked it ?Ah, and what do you think ? Is Wayne Manor haunted, or is Jason simply sleepwalking and have a very vivid imagination ?

As usual, feedbacks and reblogs = life. 

PS : As you noticed, I did not said my story was bad for once. I spend the last few days doing some self-care and...I’m gonna go easy on myself. Nothing can be perfect. And this exist just because I like to write, I don’t proof-read or just even re-read anything, this is my hobby in its “purest form”, just me enjoying to write about things I love, and sharing it. So. Yes. If that makes any sense...