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confessedlyfannish · 8 months ago

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Writing Prompt #13

"So?" Red Hood asks, arms crossed. "Was I right?"

"Yes," Phantom says, deepening his voice, "this is one of mine."

"One of your what?" Robin growls. Nightwing's hand on his shoulder is the only thing keeping him from invading Phantom's personal space, which, please, continue to do so Mr. Nightwing, Sir.

Phantom would take a deep calming breath if a) he wasn't trying to appear as otherworldly as possible which means no human breathing and b) if that wouldn't so obviously telegraph how uncomfortable he is in the Batcave surrounded by the entire Batfamily.

Next to him Red Hood shifts in slight discomfort. His ties to the spectral realm mean he's picking up on Danny's unease even if he can't fully translate the feeling. Which is good. Danny needs to maintain what little control he has over this situation.

"There's a gh-spirit in my...realm," Phantom says, letting himself drift gently to the other side of Batman's medical table which just coincidentally puts more distance between him and the the rest of the clan staring him down. Black Bat leans forward and he violently suppresses a flinch. "They're known as Nocturne. They wield power over dreams. Their signature is all over this."

And Danny means that literally. Their ecto-signature couldn't be more apparent if they'd written it in sharpie across Batman's suit. This is what Jason—Red Hood, because Danny couldn't have been dealing with a simple civilian case of ecto-contamination, nooo, he's got to have connections to the superheroes Danny has spent the better part of his afterlife avoiding—managed to pick up on, even being the low level entity that he is.

At which point he'd called Phantom in, even though Danny had spent the better part of two weeks trying to intimidate the guy into never contacting him, Ruler of the Spirit Realm (lightning crash!), again, but here is his calling card just in case (thunder and creaking noises!!), but again, you should never use it unless things are very serious, OoOoOoOo~~~

Damn it. It's been like 10 days.

"So how do we fix it, Your, uh, Ghostliness?" Nightwing says, ducking his head in a sort of half-assed supplication when Phantom turns to him. Nightwing glances at Jason for affirmation who shrugs out of the corner of Danny's eye.

"Phantom is fine," Danny says, waving his hand and letting his upper lip curl in an expression of distaste. "Remember, it's like you're Vlad when Dad offers him a glass of eight dollar wine!" Jazz's voice reminds him. Robin growls lowly, likely meaning he's nailing it. He looks away dismissively ("Honestly, it's like you're Vlad, anytime, ever." Sam notes dryly) and thanks god he doesn't have a heart in this form because it would be beating so loud right now.

Beside him, Jason scratches compulsively at the back of his neck. Huh, his anxiety is manifesting physically as an itch. Good to know.

"You can't fix it," Phantom says. "I can."

"At what cost?" Red Robin asks. "Red Hood mentioned you'd want something in return?"

Frick. His other contingency to keep Jason from ever contacting him again. Phantom had lightly hinted his taste du jour was, uh, souls.

Something Red Hood has apparently let slip, because now Robin shakes off Nightwing's hand, puffs out his chest and declares "I will trade myself for my father's safe awakening, Spirit!"

The other members burst into denials which almost covers up Danny floating sharply back and saying "What? No!!!"

Key word: almost.

Danny coughs as they stare at him.

"That is to say, I have no desire for a child," he puts a bit of snarl into it, showing fang. The mood in the room plummets drastically as Nightwing gently grabs Robin by the arm and pulls him back to his side.

"We see," he says. He steps forward more assertively, placing himself in front of the others, all of which are now eying him warily. "Then, is there a gender you prefer?"

It takes a second to click in Danny's head and then he swings his head wildly away from his audience to hide his reaction, nausea and embarrassment turning his face bright green. "Fika Kristo," he mutters in Esperanto as quietly as he possibly can, pinching the bridge of his nose.

He gives himself a moment to settle and game plan before turning back around. "I have no desire for any of you, and it matters not. In this instance, a deal need not be struck. Nocturne is my subject, and they have done this without my permission." Danny blinks, eyes widening. "Not—not! that I would give them permission to do such a thing. In the first place. Ahem."

"Okay...so you'll do this for free?" Jason asks. "Seems like a bad business practice since you also fixed me up for nothing—"

"What he means to say, Your Majesty, Phantom, is thank you!" Signal says in a rush as Nightwing starts, "Wait, Hood, what do you mean—"

"Enough!" Phantom says loudly (nearby bats take off and Jason's itch migrates to his forearms) "I have little time," read: he has a test tomorrow and he's only one-third of the way through the study guide "And I grow tired of this...dilly-dally." Frick! Is that an old-timey word?

"Of course. Thank you again, Phantom." Nightwing says stiffly, eyes still narrowed in Hood's direction.

"Wait, sorry, Phantom, Majesty, I'm Spoiler by the way," the purple-caped vigilante Danny already knew was Spoiler says. "How do we keep this from happening again? To any of us? Is there a way to defeat this Nocturne?"

"Moreover, why Batman?" Red Robin asks. "Why would a spirit from another dimension want him asleep?"

Phantom sighs. "Nocturne was trying to send a message. To me. Through you," he says, nodding at Red Hood. "They...how do I put this. They like attention. Being the spirit of uh, dreaming, they don't receive that attention. And you were in my realms for quite some time. And they wanted...attention."

The lackluster explanation sits for a moment before "They were jealous? Of me?" Red Hood asks skeptically.

"It's more complicated than that. Your...physiology," Danny puts it as delicately as possible, watching regretfully when Red Hood still stiffens at the mention, "Is particular. You gather attention in our realm. And having my attention is...special. But not!" He says to the group at large, a touch panicked, "Romantic!"

Jesus, he's never gonna hear the end of this from the others.

"Anyway, I will ensure it does not happen again."

"By paying them attention," Spoiler says under her breath, wiggling her eyebrows at Black Bat, Red Robin shooting them both a glare. Nightwing ignores them in favor of staring at Red Hood and Phantom. Danny is unsure what Red Hood has disclosed about how he knows Danny, but now he feels confident the answer is close to nothing.

Before Nightwing can ask whatever uncomfortable thing he's about to ask, Phantom disappears. Invisibly, he hovers over Batman's sleeping body and silently apologizes for the intrusion before intangibly slipping into Batman's REM realm and finding the man...oh...

Probably thirty minutes later he reappears to the group, who all perk up at the sight of him. Their eyes bounce from him to Batman; who does not move, to the monitor; which shows no change in his brain activity.

"I'm going to need your help," Danny says to Jason, getting to the point.

"Why? What can I do?"

"It's easier if you come with me," Danny says, grabbing his arm.

"Come with—"

Danny wastes no time in turning them both invisible and flying them into Batman's mind.

"What the—" Red Hood twists and turns, taking in the hallways of the manor. From afar, they can hear the tinkling of a piano. "You, I had your word—"

"This isn't where you think it is," Danny says hurriedly. "We're in your—Batman's dream." He walks quickly down the hallway, towards the music. Jason follows.

"What?"

"The way to break a dream spell is to wake the dreamer. You can't do that externally so you do it internally. Usually you wake the dreamer by turning the dream into the nightmare, scaring them awake."

The hallway stretches on longer than realistic, the dream attempting to divert them. But it can't outrun Danny. His power seeps into the halls, ice creeping along the paneling and freezing the way behind them.

"Batman, however, is hard to scare."

"So you want me to do it."

"What? No." Phantom shoots him a confused look. "Why would I—Ahem, The other way is to convince the dreamer they are dreaming. They break the dream themselves."

"Alright..." Jason says slowly, now keeping pace with him. His breath forms a cloud as he speaks. "And you think I'm the person to do it? I'm not the one he listens to you know, that's more Nightwing's schtick, or hell, anyone other than me."

"This isn't just Batman's dream, Jason," he says. Hood's eyes narrow at his real name, but now the truth is necessary. "This is The Dream. The perfect life. Everything he could ever want."

They're approaching an opening on the right side of the corridor. A bright light emanates from it, alongside the noise of stumbling piano keys and laughter, deep and male and unrecognizable. The Dream.

"Thomas Wayne," Jason breathes. "You want me to convince Bruce it's worth walking away from the center of his universe? It'd be easier if I put a bullet in their chests."

Danny stops abruptly before the doorway, turning to face Jason.

"You know, I fixed you," he says, head cocked. "Those feelings you felt, you shouldn't be feeling them anymore."

"I...I don't."

"Then why do you act like it?" He lets himself drift up, reaching beyond their planes of existence and extending a metaphysical hand to Jason's spirit. It shivers away. "You don't have to hide behind what was."

"I'm not hiding! And I don't have to explain myself to you!" He tries to move forward but Danny puts a hand out and he cannot move past it. He growls in frustration.

"I'm grateful to you, but with or without the Pits I'm fucked up. This is just who I am. This is just what he made me."

"You've never asked why I look like this. But did you know my form is malleable?" Phantom says, letting his legs shift into a tail, letting two eyes become three. "What I believe is what I am."

And then he takes several steps back, putting the doorway between them. "From here on out, the Pits can't tell you how to think or feel. Your decisions are wholly your own. Starting with this one."

Jason stares at the doorway, then Danny.

"I won't make you," Danny says simply. "And if you desire, I will retrieve Nightwing instead."

Jason scratches at his arms, grits his teeth, and stomps through. The light resolves into the sitting room, massive windows letting in sunlight so bright it streaks yellow-white across the room. Bruce sits on the maroon versailles couch next to Cassandra, who sits cross legged, excitedly watching Alfred pour her a cup of tea. To their right, in the open space, Damian barks instructions at Tim on handling a katana. Stephanie and Duke sit on the ground besides the coffee table, homework sheets sprawled across the surface, suffering their way through a calculus problem.

Bruce, smiling softly, looks across the room to where the atrocious playing is coming from. Red Hood follows his gaze.

Sitting at the piano, trying to play while Dick distracts him with a pair of chopsticks, is Jason. He puts a hand on Dick's face and shoves, both of them hitting the wrong keys.

"Get—away—dumbass!"

"No, see, it's a duet! Jay!"

"That's not why it's named—" and Jason Todd-Wayne tips his white-tipped head back and laughs.

#batman #danny phantom #dp x dc #dp x dc au #dp x dc prompt #dp x dc crossover #jason todd #red hood #batfam #nightwing #danny is not aware of the complex family dynamics that make up the Batfam and it is costing him dearly #danny: boy you got issues huh #also danny: not my circus not my monkeys #as always anyone is open to build on these #for instance: does bruce know he's in his perfect dream?

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alfredojesta · 6 hours ago

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CANDY POP

MANSION HEADCANONS PT. 1

I'm not going to add a backstory portion here because it'd be too much to write. I only have the fun facts! With some brief character analysis like always. I'll have a second post for his relationships!!!

CW: references to traumatic events, S/A, talk of hypersexuality (below the cut)

GENERAL HEADCANONS UP HERE!

♡ Age locked at 500 years old. Equivalent to an adult Genyr. Candy Pop was born 6000 years ago in the Forest of Light—a magical place located in a fantasy world.

♡ No birthdate, but he celebrates July 12th.

♡ He/Him, Trans Male, Bisexual.

♡ 5'8, but his heels add 2 inches which makes him 5'10, but his ponytails add 2 inches which makes him 6'0. So in theory he's 6'0.

♡ His name is Candy Pop, with the Pop. He's very insistent that everyone adds the Pop. No one is allowed to call him Candy unless he lets them. People like to call him Poppy or Pops.

♡ Candy Pop and Night Terrors are no longer fused together. Night Terrors has since been sealed away (within the object of Candy Pop's heart), but the effects of his corruption remain. For that reason, Candy Pop's emotions and his morals tend to fluctuate. He's inherently good, but troubled with dark thoughts, and a past of sin he can't repent.

♡ The corrupted (NT) traits come in flashes. It can be compared to mood-swings, lasting five seconds or five months. It's easy to distinguish for the most part. His cheerful, childish, sweet side is Candy Pop—he's somber and reflective, but hides it. He can be annoying, but it's easier to shut him down as he's more understanding. His over-dramatic, flirtatious, and violent side is all NT's influence. Everything is exaggerated. His emotions are all over the place, and it's way more difficult to calm him down.

♡ Candy Pop is a soul collector (a trait passed down by his father). He's mastered soul magic, and has the ability to steal powers from others. However, power stealing works the same as if he were to learn a new skill. He must perfect a stolen ability before he can use it efficiently.

♡ His hammer is named Pamela. She's magic! She can shape-shift into any object! Pierrot, an old friend, forged her. He harnessed the mana from crystals and fused it with the hammer.

♡ Candy Pop's eyes are naturally teal, like his mother's. After he fused with NT, they became magenta with a teal pupil. When he's happy, his eyes go teal. But when he's upset, his eyes go purple. Base state is magenta though.

♡ Candy Pop isn't a proxy, given he's strong enough to withstand Slenderman—equivalent to Zalgo's strength. He's under Slenderman's protection. Slenderman is aware that Candy Pop has Night Terrors sealed within him, and to prevent that from being exploited, Candy Pop gets to stay at the mansion (under a very detailed contract).

♡ He calls Slenderman "king" and acts as his jester, breaking into his office just to perform circus tricks. Candy Pop loves playing into the act, while Slenderman wants him to stop. Stop bowing down to him. Stop calling the mansion a kingdom. Stop delivering him scrolls and owl letters. BUT CANDY POP DOESN'T FUCKING LISTEN—

♡ Candy Pop used to have a room on the third floor, but a petition was signed to kick him out because he kept setting up traps in the hallway to catch Jason. Everyone fell for the traps except Jason.

♡ His room is now located on the first floor and has the best view of the courtyard. Candy Pop can be found there in his leisure. Sitting by the pond, talking to animals, climbing trees, or drawing with chalk. He gets to interact with a lot of people, too.

♡ Candy Pop loves Shakespeare! He sprinkles Elizabethan words into everyday speech. His vocabulary makes him difficult to understand, so he simplifies himself around illiterates. He has no distinct accent. Maybe British. He can speak all languages, including that of animals.

♡ He prefers to have intellectual conversation, therefore he speaks in long blocks of text. This basically means he yaps a lot and needs to be physically shut up.

♡ Candy Pop is involved with nature because of April Fools (his dead girlfriend). He gardens a lot. His favourite flowers to plant being roses, marigolds, poppies, and daisies. He keeps the Slender Forest clean and encourages proxies to work toward a better environment. Humans die there, but they can at least have a peaceful burial ground. (Candy Pop hates that humans have to be killed. He wants to keep them safe, but isn't able to. This sentiment was given to him from his time in the Forest of Light.)

♡ Candy Pop's soul-hunts can take anywhere from a day to a month. NT's cult attacks Candy Pop here and there. Major set back. Candy Pop also gets distracted by little things. That part is just him. But he can't help it that humans are so interesting! :(

♡ Hobbies, other than being a jester, include confectionery, baking, gardening, singing, arts and crafts, playing instruments (banjo, fiddle, harp, bells, etc.), reading, writing. He picked up knitting and crochet from Jason and Jill, which he's trying to perfect to impress either of them (mostly Jason, but Jill's reactions to his craft are more encouraging).

♡ He's banned from the mansion's kitchens after exploding it with Laughing Jack.

♡ His room is like a colourful library. There are shelves upon shelves of books. Random clutter everywhere. Trinkets, streamers, toys. Literally anything that goes missing in the mansion will be in Candy Pop's room. He likes collecting! :D

♡ Candy Pop doesn't always sleep in his room because he prefers to go to Nathan's house, or Jill's cabin. He tends to pass out in the forest after his hunts, so Jill picks him up.

♡ Candy Pop's fashion sense is experimental, but it keeps its circusy theme no matter what. He likes frilly clothes. Overdresses himself with accessories (hairpins, earrings, bracelets, and the like). Colour palette can either be pastel or gothic—both if he's feeling it. Candy Pop does simple makeup—unless he has a performance lined up. He curls his eyelashes so they look a bit swirly! ^_^

♡ His hair falls down to his calves. It's usually kept in three ponytails or a braid. He loves his fruit scented shampoos! Candy Pop lets the mansion kids put flowers into his hair. Lazari and Ben especially enjoy experimenting with giving Candy Pop funky hairstyles.

♡ Candy Pop sucks at using technology. He's forgetful, always needing to ask for assistance. It frustrates him, so he'd rather communicate via letters, or in-person meetings. However, he thinks videos and movies can be entertaining! He has NO idea how they work, but they're so silly!

♡ His use of slang is influenced by Nathan and Ciara. Otherwise, he speaks formally, and with as many references to Shakespeare as he can fit into a sentence.

♡ Spicy food will kill him instantly.

♡ He's vegan but makes an exception for dairy ice-cream. His favourite food is fruit salad and cabbage stew. But he tries inedible "foods" all the time. Like bath-bombs, or soap, or chalk, or lipstick. He gets shocked when they taste bitter.

♡ Candy Pop is terrified of mirrors. He refuses to look at his reflection. NT is always there. No matter what. He can't get that image out of his head. Candy Pop keeps away from reflective surfaces in general. Any and all mirrors tend to be covered when he's near. He gets others to check his makeup and outfits.

♡ He doesn't trust people easily, even though it may seem like he's gullible. Most people only know him on a surface level. Candy Pop hates talking about his past. Nobody knows the full story, not even his closest family. Because of how much hell he's lived through, Candy Pop can provide astonishingly good advice.

♡ Candy Pop's body is scarred from battles, self-inflictions, and little scuffles. He also has two scars on his back from Genyr wings that failed to grow on. Candy Pop likes to consider all his scars to be "battle scars"! It gives him a warrior-like image!

♡ His courage comes from his mother, who he believed was a warrioress. The stories his uncle told about her were the reason he kept going in dark times. Unbeknownst to him, those stories were made up.

♡ Candy Pop enjoys sleeping. He can control his dreams, so it's equivalent to going into an alternate universe for the night, where his life is a bit better. He experiences night terrors... from time to time, which sets him into a panic because they're always too realistic.

♡ One consequence of NT's corruption is that Candy Pop is involuntarily flirty with people. It isn't anything he's happy with, and creates lots of future issues if someone becomes attached to him. Candy Pop ends up feeling gross and yucky even if he doesn't go farther than flirting with people. He struggles to find any worth in himself outside of romantic or sexual desire. He can't help but believe everyone in his life will use him. He has to make himself useable, or else he'll get discarded.

♡ While they were fused, NT and Candy Pop never had a bond. NT put Candy Pop through so much emotional and physical distress. He despised that jester. For taking away his body, and replacing it with a weaker one. He couldn't even stay in his regular form for long... But he could shapeshift when he was in Candy Pop's form, and that meant he could enact his plans. Only thing is, since they shared the same body, they shared a consciousness. The first several months—years—decades—they shared a body together, it was horrifying for Candy Pop.

♡ Candy Pop was still young. Putting things into perspective, his entire life was stripped from him, along with every ounce of innocence he ever had. He didn't have anyone who could save him. Not a soul. All the other Genyrs were wiped out. His mother was dead. His father couldn't care less about him. The Gods weren't listening. It wasn't until centuries later that Candy Pop formed reliable connections.

♡ When Candy Pop finally grew "comfortable" with sharing a body with NT, NT became more and more insatiable. Candy Pop started giving into everything NT said, not refusing because if he laid low and gained NT's "trust", it'd be easier to get rid of him when the time came. But NT was also arrogant, angry, aggressive. And he'd take out his frustrations onto not only his children and partners, but also Candy Pop. NT found other ways to torment this one.

♡ Candy Pop has moments where he's averse to touch—severely. He'll distance himself from everyone. Only a few people can help him out of this. It's appreciated, because he thinks he's going to die alone. Candy Pop is, otherwise, a physically affectionate guy. He doesn't let just anyone touch him though. Again, his trust can be difficult to earn.

♡ Candy Pop copes with his trauma by being a jester. Surrounding himself with friends and family. Pretending like things aren't as bad as they are. And that's about it.

(dividers by dollywons) ☆

YAY! THAT'S ALL FOR THIS!!! backstory stuff would in fact take me a million years to do so that's going to be in another post i'll make at... some point. thankkk you!

#this is less detailed than jasons #i take requests if anyone wants stuff LMFAO but on this blog its ONLY for the circus themed pastas #slendermansion au #candy pop #candy pop headcanons #creepypasta #creepypasta headcanons #creepypasta rewrite #creepypasta fandom

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