#dead by demon

[circeyoru]

Dead By Demon

[Killer!Alastor x Survivor!Reader - Dead By Daylight AU]

By some interesting world reason or whatever phenomenon that is still unexplainable to your feeble little mind, you got sent to a game you’ve been forced to play by your friends called Dead By Daylight

It’s a horror game that’s designed to be a match based game. Each game there are 5 players, 4 as survivors and 1 as the killer. In each game, the players are all sent to a randomized map. Each side with a different goal

The goal of the survivors is to survive, how? By fixing 5 machines called generators, then 2 exit doors on the map will be allowed to be opened and the survivors can escape through that. The killer’s goal is to kill all the survivors, either offering them to the entity by putting them on another machine called a hook or executing them

Of course, the game is not as simple as that, since there are other variables that can give the players advantages and disadvantages. Not to mention the play style of each gamer is different, on top of the ever changing maps and new characters for survivors and killers. As a beginner moving to somewhat more causal player, you were proud to say you are familiar with the mechanics of the game and can survivor flawlessly

THAT IS IF THE KILLERS AND SURVIVORS WERE THE SAME AS THE GAME YOU KNEW

Somehow, the killers and survivors were all major characters from a show you watched called Hazbin Hotel. You didn’t understand it, when you were brought in, they were all familiarity with the game’s mechanisms. Everything that happened in the show was distorted as their background information

You were a survivor. The others were Charlie, Vaggie, Angel, Husk, Niffty, Adam, Lute, Sera, Emily, and Saint Peter. You’re not surprised the hotel staff was all put in the survivor side, but you were surprised that the angels were all on your side as well. By guess, you can bet that the King of Hell and Overlords were all the killers

You learned that the hotel staff members were the first to arrive on the scene, then they were quickly sent to the maps of their former allies, Alastor and Lucifer

Alastor was formerly a radio host and serial killer during his days as a human, his maps were based on his hometown but the variety spread to a few, including his beloved home with his mother and the murder scene of his father, his radio broadcasting studio and work station where he writes his scripts and ideas, his swamp where it was his body dumping grounds, and his forest where it was his hunting grounds and death

Lucifer as the King of Hell also has a few maps. One was a smaller scale of Pentagram City, another was his garden, then his ducky workshop and kitchen, and last was his musical room which was still a giant map

There didn’t seen to be an issue with the first map as the 4 sent survivors were keen on escaping and Alastor was keen on killing them by placing them on hooks or executing them. For Lucifer though, he was a softy for whenever Charlie was present, always letting her survive while showing no mercy to the others

The first match was the scariest since they thought their lives were on the line, but when it was clear that they were only dead during the match and revived when the match ends, everything was more chill

But that depended on the killers and survivors. If there were bad blood between, things could get petty like taunting and letting other teammates die. If the killer wanted, they can watch the survivor suffer a bit before killing them. It was a twisted repeat day after day. Luckily, it was only 3 matches a day and the same survivor won’t be allowed to join more than 2 matches a day

Matches are placed in the morning, afternoon, and night. All players are random unless one volunteers, to which the opposite side would be notified and no other volunteers are allowed to allow for fairness. Matches can be quick or slow, depending on the players. Rewards for a win in a match are what the player wants. Like better living quarters, better food, entertainment items, etc

Outside of the matches, survivors and killers live in separate areas divided by a wall of flowing water. If a survivor or killer is injured, their condition will be fully revived during the match but returned to the way they are if they lost the match

All these information was all so overwhelming for you since it was on top of trying to adapt your new surrounding, but they were all used to it since it was slowly introduced to them. The second wave of survivors were the angels from Heaven and then the rest of the Overlords

It was only a matter of time before you also got used to all the stuff that you were thrown into

There was one change after your arrive. Whenever you were in a match, any other participants had more control over their own actions and mindset. The former desire to survivor or killer was weaken to none the longer and more experienced and familiar you got. You even found yourself getting familiar with the killers or former Overlords

Albeit you were trying to survive by buying time through chatting. The highest of success was high usually. Sometimes it doesn’t work because you don’t know much about them cause there was a lack of information revealed in the show

However, even though Alastor’s a favourite of yours. You hate being in the same match as him. Watching him from the safety of your home when he was just fictional was fine, but having him chasing you with a knife or a shotgun and a crazed smile? No! HELL NO!!!

Whenever it was revealed that Alastor was the killer in your match, you would immediately run to find your other teammates no matter who they are. You just can’t be left alone with him, even when you serve as a good bait to buy time and let your teammates fix the generators so they can open the exit for you to run towards

“There’s a limit to my mental stamina!!” You screamed at the top of your lungs while running away from the deer demon behind you. “I’m so beating you guys up when this match is over!”

Meanwhile, all your teammates are mentally thanking your sacrifice. “Keep up the good work, almost there.”

Before your arrival, Alastor could never enjoy his hunt. It was like he was wired to hunt and kill, there was no thrill, no entertainment as he would prefer. It was so dull and boring

Find a survivor, scare them, chase them, stab them till they can’t run, put them on a hook and watch them die or go hunt the other survivors, repeat repeat repeat. That was how predictable the matches became after the first few times. It got to the point that he doesn’t even try anymore when he was sent into a match, especially when he was so well off in his living conditions

He didn’t need the wins anymore, it was all meaningless

Then he heard from Zestial who got the honors of participating as the killer for your first match. He told the others after the last meal of the day when everyone was gathered around a bonfire to see if someone wants to volunteer for the next day

According to Zestial, when he entered the random map that was Carmilla’s weapons workshop, there was a weaken desire to hunt and kill the survivors, even more so when it was the unfamiliar figure he met. He had found a survivor fixing a generator, he tried creeping up to the poor soul, but your head was looked around as if you felt him

The moment he got one step closer, you bolted up and ran away from the area. His hunting and killing urge came back and he gave chase, when his claws came into contact with your figure and you screamed, he felt an unfamiliar ache. He watched your speed increase and ran out of sight as it was normal whenever a survivor was slashed by a killer, then he looked down to his bloody claws

That inferno desire weakened again, like he was returning back to his true self when he was outside of the match

Killer’s volunteer table was quickly filled up as everyone wanted a chance to test Zestial’s words. Though, only some were able to actually be in the same match as you, and fewer got the chance to see you. Turns out, you were a sensitive and perceptive survivor. If you were a killer, they knew you’d be something like an assassin or a sniper

When Alastor finally got a chance to experience a match with you, he was relieved that he could pick a target like the good old days and not whichever survivor that was around. Or even the ‘obsession’ that was randomly picked in the survivor team per match. He felt sweet control to do as he pleased

So he set out to find you. His mind raced. Will he hunt and give chase like his desires drive him to in his previous matches? Will he immediately try to slash you and bring you down so he can hook you? Will he have that weakened desire like Zestial did? What was your effect? Why are you special?

Finding you was easy as lucky wasn’t on your side. You were diligently trying to fix the generator but ended up busting it every so often which alerted him of your location, then that teammate of yours, Adam, as he recognized the golden wing design on his back, leave you and didn’t even warn you of the incoming killer

He got a fast ambush, a deep slash on your arm that definitely need mending else risk being rendered immobile. You quickly ran away like other survivors would, no difference. Yet, he was just standing there watching your form fade from his sight, leaving a trail of blood splatters in your wake

His legs moved as he decided he can’t let you out of his sight. No way, not after he felt that control and real killer instinct. You’re like his prey back in the days, he wants to get to know you then have the best chase of a lifetime. Cut you up and watch the lovely red paint you in beauty and posh

The best part was, he didn’t have to worry that it would be a one time thing. Both of you will never dead as long as this stupid game is on

“Darling, why are you running from me? Let’s play a game. Let’s enjoy our matches.”

Note: Okay.. I've been away for some time.... Haha.... I'm fine, just out of town and didn't have time to write. Plus I've been busy with a new game. Anyways, wanna get back to it with this and see how things go. So what you think of this?

Circe Y. 

My Works: MASTERLIST

Taglist:

@aconfusedwonderland @crowleysthings @donustellaron @mistpurpl3 @lucifers-silhouette @fluffy-koalala

[goryhorroor]

“horror movies of the 1980s exist at the glorious watershed when special visual effects finally catch up with the gory imaginings of horror fans and movie makers. technical advances in special effects (animatronics, liquid and foam latex) meant the human frame could be distorted to grotesque new dimensions on screen. 1980s horror movies delivered the full colour close-up, look-no-strings-attached, special effect in a way that previous practitioners of the art could only dream about. everything lurking in the shadows in older horror movies was now dragged into the garish light of day. the monsters were finally out of the closet.”

[lesbiannieism]

love how when the boys exorcised david in ep 1 he just waltzed out of the train with a sheet over his head like a kid in a ghost costume

[bluewolfangel01]

I love the unhinged idea that if Mc is angry or dissapointed with the demons, that they would create a circle of salt around themselves and just stay in it

And no matter the immense combined powers that Diavolo, Barbatos, and the Brothers hold, they ain't getting past the salt circle no matter what they do

Salt is the most powerful thing in the Devildom, confirmed

[classichorrorblog]

10 Movies From The 1980s To Consider For October/Halloween

[somnoir]

Demon Twins and Death

Inspired by this post by @spiders-in-the-primrose

Damian had spent years loathing Danyal. The weaker, pathetic son. The son who did not have what it took to carry the name Al Ghul. The twin who had died and was swallowed by the Lazarus pits, never to be seen again.

The twin Damian killed.

His brother had welcomed death with tears and sobs. His last words were stained by the blood he choke out, "It had to be you, akhi." He whispered as the blood spilled from his mouth and a sword was pressed further into his stomach.

When he was sent to his father, he remained with his belief in being the better son. That Danyal was not worthy of being the son of the demon and the son of the bat. He could have been one but in the end, only Damian was worthy for both.

And yet as the years passed, Damian grew and changed. And then he finally understood.

In his family of heroes, his family who strived to make the world better—Danyal would have been a better fit. Instead, Damian had been the one to become his father's son with his own twin's blood on his hands. His father must never know.

The idea of Danyal sparks rage, resentment, and utterly self-loathing. His kind and sweet brother who would have been the perfect son for his father. The son who was clearly the better person. Not in skill, power—but morals. Because like their father, Danyal would never kill.

What would have happened if Danyal was here with him? If he were still alive?

Damain can imagine his brother in the colors that Robin wore, another costume, another name. Because Damian will not give up that name after he managed to take it from Drake. But Danyal would have work the colors, would have been bubbly like Grayson. He would have taken care of the children on the streets like Todd. He would have helped their father in cases like Drake.

He would have been the brother they would have wanted.

And Damian tries not to drown in what his brother could have been. He can't help but admire this figment of his imagination. This hero in his kind that wore what could have been Danyal's face. This light within the darkness of Gotham who had a voice identical to Damian's.

And Damian does drown. Because he wants what his brother could have been.

Danyal Al Ghul died by the hands of his brother.

In the back of his mind, he thinks that he just wants his other half back.

Danny Fenton was born as the girl who would be his sister dragged him from a lake and nursed him to health.

The Fentons were strange people with strange ideals. Jack and Maddie were obsessed, they were not suited to care for children as they grabbed their weapons and hunted down any ghost their could find. When they were absent, Danny was left with Jasmine.

The memory of Damian is strong and cruel and it burned itself into his mind. The memory of that katana sinking into his gut, just as blood bubbles up his throat. He remembers an older brother who had to be the one to kill him.

He remembers and then he looks to Jasmine. She is warmth incarnate, with fiery hair and bright eyes that reminded him of stars on painting. His parents lack the warmth he craves but Jazz gives him so much that he can't help but melt everytime he's in her arms.

Neither of them can forget how fearful he was towards her when she first found him. He had only been six years old, feeling the effects of the Lazarus pit on his skin before he was spat out somewhere far, far away. He remembered being in Nanda Parbat then he was spat out somewhere in Illinois.

Jasmine had found him. Jazz had found him.

And Danny has decided long ago that Jazz was much better than Damian.

Even from the distance between them, Danyal continues to fear Damian. The part of him that he wished died when his own twin stabbed him to death continued to live on.

Then he died.

Again.

And he can't help but hope that Danyal is finally dead. That the failure was finally dead. His body only needed two. He only needed Danny and Phantom. Yes... Danyal was dead.

Danny would kill that part of him himself if he could.

He donned the mantle of hero, even when the people called him a menace at times. Danny was finally a hero, he was finally someone who could do good in the world. It was a blessing for him.

In all honesty, being a hero had been fun, even as he suffered. His rogues that fought him felt like friends that he had missed in his life. Parts of him yearned for when Skulker came out for a fight. He laughed whenever Ember moved to blast her music through the town and he was forced to fight her. He was fond of both Kitty and Johnny, even when they fought and caused havoc. Trouble felt like home for once.

The half of him that was dead yearned for a fight, yearned for an obsession. Protection—he was told—was his own obsession.

To protect, to fight, to make sure that whatever fell into his obsession was safe and sound. He thinks of Amity Park—his haunt, his domain—and assumed it was what he wanted to protect. He had fought Pariah Dark, became King through conquest and continued to protect.

But a part of him knew that something was wrong. He knew that it wasn't Amity Park that he would protect at all cost. No.

It was always Jazz. Always his big sister who cradled him, who figured out he was Phantom, who could tell whether he was himself or not. The greatest part of his obsession fell onto the older sibling who loves him unconditionally, always reminding him that there was another half of him in the world that killed him. But Jazz was none of that.

Danny loved his family. He loved Elle who grew to be his little sister. He loved his parents even when they were difficult. He loved his friends—Sam, Tucker, Valerie. He loved them so dearly and yet they could never match up to Jazz.

Danny doesn't know what he'd do without her.

(Lies. He knew what would happen if Jazz was taken from her. He knew what kind of monster he'd become—one that the observants demanded to be killed. He knew damn well that Jazz Fenton was the only thing that kept him human.)

(Dan existed for a reason.)

(Danny would burn the world for his sister.)

(And he'd kill himself for fear of his brother.)

Fate is a cruel mistress that knew what she was doing. Twins were tied by blood, mind, and soul. An invisible thread that made sure they were connected one way or another. He shouldn't be surprised that they were going to be reunited at some point.

Danny Fenton and Damian Wayne meet.

It's been years. They've changed. They've become new people. Damian is Robin, the son of the bat (not heir to the demons head). Danny is Phantom, High King of the Infinite Realms (not the failure devoured by the Lazarus).

But that doesn't stop Danyal Al Ghul from drowning in fear at the mere visage of Damian Al Ghul.

Danny plays as ambassador, not king. He won't risk himself by telling people who he truly is. He can't. No.

When he summoned and claims that he is an ambassador sent as a substitute, the Justice League accepts what they are given and pleaded for aid.

But Robin is there with Batman. Robin and Phantom meet.

Robin sees Danyal and Phantom sees his murderer.

The moment his body was no longer frozen, Damian sucked in a deep breath as he stared at the face of his own beloved twin. His brother that died by his hands and was claimed by the pits. Had the Lazarus turned him into a creature of the realms?

"Danyal..." Robin sounded hopeful, desperate. He reached forward and almost crossed the circle if not for his father and Nightwing pulling him back with confusion and concern. They look towards the Ghostly being with a face that resembled their father and youngest a little too much.

Danny? Had he been human, his heart would have stopped after ricocheting. He stopped breathing, rendering his lungs useless. This was Damian. A hero of his own right even when he was a monster in Danny's eyes.

Danyal Al Ghul feared Damian.

Phantom was a manifestation of something of Danyal's death.

"You mistake me for someone, Heir to the Demon's head." His voice tore through air, distorted by his own will. Danny was king, he had to remind himself that.

"I am a manifestation. I am born from a concept and emotion. You would not have met me." The lies were not lies. Truths bended to his will as he spoke and pressed against the barrier made by the summoning circle. "But you recognize this body that I have taken form in."

"Then your appearance belonged to a living person." Batman growled.

Danny realizes that this was his father. Perhaps Ra's was right at some point—blood calls to blood.

"What have you done to Danyal?! Where is my twin brother, demon!" Robin's words leak venom as he slams a hand against the barrier.

Danyal tremblesPhantom was amused.

"Bats, tell your brat to back off! That's the ghost king's fuckin' ambassador." The Hellblazer hissed, watching as Batman pulled his son away.

But Damian—Robin—stands still.

Phantom grinned, flashing his teeth as he leaned closed to the barrier. Even when his appearance was born of inverted colors with Lazarus eyes rather than the sky, Damian could recognize his twin's face anywhere.

Both of them knew what happened to Danyal. Killed by his own brother.

But only Phantom knew what happened after.

"Oh little bird... I killed him."

Masterpost

[fanofspooky]

Horror sub genre definitions remake 2

[boarwinds]

Princess locked away in a tower with the demon she's supposed to be kept from #OshamirWeek Day Four: Free Day

[fan-a-tink]

wanted to make this gif just because it's one of the most stunning shots in the show, but also....

...the symbolism of David pushing Crystal and causing her to lose her balance, while Charles is the one catching her and helping her regain her balance... *chef's kiss*

[lotus-pear]

mourning black and the death of ideals

[ktkat99]

Slightly Crack Batfam AU

Duke, shortly after being adopted, finds an old demon summoning circle burned into the floor under a rug in one of the rooms.

That, combined with some of the literature he finds laying around, leads him to conclude that someone in his new family is secretly a demon and he starts trying to figure out who.

Could it be Bruce, the literal demon of the night?

Dick, who bends and flips effortlessly in ways no normal human could?

Jason seems the most likely, as he climbed out of his own grave, but to be fair, he'd never actually seen Tim sleep.

And then there was Damian.

He never would have guessed that the demon is actually Alfred, summoned by a desperate, distraught Bruce the night of his parents' deaths.

Originally, their deal was just for Alfred to help Bruce get his revenge.

The reason he stuck around, though?

He realized he needed to make sure that Bruce and his collection of equally crazy orphans stayed OUT of the afterlife (and therefore AWAY from the throne of hell, which he has no doubt someone would eventually take) and decided to stay on as their oddly perfect butler.

[circeyoru]

Hello,

I've been reading your writings for a while now and I got say that the level of detail that you put is incredible.

I wanted to ask if you were going to continue the dead by daylight au? It's really interesting

Hope your doing well. Please don't push yourself yourself too much and remember to have fun.

This is for {Dead By Demon}, check MASTERLIST for the work

Thank you for your support and compliment~ I do tend to put a number of unplanned details in my writing~ I am giving my main stories a rest cause of planning as you guys can tell, but they are paused at a somewhat ending spot.

The DND (Dead by Demon) AU can be continued but something like headcanons and asks would be its main support and any scenarios I got for it to be continued.

[disgracefulthings]

Lan Wangji: What are you doing?

Wei Wuxian, handling a corpse: I'm trying to recreate what I did with Wen Ning. This poor fellow was recently dropped into the burial mounds, so I decided to use him

Lan Wangji: This is not right, Wei Ying. The demonic path-

Wei Wuxian: Oh, can it, Lan Zhan! I can do what I wa-

Corpse, suddenly opening its eyes and taking a breath: Where am I?

Lan Wangji: What did you do?

Wei Wuxian: It wasn't me!!

Xie Lian, who is not dead: Oh dear, I believe there has been a misunderstanding

[shhhhimwatchingthis]

Dead Boy Detectives has everything:

Co Dependent queer platonic tough to define Best Freinds who would and have gone to hell for each other. they have an office with a cupboard full of board games, and a long history of Noodle Incident cases of '04, and also a bunch of maneuvers with code names. They are also ghosts who solve mysteries for other ghosts.

One is a sassy well read diva in a stupid little bowtie. he keeps meticulous notes, and went to hell on a technicality. he has no rizz and has a sexual awakening at the hands (paws?) of a supernatural Cat King

the other is a cheerful happy bruiser, the brawn with a pocket demension only he can navigate in his backpack, a magic cricket bat, and wells of anger deep down

they team up with a cool psychic (whos also a pretty tree) dealing with her asshole abusive boyfriend who was literally a demon while also trying to restore her memories (she also has a hilarious hate off off with the nerdy one)

then they add a sweet shut in who isn't very brave but is very inquisitive and has excellent reading comprehension and is actually the most brave

and their landlady is a hot goth Sapphic butcher who is done with their shit (but not really)

and the main antagonist is a cunt serving witch with an iron cane chewing up the scenery, just camp queen obsessed with Beauty and Revenge as she should be

she turns her crow familiar into an astrology loving twink to honeypot the nerdy one but the crow catches feelings whoops

the cat king who deserves his own mention again. he's here to seduce a stuffy British detective/tease, cause problems on purpose, reluctantly help solve those problems and mostly slut it up.

a bureaucrat learns to VERY reluctantly embrace the beautiful power of friendship after being swallowed by a fish

its set in a gorgeous seaside town with a light house! and a malt shop!

because this is all A Scooby Doo homage!

It's an episodic Case Of The Episode format! with strong serialized elements!

and as if that wasn't enough there's even Death of The Endless.

what more could any person possibly want in a show.

oh and there's a lot of really interesting themes around internalized homophpbia, abusive relationships and trauma and toxic anger and learning to love and trust and help other people again in spite of and because of the bad parts.

[luxaofhesperides]

the lost brother - damian

There is static in his ears.

There is a baby in his arms.

His niece. His niece from a brother dead before he was born. The daughter of Danyal, his mother's greatest regret, the ghost haunting his childhood, the brother he never got to have.

She is so small in his arms. Still. Quiet.

It frightens him, cradling such a fragile life in his arms. He's not good with most people, let alone a baby.

Danyal must have been truly desperate to leave her with him.

"Robin."

The voice makes the world come rushing back into place. Damian moves before he thinks, turning his body to shield his niece from danger, but it's only Red Robin standing before him. He stares, wide eyed, until Red Robin pushes his cowl back and Drake stands before him, expression carefully neutral. He doesn't look at the baby in Damian's arms. He only looks at Damian.

"Robin, come on. The Batmobile is right below us."

Damian hesitates, then follows Drake to the edge of the roof. He takes the fire escape down, landing carefully so he doesn't jostle the baby in his arms, and Drake grapples down a moment later, carefully maintaining the distance between them.

He knows it's to keep Damian from feeling trapped, and he's stupidly grateful, though he'll never say so.

The rest of the family will be a pain to deal with. They will demand answers he doesn't have, invade his space, insist on taking his niece from him. At least Drake is quiet and willing to observe without interference beyond getting them all home.

As promised, the Batmobile waits for them in the alley. Drake holds the door open and Damian slides in, adjusting his niece to make sure she's comfortable. She blinks up at him with dark blue eyes.

How strange. He had expected them to be green.

Drake drives them, speaking in short bursts into his comm. Damian brings a hand up to his own, realising rather belatedly that it's muted. Oracle must have grown annoyed at the barage of questions heading his way and silenced them for him.

He'll have to thank her later, once things have settled down.

For now, all his attention is on his little baby niece. What did Danyal say her name was?

Ellie.

Ellie Ellie Ellie.

She reaches up with a small hand, curious, and Damian offers a finger for her to latch on to. Her grip isn't strong, and her hand is small and barely warm.

He holds her closer for the rest of the ride home.

Father wants to take Ellie away for tests. Damian refuses to let go of her, going as far as leveling a sword at anyone who tries.

Drake is the only one who offers to only draw the barest minimum amount of blood for a DNA test, all while Damian holds her.

This, he accepts.

The others hover in his periphery, muttering amongst themselves, but Damian cares little for their thoughts and judgements. He was given Ellie for the sole purpose of caring for her. He will not fail in his duty. If it comes to it that he has to hide away with Mother for the rest of them to calm down, then he will. Surely she'll want to be involved with her granddaughter.

He'll have to tell her about Danyal, anyways.

Father stays at the computer, watching as the results load. He does not look away from the screen to even greet Ellie.

Damian pushes down his bitterness. He knows well the kind of man Father is, now. This is expected of him.

It's Richard that stays by him, hurrying across the Cave with an armful of diapers and baby clothes.

"I wasn't sure what to get, so I got a bit of everything," he explains, setting everything down on the cot where Damian sits with Ellie. Richard cut his patrol short as soon as Danyal left and made an emergency run to the nearest store with baby supplies, pulling sweatpants and a jacket over his Nightwing suit. The collar of the suit peeks out from beneath his jacket, and Damian is sure that it's only the late hour that kept anyone from asking too many questions while Richard was shopping.

"Thank you," Damian mutters. He sets Ellie down carefully, and she blinks up at him with tired eyes. Her face is round with baby fat, but not by much. "How do I…?"

"I think I know how to change a diaper," Richard offers, already pulling a fresh one out of the pack. He gets a small pack of baby wipes out of his pocket and quickly undoes the diaper on Ellie, wiping her down. Damian watches carefully, committing each step to memory as Richard changes her diaper and makes sure she's comfortable.

They're all out of their depths, Damian realizes. Have any of them actually cared for a baby? Pennyworth might have had some idea, and though he died a few years ago, the loss of him aches sharply even now.

"We'll have to figure out how old she is before we get any food for her," Richard murmurs, reaching out to brush a finger against her cheek. His eyes are soft, sad, and Damian lets out a slow breath, relived to know he can trust Richard with Ellie. "What happened?"

It's the question everyone's been asking him, and Damian has refused to answer each time.

But he will answer Richard.

"I saw a person on the edge of the roof as I patrolled. I went down to bring them to safety. He was… I had an older brother who died before I was born. But I know what he looks like. It was him, on that roof."

"You think he came back to life?"

"He must have. He was placed in a Lazarus Pit, but Mother said it didn't bring him back. Perhaps it just took time."

"What made you think it was him, if you've never met him?"

Damian thinks back. The man on the roof was a few years older than Drake, thin and worn-down. His eyes caught Damian's attention first; al Ghul's have very distinctive eyes, and it seems they both inherited that trait from Mother. Beyond that…

Lazarus Pits have magic in them. They wouldn't be able to do what they did without it. Those revived by Lazarus Pits carry some of it with them; it's not Pit Rage, which fades within an hour, but something else that leaves them on the boundary of inhuman. Damian grew up around the Pits and people who used them. He knows what the magic of the Pits feels like, and he could feel it in Danyal.

"I just knew," Damian answers. "Should Mother ever meet him, she'll be able to tell you the same thing: that was Danyal. And this is his daughter."

"Do you know why he left his daughter with you?"

"He asked if Batman was a good father. If I was safe here. Only then did he give Ellie to me."

"He could have stayed to," Richard says, sadness coloring his tone.

Damian doesn't respond. What could he say? Yes, Danyal could have stayed and joined them. He chose not to, for whatever reason. They have not found him yet, and Damian doubts they will find him any time soon.

Danyal is the first son of Talia al Ghul and Bruce Wayne. He will not be found until he wants to be.

Damian will have to wait until then.

The DNA results come back after eight rounds of testing.

Ellie is indeed Damian's niece.

The closest matches to her in the database are Damian and Bruce, which all but confirms that Danyal is indeed the first blood son of the Bat.

Father stares down at Ellie with an unreadable look on his face. He doesn't try to hold her; Damian doesn't know if he should be grateful for this or not.

"I have another son," he says. "And neither you nor your mother ever told me."

"He was dead," Damian answers, "What use would a dead child be to you? Even I never met him until tonight. He was gone long before I was born."

"He's still my son!"

"He's a stranger," Damian bites back. "Why do you pretend to care now? He has never been a part of our lives before. You won't even hold his daughter."

Father flinches back, just slightly, but it's enough to know that the barb hit. Damian gathers Ellie up into his arms and heads for the stairs. "I will be going to sleep now. Ellie will stay with me. You are welcome to stay down here to search for Danyal, or you can get some rest to join me in shopping for Ellie. I will call Mother. Good night."

The others don't have the decency to wait until he's completely out of the Cave before they begin shouting amongst themselves. Damian clicks his tongue and looks down at Ellie, who's sleeping peacefully.

"Let's hope you grow up to have more sense than them," he says to her.

He lays her on top of the blankets, then curls up next to her. It's a long time before he's able to fall asleep.

Mother calls first thing in the morning. Damian's barely had time to brush his teeth before his phone is ringing, and he has to rush to catch it before the call ends.

"Is it true?" she demands as soon as he answers, "Was it Danyal?"

Damian bites back a curse. He said he'd call her. It would have been best if he had been the one to break the news, rather than anyone else, but it doesn't surprise him that no one listened.

"It's true," he says. "Danyal was in Gotham last night. He left his daughter in my care before disappearing. I was unable to speak to him more."

"How can that be," she says, breathless, "It's been decades since his death. The Lazarus Pit never returned him to me."

"It was him. That's all I know."

There's a pause as his mother gathers her composure. Then she says, "I will be in Gotham in a week. I will not be kept out of my granddaughter's life."

"I will make sure we have a room ready for you."

"Good. Take care, habibi."

The call ends without any other fanfare. Damian drops his head with a sigh and tosses his phone back onto his desk.

On his bed, Ellie is sitting up, watching him curiously.

"You and your father have caused a lot of trouble already," he tells her, and she claps her hands together.

When he goes downstairs, he immediately makes note of Drake and Brown's presence with displeasure. His hopes for a quiet morning are dashed before he even reached the kitchen.

"There you are!" Brown says far too loudly. She bounds up to him, ignoring his scowl, and peers at Ellie. "Hm, I'd guess around nine to eleven months, accounting for FTT and some malnutrition."

"FTT?" he repeats.

"Failure to thrive. If infants aren't care for properly, which includes cuddling, then they just… don't grow as they should. They end up smaller and weaker than is expected for their age."

"I imagine she was not taken care of properly, wherever she was before. She wouldn't have been left with me otherwise."

Brown looks troubled, but she blinks it away and smiles when Ellie reaches up to grab at her nose. "Hello there," she says in a soft voice, "I'm your favorite aunt. Don't forget that, alright! I'm your favorite."

Damian pushes her away. "She has no favorites."

"Not yet, but it'll definitely be me when she does!"

"Don't you have anything better to do than bother me?"

"No. But, in all seriousness, me and Tim are here to help. He gave me a rundown and what happened and I still have a bunch of stuff from my pregnancy classes that can help you. We also got some baby food and milk and formula for the baby, since she'll need to eat and be burped. I can walk you through all of that so you can start getting some experience in baby care."

Ah. He had forgotten that Brown had once been pregnant. That she gave away her own baby.

It must be hard for her to be on the other end of that situation, to watch someone take in a baby whose parent couldn't properly care for her, to muster up a smile and all the information she has to make things better.

"I would… appreciate that, Brown."

"Good! Well, lesson one starts now."

She throws open the door to the kitchen, where Drake is pressing the tip of a feeding bottle against the inside of his wrist. "Come here," he says to Damian. "Hold out a hand."

Curious, Damian does as told, and watches as Drake pressed the warm tip of the bottle against his wrist, where liquid splots out onto his skin. "That's about how warm it should be when you feed her. Here." He presses the bottle into Damian's hands, and it takes some adjustment before he can feed Ellie, who starts off slowly, then with more energy.

Brown tosses a rag over his shoulder, and instructs him on how to burp Ellie once she's finished eating. She coughs up some formula, then settles back into his arms, eyes closing as she begins to doze.

"I'll handle shopping," Drake says. "You need a crib, right? Maybe some toys… Just text me a list, I'll get everything."

"Why are you doing all this?" Damian can't help but ask. "We are not exactly… close."

Drake blinks at him, as though he's confused. "Because a baby is a big responsibility. And just because we don't always get along doesn't mean we're not family. She's my neice too. Doesn't she deserve to have more people in her corner?"

Damian can't argue with that, so he nods and lets Drake go to buy whatever he thinks is necessary. Brown lingers in the kitchen, making breakfast for them both in between sneaking glances at Ellie. Usually being watched so obviously would have him on edge and snappy, but he understands the urge to keep looking; he also can't take his eyes off of Ellie.

For someone so small to go through such hardship already… he doesn't understand how anyone can look at her and not want to keep her safe.

He wonders if anyone is keeping Danyal safe.

As much as he wants to go after Danyal, search for his resurrected brother, Ellie takes priority.

She's the one who's here to stay, after all.

Father doesn't come up from the Batcave all day.

Damian tries not to hate him for it.

He doesn't think he succeeds.

(masterpost for all parts)

[strawijuice]

RADIO IS NOT DEAD! 📻