#my nightingale

[hot-hellboy]

My Nightingale - A Jasico Fanfic (Part 5)

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

 Nico woke up sore and unfortunately alone. He sat up in Jason’s bed with the sheets pulled up to his chest. At first he thought the boy regretted his confession earlier and changed his mind about a relationship. That thought made Nico’s heart sink, but his mood immediately shifted when Jason stepped out of the bathroom.

  “Hey, Nico.”

  Jason said cheerfully and he walked over to kiss his forehead. Nico blushed but quickly moved away when he was going to lean in for a kiss on the mouth.

  “Let me brush my teeth first.”

  He said, chagrined and he took Jason’s old sweatshirt that covered his thighs and went to the bathroom. Nico brushed his teeth and thought about the events from last night with a red face.   He returned back to the room and straddled Jason once the older boy got seated on the bed. Nico gave him a real kiss this time and cupped his face with his hands.

  “I look forward to waking up everyday like this.”

  Jason whispered to him and Nico couldn’t agree more.

  “Me too.”

  They made out for awhile before Nico suggested they go take a shower, and Jason picked him up and placed him on the bathroom counter.   Jason undressed himself from his underwear and pajama pants and helped Nico get his sweatshirt off before turning on the water and cranking the heat up.  They got inside and helped wash each other off until Nico got handsy and Jason reciprocated until the two boys ended up having a quickie in the shower .  Jason pulled out with a satisfied sigh and Nico dried himself off once he got out and proceeded to get dressed.

  “What are you looking for?”

  He asked as he observed Nico muttering under his breath as he rummaged through his clothes.

  “A non-revealing shirt to cover up these hickeys that you gave me.”

  He said annoyed but Jason couldn’t help but chuckle lightly as he walked up to his new boyfriend and hugged him from behind.

  “I think they look good on you.”

  He said in a low voice and Nico soon got flustered and gave up trying.

 Breakfast was as awkward as ever once Nico had to explain what the marks were on his neck, but the crew didn’t have many dots to connect when they glanced between Jason and Nico sitting next to each other.  Hazel fanned herself and Nico couldn’t wait to get out of there.

  Of course he had to wait until sunset to have a conversation with Jason, but he waited patiently up at the crow’s nest. However, before Nico had climbed up the mast, he stopped by him and his boyfriend’s shared cabin and was only in there to look for a sweater since the evening was getting colder.  He found his smoky gray chunky knit sweater and shrugged it on. But before Nico was going to leave, the bird encyclopedia caught his eye.    He smiled fondly to himself as he remembered the first night he stayed over in the cabin.

  As Nico was reminiscing over a far too recent time, he continued to gaze at the worn and frayed cover of the book with the songbirds on the it.   He couldn’t help himself any longer and picked up the book. It was heavier than expected and he opened it and distractedly looked through the aged pages.  The illustrations were so incredibly detailed that Nico could have mistaken the drawings of the birds to be real. Though most of the birds in the encyclopedia were from North America, Nico did check the Italy section of the book and recognized some of the species he had grown up seeing in Venice.  Nico was so immersed in the book that he nearly forgot how close to sunset it was, and without thinking, he took the book of birds with him up to the crow’s nest where he had promised to meet with Jason.

 It was kind of difficult climbing the mast with one hand and a book in the other, but Nico managed somehow and watched the blazing horizon. A flock of birds were flying overhead and he quickly opened the book to try and match them to their descriptions and pictures, but unfortunately they were gone by the time he flipped to the table of contents.  Nico was focused so much on his reading that he didn’t realize Jason had climbed up and joined him at the top of the mast.

  “Oh gods, don’t scare me like that. And I’m sorry for taking your book, I know I should’ve asked if it was-“

  Nico started speaking rapidly but Jason only laughed and nudged him gently with his arm.

  “Hey, it’s totally fine. I’m glad you’re taking interest in it.”

  Nico sighed in relief upon finding that Jason wasn’t angry with him. He hesitantly leaned against his arm as they watched the sunset at the very peak of the Argo II.

  “So what got you into birds? I never did ask.”

  He started to say, quickly comprehending it wasn’t the most romantic conversation starter considering the beautiful scenery and setting.

  “Oh, uh, it kind of all started with my childhood, and with my mom. I know that birds and my mother don’t really correlate but they do in a weird way, I guess.”

  Nico remembered Jason didn’t really talk much about his mom and mostly mentioned Thalia whenever he was talking about his family, but Nico listened to him as he shared a story from long ago.

  “I think I told you she was an alcoholic, but there was one day when she got blackout drunk and Thalia and I pretty much had the house to ourselves. I was about a few years old at the time before I went to train with Lupa, and Thalia was a lot older than me, but I remember her telling me to wait at home while she went downtown to one of the bookstores in the city. Anyway, she came back with that encyclopedia and I remember us sitting in the dark in her room with a flashlight looking at the pictures of the birds while our mom was too busy hooking up with random guys and drinking until she passed out.”

  Jason explained and Nico continued listening. His heart hurt to hear how bad Jason’s situation must have been, especially for a two year old toddler.

  “It’s crazy you remember all that.”

  He murmured and he felt Jason nod.

  “Yeah, but when I went to the Wolf House and had to say goodbye to Thalia and my mom, I took that book with me. I remember after training with Lupa and her wolves as well as the other young Roman demigods, I would open the book and just look through the pages for hours. Sometimes I’d stay up all night memorizing every fact about all the kinds of birds because it reminded me of Thalia. Even though I’ve read it a million times by now, I still keep it around because she got it for me. And...”

  Jason trailed off with a wistful faraway look in his eyes. Nico was positive he wasn’t even staring off into the fiery sunset, but instead was looking beyond the horizon. He speculated that Jason was looking past the skyline and into his own world of memories, sad and sweet. A place Nico visited often when he thought of Bianca, but instead in Jason’s case, he was visiting a place full of memories of early childhood.  

  “And?”

  Nico prompted quietly.

  “...And this is going to sound really weird but...When I Thalia and I were studying the pictures of the birds, we talked about how we wanted to fly away, far away from mom and away from the drugs and the drinking. Kind of ironic since we both eventually found out we were children of Zeus.”

  “But now I get why it’s special to you.”

  Nico said as he stroked the cover with his fingertips and placed his other hand in Jason’s and squeezed lightly.

  “I’m sorry, Nico, I don’t mean to bore you. I’m sure that was a lot of stuff about me, and it’s really not that significant-“

  “Don’t say that.”

  Nico chided.

  “You’re not boring me, in fact, I love hearing you share about your life. It just makes me sad to hear how rough it was in the beginning, but I’m glad I found you.”

  He leaned his head on his shoulder. Nico knew where Jason was coming from, he himself also wanted to fly away sometimes, too. Especially when he lost his sister and mother, the only thing he wanted to do was grow wings and be carried away on gentle winds to a place much safer and happier than it was on earth. Nico understood the feeling perfectly.

  “No, I’m the lucky one because you walked into my life, Nic.”

  Nico had no idea how to respond to that. He wanted to argue the same thing but the opposite in which he was the lucky one, but instead he settled for peaceful silence.

  I love you, Nico repeated over and over internally as he shared this moment with Jason.

  “What’s your favorite bird?”

  Nico decided to ask after a couple of minutes of nothing but quiet.

  “A nightingale.”

  Jason said almost immediately.

  “Why?”

  “Because it reminds me of you.”

  Nico was tempted to go looking through the encyclopedia for a picture of a nightingale, but Jason did it for him as he took the book out of Nico’s lap and scrolled down through the table of contents.  He flipped to the page of the specified bird, which happened to be a light dusty brown bird about the size of a small teacup. It’s dark eyes were expressive and Nico looked closely at the watercolor illustration. That was another thing he noticed about the book; All of the art was in watercolor, and he thought it was a very pretty touch.

  “They say the nightingale has the most beautiful voice. It’s clear, almost like ringing bells.”

  It took Nico a second to catch on, before he was left utterly confused.

  “I don’t sound that good if that’s the relation you’re claiming I have-“

  “Oh yes you do.”

  Jason said sincerely, but Nico was positive his boyfriend had never heard him sing. He was about to be proven very wrong.

  “I hear you hum all the time, and in case you thought my room is soundproof, it isn’t. I hear you sing in the shower quite frequently, actually.”

  Jason said and Nico’s face flushed in embarrassment.

  “Jay-“

  “You sound amazing, Nico. I’m dead serious. That’s why this bird reminds me of you, and it’s really cute, just like you.”

  Nico was certainly enlightened by the cheesiness of Jason’s compliments, but they meant the world to him nonetheless.

  “This is why I love you.”

  He said and turned his face into the crook of Jason’s neck.

  “As I do, my nightingale.”

The

   End.

[but-sometimes-im-not]

phoenix, 2024 post-s2. the Bentley has been left untouched for so long that a nightingale family has made a nest under her grille. nothing will ever be as it was, but something new will be reborn.

[is-this-even-relatable]

DP x DC PROMPT #2:

Tim Drake was a smart child, so he hires a live-in babysitter to help raise him when his parents are gone. Cue one Danny Fenton-Nightingale, who will NOT let this frankly scarily observant child grow up with negligent and unavailable guardian figures like he did, so help him Ancients.

———————

Tim Drake was left alone at a very young age. His parents left a five-year old child in a mansion, with no adult supervision.

Tim’s parents were negligent.

But Tim, he was a smart child.

Now, most people thought he had learned to cook, took himself to school, escaped from kidnappings, and generally raised himself to become the independent self-made genius he was today, teenaged CEO. And Tim let them think that, heck, he spread those rumors himself.

But that wasn’t quite right.

He had been a smart child, yes, but a child nonetheless. And he knew that most parents would hire a babysitter.

His parents hadn’t.

So he did it for them.

It was the smartest thing he ever did at that age.

And after he was hired, his dad new babysitter Danny helped cover up when Tim did things not-so-smart.

[andarans]

the dai advisor dynamic is so funny to me because it’s just cullen being teased by two chaotic good bisexual women and when morrigan joins it’s like “oh yeah. weren’t you that lady that could turn into a swarm of bees in the circle tower while i was getting tortured by blood mages and demons ten years ago” “yeah” “great”

[thelien-art]

Lúthien Tinúviel

"-for Lúthien was the most beautiful of all the Children of Ilúvatar. Blue was her raiment as the unclouded heaven, but her eyes were grey as the starlit evening; her mantle was sewn with golden flowers, but her hair was dark as the shadows of twilight."

The Silmarillion - J.R.R. Tolkien

[clemtiness]

the energy of The Seven campaign is so slumber party/bathroom talk and it makes me so proud to be a teen girl disaster

[anodesu]

Arthur. Excalibur. Made in Procreate.

[ritasanderson]

[andr0nap-wf]

doggoframe 1999: the protopuppers

[cowboyshit]

[hot-hellboy]

My Nightingale - A Jasico Fanfic (Part 4)

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Nico skipped to breakfast the next morning, completely ignoring his exhaustion for staying up all night romanticizing possible situations with Jason. 

  “Someone looks happy.”

  Leo said and Nico never felt this good in a long time. 

  “You could say that.”

  He said and munched away on an apple, subconsciously knowing that Jason had said it was his favorite fruit.       The day dragged on as per usual with the occasional monster attack every hour or so, but Nico couldn’t wait for it to end.   He wished the sun would just go down already so he could talk with Jason because that was mostly the only time they truly got to talk. It was the nights they shared that Nico craved, he wanted that company for once and it terrified him.   He never desired this kind of connection with someone before aside from Percy, and it was scary. Nico prayed and hoped he wasn’t wasting his time all over again, because he wasn’t going to spend another four years doting on someone who would never return his feelings. So, it was now or never. 

   After dinner, Jason ended up joining him above decks like the night before. Nico’s heart was beating out of his chest as Jason stood beside him and they watched the waves in comfortable silence for awhile.    Then Nico decided it was time. 

  “Jason?”

  “Yeah?”

  Nico bit his lip, forever wondering if he was making the right choice or not. To say that he was nervous was an understatement, because he was far more than nervous. Anxious out of his mind, for sure. 

  “We were talking about past relationships last night, and I guess I did love someone before.”

  Nico began, and Jason presented him with his undivided attention. 

  “I loved Percy, but he didn’t know. It wouldn’t have ever worked, obviously.”

  Nico laughed nervously as he said this, his eyes dropping to the ground as he fidgeted with the silver ring on his finger. 

  “He’s dating the blonde chick, right?”

  Jason said and he nodded.

  “Annabeth. But tell me Jason,”

  Nico raised his gaze up to meet the older demigod’s eyes and braced himself for rejection. 

  “You know what it’s like to fall out of love, but imagine moving on from someone and immediately diving back in love once you’ve found someone who understands you, who’s healthier for you. Tell me, do you know what that’s like?”

  Nico asked as he stepped in closer. Jason looked momentarily stunned for a bit once he seemed to catch onto what Nico was saying. He could see the revelation in Jason’s eyes as his voice dropped down to a hoarse whisper.

  “I think I’ve just experienced that now.”

  He said quietly, and before either of the two boys understood what was happening, their lips met in the sweetest kiss Jason ever had, and Nico’s first.    Nico didn’t really know how to kiss, but Jason guided him with gentle touches and Nico felt more reassured as he leaned into Jason’s chest. 

  “I think I like you.”

  Nico said breathlessly once they parted. The kiss was dizzying and he felt like he was walking on clouds, and he never wanted the feeling to end. 

  “I...I think I like you too.”

  Jason could only echo what he said because it was the truth of the matter. Nothing more needed to be said as Jason placed his hands on Nico’s waist and leaned down to kiss him full on the lips a second time, and Nico reached up on his tiptoes to wrap his arms around his neck.    It felt magical to both of them and Nico made a small sound of surprise once Jason lifted him up underneath his thighs so he could wrap his slender legs around his waist.    The kiss gradually got more heated and Nico’s hands found their way into his blonde hair and he tugged on the strands as Jason released his mouth and instead began lightly kissing his neck. Nico leaned his head back and managed to pull Jason closer as he felt his teeth slowly graze a sensitive spot on his throat.

  “Bed.”

  It was only one word but Jason understood it perfectly once Nico said it, and he carried him downstairs until they reached his room.    Somewhere along the way, Nico’s shirt got lost as well as Jason’s jacket and eventually his pants. He laid Nico down carefully on the large mattress and quickly got his jeans down his legs.    Once both of them were naked, Jason easily picked up Nico and placed him on his lap. The smaller boy could feel Jason’s hard erection between his legs and he could feel himself getting more aroused as the seconds passed by.   Their lips met once again in an even more hasty kiss as Jason’s hands made their way down Nico’s lower back to cup his ass. His fingernails dug into the soft flesh as he bit Nico’s neck again, and he couldn’t help but keep touching him all over as Nico kept shifting around in his lap. 

  Jason dragged his hands up to his sides to feel up his delicate skin that stretched over his prominent fragile rib cage. He touched everywhere he could reach, as long as Nico didn’t seem to mind. Jason didn’t know what had recently come over them, but he didn’t want this to be his only and last chance to hold the boy he had growing feelings for.   Nico whimpered as Jason’s traveling hands rested in between his thighs and slowly stroked the sensitive skin there. 

   “J-Jason...”

   Nico whined as he took his cock and started jacking him off. He hoped Jason didn’t mind him paying attention to his body as Nico’s quivering hands reached up to feel Jason’s hard muscles and biceps that flexed under his fingertips as he continued giving Nico a handjob.    Suddenly he stopped and Nico was left confused for a bit before he realized Jason had picked him up again but this time he was supporting him with his hip.    Nico clung to him as he walked over to his nightstand and took out a bottle of lube. 

  “Still okay with this?”

  Jason asked.

  “Yeah.”

  Nico answered, and he couldn’t help but get more excited as he listened to Jason speak. The older boy’s voice had grown much deeper and was full of desire.    They got back on the bed and resumed their previous position with Nico sitting on Jason’s lap. Nico watched intently as Jason took the lube and coated his fingers in the substance. He grabbed Nico’s ass again and spread his cheeks before circling his tight pink hole with two fingers.     He instinctively pulled away from him, but Jason was quick to whisper soothing things in his ear as he slowly inserted one finger.    Nico was quick to tense up, but quickly relaxed and moaned as Jason touched his sweet spot. 

  “There?”

  He said throatily and Nico nodded into his shoulder. Smiling triumphantly, Jason carefully inserted a second finger and Nico seemed to take it well. 

  “First time, huh?”

  Jason said as if they were having a conversation over breakfast. 

  “Y-Yeah.”

  Nico shuddered again as his prostate was stimulated. With his other hand, Jason pushed two fingers in next to his other two and stretched Nico further. He rubbed along his velvety soft walls, hoping to find all the places that made the smaller boy squirm and moan in pleasure.    Jason didn’t have to put too much effort into finding Nico’s pleasure points since the boy was already so sensitive, and he whimpered as he circled his hips on Jason’s lap.    Feeling brave, Jason added one more finger from each hand and Nico gasped and arched his back.      He ended up spending at least thirty minutes opening Nico, sadly knowing it would be painful no matter what. Still, Jason made sure he prepared him well with plenty of lube as he carefully removed his fingers from Nico’s tight hole.    He looked down at the boy and saw how desperate he looked, his large eyes holding Jason captive as he waited for the events to come. Jason thought he never looked more beautiful as he pinned Nico under him and slowly entered him after lubricating his hard cock.   He winced in pain as the head of Jason’s dick slid inside him with some difficulty. Quickly noticing his pain, Jason pressed a gentle kiss to his pink lips as Nico clutched at his hard biceps. 

  “H-Hurts.”

  Nico said and Jason felt the sinking weight of guilt as he stopped moving inside of him. 

  “I’m sorry, we can stop if you want.”

  He suggested but Nico was quick to shake his head ‘no’. 

  “Just keep going, okay?”

  He requested and Jason nodded as he cautiously continued inserting the rest of his length into Nico’s impossibly tight body. He stopped again immediately after hearing Nico gasp once he reached the girth of his cock.       “Nico-“

  “No. I said keep going.”

  Jason obeyed with hesitancy as he saw that Nico was trembling with the effort not cry, although a single tear rolled down his pale cheek. Jason was quick to wipe it away and to go back to whispering calming things to Nico until he finally thrusted fully inside him.    He waited as the boy got used to his size and planted kisses all over his baby soft skin. Nico moaned breathlessly as Jason rested his forearms on either side of his head and made eye contact with him.

  “I’m ready, you can move now.”

  Nico said and Jason carefully pulled out and thrusted back in. He groaned as Nico’s heat enveloped him and beckoned him to go deeper, and his forehead contracted as he looked down and saw where his cock was pushing into Nico’s hole. 

  “Jason...Harder..”

  He whimpered and Jason felt Nico’s hands grip his back as he proceeded to make love to him.   After a while, Jason was pounding into him at an impossible speed as the bed creaked and threatened to break beneath them.    Nico’s gasps and moans made it all worth it despite the physical fatigue that both of them were feeling after an hour of uncontrolled fucking.    Jason braced his hand against the wooden headboard as his hips snapped forward making his cock directly touch Nico’s prostate, causing the boy to want to scream in pleasure. 

  The two went for a couple more rounds before eventually tiring out. Nico was covered in Jason’s cum as well as his own as the older boy pulled out of him and laid down beside him.    It took them a minute to catch their breaths and come down from the high of hormones mixed with lust.    Nico and Jason stared at the ceiling in silence  with the covers pulled over their bodies. 

  “Nico?”

  Jason said at last, breaking the quiet that was only interrupted with the sound of their breathing. 

  “Yeah?”

  “We need to talk about this us.”

  Jason’s eyes never left the ceiling as he waited for Nico’s response. 

 “What do you mean?”

  He asked as he rolled over and tucked himself under Jason’s arm. 

 “Like...What are we? Was this just a one night stand?”

  The words got lodged in the back of his throat as he spoke them with difficulty. They were hard questions that Jason wasn’t sure if we wanted to know the answer to, but all he knew was that he was falling hard in love with Nico, but he didn’t know if he could live with the truth if the boy didn’t love him back. 

  “I don’t know, Jase...But I like you and I know you said you liked me too, but I’m not sure what that means for both of us.”

  Nico murmured in the darkness as he cuddled closer to Jason, his body heat feeling pleasantly comfortable against his naturally cold skin. 

  “I wouldn’t mind us being a couple, if that’s what you want, of course.”

  Jason threw all caution to the wind as he suggested a boyfriend situation. Though he did note that Nico didn’t pull away from him, which he took as a fairly good sign. 

  “I would like that,”

  Nico started as he nuzzled Jason’s cheek.

  “But you just broke up with Piper, didn’t you? Are you sure you’re ready for a relationship?”

  Now it was Nico’s turn to ask the hard questions. Jason’s eyes dropped from the ceiling and he also turned on his side to embrace Nico better.

  “Do you remember what you said to me earlier about falling back in love right after falling out of it? Well, to answer your question, I’m as ready as I’ll ever be for a relationship with you.”

  Warmth flooded Nico’s veins as he listened to Jason’s statement. For once in a very long time, he felt like the happiest person on earth, and it was a feeling that he didn’t want to end.    Nico looked up the same time Jason looked down and their eyes were locked with one another with nothing but sheer understanding that only occurred when two people were in love.    Without even thinking about it, their lips met as naturally as ever in a kiss that shared all of the best emotions in the world. And now Nico knew he was safe and he was at peace. 

  “I love you, Jason.”

  “And I love you.”

  They said after the kiss was broken. Nico’s hands traveled over Jason’s hard abs and he pressed a kiss to his shoulder.

  “You know...The sun isn’t up yet and we don’t have to get up anytime soon...”

  Nico said with a hint of mischief in his voice. Jason eagerly picked up his hint and slid his leg in between Nico’s.

  “One more round?”

  He asked.

  “One more round.”

  Nico replied.

The    End.

[starry-bi-sky]

Blood Blossom Au: Baby's First Commissioner Meeting :)

TL:DR This Post: Danny (orphan) gets poisoned with blood blossom extract by Vlad. He runs away from him and ends up under the care of one Pre-Robin Battinson Batman! Starry is loudly pushing her batdad agenda.

(Also known as "Late At Night, When The Nightingale Sings" on my ao3!)

This was a fun rough idea I've been sitting on for weeks, thinking about how Commissioner Gordon and Nightingale's first meeting might go.

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

Commissioner Gordon likes to think that he's adjusting to the new normal of Gotham very well, -- the new normal being grown men running around dressed like bats, in military-grade strength body armor, committing acts of vigilantism, -- and slowly, little by little, he was no longer being surprised when this new normal pops up out of the shadows like the world's most terrifying daisy. His shaving lifespan thanks him for it.

....

The kid is a surprise though.

Granted, he seemed to be a surprise to the Bat too.

There's been a string of murders lately, -- which, in Gotham, is kind of like saying there's been another storm during monsoon season. And there's just been another; in some dilapidated building down in south Gotham, with the broken, boarded-up windows and mildew-crawling walls to match. The victim is a man in his thirties, multiple gunshot wounds to the chest, left in the center of the room for the blood to pool out around him.

The place is already secured when he arrives, the building swarmed with officers and the forensic detectives. The Bat emerges shortly after he does -- or, he might've been here the whole time, hiding someplace dark and shadowy. For his own sanity, Gordon doesn't think about it too hard.

The kid is a surprise, and he appears like a bolt of lightning.

He shows up in the middle of a conversation Gordon is having with the Bat.

A whistle, sharp and loud, slicing through the air, meant for open air rather than a confined space. Gordon's ears pierce and protest the sound, and the solemn, murmured chatter floating through the room abruptly cuts off like the swing of a gavel. As he turns towards the sound -- as they all do -- he swears, up and down, that he sees Batman's shoulders jump, just slightly.

At the source, perched on the window, is a boy. A boy in a gray-blue scarf and an oversized black hoodie, one that hangs off his frame and has ace bandages wrapped around the wrists in some attempt to cinch the sleeves. The hood is up, big like the rest of it, and threatens to swallow the upper half of the boy's face whole in the fabric. What upper half Gordon can see, is smeared with some kind of opaque, black face paint. He's holding onto the side of the frame with one hand, on his hip is a grappling hook. A familiar grappling hook.

Gordon has multiple questions, and his officers tense up.

Martinez puffs up, brows furrowing as his face shapes into a frown. Shoulders rolling back. "You can't be here, kid--"

The reaction is immediate, like a spark to gunpowder, the boy yanks his fingers from his mouth and his mouth twists into a scowl. Head snapping over to Officer Martinez, his hood manages to stay on but Gordon swears that as he bares his teeth, the glint makes them look sharper than they should be. His voice is rasp and quiet and harsh; snappish in its hissing; "Put a fuckin sock in it, Martinez. I'm not stayin."

Martinez reels back, and the boy immediately veers his attention off him. Like a switch, his demeanor drops. Despite half his face being covered, his mouth twists into a cringing, apologetic smile. Slanted and off-beat, embarrassed. It'd be disarming if this wasn't Gotham, and if he didn't just hiss at Martinez like he was about to bite his head off.

"Sorry." He whispers, voice deceptively polite and softer now. Gordon has to strain his ears to hear him. "I was looking for him."

He points his finger towards-- Gordon? No, Gordon follows the direction, and finds himself looking at -- the Bat.

The Bat, who always looks stiff as a pole, now looks even stiffer. Somehow. Well, the explains the grappling hook attached to the boy's waist.

"What are you doing here?" The Bat says, gruff and unable to completely smother the stumble of surprise in his tone.

The boy still holds a sheepish smile, and slips off the window ledge. His feet hit the creaky boards with a near-silent thud, the Batman finds his feet and rapidly begins crossing the room.

Gordon notes the slight tremble in the boy's legs as he straightens. He adjusts his scarf, which droops close to his knees now that he's standing, and slings a backpack -- how long has had that? -- off his shoulders. When the Bat reaches his side, he does as he always does, and looms over the boy like a spectre. A threatening mass of shadows cloaked in all-consuming black. Standing next to him, the boy looks teeny in comparison.

The Bat is a man who terrifies even the most hardened criminals, Gordon has seen grown men shiver in fear at the mention of his name. And yet when the boy looks up at him, he doesn't even flinch.

Instead, his sheepish smile melts away like ice under the sun, holding only traces of his previous embarrassment. It remains as a shadow on his face, a small upturn at the corners of his mouth. The boy pushes his hood back just enough to reveal glinting, ice-flint eyes surrounded in tar-black face paint. He holds the backpack up with one arm. "You forgot this."

[doctorsiren]

Warmed up with some featherweight headshots

[minnesota-fats]

A fic-lit about Danny working at the watchtower, not as a superhero but as an engineer.

This is based on an prompt I read months ago but cant find where Danny put that he was a halfa on his resume but the hiring manager didn’t pay attention to it and hired him anyway. Rather than that its just Danny working at the watchtower and vibing on break when a tiny Robin finds him in the viewing deck.

—

Danny had been working for the justice league watchtower for a couple of months. He has seen hero’s come and go, paying him no mind and he was absolutely living for it! Unlike at 14, he was just a simple, normal worker—despite being half dead and the next in line for the crown in the infinite realms—he is just a simple mechanical engineer, Danny Nightingale. No one to fight, no one to save, just a big space station that needed someone to help keep it up in space.

And that's another bonus to this job; Space!

He gets to spend his shift up in the stars, looking out at the cold expanse of their solar system. Admiring the earth from a whole new angle, and he is getting paid to do it! Sure he could go into space any time, but being able to spend a good portion of his time here really made his core sing in joy. When he was on break he would wander around the areas he had clearance to go into, looking out every window at every star. Cataloging the ships movement through space with sharp eyes. His favorite place to go is the viewing deck, it was exactly what it sounded like, a place to just go and view that space outside.

It was there that Danny decided to take his break today, the Watchtower was at just the right angle to be able to see the earth from the viewing deck. Danny smiled watching the planet he lived on from afar, this really was the best job he could have ended up with!

A few months back he was having a hard time finding work after college, sure he had all the proper qualifications for the positions he applied for. But due to his medical condition—being half dead with a slow almost nonexistent heartbeat—they all refused him, afraid that his heart wouldn't keep up if he left the atmosphere to board any of the space stations orbiting the earth. To be fair it wouldn't have, he tested it by flying up to the moon and back the old fashioned way. But he couldn't just tell them that; being an ecto entity was still a crime that he was just barely able to get away from at age eighteen.

He came out to his parents once he graduated high school, they reacted poorly. Danny’s mom saw red and tried to kill him the rest of the way, claiming that Danny was just a ghost “piloting” his corpse around. Danny’s dad just stayed silent and watched, but before maddie could really do anything he acted. Jack knocked Maddie out with a strong blow to the back of her head. Danny remembered the hope that he had when Jack did that, but after he looked up at the man that hope died in his chest. The man looked torn, both angry and sad and in a voice lacking any of the familiar warmth said, “leave before she wakes up.” And he turned to pick up Maddie and made his way up the stairs. It was because of his dad that he was able to get away because after that Danny Fenton was declared dead. With the help of Sam and Tucker he was able to make a new identity for himself and go to school. From that day on Danny decided to move on and never look back.

After putting his name out there time and time again he was rejected. It wasn't until he got a letter in the mail saying he had been scheduled for an interview at Wayne tech of all places. He didn’t remember applying there but decided to go anyway, needing some sort of job to get him through. But when he got there he was greeted by Lucius Fox and Batman of all people! Danny nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw the dark knight, Danny couldn't help but think the worst. But before he could bolt, Lucius explained that Batman was looking for workers with the help of Wayne Industries for the base of operations for the Justice League—The Watchtower. Turns out all his applications to several different space programs caught the man’s attention. He even explained that Danny wouldn't even need to have a physical or get on a spaceship because The Watchtower utilized teleportation technology. Danny was so excited that he agreed on the spot without even knowing the benefits he would get from working with them. Which—surprising to no one—were a lot of benefits.

Danny was drawn from his thoughts when he heard the soft, almost nearly nonexistent footsteps coming from behind him. Danny turned and saw a child—no older than twelve—wearing a hero’s costume that looked like he was mimicking a traffic light. The kid froze in his tracks when Danny turned to face him, the two staring at each other for a few moments before the kid smiled and waved at him.

“Hi,” the kid beamed at Danny, “I’m D—Robin!”

Danny lifted a brow, “you a part of the justice league?” He asked, not remembering a kid being a part of their team.

The kid shook his head, “No, my guardian is though!” He explained.

“Ah, neat,” Danny said nonshalontly as he turned back to look at the window, “you come to see the view?” He asked.

The kid walked farther into the room and gasped when he got a better look at said view. “Woah—”, he exclaimed, now standing next to Danny.

Danny looked beside him to see the stars reflecting off of the kids' eyes, “cool isn't it? I come here on my lunch breaks," Danny says.

The kid looked at him and then squinted suspiciously, “if you're at lunch where is your food?” He asked.

Danny smiled, “I forgot my lunch at home today,” Danny lied, seeing the stars gave him enough energy to continue going. He usually eats when he gets home.

“Really?” The kid asked with a raised brow.

Danny smiled and looked around to see if anyone else was there, when he saw no one he asked, “do you wanna hear a secret?” He asked. Robin looked around himself as well before he leaned down a bit so Danny could whisper into his ear, “I actually just absorb the energy from the stars to sustain myself.” He explained.

“Really?” Robin asked, looking at him again, trying to gauge if Danny was lying or not.

Danny smiled, “yep,” he said, popping the p, “that's why I got a job here, that way I won’t starve to death.” Danny grins.

“But cant you just look at the stars from earth?” Robin asked, tilting his head.

“I mean, sure,” Danny says with a shrug, looking back out the window, “but this is so much better, isn't it?”

Robin looked out the window, “yeah!” The boy exclaimed, “it's so much clearer up here than in Gotham.” He commented.

Danny smiled and looked back at the boy, “I live in Gotham, too.”

“Really?” Robin asked, “No wonder you come up here,” the boy commented, causing Danny to snort in laughter and it wasn't long before Robin joined him.

“You got that right,” Danny says with a smirk before something dawns on him, “Wait, hero from gotham? I didn't know Batman had a kid?” Robin looked away, Danny could feel his nerves and sadness pass through him.

Danny was about to tell him that he didn't have to talk about it but before he could get his words out Robin spoke up, “My parents died about a year ago… he took me in only recently, he decided to train me when I found out he was Batman,” the kid says looking down at his feet, a glare etched on his face, “i never got to avenge my parents, the murderer had a heart attack before I could even get to him….”

Danny reached out to the kid and placed his hand on Robin’s shoulder, Robin looked up at him—as if remembering that Danny was there with him.

“I’m sorry for your loss,” Danny says softly, Robin looks away from him. “But I can tell you wholeheartedly, your parents are proud of you and what you are doing,” robin began rubbing at his mask, preventing him from wiping the tears away from his eyes underneath. “Here,” Danny says as he goes to pick up the 12 year old, “let's get you back to the Big Black Bat, I bet he is looking for you.”

Danny sits Robin on his hip and walks out of the room, rubbing circles into the child’s back. They walk together in silence, Robin resting his head in the crook of Danny's neck. “…Thank you,” Robin mumbles.

“Don't mention it kid,” Danny says as he looks around the corridor trying to spot anyone who could help him get this kid to the upper levels, “I know what it's like to lose your parents….”

“Really?” Robin asked, his head lifting off of Danny’s shoulder.

“Yeah,” Danny says, “they didn't die, but they basically said they never wanted to see me again.”

Robin gasped, “that's not nice!” Robin declared making Danny laugh again.

“Your right,” Danny agrees as he turns down another hall towards where the zeta tubes were, maybe someone in there could help. “But, now I'm here, having the time of my life with the job of my dreams.”

Robin smiled again, “you could say you're living the HIGH life.”

Danny paused in the hall and started snickering, “that was a good one, Birdy.”

“Birdy?” Robin asked.

“Yeah, your name is Robin, that's a bird, so Birdy,” Danny explained, “its a nickname

“Does that make us friends?” Robin asked.

“Sure, as long as your guardian is ok with it.”

The boy smiled happily, excited at the idea of having made a new friend. The calm was interrupted but Danny’s supervisor yelled from across the room, “Nightingale!” He shouts, causing Danny to jump.

Danny turns to look at the man, “hey boss—” he starts, blocking Robin from the man, not wanting to scare the kid.

“You are late to clock back in! You're not getting paid to sit around with your head in the clouds!” The man shouts.

“Sorry sir, I was—”

“No! You need to get back to work, NOW!” He demanded, “this is a multibillion dollar space station, everything needs to be on a strict schedule!”

Danny sighed, his supervisor hasn't liked Danny from day one. Something about him being “young and nïeve” or something like that; “head higher up into space than we were right now.” At least that's what Danny heard him say about him once or twice.

Danny was about to talk back when something just past his manager caught his eye. It was Batman, walking fast with a look that told everyone to get out of the way. But Danny could feel the worry bleed off the man in waves. Must be looking for Robin, Danny’s mind supplied. Danny sidesteps his supervisor and shouts, “Hey Batman!” To catch the dark knight’s attention. Danny had to restrain his laughter when he saw the look of horror pass on his supervisor's face.

Now with the vigilanties cold glare focused on him, Danny smiled and adjusted his stance to show Robbin to him. “Looking for you kid?” Danny asked.

Robin smiled nervously and waved at Batman, guess he wasn’t supposed to wander off like he did. “Hey B!” He shouts.

Batman’s glare softens so slightly, a regular person would have missed it. However, Danny could feel the man’s previous anxieties melt away into a strong relief. Batman strutted forward and glared down at Danny—despite Danny being taller than him. Danny just smiled and adjusted Robin on him so he could hand him over to the dark knight.

Now in Batman’s arms, Robin tapped his pointer fingers together nervously. “Sorry for wandering off,” he mumbled before his smile came back full force, “but,” he exclaimed, “I made a friend! His name is Danny and he liked my puns! And we both have bird names!” He exclaimed all while pointing at Danny.

Batman looked from the kid in his arms to Danny, “hmm,” he grumbled. A man of few words, Batman nods at Danny.

Danny nodded back, “He’s a good kid, glad I was able to help.” Danny replied. Feeling gratitude from that small gesture alone. Batman isn't the most expressive but being able to read emotions like Danny really helps when talking to people.

Batman turns his head to look over at Danny’s superior, “hmm.” After that Batman turned and walked away.

Robin climbed to sit up on Batman’s shoulder and waved back at Danny, “Bye bird buddy! Have a good day!” He shouts as Batman enters the elevator. The doors closing behind them and leaving the zeta tube control center in near silence.

Danny looked back to his supervisor who looked as pale as a sheet ghost, Danny gave him a shit eating grin and shrugged at him. “I tried to tell ya—”

“Get back to work Nightingale!” He shouts.

“Ok, ok, I'm going.” Danny says, turning on his heels and walking away from the man with his hands held up in surrender.

—

I have so many ideas for this au and if I write more I might post it on my AO3 feel free to read other things I posted on there!

[dingledraw]

Playing Pretend: a Good Omens comic (part 5/5)

First - Prev

[glassiskies]

photos taken moments before disaster