#sticky key

[one-time-i-dreamt]

You can gain telekinesis by squatting really fast to unlock sticky keys in real life.

[takeiteasyonmeimstilllearning]

Jigen overlooking the crash sight. Poor jigen believes lupin is dead for sure :_(

the inspo for this frame

[heyyesimtrash-whatofit]

Marty McFly VS The Doc-pocalypse or smth like that idk

I put way too much effort into what was supposed to be a stupid doodle so uh. Have this Tumblr. I really don’t have a better explanation for this other than I got two more Doc Pop! Figures today, which leaves me with a growing army of 3 Docs and one singular Marty, and I keep laughing every time I look at them in my display case so here we have Marty dealing with multiple Docs from different times that have all somehow ended up in the garage in 1986. Four dimensional thinking has never been his strong suit, and trying to figure this out is not helping. He’s got two hours of sleep, a bajillion positive encouraging post-it notes from the Doc of the present telling him to sleep, hot chocolate, and four very enthusiastic Emmetts crowding the lab. Send help. And caffeine. And maybe Clara cause he’s not so sure he can keep them from blowing something up for much longer.

Picture of the inspiration under the cut :)

Behold, my growing Doc army and my one single Marty McFly left to deal with them

At least Marty has his tunes. That might help him stay a little sane

[vintagerocker69]

Rock and Roll band The Rolling Stones are shown during their farewell performance at London's Marquee Club, Wardour Street, England, March 26, 1971. The club is where the band played their first gig on July 12, 1962. And it turned out to not quite be a farewell tour after all.

[piedpiperart]

Phantom in Gotham 8

Chapter 7

Once Danny made it to his room tonight, all of the excitement for the day drained out of him. Looking at the bedside clock he could see it was 12:30am, and sighed. Danny went and sat on the bed, which was probably the softest thing he’d ever sat on in his life. He patted the comforter, marveling in the bat-themed bedspread. He wondered if everyone in Gotham had bat-themed stuff decorating their house. The rest of the room was sparsely decorated, but Danny could see a change of clothes folded on the dresser among the empty desk, side table, and adjacent bathroom. 

Sighing again, Danny laid back on the bad, plopping onto the covers. He wasn’t sure what he was supposed to do now. It would be suspicious for him to leave now, considering the manor had pretty good security and no normal kid would be able to get out undetected. Danny frowned, besides, he couldn’t do that to Alfred. He shivered just picturing the disappointed look the old man would give him if he was caught sneaking out. Plus, he couldn’t leave before making sure Alfred and Damian would be okay in the blizzard. Weather like this could be unpredictable, Danny thought, eyeing the old rickety ceiling of the manor. 

Danny was staying, at least for now, he thought. It would be easier to pass the time until morning if he could sleep, Danny mused. He’d grown tired of figuring out what his ghostly sleep-schedule would be, so he figured it was easier to go without sleep until he passed out rather than lying awake in bed for hours without sleeping. He kind of wished he had a book to pass the time. Maybe he’d explore the manor, Danny mused, pushing himself up to standing. He listened for a minute for anyone making noise, glancing around for cameras. After finding nothing, he closed his eyes, whispering,”Going Ghost,” As the ever familiar white rings formed around his waist, traveling up and down to reveal his ghost form. The familiar feeling of cold death washed over him, and he stretched. Silently, he looked around again, and upon hearing and seeing nothing new, he turned invisible and intangible, and zoomed up and out of the roof. 

Danny whooped as he looped around the skies, happy to finally be able to stretch his wings after such a stressful day. He briefly thought about going to grab his stuff from the Pizzeria, but dismissed it for being too suspicious. At least he had his phone with him, he mused. Danny busied himself with checking out the neighborhood, a little in awe at how much snow was piled up, and still falling. Phantom laughed, holding his hand out to catch some snowflakes. 

Ever since the Accident, winter had become Danny’s favorite season. With the development of his ice powers, he wasn’t too surprised, seeing his core was more relaxed in the cold. Being out in the snow like this felt like a breath of fresh air to Danny, and after about an hour of flying he finally returned to the Manor. He stopped by his room first just to check if anyone came by to check on him, but found the door to still be locked. 

Unsure of where to go next, Danny picked a random direction before floating down the hallway. He refrained from going into any rooms on the off chance he’d find someone’s bedroom, so he just followed the hallways. Danny’s eyes widened when he came across a ballroom, and wondered just how big the mansion was. Did Vlad’s castle have a ballroom? Danny thought. He couldn’t remember, but he thought a ballroom would be perfect for a castle like his to have. Danny hung around a bit more before continuing on, this time coming across a pool. “Woah,”Danny whispered. It was huge, but even more exciting was the giant pile of pool floaties in the corner. After a minute of convincing himself to leave the floaties alone, Danny sat on the edge of the pool, sticking his ghostly boots in the water and marveling how the water moved with him invisible.

Absently, Danny wondered if this would show up on any cameras in the pool house, but continued to entertain himself by turning intangible and not a few times while staying invisible. Danny let out a breath. After getting nabbed by Red Hood, he had been more than a little stressed about what this meant for him going forward. Obviously he knew the most likely scenario would be for the Waynes to call CPS. Even if Hood and Alfred mentioned other options, he really didn’t want to be stuck in someone else's house. For one, they’d probably look into his background, and two, take him to a doctor of some sort to make sure he didn’t get any diseases from staying in an abandoned restaurant for a few months. Danny shivered, but not from the chilly pool water. If they found out he was… less than human, or even just a very sick child, it would make his whole situation worse. 

Danny floated up absently, hanging in the middle of the room for a bit. Red Hood was confusing to him. He hadn’t known a whole lot about the guy before meeting him as Phantom and getting rid of his grumpy ectoplasm. It was certainly a coincidence that Hood managed to find Danny, but he figured the man kept track of all the stuff that went down in his territory. Danny tilted his head, agreeing that if he were the vigilante and found a homeless teenager about to be swarmed by a blizzard, he’d do the same thing. 

Either way, Danny was pretty sure Red Hood didn’t know Danny and Phantom were the same. Still, it was nerve-wracking for him to meet the same person in both forms, especially one who now knew about halfas and ghosts. Danny’d regret telling him, but he knew how scary it could be to have your body change because of ectoplasm and not know anything about why or what’s going on. His core hummed happily at the reminder of Phantom helping the older vigilante. Yeah, he mused, it was the right thing to do. 

Danny hovered through some walls, and eventually stopped at what looked like a giant library. Delighted, Danny flew over to the shelves, skimming over the covers. It looked like he was in the rom com section, so he perused a bit until he found a mystery novel section. Danny read some covers before reaching out, only to snatch his hand back. He didn’t know if there were any cameras throughout the library, and floating books would be weird. Even weirder if the book ended up in Danny’s room. He sighed, before perking up. He strode back to his room, making note of how to get back to the library. 

Transforming back to his human form as soon as he reached his room, Danny turned to the door. Easing it open, he peeked out into the hall. Upon seeing empty hallways, he creeped down to the library, which was actually a long ways from his own room. He put a bit of ghostliness into his steps to make them silent, and a smile lit up his face when he managed to open the door to the library. Looking around again he tiptoed his way to the mystery section and picked out the one that caught his eye, ‘Name of the Star’. Danny made his way to the couch by the entrance with the book, and settled down to read. He smirked at the description when he read it was about a girl who could see ghosts. 

Hours later, around 5:30, Danny set the book down on a side table, eager to return to it later but unsure if he’d be able to take it to his room. He traversed back to his room with a pep in his step. It had been a long time since he’d been able to cook with Jazz, so he was looking forward to helping Alfred prepare meals. He wondered how many people lived in the manor, and how many they’d be cooking for. 

Danny shrugged, slipping into his room and putting on the clothes left out for him. They were similar to his regular outfits, with slightly baggy jeans and a plain gray t-shirt. It fit surprisingly well, and Danny wondered if someone his age lived in the manor. No way were the clothes belonging to Damian, since the kid was a few inches shorter than Danny. Shrugging, he made his way to the kitchen. 

Danny hoped he would get to make pancakes. 

Chapter 9

[nayeonline]

Ari's K-Pop Roundup: July 2024 (aespa, KATSEYE, KISS OF LIFE, STAYC, tripleS, + MORE)

last months installment ✦ full masterlist welcome back to episode SIX (!!!) of this review series I started back in february - I've tried a lot of review formats in my time on kpop tumblr, but this one feels the most fun to do, and is by far the most well received. thanks so much to everyone who likes, reblogs, or even just reads these rambles, I appreciate it so much <333 This month was pretty fun from the get go so lets go get into it ~ ari

Hot Mess - aespa

A month and a half after their first korean full album, aespa have dropped their first proper foray into Japanese releases with 'Hot Mess'.

This is a classic aespa style track, like something off the 'Savage' or 'Girls' mini albums. Powered by a distorted trumpet base melody and filled with vocals delivered with a hyperconfident attitude, 'Hot Mess' is very Bratz doll, very Y2K. The chorus is reasonably catchy, but the verses fall somewhat short in my opinion, and the post chorus feels slightly out of place? The bones for a great song exist within 'Hot Mess', but for me the song peaks at 'good'. Is it anywhere near on the level of 'Supernova' or 'Amargeddon'? No, but it is cute and shows off the aespa members' skills well, as a debut song should do.

Giselle, as the member who speaks the most Japanese, is the BEST on this song, she sounds the most comfortable in her delivery and the tone of the song suits her style perfectly. Ningning is also a huge highlight of this track.

'Sun and Moon' is a classic SM style b-side, half way to a dance track, half way to a ballad. Where 'Hot Mess' highlighted vocal tone, 'Sun and Moon' emphasizes vocal range and the runs the members can pull off - in that sense it is the perfect b-side for a song like 'Hot Mess'. It's an easy hit, I like it a lot.

'ZOOM ZOOM' has actually already been released, so I won't delve into that one today, but the tl/dr is that it's a 10/10 aespa dance track that is forgotten about FAR TOO OFTEN.

Overall, this was fun. 'Hot Mess' didn't quite do it for me as much as I would have liked, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. The b-sides are great, and as a debut, it works well. With their influence on the Y3K aesthetic in japan, success over there is inevitable and I'm wishing the best for them as always.

Touch - KATSEYE

If nothing else can be said about 'Touch', at least it was a decent song this time around.

Let's not lie, you can hear the PinkPantheress print on this song as well as I can, and while that results in an enjoyable song, it does not bode well for the future of KATSEYE. The derivative nature of 'Touch' isn't inherently bad - PinkPantheress coded songs have been popping up in kpop frequently over the past year or so (though granted never quite as obviously referential as this), but contextually the song is a bizarre choice. Even though their 'Debut' was released last month, KATSEYE is still extremely fresh on the scene, and every choice they make right now in musical, conceptual and creative direction will impact how they are perceived by global audiences.

Making music that sounds like a another artist will almost always tarnish your reputation and brand as a soloist/group UNLESS the artist you are emulating caters to an entirely different market. For example, ILLIT got backlash from kpop fans both inside and outside of Korea for emulating the sound of NewJeans, but the discussion of Tinashe's undeniable influence on kpop is limited to select groups of international fans. KATSEYE are trying to appeal to the western market presumably, so while 'Touch' imitating PinkPantheress may result in a few million streams and TikTok song of the hour status, it does nothing to build a brand, create a signature sound, and make a name for KATSEYE outside of kpop. Not to mention, it sounds unconnected from 'Debut' sonically, tonally, and conceptually, further meddling with any chance they have of building an iconic (in the original sense) discography.

However, this concept did seem to suit some of the girls better, Yoonchae especially seemed comfortable taking the centre this time, she was the star of the song for sure.

I would be remiss if i didn't bring up the song length after bitching about it so heavily last time, so here we go for round two. From 'Debut' clocking in at an appalling 2 minutes and three seconds, the HYBE overlords have blessed us with SIX MORE SECONDS on 'Touch'!!! At least this song calls for a bridge slightly less than 'Debut' did, but regardless this is absurd. I may be glad that the recession has triggered a resurgence in upbeat pop music from the west with BRAT summer and all that, but if it means song length shrinking by minute every year, I'm not sure if it's worth it.

Sticky - KISS OF LIFE

Kiss Of Life are just KILLING it, every release has been fucking incredible and 'Sticky' is no exception. Built on a foundation of afrobeats and powered by spirited vocal runs from all the members, 'Sticky' is the perfect song for the summer. It doesn't over-complicate itself, this is a song all about wearing short-shorts in the blaring July heat and having a blast with your friends. the melodies aren't especially new but they are classic and highly enjoyable. Hanuel is the beating heart of this song. Her vocal tone is on the more nasal side which usually means she's delegated to the verses or adlibs while Natty takes the frontline, but in 'Sticky' she is centre stage and I couldn't be happier about it. Natty and Belle take the post chorus sounding incredible as always, and Julie punches up the verses and post chorus ad-libs with her citrus-esque vocal tones. All the girls come together on the chorus in a chant thats been stuck in my head since I heard it. This and Chuu's 'Strawberry Rush' are my songs of the summer.

If 'Sticky' is a midday bike ride along the beach, 'Te Quiero' is a midnight beach party lit by campfires and neon swimsuits. Its the perfect b-side for 'Sticky', equally as addictive but slightly more unique in its construction. The strings on this track are to die for, and the lyrics are surprisingly enjoyable too.

A great single album for the summer months, Kiof have done it again - are we surprised?

Cheeky Icy Thang - STAYC

STAYC's last couple of releases, 'Bubble' and 'Teddy Bear' have been highly divisive, and while they didn't perform poorly by any means domestically, they were pretty unpopular among international kpop listeners. It seems HighUp recognized this lack of interest, and when the head prophet said the omens were right for STAYC to have a full album, they dropped the more childish concept and circled right back to 'RUN2U' - and now we have 'Cheeky Icy Thang'.

To be honest, the first couple of times i heard this song I didn't get it. My main impression was that it was messy - there were too many elements fighting for dominance, too many hooks, too many words in one line. And while I do still stand by some of those elements (you cannot convince me Sieun says 'rock' in the line 'on-the-rock whiskey ring-a-ring ding-dong'), but now I see the song as more maximalist than messy. I consider 'RUN2U' to be one of the most polished and well executed kpop songs of all time, and 'Cheeky Icy Thang' is not that at all - but it's charm comes in how rough and chaotic it is. While yes, the lyrics did need a second draft in some cases, notable exceptions being Sieun's '미녀와 야수면 내가 Beast' in the intro (excellent, no notes), the song's structure is genuinely a masterpiece - J's subversive pre-chorus having that tinny answerphone layer was amazing, easily the best part of the song. The production is top tier throughout, but that is to be expected from Black Eyed Pilseung.

It's difficult to pinpoint what exactly is so charming and subversive about 'Cheeky Icy Thang', because on paper it is neither something new for STAYC, nor something new for the industry at large in terms of concept or sonic style. However, what this song does that is so odd for kpop is that it does not put all of its eggs in one basket at all. Kpop songs, especially kpop songs post the TikTok era (thanks SO MUCH for that Zico), tend to be top heavy, and concentrate all the fun and creativity and catchiness into the chorus. 'Cheeky icy Thang' does not do that - the verses are a treat, the pre-chorus is a stunner, the breakdowns are groovy, and the chorus leaves us just satiated enough to keep listening. Crucially, 'Cheeky Icy Thang' cannot be compressed, and while they undoubtedly will make a dance challenge out of it, you cannot get the full experience of this song from a 20 second soundbite, as you can with so many other songs coming out right now.

### - tripleS

Lack of music video aside, '###' is the perfect tripleS japanese debut. A lovechild of anime intros and tripleS's iconic maximalist sound with a tS trademark 'lalala' post chorus, EVERYTHING about '###' is deliciously addictive. It's hyper-cute to the point of psychosis, and the members vocal delivery is perfectly imperfect.

Like a year ago I started yapping about what I called 'love island pop', and with this review I would like to introduce another micro-genre my prefrontal cortex cooked up 'Rhythm Heaven Fever pop'. Basically, music that sounds like it wouldn't be out of place in a Wii U rhythm game from 2011. '###' fits this perfectly, other notable examples being 'Dumb Dumb', 'Rookie' and '#Cookie Jar' - Red Velvet, and 'BBoom BBoom' - Momoland. This is the kind of music that keeps kpop going in my opinion, it's been a steady undercurrent of the trending sounds over the last 3 generations, and I am more than glad to see tripleS stoking the embers.

Such an unabashedly FUN song, it never takes itself seriously and that works FULLY in it's favour. Definitely a must-listen track from the July roster.

MINI REVIEWS:

[ALBUM] MINISERIES 2 - SUMIN & Slom: Wasn't sure if I should include this since it's not really kpop, but what the fuck SUMIN IS BACK BABY and yeah its another FUCKING BANGER of an album. Just go listen to it. I might do a separate review of it because it's just that good, so expect that in the next 2-5 business years. Just go stream it.

Klaxon - (G)-IDLE: For all I don't really like (G)-IDLE's music, I can usually admit that it is at least catchy. And yet, somehow Klaxon is not that catchy? The first line of the hook feels like a bizarre Frank Sinatra interpolation, and that post chorus does most of the heavy lifting for this track. Overall, this felt pretty derivative, but hey, sometimes a throwback isn't the worst.

FOREVER - BABYMONSTER: Babymonster are leaps and bounds away from my stan list, and even though this is vaguely something different from them (not really, it's just that there isn't an empty chorus), it's once again not for me. The vocal mixing on this song is very odd and as a result any emotion or power the girls used in their vocals is totally lost and tonally the song falls flat. The key change in the final chorus is a nice touch, and Pharita and Haram especially shine on this track. The fact that this was somewhat 'something new' gives me hope though - perhaps all is not lost over at YG. Perhaps.

Something Ain't Right - XG: XG are so consistent in the quality of their releases it's actually insane - from the production to the hooks to the vocal direction this is such a fun song. I don't know if I love it as much as TGIF or New Dance from X-GENE, but it's a very solid release. XG are well and truly the ones to watch, and the dichotomy between this and 'Woke Up' proves that perfectly.

Let It Burn - H1-KEY: You know, this was so close to being one of several contenders to be included on my mini reviews segment that just get cut, but this release really shocked me. I went in with almost no knowledge of H1-KEY, I had heard of them, but I had no idea what the concept was, who the girls were or even how many of them there were. 'Let it Burn' is a fucking delight from start to finish. A lot of these kpop takes on punk rock anthems fall flat for me, but this one keeps it honest and heartfelt throughout. The lyrics are honestly a delight, the chorus is fun, but the verses are the real star of the show, snappy and well delivered, and backed by a clean, classic hip-hop beat. You probably missed this track this month, and I would definitely recommend a listen.

JUSTICE - Dreamcatcher: Trust me, I am SO CLOSE to getting dreamcatcher to click for me, and 'Justice' proves that. It's lowkey fucking amazing, SO well executed. I truly think I am one discography deep dive away from falling in love with DC, this song is SUCH A BANGER. I really appreciate how DC never sacrifices their unique sound for whats trending, no one else is doing what they are doing, and holy hell are they doing it well.

Don't - LEE CHAE YEON: It's cute? I guess? Not overly spectacular, but not spectacularly awful either. I still don't know who the fuck Charlie is.

[fbfh]

no but like-

you made me feel alright about being short?? bestie that's a crime

but thank you <3

OH MY GOD BABES!!!!!! STOP I'M GONNA CRY-

no fr but more roddy x short!reader bc I said so. if there's one thing rodrick loves to do, it's to loom over you affectionately. he loves how cute you look when you look up at him or stretch up to get closer to him. he loves when you're both sitting down and you wrap your arms around his waist and rest your head on his chest with zero effort. you really do fit together like puzzle pieces. you're the cutest goddamn height difference couple on earth. one of my favorite tropes has to be loser boyfriend gets boyfriend material scent on him from you, and now the girls that used to ignore him or make fun of him are trying to get with him and switch up almost comedically fast. following that, the amount of pick me girls who try to cozy up to your roddy and be like "omg I'm so short and small" expecting him to agree, but he just looks at them for a second, places his hand flat on the top of their head, and lines it up with him. "not really." their look of horror only increases when he goes "yeah it sucks, I really like short girls." rodrick calls you one day informing you he can't go on the date you had planned together because he got grounded. you ask why this time. rodrick mentally flashes back to greg asking why rodrick is dating you, and saying "they're basically my height." it doesn't matter if it's hyperbole or not, all the matters is that rodrick kicked his ass and concequently got grounded. "you know my mom, same old bullshit. it doesn't matter though, I'll just sneak out tonight. leave your window unlocked." god if you could kiss him through the phone you would.

[rolloroberson]

The Rolling Stones - Bitch

[realsafari]

I FIXED MY KEYBOARD ALL MY MYSELF BITCHES LETS GOOOOOOOOOOOOO

NO MORE UWU LANGUAGE!!!

[ratwars]

Bedtime for Fyoplush 🙏

[teeth--king]

I'm thinking of replacing my keyboard and mouse, they're both the original ones I bought to go with my computer when I originally bought it so they've served their purpose for a good handful of years, but now they're getting loud and are hard to clean. I'm not very in tune with what makes a good keyboard price, I've been looking at some very pretty ones but they're very expensive and I'm hesitant on getting scammed. If anyone has any recs on what's a good price or how to look for a quiet and easy to clean keyboard/mouse that's preferably wired, I'm all ears! Thanks :D

[milotonin]

chat

don’t rage quit your instrument just change the mouthpiece

i think the same could be applied to life 🫡

[cu-stickynotes-au]

( the april fool himself )

[racing-stripes]

the tumblr post writes itself. life-changing

[vintagerocker69]

L/R Mick Jagger and Keith Richards and Bill Wyman of the Rolling Stones Performing live at Newcastle City Hall 1971 as part of the Sticky Fingers Tour.

[piedpiperart]

Phantom of Gotham 18

Chapter 17

”I can’t believe you!” Tim exclaimed, punching Danny in the arm when he spotted him in class. 

“Ouch!” Danny laughed nervously, rubbing his arm. “You-”

“You could have told me you were leaving! Or at least talked to us about it first,”Tim said, exasperated. Danny watched him throw himself into the seat next to Danny dramatically and throw his bag down, only to dig through it for a tupperware of… oh, were those Alfred’s cookies? Danny hoped they were for him. Alfred’s cookies were awesome. “Now even Damian is bugging me about you and telling me to just take you home after school.”

“Uh, you guys did say I could leave and that you wouldn’t call CPS,”Danny reminded him, rubbing the back of his neck. Tim gave him a look, blowing some bangs out of his eyes.

“Yes. And we’ll stick to that. But you know we only said that because we’d hope to convince you to stay at the manor. Because we’re rich and we have an infinite amount of space for you to stay,”Tim stressed. “Seriously. Where are you staying now?”

“Not telling,”Danny deflected immediately. “You guys got a frickin’ vigilante working for you, I’m not a snitch.”

“That’s not-” Tim threw his hands into the air exasperatedly. “Fine! But only talkers get cookies,”Tim glared, sliding the tupperware of solid gold goodness away from Danny’s hands. Danny pouted, but didn’t relent. 

The day continued like that, with Tim trying to convince him to stay at the manor, while Danny deflected and changed  subjects like a bored teen changing channels on a tv. I was getting cumbersome for both of them by lunch though, and they’d settled for a truce. Danny ended up getting a few cookies while Steph joined them at the lunch table. She was soon cackling over the Waynes losing a potential adoptee and for Danny sneaking out. They high-fived. Tim was not amused. By the multitude of texts to Tim’s phone, the family wasn’t either. 

RobinHood

Went to the Pizzaria, kid’s stuff is gone. 

LittleJohn

Damn. I got nothing on my end. Any ideas?

RobinHood

Tail him after school

MaidMarian

You think he’ll notice?

LittleJohn

Well, he might if he’s got a ghost looking out for him Steph. We’re not sure where Phantom went the other day but we do know that Danny got out of the manor without triggering any security.

RobinHood

Plus Phantom is friends with Danny. 

MaidMarian

Eh, we can still try. Or just kidnap him as civilians (≖⌣≖)

LittleJohn

Eh… Maybe. Last resort.

RobinHood

I could just take him from school

MaidMarian

•̀ ᎑ -

LittleJohn

No!! That would be so much worse oh my god

Jason sighed at his brother’s lack of creativity. He’d thought the Pizzaria might have been cleared out but seeing it for himself still made his heart sink. If only there was some clues to where the kid had gone, he thought. No doubt he was anywhere but around Hood’s territory now. 

To be fair, he wasn’t nearly as worried about the kid now that he knew he had ghost powers that helped him survive. Still, Jason knew living on the streets wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. Part of him thought that maybe the kid was scared that everyone hunting him would put the Waynes in danger. He wasn’t wrong to think that, but they could handle themselves. Sure, ghosts were a new thing for them, but they adapted. Made plans. 

Jason wasn’t sure they’d be able to keep Danny or Phantom in one place without using some kind of ghost technology like the GIW or call in a magic user. Except Jason didn’t want to think about having weapons that Danny’s parents made to hurt him. From what he could tell, ghosts weren’t as much of a problem to humans as humans were to ghosts. Jason didn’t need ghost weapons to deal with the GIW, and he sure as hell was gonna deal with them. 

The Bats had been gathering information on them like crazy. Babs was still hacking their databases and Batman was putting together a plan to inform the Justice League. They weren’t entirely sure this was something the Green Lanterns needed to take up to the OA, but if it was they’d cross that bridge when they got to it. 

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

Damian was furious. 

He’d been texting Timothy nonstop about Danny and yet- unsurprisingly- his older brother had been unable to convince the boy to come back to the manor. Frustratingly, Timothy had not even responded to any of his text messages since lunch time and hadn’t come to the manor after school. Even Todd wasn’t answering any of his messages- plans- to convince Danny to join the family. It had been two days and Danny had still been staying who knows where. The family had not even tried to follow him home out of some misguided respect for privacy and free will. He was sure Danny was somewhere abandoned, likely somewhere lacking proper water and heat. Damian was beyond frustrated that all his hard work getting Danny used to a stable meal plan was for nothing. 

It was ridiculous how dumb Danny was acting in regards to his own safety. As one of the few species of half ghost around, he had the survival instincts of a paper bag, and Damian was of the opinion that he should be trying a lot harder considering his status. Damian had no idea why Danny would think they wouldn’t be able to protect and care for him at the manor. Obviously, Danny was an asset when it came to the Ghostly dimension given his halfa status and friendship with Phantom. There was no other reason why he wanted Danny to stay. It wasn’t like he missed the boy. Even if he was better than Timothy in every way, and had intriguing powers that he trusted Damian with. Not at all.

Damian scoffed, adjusting his tie for the third time. He didn’t want to go to this infernal Gala, especially when only Grayson and his father were attending. Cass was still in Hong Kong, and Jason and Timothy had other plans. Damian hoped those plans included getting Danny to stay at the manor. He would no doubt be a good sidekick for when Damian was older, and he would not be letting Danny slip through his fingers. 

“Are you ready Baby bat?” Grayson asked, a grin on his face and despite the formal wear, he’d somehow convinced Father to let him wear a glittery monstrosity instead of a tie. “There’s gonna be a few people B wants us to keep an eye on, wanna help me with surveillance?” Damian scoffed. “Why not. It’s not as if there will be anything else of importance going on,”He added. Grayson gave him a knowing smile, as if he was recalling just how boring and overly formal these parties were. 

“I’d say you get used to it, but…”Grayson trailed off, sighing dramatically. “Never do.” He shook his head, then they made their way to the front where Alfred and Bruce were waiting with the car. 

As far as Galas go, it was certainly not the most boring, but it definitely wasn’t providing any riveting conversations. As far as surveillance, Damian was able to trade off with Grayson during the night, switching targets and gleaming information as they went. It was no surprise that Mr. Elwood was simply in an affair than any nefarious business deals. Ms. Green on the other hand was definitely collaborating with some of the shader patrons in the Gala, whom Father suspected had ties to Penguin. 

Though, there was one target that Damian couldn’t get a read on. He was tall, haughty, and self-absorbed, yet according to B, had a perfectly clean multi-million dollar business despite multiple complaints and signs to otherwise. Damian in particular hated him on principle for the way he looked down on everyone around him. He ignored how hypocritical that statement might be and chose to eye the billionaire talking with his father. 

“As I was saying, my son Daniel reminds me a lot of your sons,”Vlad was saying to Bruce. He was wearing a gray suit with a black shirt and an annoyingly green tie. Damian was certain it was some type of football paraphernalia. “He’s very headstrong and independent for one. How do you deal with your sons when they refuse to listen to reason?”

“Oh?” Brucie said with an exaggerated confused look. He ignored the concerning question for now.“I was unaware you had any children.”

Annoyance and something else flashed across Vlad’s face before he schooled his expression to exasperation. Damian sneered at the man internally. “Ah of course, Daniel is technically my godson, but he’s like a son to me. We have a lot in common,”Vlad explained, a sneer suddenly forming and taking Damian by surprise,”At least more than his father has with him. Honestly, his mother could do so much better than that bumbling idiot.”

“Where is this Daniel then?” Damian cut in, garnering the attention of both men. Vlad seemed surprised to see him, if not a bit jealous. “If you are so close, how come he didn’t join you here?”

“I would have loved to have the little badger here beside me,”Vlad’s face twisted into something like sadness, but missed the mark. “Unfortunately, Daniel’s gone missing these past few months without so much as a word.”

Damian frowned as his father offered meaningless sympathies. Daniel? Vlad had been from Wisconsin, but he recalled the man having some sort of dealings in Amity. After a moment he remembered and scowled. This man was the Mayor of Danny’s town. He was the one who’d let the GIW in in the first place, surely. Looking up at the man’s false mask, set on gaining sympathy from his father made him light up with contempt. 

“Of course,”Vlad was saying when Damian started paying attention again.”I had originally come to Gotham to find him, you see. I’d heard something about him being spotted in the area and just had to check it out for myself.”

That was bad. If he was talking about Danny, then Vlad somehow had gotten ahold of information about his whereabouts. Who else had that intel? Was the GIW or the Fentons on his tail? Was Danny in danger? He quickly excused himself from the two adults and meandered over to his elder brother to relay the information. Hopefully they could get Danny to a safe location before something bad happened. 

Chapter 19