Warning: trans!man danny and him being Ellie’s dad, and him attracting shenanigans are my favorite tropes, so they’ll be present
Danny had been cautious about going to Gotham when he decided on being a mortician and learning about the stars. He’d gotten the odd look, but for the most part everyone accepted it at face value.
The Gotham part set off the alarm bells in his head. Sure, GIW have been handled but Crime Capital of the World was just one of a few reasons he hadn’t wanted to go.
Being in the city his older brother on a technicality was raised in… was unpleasant. But Sam was there, Tucker had an in with Wayne Enterprises with one of his cousins, and Jazz had been trying to get him to come for longer than a day trip.
But it didn’t sit right with him.
Amity needing him stopped since he did his job well. He finally managed the GED program since his GPA was shot from freshman year.
Gotham University offered him a free ride for his two very desperate fields.
He had a horrible feeling about it.
But in a few years Ellie would be stable enough to live with him full time—Pandora was still stabilizing her and of the opinion Danny needed to live his life outside of being Amity’s protector.
Though she phrased it more like he was starting a new epic.
Mr. Lancer say him down and they made a deal—if Lancer could get Danny’s rogues to ‘knock it off’ and agree to pre-determined time and location fights in the Realms, then Danny would stop hesitating and ‘finally take advantage of the good hand he’d finally been dealt’ and go.
He still can’t believe Lancer lecturing them about targeting Amity in spite of it being a ‘disabled ghost child’s cradle’ worked.
He’d gotten so, so many apology gifts.
Desiree even made it so he produces less estrogen and enough testosterone to not need the injections anymore! And shapeshifting lessons for everything else.
Going to university on top of second puberty is a special hell, but he did it.
He managed to avoid the Wayne clan too. Tucker was still annoyed at times that he wasn’t using his engineering skills—apparently his co-workers don’t believe any of what they grew up making from scraps is possible and wants backup—but for the most part they’ve found a rhythm and manage to share their apartment with Sam in relative peace.
Sam is still Poison Ivy’s top henchwoman.
Danny politely ignores this as Ivy is more Anti-hero and he has a suspicion this ‘Green’ she’s an avatar(? Priestess?) of, is related to Undergrowth but way less pushy. And Sam deserves to commit eco-terrorism as a treat.
Jazz was thriving as she helped the goonion with their mental health.
And Danny was doing well.
Until he went to get another Deathwish from his favorite coffee shop and spotted Dick with one of his new siblings.
And Danny? Was not going to hear anything about growing up different or how it was a shame he didn’t follow the family business or reach out sooner.
He bolted out the door, and almost lost his pins.
He really hated blacklisting this place. It was the only queer-run coffeeshop that worked for all three of them.
He hated feeling like he was a little kid trying to explain to his first parents he can do the trick, he can. Only for Dick to keep stopping him.
He fled the scene, even using his intangibility, and made it home.
Maybe he should have mentioned remembering who his bio family was when he first remembered…
He looked up at a knock on his window… one of his regulars at the morgue.
He let them in, and they made a sound he knew was their best ghost speak for concern worry help?
He sighed, running a hand through his hair. “Thanks buddy, just, fuck my life sometimes.”
The guy just cooed, leaning against him and trying to sing to him. Horrendously off key, and it sounded like a really bad rendition of something mid-century.
Danny just tried to breathe. He had one semester left, he’d be able to move soon and he could portal to his friends after his shift, and work on getting Ellie into human school.
Maybe Central? The meta population is bug enough there that no one would ask about either of their abilities, and there’s a no-kill rule with the Rogues…
He’ll work that out later.
Current him has a possible man-hunt run by the asshole brother he forgot and chose to ignore once he remembered a decade ago.
His life may be fucked, but it’s his and he won’t let that asshole barge in.
Not when he’s close to getting Ellie full-time without Fruitloop interference.
Not when he’s almost graduated, has a plan, and finally out of the vigilante life…
His buddy stopped singing and ran up to tap. Danny wrangled him to not drink from there, but the water bottle. Honestly, whatever necromancer was making his regulars, Danny’s having a Talk with them before he leaves.
Dick and Tim shared a look as Dick’s clone bolted from the coffee shop.
The clone was around Jason’s age, and not perfect. Face a bit too round, eyes the wrong shade and build all wrong.
Whoever cloned him didn’t even get his ass right.
But he knew he’d be going after him to uncover the nefarious plot and hopefully deprogram the guy.
“Huh, wonder what spooked Danny,” the barista frowned.
“Danny?” Dick looked at Tim.
“I’ll let his roomie’s know to pick up their order,” the owner yelled back as she finished another order.
“So, is him bolting at the door normal or…”
“Oh, Danny’s got a thing where he can sense danger before it happens. His big sister mentioned it was why she figured it’d be safe for him to follow her here. Real sweetheart, and their parents weren’t the best about it,” the barista answered absently as she finished ringing Tim up.
Dick and Tim winced. Clone may be de-programmed already, or a sleeper.
Either way they were going to get to the bottom of it.
After they made their way out, Tim frowned. “Uh, about Danny… you did see the pin right?”
Dick nodded. “Ghost one right?”
“No, the flags. Trans, pan, and a medusa one.”
Dick twitched. He hoped it wasn’t what he was thinking.
That’s all i got for now.
