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JBB: An Artblog!
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hello vonnie
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RMH
Alisa U Zemlji Chuda
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@randomideafairy
Y'all hear about alien stage? It a thing on YouTube by vivinos and yall need to see it
It has beautiful music and enough angst to make you want to punt yourself into the ocean
Definitely give it a ty if y'all wanna suffer today and listen to some bomb ass (good) music that might make u cry
(P.S.- don't look up anything before watching, it's a ride without spoilers)
what if I made a thing or it already was that while Airplane wrote the world, Peerless Cucumber illustrated it (only the animals. And Binghe, fighting the animals.) And then then then
He'd totally do it on an alt account, right?? Peerless Cucumber can't be seen making fanart!! (And he's good at it. Like, wiki is using his art in the monsters and beasts pages (that Peerless Cucumber volleyed for. He also separated it from the plant section.) Because 1 its good 2 the artstyle is consistent 3 there isn't a lot of monster official art, other than that one with the black moon rhinoceros python and those other ones and 4 it's really that good)
Doodle dump for my fic au 'The Rehabiliation Of Death' out-of-context and whatnot
Been drawing nonstop for my AU on art stream last couple of weeks. Some of these I had bigger plans for to actaully clean up and make it look decent but I gave up so now you get scratches. There's more of them but that's for another dump post later
Short DPXDC Prompts #997
Young Dick Grayson is wandering in the JL headquarters in the artifacts room. He’s been just looking around, occasionally reading placards that Zatanna or Dr. Fate have added on the items used and its history.
He pauses when he comes across an old green rotary phone. Next to the phone is a small placard. It reads “never pick this up.”
He knows he shouldn’t touch it. He’s in a room full of magical artifacts. There’s no way this won’t come back to bite him. But his curiosity overwhelms him.
He picks up the phone and dials a random number.
It rings.
And rings.
And rings.
And- “Hello! Fenton speaking! Who am I speaking to?”
Someone answered. —
Danny doesn’t know why this unknown number rang the house phone but ngl, he’s a bit curious. (Nomatter what number you choose, it always goes to the Fentons landline
Okay okay, hear me out.
What if transdimensional telephone? Or even an anachronistic telephone? 😏
NOO I ALREADY HAVE A FIC IM WORKING ON HOW DARE YOU
I like the idea of a young Robin talking to a Danny that is 10 years removed from his time/dimension.
Ough the possibilities. Good shipping material too. But I digress.
The whole story would be about these two boys developing a friendship across dimensions/time via stupid magical rotary phone. And when one of the other faces peril, they find a way to jump to the other. I'm thinking Danny being in the past (read first superhero AU) and remembering the time and date of the danger to Dick and being there to save him/the JL.
Maybe something like this?
—
"Ah! S-sorry! Wrong number!"
Danny blinked at the receiver. People didn't often call the house anymore. Not even telemarketers! People can only last so long in front of one of his parents anti-ghost speeches. It was strange that someone actually bothered to call, even if it was a wrong number.
He put the phone back on the wall and shrugged. Not his problem. Just as he turns away, the phone rings again.
Huh.
Danny let it ring for a moment, then picked it up. "Hello, Fenton residence. May I ask who's calling?"
"Oh! Uh... Hello."
Danny frowned, the voice sounded young. His age or younger even. "Hello. Uh, can I help you or...?"
The phone buzzed with the dial tone. They hung up again.
Danny looked at the phone, confused. That was weird. Wasn't a ghost caller. His parents ghost proofed the phone lines long ago. Maybe it was a first time prank caller. Which wasn't uncommon, but still strange after all this time. The Fenton prank buster tm was still fully operational after all.
This time as soon as he put the phone back on the receiver, it rang again.
"Hey, who is this? Prank calls aren't as funny if you don't do the joke right away." Danny answered, irritated.
"P-prank? I'm not calling to prank!" The voice sounded indignant. "I'm trying to call Br-my dad!"
"Well you keep calling me so..." Danny cleared his throat. In a deeper voice, he continued. "Hello son! I'm so glad you called! Your mother has dinner in the oven and it's reanimating! You might even say that the turkey has gone fowl!"
There was a moment of silence.
Then, quietly over the gentle static of his parent's landline, he heard gentle snickering.
"Well dad, if the turkey's gone rogue, then isn't that simply poultry in motion?"
Danny chuckled. "Your sense of humor is im-peck-able."
"Sir, that pun was ill-eagle."
"Oh toucan play at this game."
---
DP x DC prompt #55
When Danny answers a Craigslist ad in Gotham, he never expected to become the getaway driver or to get in a car chase with the bats. He doesn't want to go to jail so might as well tap into his inner Jack Fenton.
Danny ends up getting offers of work from more rogues and criminals after and has to seriously consider if this is the life he wants. It was a good night. But does he really want to be a career criminal?
He was debating the decision (after all, this could have a real impact on his future) until he got his paycheck......
Looks like he'd need some backup ski masks...just in case
I mean, the cash is good.. No, Danny what would Jazz say!
But Ellie would say take the money, and don't get caught...
Fuck it he should call his sisters.
Danny: Jazz! Ellie!
Ellie: Template!
Jazz; Little brother. What do you want?
Danny: So. I answered a craigs ad list...
Ellie: Oh was it fun?
Danny: I ended up as a getaway driver for Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy.
Jazz: Danny! Did you get hurt???
Danny: Nah I channelled Dad. I uh, got another offer though. And the money is REALLY good.... Should I take it?
Ellie: YES!!! Only for the ones on the list though.
Jazz: *sigh* You do need the money. And it is Gotham. Your only legal option is Wayne Enterprises really... Fine. But if you get caught I won't bail you out!
Danny: Cool! Cool. So, Harley really liked my driving and uh, I have her phone number. You want me to ask if shes ok answering your list of questions?
Jazz: YES!!!
Ellie: Find Dr Freeze! I demand answers too!
Danny: Sure thing Ellie! Ok. So uh, I guess I should probably join the goonion. Just to make sure none of the rogues fuck me over. And you know I'll only take jobs from the list.
Jazz: I am so glad I made the list of "rogues you are allowed to contact" Before you moved there...
Joker is NOT on the list, and when he learns there is a list, he is HIGHLY offended that his EX is on there but not him!
Joker tries to grab the brat. But he is oddly slippery. This gives the bats some breathing room as Joker has a new obsession. They don't know why he wants the tired college kid so much. And they are highly concerned about the kid. But uh, he is damn good at dodging the Joker. Unnaturally good actually.
They need to look into the kid while trying to grab Joker. Dammit.
They see one of the attempts and someone definitely recorded it and posted it in the Batchat withthe Benny Hill theme
Danny has been amusing himself dodging the Joker. But Harls is his favourite to work for. And he finally got all the deets. And well. Harls is becoming a friend. Joker fucked her over real good. So, it is his duty, as a good friend to ensure he can't hurt her anymore. Now, he can't kill him. That would get WAY too much heat. BUT, he can damage his spine. Just enough to make him paralysed. From the neck down. He just has to look up how to do it carefully so he doesn't accidentally kill him. Hmm. He would be best off not searching that online.
*sigh* Time to hit the books then. The library is full of everything. And he is slated to do a basic first aid course. He can say it's to help with that. Back injuries are a problem right? Can't move the victim unless you do it safely etc. Yeah, he can spin that! And that's only if anyone asks. It's a good thing the campus library is open all night. He can just sit in a corner. Then he doesn't have to check the book out.
This happens to be the same library that Babs works at. Because she is Babs she discovers Danny’s plan to paralyze the Joker and decides to “subtly” help him. After Danny finds out what Joker did to Babs he is all for her help and promises to film the event for her viewing pleasure.
Danny takes great care to set up the camera in such a way that it won't show more than his hands. He also dresses up as knockoff Batman, padding included, as well as slight lifts in the boots. Look he is taking no chances. Seeing as the librarian helped him and he was filming this. Well he needed to make sure no one could connect it to him. As a siren he could lure people in with his voice. And he could change it enough to make sure no one would recognise him.
He lured Joker into the warehouse he set up for this and managed to get him in the right place for this to happen. He grabbed Joker by the neck and restrained him in ice. If he got the placement wrong he might kill him. And that was not the plan. He carefully went about his work. And when he was sure Joker was done he released the ice leading to Joker dropping to the ground. Danny leant over and smirked at him.
Danny: I hope no one remembers you in years to come. Don't worry. I already called the police and an ambulance. Wouldn't want you to die before your memory fades.
The Joker looked at him hatefully and fearfully. He realised this man could have killed him easily. But he took that chance from him. He couldn't feel anything. He was done. He would never be able to do anything again. Not really. His body would trap him.
Danny left just as police entered the building. He took the camera and went home. Time to check the video didn't show too much of himself. Not to mention set up an alibi. Given he was back within a few minutes due to flying invisibly home he should be good. Not that anyone should suspect him. But it was good practise. He sent a text to Babs. A simple 'hey you want lunch, I found a great film in my collection'. That was vague enough. He sighed and got dressed in comfy clothes. Throwing the suit into a portal. Look, if no one can find it, no one can test it for anything. He heard about the bats. He was not risking shit!
Babs got the best message she could have imagined. And she would get to watch. This was perfect! He was even setting up a coffee meet up so it wouldn't be suspicious. Oh she liked him. Maybe he would end up joining the team at some point? Although he was more likely to work with Jason given his methods. Oh this would be a great day. And she would get to 'find' the video and leak it online. Well, only if it didn't show off Danny too much. She wouldn't do that to the man getting her justice!
I feel Jason would get a kick out of a knock off Batman (and I'm thinking shitty dollars store version) paralyzing the Joker.
Also, do how do you think Batman and his clan would react? (Besides Babs, who might just ask the guy out. Maybe)
Babs is either going to date him or they will be besties for life. Jason? Really wants to find whoever did this and thank them. Just so very much. Babs can't randomly start to date him right now though. Odd timing. It's the sort of thing B might obsess over.
Bruce? Is losing his shit. He might not be overly displeased that Joker can no longer hurt people. But.... Whoever did this was a threat. And no one can find anything on them! The voice was distorted as anything, and wasn't through technology either. They can't accurately tell how tall or broad they were. They are fairly certain it was a man... But only fairly.
And! Babs refuses to help. Which is understandable. Joker hurt her and Jason badly. But whoever did this could do this to do many others! This could be another villain rising! So he's going in circles and working himself to the bone to try and figure it out while the extended bats.... At best out in enough effort to say they have.
Harley and Ivy are gleeful once the news comes out. They don't know who did it. But Danny is a friend. So he still gets invited to the celebration. And Danny isn't saying anything. Babs already agreed the knowledge stops with her. Unless he makes it a habit. Which is fair.
Who else could Danny paralyze though? I mean, he shouldn't have reason to step in again, right?
Also, I imagine they wait for like a month while Danny keeps visiting the Library (he does actually need to study for that license after all)
Ah but while we the audience know this? Batman has no clue at all. And while Babs is fairly certain this is a one off? You can never be too sure. She is a bat after all. And it's always good to have blackmail right?
Danny is also still doing college, first aid and part time getaway driving. He is a very busy guy. Babs really does NOT need to ever worry he will be setting up as a villain. But it's Gotham. And the water here seems to affect the intelligent and driven differently.
Danny though? Just here having a good time. Putting his skills to good use. Harley is the only passenger he's ever had that likes his driving. He appreciates that about her.
Consider. Danny gets read into the Oracle Secret because Barbra calls him to help Get Her Out because a rougue has set the building om fire or something. So now Batman is more than usual paranoid about their secrets, meanwhile Danny is just like "I should introduce you to me friend Tucker. He use to be my Tech Guy"
Danny doesn't care about the civilian ID of the local colony. Bruce? Is still going to be paranoid. Glad Babs has a friend who could save her. Absolutely. But still paranoid.
Babs knew when she called him that he wouldn't ask about it. That it isn't something he cares about all that much. And hey! She got a great driver for escaping rogues! Like, holy heck! Danny could give a bat a run for their money. She pretty sure cars that aren't the batmobile aren't meant to be capable of the tricks he pulled getting her safe!
Babs would very much like to see what he could do in the batmobile. A race between him and Nightwing or Red Hood would be great to watch! She definitely has to see if she can wrangle that at some point. Would be hilarious. Danny drives like the concept of death doesn't phase him at all!
Dick? Is very very pleased that Babs was saved. But, but.... He was so jealous! She got to be driven by a speed demon! Even he wouldn't drive a normal car like that! Guy was nuts! He wants to be a passenger next time! Babs! Let me meet him! C'mon!
After moving to Gotham and having to deal with a stressful job, Danny has started taking walks around the city as a way to destress.
Since he knows that he could get mugged, he just becomes intangible and invisible while listening to some loud music on his phone.
Unfortunately for him, his control on his Invisibility keeps slipping when he gets lost in his music, and the people of Gotham keep seeing a semi-translucent ghost man walking around at night aimlessly.
Some thugs think it’s just a meta with invisibility and try to mug him, but pass right through and he disappears completely. This convinces them that he is a ghost, since having both invisibility, and intangibility would be too big a coincidence. Not to mention he never reacts to them whatsoever.
The Bat’s get word that a Ghost has been stalking the streets of Gotham, and he looks scarily like Bruce Wayne from the little they have been able to see from him. Now Batman thinks his dad may have come back as a ghost.
Danny is oblivious to all of this. He just likes his nightly strolls.
What if the stressful job he’s dealing with is funeral director/mortician. So when he takes these walks he’s often wearing a fairly nice suit, maybe one that’s a little old fashioned that he bought used in order to save money but still look professional. Or maybe it’s an old one he “borrowed” from Sam’s dad, one the guy wouldn’t miss with how he changes out his wardrobe every gala season.
This kind of outfit, of course, lends further credence to the theory that this is Thomas Wayne’s ghost, cursed to wander the crime ridden streets in which he died.
One night Danny had a little accident as he was leaving the embalming lab to get home. He was actually pretty annoyed about it. He swore the new guy had it out for him, with how he just happened to be carrying old Mrs Smith’s drainage when Danny popped in to say good night and just happened to spill some of it all down the front of Danny’s second best dress shirt and just happened to not get a single drop on himself.
Ellie comes to visit at one point and is super excited to show Danny her new shapeshifting powers. She can’t do a lot right now, not yet, but it’s enough to play around with in the streets of Gotham.
Danny is thrilled his little starlight is learning new powers. To celebrate, both of them dress up real nice and hit the town, taking full advantage of their ghost abilities to make the most of it. They get some ice cream, see a movie, freak out some tourists, scare the shit out of the Joker, mess around near the clock tower, and eventually calm down enough to enjoy the night air through a long walk.
Ellie is giggling and skipping ahead of him, taking advantage of the empty streets to freely shift her form every other block. With one step, her hair is twice as long and sparkles with an unnatural gleam. The next, her dress has turned bright green and the flowers stitched onto the hem wriggle and dance in tune with their blasting music. Danny calls her back when she gets too far, and when Ellie turns around, all of a sudden she looks like a boy with a suit similar to his and an adorable pixie cut.
Danny just sighs and takes his daughter’s hand. He knows that one day, when her powers are more developed, Ellie will truly cause him a royal headache with all the trouble she’ll get up to using her powers. But right now, right here, he’s just glad to have proof that Ellie is becoming her own person. She’s thriving in ways he never will, and that fact alone comforts both of them. Ellie isn’t just a clone anymore. She’s his daughter, and he’ll humor her till the end.
It takes a few days for the thought to crystallize, past the unsteadiness of shock. For his normally brilliant mind to start making connections again. Chaotic. Fae-like. His… His Father was unchanged. A man forever trapped in time, yet free from that terrible alleyway in a way Bruce still isn’t. But the CHILD?
It brings to mind the old tales of changeling. Fae children left where human children were taken from. Or perhaps, like cuckoo birds, fae children who steal a human child’s place. It was… It was seeing himself replaced. His father laughing, playing, unknowing in his adoration of what he believed was his son. The child in Bruce had screamed in horror.
The man in Bruce knows his Father is not unknowing.
At least… he desperately hopes so. It is impossible to tell yet what the ghost of Thomas Wayne is actually SEEING. The world as it is? As it was? Something else, beyond Bruce’s human sight? He’ll need Constantine’s help. Everything in him is trying to fight calling him.
It takes all his strength just to say the words out loud. To ask Clark for help, all the way over in Metropolis City, but Bruce… he can’t. He can’t. He searches the city for signs of his Mother. Like everyone else looking finds nothing. Was she not worthy of a return? Did she not earn some impossible goodbye?
What God would separate his parents? Would cruelly tear them from each other’s arms? Is his Father looking for her? For him? He found him. Is it now his wife he searches the streets for? Imagining her around the next street corner, some function or charity, a dear friends house for a chat?
Or was he pulled back by the Fae Child. Yanked from his rightful sleep, to play house, by the willful demands of a magically powerful child? Did he stand above his grave and wonder where he was? One moment trying desperately to protect his family, the next a graveyard? The world changed. The endless questions haunt Bruce.
Ha. “Haunt”. He’s begun to hate that word. Trapped. His Father isn’t “haunting” anything. His Father has been TRAPPED by this city and a child that Shape-shifts like water flows. Has Gotham not asked enough from his parents? Did they not already pay, for the crime of caring, in blood? Behind him Damian is less practicing his stances, as he is wrathfully hacking away at a training dummy.
Bruce continues to type at the bat-computer, gives him his privacy as he works through his emotions. The disrespect to his grandfather’s spirit. The lose and hurt he is feeling. Damian has never gotten to even meet Thomas Wayne. Known him only as stories and other people’s memories. Paintings upon walls. Old journals.
Beautiful but empty things.
The spaces outlining where a man once stood. A great man. A kind one. One who would have loved him fiercely and been endlessly proud to call him his grandson. One he now sees played a puppet along the filthy streets he died on. Sees at the mercy of forces unknown, to ends unknowable.
Who sees it hurting his family.
Alfred is nearly a ghost himself these days. He has caught him staring at his parent’s portrait so many times. A truly lost expression on the man’s face. When he had thought it a hoax he had been offended but now that it… it is likely REAL? There were so many things left unsaid. Things they wished they could share with his parents.
It is grief ripped anew.
His Father… He had told him he had done a good job. The look on his face excited and melancholy like he was remembering the escapades of Bruce’s youth. When mastering something meant then turning around to show off to his parent’s. Was he proud? Is he?
Bruce is afraid to ask. Afraid to know.
But he will not let his Father be trapped in the city that killed him. Cursed to wander the city of curses. For all he loved this city, Thomas Wayne earned a peaceful rest. Deserved to sleep along side the wife who he loves and loves him more than anything but their son. To dream of dancing and stars and peaceful afternoons, in whatever comes after. Not this. His Father does not deserve this. And Bruce?
He is going to make this right.
@joaniejustwokeup @little-pondhead @stealingyourbones @cyrwrites
Well, now I have IDEAS. How dare you inflict this upon me once again. The NERVE. Now I have to play off the fae idea.
Keep reading
#he totally asks alfred if martha was pregnant#she was#no idea the gender#but appearently#the baby decided it was a girl after death#constantine comes to check it out on bruce’s insistence#and apparently bruce’s parents managed to become king and consort of the dead in the infinite realms after they died#bruce has to sit down HARD#dcxdp#mistaken identity au#danny as thomas and sam as martha#and ellie starring as unborn child!
Is reincarnation a thing in the DC universe? If so, then John can somehow test if these are actually the souls of Thomas and MArtha Wayne and the test saying that they were. The taruma this would cause Bruce having it confirmed. It isn’t demons or something taking their faces, it’s actually his parents. Would the two start to get some feelings or memories back from their previous lives due to their connection to death as a liminal and a halfa? Actually say things that his parents did or reference events that happened for them. Or them mentioning their daughters older brother then getting confused when questioned deeper, because they don’t have a son? How much would that hurt Bruce that his parents don’t seem to be able to consciously remember him? Also finding out that they became royalty in the afterlife would be a shock.
At some point, Sam goes up to a rooftop just to get a quiet moment to herself and curses when she finds an injured Batman passed out there.
Batman wakes up to a woman who looks like his mother applying first aid with steady hands while complaining about “self-sacrificing idiots not knowing their limits. How much good do they think they’re gonna do after pushing themselves to a point where they can’t do anything. At least Ellie didn’t inherit that.”
Bruce is still a little out of it from blood-loss or whatever, but he manages to absorb an important detail: her name is Ellie. The little sister he never got to meet is named Ellie.
After Sam realizes Batman is conscious, she starts talking to him. She says a lot of things like “don’t you dare die!” And “I know your work is important, but you can’t just run yourself into the ground like that” and even “as much as the realms would love to have you, you will not be showing up until you’re old and gray.“ She might be redirected some of her frustrations with Danny over the years.
Bruce makes a small choked noise before managing to say “understood,” in a relatively even voice.
It wasn’t much but Sam caught it, and Now she’s alarmed because Batman doesn’t do shit like that; what happened to him? Was if fear gas? No, he’d have an antidote for that. Did he get hit with some new kind of chemical weapon? Shit, now she feels bad for yelling at him.
She offers to stay with him until someone comes to get him, because leaving him alone on a roof when he’s drugged seems irresponsible. Fuck, he’s shaking. Sam ends up awkwardly looping an arm around his shoulders and trying to be comforting (which is really not her forte) until one of the other bats shows up. Then she promptly disappears because she wants out of this situation. She has her own traumatized hero to look after, thank you very much.
This concept has a lot of room for emotionally intense dramatic irony.
There could be so many interactions where Danny, Sam, and Ellie are totally oblivious.
You could have all three seeming to be ghosts because Sam is heavily liminal, and just popping up at random intervals.
Sam and Damian bust the same dogfighting ring and work together. Damian rescues a box of puppies from the breeder that was supplying the ring. Sam calms some of the dogs that didn’t make it enough to lead them to the ghost zone.
Jason gets pulled in off the street for a quick lecture on the aspects of self care and health that work differently for the undead. Danny asks him to come to him with any questions or concerns he has going forward.
You could have the Bats learn (correctly or incorrectly) that the Waynes reincarnated, and alternating between wanting to know them and not wanting to drag them into things when they seem to be living peacefully.
Danny’s apartment ends up becoming a safe Haven for the Bats after the first couple of times he finds one injured and can’t just do nothing. They can come to him for patch jobs with no judgement, or just for company that doesn’t ask much of them on bad days. Being able to provide the kind of safe place he would have liked to have when he was a hero gives him a sense of contentment and peace.
For all that Batman is good at putting on a strong front when he’s out and about, the poor guy seems so lost and uncertain when he gets somewhere safe enough to drop the act, so Danny tries to be extra kind and gentle with him because he knows what it’s like to have to put on a brave face. (Danny doesn’t realize that Batman is different around him)
At some point Ellie gives Bruce a flower crown made out of dandelions and clover and Bruce just about loses it.
That’s his “baby sister” giving him a gift, of course he McFckin loses it.
The flower crown is going to be carefully preserved and stored/displayed somewhere safe, isn’t it?
Batman may project stoicism, but at his core, he’s someone who cares a lot.
I’m still imagining Danny being gentle and supportive with all of the Bats. He tells them things he would’ve liked to hear as Phantom. (You are so strong and so brave and so good. You are doing enough. It’s okay to rest sometimes.)
Sam is not the touchy feely type, but she’s getting attached, too. No mushy stuff, but anyone who actually manages to seriously hurt one of the Bats will briefly disappear under mysterious circumstances and turn back up severely traumatized.
Ellie doesn’t take long to decide all of the Bats are family, now. She pesters Jason for shoulder-rides (He’s so tall). She is thrilled when Nightwing enables her need to climb and/or swing from everything (she could fly, but that’s not the same).
She made Tim promise that if he ever becomes a supervillain She can be his right hand man because fuck the gender binary (he was to busy laughing at a kid saying “fuck the gender binary” to figure out a tactful way to change the subject).
Ellie occasionally interrupts patrol to show Robin where she saw a family of opossums (almost always in places a normal child couldn’t reach/shouldn’t go).
Black Bat is invited to play ballerinas (even if they’re really playing warrior princesses undercover as ballerinas).
Ellie teams up with Steph to sneak some ice cream (they didn’t really need to sneak, but it was fun).
Even Oracle gets some crayon drawings (Ellie asked the other bats to give them to her once she realized Oracle probably wasn’t going to visit in person).
Here’s me throwing my own addition in because I can’t help myself. Just a warning, it got very, very long.
Keep reading
I like the idea of Danny and Sam as reincarnated Thomas and Martha being like
“Is it weird that we’re so protective of these random strangers?”
“It doesn’t FEEL weird, but it seems like maybe it should?”
And then both of them shrug and move on because neither has a strong understanding of what normal is anyway.
They don’t know about their past lives, but they are subconsciously influenced by them. Like, the reason Danny panicked and disappeared at that first meeting with Batman instead of just explaining that he works at a morgue was because something deep down realized that showing himself to Bruce in this state would cause him pain and wanted to shield him.
The placement of the red gems and pearls wasn’t intentional, but it also wasn’t coincidental. Clockwork gave them the present to give to Bruce, and they didn’t even think to question it because it just felt right.
If Sam and Danny feel the odd urge to spoil the Batkids rotten, they probably just attribute it to their own time as teen heroes. (Subconscious be like “GRANDBABIES!”)
They get along with Lady Gotham right away, not realizing that she’s already an old friend.
I think it would be funny to have Tucker’s visit coincide with the Duul Aman exhibit going to the Gotham Museum, and for one of the Bats to stumble across Danny and Sam teasing him about it.
Batman paused in a shadowy alcove at the sound of Martha and Thomas Wayne’s laughter. He peered down and saw them standing with a man he didn’t know.
“You both suck.” The stranger grumbled petulantly.
“Aw, come on Pharaoh, You have to admit it’s a little funny,” Thomas said with a cheeky grin.
“I just don’t like thinking about that life. There were a lot of things that the me of now isn’t proud of.” The man sighed in a way that spoke of old regrets that still ached at times, even after having largely made piece with them. Thomas and Martha sobered at the admission, and their eyes became a bit more sympathetic.
“Duul Aman wasn’t one of the worse leaders history had to offer. He made some positive change for his people,” Martha offered.
“Nobody becomes the best version of themselves by being raised to believe they’re a god,” the man said.
“Fair enough, but at least you’ve got a couple of things to be proud of, right?” Thomas Wayne said with a shit-eating grin.
“Making Ras Al Ghul eat it was pretty sweet,” the stranger said with a chuckle. “Though you won’t find records of that accomplishment. The jerk must have outlived me.”
Batman’s eyes widened behind his cowl. He considered following the three, but he really needed to go try and keep Catwoman away from the new exhibit.
Several things clicked into place when he saw the face on a sculpture of the Pharoah Duul Aman.
Oooo~ I love you bringing Tuker and his Confirmed reincarnation into it.
Sam and Danny don’t make the connection themselves but having the Bats get suspicions from this encounter would be a great lead up to them calling Constantine.
I’m just imagining the Bats calling up a magic user to settle the “ghosts or reincarnation” debate only for the magic user to be like “they’re testing positive for both. Why does Gotham have to be so Goddamn weird all the time?”
Just, Constantine and Zatanna standing there whispering to each other.
“What the actual fuck is going on in this cesspit??”-Constantine
“Does it looks like I know any more than you do, John? This shouldn’t be possible!”-Zatanna
“Are you two ok?”-Nightwing
“No.”-Z&C
“…ok then, sorry I asked.”- N
They get Deadman over and he’s the one that tells him that’s the new Ghost King.
“He’s a swell guy. His consort is kinda crabby, but she’s also pretty good. Waaaayyy better than the last guy”-Dm
“Are they ghosts, or are they reincarnations?”
Batman: What does “both” even mean in this context.
Constantine: Your bloody guess is as good as mine.
Zatanna: We tested for both at once. Both sets of tests came back positive. Neither of us understands how this is possible.
Batman: *a very particular microexpression that usually means he’s going to be more of a pain in the ass than usual*
Constantine: *casts spell to make Deadman visible*
Constantine: Here, the only guy only guy who seems to have a bloody clue. Have a nice day. I’m out.
Omg this just keeps growing and with every reblog, I’m baffled!
But can anyone please check on Alfred? Idk if he’s having a good time from the nostalgia or going to have a heart attack with everything going on! Is he just “ignore everything & make himself numb” mode? SOMEONE CHECK ON ALFRED
I like stories where Alfred and Clockwork are either together or old friends, so Alfred is alright. Clockwork talked to him about things, so he knows what’s going on and is just waiting patiently until he can start nudging things in the right direction.
If his family wasn’t so full of overly dramatic people with too many skills and too little sense, he could have already told them what’s going on. Unfortunately, his charges are all so patently absurd that anything involving emotions has to be handled in very precise fashions. Otherwise they’ll hurt each other in ways difficult to repair, disappear into other dimensions, or become dictators.
Alfred has been keeping up to date on the ex-Waynes’ new lives since the sting of the loss faded enough that he could manage. He’s already planning family dinners.
I had a couple more thoughts.
The first relates to Dani being disappointed when she realized she wasn’t going to make it back in time for Bruce’s birthday. I think it would be funny for Dani to randomly turn up at some point with a late birthday present that’s kind of out there. Probably some weird thing she found in her travels.
Could be anything from a little kitschy knickknack from some small, obscure country to a really weird object from another realm, but I think the weirder the better. Like, this little girl randomly shows up, enthusiastically hands Bruce a bizarre item that she found somewhere, and then disappears with no explanation.
I guess it could also be some Fenton Works equipment paired with a mysterious mention of how “Grandma and Grandpa fixed the Specter deflector so it prevents overshadowing without hurting any ghost the wearer touches.” I just find the option of Bruce being left holding something that looks like either a weird rock formation or some kind of fungus or egg attached to a stalagmite with no idea what to do with it funnier.
On the one hand, it’s a gift from his ghostly little sister. On the other hand he has no idea what it is or if it’s dangerous in some way the ghost child didn’t realize.
The second thought I had is about Deadman being the one who has answers. In the cartoon, the ghosts all knew who and what Danny was. Apparently the creation of a half-ghost is hot gossip in the zone. Most of them don’t bring his condition to the awareness of humans. Apart from the mutually assured destruction situation with Vlad, the closest any of the ghosts come to using Danny’s secret identity against him is when Walker makes life really difficult for him by launching a smear campaign and stirring up anti-ghost sentiment in Amity Park.
I kind of headcanon that spreading private matters of the dead amongst the living is something ghosts just don’t do. They gossip amongst themself, and they’ll even chat with living folks about things that aren’t private for the ghosts involved, but they don’t air ghosts’ secrets to the living. It’s not exactly a moral thing, it’s just how they do. They just don’t tend to have any interest in doing so. The only reason it even came up with Danny and Vlad is because they’re both half human.
That said, the fact that Danny, Sam, and Ellie are reincarnations and seems to be trying to reconnect with people from their previous lives might mean that talking to Bruce about their history might not register as “telling the living about a ghost’s private business.” He wouldn’t broadcast it to the world or tell random people, but he can clear up a misunderstanding with their son.
So Deadman tells the tale of Danny Fenton/Phantom as he knows it. Basically it’s an overview of the broad strokes of Danny’s superhero career and how he became king. It is probably incomplete and not entirely accurate because Deadman wasn’t there for any of it and learned most (if not all) of what he knows from stories that had been told and re-told several times before reaching him.
Deadman cheerfully and obliviously delivering a whole new crisis. They got answers about how they can register as both reincarnations and ghosts. Now they have entirely new unanswered questions.
Idk why, but my first thought was Ellie appearing, handing Bruce a big rock and saying “Pretend it’s a seed, okay?” And then immediately dipping. And Bruce is just standing there holding this big rock that his little sister gave him like “I don’t get it.”
Dick definitely saw A Bug’s Life tho, and finishes the joke. “Maybe it’s a ghost thing?”
Only, guess what Dickie, your totally right, it is a ghost thing! Cuz Sam and Martha were both Jewish, and one of the few things I know about Jewish people is they don’t leave flowers on graves but they leave rocks! Omg, my brain made that connection right now as I’m typing this, I love my brain and all it’s neurons! ⚡️🧠⚡️
Someone needs to expand on the rest of Gotham! Having the King and Consort there Must impact the ecto in the area…
Does this imply that the clients Danny takes on becomes healthier ghosts? Or with his time spent in graveyards, murder scenes, etc etc making stronger ecto areas?
Does this mean more and more people are coming back and creating a… livelier (ha) Gotham reminiscent of the old days?
I mean, no one has even mentioned Mr. Solomon Grundy, with the new ecto do yall think he crawls out of the sewer slightly more coherent, obviously still repeating the rhyme but maybe with a few ones mixed in, maybe less anger?
On that note, how’s Jason been holding up? Is his pit rage getting better? Jumping off of that, does Ras hear about Duul Aman and decide to stop by for a bit of his psychotic, immortal version of dun? Does Talia happen across Sam at all?
So many things to consider!
That bit about Ras learning about Duul Aman, I like it. Here are my thoughts.
Duul Aman very soundly trounced Ras Al Ghul in that lifetime. He was a strong leader, a powerful sorcerer, and a pragmatist who never lost track of what his actual goals were. He was also just plain smarter and better at understanding people.
Ras has been trying to recruit talented people for how many centuries and still hasn’t thought to try being a good boss? He kills half a dozen of his own mooks for failing to kidnap a vigilante he knows damn well is more skilled than them, or in a fit of post-Lazarus irritability. Then he wonders why no one good enough to have options wants to work for him. The man has had centuries and still hasn’t noticed that reward systems are more effective than intimidation tactics at getting people’s best work out of them and keeping them loyal. I’m pretty sure that the main reason Ras has any sort of mastermind cred at all is because he has the Lazarus pit allowing him to brute force his way through enough experience to sometimes fake it.
I mean, just look at how he handled things with Red Robin. He jumped straight into trying to control him with threats and taking a hostage. He could have handled that whole mess in a way that left Tim thinking of him as someone reliable and reasonable, and then let him go while making it clear that Tim would be welcome back should he choose to return. He could have laid the groundwork for a relationship that would have let him draw Tim to him over time. Remember, hero Tims and villain Tims are all doing it for the people they love. Tim will do anything for his people. Ras stared right at the evidence of this and still decided to be a threat to Tim’s people rather than trying to be one of Tim’s people.
So Ras, who has spent several centuries failing to grasp that being the biggest bully in the yard is not a winning strategy in the long run, finds out that the foe he never managed to vanquish is back in the land of the living, and now he’s just some guy with no armies to command. He decides to go get payback. He fails to learn more about the guy than that he’s a private citizen living in some very ordinary apartment somewhere before sending a team after him.
Here’s the thing. With Tucker Foley’s technological know-how and memories of Duul Aman’s life spent studying magic, Tucker becomes one of those very rare people who know enough about both electronics and magic to get them to work together. He has been developing all kinds of crazy magitech that let’s him do things like rapid fire spells that other magicians would take days or weeks to prepare for by writing a program that does the heavy lifting for the calculations involved. Tucker may not have an army in this lifetime, but he also doesn’t need one.
Tucker is down to kick Ras Al Ghul’s ass again. When he learns that Ras has been creeping on some kid, he’s quick to offer the kid his protection, a phone that will cut through any kind of interference and even work across dimensions so the kid can always call for help, and lessons on skills that are very useful for kicking Ras Al Ghul’s ass.
Whenever the reincarnation thing comes to light, Tucker’s going to have a head start on being the cool uncle (great uncle?).
He’s already got fun bonding activities with Tim and Babs (because Tim knew she’d want in on the coding magic lessons and Tucker was glad to have another person to share his super niche interest with).
He’s written some books that explain magic stuff in a way that makes enough sense to non-magicians for them to ununderstand the risks and make informed decisions, so Bruce warms up to him more quickly than he otherwise might have.
Dick likes that Tucker manages to both respect how capable he is and acknowledge that he is a human with limits who can’t be expected to manage everything perfectly all the time. Tucker grew up with a guy who could fight off a world ending horror and then wipe out tripping on his shoelaces. He gets that someone can be capable of amazing things and still screw up sometimes. He gets that Dick can be the first Robin and Nightwing and still be a twenty-something kid who needs a damn break sometimes.
It takes him a bit to figure out how to connect with Jason without alienating Bruce, but eventually he works out that he can resolve some of the tension there by putting a curse on the Joker that will cause him to fail spectacularly any time he tries to hurt someone (often in a manner that involves the Joker getting hurt in some amusing way).
Offering the non-lethal spell with the explanation that the Joker seems like the kind of crazy that would stick around after a violent death and he doesn’t want to run the risk of a more dangerous version of the Joker becoming a long-term problem, Tucker is finally able to find a compromise that both are satisfied with. The Joker isn’t dead or maimed, but he also can’t hurt people anymore. He can’t ever hurt Jason again.
Also, they get a very funny video from one of Arkham’s security cameras of the Joker trying to attack a guard only for his pants to fall down, causing him to trip down the stairs and lie on the floor dazed until the guards collect him.
Danny Fenton is so damn sick of rich fruit loops. It’s worse now, since he’s one of them.
It’s not Vlad that he’s with, thank the Ancients, but Danny isn’t sure that this is better.
Because he’s Timothy Drake, a baby, and he’s been reincarnated after the Ancient of Reincarnation accidentally drank too much wine.
He’s going to kick their ass so hard when he gets back.
Danny huffs. He rolls over, ignoring the silent manor. Sure, he’s read the comics. Sure, he laughed and imagined being adopted by Batman- come on, Danny had black hair and blue eyes even back then, he was totally adoption bait- when his parents gave him reason to lose trust in their love. But that’s it, that’s all he thought it was. A day dream, a wish for a universe that didn’t exist.
Danny hadn’t understood the reality of the whole Infinite Realms thing, a place he was now the King of. Batman? Real. Danny? Reincarnated. Hotel? Trivago.
Like, this wasn’t what he meant, dammit.
And now he’s stuck as Timothy Drake, and Ancients, he was starting to see parallels.
——
Danny tried photography. He really did. He wanted to at least stick to the source material. But that’s not who he is. Even with the shiny new brain that memorized, catalogued, and put together clues at the snap of his fingers, but Danny’s never been one to take photos. It’s a respectable art, for sure, but Danny preferred to live in the moment instead of capturing it to remember forever. It’s just-
He watched the Graysons fall. He watched Dick Grayson turn into Robin. And Danny can’t and won’t ever betray his Obsession like that, ever again. He can’t let Jason die for his “story” to begin. That’s not how Danny works.
He’s there to protect.
Danny hasn’t ever been just Tim. Danny was also Tim and the Ghost King without a haunt. But now? Gotham is his haunt. He, in lieu of an actual city spirit, is Gotham. He’s also a Drake. And Drakes were meant to hoard.
Batman and Robin? They are his.
He claimed them, as a Drake. But that claim is weak. So he claimed them as their city, and that is a claim that will never be able to be challenged.
Danny’ll be damned before he allows some lanky starved clown beat the life out of one of his Robins. So, for the first time in his nine years on this planet, Tim-Danny goes ghost and flies.
“Who- who. Are you?” Robin slurred from his place in Danny’s hold. He is broken, yes. But not dead. Danny infuses some of his vitality, his ecto, into Jason’s injuries to help them heal.
“Gotham.” Danny replied, layering his ghostly voice with those of the city.
“Goth’m?”
“Gotham. Sleep, little bird. Your city has got you.”
When Robin, Jason, settled with a sense of trust that tugs at Danny’s core, Danny carried him to Batman, whose eyes were wild and manic. He glared menacingly at the green and white ghost in front of him, who was holding his broken and beaten son-
Well, it’d be menacing if Danny hadn’t watched him eat bricks and mortar, crashing into a building while using his grappling gun.
“You-”
“I am Gotham.” Danny cut him off. Despite his wary nature and natural paranoia, Batman settled at his city’s gaze rested on him. Danny knew that Batman recognized his city. Batman’s head bowed, but his eyes stayed on Robin. “You were supposed to take care of Robin.”
“I- I know.” And that voice was all Bruce Wayne the Dad instead of Batman the Vigilante. Danny gently placed Robin in Batman’s arms, taking in the tremors as he held his son close.
“Go back, Bruce. And make sure Jason knows how much you love him.”
He laughed as Bruce whipped his head upwards. “I am your city. You are mine as much as I am yours. I’ve known of you before you were born.”
Technically? Not untrue. But Bruce will chalk it up to weird magic shit. It’s not like it’s a secret that Gotham’s kind of curse. Besides, this way, Danny will be able to help out more often. And Bruce won’t be able to connect Tim Drake to the “Spirit of Gotham.”
“Return, my knight. This is not your city. I can not protect you as well as I can in Gotham.”
“Thank you… Gotham.”
Danny sighed. He wondered when he’ll have to field questions from a John Constantine. He’s pretty sure Bruce will call in magical help, even if it was his own city he was investigating.
Batman’s lucky Danny liked him enough to allow it.
So I am Guessing that Danny’s ghost form still looks the same and thus not like Tim Drake. Which would tie in a commenter’s idea that he thought of as a god and vessels situation. I also saw a comment that with all the stuff the Drake’s bringing things home from archeological digs maybe cursing Tim and that is how he became a vessel.
Anyway I don’t like reblogging unless I have something to add and this time it is just questions.
Jason thought that Robin is Magic, and this is only going to re-enforce that. But now that his fate has been changed from the Red Hood pathe what will he become?
How does the conversation go when Jason wakes up back in the bat cave medbay?
Did the magical community sense Danny’s ghost form being used for the first time?
Let’s see what others can add on. @arzuera @dcxdpdabbles @evilminji @flamingpudding @hdgnj @hypewinter @im-totally-not-an-alien-2 @kizzer55555 @puppetmaster13u @zylev-blog
I think having read a whole lot of isekai stories gave me at least a bit of inspiration to hopefully contribute something good to this prompt. Because honestly, I love this prompt!
-----
Nine years old Tim-Danny was pacing. His little mind was running with all kinds of thoughts and remembering everything he knew of the original story. He had done his first big change and he wasn't sure how much he could now rely on the original story.
It had been a month. Nightwing was back on planet, and Batman had also been seen, but there was still no sight of Robin. Which expected. Jason was probably most likely still healing from his injuries. And he had a working plan on how to haunt the Joker.
Still Danny was here pacing in his room. Trying to remember more key points of the original and trying to figure out how the change he made would now influence it. By the looks of it he won't be breaking into Dicks appartment anytime soon, nor would he be taking the place of the third Robin. That was fine. He was sure Stephanie would have more fun. Plus he liked that he had become the 'Spirit of Gotham' instead.
He stopped pacing for a moment, contemplating this thought. Now that Danny wasn't going to become Robin, he also won't get Ra's attention. Which meant no missing spleen for his future. Good. He would have found a way to avoid it anyway, but this was making things easier. Also he would still like to make friends with Tim's group. Like having a clone friend when he previously had a clone sister? Yes please. Also he would like to save him sooner before the whole clone debacle escalated and then settled like it originally did.
Danny was just about to start another round of pacing while trying to remember the next big key event that was going to happen when he noticed movement outside his window.
He blinked once, before walking over to his window and realizing just who was out there running across his backyard like a free man. Right out there running around freely and apparently enjoying his regained mobility was Jason Todd.
Right, the Drakes were the neighbors of the Waynes.
Wait... the Drakes were the NEIGHBORS of the Waynes!
That was his chance! He rushed down the stairs nearly taking flight so he could get faster to the backyard. He would dile up his entire cute little kid act and make friends with Jason and then get access to Alfred's cookies!
What was the use of being reincarnated into a Batman story if he doesn't at least get to try these rumored cookies!
Next goal: Alfred's cookies.
Surely the next key event can wait a little longer, right?
Jason didn't yelp, he didn't, when a tiny head popped up over the ridiculously high fence. But! Even if he did? Who could blame him! The kid was tiny, and it was a tall fence ok!
Danny: Hi! Are you ok? You've not been outside in forever!
Jason: Yeah. Got caught in a rogue attack, but I'm all healed now! Who're you?
Danny: Oh! Um, I'm Tim! Tim Drake! Sorry if I scared you?
Jason: What? No. Just. You're small ok. And it's high, I was scared you might fall.
Danny: I'm real good at climbing! You don't have to worry! Promise!
Jason was worried. Jason was definitely worried. No matter how good a climber the kid was? That did not look safe.
Jason: You should get down though. Won't your parents worry?
Danny: They're at work. So it's fine! Mrs Mac has gone home already. So, it's fine! Adults are weird.
Jason did not like that news at all. Not one bit.
Jason: You're there alone? You're like 8!
Danny drew back in indignation. He knew he was on the smaller side for his age. Damn Janet Drake and her genetics.
Danny: I'm 9 thank you! Also yeah? Who else would be here?
Jason:... I'm getting Alfred.
Danny pouted as Jason ran away. Maybe his cookie plot was working? But he had the feeling he maybe shouldn't have used his home alone status. Dammit, Jason was a street kid right? Why was he so worried about Tim?
---
Jason ran into the manor looking for Alfred and Bruce. Wait, weren't the Drake's archaeologists? Who were on a dig?! And they left their kid alone!?! He ran in, Bruce and Alfred were in the same room. That made this easier!
Bruve: Chum? What's wrong?
Jason: Aren't the Drake's in Peru right now?
Bruce: I believe so? Why?
Jason: Cause Tim Drake climbed the fence to say hi. And he doesn't have a minder!
Alfred and Bruce both tensed for a second. The Bruce sighed.
Bruce: I see. Go invite him over for snacks Jaylad. I suppose we have an investigation hmm?
Well someone is getting added to the family earlier than cannon. Great additions guys. I squealed a high pitched awe from the wholesomeness.
Hehe oh trying to hire a fake uncle to avoid being adopted by another rich fruitloop is going to be both harder and more hilarious. Oh and the Drakes getting served court papers for child neglect while they are on the dig site. Because I don’t think it will be too hard for Batman to get the evidence. Jason gets used as bait to Tim over to the Wayne manor so he will someplace safe as Batman is getting copies of the past year of security footage. Alfred’s cookies help with that too. They really are as good as the comics said. But Tim/Danny has alread caught on to why they are asking certain questions and is now trying to throw them off.
Hmm Batman had asked Constantine about the city spirit. The Brit had already sensed the flare of power when Gotham went to save Jason. He basically tells Bats congratulations on awakening a patron city protection spirit and good luck before teleporting away. Bruce knew he should have asked Zatana but she was helping fight some demon that thought it would be easier to break through the dimensional wall on another planet then on earth with all its magic users.
Oh last thing of note is that when Danny in Phantom form was flying to save Jason he wasn’t careful to keep up his invisibility the whole way. And news of a Lazarus green glowing pit demon flying to and from the direction of Gotham was reported to Ras Al Ghul.
When Danny reincarnated, his Phantom form…changed. While before, he was donned in the hazmat suit he died in, since he was technically reborn in this life, there was no set death imprint for him to take form. Not only that, but his new claim as the city spirit of Gotham had it’s side effects. So when Danny became Phantom, while his hair and eyes remained the same, his clothes almost looked like living shadow or some sort of dark mist floating around his body and surrounding him rather than actual clothing. Danny tried to concentrate and pull the shadows towards him. Wrapping the dark tendrils around himself in the form of clothing. It made it look like Danny was almost wearing some sort of cloak and hood, with only his face, hair, and eyes visible or his white gloved hands when they poke out of the Shadow cloak. This added a new layer of mystery as whenever Danny appeared it was if the very shadows themselves were drawn to his being. Something Danny was unaware of.
When Zetanna finally got back, she did a more thorough search for the patron city protection spirit. However, she could not locate them. She was trying to locate Danny’s specific presence but because he is fundamentally connected to the city now, everything in the city feels like him. On the bright side, this confirmed that whoever they were was indeed the representation of Gotham. (Meanwhile, Little nine year old Tim is sitting a foot away from her, chewing on some cookies).
Meanwhile, Ra’s Al Ghoul has caught wind of a mysterious figure in Gotham and becomes fascinated with the city itself. It becomes his new obsession to learn everything about Gotham’s history and make a contact with the city spirit or capture it. He also wants to make Gotham the location of his new main base.
Jason wants to thank the new city spirit and forcefully adopt his neighbor.
Bruce wants to find out what!s young on. And what the city spirit knows so is trying to make contact with them (it’s a race between Ra’s and Batman on how to summon the city spirit. Which is funny since because there was no city spirit before, there was no recorded summoning circle so Danny is just watching them both make attempts as he floats invisibly behind them).
Steph is very confused why she’s found it easier to patrol as spoiler.
Dick wants to know what is going on. He swears someone was watching him when he entered the city.
Constantine wants to run away and never look back. It was bad enough when Batman gave him a disappointed look, now he has to literally feel it as the city is judging him whenever he steps foot inside.
Joker wants to know why all his windows and doors mysterious unlock, why his weopons disappear, and why he wakes up everyday with a drawing on his face and a doll staring at him. A very, VERY disturbing Toy Story doll. With a new Toy Story doll/toy appearing every day.
And ‘Tim’ has decided to sit back and see how everything turns out.
“You’re such a Dick” is taken as a far more devastating insult than “you’re such a dick!”
Why? No one wants to admit it. They’re all stubborn, petty siblings. And if there’s one thing siblings hate, it’s always being compared to the other. They all spent the first half of their lives trying to live upto Dick, to be him and then spent their latter halves living as far apart.
The first time, Tim lets it slip to Jason is when they were at a warehouse, Jason checking in on everyone over the comms after a vicious gang takedown, and the amount of concern and checking up he was doing made a half-conscious and definitely concussed Tim blurt out: You’re such a Dick.
The horrified pause that followed before Jason clicked off was enough to make Tim realise the extent of damage he’d done. Red Hood spends the next two months gunfighting, taking over the underworld and dealing in shady illegal hands before he even shows up to the mansion again.
Tim got his karma though. He was entertaining people at the gala as Timothy Drake, wooing suitors and investors, turning on the charm and rizz that left everyone swooning over him and completely enamoured. He’s trying to manipulate them to donate millions to a good cause, maybe make a few powerful connections he could use when he laughs, disentangles from the crowd and gives a charismatic wink to his followers.
He pauses, refilling his drink when he hears the disapproving tut from the shadows.
“What do you want Damian.”
“Drake. What are you doing?”
“My job, trying to make the best of a worse situation.”
“With those flirtatious compliments you gave? Drake, you made the mayor’s mother swoon.”
Tim shrugs.
“Not my fault they can’t resist my charms”
And then. Damian levels him with a scrutinising look, scowling before he mutters.
“You’re such a Dick.”
Tim doesn’t realise the glass has slipped from his fingers until he hears it shatter along with his mind.
Dick, god bless him, has no idea. He genuinely thinks that they’re fighting and the insults just get to them. However, he’s still confused why when he goes to check on them they refuse to make eye contact with him, and then disappear off the face of the planet.
So my Batfamily brain rot is back (not that it ever really left) and I just had a thought like…
If you’re a henchman/criminal in Gotham, seeing your life flash past your eyes is gonna be a somewhat regular occurance but… what if like… the thing that truly made a henchman’s heart fall to his ass was when they hit Robin just a little too hard and this 10 year old kid just starts crying and goes ‘Daaaaaadddd!’
That’s the moment when they truly think they’re going to die because said dad, the kid is calling for is a 6’6 demon from hell who’s all muscle and shadows and vengance and a lot of Gotham still thinks he’s a cryptid
The henchmen all drop their guns and try to calm the kid down but it’s over in 5 seconds flat. Batman breaks several bones before speaking to Robin in the softest voice they’ve ever heard him use and the criminal world, who was already a bit hesitant to fight a kid have even more reason to take it just a little easy on Robin.
And like, I can picture different reactions with every Robin.
Like, for Dick, he’s ten and we all know he was the most violent Robin second only to Damian so maybe when he’s ten or eleven and has calmed down a little, a henchback who still remembers what a little shit he used to be decides to get back at Robin, slips on a pair of brass knuckles and BAM
And then, little Dick just stares for a moment in shock, cheek already starting to bruise, the criminals he’d been fighting all stay still because it was a nasty punch and then…
“Daaaaad!!!” He cries out in a whiny voice that reminds them that Robin really is just a kid and it all clicks into place.
Even Bruce wasn’t expecting that, Dick has just started calling him dad and he still isn’t used to being called that so to hear his kid calling for him in the moment where he is startled and hurt and a little scared… the henchmen don’t even have time to react and they wake up in the hospital with concussions and maybe a few broken bones.
It doesn’t take Dick long to calm down, it was mostly that the hit from a random henchmen really startled him and got him right in the cheekbone. But Bruce still finishes patrol early and Dick still hides under Bruce’s cape all the way to the Batmobile.
Then comes Jason and Jason was such a sweet kid, I headcannon he was the one that called Bruce dad the most often while being Robin. So one night during patrol maybe he finds himself fighting Penguin or Two-Face and it’s been a long night and he has an exam the following day and Bruce is fighting another villain at the other side of the warehouse
The point is, the henchmen and Two-Face start landing hits on eleven year old Jason in his gut and at some point he loses sight of Batman fighting on the other side of the room. Jason gets scared because he’s never really fought without Batman and while he knows that Bruce is still in the warehouse, he can’t see him and the handle of a gun hits the back of his ankle and he falls and he sees Two-Face or Penguin or one of the henchmen getting ready to grab the front of his uniform and beat him up and…
“Daaaaddd!”
The criminals freeze for a moment. They’ve heard the stories of what happened the last time a Robin called scared for dad.
They’re fucked.
They all drop their guns and try to get Jason to calm down, but he’s crying just a little bit and calls again, his voice breaking and despite having been at the other side of the warehouse just a second ago, Bruce somehow drops from the ceiling and it’s over before the criminals can keep pleading with Robin to calm down.
Jason tries to apologize for ‘acting like a baby’ but Bruce is having none of it and carries him back to the Batmobile and Jason is happy to just hide his face in Bruce’s cape because he knows his dad will always be there to save him.
Then comes Tim.
And Tim gets found out while doing reconnisance and somehow he finds himself face to face with Bane who manages to wrench away his bo staff and Tim is just eleven and he is scared because Bane doesn’t look like he’s going to hold back
All Tim knows is that the crack he hears must surely be his ribs either cracking or breaking and he can’t breath and he can only muster enough air for a single word… and he calls for his dad through tears and fear
And at this point… at this point Batman has already lost a Robin, Tim may not be his legally but he is his son just as much as Jason was
Bane spends a month in the ICU
Tim is embarrased that he reacted like that. He thinks it makes him less of a Robin to called scared for Batman… for dad.
So Bruce tells him of the other two times it happened. It’s one of the first times he’s spoken about Jason to Tim so bluntly.
Then comes Stephanie.
Stephanie never calls Bruce dad when she’s Robin. She’s not his daughter and he’s not her dad. They’re not sure what exactly they are to one another.
As far as Bruce knows, Stephanie’s version of Robin never called out to him when she was scared.
What he doesn’t know is that it did happen. Just once
It was the last time she was Robin. When Black Mask had her and she thought she was going to die
At some point while bleeding and feeling nauseous and so scared she could barely hear anything that wasn’t her own heart beating wildly against her chest… she called for dad. Not for Arthur Brown, but for Bruce
Black Mask laughed at her
Stephanie never tells Bruce
And finally… Damian
Now, we know Damian would probably never be startled enough to call for Bruce out of instinct, so I can see 2 scenarios in which this could happen.
First, he sees another kid do it. He sees a kid close to his own age laughing and playing, then tripping and staying quiet for a split second before crying out for mom and dad and he just… assumes that’s something kids do when scared and hurt and startled and does it mostly in an attempt to be a little more ‘normal’
Or, my favorite scenario… he hears of the other times it has happened. He overhears maybe Dick remind Jason of what Bruce did when Jason called out to dad as Robin. Tim maybe jokes that a Robin calling for dad is still the villains’ greatest fear
So Damian stores that knowledge away as a battle strategy just in case he ever needs it… and maybe a small part of him wants to put it to the test, to see if his father would protect him as brutally as he’s protected the Robins before him
So some random night during patrol, he’s up against several henchmen, a few of them grab him from behind, trying to hold him down. Damian is fighting against them when one of them swings a cylinder of metal that Damian thinks might’ve been meant for the plumbing and…
The henchman breaks Damian’s nose, there’s blood dripping down his chin and staining his uniform
Now… it is most certainly not the first time he’s broken something, he’s more than used to the pain, in fact, he barely feels it. However, it gives him a chance to put his little theory to the test
And so Damian allows himself to sound like the ten year old that he is and in a whiny, teary voice, goes… “Babaaaaa!” (Bonus points if it’s the first or second time he’s called Bruce baba instead of father)
What Damian didn’t take into account though, is that Batman and Robin aren’t the only ones on patrol that night. They made a big bust. The biggest part of the operation was over but they were still fighting a few stragglers. The whole fucking family is here.
And they all hear his cry.
Damian doesn’t think he’s ever seen a fight end so quickly. The henchmen only have a split-second of surprise before vanishing, being tackled or shot or having knives buried on their shoulders by his siblings.
The one that actually broke Damian’s nose is being beaten up by Nightwing, Damian doesn’t think he’s ever seen Grayson so angry.
A shadow kneels in front of him, father. Baba. He’s checking Damian and Todd is right at his side, both speaking in hushed tones, checking his injuries and wiping the tears that usually came with a broken nose.
And now… Damian is used to his father and Grayson treating him like a child, trying to be as soft as they can with him. Even Cain does it to some extent.
But… having Drake wrap an arm around him, calling him baby when knocking out one of the criminals that had hurt him ‘that’s my fucking baby brother!’ and continue to hold him later into the night on the couch, having Brown willingly give up all the snacks she keeps in her utility belt and promise to take him to Batburger the following day for milkshakes because he was ‘a champ’. And Thomas wraps his favorite blanket around Damian while they’re fixing him up.
Todd decides to stay the night at the manor. Which he never does. They all decide to spend the night at the manor when Damian still sniffles on the Batmobile and they have breakfast all of them together. Which Damian isn’t sure has ever happened before and Cain gets Alfred to make pancakes with chocolate chips instead of blueberries.
They call him baby in hushed whispers but for once, it doesn’t bother him even though it really should
But most of all, Bruce refuses to let him go for a good five minutes after he first cries for him. Smoothing down his hair and whispering that it’ll be okay and just being soft in a way Damian has never seen before.
He sleeps between his Baba and Grayson and he knows that Todd and Drake and Cain check in on them at least twice in the night for some reason.
And he realizes it’s… it’s nice. Maybe this really could be an effective battle strategy to be employed again someday.
I LOVE THIS.
except.
Aside from Dick (who went behind Bruce's back & ended up being Robin just so he'd have Supervision because One Does Not Attempt To Babyjail An Acrobat) and Damian al'Ghul... none of the Robins were active when any younger than 13 when they started, at MINIMUM.
The "canon" ages are Very Muddled, given all the RetCons & Certain Writers Having No Sense Of Scale... but the WHOLE POINT of Bruce becoming "Batman" can be simplified to: "babyproof Gotham City".
While, yes, EVERY Robin would have snuck out in their Predecessor's costume at some point, the only batkids who could consistently Escape Bruce AND Alfred? Dick, an Actual Escape Artist, and Damian, Literal Ninja. Cass could, technically, but Babs had "custody" when she was still child-sized. I don't see Alfred or Bruce letting multiple escapes happen, not until they'd trained the newest kid &/or they'd already "babyproofed" the crimescene (something i imagine was true of EVERY Robin's first few patrols anyway, when possible).
The First "Era" of Batman was against Organized Crime, Rampant Corruption, & Hopelessness. The only "real" supervillains were Eccentric Crimelords like the Penguin & Rogues like Selina. It was relatively "safer" for Dick to be at Batman's Side than alone in Gotham at Night: Batman was a Cryptid, Bruce's tech was FAR more advanced than anything the gangs had packing, stealth & pre-preparation meant opponents were almost always taken by genuine surprise.
This "First Era" of Batman was when Bruce, Gordon & Harvey Dent were working together (with "The Bat" helping things along) to "Reform Gotham" from being Mob-run & Corrupt from the Top Down & Bottom Up... to something Vaguely Competent. This is when the "most" change happened for Gotham City: the Gangs were disarmed, ousted and uprooted from running the City, civilians could try Actually Trusting each other again, and the vast majority of Gotham's unchecked Chaos was either Given Better Options or "Scared To Behave". Gotham was still dangerous and corrupt but reforms were happening, more legitimate jobs came up, the cops had someone to be Accountable to (still corrupt but now they had to WORK for it instead of it being assumed by default), etc. This is all "alleged" history rather than Canon but it's the general "shape" required to mark pre-Batman Gotham from "Gotham with Bat Cryptid" and enable things like Gordon becoming Police Commissioner, "Batman" continuing to exist at all (due to affecting Actual Change), and the dissolvement of the "Traditional" Gang-ruled Gotham of The Penguin & Bruce's childhood.
...so that Harvey Dent becoming "Two-Face", and the Second Era of Cryptid-tactics being used by BOTH "sides", can be as personal and scary for Gotham as a whole. Things had been Getting Better: Bruce fears he's only made things Worse, other people Become Inspired (by Two-Face, Gordon or The Bat; by all three). Babs becomes Batgirl. The Gotham Central comics start happening. Bruce starts doubling down on building an "Alter Ego" for Bruce Wayne, the slightly less corrupt cops now Aware of The Bat & hunting him (the Rich Idiot Act also serves as a "buffer" to prevent Bruce from allowing anyone to get "too close", believing he'll Doom them by Association).
The "Second Era" is the beginnings of New Types of Criminals: Manbat, Poison Ivy, Mr Freeze, The Riddler (who is legitimately scary as an Unknown this early on), The Joker but in his "pre-Miller" incarnation. Supervillains that aren't quite "Super Villains" yet, just Sad Backstories Gone Wrong (but not TOO wrong) and Ridiculous Copycats.
I headcanon that Dick gets adopted around this time, while the "villains" are still "normal humans who would take any Out given to them". Gotham is dangerous but Not For [Lucius Fox]: money & tech still give Bruce a huge edge over everyone else, even Gotham's metahumans (after some initial failures while figuring out their limits). Dick won't let himself be kept safely in Wayne Manor & he is a LITERAL Escape Artist so trying to keep him in Baby Jail is Futile. Bruce is also more confident in his ability to keep A Child safe, he's getting an idea of how Scary this 12 year old can be without Bruce supervising. Bruce recognises Dick's anger but, unlike Bruce, Dick has the strength & agility to actually back him up: Dick can actually hurt people, something that Bruce couldn't manage until he'd started Training for it. So Dick gets to be Robin, kept in check by Batman & humbled by seeing that very little of Batman's "crimefighting" involves physical violence. It's mostly smoke & "mirrors": stealth, gathering intel, sabotaging ahead of time, using better tech, scaring & Showing Up when someone calls for help.
The time between the Second Era & the Third has things starting to become More Dangerous as Dick & Bruce start butting heads about what "Robin" is allowed to do. Dick sees the [Second Era] as a time of Wacky Villains & smalltime mooks in between Serious Challenges. Bruce sees this [Era] as "Batman" becoming less effective as he loses "Cryptid" Status. The main reason Bruce started dressing up as a Bat and only showing up at night was because he was trying to prevent senseless violence: fear was effective because most criminals were only trying to survive & weren't really committed to "being villainous". Batman getting clocked as "Dude in Cape" meant Bruce was having to PHYSICALLY fight crime, the element of surprise lost & less mooks fleeing at first provocation. Dick leaves. Jason goes for the Batmobile's tires. Bruce ends up with a second kid. It's still the Second Era but, as it nears it end, things get increasingly more Tense: Bruce & Dick aren't Speaking, Bruce is becoming more Paranoid, Jason is a sweet kid, the Rogues start feeling "safe"/familiar enough with the "routine" (Arkham Asylum isn't GREAT but it's better than Prison: the unique needs of metahumans are still being learned, stays there can be too long oe too short, identifying those who need Asylum & would take it is an ongoing process).
Then Joker breaks out of Arkham Asylum. He tortures the Gordons. The extent of his obsession with The Bat is revealed.
The Joker murders Jason: it's the Third Era and it's AWFUL.
Bruce Does Not Cope: he micromanages, he "works alone", he never "stops" Being Batman.
The Bat regains Cryptid Status. It's not just amateur crooks and would-be mooks scared by The Bat anymore: Bruce is scaring civilians, the 9-5'ers who have follow "The Code" (e.g. keep it profressional, don't use lethal force if you can avoid it, DO NOT MESS WITH KIDS), the Rogues he's developed some rapport with (Selina, Harley, Riddler), Alfred & Lucius & Gordon.
People who "Knew" Batman as someone/thing that Does Not Like Senseless Violence, who gives Second Chances and Alternatives... they do not recognise this new, reckless and violent and ANGRY Batman/[Bruce].
I don't think Gotham "at large" was ever aware enough of The Robins even existing, not this "early" on. Those who Met One would "keep the secret/to the Code": professionalism, discretion, softening their punches. Most would never have noticed a Robin was there: the Batfam primarily operate in the SHADOWS, after all. There were Rumours, naturally, but who listens to anything said by The Joker? The ones who'd bring up Batman having a kid were The Wrong Sort (not following The Code, known associates of Gotham's Worsts) or "Liars". It's only the Escalation from Joker and the other Worsts of Gotham, of Batman's reciprocating that Escalated Violence, that makes Gotham's Underbelly start dreading that those Rumours might be true: the Bat had had a kid, a kid who was sweet and cracked jokes, a kid who wasn't just murdered but tortured too.
Batman's renewed Cryptid Status comes in the wake of the Dead Robin rumours: the Robin was the Batman's "conscience"; the Bat is Gotham ITSELF, come to the cries of her children; the Robin was an Orphan who summoned his Father from Hell itself and, with his child dead, there was no one to send the Demon back.
The Third Era has a drop in standard crime but a ramping up of Terror: Tim, Steph and Bab's Birds of Prey step up in response. Bruce Does Not Take New Kids Well. He is awful to Steph, furious with Tim (Babs is one of the few Bruce feels has "Understood" how Gothan has Changed: her business is her own, so long as her at know not to "interfere" with Gotham on their own).
Tim is too tenacious, too ambitious, too stupidly capable of matching wits against Bruce at his Worst: Bruce takes him in but REFUSES to put Tim in a Suit ("Robin" is completely off limits) until he was Not A Child (15+) and Bruce had TRAINED him.
Even with Tim's age going up & down according to the writer, the Mythos of Batfam in this "Third Era" does not allow for Bruce to ever put anyone younger than 15/16 in the "scope" of the Joker or his other Enemies (Bane seems very Third Era). Cass is an anomaly, wherever she fits between Jason & Tim, due to how immediately she & Bruce were able to "understand" each other. It helps that she was ALREADY more physically skilled than Bruce & had demonstrated complete mastery of non-lethal combat. The nature of Cassandra's life had her "involved" with the Dark Underbelky of the World long before she even arrived in Gotham... and, all that aside, it was Babs who "took her in" anyway.
The "Fourth Era" would be Batman "having a Robin again": it's a relief for Gotham as a whole. Bruce (& thus Batman) is still VERY paranoid and more Terrifying than he ever was with the First Robins... but Tim's presence does "stabilize" him.
(This only furthers the Bat Cryptid "leashed only by Child" Rumours: Oracle gladly adds to them in service of the Bat Agenda)
The Fourth Era is when Supervillains become "normalised", identified as People in Suits to the masses & something any member of the Batfam has become Trained to "Handle". Most of the Rogues have been caught more than once, their weaknesses have been Noted, there are Protocols ready for almost everything. Gothamites get yearly "fear toxin" boosters, schools & workplaces have Drills for "Metahuman Events" (& Emergency Lockdown systems for Arkham Escapes, courtesy of Wayne Enterprises). Thimgs are, once again, "settling" into a New Normal.
Gotham is still more dangerous than most cities, it's also been Recognised as differently dangerous: it's rare for Outsiders to 'try their luck" by "playing hero" in Gotham, Nightwing is the "official" point of contact for any Capes or Metas expecting to be in Gotham & everyone likes Nightwing.
(Oracle is a new Cryptid: a Recognised Authority for Gotham but of Unknown Connection to it, her Birds largely operating Outside of It)
Overall, Gotham is "better" than it was pre-Batman: it's only unofficially run by Crimelords now and only half of its authorities are "Probably Corrupt"! The Bat himself is more "stable": Bruce has begun reconciling or otherwise making silent ammends to those he's alienated, he's regained SOME ability to "Trust" (his Family, some friends). Bruce knows he has never really "worked alone" (Alfred, Lucius, Leslie, Gordon) and that he needs help, that he has it: he has something of a Work/Vigilante/"Life?" Balance again.
Jason Coming Back is Fifth Era.
Bruce & the Batfam are still working things out, being prone to falling out all over again (Dick has resolved to never "abandon" his Dad again, taken up the role of "Peacemaker") and the "Red Hood" gives everyone has at least one existential crisis (at minimum). Damian showing up just as the they're understanding that Jason Is Alive and Mad About It... does not help.
Idk if Bruce faking his death is still canon? That's the "endnote" of Fifth Era.
Sixth Era starts with the "Batman" mantle being taken up by Dick, Kate & Cass. Whether Bruce is genuinely dead (to then get resurrected) or just "missing" depends on which arcs you'd consider "canon". I barely recall the explanation given at the time for Bruce Playing Dead to his entire family, just when it had finally "reunited" (largely through Attempted Murder but pssht DETAILS).
Seventh Era is the present: Bruce is Batman, the Robins & Batgirls have "graduated", the Batfamily is a Family (even when they fight, they protect each other & revere Alfred). Organized crime, supervillains & metahuman events in Gotham have become Slice Of Life events for the Batfam: there's more of them than ever, they have multiple Point persons, they know how to work together, they know their own limits & when to call for Backup (except Bruce but his Kids have figured out how to "compensate" for the Batdad's Paranoia/Lack of Self Preservation/Overprotectiveness: Jason is the Best at this, obviously).
Gothamites during the Seventh Era have Adapted to seeing Grown Up Robins out in the Daytime; the "Cryptid or Very Dedicated Dad?" discourse continues, actively encouraged by Said Robins (consensus from Gotham At Large is split between those that consider Batgirls to be "Robin" figures, generally a position held by those most familiar with [Babs] &/or [Steph] while other views have [Cass] &/or [Kate] as alternate forms that the Bat Cryptid can take). Duke joins the family.
"Seventh Era" Bruce is Renewed in his dedication to combating crime before it happens by addressing its causes: affordable housing, unemployment, rehabilitation, discrimination against ex-cons, accessible healthcare, conflict resolution training by emergency services, etc. Bruce lets himself "retire" his Rich Idiot mask to further his philanthropy, the extended Wayne Family all onboard & leading different avenues of reform. Older Gothamites become Nostalgic, recalling Bruce's parents & the still-active Dr Leslie.
The "Veterans" of Gotham's Criminal Underbelly are Nostalgic over having a "Tiny Robin and Bat Cryptid" active again. The "Code" is not onlu adhered to but internally enforced: The Bat's Madness at the loss of its Robin is still too recent, injuries still newly healed, sentences only recently completed. That there are Multiple Robins and Multiple Cryptids, all of them terrifyingly protective of each other... one of the first things taught to any prospective gang member is "kids are off-limits, even Robins: ESPECIALLY Robins!". Self-defence is fine, expected, but Certain Weapons & Certain Acts of Violence? If the Cryptids h
don't get you, a supervillain or other gangs will. It's the unorganized crime that Gothamites are most wary of.
The scariest word a wannabe-bad guy can hear in Gotham is "Dad/Baba/Father". Any of the Robins might do it. Some of the Cryptids do it. If you hear a child calling for their parent? It's Surrender or Play Dead: hearing that word means They (the Cryptids, Nightwing, the Robins, Batgirl, Catwoman, Harley Quinn, Two-Face!) will end you. You will wish they would just "kill" you (the Ghost Robin or the Rogues just might).
I split Batman's "Career" into "Eras" because it's a way to Mentally make Past & Current "canon" internally consistent... give or take an anachronism.
Dick was anywhere from 10 to 12 when he became Robin but it was also the Era where Batman was Mythic, his Tech outmatching most everything Gotham could offer, where No One Was Expecting A Child Ninja (Dick was an internationally acclaimed gymnast: that reads like "ninja" to the unprepared).
Jason and Tim were older (14-16) but both could easily read as "younger" due to the Cryptid Nature of Batman by that time, their only showing up at Night, kids looking Younger the Older you get, the bright colours of their suits, the stealth & social tactics used by the Batfam as a whole.
I REALLY like how this idea of "[Bat]Dad" can fuel Gotham's Underworld paranoia in their ongoing efforts to figure out "Batman": an urban legend, "Gotham Personified", "Cryptid?", dude dressed like a bat, "vampire?"... all the way to "Cryptid Parent summoned from Hell by Children of Gotham, the Robins, who are the Only Beings capable of putting the Bat Demon back to Rest".
Especially if this "mythology" is started independently of any rumours of The Batman that Bruce was TRYING to proliferate & gained traction with every addition to the Extended Batfamily (official and otherwise). Bruce can't even "get mad" about how his myth has changed because, at its core, Bruce's "Motive" for being Batman can be "summed up" as... [babyproof Gotham for every future generation].
EAT SLEEP DANCE
In another galaxy (we belong to you and me)
Spotify Playlist for this fic
Okay so Danny gets adopted by Bruce. Yeah? Yeah.
And they don't know about his powers? Obviously. We know this part of the story.
BUT. On a casual trip out for food or whatever, Danny and some of the bat sibs get cornerd by reporters and paparazzi. There panicking bec danny JUST got here and they haven't had time to breif him on how to interact with the media and he's totally gonna flounder and they need to help him before he totally flubs it!
Exept, he doesn't. He smiles, nice and bright, into the camra. He waits patiently for each reporter to ask their questions and then answers confidently, giving them something walst acctually answering nothing. "Where are you from?" "A small town, I'm sure you wouldn't know it but, really, it's about where I am now."How did you come to be adopted by bruce?"Well, I look quite a bit like my new brothers, don't you think? Haha. I like to think it was meant to be."
And on and on he gose, dancing around them, shareing professionally worded jokes and calmly addressing eatch person as they viyed for his attention, controlling the flow of conversation.
The bat kids all look at eatchother.
This kids been media trained.
Batkids: wow Danny how are you so good at that?
Danny, shaking his fist with a scowl: Vlad
Ok, I hear you. But what if: Sam.
Sam is from a very wealthy family, her parents do parties all the time, she's definitely been media trained. And I can imagine her passing that on to Tucker and Sam either from ranting about it ("I can't believe this, 5 hours on how to smile. 5!! And not only that! I had to practice answering questions without actually saying anything." "How is that supposed to work?" "Thank you for the question! It does take work but its always possible to answer a question with just enough information to leave them on the line between satisfaction and hunger. :)" "...oh that was good." "Ugh. Thanks." ) , actuall training ("I *refuse* to have you embarrass me. And this way you can piss off Vlad by doing better than him. Now! Repeat after me: ..." or even "after the walker and freakshow incidents you need to learn how to navigate the press. I hate that my mom's lessons are coming in handy, but they'll help. *don't* tell her I said that or I'll stuff your steaks with sprouts!"), or through observation (Tucker and Danny seeing Sam on the news or something, both of them knowing how much she hates it, but she doesn't *look* like it. They take notes to ask questions about.)
Okay but listen
Jack and Maddie Fenton are a whole ass government menace with alerts on the weather channel about their driving
They’ve probably had PLENTY of people demanding interviews whenever something new explodes, there’s property damage, or literally anyone who wants to know anything about ghosts - the whole town just shoves them the Fenton’s way
(As a punishment)
Danny doesn’t need to get media training from Vlad or Sam, he probably got it from Jazz because the way their PARENTS handle media asking about anything but ghosts is…. Well, dreadful
So Danny is very good at vapid smile, empty answers, please-don’t-call-cps, for the polite reporters
Then someone like Vicky Vale sweeps in to try and shock a reaction out of him and something in Danny goes… fuck it
He could judo flip her like his mom, but he’s been doing so well pretending to be normal
Vicky gets the full Jack Fenton mania, big loud laughs, explosive hand gestures, and cheerful babbling about how good the fudge is in Gotham no matter what else she tries to ask
He steals her microphone at one point and demands every new sibling present rank their favourite flavours of fudge, to wide delight by said siblings
None of the Waynes say a non-fudge-related word to Vicky for at least 8 months
Clarifying question: who is "he" in the last tag? Is it tim? Is it danny?
Ok let danny be himbo BUT the moment someone asks about space he goes from himbo to batman levels of knowledge
Like some reporter asks what he thinks of the space stuff at wayne enterprises and turns out danny has alot and i mean alot of strong feelings on the work wayne enterprises is doing with space
And all of it is going over the reporters heads rhey tey to stear it away and back on topic but danny just stares at them with such intensity amd says I'm not finished
He just goes so so indepth about pretty much the least exiting part of it like pros and cons of different metal types for space stations
And no one can stop him cus he's gone full Fenton ghost maina but with space and he doesn't even have an off switch like jack with fudge
Dpxdc AU: consultant groups can be used to outsource problems for companies so why not monarchies?
Danny is listening to the various eyeballs and ghosts chatter on about all the issues that he now has to oversee and advise and make so many freaking decisions on. It’s annoying that it all has to come down to his call because he was a dumb 14 year old who didn’t want his town to permanently live in the ghost zone.
Now 17, King of the Infinite, and a bit wiser to the world, Danny is doing his best to balance his teenage ambitions to not give a shit and his protective obsession to very much give a shit.
Sams parents are making her learn the family business and Tucker is trying to make this internship he’s got with a fancy tech company out of New Jersey into a career without college… so while they’re commiserating with Danny the idea comes up.
Earth has a shit ton of heroes. Like, ever since the Justice League *poofed* the GIW out of existence with the Meta human acts- more and more caped crusaders seemed to be coming out of the wood work. More villains too but still, more people who seemed wise to their abilities and morals. Danny has literally never taken an ethics class.
But rn, Eye-mothy and Eye-Bert are arguing over how Danny as King Phantom is supposed to tackle the problem of some fucking pool acting as a weird trade route with a cult and… ugh it’s just so boring but like also such a fucking problem. But… maybe it can be someone else’s issue.
Opening a portal, Danny escapes into space and gets to work finding the base of operations- Tucker had told him there was a new satellite after all and there’s no way it wasn’t connected to the hero orgs- and boom he flies into the Watchtower.
“Hey- are any of you guys willing to consult on some weird pools of ectoplasm in Pakistan? Green and glowing little lakes of bullshit and magic?” Danny asks into the meeting room of the JL regardless of their startled and alarmed exclamations.
“… I could consult on that.” A voice comes from the corner, and Danny recognizes him as one of the bat people. Or bird? The guy is in a lot of red and clearly wasn’t supposed to be in this meeting based on the way he’s propped in the corner. The room erupts in protest but Danny barely hears them through his excitement and focus on the dude.
“Great! I’ll have him back before the end of the day! Lets go Bird boy!” And with that, Danny grabbed the Bird, chucked them both through a portal back into his thrown room and begins to explain the way these eyeballs are totally trying to trap him into doing more work than he needs to do.
“What do I call you by the way? I’m Danny but you’ll probably hear them call me King Phantom.”
“I go by Red Robin, and honestly, I’ve been trying to get this shit taken care of for years.”
From there Tim becomes a regular consultant for King Phantom- the Bat Family is losing their minds with him constantly going to the land of the dead but also Constantine said not to piss off the king at all costs.
Danny is just thrilled that this dude has a shit ton of insight as well as business sense- like he could legit run the monarchy way better than him despite the fact that they’re the same age.
They end up working together for years, and even when there’s not an active issue at hand, Danny will meet up with the bird just to talk.
Sam and Tucker think they’re hilarious each time they ask if Danny’s proposed yet.
Tim has already planned their wedding but all of that information is in a folder more secured than the nuclear codes- Danny needs to ask him on a date first.
Batman tries to get Tim grounded for some less than moral tactics with the League of Assassins and Tim wips out the 'diplomatic immunity' card
Were Danny and Tim accidentally married? Did Danny write it in a contract? Is Tim bsing? No one knows and Tim refuses to say and Constantine is threatening to curse Batman if he fucks with the King of the Afterlife that is Finally Not An Asshole
Danny pays Tim for all his consulting. And he also absolutely takes other heroes for advice on their specialities. Batman asks him why one day. When they are finally alone.
Danny: I accidentally became King when saving my town. And I have no training! I don't want to Fuck up something important!
Batman of course finds this respectable, but also alarming. Why are his people not giving him training? Or a proper adviser. He is not amused when he gets a note from CW. Whoever that is. Apparently Tim, his Tim. His boy, will end up Prince Consort. He is not ready to see any of his kids marry yet!
Danny of course is working up the courage to ask for a date. He wants to do it right! So of course what happens is Tim getting injured in an attack. Pretty badly. And Danny comes to the rescue. He keeps tabs on his favourite people.
And as he flies Tim to the hospital he ends up confessing. Tim just laughs a little and tells him to take him on a date when he's healed up. Bruce is... Less than pleased. But at least they aren't jumping to marriage just yet...
Part of the payment Danny’s secured for Tim is time-outs. Very short range. Just big enough for Tim to take a Nap in. Any time Tim spends helping out the IR, he gets double that in Naptime. Tim keeps an hour in reserve, Just In Case he needs a timeout during a case to think while the clock is Ticking.
The fact that Danny will spend Naptime with him, petting his hair? And purring? Have nothing to do with how well rested he is..... At all. Nope.l
Alfred approves of this being his payment. Danny gets given cookies. He managed to find a few old lost recipes to pay Alfred in. Alfred can't wait for the wedding.
Danny Phantom: I feel like you are trustworthy enough to know my secret identity
Tim Drake: *didn’t know there was a secret identity and is already building a conspiracy board due to this one sentence in his head* but you don’t wear a mask…
*magical girl detransformation sequence*
Danny Fenton: yeah… never really needed one
Tim Drake: *analysing the black hair and blue eyes and plotting him on the ‘likelihood to be adopted into the bat clan’ chart in his head* shit I need to step forward in the plan before Bruce gets to you
Danny Fenton: what?
Time Drake: what?
Once Danny asks Tim out its game over. They will be was by the age of 21. Tim swears it. And now he knows Danny is still half alive? Even better! And he can still purr in human form? Wonderful.
He can also annoy Bruce with this. Take Danny over in human form as a new friend. Even new boyfriend. Confuse the Fuck out of him. Yes glorious.
My favorite additions 😂🥰
Like A Lamb
**Idea taken from @nerdpoe's post- What the hell is this "Infinite Realms"?**
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
John Constantine would never call himself a kind man, much less a good man, but the kid at the corner table of this fast food restaurant was making him want to be both.
Not that John’s kindness would really help the kid, in the long run.
He’d seen so many things in all the time he’d been alive- wondrous and horrific in equal measure, but this boy- this teenager, barely out of childhood, was probably the most heart-breaking.
John had known sacrifices- marked by both men and demons. He’d seen the crumpled bodies after the fact, and sometimes he’d been able to save them beforehand. None of them were like this boy. Marked like a sacrificial lamb down to his bones by the universe- an inevitable end.
let the mourners come
Title: let the mourners come
Ao3 Link: Only available to Ao3 users
Word Count: 3045
Summary:
It started, as most things do with Danny Fenton, as a joke.
It ended, as most things do with Jazz Fenton, with things better than they were before.
xxXxx
When Danny finally gets a Twitter, it’s during Elon Musk’s shit show takeover. He’s able to secure a good Twitter handle thanks to people leaving en masse and fleeing to Tumblr. He knows about things that happen outside of Amity Park (he is terminally online rather than chronically, after all), but he still doesn’t think anything of using @TheJoker as his handle, even knowing about Gotham City’s clown troubles. It’s just going to be a shitpost account, anyway, one that dances in the chaos of Elon’s electronic graveyard. Nothing will come about him using @TheJoker when he’s merely posting things like, “Just grew a new row of teeth!!! very pointy but can’t go to the dentist anymore bc they might turn me in to the giw.”
So Danny honestly never foresaw The Actual Real Joker breaking out of Arkham Asylum all the way in Gotham City, New Jersey, and deciding to get a Twitter account to terrorize people online as well as offline. And he definitely never foresaw The Joker @’ing him on Twitter, demanding that Danny change his Twitter handle. But, well. Here he was.
So(u)l Chapter 1
A soulmate daycare attendant x reader slowburn!
Disclaimer: it/its pronouns are used for the daycare attendant until he achieves sentience! Here's the AO3 link to read it there as well! https://archiveofourown.org/works/48206098/chapters/121564951#workskin
Webtoon Review: Aza
Aza is quite underrated despite seeming like something people would like. It’s much too amazing to ignore.
Warnings- Death, Blood, Enslavement, Child Abuse
Genres- Fantasy, Mystery, Supernatural, Psychological, Drama, Political, Historical
Synopsis- Throughout history, humans have been at war with the Fallen, demonic creatures who were banished to live in the Barrens for their sins. One day, the king of the Fallen, Azazel, is captured by the imperial hunters led by General Mu Ryang. But contrary to the general’s initial beliefs, Azazel isn’t the cold-hearted monster the legends have made him out to be. In fact, he shows compassion for his fellow Fallen who have been ruthlessly hunted down by the humans, and even offers himself up in exchange for his people’s safety. After this eye-opening encounter, Mu Ryang begins to question who the sinners really are, and Azazel plans to use the general’s changing perspective to turn him against the crown prince, Jeong Jin, and put an end to centuries' worth of conflict.
Art
The art is absolutely gorgeous in every way. The shading is perfect, the color schemes, the stylization. I’m in love with everything. The way it’s drawn is so atmospheric and fitting for the webtoon. I would read for the art alone.
Worldbuilding
The world is mysterious but rich. With a common trope of devils and humans (also played in Blue Matter), Aza makes a unique world inspired by religion and sin. Each chapter, we learn more about the unexplained world of Aza and the more we learn, the more complex and immersive the story becomes.
Characters
Our MC is a badass anti-hero/villain. A good king with a strong sense of duty for his fellow Fallen. Our MC, unlike others is manipulative, dutiful, ruthless, cold and influential yet strong, caring, loyal, smart and a good leader to his people. His duality is beautifully drawn and seeing his feelings, and thoughts, his plans and actions was so interesting. Despite being our MC, we have little knowledge of his past and life. Every other main character and side character has a time to shine. I know for a fact that each character was planned start to finish.
Plot
I’m a huge fan of political plots, antiheroes/manipulative main characters, good worldbuilding and high-dark fantasy and this is all in one. With complex politics and royal family drama in the palace along with the plans of the Fallen and seeing what will happen next. Each chapter has unspeakable suspense and though the first chapters are quite slow, each episode is long and builds up. It remind me of Remarried Empress, showing the psychological slow build and making an atmosphere and buildup to the stakes and climax. It’s a very hard yet specific technique that can be amazing when done right. It’s a smart writing tool usaesae uses well and I know the payoff will be worth it. It’s quite a well rounded plot driven story.
Conclusion
I expected this to have more fans considering it’s similar to Remarried Empress, Your Throne and the Snake and the Flower, all being fan favorites of people due to the political drama and fantasy aspects coupled with the slow yet interesting storytelling. If you enjoy political fantasy with a solid and tight plot, this is another webtoon you may enjoy.
Escaped clone au
You know all those fics where Danny and Damian are twins but everyone first assumes Danny must be a clone? How about an au where Danny is Damian's clone who escaped the League after he was assumed dead. Damian could even have been the one to have "killed" him, back when Danny was a newly created, fully brainwashed clone minion and trying to kill Damian himself.
Danny gets adopted by the Fentons and canon goes on as normal, until Dan. Witnessing what would happen to the world should he turn evil really drove home to Danny how dangerous he is.
Even if he was confident he could be trusted with his absurd amount of power (which he isn't), what if the League of Assassins found out about him? Does he still have programming triggers from his evil assassin clone conditioning?
So, Danny does the responsible thing: he goes to Batman to turn himself in.
Cue Danny showing up on Bruce's doorstep with ghost hunting equipment, intel on the afterlife, and an almost unbelievable backstory. Somehow he still managed to be more well-adjusted than Damian.
More thoughts under the read more
Danny didn't want to be here, but it wasn't as if he had a lot of other options. He didn't know how to contact any other Justice League heroes, and this one, at least, would take him seriously. Probably. Damian, at least, would take him seriously. So seriously that Danny doubted he would be walking away from this without a stab wound.
Luckily, Danny wasn't the kind of person to die because of a stab wound. Or anything, really. Which was kind of the reason he was here.
He sucked his lips in as he stared at the gates. He was far enough down the street from them that there probably weren't any cameras picking him up, but only probably, because the people he was dealing with were insane. And Danny knew insane. From a couple of different perspectives, even.
Again, this was part of the problem.
Bruce scanned the clone in front of him again. He wasn't identical to Damian, no, and the League of Assassins wasn't above modifying the clones they made, but Bruce couldn't immediately see any reason for that particularly worrying statement.
Behind him, Duke cleared his throat. "Uh, no. No, that's not normal."
"But for you guys," said Danny. "For you, it's normal."
By the time Danny finished 'explaining,' everyone was sitting, even Damian. Although it might be better to say that Damian was perched.
"I think that's pretty much everything relevant," said Danny, lacing his fingers together. "So... are we good? Do you believe me?"
Honestly, for Dick, the hardest part of all of this to believe was that a clone of Damian somehow wound up with Danny's mannerisms. The fidgeting, the stuttering, the slang, actually volunteering information while being unable to deliver it with any concision... Yeah. It was weird. Especially since Danny did more or less have Damian's face.
"Well," said Tim, draping himself sideways over the arms of the armchair. "There's someone out there who makes bad death puns in Damian's voice. That's a thing we know, now."
Danny had just left, had even invited them to put a tracker on him, in addition to the trackers they'd already slipped on him. Not that it was really necessary. They already knew where he lived.
This is so amazing 10/10 y’all should definitely read this.
It made me think of one of the Bats asking Danny why or how he acts the way he does when he is a clone of Damian. Danny has been around for less time than Damian and he acts more like a normal if nervous and anxious teenager. Danny’s answer?
“PUBLUC SCHOOL!”
I can imagine Danny going on a rant about it.
“Public school is the most humbling shit ever like I would not have survived if I acted like Damian. It was kill or be killed but I couldn’t actually kill anyone. I also got bullied! Did Damian ever get bullied? I got early 2000’s Disney Channel bullied too. I was shoved in lockers and trash cans. Expired school milk was thrown at me! Do you know how bad it is to have expired school milk explode on your head!? I’ve lost count how many times someone has acted like they wanted to be my friend or tried to ask me out as a joke. I needed to learn social skills fast to get that to stop. And one of my friends would have actually killed me if she caught me acting like Damian.”
The bat kids would be slightly horrified because this random clones life is a disaster. The bat kids who’ve experienced public school would agree with Danny’s reasoning and would understand completely why he acts like a mess.
