I finally wrote my prompt I sent to @stealingyourbones back in November! well part of it. This is just chapter 1, so this gets a summary @dpxdcshipweek
Edit: forgot to say that I got help with the usernames from the wonderful @tourettesdog and @half-dead-ham! (If I'm wrong it's bc I'm not at home rn to look at my notes)
Ao3 link: Here Master List: Here
Summary: Danny has always had more internet access than a child really should have had. He tended to spend that time on game forums and different websites dedicated to space. Everyone once in a while he'd venture onto one about heroes and villains. That's how he met Tim Drake-Wayne or BatShadow as was his username back then.
Chapter 1: Blorbo Supplier
Danny just wanted to see uncommon pictures of Superman. It really shouldn't have been this hard. He's an alien, there should be a lot of pictures of him. Frustrated with his lack of results he resorts to looking for the pictures through unpopular social media websites that should have new pictures. His first look didn't meet his goal, and before he could even think of trying again he was distracted by a post. It was a picture of a figure swinging between skyscrapers, backlit by neon light all against a smog filled sky. It was stunning and made all the more captivating by the identity of the subject in the photo. A picture of Batman, The Batman, taken in a way that you couldn't deny it was him. That was impressive on its own, but the quality is what made it shine. Danny had to see if the account had more pictures of Batman, or even other heroes. Looking at the blog, hoping it wasn't a deactivated user, he finds the posts of BatShadow.
The blog is a gold mine of pictures of Batman and Robin with some villains the duo we're fighting. All with stunning quality, with each subject undeniable as who they were but still giving a sense of privacy. Sadly, Danny couldn't find any other heroes pictured, but Danny could live with that. Batman was his third favorite hero, he blames Sam and all her knowledge on the edgy and obscure. She would be ecstatic about these photos, too bad he wasn't going to tell her. He was being petty. Sam should have known better than to say he couldn't keep a secret, so this is his secret now! Pettiness aside, Danny was going to message BatShadow to see if they had pictures of other heroes they hadn't posted.
Messages begins with BatShadow
(04-17-20xx)
ConstellationCruiser:
Hey, sorry to bother ya
I just saw your posts and was wondering if you have any pics of superman
BatShadow:
I don't know. I would have to look. I don't usually go to an area with him in it much, so no promises.
ConstellationCruiser:
Thanks!! And that's fine really, it's just that your pics are amazing
BatShadow:
Thanks! Sorry, I have nothing for Supes.
ConstellationCruiser:
Damn
It's fine
I wasn't really expecting much
I'm just surprised at the quality and quantity ya got there
BatShadow:
It's super hard to get them without being caught but so worth it!
Danny continued talking to BatShadow about pictures and superheroes. Eventually switching to personal interest. Danny learns that BatShadow skateboards and in turn he tells them all about the stars. By the end of their conversation it was well into the night, Jazz wasn't going to be pleased. It was worth it though.
—-----
Danny ended up messaging again the next day, and the day after that. The other user was interesting and he was just so broad. Especially during these long summer days where Sam was off at some gala trip and Tucker was on vacation with his family. His parents being busy in the Lab at all hours and Jazz working a summer job didn't help. Even with Jazz trying to get him out of the house but it never really was worth it. Not with Dash and his gaggle out. Not without his friends there.
It's not like anyone besides Jazz would care about what he was doing online. Their parents were too caught up in drawing out plans and blueprints for a ghost portal or something. He doesn't care, it's more of the same for him. Don't get him wrong, he loved his parents and they loved him. They just pay more attention to their inventions, and this one happens to be one Danny can't help out with.
He's getting distracted. Danny was supposed to be cleaning the lab, not thinking of long gone days. It was taking way longer than he thought it would. His parents really aren't as careful with their samples as they really should be. After cleaning spilled ectoplasm from the vent grates he will finally be done, then he can get on the computer and add BatShadow on Steam. They were going to play Portal 2 together later.
—----
Tim didn't think he would still be talking to ConstellationCruiser. It was unexpected, but not unwelcome. He wouldn't admit it to anyone, (if there was anyone to talk to in the first place), but he was lonely. So, sue him if he got attached to the other kid with too much free time on their hands. They may not have told each other their ages but it wasn't hard to figure out, they talked too similar.
It was nice to really connect with someone his age. ConstellationCruiser was smart like him, just in different areas. He had learned more about the stars and space travel in the last handful of months than he ever had in his 12 years of life. He knows he wasn't any better, going on about hacking and maybe the new murder mystery that came out. It was fun, learning about the other's interests and different things than what's normal for them.
ConstellationCruiser's parents seem to have some type of lab in the basement of their house, which was cool in concept but concerning in practice. There have been times where they had to stop in the middle of a game they were playing together to check on an explosion they heard. It happened more than Tim was comfortable with but there's nothing he can really do about it. It's not like he was anyone better about certain aspects of his life either. He avoided the topic of food as much as possible, though it seems ConstellationCruiser is doing the same thing with the topic.
Tim just hopes the other won't worry over him not responding the next couple of days. He probably should warn them but this is time sensitive. Batman needs a Robin. The man is running himself into the ground. His new found grief choking him and by extension Gotham. He has to convince Nightwing to come back, no matter what it takes.
John Constantine was a man of few pleasures. He liked booze, nights with a full bed and belly, and keeping his head attached to his shoulders.
So when he felt a surge of chaos magic flood the board room of the Justice League Watchtower one long morning into their bi-monthly meeting that for some reason he decided to show up to, he felt any chance of him recovering this day with booze or food leave the solar system entirely.
Before the other Leaguers even felt the pressure change that came with teleporting magics John was on his feet, readying a defence spell just in case who (or what) decided to attack first, talk second. ‘Course the other gits just saw him knock back his chair with a flask of whatever he’d poured himself last night and thought for a second he was trollied.
He always loved it when the other blokes did that. Fuckin’ hell, where was Zatanna when you needed her?
He would’ve cracked a smile when the rest of them finally got the memo that sumthin’ foul was afoot, but John was too focused on the fact that he recognized the magic to try and play this off as anything but deadly serious. Why was he the only one here that was able to deal with this particular brand of chaos? Why couldn’t he have bloody stayed home like all the other bloody times he’d missed a meeting?
The magic was perceptible now, a swirling red cloud hovering over the conference table like it might start raining blood, a static in the air, the smell of lamp oil and chaos magic making John's nose twitch. There wasn’t any use in trying to fool himself as a figure formed in the cloud, and any trace of those lovely effects of his bevvy of choice went straight out the airlock.
A pale-faced child emerged from the mist, curly black hair with two styled points partially obscuring a set of beady black eyes that looked down their nose at the group surrounding the table.
“Klarion,” the teen turned to John, expression unusually flat. The witch boy Hadn’t yet said anything, and his blasted familiar kept its place on his shoulder, hissing but not leaping into action.
Now that John got a good look at the chaos magic user he almost wanted to look surprised. Klarion had changed his style; no longer was he dressed in puritan settler chic, now he wore dark jeans with black converse, a white t-shirt with the runic symbol for creation in red, and a black sleeveless overcoat. It looked grunge, and John could almost appreciate it.
Almost.
“Now what does the infamous Witch Boy need that he’s ‘ported in 'on our lovely gathering?” John asked, seeing as the teen (an’ he looked like a proper teen now, didn’ he?) wasn’t feeling especially chatty. His defensive spell was almost complete, if John could just keep the lil shit distracted for a little longer-
“Stupid heroes, I have come because I have a task for you,” the Witch boy announced, looking like he sucked a lemon while saying it.
John could see a few others in the room looking at each other in confusion, but he kept his eyes firm on the brat in front of him. “Oh? An’ what task would require our services, oh mighty mage?”
The Witch Boy’s eyes narrowed at him, clearly not liking the sarcasm in his tone. Surprisingly, to him at least, Klarion turned to Superman, not falling to the taunt like he would’ve before.
“Someone I respect has been captured by the American government, and while I would have no problem raising the place to the ground myself-” more than a few of the heroes present tense at that, “-this person would only find more trouble in me doing so.”
Now that brought up a nice heap of questions for the surrounding men in tights. Why, or better yet how does Klarion know someone that needs help from the Justice League. Someone who he apparently respects enough to go for help from a group of stuffy adults with sticks shoved so far up their-
"And why should we help you?" The big ol' Bat asks what's on the tip of everyone's tongues.
Klarion turns to the Caped Crusader with the most serious expression John had ever seen on the Witch Boy. "Because the High King of the Dead needs help escaping the living, and you guys love to make sure this stupid plane of existence doesn't fall to war."
~~~~~
"You seriously aren't helping, Witch Boy!" Danny calls out to the cackling teenager as he evades yet another tentacle from the thing coming out of the side of a large floating island. More of a mountain, really, but Danny's a little too tied up to care.
"Hit 'em again!" The pale-faced teen on the sidelines jeered as the ghost boy shot off another volley of ectoblasts towards what he's starting to dub as a hermit-ectopus. Grimacing, Danny did just that, raining a hail of green towards the writing mass of tentacles, finally pushing the thing back in its cave enough so that he could seal the entrance with ice.
With that out of the way, Danny could finally take a breather. He put his hands on his knees for stability as he panted, annoyed. Ancients curse that stupid Witch Boy, he may not need to breathe in this form, but that was one hell of a workout.
The cackling to his left was finally starting to die down, but not before he heard the idiot making his way closer. One final exhale and he straightened back up, giving the other teen a side glare Mr. Lancer would be proud of.
"Give me one good reason I shouldn't soup you right now, cat boy," he demanded with a scowl as he crossed his arms.
"'Cause you still need me to help you get that stupid antidote for your stupid friends!" Klarion quipped back immediately, smug smirk stuck on his face. "Besides, it's not like your weak little can'll be able to do anything to me."
"You're the one who poisoned them in the first place," he sneered back, letting his hatred of the other boy leak out through his aura while trying not to worry himself over Sam and Tucker back home.
Klarion got closer, smirk growing menacingly wider, "Well who was the ghost that kept ignoring me? This is your fault and you know it."
Danny said nothing, just punched Klarion in the face before flying off into the mountain grumbling, leaving the Witch Boy to deal with the blood falling onto his tie by himself.
~~~~~
"Constantine, what do you know about this 'High King of the Dead'?" Batman asked after pulling the mage into the hall. They had left Superman to deal with the details and negotiations. He's always been better at that.
"Not much, Batsy," John sighed, really wishing he could pull out a smoke. If it weren't for those blasted 'no smoking' rules the furry in front of him enforced, he'd be chugging like a train right 'bout now.
Batman simply glared at the man for a moment before John got the unsaid ‘well, get on with it’. “Alright, alright, I do know some things, but I don’t know how useful they’ll be!”
“Explain.”
John sighed, “Not much information about the ruling body of the dead gets through to the realm of the living, that whole ‘dead men tell no tales’ bit. What I know of a King of the dead was that he was a right bastard that wanted his cake and e’ryone else's. Got locked in some coffin or what have you by his ruling court, and hasn’t been heard from for about two millennia ‘til the new one came about.”
“And this new king, is he anything like the last one?”
Before John could confirm or contradict the question a sharp laugh came from the other side of the conference doors. The two detectives looked at each other before heading back in, Klarion watching from his seat on the table as they rejoined the group.
“The new High King of the Dead is nothing like the last one,” the Witch Boy stated with a sneer.
Batman turned to Superman, asking with a silent tilt of the head. He got a head shake and shrug in return. “We were talking about why he would need us specifically when he just started laughing.”
“Oh?” The occult detective spoke up, “And what makes you say that? If you respect him he must be pretty similar, eh? Why do you or him need our help?”
Klarion looked down, a pinched expression taking over his face. “He’s nothing like me. He’s good.”
~~~~~
Wind tore through Danny’s hair as he flew up to the massive Vortex rampaging through mid- America. He could barely see five feet in front of him before a tree or the rare car nearly takes him out of the sky. Klarion’s magic could be seen on his ten o’clock, trying to stop the raging wind before it throws something at him too. Danny dove to grab onto the magic caster, turning him intangible before the broad side of a barn could crash into him.
“What did you even do to make him this angry‽” Danny yells over the wind, pulling the concentrating Witch boy to another spot so they could be harder to hit. It doesn’t help, as half a tree still nearly decapitates them.
“Absolutely nothing!” Klarion ground back through his teeth, “He just started chasing me through the Realms! I thought I could lose him in this plane but he just followed me!”
Another tree sailed their way, and Danny had to drag the other teen out of its path. He shot a volley of ectoblasts at some clumps of dirt launching themselves at them, breaking them up before they were close enough to hit them.
“How long ‘til your spell finishes‽” Danny asks, throwing more ectoblasts into the swirling vortex of carnage. The tornado consumes them greedily, returning fire with debris from an old storage barn it had picked up.
“Not fast enough!” Klarion shouts back, now flying under his own power as the harder parts of the spell conclude.
They weave through projectiles after that, Danny obliterating the larger objects thrown their way so Klarion could focus more on his spell. They were at least lucky enough that they had lured Vortex out to farm country, where they could easily provoke him out of the way of any towns. That left just the crops and their tools for the weather ghost to throw.
At least, until Danny spotted some larger buildings.
“Better speed that spell up, Witch Boy!” Danny urged, realizing they were heading towards the city, and fast.
“I’m going as fast as I can!” Was all the other teen could retort as he ground his teeth further, doubling his efforts anyway. Red light swirled fiercely around the pale boy, encircling him and his familiar before suddenly launching outwards to wrap around the tornado. The wind picked it up easily, quickly turning the angry winds and clouds above a sickening blood red colour. A triumphant grin spreads across Klarion’s face at the turn of events, a giggle bubbling up before being stolen by the wind. Danny would almost be scared at the situation if it were him that smile was going against, but right now he was just a little relieved.
Klarion spoke one final word to his spell, and with it the red smoke pulsed bright, lighting up the whole cloud before the funnel just disappeared, leaving some dark yet still clouds above them. Danny could only stare at the sight in awe.
“What did you do dude?” He asked, noticing the odd change in the air around them. It was strangely still, almost-
“I froze the air in place, of course,” Klarion huffed hotly, and Danny turned his awed gaze to the teen next to him.
“You froze the air?”
“Well,” Klarion’s cheeks started to gain an almost normal complexion as his blush rose at the attention. “It’s not frozen frozen, but I made it so it wouldn’t move. So yes, I froze the air.”
When Danny didn’t move or change his expression Klarion’s blush only grew. Teekl gave a lax “meow” from the Witch Boy’s shoulders, breaking Danny’s trance and allowing Klarion the time to unruffle his proverbial feathers. The witch Boy coughed lightly in his hand as he turned away.
“Teekl’s right, shouldn’t you be doing your job now? I’ve done all the hard work, pick up the slack Ghost Boy.” Only his familiar saw the light green blush spread over the ghosts cheeks before he gave a nod and flew off towards where he could sense the weather spirit.
“Meow,” Teekl commented playfully.
Klarion blushed harder, “Oh shut up you hairball.”
~~~~~
The Javelin was speeding into earth's atmosphere towards the Americas, half of the Leaguers who had been in the meeting previously plus one chaos mage nestled inside. They had decided an impromptu rescue mission was in order, despite some worries of the Witch Boy leading item into a trap.
Batman remedied this by keeping Superman on standby, Shazam on call, and taking Manhunter with them to catch any lies the teen might be telling them.
The plane was dead quiet, and it was honestly making Hal antsy, especially sitting so close to someone they consider an enemy. His solution? Small talk.
“So,” the green lantern drawled as he swiveled his chair to face the teen. “From the way you talk about this King it sounds like you have something a little more than ‘respect’ for the guy. Care to elaborate?”
Klarion gave the Green Lantern a long side eye, making Hal even antsier in his seat. Seriously, how can a kid this dorky be this creepy?
A terse meow from the cat in the boy’s lap and the stare broke, and suddenly Hal felt he could breathe again. Klarion sighed heavily, like the topic exhausted him before he even started, but before Hal could rescind his words the Witch Boy was talking.
“The King of the Dead and I have known each other for a few years now,” he started. “And while at the beginning we were basically at each other's throats, after his coronation we figured out we didn’t really want to be enemies anymore. Looking back we had probably already decided that without saying anything, but it just got awkward to think about after.”
“This king was crowned recently?” Batman asked from his place at the wheel.
“Within the last three years, if I remember right,” Klarion replied flippantly. The Bat nodded, taking his focus back to flying to their charted destination. Not wanting more stifling silence, Hal picked the conversation back up.
“If you’ve known the King of the Dead for over three years you guys must be pretty close, huh?”
The Witch Boy huffed, “Yes, you could say that.”
“So could you maybe tell us more about him? What’s he like? Does he have a hobby? Don’t leave us hanging man!” Hal was encroaching on a jeer with his tone, though he died down quickly at the flat stare he received from both mage and familiar. If Diana hadn’t spoken up he might've been afraid of turning into a toad.
“I am also curious, Klarion. You haven’t told us much about someone you seem to care greatly over, anything you could tell us about them would help us settle whatever dealings they have with the American government.” At the moment the princess mentioned the government Teekl was on alert, Klarion’s expression soured with the change.
“The ‘dealings’ they have with your stupid higher powers is that they want to hunt his kind for sport and resources,” He spat, to the astonishment of the league members. Bruce and Diana shared a glance from the front seats, dread seeping into Bruce’s gut at the news.
“Could you explain that further? We need to know if we want to fix this,” Diana asked more seriously, motioning for Hal to take her seat as copilot so she could focus more on the conversation at hand.
(Hal was thankful for the distraction.)
“Your government,” the teen hissed, eyes glinting dangerously red before settling back to their eerie black. “Has been trying to catch Phantom since before I met him. They’ve deemed anything that holds ectoplasm in their body as unfeeling and mindless, and deemed them worthy of extermination and experimentation.”
“That can’t be legal, non-humans are protected under the Metahuman rights acts.” Diana comments with a frown.
Klarion rolls his eyes at the princess, “Everyone says that when they hear it, but I assure you, Phantom has talked my ear off about the Anti-ecto acts more times than I care to count. They’re real, and heavily enforced.”
Diana gave a sidelong glance to the front of the ship, noticing Batman already searching for these ‘acts’ while ever so slightly speeding up their flight. It was worrying that even Bruce didn’t know about this, considering his incessant need to keep up with things that could inevitably cause harm to those he wants to protect. She left that for him to deal with, refocusing the conversation back to lighter topics. “You mentioned ‘Phantom’, is this the king’s name?”
The Witch Boy gave a small hum, hand moving to idly stroke Teekl’s fur as they settled with the change of topic. “He told me it was originally the name he chose for himself when he started protecting his little town, and by the time he was crowned the ghosts all knew him by that name and it stuck.”
“Oh? The king is a hero?” Aside from Deadman, she had never heard of any spirits calling themselves heroes. Though it wasn’t entirely a surprise that another spirit wished to help others from beyond the grave.
Another hum from the teen in front of her, face reading more thoughtful as he presumably went back to the first time they had met. “Yes, he was doing something incredibly stupid, though he called it ‘heroic’ at the time. I still don’t see why he needed to destroy that artifact after he rewrote reality, but then again he was still a boy when he did that.”
…
“Pardon?” Diana said, stunned. Klarion either didn't notice the stunned silence he had created or didn’t care as he continued.
“After that I went to play with him every so often, sometimes playing a few pranks so he would stop ignoring me. He absolutely hated me when we first started, but I like to think I grew on him,” the Witch Boy gave a smirk at the memory, still not noticing the silence in the shuttle.
She could feel Hal’s eyes on them, incredulity practically oozing from his seat in front of her. Instead of meeting the Green Lanterns with one that was sure to match, she looked to J’onn, who had quietly been assessing their guest the whole flight. He had his head cocked as he faced the teen, but nodded when Diana turned. The boy told no lies.
They might need to reassess this King of the Dead’s threat level.
~~~~~
A cacophony of cheers resound in the courtyard of Pariah’s Keep, now renamed officially to Phantom’s Fortress with the crowning of the new king. Danny peered out from beyond the curtain to the courtyard, his ascendance ceremony freshly ended and a crown of arora and ice twirling lazily over his snow white hair.
“I still can’t believe this many ghosts want me on the throne… I thought everyone hated me with the way I chase them out of Amity all the time…” He marveled to himself, still not quite believing what just happened. He was a King now. He had people to rule. And they actually liked him.
Though with the reputation of the last king, he supposed that a potato could’ve taken the throne and they would’ve been happy.
“Is it that hard to believe that maybe you aren’t that hard to like?” A voice jokes from behind the new king, and turning from his peeping spot he couldn’t help the grin that spread. Klarion was standing not too far behind him, one arm behind his back in the clothes they picked out together. He looked good, like he belonged in this century now, and even with his posture radiating nervous energy, Danny could tell he was a lot more comfortable in a t-shirt and jeans than that stuffy puritan suit.
“I was thinking those odds were in-phantasmal, but I guess the chance was higher than I thought. I’m glad you could make it.” His smile grew slightly at the pink tint to the Witch Boy’s ears, but he went against the thought of pointing out how cute it was.
Klarion scoffed, as though the notion of not coming was even something that crossed his mind. “As a lord of chaos, it would be remiss of me to not show up for the coronation of a potential fellow lord. Besides, you asked me to come specifically, it would be impolite to refuse.”
Danny gave a snort at the response, he knew very well that if the other teen didn’t want to be here he would’ve refused the invitation outright. It was nice not having to fight the other anymore, after the battle with Vortex they started fighting less and hanging out more, Danny could even take him to the mall now without a struggle. Sure, Klarion was still trapped in the past with his underground village, but slowly he was starting to relax, have some fun that didn’t destroy everything around him.
It was nice to hang out with someone he didn’t have to hold back with.
“So, is there a reason you’re just standing there awkwardly?” Danny asked, letting a chuckle escape at the flat stare he received. A year ago he would’ve gotten a magic blast to the face for that.
Instead Klarion sighed, eyes glancing around the ornate hall before sighing again. “I figured- I mean- I- ugh…” the Witch Boy kept stuttering before petering off into a grumble. Danny accidentally let another chuckle escape at how cute the other teen was being, causing said teen to glare a hole into the carpet, before letting out a growl. He stomped up to Danny, so close he had to back up a step or they would be in each other's personal space, and suddenly his vision was full of orange and purple with a spatter of red.
Another step back put the colours in focus. A bouquet of flowers was being thrust towards him by a furiously blushing Klarion, whose eyes were currently on a rather interesting vase.
“What are these for?” Danny asked as he relieved the bouquet from the others' vice grip.
“For you, to congratulate you on becoming king. The orange ones are lilies, the purple flowers are irises and gerberas, and the little red ones are bloody williams. The lady at the store said they say “I’m happy for your success” in flower language.” Klarion looked like he was ready to say more, he probably had a whole speech about these, but Danny just couldn’t get over the fact that one of the biggest (previous) pains in his ass just started blushing and gave him flowers.
“Thank you,” he said, cutting off whatever Klarion was rambling about with a genuine smile. Klarion stared for a second, before blinking and clearing his throat.
“Of course,” he replied, blush spreading all the way down his neck.
~~~~~
The Javelin touched down a ways off of a squat white building. It was rather nondescript, save for the perimeter fencing circling the compound lined with guards.
“This is the place?” Batman asked tersely as they disembarked the plane. None of the armed men had seen them yet, it would give them the advantage in the infiltration.
“I wouldn’t lie to you about something so important,” the Witch Boy replied, narrowing his eyes at the compound before them. He could feel Danny in there, the strange mix of life and death energies radiating off the half-ghost was an ever present comfort to the Witch boy by now, and he was especially glad for it now.
He wouldn’t have been able to find him so quickly without it.
“I sense something heavy in the compound,” Manhunter noted with a frown.
Batman, ever the detective, wanted to know more, “Elaborate.”
The martian’s face twisted as he focused, reaching out with his mind to better read the heavy -no, oppressive- cloud that covered the compound, before gasping, recognition and anguish passing over as he physically recoiled. Green Lantern was there to steady him by the shoulders before he could so much as stumble.
“What did you feel?” The Dark Knight compelled once it was clear there were no lasting effects of his reaching out.
“Pain,” he replied shakily. “So much pain and suffering, hanging over the building like a fog. It is unnaturally powerful, if I hadn’t known beforehand, I would assume an entire city was under attack and not a single building.”
The Dark Knight said nothing, simply taking what was said to heart. He moved forward with purpose, but before he could get too far a hand held him back. “Wait.”
Batman looked down at the chaos mage, a single hand splayed out over his chest. “You need to know some things before I take you in there.”
The miniscule tilt of the taller man’s cowl was all Klarion needed to continue. “The facility is phase proof, the martian won’t be able to density shift through the walls, and the nature of their weapons are similar to Green Lantern’s constructs. You won’t get hurt badly if they hit you, but I’ve been told they burn.” All vital things to know. Batman's strategy would have to account for this, but he could still sense something from the teen, and so kept quiet.
“And when we find Phantom? Get every agent you can out of there. He doesn’t like senseless killing, but I will not leave that building standing.”
Batman gave a single nod, and with that Klarion enveloped the five in the red mist of his magic.
∆•∆•∆•∆
The plan was rather simple, Wonder Woman and Green Lantern were to be dropped off at the entrance to the building as a distraction and to round up the agents while Klarion, Manhunter and Batman were to use Klarion’s magic to infiltrate and locate the King. Klarion’s mist acted as a memetic, letting the gaze of the agents fall past them on their way through the building as they ran deeper to where he could feel Danny. They had to be careful to not touch anyone though, as the moment they did they would be able to see them.
“Why can’t you teleport us in?” Baman asked as they rounded another stark white corner into another stark white hall.
“Death energies, do strange things to magic,” Klarion panted his reply. He was not used to actually running, and he couldn’t figure out why some humans actually liked doing the activity. “With so much, charged death and ectoplasm in the air, better to not cause an explosion. So soon.”
Another swerve and he could feel Danny more, could almost taste that distinct flavour of citrus and menthol, the strange combination of ectoplasm and life that surrounded his ghost. The smell of citrus was strong though, and Klarion was desperately hoping he wasn’t too late with this rescue. The first real good thing he tries to do and he ends up a moment too late.
“The source of the pain is drawing nearer,” Manhunter informs them as they pass a windowed room. Batman breaks off to take a look inside, calling to the other two to keep going. Klarion never stopped.
One more corner and the acidic sour smell of citrus was assaulting their noses, and they started passing doors more resembling operating room entrances than offices. Lights were still on over a few as they passed, and Klarion made sure to snake a coil of mist into those that did, leaving screams and indistinct, cut off pleas in their wake. Those ones especially could rot in hell for all he cared, the smell of everdeath roiled off those rooms, alluding to whatever horrors might have been performed in them. He knew only a fraction of the ectoplasm spilt in there was from the one he cherished, but that made them no less guilty.
The final turn led them to a hall lined with a different type of door, these ones steel grey tinted green. Klarion loathed to see the colours he associated with his spirit used in a mockery against him, keeping Danny away from him. He stalked down, using his magic to blow every door off its hinges as he passed until he hit the one his beloved was in. Turning to face it, he held up his hand, willing his magic to grasp it and tear it from the wall, throwing it down the hall and uncaring what was in the way.
Emotion charged ectoplasm rolled out of the small cell, settling around their feet like fog and weakly intermingling with klarion’s magic.
The sight made the mage want to puke. And weep. And decimate this measly world that would dare touch his soul like this.
Were it not for the Martian's presence he just might have.
Danny was there, shackled to the wall with chains at his wrists and ankles, head weighed heavy by the collar around his neck and the fucking muzzle on his face. The ghost made no move to the light that now filtered into the space, he hung limply from his chains, lifelessly. Only the faint glow around Danny’s frame gave away that he was not yet truly ended.
But the green.
A shaky breath from behind the mage reminded him where he was, and he urgently entered the room. He went to work on the manacles, seemingly seamless, but with one whispered word they were releasing Danny into his arms.
“Is he?..” The martian started, too afraid to finish the sentence lest it become a reality.
“No,” Klarion breathed out shakily. “No he’s still… He’ll recover.” He has to.
“He’s so young,” Manhunter observed with a pained face as Klarion lowered to the floor of the cell, turning the ghost so he could hold him by the shoulders while he worked on getting his ankles freed.
“He was even younger when he started,” with Danny's ankles freed, all that was left was the inhibitor collar and that damned muzzle. He did away with the muzzle first, desperate to see his cherished spirit's face. No magic was needed for it, thankfully, just a simple lock keeping it around the halfa’s face. Klarion gingerly removed the offending device, tossing it at a wall and making a note of obliterating it before he left. There were already chafe marks around Danny’s cheeks and on his nose, green and nearly raw from it pressing his jaw shut.
How long has he been here for them to look so raw?
Klarion had only been away for two months at the most, off on some insignificant errand after finding the piece of an artifact drifting in the Realms. Insignificant because apparently while he was away, his cherished one had gotten captured trying to save one of his people from this moronic group. When he had finally returned, he had to be informed about his capture. The rage he felt then… He hopes Danny wouldn’t be too mad at him for the damage he caused to the Fortress.
A breathy groan followed by a sharp intake of breath and subsequent coughing brought Klarion out of his what if spiral. Danny was waking up, bleary eyed and confused at first -no doubt concerning his orientation- but a few seconds after the couches settled green eyes focused on black.
“Hey, Rion,” the ghost king gave a small watery smile. “Glad you could finally make it. How was your adventure?”
“Stupid ghost-” Klarion has to reel back the power he was putting behind his voice with a breath that came out more like a sob. “Do you know how worried I was when you weren’t in Amity? In the Fortress? I was away for two damn months and you almost got yourself ended Danny!”
Danny gave a chuckle that teetered into more of a cough as he weakly wiggled in Klarions lap. “They tried to grab Lunch Lady and Boxed Lunch, what was I supposed to do? It's my job as king to keep them safe-”
“NOT AT YOUR OWN EXPENSE YOU MORON!”
The outburst silenced the ghost with a small snap of his jaw, followed by a cut off groan at the soreness from its disuse. A light cough broke the tense silence, and Danny sat up slightly to see what made it, eyes immediately sharp with alertness for any possible danger. His eyes landed on Martian Manhunter and that sharpness melted away to confusion.
“Is that- why- Am I dreaming?” He stuttered, looking between the Justice leaguer and his lover. “Did I pass out so hard I’m actually dreaming my boyfriend came to save me with Martian Manhunter right now? Someone pinch me.” Klarion obliged the request and Danny yelped in pain. “Yep, okay, not a dream. Cool,” He whimpered, eyes now glued to the martian.
Klarion went back to the task of freeing the ghost from his restraints, but hesitated before taking the collar off. “Do you have enough power to stay in this form if I take this off you?” He asked cautiously.
Danny looked down, trying to see the band of metal around his neck, but quickly gave up with a sigh. “Probably not, it's taking most of my energy just to stay awake and talk right now.” He looked ashamed to say it, but Klarion was relieved to get a straight answer about his condition for once.
“I’ll leave it on until we get you somewhere safe then,” Klarion whispered before readjusting his hands and standing up with the ghost boy bridal-style. The energy must have been draining from his cherished, as he only jolted at the movement. He could see Danny's eyes getting heavy, his head pitching forward before righting itself a few more times.
“You’ll be there when I wake up… Right?” The Ghost boy asked, voice slurring with the effort to remain conscious. Klarion nodded once as he kissed the ghost's forehead -warmer than it should be- and walked back out of the cell. “Of course, my spirit. Rest.”
One more wobbly nod and the ghost’s eyes closed. Klarion straightened, reigniting his magic with the help of Teekl and pushing it to blow the rest of the cell doors off their hinges. A few other ghosts floated out, and Manhunter helped a few more into the hall. They left slowly, with magical fire crackling in the prison that once held his spirit, catching the ectoplasm alight as the Witch Boy’s face contorted.
∆•∆•∆•∆
The trip back to the Javelin was shorter than the trip into the facility, without the need to be covert they were able to retrace their steps through the building at a much faster pace. Batman regrouped with them just before the exit, and out in the grounds Green Lantern and Wonder Woman had done a great job of distracting and subduing most of the agents. One of them must have gone in and rounded up the scientists too, because they were tied up in a neat little pile a ways off.
Good, he could burn this place to the ground without worry then.
Klarion didn’t stop his stride out the compound as his magic spread to lick the walls, fire sparking to life where it touched. He didn’t stop to watch as the fire spread up the walls unnaturally fast, as it spread into the building through the holes it was melting in the reinforced glass. He didn’t pause when an explosion hit the air, the fire most likely finding the medical wing or the weapons vault.
Klarion only stopped once Danny was securely in the small medbay of the Javelin, held securely in place for takeoff.
~~~~~
Danny came to slowly, letting the ectoplasm of the Ghost Zone fill his lungs as he breathed deeply… Wait. Ectoplasm? Ghost Zone?? Lungs???
Screw waking up slowly, Danny bolted up from wherever he was sleeping… and immediately regretted it. A massive headache assaulted his senses, along with about a dozen other aches and pains from his capture, most notably his jaw and starving stomach. Still, assessing the situation came before anything else, so he tried to make himself vertical despite his body's protests. Until a hand on his chest stopped him.
Klarion met his bleary eyed confusion with a stern stare. He pushed down once more and this time Danny didn’t protest the movement. “It wasn’t a dream?” Danny croaked out, only a little bit surprised at how dry his voice sounded.
“No it wasn’t a dream,” Klarion replied softly as he pressed a straw to Danny's lips. He was grateful for the first full drink of water he’d gotten in… he doesn't remember how long.
“And Martian Manhinter? Was he real too then?” Danny asked when his throat no longer felt like sandpaper. Klarion hummed an affirmative as he put the cup back on the nightstand, idly stroking Teelke with his offhand. He takes a second to process that before he nearly bolts up again, startling the familiar and mage alike.
“Is the Justice League here‽‽”
A pregnant pause followed the exclamation before the Witch Boy gave a snort, snickering to avoid outright laughing at the bedridden ghost. “No, I left the little humans to fly back to their clubhouse while I took you back to the Realms with a portal.”
Deflating with the explanation, Danny’s eyes travelled the embroidered constellations on the canopy of his bed, finally relaxing enough to appreciate where he was. Home. He took another deep breath, feeling his ectoplasm replenish itself more than it had in the last month in the GIW facility. The ectoplasm combined with the pine and fire smell of the mage sitting beside him only enforced the fact that he wasn’t there anymore. Tears threatened to fall with that thought.
His boyfriend came for him. He didn’t doubt he would, but the days passed along and he was starting to lose hope. But not only did Rion come for him, he brought the Justice League, a group he knows Rion has beef with. Traitorously, a tear managed to escape and roll down into his hair.
“You know, I’ll have to go talk to the League now that you’ve told them about me,” Danny commented, desperate to get out of those thoughts and ignoring the way his voice wobbled.
“I’m sure you will,” Rion replied, no doubt with a roll of his eyes. “But you need to heal first. You’re in no shape to go talk to a bunch of stupid humans right now.”
Danny gave a snort, “Those ‘stupid humans’ helped you get me back, right? Maybe drop the stupid when we see them next.”
Rion only grunted in reply, and so they lapsed into silence again. Danny felt sleep pulling at his mind again, now that he knew he was truly safe with his beloved mage beside him. He didn't fight it for long, but he needed to say one more thing before he truly allowed himself to start healing.
“Rion,” he mumbled out, getting the attention of the mage with a hum. “Thanks for coming to get me, love you.”
A rare kind of smile passed the pale teen’s lips then, soft and kind. “I love you too, Danny.”
Damian gave his soulmate an annoyed look. “I do not like a lot of people, you are an exception to this. But if you do not leave me alone for five minutes, I will change my mind,” he said. Danny just stared up at him with the prettiest smile that Damian had ever seen. The vigilante just rolled his eyes. “Yes, yes, you are cute, Daniel. Just stop smiling at me like that.”
“How am I smiling at you?” Danny asked, moving to wrap his arms around Damian’s waist, causing the other boy to just let out a groan of annoyance. After years of only being able to talk to one another through the drawings on their palms, the two had finally met.
Damian had already known that Daniel was like a desperate, attention loving puppy but he hadn’t realized just how attention starved he was until they finally met. Their meeting last week had actually been quite adorable if Damian was going to be honest.
The two had planned on their first meeting when Danny moved to Gotham City for college. The eighteen year old had managed to get a pretty decent scholarship for the school’s sociology program. They had been planning the meeting for months now and then it had finally happened.
For as long as Damian could remember he had gotten small doodles and notes written onto the palm of his hand by a boy who lived on the other side of the world. Everyone had soulmates somewhere in the world and each soulmate had a unique identifier to find theirs. The first few years, Damian had done everything he could to ignore the notes. He was an assassin, he didn’t have time for a soulmate. Besides, as his mother had made sure to remind him, soul mates were a waste of time and not conducive to their goals.
Then, Damian had moved in with his father at ten years old. Father had encouraged him to start writing back to his soulmate, to introduce himself to the boy who drew stars and planets into the palm of Damian’s hand.
“You are a wonderful writer,” Damian had initially written in small cursive.
Almost immediately Damian had gotten his response in a sloppy scrawl. “You finally wrote back!”
From there, Damian was hooked. He and Danny wrote to one another every day until one day Danny had written a phone number on his hand for Damian. Writing turned to texting which then turned to phone calls which then turned to face time calls. The two found themselves speaking every single day and Damian found himself falling deeper and deeper in love with the boy who lived in sleepy Amity Park. In that time, Damian had learned everything about Daniel, and Daniel had learned everything about Damian.
Damian had been there for his soulmate when Danny had died and come back, he had been there for him when he had learned he was going to become the King of the Infinite Realms after he had defeated one of his rogues. There was not a single thing that Damian did not know about Danny. Just as there was not a single thing that Danny did not know about Damian. He knew of Damian’s past with the League, he knew the Batman secret, Danny knew it all.
And it was nice. Damian liked that there was someone that he could talk to about everything that he had gone through without fear of being treated differently because of it. Danny accepted him, all of him, and he loved Damian for who he was regardless of the things that he had done. He had quickly become Damian’s closest confidant.
“You know what you are doing, Beloved,” Damian said with a chuckle. “I am almost finished with typing up this report for my patrols for last night and then we can go.”
“I’m so excited,” Danny exclaimed, hugging Damian tight. Damian had managed to get his father’s height and at eighteen years old he stood at a solid six foot two. Whereas Danny stayed at a short five foot six. Damian thought it was adorable how much his boyfriend looked like what Jon had told him was a twink.
“You are just meeting my family, Danny,” Damian said with a chuckle before he bent down and pressed a soft kiss to Danny’s smiling mouth. Danny giggled and kissed him again, before he lifted Damian in the air and spun him around. Damian just gave him a fond laugh and swatted his soulmate’s shoulder. “Put me down.”
Damian did have to admit, Danny’s ghost abilities did make things very interesting. “Can we fly there?” Danny asked. “I’ve been wanting to fly through Gotham since I got here and I haven’t gotten the chance! I’ve been too scared of your dad getting mad at me for doing it. I know the no metas rule isn’t real but he still doesn’t like them very much and sure, I’m not actually a meta, I mean being dead is a medical condition but still, I have powers and I know what that makes it look like.”
“Beloved, you’re rambling. Yes, we can fly. I have been interested in seeing what it feels like flying with you compared to flying with Jon,” Damian said as Danny set him back down. “Five minutes,” he said, pressing his finger to Danny’s lips before he turned back to his laptop. The two were currently in Damian’s apartment. Technically, Danny had a dorm room but they quickly realized after meeting in person that Danny would be spending the majority of his free time in Damian’s apartment.
They already knew that they were romantically attracted to one another through their years of talking. And to an extent, Damian knew that he was physically attracted to Danny just through seeing his photographs and from facetime. But seeing Danny in person, seeing how small and slim the boy was? It was completely different than he had initially thought.
Danny was just this small, lithe eighteen year old and Damian knew that Danny could also throw him the length of a football field without even breaking a sweat. It was attractive.
It was beyond attractive, in all honesty.
It was also nice to know that his soulmate would be able to handle himself in case anything happened, especially with how dangerous it could get in Gotham. Danny sat beside his soulmate wiggling slightly in excitement as he waited for Damian to complete his work before the vigilante finally shut his laptop and turned to his partner.
“Ready?” Danny asked hopefully.
Damian stood and took Danny’s hand in his. “Ready,” he said before his partner let out an excited squeal and changed forms. His soft, inky black hair changed to gravity defying white, blue eyes turned to Lazarus Green, and his usually pale white skin took on an unearthly blue hue. He looked beautiful.
“You’re gonna love flying with me, Dami, it’s so much fun,” Danny told him before he pulled Damian in for another kiss. Damian wrapped his arms around Danny’s waist and deepened the kiss hungrily, biting at Danny’s bottom lip softly before the other allowed him access. He slipped his tongue into Danny’s mouth and ran it along the other’s sharp teeth slowly, taking his time to explore every crevice of his lover’s mouth. Danny melted into him, pressing himself as close to Damian as he could. Eventually, Damian pulled away and smiled at the dazed look on his soulmate’s face.
“Shall we go?” He suggested. Danny just nodded his head, eyes glued to Damian’s mouth before he turned the two of them intangible and invisible. Damian shuddered at the cold feeling that slowly slunk down his body. It felt as though someone had slowly poured cold water over the top of his head. Danny wrapped his arms tight around Damian’s waist and took off, the couple flying through the ceiling of the apartment and multiple stories before they took to the air.
It was definitely different compared to when he would fly with Jon. Jon’s flying felt like he was constantly fighting gravity to stay in the air. With Danny, it felt as though gravity didn’t even matter, like it did not exist. His flying seemed to defy the laws of physics altogether.
It was exhilarating. Especially as Danny started to gain speed and the couple flew through multiple buildings, nothing really seemed to get in Danny’s way as he flew. Damian smiled at his lover, his eyes sparkling in the sun. He couldn’t believe just how lucky he had gotten with his soulmate.
so, this was originally for dpxdc ship week back in Febuary, and i just realized i forgot to cross post it lmaoo, so here's my obligatory wlw contribution to tumblr ☆*: .｡. o(≧▽≦)o .｡.:*☆
ao3 link - here!
kate's masterlist - here!
Lightning Strike - 2.5k
Since becoming Clockwork’s apprentice, Dani had seen it all. The beginnings and endings of societies, civilizations, and even whole worlds. She understood now why Clockwork had taken her on, it wasn’t because he needed the help, but rather the company.
Watching all of time pass, over and over again, was a lonely business.
But Dani was used to lonely.
Her years spent on the streets, watching people pass by but never really interacting, taught her that. Sure, she made some friends along the way, but the connections were fleeting as the pull in her core demanded she move on.
Clockwork’s tower was the first place she felt okay truly staying at, but that had to do with the infinite possibilities playing on the portals all around her. It was hard to feel suffocated when you had a new adventure every day.
It wasn’t something she thought about often, but doing her routine portal checks was tedious, and perhaps she had seen one two many happy groups of friends or couples. The human part of her deep down wanted that. Someone to talk to and joke around with who didn’t know all her punchlines—she swore hanging out with Clockwork got more frustrating every day.
Father Time truly was a big blob of dad. All the way down to finishing her jokes for it.
Maybe she should pay her cousin dearest a visit. At least he wouldn’t see her pranks coming.
Her mind was so occupied with the pranks she could pull, she didn’t even notice lightning start to break through thick ectoplasm, until the was a large crack and a hole tore open right beside her.
Dani jumped as an arm of lightning reached out, almost hitting her square in the chest. The green of the zone mixed with the golden colored lightning, swirling in a bright halo of the oddest electrical storm she’d ever seen.
Almost too quickly for her to see, the storm collapsed in on itself, settling into an uneasy silence. Then, as quickly as it collapsed, it expanded to twice the size before spitting out a yellow blob. The blob shot straight through Dani, who barely had time to go intangible, and into the ghost zone, lightning trailing behind it.
Dani didn’t wait for her thoughts to catch up, she just raced after the thing. She wasn’t exactly sure what it was, but she was pretty sure it was her problem. God, she hated being Clockwork’s personal bouncer.
It wasn’t hard to follow the blur, electricity tended to linger in the ectoplasmic filled atmosphere longer than others. When she finally caught up with it, she couldn’t help but laugh.
Floating upside down, wiggling her legs, was a redhaired girl in a yellow superhero suit—or at least Dani assumed from the Flash symbol on the girl’s chest. Her red hair was falling out of the back of her bun, swaying with her movement, and when she caught sight of Dani there was an immediate fire in her hazel eyes.
Dani liked this one. She seemed fierce.
“Are you just going to stare?” The girl crossed her arms, glaring at Dani.
Dani just giggled and reached out, poking the girls shoulder. She squeaked as her body hurdled around. Dani used a hand to stop her from going in a circle.
“Oh,” the girl blushed lightly and gave Dani face splitting smile, “thank you. You wouldn’t happen to know where I am, would you?”
“The Ghost Zone.” The girl tilted her head and furrowed her brows. It was too cute. “Well, some people call it the Infinite Realms. Or the Place Out of Time. Oh, and the Between.”
Dani tapped her chine, trying to remember any other names. It seemed like every Earth and time had a different name for it, so Dani didn’t really retain any of them.
“Hm. Do you know how I could like, get home?” The girl cringed as she looked around, and a small frown played across her lips.
“Probably,” Dani crossed her arms behind her head, leaning back, “Clockwork would know. If anyone can get you back to your time, it’s him. I can take ya, if you’d like?” Her chores could wait. This was way more interesting.
“Don’t really have any other options, so I guess so,” the girl smirked, playful and a touch mischievous. “I’m Impulse.”
The girl held out her yellow gloved hand and Dani smirked back.
“I’m Dani—with an i.” She took Impulse’s hand, and even through their gloves Dani could feel how warm she was. It was nice. “Humans can fly in the zone, so just hold onto my arm and you should be fine. Wait, you are human right?” Dani blushed as Impulse giggled.
“Meta-human, if that makes a difference?” She tilted her head and blinked her long eyelashes.
Dani could feel the cold ectoplasm rise to her cheeks giving them a green tint.
“It shouldn’t, but I guess we’ll find out,” Dani gave Impulse the cheekiest grin she could muster, and the other girl actually laughed.
Dani offered her arm to Impulse like the movies she’d watched with Jazz.
“A proper gentleman,” Impulse teased as she placed her hand in the crook of Dani’s elbow.
“Of course! I was taught to treat cute girls right.” Dani winked, and they both dissolved into laughter.
Something fluttered in her stomach as they laughed until they were out of breath. It was a euphoric lack of oxygen that stopped all critical thoughts in Dani’s head. The only thing that existed was them and this moment.
“Do you want to take the long way?” Dani asked, not knowing what she was saying until she heard herself. She couldn’t bring herself to regret it.
“Sure,” Impulse smiled, all teeth and pretty pink lips, “we’ve got time.”
Dani beamed at her and began the flight back to Clockworks. She flew slower than normal, but not by much. Irey’s brain was fast, making connections that Dani couldn’t dream of faster than she could keep up.
Still, there was something oddly content about the redhead as she flipped around in the green atmosphere. Dani showed her some of the more interesting sights, almost running them into the River Styx because Impulse wanted a closer look.
“I can’t wait to tell my brother, he’s gonna be so jealous,” Impulse gushed as Dani pulled her away from the black churning waters. “You know, this is actually the slowest I’ve ever gone. Well, my brain I mean, not me physically.”
“It makes sense,” Dani let them float up towards the far frozen, the last place on their little tour, “the Infinite Realms are technically a place outside of space and time.”
Impulse hummed in response, looking deep in thought. Dani let her think—it was a lot to learn there was an afterlife of some sort, Dani learned that on her travels. It was sometimes even harder for people to understand that it wasn’t what they pictured or believed in.
Dani witnessed a lot of breakdowns she didn’t know how to stop before realizing it. Sue her, she was technically like four.
They stayed silent until they reached the Far Frozen, which got the redhead rambling again. This time about biomes and how they related to different species across the universe. Dani thought that she would get along too well with Danny.
It was all too soon that they reached Clockwork’s tower, which rendered Impulse speechless for the first time on their journey.
“Here we are!” Dani gently held Impulse’s sides and brought her down to the platform. Dani could feel her hot breath fanning across Dani’s face and the static electricity that covered the girl's body.
“Thank you,” she smiled, her hazel eyes sparkling with different golds and greens across the deep brown surface, “not just for helping me, but for being so kind. Not everyone is this nice when you fall into their dimension.” She giggled, and Dani sensed there was history there.
She wished they could talk about it all. Funny—even in a place without time, Dani never felt like there was enough.
“It was my pleasure. And kinda my job? It’s a little unclear.” Dani shrugged, while Impulse shot her a questioning look. Her head was tilted to the side, her brows furrowed making a cute little indent on the bridge of her nose. Dani wanted to run her fingers over the area until it smoothed out.
Dani shook the thought out of her head. Now wasn’t the time.
“I’m Clockwork’s apprentice, though, I think he took me on to keep him company more than anything,” Dani pushed open the large doors to the clock tower, the screech of the hinges echoing against the dark stone. “And you’re lost in time. So, it’s kinda my job to help get you back. That’s why I chased after you in the first place.”
“Oh,” Impulse frowned a bit, almost looking disappointed.
Dani felt herself internally panic—oh god, did she make a pretty girl sad? How was she supposed to fix this?
Dani took a deep breath, trying to calm her suddenly racing thoughts. This was not something Vlad’s programming taught her, but you know what? She could figure it out. Yeah. She could do this.
“But I’m really glad I was the one that found you,” Dani said. She watched as the frown on Impulse’s face softened, and Dani knew she was on the right track. “You’re the most interesting thing to happen around here in a while. I liked showing you around.”
Impulse smiled at her and stepped forward into Dani’s personal space. The redhead reached up, and slipped off her mask, revealing more of her tan skin—and freckles that dotted the bridge of her nose.
“My real name is Irey.”
Dani could only stare at Irey, both amazed and shocked by the show of trust. And even though she might never see the redhead again, Dani wouldn’t—couldn’t—let her walk away without knowing the girl behind the ghost.
Dani held eye contact as she let her transformation go. Waves of cold power washed over her skin until she was fully human.
“My name’s still Dani,” she chuckled, rubbing the back of her neck, “but I’m part human too. Half ghost, half human. A halfa.”
“That’s sick,” Irey laughed, a small yellow spark jolting through her eyes.
Dani could have stayed there staring into Irey’s eyes for eternity. Unfortunately, Clockwork had other plans.
“Danielle,” the sound of Clockwork’s voice pinged off the walls as he descended from the top of his tower, “I see we have a guest. Aren’t you going to introduce us?” He gave her the smirk he got when he was actively trying to be a little shit.
Sometimes they were too similar for Dani’s tastes. Now was one of those moments.
“I’m Impulse,” Irey put her mask back on, staying close to Dani’s side. “I’m a little lost. We hoped you could help get me home.”
“Of course, child,” he smiled as his form shifted from an adult to an old man. He flew up the tower without another word, just expecting them to follow.
Typical.
Dani huffed, but walked up the broken staircase with Irey, helping her jump from the harder platforms.
“A bit cryptic, isn’t he?” Irey asked as she effortlessly parkoured over the platforms. It was hot.
“That’s his brand or something. We’ve given up questioning it,” Dani shrugged lazily floating up, enjoying the show. Dani’d never seen anyone seriously attempt to take the stairs, even Sam and Tucker would make her or Danny help them.
“Yeah, I know the type—ah!” Irey squeaked as a platform moved at the last moment, causing her jump to fall short.
Dani rushed into action, propelling herself forward to catch Irey. She wrapped her arms around Irey’s lean frame, static electricity and heat coming off the redhead in waves.
“Are you okay?” Dani asked searching Irey’s eyes for any sort of pain or discomfort.
“I’m good,” Irey’s voice was breathy as she relaxed into Dani. She wrapped her arms around Dani’s neck, pulling the dark haired girl close to her.
Dani let her eyes flutter closed, the scent of burned rubber and apple shampoo burning itself into her memory. Her boy tingled where it met Irey’s in a pleasant way, and the heat warmed the parts of her usually cold to the touch.
After a few moments, she felt Irey’s hold on her loosen and the warmth pull away. Dani pushed down the urge to chase the feeling.
“Thank you.” Irey smiled and the bridge of her nose tinted pink. Dani knew that she probably looked like a tomato by now.
“Anytime.”
Dani broke eye contact and floated up to the top of the clock tower. She gently let their feet hit the ground, not wanting to jolt any possible ankle injury Irey might have sustained in the fall.
“Well, you took your time,” a child Clockwork commented, a pleased smirk on his face. “Anyways, I think I’ve found your time.”
With a flourish of his staff, a portal sprung to life, swirling in front of them. In shades of green, Dani could see people dressed a lot like Irey with lightning bolts adorned all over their bodies in a field looking around.
“That’s it! That’s where I was when—well whatever happened, happened.” Irey excitedly pulled out of Dani’s arms, the electric field around her crackling.
Clockwork laughed, deep and boisterous as his form switched to adulthood. “The Infinite Realms is the place between universes. The buffer of the multiverse if you will. Instead of moving between earths, you were going just fast enough to get stuck between them.”
Dani watch different emotions cross Irey’s face faster than she could keep up.
“So, I could come back if I wanted?” She eventually settled on excitement, the air around her crackling with small yellow lightning bolts, the light catching the shine of her hair perfectly.
Dani didn’t know that someone could took so beautiful standing in the middle of a lightning storm. She was suddenly sad lightning didn’t strike the same place twice.
“With your abilities? No doubt about it.” Clockwork shared a look with Irey that Dani couldn’t decipher when her heart was pounding in her chest.
The idea of getting to see Irey again was exciting in a way that life hadn’t been for a long time.
Suddenly, in a burst of wind and yellow, Irey was standing right in front of Dani, their faces only inches apart.
“I’ll see you soon.” The way she said it, like it was a promise, made Dani grin back.
“I’ll see you soon.”
Irey leaned in and placed a small kiss on her cheek, soft and electric all at once.
As quickly as she was there, she was gone. Through the portal back to her world. Her family.
Dani smiled, a dopey stupid grin that Danny so would have made fun of her for, but she didn’t care.
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the
Organization for Transformative Works
When Damian’s and Alfred’s favorite coffeeshop closes, they need to find a new one. Eventually they do, but there’s a boy who flirts with Damian using the most horrific tea puns.
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Chapters: 1/2
Fandom: Danny Phantom, Batman - All Media Types
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Danny Fenton & Damian Wayne, Dick Grayson & Damian Wayne, Danny Fenton & Talia al Ghul
Characters: Damian Wayne, Danny Fenton, Talia al Ghul, Ra's al Ghul, Dick Grayson
Additional Tags: Danny Fenton and Damian Wayne are Twins, Dysfunctional Relationships, Angst, Damian Wayne is Bad at Feelings, Danny Fenton Is So Done, Brothers, Unreliable Narrator, Based on a Tumblr Post, Sibling Rivalry, Miscommunication, Misunderstandings, is Reconciliation possible?, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, They don't get along because of personality differences rather, Being twins doesn't necessarily mean you'll get along, Not Beta Read, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Damian Wayne-centric, Danny Fenton-centric, Damian Wayne Tries, Damian Wayne Feels, Tired Danny Fenton, Damian Wayne Needs a Hug, Danny Fenton Needs A Hug, Good Sibling Dick Grayson, not a happy reunion, Victim Blaming, Trauma
Series: Part 3 of DPxDCShipWeek2023
Summary:
Damian was surprised and delighted to find out that his twin brother, Danyal, was not dead.
Though Danny can’t say the feelings were mutual.
[A "Damian and Danny are Twins" fic. But this time, they never liked each other.]
...
Day 3 of DPxDCShipWeek2023: Family/Friends | Coffee shop AU
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the
Organization for Transformative Works
Rated: T
Ship Chosen: Tim Drake/Danny Fenton (Dead Tired)
Summary: Tim might be crushing on his friend, Danny. He wished that was his biggest problem right now.
Excerpt without context:
“You’re the heir to VladCo.?” Tim asked, hands on his hips.
Danny squinted at him in confusion. “Yes? I already told you this?”
“No, you didn’t!” Tim exclaimed.
Now Danny just looked indignant. “Yes, I did! Even if you don’t remember that part, how could you not have figured it out?! I literally call him Vlad, to your face. He wants me to take over the company? I’ve told you how he works in security-”
“I thought you meant home security, not national security,” Tim hissed, throwing up his hands in the air.
