I'm thenewgirl76. What I post revolves entirely around my current fixations, whatever they may be. And I have views and opinions that may rub you the wrong way. That's all you need to know.
(Inspired by a post that I canât findđĄđ€. If you recognize it please let me know! I have searched. Everywhere. I remember it starts off with Billy contemplating how heâs different and his dad didnât want him, and then Danny shows up.)
Danny Fenton grows up, gets crowned King of the Infinite Realms, and then discovers that time it weird in the Zone if the portal you came through doesnât stay open. Heâs been ruling for over a century, but itâs only been a few years on Earth. Early on he made sure to keep popping in and out to visit family and friends and keep up a human identity, and so was able to age normally too.
By the time heâs 25 (2015), heâs in a serious relationship with a woman named Mary Batson, and has decided to tell her about his other life. Before he can however, he is âkilledâ in an explosion at his civilian job as an engineer.
Heâs fine, but was weakened enough that he reverted to his core, and Clockwork retrieved him and took him to the Realms to heal. He does, goes discreetly looking for Mary, and discovers it been a year and she died in a car accident. Heartbroken, and with no civilian identity anymore, he starts spending all his time in the Zone, only making weekend trips to see family/friends.
Unknown to Danny, Mary was pregnant, gave birth, and little William âBillyâ Daniel Batson was saved via emergency C-Section after the accident and placed in foster care, because she had no family and no one looked into the fatherâs well enough. Mary only survived long enough to name her son and give them Dannyâs name.
10 years later, Billy gains the title of Champion of Magic. The influx of so much magic also triggers his⊠other genes.
As Billy, he is faster and stronger and heals quicker and if he concentrates really hard he can turn invisible and walk through thingsâ at least for a few moments. He also discovers that heâs essentially a cat, since he can hiss and purr and randomly sprout claws.
Billy only uses a mirror if he needs to give himself a haircut, but the next time he looks he notices the tiny little baby fangies. And that his eyes are more teal than blue, his hair has a few white spots in it, and his ears point a little more. No wonder no oneâs been bothering him lately.
(Heâs basically 75% human and 25% ghost, so unless he gets hosed down with pure ectoplasm and also eats a bunch of the stuff, heâs not going to be able to âgo ghostâ. Heâs just hasnât got enough Phantom in him to manage it.)
As Captain Marvel, the magic of his patrons and the Rock of Eternity kinda work as a counter-measure against the partially-dead thing, as the magic sees it as a threat to the Championâs health and fights the genesâ effects like itâs a virus. So the magic is basically shutting down all of the actual powers he gets as Billy. But he does get little things that the magic doesnât care about, like sharp little fangs and pointy ears.
Billy just thinks itâs all side effects of the magic, and uses his new âadaptationsâ as Billy to survive on the streets.
The Justice League comes knocking about 6 months in, meet this huge chipper dude who can evenly match Superman and uses magic in a way that causes other magic users headaches and rage, and invite him to join.
Thatâs when they notice that heâs a bit⊠strange.
Not like, in a bad way! Just, the other day Batman did the âappear behind you from nowhereâ thing and when Marvel noticed he full on hissed at him, like a feral cat, before looking sheepish and apologizing.
A few weeks later, theyâre rescuing some kidnapped meta kids and they find Marvel sitting cross-legged on the ground, several toddlers draped over him and a very distinct purring noice emanating from his chest.
A week after that, and Superman confides worriedly that sometimes Marvelâs heart will just⊠stop beating, and/or heâll stop breathing, and that when his heartbeat is gone there seems to be a strange hum coming from the center of his chest.
Then another 2 weeks later, after a meeting, he and Flash were talking and they both laughed, but when Marvel did he just flashed these very sharp incisors that Flash swears are fangs.
And then one day they call him in to help fight some demons and one growls at him and he freakin growls back, bares his definitely fangs I told you so! And just freakin launches at the thing. They basically roll around like a couple of territorial tomcats, and at first Marvel is throwing punches and lighting but then the demon bites him and Marvel just⊠bites back.
And then he like⊠sprouts claws?! And then it really is like a cat fight, with these two just hissing and growling and clawing and biting until Marvel does something and the demon breaks away and flees, whimpering like a kicked dog. Superman has to snag Marvels cape and dodge some claws to keep the guy from chasing after it.
Heâs covered in claw marks and scratches and thereâs blood like everywhere but once they drag/convince/bully him into going back to the Watchtowers medbay, thereâs nothing. The wounds are gone, the blood is fading away, and the suit is repairing itself. Marvel just shrugs and says magic, which, fair enough.
But then they have to have a talk about what the hell that was, and all Marvel can say for his feral-cat behavior is âI just heard him growl and had the uncontrollable urge to bite him. Like, heâs in my territory, and heâs gonna challenge me like that? Heck-no.â
âŠTerritory? Territory?! What does that- does this possibly-immortal being consider all of Earth his territory? Is he secretly a Fae? An eldritch being in less terrifying form? Part demon himself? A cat transformed into a person?
Marvel shrugs.
âI never met my parents, so honestly any of those have a chance of being true.â
Oh No. Oh F*ck. Those were rhetorical!
Meanwhile, Danny is back on Earth and finds out from Tucker that Mary had a kid. They discover this because he was reported missing after he ran away and the cops tried to find out if there was any more family, and do a better job looking this time. Danny is âdeadâ so they called the Drs Fenton, who told Jazz, who told Tucker, who dug around and realized oh sh*t, Danny has a son.
But they canât tell Danny this, because some a-hole in a different dimension is trying to invade the Infinite Realms, so Danny has to go kick a**. The time in the other dimension is weird too, so several years pass on Earth by the time he stops the threat, locks away the demon Trigon, and finds a nice home in the Realms for the demonâs half-human orphaned daughter Raven, who fits in very well with the ghosts.
So, Dannyâs back and between Tucker and Danny they figure out what city Billy is in, and Danny spends days flying around invisible feeling for any ectoplasm. He finds it, finds Billy facing down some wanna-be teenage gangsters, and watches with growing pride as his son hisses at them with his widdle baby fangs oh my Ancients!
So after the other kids flee from the âcrazy demon kidâ, Danny invisibly follows Billy back to his current hideout in the basement of an abandoned warehouse (only someone Billy-sized or smaller would be able to fit through the window, and then theyâd have to do it again to get into his little blocked-off closet. Smart. Very smart. I have such a smart kid, the family will Love him!)
Danny doesnât want to freak his kid outâ strange man+small space=bad no-noâ so he just settles himself in front of the exit and starts chirping. Calling.
Billy, who has never heard the sound before, still knows what it means. Canât resist following it out of his hidey-hole. Sees the man, cross-legged on the ground, sees his blue eyes flash green-green-green and knows.
A/N: I wrote a similar story years ago, but I seriously canât find it ANYWHERE. This is my attempt at not exactly rewriting it but doing something equally as fun. So, enjoy sleep-deprived Timmy Drake-Wayne.Â
Listen, Tim is well aware that he is not exactly the most forthcoming when it comes to information about his general well-being. He knows that he's technically lying. However, everyone lies, right? Like, Dick lies about having free time so he can help whoever needs it when his shoulders can't possibly hold any more weight. Jason lies about hating everyone when he loves the hardest. Damian lies about never caring about feelings when he feels the most. Duke lies about not feeling like an outsider even though everyone knows he still hasn't accepted his position in the family. Cass lies about⊠okay, well, Cass doesn't lie. But Bruce! Bruce lies about freaking everything. SoâŠTim lying about sicknesses, injuries, and sleep isn't likeâŠout of the ordinary in Tim's family. So he doesn't really feel bad about lying to Alfred about getting a full night's sleep the previous night.Â
Well, he doesn't feel too bad.Â
Tim had, at one point in his life, gotten a full night's sleep. It just wasn't last night. Or the night before thatâŠand so on and so forth. Now that Tim was thinking about it, he'd been up for a full three days. Not his longest record, but the longest in at least six months. Tim is currently working on three cases for Batman Inc., multiple marketing packages for Wayne Enterprises, and two school reports. The cases are what's taking most of his time.Â
The first case has to do with Scarecrow. Tim believes Crane is working with a new supplier, someone outside of Gotham. He hasn't been able to find out who it is, but he's at least narrowed it down to either Star City or Metropolis. The second case concerns Ivy, which really sucks because she's been relatively quiet ever since she and Harley got together. Honestly, Tim isn't really sure it is Ivy, but it's got to do with these weird plants popping up around the city that shoot some kind of ichor at anyone who gets near. It wouldn't be that big of a deal if it weren't for the fact that the ichor causes blindness for up to two weeks. Tim's been working on a cure, but so far, he hasn't had much luck. Hence, he really needs to talk to Ivy. The third case deals with Victor ZsaszâŠor, at least, Tim thinks it does. There's been a string of near murders of sex workers in Crime Alley. Jason has been working on it for two weeks, but he's never caught anyone in the action. Jason came to Tim four nights ago to ask for help, which is very usual for Jason. Usually, he sends files and assumes Tim will help. Jason's case is Tim's number one priority. Zsasz is toying with people at the moment. It's only a matter of time before it turns into actual murder.Â
So, that is why he's currently working on his third night of no sleep. The importance of these cases, Jason's in particular, is also why Tim just lied (again) to Alfred and Bruce about his overall well-being. Again, Tim's not stupid. He knows Alfred and Bruce can see the bags under his eyes, the slump in his shoulders, and the copious amounts of empty energy drink cans and coffee mugs that littered his room. They didn't call him out on it, so they must believe it's not as bad as it really is. Alfred and Bruce leave the Cave, and Tim continues his work on the Batcomputer.Â
"Hey, any news on my case?"Â
Tim looks up and sees Jason sauntering in, his hood under his arm.Â
"Not much. I have some hunches," says Tim. "But nothing concrete yet."Â
Jason sighs.Â
"I'm trying, Jay." Tim mutters, feeling guilty. Â
Jason rolls his eyes. "I'm not mad at you, Timberly. The sigh is in general of the fucking suckiness of the situation, not directed at you."Â
"StillâŠI can't seem to crack this the way I want."Â
"Welcome to my world. Why do you think I asked for your help? You look like shit by the way."Â
Tim flips him off and then yawns, large and long.Â
"The fuck was that?" Jason asks.Â
Tim rolls his eyes. "A yawn, Jason. Surely you've experienced one."Â
Jason walks to Tim and smacks the back of his head. "Ass."Â Â
"You're the assâŠass." Tim replies.Â
"Now I know you're outta sorts. That was the lamest comeback." Jason says. "When's the last time you slept?"Â
"Yesterday." Tim lies.Â
Jason squints at him. "YeahâŠand Alfred is the Queen of England."Â
"I'm fine."Â
Jason snorts and places his hand on Tim's forehead.Â
"I don't have a fever, Jason." says Tim, swatting at Jason's hands. Jason reaches down and tweaks Tim's left side. Tim immediately folds inward with a laugh.Â
"Too easy." Jason smirks as he continues scribbling his fingers along Tim's ribs and sides. Â
"Screw youhu!" Tim laughs, trying to catch Jason's hands as he squirms in the seat.Â
"I dunno, this seems like a good way to tire you out."Â
"Plehehease!" Tim is defenseless when it comes to tickling. It's like his brain decides to stop working, and all he can do is curl up and beg for mercy.
Jason spends a few more seconds poking and prodding along Tim's ribcage before he finally ceases his attack.Â
"I swear, you're the most ticklish person on the fuckin' planet." Jason is grinning smugly.Â
Tim knows he's got a goofy grin on his face, but he musters up a scowl regardless. "And I swear you're the biggest prick on the planet."Â
"Go to sleep, Tim. I know you're on at least day two of no sleep."Â
"As soon as I get some solid info on your case and finish my crap from WE, I will."Â
Jason squints at him. Tim thinks for a moment that his older brother is going to argue with him more. However, Jason shrugs his shoulders, waves a dismissive hand toward Tim, and then walks out of the Cave. Tim sighs in relief and turns back to the computer. He knows he's close to proving it's Zsasz behind the attacks. He'll definitely sleep once he proves it.
^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^
Tim proves it's Zsasz, but he does not sleep. There's no time. Bruce will be the one to help Jason with the takedown of Zsasz because he's a Tier-One Villain, and Batman isn't going to allow Red Hood to do it on his own nor allow Red Robin to be Hood's only backup. Tim put up a fight, arguing that he could at least help, especially considering it was Tim that figured it all out. Heâs overruled by a simple âHnâ from Bruce and a smirk from Jason. Tim spends the next day tracking down Ivy. Turns out, she was working the case as well. Tim corners her at a greenhouse in downtown Gotham.Â
"Of course, you're the one working this." Pamela says without taking her eyes off the plant, she's currently cultivating.Â
"Should I be offended by that statement?" Tim asks. Tim thinks that, although he's had a direct hand in a few of her arrests, they've at least worked together a few times in the past year to develop a good rapport.Â
Pam turns to look at him and rolls her eyes. "No. I was just hoping that perhaps the Bat would be here instead."Â
"He's finishing up with that Zsasz situation." Tim tells her. "So, you're stuck with me."Â
"Any leads?" She asks.Â
That's confirmation for Tim that Ivy isn't behind the plants.Â
"None." Tim replies.Â
Ivy hums in response.Â
"It's not any plant I've seen. I don't think it's even from Earth."Â
"Fan-freaking-tasticâŠ" Tim sighs. This is just what he needs, a freaking alien plant. "Should probably get the Justice League on this if you think it's extraterrestrial."Â
Ivy doesn't look convinced. "Must we?"Â
"I think it's best, Dr. Isley. They're better equipped to find its origin and an antidote. I've been trying to make one myself, but it hasn't been as effective as I want."Â
Ivy sighs. "Fine. Can I ask you to keep me posted on how this shakes up? I've had a few too many dirty looks in my direction."Â
Tim nods. "Of course."
"Thanks, Little Bird."Â
Tom rolls his eyes. "I'm 17 now, you know."
Pam smiles at him with a bit of fondness in her eyes and walks away. "Yes, but you'll always be a Little Bird to me."Â
"Dr. Isley!" Tim calls. Pam halts and turns to look at him. "Don't let anyone look down on you, okay? Gothamites don't have the moral high ground most of the time."Â
Ivy simply smiles softly at him and leaves.Â
"Time to get a sample to JL." Tim mutters to himself as he harvests a few of the plants.Â
^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^
It's day six of less than four hours of sleep total, and it's actually starting to bother Tim. He's still so busy, though. The Justice League is taking care of the plant situation, Zsasz is in Arkham (with Jason nursing three broken ribs and a sprained wrist), and two of the three WE marketing packages are complete. However, not a single one of Tim's assignments is done, and Tim has two more cases to add to his workload. He's slumping over the desk in Bruce's office. He was kicked out of the Cave about an hour ago by Bruce, who apparently needed to have a meeting with Superman and Flash. Tim hopes it's about the plants, but he's unable to spy as he really needs to finish his schoolwork so he can start writing the reports from his previous cases. He's still trying to find the supplier for Cane, too. Heâs minutes away from a full-blown migraine and typing mindlessly on the computer when he hears a knock on the door.Â
"Tim? You in there?" Dick's voice comes from the other side of the door.Â
Tim grunts in response.Â
Dick opens the door. "What're you doing in Bruce's office?"Â
"M'workin'." Tim winces at how slurred his speech is.Â
"On what?" Dick asks; he's behind Tim now, leaning over him and staring at the computer Tim's working on.
"School crap, some WE stuff, and a case or two."
"Howâs it going?"
Tim shrugs.Â
"So, Iâve heard from a few birds youâre not sleeping much."Â
Tim lets his head fall to the desk as he groans. "Tell Jason to mind his own business."Â
Tim can hear the soft smile on Dickâs face. "It wasnât just Jason."Â
Tim looks up at his older brother. "Mâfine. Iâve gotten a few hours here and there."Â
Dick smiles that sad smile of his, which makes Tim feel like absolute shit.Â
"Iâm fine Dick; I promise."Â
"I wish I could believe you," says Dick. "But youâve got the worst truth-telling record in this family."Â
"What?! No way! Bruce holds that title, câmon!" Tim practically shouts.Â
Dick seems to consider what Tim says. "Okay, second worst."Â
Tim scowls at him.Â
"Grayson, I--oh." Damian is suddenly in the room, scowling at Tim immediately. "Drake, you look terrible."Â
"No one asked for your opinion, Demon Brat." Tim responds, barely stopping himself from sticking his tongue out.Â
"Tt. Drake, this isnât an insult. I do truly mean that you look terrible. When was the last time you slept? Also, are you ill?"
"Youâre sick?" Dickâs voice is even more full of concern now.Â
"Iâm not sick! Iâm just a little tired." Tim sighs, rubbing his temples. The headache heâs been trying to stave off the last three days is significantly closer than just a few minutes ago.Â
"Headache, too?" Dick asks kindly.Â
"Yes, because you and the Baby Assassin are bothering me." Tim mumbles. Thereâs no real heat behind it.
"I loathe that name." Damian says.Â
Dick ruffles his hair, garnering a squawk from Damian. "Itâs a term of endearment Dee. It means Timmy loves you."Â
Both Tim and Damian snort at the same time.Â
"Can I please finish my work?" Tim asks tiredly. He can feel a full-blown migraine coming on, and he thinks that he may be overdoing it somewhat.Â
"UhâŠTim? Youâre not exactly making sense with yourâŠwork." Dick winces as he shows Tim the computer screen.
"Oh."
On the screen are just a bunch of letters and numbers all over the place.Â
OkayâŠmaybe he really has pushed it too far.Â
"Will you please go to sleep?" Dick asks. He bends down in front of Tim, making himself eye level. Dick places a hand on Timâs forehead, checking for a fever.Â
"I will as soon as I finish my school assignments." Tim semi-promises. Sleep doesnât come as easy to Tim as it does to most people, especially once heâs this far gone.Â
Dick sighs, but stands and motions for Damian to follow him out.Â
"DrakeâŠhonestly." Damian sighs as he takes a look at Tim.Â
"Damian, Iâm okay."Â
"Tt."
The door closes and Tim grabs another energy drink from the minifridge and downs it. With a shake of his aching head, Tim focuses on the work in front of him.Â
Three hours later, Timâs completely engrossed on the last page of his paper for his English class when Bruce comes in. He looks surprised to see Tim.Â
"Oh, hey Tim. I didnât know you were in here." Bruce says.Â
"You kicked me outta the Cave," Tim replies. "And I wanted to use your two monitors. I can leave if you need me to." Tim is rising as he says this, he stumbles a bit and Bruce is by his side with Timâs elbow in his hand.Â
"Easy there, kiddo." Bruce soothes, helping Tim to sit back down. "I donât mind you using my office. Itâs free for you to use when you want. However, I do mind you almost falling for simply standing up. Are you injured?"Â
"NoâŠI-Iâm fine. Just been up a little longer than I shouldâve, probably."Â
"Heâs been up for six days." A, quite frankly, livid, voice says from the doorway. Timâs head whips up and he sees Damian standing there, hands clenched into tight fists, and one of the angriest expressions Tim has ever seen gracing his face. Dick is behind him, and so is Jason, both looking angry and sad and exasperated all at the same time. Bruce looks shocked, which is saying something. He turns to look down at Tim.Â
"Is this true?"
Tim gulps, but isnât able to say anything because Damian cuts across him. "Do not even attempt to lie. I looked at the security footage. You havenât spent more than two hours at a time in any one room in this house, excluding the Cave. However, you havenât slept there either because the Cave security footage hasnât shown you sleeping at any point!"Â
"DamianâŠI-"
Damian raises a hand to stop Tim. "I donât want to hear it. You may have no forethought to your health and wellbeing, but others do. And if you are going to insist on attempting to take yourself away from us earlier than what is the normal lifespan of an adult male in America, then youâre going to do so fighting me. And with the current state youâre in, itâd be an even more pathetic fight than when youâre in full form."Â
Jason places a hand on Damianâs shoulder, which Tim expects him to throw off. However, Damian doesnât. In fact, it looks like it anchors their youngest sibling.Â
"Honestly Tim, six days? Even for you thatâs excessive." Jason says.Â
"Bed." Bruce demands. Itâs not his Batman voice. Itâs not even his angry voice. Itâs the voice he uses when he wonât budge. Itâs the voice he uses when heâs in meetings and flexing his full CEO authority. Itâs the voice he learned from Alfred. Itâs the voice he uses when thereâs no room for argument.Â
Tim tries anyway, though, because he has no sense of self-preservation. "Bruce IÂ need to finish my homework, I--"
"You have a death wish, Timmy." Dick sighs.Â
"You can go to sleep on your own, or I can administer something to help. That is the only choice youâre going to receive for the next several days." Bruce states. Now he sounds (and looks) angry. Tim knows heâs pushing itâŠhas pushed it. He does. He justâŠthereâs so much he needs to do. And Bruce canât seriously be trying to ground him.Â
"You canât ground me, Bruce, Iâm 17-"
"You can go to sleep on your own or I can administer something to help." Bruce says it quietly, but Tim hears and sees the fury simmering there.Â
Tim swallows again; he looks to his two older siblings and knows there will be no help. Jason looks exasperated beyond all reason. Dick looks like Tim just kicked his dog and then set his house on fire. He doesnât have to look at Damian to know he looks exactly like Bruce.Â
Heâs lost. He knows heâs lost.Â
"IâŠI may need some help." Tim admits quietly, feeling his face heat up extensively.Â
Bruceâs fury melts a bit at that. "Iâll have Alfred make the tea."Â
"Heâs got a headache, too. Add some acetaminophen. Weâll get him to bed, Bruce." Dick says. He reaches for Tim and helps steer him out of the room and to the stairs. Jason and Damian follow.Â
"You donât have to follow me; Iâm seriously going to go to my room." Tim tells them.Â
"Tt. Your word on this matter means very little."Â
"Sorry, Baby Bird. I agree with Baby Bat." Jason tells Tim. "Youâve seriously crossed the line this time."Â
Tim hangs his head in shame.
"Not now guys." Dick retorts rather sharply. Tim doesnât deserve Dickâs kindness.Â
"Mâsorry." Tim tells them as they reach his room. "I didnât mean for it to go on this long. Honestly."Â
Dick shushes him as he looks for some pajamas.Â
"No. Seriously. I didnâtâŠI donât mean toâŠ" Tim can feel the tears welling in his eyes. Itâs frustrating beyond reason.Â
"Get dressed, and get in bed, Timmers." Dick presses a kiss to the top of his head as he and the others walk out.Â
Tim does as heâs told. The tears spill onto his cheeks. He knows heâs truly screwed everything up. Everyone is furious with him. He can only imagine the lecture heâs going to get from Alfred. Heâs not just going to be grounded; heâs going to be benched permanently. If he canât be trusted to sleep like a normal human being, he definitely canât be trusted out in the field. His head starts pounding even harder, and he stumbles into his bed with his knees curled into his stomach.Â
"Tim?" Bruce is walking in, but Tim is trying really hard to get air into his lungs. He feels Bruce grab his shoulders and set him into a sitting position. One of Bruceâs hands grabs his and places it on the older manâs chest, right over his heart. The other hand grabs the back of Timâs neck, resting there lightly.Â
"Breathe with me, kiddo."Â
Tim tries his hardest to focus on the beating of Bruceâs heart, of the movement of his chest rising and falling. Bruce squeezes his hand very exhale, trying to anchor him, Tim assumes. It takes some time, but eventually Timâs breathing slows and returns to normal. It has been almost a year since Tim last had a panic attack. He forgot how much they suck.Â
"Whatever youâre thinking," says Bruce. "I promise isnât true. No one is going to kick you out, no one is going to fire you, and no one hates you or is mad at you."Â
"Damian is both of those last things. And youâre all mad. I get it." Tim replies.Â
Bruce hands him the steaming mug of drugged tea. If Tim knows Alfred as well as he thinks he does, thereâs definitely a high dose of sleeping aid in the tea. Tim sips it at first, but downs it quickly, feeling it burn his throat.Â
"Slow down there, Tim." Bruce chastises. "You donât need to punish yourself."Â
"I just wanna go to bed." Tim tells his adopted father. Bruce looks at him with those sad eyes of his, making Tim feel a million times worse, which is really saying something because he feels like dog shit.Â
"Sweetheart, câmere." Bruce climbs into the bed and lifts up his arm, offering Tim to snuggle in, which the boy does. "Weâre mad, yes. Weâre mad that you seem to be unable to take care of yourself properly. Weâre mad that you always push yourself too far. Weâre mad that we donât catch it quick enough to help. But weâre not mad at you in the sense that is going through your head. We all love you."
Tim wants to believe it.Â
"Not even Damian doesnât hate you."Â
Tim snorts.Â
"He doesnât." Bruce insists, digging his fingers into Timâs ribs. Tim gasps and laughs as Bruce doesnât let up.Â
"Stahap!" Tim begs. Tim is seriously ticklish on his ribs; itâs one of his worst spots, and Bruce knows it.Â
Bruce chuckles fondly as he brings both hands to Timâs ribcage. Tim is letting out some serious giggles now. Heâs trying to fight against Bruce, but the tea is setting in, and Timâs not the most coordinated person when tickled.Â
"Promise to sleep and not stay up for six days straight ever again?" Bruce asks, not ceasing his tickle attack. He digs his fingers in between the bones of Timâs ribs.Â
"Yehehes! I-I prohohomise!" Tim gets out, squirming madly. It tickles so damn much!
Bruce finally stops tickling. Tim sags into Bruceâs side while he rubs his ribs to get rid of the residual tickly feelings.Â
"Youâre too good at that." Tim tells him.Â
Bruce kisses the top of his head. "Youâre too easy. I think you may be more ticklish than Damian."Â
Now that was interesting information.Â
"Damian is ticklish?!"Â
Bruce winces. "I donât think I was supposed to mention that."Â
"Oh th-thaaaat--" Tim cuts himself off with a loud yawn.Â
"Bed." Bruce says, pressing another kiss against the top of Timâs head. "No worrying either, we can talk tomorrow about better ways to keep yourself healthy."Â
"Gânight, dad." Tim whispers, already falling asleep.Â
"Good night, son."Â
^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^
When Tim wakes up, heâs dazed and confused. The sun is gone and his clock tells him itâs nine at night.Â
"Itâs been 18 hours, Drake."
Tim whips his head and sees Damian sketching in the armchair next to his bed.Â
"What?"Â
"You slept for 18 hours," Damian repeats, sounding thoroughly annoyed. "Pennyworth has a plate of dinner waiting for you when you are ready to eat."Â
Tim scrubs a hand down his face. "Eighteen hours, huh?"Â
"With the amount of stress you put on your body, I am shocked you didnât sleep longer."Â
"YeahâŠwasnât my best plan I guess."
"Tt. Consider it your worst. That is saying something, too, as you usually have terrible plans." Thereâs no real heat behind Damianâs words. The two of them have grown a lot since Damian first came. They respect one another now. They work pretty well together, too. Their form of communication may look especially harsh to an outsider, but to them, itâs brotherly banter.Â
Tim rolls his eyes. "Pretty sure I was the one who took down Zsasz earlier this week."
Damian looks at him. "Father and Todd took him down."
"Physically, maybe. But it was me who found out everything. So, if you think about it, it was all of my plans that took him down."Â
"Tt. In your dreams, Drake."
Tim moves to sit on the side of his bed. "Hey."Â
Damian looks at him once more. "What?"
"Iâm sorry for scaring you," Tim apologizes. "I didnât mean to."Â
Damian replies stiffly, "I was not scared. I was mad at your stupidity."
"Iâm sorry for making you mad, then."Â
Damian scowls deeply at him. "Do you realize the stress you put on others when you pull these types of stunts? We have enough stress without others adding to it with idiotic decisions. You need to better care for yourself. You arenât a machine, Drake, and youâre not alone. There are others in this family that couldâve taken a case or two. Furthermore, you hate school, so I do not understand your need to finish assignments you donât care about."Â
Tim feels really bad.Â
"I didnât do it on purpose, if that helps." Tim tells his little brother. "I getâŠfocused, I guess. I know you guys can help me, I justâŠI dunno. I feel like I can do it better, I suppose. Thatâs really narcissistic of me, I know."Â
Damian only scowls further. "You arenât a narcissist; youâre an idiot. Thereâs a difference."
"How many more times are you going to call me an idiot?" Tim asks, a wry smile on his face.Â
"As many times as it takes." Damian smirks.
Tim rolls his eyes this time. He stands and squats in front of the chair so heâs eye level with Damian. "I wonât do it again."
"Tt."Â
Tim places a hand on Damianâs shoulder. "I promise, Damian."Â
Damian looks at Tim now. "YouâŠyou are important to this family."
"Does that include you?" Tim teases.Â
Damian shoves Timâs hand off his shoulders. "Ugh. Iâm finished with this sappy moment. Iâm leaving."
Domain tries to stand to leave, but Tim is feeling much better after his sleep, and heâs in a mischievous mood, so he grabs Damian around the waist and pulls him into a hug.Â
"Drake! Unhand me!"
"We have to hug, Demon," says Tim. "Dickie will be upset if we donât."Â
Damian is squirming furiously as he attempts to free himself from Timâs grip. "Grayson isnât even here!"Â
"He could walk in any minute, though. I wanna make sure we do him proud!" Tim squeezes tighter, causing Damian to yelp. It reminds Tim of what Bruce told him before he fell asleep.Â
Tim smiles deviously. "I heard some interesting information about you from Bruce." Tim places his hands on Damianâs sides with his fingers curled in, an evil grin growing as he feels Damian instantly still.Â
"DrakeâŠ" Itâs a warning, but Tim isnât concerned.Â
"Damian."Â
"Whatever Father told you, h-he was clearly lying!" Damian still doesnât move, and Tim knows itâs because every movement would tickle with the way Timâs hands are positioned.Â
"Bruce lies at times," Tim concedes. "But I donât think he was lying about this. Tell me, Dee, are you ticklish?"
Damianâs eyes go wide. "N-No! Of c-course not!"
"Bruce said you were."Â
"He lied!"
Tim shrugs his shoulders, pretending to give up. However, the moment Damian relaxes, Tim tosses the smaller boy on the bed and pounces, immediately tickling Damianâs stomach.Â
"DRAKE!" Damian absolutely screeches. Tim knows heâs going to die after this, but heâs okay with it. Damian succumbs to laughter rather quickly. He has such a cute laugh, sounding and looking like the 12-year-old he is.Â
"Bruce was right!" Tim crows. He scrabbles all 10 of his fingers all around Damianâs belly. The closer he gets to Damianâs sides and ribs, the louder his laughter gets, and the more he squirms. Damian seems to be like Tim, though, and super uncoordinated when tickled because Tim is still alive and breathing. Damian is swearing like a sailor at him, but thatâs about it.Â
"What the fuck is going on in--ohâŠnow this is good."Â
Tim looks at the doorway, not pausing his tickly assault on Damianâs torso, and sees Jason with the biggest grin on his face that Timâs ever seen.Â
"T-Tohohodd! I r-require assISTANCE!" Damian squeals out the last part of the word as Tim shoots his arms to Damianâs underarms.Â
"I think Timmy requires my assistance," Jasonâs grin turns more shark-like. "How did I not know you were ticklish, Baby Bat?"
Damian doesnât answer. Heâs too busy holding his middle as best he can, laughter pouring out of his mouth. His heels are drumming against the bed, and Tim is grinning widely himself. Heâs never heard Damian laugh like this before.Â
"Are you guys killing Damian?" Dick enters the room next. "OhâŠyouâre just tickling him. Try his neck next, Timmy. Thatâs his death spot."Â
"GRAYHAYSON!" Damian shrieks as Tim lightly pinches at the back of Damianâs neck. Damianâs laughter goes high pitched. "T-TIM, pleheHEASE!"Â
It went on for two more minutes before Dick rescues Damian by telling Tim to stop. Tim moves off Damian and grins down at the panting boy. "You called me by my name."Â
Damian pants for another few seconds, a silly grin on his face. It doesnât last long, though, because he soon scowls fiercer than Timâs ever seen and then jumps at Tim. Dick catches him around the middle and holds Damian away from Tim.
"Let me go, Grayson! I will have my revenge!"Â
"Sorry Dames, but Tim needs to eat. He needs to sleep after that, again--donât look at me like that, Tim--and you need to get ready for patrol."Â
Damian flips Tim off but stops struggling against Dickâs hold. Dick sets him down and grins. "Everyoneâs ticklish, Damian. If you can imagine it, Timâs probably more ticklish than you."Â
"Dick!" Tim throws his oldest brother a betrayed look.Â
"Oh definitely. The kidâs ribs are like a 10 on the Richter scale," Jason adds. "One poke to his ribs has him swearing his first born to you. Heâs deathly ticklish on his ribs."Â
"Jason!" Tim throws the same betrayed look to his immediate older brother.
"Sorry, little brother. Itâs true." Dick laughs.Â
Tim looks at Damian and gulps. Damian looks smug. No, he looks worse than smug. He looks like heâs plotting.Â
"DamianâŠI-Iâm so sorry. It wonât happen again!" Tim has his hands up.Â
"Oh, I know it wonât. Iâll ensure the lesson you learn will keep you from making that mistake ever again."Â
"Oh! Are we going to tickle Tim next?" Dick asks. "Itâs been a while!"Â
"You asshats are gonna leave me alone!" Tim warns. "Remember, I have lots of pictures that I can release on the internet at a momentâs notice."Â
"Heâs bluffing." Jason snorts. "He wonât post them on the internet, Bruce would kill him."Â
Damianâs smirk grows.Â
"Iâm totally in on this plan, though," Jason continues. "Tickling Tim till he forgets his own damn name sounds like fun."Â
Tim feels his stomach flip flop with excitement and trepidation. Heâs never been teamed up against like that and has no clue what itâll feel like, but he has a feeling heâs about to find out.Â
"What about you, Grayon? Will you join in my revenge?" Damian asks.Â
Tim sends a pleading look to Dick.Â
"WellâŠhe really needs to eat." Dick says. Tim sighs in relief. "But I suppose he can wait another half hour or so."
"Half hour?! The fu-NO! Nohoho!"Â
Tim doesnât do much more than laugh for quite some time.
A sort of continuation of my last Anger Management post.
Dick, who's been keeping tabs on Jazz behind Jason's back is starting to suspect the redhead is cheating on his little brother. He honestly doesn't want to believe it. But how else would you explain the way she's been disturbingly chummy with the other guy who has yet to leave their shared apartment?
From all the times they've been seen kissing and holding hands, to the one instance he's spied them through the window cuddling in bed at night, the evidence is pretty damning.
As much as it'll kill Jason, he needs to know exactly what his poor excuse for a girlfriend has been up to while he was gone. So when Jason gets back from his mission alongside the Outlaws, Dick doesn't hesitate to confront them both once the three of them are all in one place.
While the anger, disgust, and disbelief were all expected, who it was aimed at followed by the enraged "HE'S/SHE'S MY BROTHER/SISTER!" most definitely wasn't.
Oh boy, this isn't good. He needs to smooth this over with an explanation and apology before... too late.
Danyal: Between the two of us, I was the more humble one. Which is why it vexes me to no end that everyone with the exception of Foley treats me with such reproach. What is it about me they find so reprehensible?
Jazz: It's your accent. It makes you sound like you're talking down to people.
Saw this little beaut of a fanart, https://www.tumblr.com/bannock-freak/806059848937701376/get-in-loser-were-doing-cycles-of?source=share, and it plus a few fics under the "Danny Fenton Is Danielle "Dani" Phantom's Parent" tag put a rather angsty idea in my head.
To start this off, "D-Stabilized" plays out the same except for the ending. Instead of allowing Ellie to go off on her own again afterwards, Danny insists she stay with him for a bit and spends that time making sure she's okay and just fussing over her.
And either because she's still a bit shaken over nearly becoming a puddle of lifeless goo like Vlad's other failed attempts, or simply enjoyed having someone dote on her, Ellie decides then and there that she's done with travelling and just wants to be with Danny.
Of course this comes with a few difficulties. Namely Danny keeping up with his other obligations while keeping Ellie safe and a secret from his parents. Yet they make it work, getting closer to the point of going from "cousins" to siblings in the process.
However, the more negative effects of that bond begin to show when Danny starts making connections with other heroes. Everything's fine at first, until the clone community gets involved.
It always starts and ends the same way. Phantom meets a hero associate's clone and in record time the two become friends. Then he introduces his clone friend to Phantasm and leaves to tend to some form of hero business, intending to give them time to get to know each other. Only to come back to news that they're no longer friends and his ex companion will only interact with him out of necessity or if Ellie's not around, their reasoning being that they're no longer willing to put up with Phantasm's dangerously hostile attitude towards them.
Naturally Danny didn't believe them. And why would he? Sure, his little sis could oftentimes be quite a handful. But she still got along just fine with practically everyone she met. So to label her as openly antagonistic? That's going too far.
That way of thinking is fully shattered after he takes one last stab at aligning with the CC by befriending Superboy. Aside from a few harsh glares Ellie seems to have no issue with Connor. That gives Danny hope that this friendship will actually hold unlike the last ones. Which completely crumbles into dust when he one day returns from helping Jazz unpack in her new Central City apartment.
What he comes back to is Phantasm and Superboy engaged in a not so friendly scuffle, Ellie yelling egregious threats of bodily harm while Connor did his best to fight back without causing too much damage, both sporting plenty of bruises.
Danny immediately snaps out of his horrified stupor to forcefully separate Ellie from Connor the moment she tries to phase her hand into his chest. Feeling hurt, confused, and devastated, all he can do while shielding Connor is ask why.
The answer he gets further breaks his heart as well as deeply pains Superboy, as Ellie tearfully shouted that she wouldn't sit around and wait for the closest and only thing she had for a dad to eventually decide she wasn't worth keeping and get rid of her for the better clone like Vlad did.
Having made three posts, one after another revolving around the Batman side of DC already, I was feeling quite hesitant in putting this up next. But since there's no rule against doing this, regarding the site and fandom etiquette, I'm just gonna throw caution to the wind and go ahead with it. That said, onto the actual ficlet.
During the aftermath of his umpteenth breakup with Kitty, Johnny 13 decides to stray from his usual playground and find somewhere else to blow off steam by messing around. At some point his aimless riding through the Ghost Zone brings him to an unfamiliar door being guarded by ghost ninjas. With Shadow acting as a distraction Johnny easily slips past them and gets through the door.
On the other side Johnny finds himself in some kind of underground base filled with the ghost ninja's living brethren, who automatically go on the attack once spotting him. Between tangling with the ridiculously dressed soldiers, trashing whatever he could in the area, and siccing Shadow on the servants that also happened to occupy this place, Johnny is having the time of his afterlife. Until what appears to be the head honcho shows up to spoil his fun.
It isn't long before Johnny recognizes him. This is the creepy grandpa of that snooty hero kid Phantom palled around with. What was the name again? Robby? Roland? Eh not important. The point is that Phantom, Raymond backing him up had warned him and several others to stay away from this guy and his domain if they ever went exploring outside of their normal borders.
And looking him over, Johnny sees no reason why he should heed that warning. It's just some old-timer with a sword. What threat could he possibly pose to a ghost like him? In fact, he's gonna take the uppity geezer on right now and earn himself bragging rights.
Meanwhile up in the Watchtower Danny is just winding down after his first outing as the newest member of the Justice League Dark, when a natural portal suddenly opens up in the floor and out of it comes Cujo along with a panicked and frenzied Shadow, urging him to follow them to wherever they just came from. Sensing it's imperative he act now Danny goes without question, Deadman tagging along as backup.
Upon reaching their destination, Danny and the others are met with a truly horrifying sight. Robin's grandfather, the quasi immortal known as Ra's Al Ghul is doubled over, pale and sweating heavily yet also looking younger than ever before(somewhere between Jason and Dick's age). When he weakly lifts his head, it's eyes similar to his own that looks back at Danny instead of the same emerald green as Robin's. But what really leaves the four ghosts rooted to the spot with fear is hearing Johnny's strained voice, filled to the brim with agony coming from Ra's mouth.
"Helll p, he's s u cking me dry. Can't... hol d out m uch longer"
One night Danny, having just recently moved into Gotham happens to run into the infamous Red Hood and promptly discovers the defender of Crime Alley is a rather sickly halfa. It's definitely not easy, but in time he manages to make the man aware of his condition and cajole him into accepting his help.
The ending results of that help are both good and bad. For Hood, and everyone else around him. Because while the pit madness is no longer a major issue as the pure ecto Danny gave slowly removes it from him, the whole cleansing process along with the huge power boost his body has yet to acclimate to takes a lot out of him.
To sum it up, Red Hood has become Gotham's most deadly narcoleptic. Because of his staunch refusal to take it easy like Danny advised him, his men along with the rest of the batclan are now steadfastly developing ulcers in their desperation to watch his back as they no longer trust him to handle anything alone.
Though it grates on him to no end Hood doesn't blame them, given how he's lost track of all the times he's passed out in the middle of a fight, show of intimidation, hell even a simple conversation.
Strangely enough, all this has led to him becoming more feared than ever. Turns out having the dangerous Crime Lord continuously nod off then wake up in the midst of threatening your life makes for an extremely harrowing experience.
A not so well known fact about Dash, not even certain family members are safe from his bullying and overall obnoxious attitude. Just ask Steph. As if having an abusive Riddler knockoff for a dad along with watching her mom struggle with addiction wasn't bad enough, there was her snotty dum-dum of a cousin kicking her while down concerning her home life every chance he got as well.
She hasn't seen the jerky numbskull ever since the day Crystal got her life back on track and put an end to the clearly unwanted family gettogethers. Which is why it's a little surprising when he one day calls her out of the blue, asking that she come to Amity Park as he wanted to "make amends" for his past mistreatment and start over.
Steph isn't fooled for one second but goes anyway, purely out of curiosity. Once there it's painfully obvious that not only has Dash not changed in the slightest but also that his actual intentions were far from noble. Of course he didn't actually care about reconciling, he was only playing nice to worm his way into her good graces just because of her relationship with the Waynes.
Steph's first thought is to wipe that smirk off his stupid looking face for good while publicly disowning him as she watches him from afar, bragging about how his future will be cemented after he persuades her to invite him to the latest gala. But when he ceases his incessant boasting to harass the potential Wayne adoptee that randomly appeared, she instantly gets a better idea.
The next few minutes after she eventually approaches him and the A-listers are almost literally excruciating. Bruce would be so proud of how well her poker face held up while the dummy she was cursed to share blood with just shamelessly showed her off and sucked up to her, not even bothering to release his victim the entire time, before finally getting to the point.
It's all worth it in the end, seeing all that smugness fly right out the window and be replaced with soul crushing disbelief as she "regretfully" informed him that she couldn't make him her plus-one as she already had one, before freeing the guy he had labeled "his favorite punching bag" from the headlock he had trapped him in during his nauseating butt-kissing session. Then she walks away holding his hand, right after telling Dash to never call her again then taking out her phone to snap a picture of his hanging jaw.
The pit madness that's plagued Tim ever since his departure from the LOA is finally gone. And it's all thanks to his replacement's little brother's girlfriend. Unfortunately, their relationship is still no better than it was after that bloody altercation at Titans Tower.
Because now Jason's gone from being disheartened over getting brutalized by the very Robin he idolized to wanting to put Tim six feet under a second time. And Tim has no idea why. Whenever he attempts to inquire about these "ghost rabies" that he apparently gave his girlfriend, the little twerp immediately becomes so deeply incensed and volatile you'd think the pit rage had moved on to him.
Roy and Jade in a "my girl cat/dog is stealing my man" situation. Only instead of a cat or a dog, it's Little Baby Woman Ellie that's taking up all Roy's free time and affection. Much to Jade's steadily growing annoyance.
The Batfam spent days waiting for Danny's first Tabloid. Each and every member of the family, official or unoffical, has had one made for them.
It was like a initiation at this point. You were finally seen as a part of the Wayne family when a tabloid is made. Especially if it mentions the Wayne name.
Everyone's excitement for it died the moment they read the title. All cheers and celebrations for the newfound member withered away into dust.
"New Wayne Family Friend, Danny Fenton Secretly Ghostly Hero Phantom!?"
It was go time after that. Everyone pulling every idea and possible favor they could cash in, to figure out how to spin this. Spin it in a way that the citizens of Gotham wouldn't give this reporter a second thought.
They hadn't expected for Danny to just lazily glance over it, laugh, and pretend it wasn't a problem. They definitely didn't expect the reason and excuse that the teen gave.
"Wes Weston? Of course, no one's gonna believe him, not with the stalking chargers and restraining orders."
The concern just left them for a moment, because thankfully this can all be brushed away by exposing the reporter's criminal history against Danny.
Commission for the lovely @imekitty! This is a scene from her fic Shadow Dancing which is really great and wonderful and all of you should read it! (alongside of all her other awesome stories)
âHey, you!â a voice called to Paulina from above her head as she jogged through the park.
A voice from above, that could only be one person.
She looked up to find her ghost boy flying above her, keeping up with her pace.
âDanny!â she panted out as she came to a stop. âWerenât we gonna meet up later? I thought you had a dentist appointment.â
âOh, I do, and Iâm already late. But real quickââ
Danny lowered himself just enough to give her a quick kiss on her forehead, his legs in the air above his head. He then flipped back into orientation and flew off ahead of her.
âLove you! See you later!â he called back before disappearing into ghostly invisibility.
Paulina was almost too breathless to continue jogging.
