OMG OMG OMG I JUST SAW THAT ITS OPEN AGAIN! ASKDKDMD
Do you write Dead in Main (Jason/Danny). If not, I would REALLY like to read about Fright Knight!Jason. Like, in the time when he was dead, Jason was taken in by Fright Knight and by that point Danny was already king. He basically becomes the successor of Fright Knight and becoming Danny's personal guard.
Since time is pretty wonky in the Infinite Realms, the sixth months he was still dead felt more like years to them. And then Jason is brought back and Danny's livid but when he finally finds Jason, he's slowly healing. Danny decides to let him enjoy his living life and just silently heals Jason whenever the pits get our of control.
And then fast forward and there's a ghost problem and the JL have to summon the ghost king for help. Jason's there with the bats and seeing Danny just jogs his memory and his instincts and fright Knight training kick in to recognize his beloved king.
I wanna right this myself but at the same time my brain isn't being nice to me 🥹.
The summons wasn't even complete before Jason felt his Loyalty Vow kick in. It was a rush of adrenaline, nearly addictive if he's honest, and in the next second, Jason falls to his knee, one hand over his chest while he bows his head. One of his fists reaches towards his waist while his other hand reaches to adjust a sword that is not there.
His fingers slam against his belt, causing him to flinch. It's an action born of pure habit, but he has no idea where he formed such a habit. Bruce never trained him with swords, and his time with the League of Assassins was mostly spent with slimmer swords he kept on his back. There really was no reason to expect an arming sword at his hip, and yet his body obviously believed there should be.
"Hood?" Someone asked, over the blowing wind and the odd music that was blaring from unknown locations.
He changed his entrance theme song. An amused voice whispers in Jason's head. It takes him a moment to realize it's his own voice, his own thoughts, and he isn't sure about who he is, but the thought feels right.
Just like this pose.
The music rises, setting an ambiance of a god appearing before the heroes, desperate for a miracle. It's interesting to Jason how the media often reflects life because that is exactly what is happening now. They are asking a god to step in and stop another god.
But while the one that's against the Justice League is known as an enemy, they don't show what this god would do. If it's whims will make them a foe or a friend. A few hours ago, when the idea was proposed, Jason had been uneasy about the idea that they may be getting someone stronger who was far worse than thier current issue. There was never a guarantee that higher beings would share the same moral sense or even consider human lives valuable.
He hated the idea that they needed to rely on something that could be much worse. But Jason was from Gotham, and almost everyone there hated magic and anything to do with the higher planes. There were enough psychotic unpredictable monsters in Gotham created by the human mind; they had no desire to see something that could snap and an entire block disappear before the screams could even start.
Jason had been one of the few who voted against the summons for that reason. But he understood the majority rule more than people knew. On the streets of Crime Alley, if there was ever an agreement, it was that when the people got together, nothing could stop them. He had to settle while the magic users set up the summons, grumbling under his breath and looming like the rest of his siblings.
Hilariously enough, the magic users seemed more nervous about the entire Bat Clan watching than about offending whoever they were calling upon. He even saw one of them- A hero from France working under the name Magie Noire- cast a protection spell against demons, while looking at them.
Tim, the little shit, responded by biting the air towards the Frenchman. Duke made the shadows grow around all the bats a second later, allowing only their narrow eyes to be visible.
Even the Sups couldn't see through the darkness that responded to the demihuman, which made those who didn't work with them often shiver. Then, because something is wrong with Duke, on a psychological level, the shadows swallow them whole, but not before letting them take the shape of screaming humans, stretched around the little corner the Bats claimed as their own.
Magie Noire actually whimpered before John Consitiine reached over and smacked the back of his head, reminding him to focus on the signals they were drawing.
Despite the disapproval, Jason had left the dark corner, stepping back into sight and ignoring anything or anyone as the summons went underway. He couldn't tell why he moved or why he fell to his knee, but everything about this felt right.
Even the amusement of the song choice he made, despite once calling it tacky-
Like a dam breaking, memories overflowed Jason's brain
He was practicing his swings in the training field. Around him, squires of different backgrounds were doing the same. Many were hopefuls from distant territories who had come for the knight selection of the royal guard.
Only the best of the best would be able to move on to serve His Majesty. Those who failed would be sent home in shame. Not everyone would pass the first round of the selection process, but that didn't mean the pressure wasn't high on those from smaller territories to succeed. These were ghosts that were born there, and thier people's survival depended on how much fondness the King had for them. Natural resources were scarce in the Realms.
Jason was a rare ghost. He didn't have a territory to call his own where he served the local lord, nor was he a wandering ghost that had nothing tying him down. He was a new ghost, just arrived after his brutal killing. The older ghosts promised him that his death would eventually fade, and the pain would seem like a bad dream until he could not remember it or his life.
But Jason remembers everything, and sometimes he wants nothing more than to leave the Realms and see Gotham again. But he could never find his way home as natural portals to the mortal world were more scarce than resources; instead, he wandered between territories, treated once more like a street kid.
Back in life, the only way Jason had managed to avoid homelessness was by securing Bruce Wayne's attention. In death, the only way to escape homelessness was to secure the Ghost King's.
"His Majesty is watching," One of the squires whispered, her glowing hands trembling around the hilt of her sword. Jason doesn't dare glance up at the castle, but he can feel the King's burning stare as he reviews all the knight hopefuls. In two days' time, the squire camp would be cut in half as people would be dismissed for consideration. In two days' time, the remaining would be allowed within the castle walls for the next round of selection.
Jason is sitting on his bed in the barracks, his three roommates preparing for bed around him, while he is flipping through his latest book. He hopes to get in at least three chapters before his exhausted body forces him to rest.
He's been a knight for about six months. Back home, that would have been six days, at least he thinks. One of his roommates swore up and down that he could calculate time warping in different realms and mortal worlds, but Jason knew he had never actually been to the mortal world, so there was some doubt about the accuracy.
Still, it was the best guess he had. By that point, he could not remember his death, which was something he was grateful for. But he did remember his love of reading.
His role as a knight wasn't as luxurious or as fulfilling as he thought it would be. Jason was low-ranking, with no money, no connections, and no territory to support him; he was only selected for his impressive display of combat knowledge. He figured he would at least be posted guarding a border, or even standing guard at a gate, from his time as Robin, but instead Jason was assigned manual labor alongside the castle stablehand, despite outranking him.
His roommates were in the same boat, as they were all as poor as he was, even if he was the only unclaimed ghost. One was a gardener, the other worked shifts in the laundry house, and the last was the library aide. Jason burned with jealousy over the library assignment, especially when the other knight didn't value books as he should. But at least the ghost was willing to bring Jason something to read, after catching on to his jealousy.
"Rare that," Piebs mumbled
"What?" Jason grouched back. Piebs was the one who worked in the laundryhouse and treated Jason the worst for his unclaimed status.
"Not often do you see someone who can read." Piebs shrugged, uncaring of Jason's glowing green eyes alight with rage. "Not just the Unclaimed. Most territories ghosts can't. Not unless your parents are nobles, were mortal once, or if one of those wandering ghosts comes through after a trip in the mortal world."
"Jason was a mortal once," Vredoct called out. The anthropomorphic dragon pulled his shirt over his head, getting it caught a bit on his spikes. Jason looks away, blushing slightly. The Realms was an odd place, and interspecies relationships were the norm, but he still found it a bit odd how he could find a dragon attractive. It must be the voice. Vredoct had a seductive voice, smooth, deep, and always slightly amused, speaking in a way that rang true to his noble status despite being the sixteenth son of a poor baron. "He's a new arrival, remember? Most mortals are taught to read from a young age."
"Oh, here we go again. Mr. Expert in Mortal lands. Are you going to calculate how long it's been since my mother died next and the year it's now in her past world?" The final roommate, Bor, cut in, waving his claws around in a mockery of Vredoct's accent. He was a gardener because his territory fell more into the plant-life section of the Realms. He was the son of a Past Mortal Ghost, which wasn't rare, but everyone loved talking about the mortal world. Jason would compare it to asking an astronaut about the moon who's walked on.
"Depends." Vredoct laughed, shaking his long red hair out of his face. "Where did she form, what species is she, and what is the size of her core output?"
Jason ignored the argument that followed, flipping the book back to the front. There he found the same name that had been inside every book he'd requested from Vredoct.
Danny Fenton.
He wonders if he will ever meet the ghost that shares the same interests as him. He had found notes on paper stuck between the book's pages, where Fenton had written out thoughts and comments on the book. Jason appreciated that he didn't actually write in the books.
A year later, Jason has moved up from stablehand. Vredoct had moved back home. His father had arranged a marriage for him that would bring the house some much-needed money, and the dragon had been quick to mention that Jason could read and was perfect to replace him.
He was overjoyed to no longer be shoveling horse manure and now shelving books that were from the largest library he's ever seen. Jason could spend all eternity here, since books were gathered from the start of all time, and varied from genres, cultures, and even some came from the mortal world.
He also met Danny Fenton. He was an aide who worked at the King's office, coming through the library to pick up references for the King. Danny and Jason were closer in age. He thought he wouldn't age while in the Realms, but thanks to his Unclaimed status, he was able to age, and the knowledge did freak him out a little.
Though it did mean dating wouldn't be as weird. Jason was glad because it meant he could flirt with Danny without finding it weird. Danny was also an Unclaimed ghost, which made icebreakers very easy, especially when they realized they were from the same mortal world, the same country, and the same time; the only difference was that Jason grew up in a different state than Danny.
It became a habit for the two to chatter for as long as they could between one browsing for books and the other shelving them. They find little corners to speak, usually about thier lives, the things they missed from Earth, and whatever they wanted in between. Those short conversations became the highlight of his day.
Jason already found himself turning his head whenever the door opened.
Jason is sitting on a bed, nervously looking over his shoulder at Danny's slumbering form. It's been three years since his death; he would be eighteen, and he has grown to that age. He had taken the casual flirting in the library to another level, and he didn't mean inviting Danny to watch him at mandatory knight training.
That was the date that showed how serious they were. Most knights who had partners made things official at the mandatory training days, where those who were given jobs that weren't the typical position of a knight could show off.
He had done something different with Danny. It wasn't that Jason didn't want anything serious; he just didn't think the timing was right. He couldn't lie that the idea of someday making it back to Gotham didn't linger in his mind, but much like reaching the moon without a rocket ship, it was a far-off dream.
Just not one he was ready to wake up from.
Danny seemed alright with that, because his own role in the King's court was daunting and time-consuming. He admitted that he just wouldn't have the time to be a boyfriend. The most that they could be was lovers with no strings attached.
He had allowed the ghost to seduce him and bring him back to his room. The night before, Jason had been preoccupied and hadn't taken in his surroundings, but in the morning he noticed things he had missed.
Danny didn't live in servant chambers. He had a noble's room. Jason could tell that much by the sigils of the King placed everywhere. He wasn't just an aide in the King's office; Danny was likely even part of the royal family.
And Jason had just accepted being in a purely adult relationship with him.
"Today was exhausting," Danny complains, pressing his face into Jason's lap. The two are in thier private room, having requested it after a year of their no-strings relationship, which was full of so many strings that Jason could have opened a yarn store.
He didn't mean for that to happen, but at least Danny also made the mistake. They held hands in the hallway, spent lunch breaks together, went on dates in and out of the castle when thier schedules aligned, and both were exclusive with one another despite having agreed they didn't have to.
Honestly, the whole castle knew that Jason was Danny's boyfriend long before they decided to be official. Rumors started up fast, some speculating that a noble like Danny was only playing with an Unclaimed, while others whispered that it was an ambitious Unclaimed attempting to move up in the world by any means necessary.
It was always fun to watch Danny crush those gossip mongers by confronting them and loudly declaring himself an Unclaimed as well. Not that it helped much since everyone had this fixed idea that an Unclaimed could never be a noble, which was what Danny obviously was.
Jason didn't know Danny's official ranking. No one did.
His boyfriend had high clearance and moved through the inner castle where few were allowed in, but he wasn't allowed to talk about it. Still, he chose to give up his far subpar lodging to move in with Jason, who was able to move up in rank and was now back on the field fighting. He will be honest, he missed the library, but it was nicer to work as an actual knight because he had more privileges and could stand next to Danny better.
He was now part of the strong squad of the Royal Guard. Jason was only a few months away from being assigned as a private guard to a high-ranking noble. He'll be someone important again.
"The council on your ass again?" Jason asked, threading his hand through Danny's white glowing hair. His lover makes a small purr, letting him know that Jason is doing the right thing to comfort him
"I sometimes wish I could poke those floating eyes. Throw some sand into them." Danny groans, and Jason laughs
"Careful. You might be marked for high treason. The King adores those Observants"
Danny turned to stare up at him with one eye, a complex emotion swirling in his iris before he laughed. "The King does not."
Danny looks up from his desk, a laugh bubbling from his lips. "My dashing, brave, and handsome knight! Why are you bowing like a regular knight? You are a noble now, darling"
Jason is still bent down, but he allows his eyes to look at his lover, who always finds it amusing that he has taken his assignment as the King's guard so seriously.
He had no idea that his lover was the actual ruler he had been trying to impress since he found himself on the castle grounds, but in high sight, he should have noticed. No one told Danny no.
No request was ever denied, no matter how out of policy it was. Instead, Danny had ensured he rose quickly through the ranks, not allowing discrimination against Unclaimed ghosts to get in his way. It was a little-known fact that the Ghost King was sensed but rarely seen, because he powered the entire Realms, ruling over it like an unseen god.
Only the most trusted of subjects knew the face of the King. And Jason was the only one who knew the King in private moments.
He was the royal guard to the Ghost King, who was also his lover for the past two years. After five long years of death, Jason was finally happy to be a ghost and accepted his place in his reality
He was brought back to life the day after proposing to Danny
The memories settled just as Danny stepped into the mortal world, smiling at him through some tears. Jason feels joy that he hadn't felt since he was brought back to life bloom in his chest.
As if someone had given him the other part of his missing soul back
I have no idea how I'd actually turn it into a story plot, but I've just had the wretched idea that if Jack and Maddie found out that Vlad got Danny pregnant, there's gotta be some world in which they decide that the correct approach there is to make Danny marry Vlad for the sake of 'giving the baby a proper family'.
I give it two months before some combination of Sam, Tucker, Wes, and Valerie decide they're pulling a Goodbye Earl.
Jason meets the newest member of the Justice League, who Batman apparently had some concerns over accepting. Not least of which was his husband, who vanished under mysterious circumstances and left Danny and his young daughter as the only inheritors of a vast fortune. Which, y'know. Bruce found a little Sus.
Jason mentally runs the numbers on Danny's age, Vlad's age, and the daughter's age. He then just flat-out asks Danny if he killed Vlad. Danny just shrugs, and says 'I was tired of wearing long sleeves all the time'. Jason hears that, nods, and says that if Danny ever needs help with anything else on that subject to call him up.
Batman is not entirely pleased with the resolution. But like- He's not going to tell Danny he should have just tolerated abuse and marital rape. He is however, extremely alarmed when Jason apparently finds Danny's attitude toward mistreatment attractive. Jason, he killed his last husband. Yes, I know you wouldn't act like Vlad, but still maybe this isn't a good- Okay, this is going there. Oh dear.
In Amity Park, where spectral activity had always been more intense than in other places characterized by such phenomena, the representatives and explorers appointed by the government, under the guidance of the Fentons, attempted to deploy a containment network for the unknown entities that had become recurrent in the area over the past few years.
The initial idea was simple: treat ghosts as threats to human security. After all, the attacks and incidents in which they were involved showed that they lacked rational thought when dealing with humans. Devoid of empathy, feelings, or a defined moral compass, ghosts acted without remorse in many of the cases documented by the Fentons and in collaboration with the follow-up investigations carried out by the GIW.
Thus, the installation of containment devices in Amity Park, the epicenter of the disaster, was carried out. The belief was that this would prevent a massive expansion to other populated areas. Dr. Fenton, along with her husband’s support, was assigned to work on the project in collaboration with several GIW delegates.
But what seemed like an organized plan to protect the city quickly turned into a battlefield. The ghosts, feeling hunted and trapped, began to grow more volatile in their appearances.
Instead of containing them, the repression only fueled the violence. The situation escalated when the echoes of this confrontation spread, reaching other entities, other areas.
The government named it: Persistent Ectoplasmic Interference.
The Justice League heard part of the matter, and although they did not interfere directly, they kept monitoring everything and investigating through their own means. Their responsibilities were many, and their enemies more tangible. But that didn’t mean they were waiting to be caught off guard.
They didn’t break the boundaries set by the government and its management of the situation, but in the shadows, they tracked and gathered every relevant piece of information.
When spectral activity began to touch the borders of the cities defended by several league members — Central City, Star City, Metropolis — the government delegates and involved branches found it difficult to keep the heroes out of the matter.
Spontaneous portals, invisible presences, energy disturbances that even the Lanterns could not filter. The so-called ‘ghosts’ didn’t cause turmoil or disasters as predicted in the records obtained. At least not indiscriminately. They had specific zones, places, sites to attack.
The heroes found it difficult to try to stop them. Even with the Fenton technology that Batman, Cyborg, Flash (Wally West), and Red Robin had adapted to fight them.
It was then that Danny Nightingale, ex-Fenton, appeared before them.
Danny offered reports. Dimensional maps, ghost classifications, containment protocols without harm. Technology that surpassed that of his parents, from whom he seemed distant. According to him, his thoughts on ghosts were vastly different. To him and his older sister, their parents were too caught up in their opinions to see beyond their partial research. And those who sponsored and supported them were even more so.
With his collaboration with the League, the young man wanted to prove that yes: some ghosts were hostile. But many more simply existed. And that, he said, was not a crime.
The League accepted his help. Or so he thought.
But where Danny saw understanding, they saw patterns. Patterns that could be coded. Predicted. And controlled.
Thus, the Rehousing Project was born. Not an offensive, but a “protection strategy.” Its mission was clear: to identify spectral entities not recognized by dimensional continuity, neutralize those that affected the human environment, and isolate all those that escaped the boundaries of the “comprehensible.”
Neither Deadman nor Greta were mentioned in the documents. Because they were “different beings.” Singular souls trapped in this world after being unable to transcend to the proper rest, whether through magic or dark arts. Not like the erratic specters who continued causing havoc without reasoning or understanding the fragility of cities and those who inhabited them.
And when Ember McLain, the ghost of what the GIW categorized as an amplified lament, exploded during a concert, causing significant emotional imbalance among the participants, the problem escalated even further.
Ember was overwhelmed by what was happening to her kind, many of her loved ones had disappeared. They had rescued many, but not all were found. So, when she felt the fear, the rejection, the contempt burning her throat — she used her gift, out of desperation. Not to dominate. But to make them listen. To make them feel.
But when she projected her voice onto the human minds, pushing emotions to the surface of thousands of people… she only reinforced their fears. And the decision was unanimous: one could not trust beings that felt so differently.
That day, most of the heroes were convinced that ghosts were not living beings with complex emotions.
They were anomalies. Reactions. Echoes with teeth.
And that same day, Danny stopped being the hero ally.
So Billy is 17, doesn’t matter if he’s homeless or adopted, but the League or his family still don’t know that he Captain Marvel.
One day, he gets caught in a summon.
The summoning turns out to be a marriage contract. Billy is now married to the eldritch ghost king. Who was also not happy.
After sending the cultist to hell, the ghost king transforms into a teenager. Danny Fenton
Huh, he could work with this. Billy transforms as well.
They start working together to find a way to break off the marriage. There isn’t one. They are stuck together. And because both of them have enemies, they can’t exactly tell people that they’re married
Eventually, they learn to like each more than friends. One day, Marvel is in a meeting and someone asks him what he’s doing after work,
Marvel: oh! I’m watching that new horror movie with my husband :))
Leaguers: ….
Marvel: he was so excited to see it I couldn’t say no!
Leaguers: you’re married???
Marvel: … it was supposed to be a secret… shit…
Shenanigans
- marvel is getting his butt whipped by a new villain, Danny shows up as elderitch monster (“not my husband, bitch!”)
- JLA holiday party? Billy brings elderitch Danny
- Dani pops up:
Dani: hiya papa!!
Marvel: Dani! What are you doing here?
Dani: just stopping by to see my papa :))
Marvel: aww :))
Leaguers: aww….?
-when Billy identify is revealed;
Leaguer: I can’t believe you made up a fake husband!
In the Danny is Damian’s brother trope what if instead of Damian not telling the family about Danny wasn’t because of grief or shame or any of the more commonly used reasons for his silence. What if it was because he heard about how his father talked about Jason after his death, focusing and exaggerating the negative. That he was violent, angry, never listened to orders but in some iterations and popular fanon is that Jason was a cheerful and studious Robin.
What if while compiling info and researching the former robins during his tumultuous introduction he saw what kind of robin Jason was, good with kids and victims. Talking about his favorite books while on patrol and similar. Reminding Damian of his most Beloved brother.
Then he finds out about how Bruce talked about Jason after he died. Using him as an example as what not to do, erasing his good traits and just using him as a cautionary tale of what happens when you don’t follow orders. Just like what Ra’s said about Danny.
So he didn’t tell the family, not out of guilt or grief. But because his father stripped away Jason’s positive traits after death, the son he chose, adopted and loved. Who when he failed because he was a child led astray by his mother. What would he do to his brother, who loved the stars and excelled in stealth, who was quite in his kills but had no lust for killing.
Whether or not Bruce would do this to Danny’s memory doesn’t matter. B’s actions are gonna affect how Damian views his father even years after the initial actions. Because Damian will protect his brothers memory from being twisted even by their father.
This!!! That’s could be a reason as to why Damian is so continuously antagonistic to Tim! But I have more thoughts now!!!!
————
“Todd how do you not find it distasteful?”
Jason looked up from his book at the kid who hadn’t even looked at him since arriving, “what do I not find ‘distasteful’?”
“How this farce of a ‘family’ treats the memory of the dead? You may have been resurrected, but their disrespect of your past even still is heinous.”
Marking the page and setting the book down on his lap, Jason took a deep breath willing the Lazarus pit to the back of his head. What ever bothered the kid so much to come to him out of anyone in the manor must mean something, “What are you on about kid?”
“Drake,” Damian spat like it was nasty on his toung, “ spoke of you as if you were some usurper to the greatness of Grayson, that you were a horrible Robin. How Father,” he spoke the title with the same amount of venom, “acted as if you were some delinquent he was forced to leash, who died during an attempt on your life at the hands of your birth mother and a mad man. How they treat you death as temporary it may have been as your fault for being a failure instead of…” Damian paused.
If Jason didn’t know how prideful Damian was how closed off he was he would think Damian was holding back tears.
“Instead of a child trusting his mother to do right by him.”
Oh shit those were tears. Damian and him had hardly interacted for the month Damian was here. What made Damian care so much about someone he didn’t know… unless it wasn’t about Jason or at least not entirely.
Trying to sound as soft and understanding as he could Jason asked, “Damian what is this really about? You were raised by Ra’s and Talia I doubt they taught you about respecting the dead. So what are you actually talking about?”
Damian seemed to pause emotions flickering across his face as he thought about what he was going to say.
“Swear on your life that what I say will never be told to anyone else.”
Well not what Jason was expecting but like hell he was gonna discourage the kid from actually expressing himself. “I swear on my life Damian, nothing will leave this room and it’ll stay between us.”
Damian nodded and stiffly took a seat on an armchair near the couch Jason was sitting on.
It took Damian a moment to start speaking, in a quiet voice so different from the one he used as he declared himself the blood son, “I had a twin brother-“
No other sentece could metaphorically knock Jason on his ass like that one did.
“-the two of us were given the honor of watching grandfather rejuvenate himself in the Lazarus Pit, mother… Danyal… and I were farther away from the pits incase grandfather resurfaced with madness. He came out screaming, he killed the servants at the edge of the pit then came at us. Guards attempted to pull the three of us back but grandfather already had Danyal by the throat. I tried to get to him but the guards held me back, and I watched. I watched as He held him up and choked him before slamming him the the floor. And began beating him.
“I don’t know how long it took for grandfather to stop. For Danyal to stop fighting back. And mother did nothing. Just watched with indifference. Grandfather left to clean himself of the blood. Mother put my brother in the pit to heal him. He sank into the water.
He didn’t come back out.”
Jason and Damian sat in silence.
“Grandfather said he was weak, that he couldn’t fight back against him was disgraceful, that the pit took as a sacrifice, so at least he was useful. Mother said he cared too much about his flights of fancy than training, that he was unfocused, and wouldn’t have survived much longer, he was a failure in every aspect and that I should be nothing like him.
“But he learned faster than I was. He was creative, solving problems quicker and in a different fashion each time, he loved the stars and we would climb to the rooftops together and he would tell me the stories of the stars, he gave scraps of meat to the vultures he encountered on the roofs. He knew more languages than I do. He could hide in the shadows better than anyone I knew, he killed without mercy but was never casually violent. In quiet moments he was gentle, gentle to the birds at are window, gentle with me. He excelled at everything he did and Mother wiped it all away, Grandfather said he was undeserving of the Al Ghul name.”
Jason connected the dots the way Bruce, Dick, and everyone else treated him and his death.
Only useful as a sacrifice to the pits.
A soldier to Batman’s crusade.
Jason moved to crouch in front of where Damian sat. Telegraphing his movements as he pulled Damian into his lap.
“Your brother, Danyal, right? He sounds wonderful.”
Damian sobbed, a quiet strangled sound proceeded by ugly wet ones into Jason’s chest.
Damian was afraid that the rest of the bats would do the same thing that Ra’s and Talia did, the something the bats did to Jason.
“Thank you for telling me Damian. I won’t tell anyone about Danyal but if you ever want to talk about him more I would be honored to listen.”
In the Danny is Damian’s brother trope what if instead of Damian not telling the family about Danny wasn’t because of grief or shame or any of the more commonly used reasons for his silence. What if it was because he heard about how his father talked about Jason after his death, focusing and exaggerating the negative. That he was violent, angry, never listened to orders but in some iterations and popular fanon is that Jason was a cheerful and studious Robin.
What if while compiling info and researching the former robins during his tumultuous introduction he saw what kind of robin Jason was, good with kids and victims. Talking about his favorite books while on patrol and similar. Reminding Damian of his most Beloved brother.
Then he finds out about how Bruce talked about Jason after he died. Using him as an example as what not to do, erasing his good traits and just using him as a cautionary tale of what happens when you don’t follow orders. Just like what Ra’s said about Danny.
So he didn’t tell the family, not out of guilt or grief. But because his father stripped away Jason’s positive traits after death, the son he chose, adopted and loved. Who when he failed because he was a child led astray by his mother. What would he do to his brother, who loved the stars and excelled in stealth, who was quite in his kills but had no lust for killing.
Whether or not Bruce would do this to Danny’s memory doesn’t matter. B’s actions are gonna affect how Damian views his father even years after the initial actions. Because Damian will protect his brothers memory from being twisted even by their father.
Danny's halfa status gets discovered by his parents and they go full trigger-happy on him. He barely manages to escape, but he is severly wounded still. He's sixteen.
Dani (or Elle or however you wanna call her) finds him by chance (oh nononono Clockwork had nothing to do with this, wink wink) and yoinks him up to bring him somewhere safe. She's a little distracted, so she doesn't notice when she runs -or, well, flies- into a house. Literally. (nop definitely not Clocky's fault)
John Constantine nearly has a heart attack when two fucking ectoplasmic ghosts, the most solid, most radioactive, strongest, most destructive fucking ghosts crash through his window and land right in front of him. For some reason, the House of Mistery hasn't even cursed them despite being uninvited. He's like "welp, guess I'll die, but I ain't going down without a fight" until Dani starts crying and begging for him to help her brother. Then he's panicking because holy fuck these are kids, there's a bleeding dead child in his house.
Then Dani de-transforms and Danny's trandformation breaks as he falls unconcious and holy fuck now there's two very alive kids who used to be dead like, a minute ago and fucking shit that's a lot of blood.
So Constantine patches Danny up and Dani tells them they've got nowhere to go. She's a clone with noo family except for Danny and, well, his parents are the ones that almost make him go from half-dead to fully dead. On a whim, John decides fuck it and lets them stay at his house however long they need to. The House of Mistery is really fucking big after all nd it's already full of monsters and shit, what's two more ghosts to haunt it?
So they spend time together. Shennanigans ensue and a pranking war or two happen at some point. Those fuckers cause him so much trouble he's sure if he hadn't tricked his way into inmortaality he would be getting gray hairs.
Then, at some point, the ghost siblings do something that's incredibly fucking stupid like open up a book of spells constantine hadn't taught them yet and going ballistic through the house, chasing monsters and playing with literal fire. He fixes whatever nonsense situation they'd gotten themselves in (since when was he the one to fix other people's problems?) and scolds them for being dumb and irresponsible when he hits that oh in italics moment and realizes oh shit, I'm a father now.
He scoops them both up in an embrace and tells them thay could have gotten hurt and they both go oh shit, we have a father now.
Basically their dinamic doesn't change, except Dani and Danny call him dad sometimes. They talk about life and death and dying when he finds out they don't have a grave, not even a cenotaph!
The Phantom duo hadn't really thought it was that important. Sure, they were half-dead, but not all the way, why would they need a grave? They didn't even have a body to bury!
But their dad, with his magic, makes them each a gravestone anyway. He puts their names in it, on Danny's he puts his date of birth and death when he was 14, and on Dani's he puts the day she was created and the day she fell through his window.
"Why that day?" she asks. "I was already dead then."
"You were born dead. The dates on a grave are to mark a person's journey and tell their tale. I put the day yoour journey started, and the day it enden, when you came here to rest."
And that was that. He put their graves on the house's prettiest spot on the garden. He placed flowers and lit up candles on them. He put protections on them so nothing would be able to harm them.
Danny and Dani felt lighter, as if a weight they didn't know they carried suddently lifted. Their bodies filled with warmth and love everytime their dad left flowers on their cenotaphs or they left them for each other. They were thankfull for them now.
Meanwhile, the JL and the JL Dark were both getting worried. Sure, Constantine was always sectretive and distant, but this was already excessive. He barely picked any calls, and when he did he barely talked and sounded incredibly tired (Dani and Danny's fault). When they had a meeting, he looked like death warmed over. Tired, disheveled and depressed (damn he missed the little shits, he couldn't wait until the meeting was over to get back home) and he always got a longing look every time he saw one of them with their protegés (he really misses his kids, damn he's got it bad for them). This has been going on for a few months and he's only getting worse.
So they ask to go visit him. Y'know, to go check on him. Just to see if he was okay. Constantine's annoyed but his kids convince him to let his friends visit him. They don't want to be seen by them (they're kinda scared of strangers) but they think their dad should hang out with his co-workers. It's not healthy to be cooped up in the house, even they get visits from Sam and Tucker!
So the JLD came to the House of Mistery. They were just catching up a bit when some magic fuckery happens and somehow they end up on the gardens outside the house (which is really just some grass and wildflowers John calls a garden). Constantine tells them to stay there untill he comes back from fixing whatever the fuck that was.
Of course, they don't stand still. They go fuck arround the "garden" while they wait for him to get back, and they come across two tombstones. Their blood runs cold when they read the names.
Daniel and Danielle Constantine.
Daniel had been dead for two years, but he was only fourteen. Danielle had been born a month or two after Daniel had, so whoever their mother was had been already pregnant when Daniel died. The girl, just two years old, had died very recently. She died just when Constantine had started to act strange.
Their friend was grieving his kids. Fuck, they didn't even know John was a father! Where was the mother? Was he married? Why didn't he tell them? Was the mother dead? Why wasn't she burried there, then? Had she left? Was their friend grieving alone?
They got back to where their companion told them to wait in. Now they understood why he didn't want them snooping arround. They decided to help their friend however they could.
jason: alright timmy it's time for your 60 seconds of nerd
y/n: what?
jason: tim gets 60 seconds a day to nerd out while i pretend to be interested it's surprisingly beneficial for both of us. go tim
tim:wellifyouthinkaboutiteverythingisprovablemathematicallysoessentiallyeverythingismathbutthatmeanstheresawayto *INTENSE DEEP BREATH* computeemotionslikewearealljustbinarycodehowcrazyisthathappinessisjustzerosandoneslikeokaygetthi-
Things the Batfam has absolutely done in quarantine
Dick has made them all do a full on High School Musical marathon. Tim helped him decorate the screening room with Wildcat colours and posters of Zac Efron everywhere (a la A Very Potter Musical).
Jason and Damian have created their own strange version of a book club. They sit in the library and read the same books at the same time, but they don't speak to each other while reading or about the books after the fact.
Tim has actually been able to sleep for more than four hours in a row since patrol is only limited to extreme emergencies (Arkham or Blackgate breakouts). He now goes to bed at midnight and sleeps until noon. He hasn't gotten out of his pyjamas since March.
Cass is spending her days bingeing Netflix with all of Damian's pets who have grown attached to her since she's always home with them now. Damian always ends up joining them since he wants to spend time with his pets (and his sister even if he won't admit it).
Alfred has become the king of all stress bakers. He's made everything he's always wanted to try but never got around to. Every week he makes a batch of chocolate chip cookies on top of all his other baking. Jason helps him out with this most of the time and the two of them are often found in the kitchen with Jason's Spotify playlist cranked up.
Dick has taken to doing gymnastics everywhere in the house to get out his energy. He's sliding down the bannister, doing back handsprings to go the bathroom when he gets off the couch, using the chandeliers to propel himself through the air, cartwheeling up and down the hallways of the manor. Basically, now that he's home full time, he's turned back into his sixteen year old self and he hates it.
Bruce is going insane. He's getting more and more gray hair and the salons are closed so he can't get it dyed. Being home with all of his children at once was something he had always wished for and now that it's his reality, he realises to be careful what he wishes for. The boys are fighting one minute and getting along the next, Dick is breaking the furniture everywhere he turns, he's actually sick of baked goods, and he's trying to help Damian with his homework and yelling "how can they change math?! It's math!"
Every day Tim thinks that he's finally going to be productive and get everything done that he didn't have time for. Every day Tim is proven wrong and the next thing he knows it's already midnight and too late to do anything anyway. Instead he finds himself rewatching his old favourite shows on Netflix from the very beginning.
Tim is basically "I Got NO Sleep Last Night" by CollegeHumor when talking to the rogues.
We interrupt your regularly scheduled programming to bring you one of the best asks I’ve ever received, and the result:
(Watch the original here)
[Poison Ivy and Scarecrow, crouching outside a medical lab that specialises in plant research]
Poison Ivy [to Scarecrow]: So, we break in very carefully, only take what we came for, turn ourselves into the police, and then… [smashes window] Just kidding!
[both laugh as they enter the lab]
Scarecrow: We don’t play by your rules, motherfucker!
[Red Robin swings in behind them, looking somewhat worse for wear]
Tim [wearily]: Hey guys…
Scarecrow: You okay, Red Robin? You look a little–
Tim: –Tired? I am, I got no sleep last night.
Poison Ivy [half-heartedly]: …Sorry?
Tim [pouring himself a cup of coffee from the lab’s coffee-maker]: THANK YOU. Ugh. I mean it’s like, I’m gonna to need this whole pot to get through patrol.
Scarecrow [firmly]: We can’t listen to you tell a story about how you didn’t get any sleep. You don’t deserve anything for that.
Poison Ivy: It’s like the most boring conversation imaginable.
Tim [putting a lid on his paper cup]: No, but listen, okay? I’m starting my bedtime routine, nothing crazy, brushing my teeth et cetera and I get into bed. It’s just before midnight and I cannot get comfortable.
Scarecrow [getting angry]: That’s enough!
Tim: I don’t know what it is…
Poison Ivy: If you don’t shut up, I’m going to beat your ass.
Tim [getting passionate and waving his arms]: The thing is, its not like cramps or like muscle stuff. It’s just uncomfortable? Does that make any sense?
Poison Ivy [stands, red-faced and stalks towards Tim]: That’s it!
[Tim continues, unperturbed and dodges Poison Ivy’s kicks and punches while holding his coffee]
Tim: Eventually I’m like, okay, let’s just try the right side. And as I’m finally relaxing, boom. Text message.
[bones crunch as Tim holds Poison Ivy in a one-handed wristlock. She cries out in pain and Tim keeps talking over her]
Tim: I forgot to put my phone on Do Not Disturb!
[Scarecrow yells and attacks Tim, throwing punches that are easily dodged]
Tim: It’s a group thread. [Scarecrow tries choking him] It’s like Nightwing trying to get us all to hang out on a Wednesday night. [Tim manoeuvres his coffee out of the way without spilling it and pushes Scarecrow away] Sorry guys, you know. [punches Scarecrow in the throat] I have school in the morning.
Poison Ivy [grabs a broom and swings it at him]: You know, a lot of people don’t get a full night’s sleep, Red Robin, they just fucking DEAL WITH IT!
Tim [takes the broom and hands Pam his coffee]: And the worst part is, [jabs Scarecrow in the stomach] when I saw my phone I see what time it is.
[jabs Pam in the stomach with the broom and catches the coffee that flies out of her hand, getting worked up]
Tim: It’s 12:45. I’m full of dread at this point!
[Scarecrow smashes a bottle against a table and attacks Tim with it]
Tim: I get up and I get a warm glass of milk, [whacks Scarecrow with the broom] a melatonin, [spins around and takes out Poison Ivy] and I say to myself– oh, this is yours by the way [tosses the broom on top of Ivy on the floor]– I say to myself: [stabs Scarecrow in the leg with his own bottle, he screams in agony] Just chill! You know, sleep will come to you.
Poison Ivy: Everyone, Red Robin’s recounting how he didn’t get enough sleep last night.
Tim: So, I’m back in bed. I put on Bones, a show that I have zero investment in… and you know I’m almost sure it’ll put me to sleep.
Harley Quinn [suddenly shows up wielding a baseball bat]: Get him!
[Tim sets down his coffee, yawning as a host of Rogues and their lackeys suddenly break into the building, shouting.]
Tim [takes out one of the thugs and continues to monologue as they surround him]: Something’s going on with patrol tonight. You know, it feels like these villains are popping. It’s like if CSI were a little more charming, and a little more fun, does that make any sense? Anyway…”
[Tim starts taking them out with his bo staff as he rolls around the floor]
Tim: Two hours in, and I’m like to myself, what are you doing? You’ve gotta be up in like, four hours.
Tim [jumps up brandishing his staff]: And at that point, I’m up.
[groans from injured rogues that lay splayed about on the ground. Tim lets out a small scoff as he surveys them, picking up his cup of coffee]
Tim: Geez, wish I could sleep at work. [slurps coffee]
