#bad parent jack and Maddie
Explore tagged Tumblr posts
thyvora · 1 day ago
Text
This thought came to me when I was trying to sleep and it kept me up so I had to write it. I’ve seen so many Dc x Dp crossover but never one where Dick and Barbara are Danny parents alternate versions so I figured I write it. Also this is a revealed that went wrong.
———
Danny Fenton’s life falls apart after the truth gets out — not just about being half-ghost, but everything. Amity Park turns on him. The GIW and his parents come crashing in. Jazz telling him to run, and he listens.
He escapes through the Ghost Zone, hoping for a safe place to regroup.
Instead, he crashes into another reality — Gotham.
———
The rooftop cracked under the weight of the portal’s collapse.
Nightwing landed with escrima sticks already drawn, eyes narrowed at the point of impact. Debris scattered. Something had come through.
Then—movement.
A boy staggered out of the smoke.
Black hair. Bright blue eyes. Pale. Blood soaked suit clinging to him like a second skin. He looked terrified — and familiar. Too familiar.
Nightwing took one cautious step forward.
“Hey. You okay, kid?”
Danny looked up.
And froze.
His eyes went wide, panic sharp and immediate. For a heartbeat, they just stared at each other. Then something cracked behind Danny’s gaze — recognition, heartbreak, fear.
He didn’t answer. He just turned invisible.
“Wait—!”
Too late. He vanished.
Nightwing was left alone with the faint trace of blood still glowing on the rooftop, heart pounding like he’d just watched something slip through his fingers.
He didn’t know that boy.
———
When Nightwing went to the Cave, he said nothing lost in his thought — just dropped the small sample of blood into Tim’s hands.
Tim ran the test. The results processed fast.
Too fast.
Tim frowned. “So. Uh… you might want to sit down.”
Dick spoke up for the first time he entered. “What is it?
Tim gestured to the screen. “Blood sample came back human…but with Lazarus water in it.”
Jason blinked. “So… the kid died and got brought back with the Lazarus Pit? Happens all the time. Hey, look at me—I was brought back to life because of it.”
“That’s not the weird part.” Tim murmured. “In his blood it was stabilized. Balanced. His blood is saturated with it. It’s not corrupting him — I don’t even know what going on — Like his body was built for it.”
Silence
“But that’s not even the weird part.”
The monitor flickered as it loaded the second half of the report. Two genetic matches lit up on-screen:
PARENTAL GENETIC MATCH FOUND
Richard. Grayson and Barbara. Gordon
Dick stared at it like it might blink out of existence if he looked too hard.
Everyone in the Batfam assumes the obvious.
Jason frowned, eyes sharp. “So someone made a cloned of dickwing and spliced in Babs’ DNA? That’s dark, even for Gotham.”
Tim frowned. “If CADMUS is involved, it’s bad news. They never stop.”
Damian: “We should have incinerated that lab when we had the chance.”
Dick presses a hand to his chest and whispers, “No.”
Jason raised an eyebrow. “What??”
Dick’s gaze hardened. “I think he’s my son somehow, not a cloned because even before the results, when I saw that boy on the rooftop, for that split second — it felt him my hearts stuttered. Like my body recognized something my minds couldn’t name yet.”
The whole batfam is silent.
Tim, staring hard at the data: “If he’s a clone, he’s… weirdly clean. There’s none of the degradation markers, no artificial telomere tampering, no lab-grown sequences. This is full-genome, natural structure. Like—like a real person.”
Dick’s voice was hoarse. “He saw me and ran.”
Jason scoffed. “Can’t blame him. I’d run too if I saw a weird younger version of my dad who didn’t remember me.”
So now the Batfam is hunting down Dick and Barbara kid across Gotham.
185 notes · View notes
corkinavoid · 1 month ago
Text
DPxDC It's Complicated
We've all seen the 'we have your son' trope done with both Bruce and Batman, but I've been thinking about it, and, hear me out, let's give it more flavor.
Bruce gets a call, and it's the usual 'we have your son, follow out orders or he dies', but the orders are not money. It's 'find us this other kid, and we'll trade your child for him'.
While that is an unusual demand, there's another thing: the child on the picture that the kidnappers sent Bruce looks exactly like Damian, sans the eye color. And he's smiling, but that's irrelevant right now. A clone? A decoy? A fake?
Oracle runs a face recognition and finds out that the kid's name is Daniel Fenton, and the record says he's been dead for two months now, buried in the local cemetery of Amity Park, Illinois. Have the kidnappers gone mad with grief? But, wait, there are several 'missing' reports that have been filed after the boy's death, submitted by Jasmine Fenton — the kid's sister — and Vlad Masters, the town's mayor? What does he have to do with the kid?
Meanwhile, Tim is sitting tied up in some warehouse, surrounded by Vlad and a dozen of his carbon copies. Is this man some kind of a meta with duplicating abilities? Why did he even decide to use such a weird scheme when contacting police, FBI, or hell, even the Justice League, would have been so much more effective?
It's just confusing all around.
But Vlad has good reasons! He really does, he swears!
The thing is, it's all his fault. If he didn't fund the GIW in the first place, none of this would have happened. The agents in white wouldn't have outed Danny for being Phantom and wouldn't have taken him away. Maddie and Jack wouldn't have rejected their still alive, just different, son, and wouldn't have put an empty casket in a grave with Daniel's name.
Police won't be searching for a person when they know they are already dead and buried. Justice League, who stands for all that's good and fair, won't go against a government agency that stands for the very same thing.
Which leaves Vlad to find other solutions. Like stealing a rich kid and making his even richer daddy do all the work.
If only said rich kid would stop talking.
Wait, what do you fucking mean 'that picture looks like my brother'?
2K notes · View notes
3motionally3xhausted · 9 months ago
Text
Redesigning the Fentons!!
Tumblr media
Hi yes this is for yet another Danny Phantom AU of mine it has nothing to do with the Apprenticeship AUs but unlike that batch I actually wanna turn this AU into a fic eventually once I get through a few other big projects I have *sobs*
Anyway individual files for each character under the cut along with my obligatory rambling about all the choices I made ;)
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
Jazz! Honestly, when I was a kid, I always thought she was 18 not 16 so it was kind of a shock when I started rewatching the show about a yr ago and heard that. Anyway, she's 17 in this AU but already moved out to college on a scholarship bc living in FentonWorks is kind of hell and she has that Older Sibling Guilt for leaving Danny there. For her clothes, I wanted it to be a mix of tactical and preppy.
Danny! (Fenton) The effects of FentonWorks hell is much more visible on Danny than Jazz because she got out of there as soon as she could. Because of that though, a lot of the chores in the lab got pushed onto Danny, without passing on many safety tips, like replacing the ecto-filtrator, cleaning contaminated tools, organizing ecto-weapons, etc. And because he doesn't know any better when it comes to safety, he has many symptoms of radiation poisoning: visually, this comes through in the discoloration/scarring on his skin (Jazz has some slight scarring on her face and hands as well), the cataract on his left eye, as well as burst blood vessels in that eye. For his clothes, I wanted them to look a bit ragged and worn through ripped seams, tears in the jeans, & duct tape around his shoe.
Danny! (Phantom) I don't actually have a lot to SAY about my choics, but I am really happy with it. There are still a few things. I wanted his hair as Fenton & Phantom to be different but still reminiscent of the simplistic rendering of the original show: Fenton is kind of timid so his hair falls over his face, & Phantom is more active/aggressive so his hair is pushed upward. The only other thing I want to comment on is his skin: it's kind of about how I usually stylize Phantom (and I mentioned this when I redesigned Dani a while back) but a "healthy" Phantom in my style would have more bright cyan skin and an unhealthy Phantom has a more dull/zombie green. And lastly, as a ghost, the radiation poisoning kind of cleans up into more neat scarring rather than the muddy/bleeding look as Fenton.
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
Maddie! Now, I'm gonna be honest, real vulnerable here,... I hate Maddie's canon haircut. It's ugly, I'm not sorry. But I can modify it, so it's fine: now it's curlier, a bit darker, and has a few grey streaks bc she's a genius and constantly pulling long working hours. And, it didn't come across as much as I wanted, but she's got some biceps, strong lady. Now, I'm not really sure why, but I wanted to shift the color of her and Jack's jumpsuit, making hers much more desaturated.
Jack! Big guy. I don't have many thoughts about him either, but I did give him glasses and some stubble for a little bit more dad energy (?) I mainly changed the color of his jumpsuit bc Orange is an extremely hard color for me to render for some reason, so now it's the classic Hazard Yellow. Finally, the most notable difference is the coat I put on him for a bit more scientist energy but my main reasoning for it is the potential visual of him being an absolute tank jumping from overhead with the ghost gauntlets and his coat flapping behind him. Also, I generally like the idea of him presenting himself as a big, dumb teddy-bear, always smiling, but completely unhinged below that facade: dropping the smile or not while towering over you in shadow. Wild imagery.
FINAL THOUGHTS: Do not count on any actual steps towards creating this fic in the near future, it's just on my mind right now, but I NEED to finish my other projects first 🙏🙏🙏 That said, I will (eventually) get around to a handful more character redesigns for this AU including: Vlad, Sam, Tucker, Valerie, Paulina, and maybe Lancer & Dash
2K notes · View notes
bluerosefox · 10 months ago
Text
Selina's New Kittens
Once again. A new DPxDC idea/prompt.
(Deaged! Danny, Dan, Ellie, and Jazz!)
Enjoy my random ideas.
Look.
Selina....
Selina wasn't expecting this when she decided to have some fun and do what she does best.
She just meant to sweet talk her way into Master's gala/party. Flirt and get info, maybe some blackmail. Steal away the rare cat themed artifact he had recently gotten (and also steal away his actual cat, such a lovely little diva it is too). then she was going to disappear into the night like always.
So...
Selina casted her eyes into the mirror of her car and could see the tiny children she had rescued from Master's hidden basement lab. All but one was asleep, the oldest out of them, although she seemed to be losing that fight from the way her head was falling forward, eyes closing but would jerk herself back awake when she realized she was falling asleep.
Curled up as hard and as much as they could towards the little redhead was three dark haired children, Selina mused that they'd fit right in with Bruce and his little bats/birds.
Two were near identical boys, though one seemed to be much paler than the other and if she remembered right one had red eyes and the other had blue, and the last one of the sleeping kids was a tiny toddler, a girl she heard was named 'Ellie' from the others.
Selina took note that the red head, Jazz, had finally fallen asleep a few minutes later. With a deep breath as she drove further and further away from that... that insane Fruitloop (she overheard the two boys call him that as they ran to her car) Master's place, she blindly reached for her phone and pressed a single digit on the screen, knowing it will connect to her car and call up the only person she can trust to help her with this.
"Selina." came the gravely voice after a single ring, sounds like she caught him on patrol but he seemed to be in a spot where he was okay to say her actual name over coms or she caught him before his night shift started.
"Hello Darling, I need your help with some kittens I found and to help me... Put away their terrible old owner."
2K notes · View notes
breesperez139 · 3 months ago
Text
DC x DP Prompt #7
The Dragon has Three Heads
After their High King was crowned, he was taken in by the Ancients. He was a child with continuously growing power forced to bear the weight of the Infinite Realms and in need of guidance, who better to advise him than the almighty Ancients themselves?
At first, none could decide on who would take their young king in. Not because he was unwanted, but because he was. The Ancients nearly sent the Realms to war with their myriad of reasons and excuses as to why they should be the only ones to take the ghost child in as their own.
In the end, the Ancients came to the agreement of split custody. They would all adopt their little king, but the consequences were dire and unprecedented. With so many powerful beings claiming an even more powerful being as their own child, their little one’s power increased to an all time high nearly breaking the mortal body he resided in.
Every being dead and alive could feel the birth of a new primordial being born. Primordials, beings even more powerful than Ancients, were an extinct species. Any who existed would eventually fade into their domains and lose their sentience for all of existence.
But the Ancients did not want this. They did not want this end for their child. They would not allow it.
Instead, they planned. They traveled different worlds and planets, spreading tales of the Great King Phantom. The epithets they gave him were grand and they would not leave until their work was finished. Their child would be revered, feared, and most importantly, he would be remembered and sentient and alive.
Belief is a powerful tool. Powerful enough to keep Gods immortal, and Primordials from fading. So long as the mortals believed the Primordials were still walking among them, their child would never die. He might not understand why he had to visit his worshippers every few years, but it is for his own good.
Then came two more. Not quite Primordials, but they were certainly on their way. The girl was made in their child’s own image, a mirror. The boy was their child but different. From the moment he appeared, he was no longer outside of time, but outside of space itself.
And with them, came the human female. She was a fierce warrior. Headstrong and bold and so very protective of their little ones. She too became theirs. She too became their child. Yet she was too mortal, too fragile. They could not let this stand.
So they spread tales and created myths. Anything to ascend their mortal daughter into godhood and keep their immortal children alive. So came the legend of the Dragon. The legend of their children.
The Dragon has three heads
Jasmine, their little dragon. Three heads, one for each of her siblings. One head for each mouth she had to feed. One head for each mouth she had to teach. One head for each mouth she had to protect. Three heads for the three children she had to raise as a mere child herself.
And like a dragon, she persevered. Like a dragon, she fought with passion and power and pride. With the strength and determination of a dragon because in truth, she is a dragon. Born by fire, kissed by fire, loved by fire. None could deny the dragon blood running through her veins.
One to be a murderer who will unleash death
Daniel, their little destroyer. He who creates destruction and chaos with every step he takes. He who embodies rage and despair, love and fury, grief and sorrow. His emotions high and potent when it comes to those he loves, as well as those he hates. Having lost everyone he held so dearly, it is not a wonder as to why he is so ruthless and possessive over the family he has now.
One to be a monarch whose crown will weigh heavy
Danyal, their little savior. The assassin prince destined to defeat the tyrant and rule them for all of eternity. The boy king destined to lead and protect them for all of eternity. The holy emperor destined to ensure peace and prosperity spread throughout the Infinite Realms for all of eternity. The perfect and omnipotent God meant to be praised and worshipped for all of eternity.
And One to be mad whose ideas will change history
Danielle, their little wanderer. She who broke free from the unknowing chains that shackled her. She who bent and molded reality, forcefully rewriting the ancient laws. She who bowed to no man, no ideal, no predestined fate as she roamed and reshaped worlds. The little princess would create what she wanted, transform what she wanted, change what she wanted and none could stop her. Not when she was evolution itself.
600 notes · View notes
clockwayswrites · 3 months ago
Text
City Pigeons Bleed Green, Part 31 masterpost cw: strongly implied off screen murder and discussions about it
“Do you need me to pull the car over so that you can put your make-up on?” Jason asked.
Tim shot him a withering stare. “Do I look like I need you to pull over so that I can do my make-up?”
“See, I know better than to answer yes to that,” Jason said cheerily, “but I also don’t want to deal with you poking out an eye with a mascara wand.”
“I’m not going to poke out an eye putting on mascara.”
“Or bitching the rest of the drive because your lipstick is slightly crooked.”
Tim paused. “…okay, that I might do.”
“And we’re pulling over!”
“Fine,” Tim sighed, “We need to spray your skunk streak black anyways and change.”
“I can’t believe their uniforms are really all white suits,” Jason said as he looked for a convenient side road to pull of onto.
“I know, have they never heard of no white after Labor Day?” Tim asked as he dusted something over his cheekbones.
Jason snorted. “Yeah, cause that’s my problem with the all white suits. Nothing about them being impractically easy to stain.”
Tim hummed. “White is easy to bleach, think lab coats and hotel sheets.”
“That only solves the problem if they don’t have to go anywhere before they can get the stains out,” Jason pointed out.
“It works if they think that they’re immune to any repercussion of having stains,” Tim said. He set the fluffy brush he had been using down. “How often do you think they walked around with Danny’s blood like it was nothing?”
Jason gripped the steering wheel so hard that it creaked under his hands. “Never again.”
“No,” Tim agreed. “Never again. Not any of them.”
“I hate that we can be as final with all of them,” Jason said as he forced himself to relax his grip.
“I know, but the organization is better handled by the Titans and Justice League. Bringing the law into their end will have more lasting effects than bring an end to their agents.”
“Damn bureaucracies,” Jason grumbled. “Always someone else to fill in a spot.”
Tim hummed in agreement. ���If taking out agents and bases was enough, the LOA would be long gone, trust me.”
“Oh I do, Timbit. It’s why you’re the one in this car with me. I don’t have any illusions about your hands being clean or worry your commitment wavering.”
“Good, it won’t.”
“I know.”
Jason turned the car down a road and off to the side where it was hidden between tall rows of corn. Tim leaned forward to continue his make up. He really was the best chameleon of them all, even the old man. Jason tried not to think too hard about what that meant for Tim himself. Things were better now, that was enough. He grabbed the can of hairspray from Tim’s bag.
“There’s contacts in there for you too,” Tim said. “And put in the pomade before the spray so that it doesn’t run. You need to slick your hair back for that government lackey sort of look.”
“Glamorous. Is that why your shade of lipstick is so horrific?”
“Bland yet obligatorily feminine,” Tim replied with a flutter of his eyelashes.
Jason snorted as he set about running enough pomade through his hair to make a 1930’s man proud. He stepped out of the car to use the can of spray color and clean his hands off. The dusky contacts were popped in next before he fussed with getting his hair swept over just right and the sides pressed flat against the his head.
Tim finished about the same time with his wig, so Jason grabbed both garment bags and spread the one out on the trunk for Tim. By the time they were back in the car it was like Jason Todd and Tim Drake were never there. Agent UU and Z settled easily into the seats and continued on their way.
“We’re not making a mess,” Tim—or double U— said some time later.
Jason growled.
“I know, but we need to keep this clean.” There was just the right amount of lilt to the voice to sound like a determined woman who had spent to long fitting into a ‘mans’ world. “This is just the GIW cleaning up two assets before they can be picked up and spill secrets to the cops.”
“What’s the plan then?”
“The pen in your pocket is really a needle with a very quick acting sedative. It paralyzes. Everything.”
Jason nodded. “Okay. Act like we’re extracting, get them apart to gather vital items, stab them?”
“In the neck.”
“Okay.” Jason pulled the car to a stop in front of bland suburban house.
As if they had practiced, they exited the car in sync with one another, slight tug to their white suit jackets and everything, and approached the door in a matching clipped pace. Tim was a step ahead (a woman would be better received) and rang the doorbell before crossing his arms behind his back. Jason made himself breath as the door opened.
“Dr. Fenton,” Tim said. “Agents UU and Z. It’s urgent that we come inside, the GIW is breached.”
390 notes · View notes
too-much-tma-stuff · 1 year ago
Text
Finally Getting Help masterpost
(On Hiatus for the rest of the month while I work on other things)
Soon after Danny takes two of the failed clones into his body his parents let Vlad take him to a Gala in Gotham. When the Bats clock that he is pregnant they work to get him away from Vlad, find out how and why this happened to him, and fix it.
Danny is just relieved to finally have some adults on his side, and be able to relax and focus on himself and the babies.
Part 1 - Gala and discovery
Part 2 - confronting Vlad and calling The Guy
part 3 - Research and meeting Zatana
part 4 - Raiding Amity
part 5 - Jazz and Danny reunite
part 6 - Jazz's power point
part 7- Damian and Danny bond and Jason comes back
Part 8- Jason meets Jazz
Part 9- Jason meets Danny (finally)
Part 10- Danny calls his friends
Part 11- First date (part 1)
part 12- first date (part 2)
Part 13- Danny's doctors appointment
Part 14- Jason and Danny go camping
Part 15- Vlad crashes the party
Part 16- Frostbite comes to give various check ups
Part 17 - meeting the Justice League
Too many people very kindly asked to be tagged so I've made a master post people can subscribe to! I will reply to this post to inform anyone subscribed about new chapters. Thank you
Please don't reply to this post!
3K notes · View notes
yoonjae20 · 5 months ago
Text
Ric(hard) Fenton; Part 1
(Once again slightly inspired by @saltymarshmall0w 's prompt.)
Read on ao3.
Masterpost. Next.
“B, didn’t you promise us as you’d tell if there was a possibility of another secret child?” Tim asks as he stares at the black haired boy, who looks like he had been to hell and back to get here, with blue eyes — because of course, they are blue —  in front of the Manor’s door. 
He can’t help but feel unnerved by the way the boy evaded their security measures and how he hasn’t said a single word since Tim opened the door even when he can see the boy’s hands tremble.
“Yes?” Bruce's voice floats from further in the Manor, his barely audible gaunt drawing near.
“Then who the hell is this?” he asks just as the man turns the corner. He freezes at the sight of the kid, literally blue screening as he takes him in. 
“Actually he’s mine,” a too chipper voice announces and Tim nearly jumps out of skin as he turns to Dick.
The young man must see both Tim and Bruce doing the mental calculations in their heads because he interrupts before they can draw the wrong conclusions.
“If Bruce can go around adopting children, I can do the same.” Then he turns to the boy. “You can come in, Danny.” 
Tim is eerily reminded of a wary, frightened cat as the boy — Danny moves inside. His steps are too silent for a mere civilian. 
Bruce and Tim share a look and Tim knows that they are both asking themselves when Dick met the boy and why he never mentioned him with how familiar he acts around him as he easily tucks him into his side. 
Although neither of them wants to accept it, Dick has changed since the one year where he disappeared without a trace. He’d told them that he was shot leading to him to lose his memories and that he only retained his memories a few days before he came back, but Tim always had a feeling the older man was not telling the whole truth, hiding it behind an easy-going smile. He didn’t speak a single word about what happened during that year, claiming he didn’t remember much of it ever since his memories returned.
Not only that, but it had become even rarer than before that any of them would meet Dick at the manor (even Jason was at the Manor more often) — and when he was present he was always studying them with an intense stare as if he was searching for something in their expressions.
“Dick,” Bruce starts but the man waves him off.
“Later,” he says. “I need to see if I have any fresh clothes for Danny.”
Dick pulls the boy away and they head up the stairs. Tim gives it a minute before he follows, nodding at Bruce, who does the same. He hears them stop in the hallway and he pauses in his steps.
“What’s going on?” Tim hears the man's question and he sneaks closer when he can’t hear the boy’s response. He subtly uses his phone’s camera to peek around the corner. 
“What about Mom and Dad?” Dick asks in a hushed whisper and Tim knits his eyebrows together — confused about who his brother is talking about.
Danny winces with a pained expression.
“The GIW got them in custody for affiliating with and aiding an ectoplasmic entity,” he explains. “You are my only chance.”
“Jazz, Sam, Tucker?” Dick almost seems desperate and when the boy just shakes his head after each name, he runs a hand through his hair and curses. 
“And you are sure we can’t go to them?”
Tim can’t help but ask himself who they are talking about that Dick’s voice is so full of disdain. Danny vehemently shakes his head, eyes squeezed together like he is remembering something painful and when he speaks his voice is shaky.
“I don’t know what to do, Ric,” he says, clutching the top of his shirt like his heart is hurting and Tim’s eyebrows climb to the top of his hairline at the unusual nickname. “I can’t- I can’t do this alone…” 
“Fuck.” Dick takes a deep breath as he hugs Danny. “Okay. Yes, of course I’m coming with you, baby ghost. Just let me grab my things and then we’ll go on our way.” 
“You will not go anywhere.” 
Bruce steps in Dick’s path before Tim can stop him and he narrows his eyes at the pair. Danny flinches away from the man and Dick steps protectively in front of the boy.
Tim knows Bruce and Dick had their rough patches in the past but never like this. Never had Dick looked at Bruce like he was a threat. 
“I’m not in the mood, B,” Dick warns sharply. 
“And I’m not about to let you go off with someone that I haven’t vetted.”
Dick lets out a bitter huff of a laugh.
“Of course that’s the only thing you would focus on.” His voice is cold. “You’ll bulldoze your way through, and prod and condemn, not caring if you hurt someone innocent in the process as long as you can justify your actions. I don’t even know why I’m surprised at this point. It’s what happened to Jason after all.”
Bruce reels back like he’s been punched. 
“Now if that is all, I have to go save the people who actually treat me like family.”
This time nobody stops Dick as he leaves the house, Danny in tow. 
“Master Bruce, Master Tim,” Alfred’s voice tears Tim out of his trance and startles Bruce who froze in his spot. “Where is Master Dick?”
Dick trembles with barely suppressed fury as he leads Danny to his car.
He wanted to believe that Bruce was better — that he wouldn’t have led the Justice League on a hunt after a child, but the longer he is back in Gotham as Richard Grayson — the longer he is around who were supposed to be his “actual” family, the more he grows unsure about that fact. There is no easy trust between them — not the steadfast determination that no matter what happens, they’ll take his side. Not like the Fentons have. (It’s been barely 2 months and he misses being Ric Fenton — misses being Jack and Maddie’s son and Jazz and Danny’s older brother.)
Bruce has contingency plans about them for fuck’s sake. And while he understands that there might be situations where they would be on other sides — the time where he and the Teen Titans had to fight their mind controlled mentors comes to mind — it’s a scary thought. For the first time since ages — since Bruce had taken Robin away from him — he feels like he is on his own. 
Back then he had turned to Clark — to Superman. He was the one who gave him the name Nightwing but Dick is plagued by the nightmares he witnessed Danny having. He doesn’t think he can look at his uncle ever the same again. 
At the same time, he doesn’t know if Danny and him can do this alone. He glances at the boy as he drives out the gates to the manor — he looks incredibly drained. He’s even paler than usual and there’s a sheen of sweat over his whole body as he leans back in his seat, breaths shallow. 
As he drives through the streets of the Bowery a sudden thought comes to his mind. He tears the steering wheel around, tearing Danny out of his doze. He blinks at Dick, eyebrows knitted together when he sees that they are still in Gotham.
“Where are we going?” he asks and Dick gives him a smile that is all teeth.
“Just a little pit stop.”
Jason and Dick don’t talk much — or to be more precise they don’t talk about the important stuff. Not about the — ‘I broke down when I heard about your death and I blame myself for not being there’ or ‘I was sure you hated me and you were glad I was gone’. They barge into each other's apartments, spar or get drunk together and cling to each other when they are sure the other isn’t awake to witness it. It’s not quite healthy — but it’s something better than when Jason was still Robin.
So when the door to one of his safe houses gets slammed open, Jason isn’t concerned. He knows Dick had been off the past few weeks and had been expecting his visit for quite a while now. 
The look in Dick’s eyes is different this time around though. It’s not quite the mix of depression coupled with anger he normally expects — it’s something stronger — righteous fury.
“I need your help,” Dick demands before Jason can question what’s going on.
Jason knits his eyebrows together. 
“What about Bruce?”
There’s a dark look in the man’s eyes for a moment before it passes and that’s the moment Jason realizes that this something more serious than the usual spats he normally has with B. 
“You are the only one I can trust with this.”
He spins around on his heels and is out of the safe house before Jason can blink. Getting a bit impatient and angry about Dick not getting straight to the point and still expecting him to follow — Jason storms out. What he doesn’t expect is the passed out half-dead kid in the passenger seat. A tinge of green enters his vision as he glares at Dick.
“What the hell is going on?”
The story Dick tells as they speed on the highway leaves Jason reeling. If the man’s tone wasn’t carefully monotone as he spoke about Ghosts and an entire town being shifted to a different dimension, Jason would have already declared that Dick finally snapped. He wants to question why he lied to the rest about losing his memories about the year he went missing, but the desperate look he sends him and the way his hands shake on the steering wheel hold him back. It’s only the boy’s quiet snores that have Jason’s volume not climbing above a hiss.
“Are you sure this all happened? That this is real?”
“I was there, Jay,” Dick’s tone leaves no arguments. “I almost watched Danny die, again — fighting Pariah Dark. I would have never forgiven myself if another of my brothers…” He gulps and shakes his head. “I was there this time. I should have made a difference and once again I was helpless”. He slams a fist against the radio, cursing when it turns on, blaring loud music. 
He quickly turns the volume down and both of them wait with bated breath as Danny stirs in his seat, before he goes limp again. Dick lets out a deep sigh.
“How do you think I felt once I realized the situation?” Dick questions. “I was in the middle of nowhere with no recollection of who I was. If the Fentons hadn’t found me-” He shakes his head. “Next I know I’m watching a kid fight fucking Ghosts twice his side and getting thrown around like a ragdoll like it’s a normal Tuesday. That shouldn’t happen Jay, it just shouldn’t.”
Jason stays silent.
“And worst of all, I still knew how to fight,” Dick barrels on. “But no matter how much I tried to help Danny and teach him, it was useless because it wasn’t humans or even metas he was up against. How could my moves counter beings that can fly and go intangible and invisible at will?”
Jason still can’t fathom why Dick hid this from them all — but he knows enough to understand why he needs his help. 
“So what’s the plan?”
Dick shoots him a relieved smile.
“We still have 12 hours of driving ahead of us,” Dick glances at Danny. “I’m reckoning he’s gonna be out cold for at least half of it if not more. I need you to switch with me after half of the drive so I can get a power nap in, then I’ll take over again.”
“Not trusting me with the car?” Jason teases.
“Show me your drivers license and maybe I’ll reconsider.”
They start bickering, and for a moment Jason can convince himself that this is a normal road trip.
Jason’s at the wheel when the boy wakes up. Dick is out cold and despite the man’s protests Jason can drive normally if he wants to. There’s no reason the man has to over exhaust himself.
They had tossed their phones once they crossed the border to Illinois and Dick had withdrawn a couple of thousand bucks. Jason had questioned why they hadn’t done sooner if they wanted to keep Bruce off their trail, but the man told him he’s not the one he is worried about. Considering what Dick told him about the elusive GIW, Jason can harbor a guess on who he is talking about. It’s after that, that Jason wrangled him into another nap — Dick was in no condition to drive any further. 
“Ric?” Danny questions sleepily as he sits up and Jason keeps an eye on him out of the corner of his eyes.
“He’s asleep,” Jason answers and it’s only because he’s used to Damian that he blocks the instinctual kick as the boy realizes he’s not alone. 
“I can see that Dick kept you sharp” Jason huffs out a laugh. “I’m Jason, in case he didn’t mention me.”
Danny blinks at him and shifts so he is sitting cross legged. He knits his eyebrows together, clearly thinking.
“You were the pit stop?” he questions.
“Apparently.” Jason shrugs. “Great work, by the way. It’s been a while since I’ve seen Dick this pissed.”
The boy frowns, gnawing at his lips as he stares out the window.
“You’ve died too, haven't you?”
Jason suppresses his initial reaction to snap at the boy. Instead he grits his teeth as he stares straight ahead, the road blurring together. 
“And?”
“Ric shouldn’t have let you come.”
He grips the steering wheel until his knuckles are deadly white, green hazing his vision. 
“They’ll cut you open too.”
It takes the wind out of his anger and he lets out a curse. The brakes screech as he stops at the side of the road, nearly catapulting them forward with the force of it. Jason finally turns to look at Danny properly. The boy peels down his t-shirt to reveal a gnarly, ugly red Y-shaped scar as he gulps.
“Ric doesn’t know,” he says as he releases the hem of his shirt, covering the scar once more. “I haven’t told him.”
“Then why me?” Jason’s voice rises without his consent.
“Because you’ll get it,” the boy murmurs. “How it feels to die.”
The boy leans back, turning away from Jason to look at the corn field.
“How it haunts you.”
Jason wants to puke and he lets his forehead fall onto the steering wheel.
“Fuck,” he says emotionally and the boy laughs — broken and hysterical. Jason doesn’t comment on the tears streaming down Danny’s face.
Jason starts up the car again, leading the car back on the road.
“Next time Dick asks for my help, I’ll send him to hell.”
Jason hides a smile when the boy snorts at that. 
Dick comes to himself as they are about to cross the border into Amity Park. Jason and Danny are quietly talking and he wipes away a little bit of drool as he sits up. It’s dark outside and Danny directs Jason as they enter the city. He leans forward as he enters the conversation.
“You’ll think the GIW’s detectors will sense us?”
Danny glances at Jason, before he turns his attention to Dick.
“We should be fine for a few hours at least as long as I don’t have to turn ghost,” he says. “Half of the town is liminal at this point so you and Jason shouldn’t raise any alarms either. They had too many false alarms in the months since you left.”
Jason looks at Dick strangely once they park where they can hide for the night.
“Since when did you have contact with Lazarus Pits?”
“Never,” Dick retorts. “But living above a portal to the Infinite Realms for a year will do the trick.”
Jason's face scrunches up.
“Who the hell builds a portal in their own basement?” 
Both Dick and Danny snort. 
“Gotta love Mom and Dad,” the boy says as Dick nods in agreement. “Only they are insane enough.”
Dick makes a face.
“I could do without reanimated meatloaf for the rest of my life though.”
“Don’t remind me,” Danny shudders.
Jason stares at them in bafflement. 
“You do know how crazy that sounds?”
“Crazier than Ghosts?” Danny questions with a smirk and Jason pinches the bridge of his nose, shaking his head
“To give it to Mom and Dad they did stop storing samples in the fridge after we lectured them about it,” Dick adds. At Jason's aghast face he just shrugs. “They are passionate about their work.” 
“Insane, absolutely insane,” the man mutters and Dick suppresses a smile.
It had taken him a bit to get used to the Fenton's and their flavor of insanity and chaos. At first he had been worried about them being neglectful at best, but it turns out that they just needed someone to remind them when they got into “hyperfixation” mode. He and Jazz had to stage an intervention and both Maddie and Jack were embarrassed once they realized they took it too far. Dick doesn’t know who is worse — them or Tim when he’s awake for more than three days. 
He was very relieved when his initial hunch didn’t turn out to be true after Danny revealed himself as Phantom to his parents. They did a whole 180 on their research, focusing on learning about the intricacies of the Infinite Realms, their culture and even politics instead — resigning from their high positions in the GIW. That’s when the trouble really started. 
Dick hadn’t lied about getting amnesia after he was shot and it was also true that his memories had only returned — thanks to Frostbite — two months ago. But the only reason he went back to Gotham had been to get Danny help (the longer they waited the worse the situation with the GIW became) — to find out if the Justice League could be trusted. Once he heard what happened with Freakshow and the Reality Gauntlet (and had the memories to properly realize what that meant) he had been horrified. He had given himself a deadline to — if need be, confront the Justice League by the time Danny’s birthday came around and find out the truth. (He had desperately hoped that this was all a misunderstanding, but Bruce’s words still taste bitter on his tongue.)
Dick knows bringing Jason along was a risk — considering Danny’s theory that the Lazarus Pit were corrupted ectoplasm, but they need the manpower to get through the GIW’s defenses. Even if he’s scared shitless about what they’ll do to Jason when they find out just how liminal he is. He knows this is a death mission. But it doesn’t have to be for Jason.
“We need to establish some ground rules,” Dick says reluctantly and Jason narrows his eyes at the wording.
“If we get captured, I want you to save yourself, Jason.” Jason scoffs and Dick raises a hand, silencing his retort before it can come. “I’m the sole reason you got involved in the first place. Me and Danny may be willing to die for them, but I’m not letting you sacrifice yourself for something that isn’t even your problem to deal with.”
“If you think I’m gonna agree to those, you are more than stupid than I thought Dick,” Jason’s voice is scathing. “It started being my problem when you came to me for help and we drove for 12 straight hours to get there. If you say those people are your family — then they are mine as well.”
His lips perk into a smirk.
“Besides, I want to meet the people that might be even more batshit insane than B and got you to call them Mom and Dad.”
Dick flushes slightly — the Fenton’s had always insisted on him calling them Mom and Dad and he doesn’t know when the titles became genuine. Even with his memories restored, Ric Fenton feels more alive  — more loved — than Richard Grayson ever did. 
Danny just shrugs as he leans back, arms crossed behind his neck and feet rested on top of the glove box. 
“I guess I have not only two sisters but two older brothers now,” he adds cheekily. 
“Brat.” 
Jason playfully shoves Danny and Dick gapes at the fond tone in his voice. 
“How?” he stammers — they should barely know each other. “When?”
Jason tucks Danny into his side, angle a bit awkward, but grinning as he ruffles his hair.
“You missed a lot, sleeping beauty,” Jason jests and Dick groans.
“I was only asleep for 1 hour!” he bemoans. 
“Two,” Danny corrects and Dick glares at him, raising a finger.
“Don’t you two dare gang up on me!”
“This is sweet revenge for when you and Jazz teamed up against me,” Danny grins.
“We were literally trying to help you!” Dick complains, shoving Danny’s face away as the boy cackles, Jason watching on with amusement.
Dick might have to leave Ric Fenton behind for good now that his two worlds have collided, but maybe he can still be Richard “Dick” Grayson-Fenton instead.  
454 notes · View notes
goddessficlover · 3 months ago
Text
Alice In Gotham Pt 2
  The Bats had been on edge that last 2 months, to put it lightly. Oracle was sure she heard movement above her in the clock tower. She had assumed it was one if the Bats but none of them moved that sloppily unless hurt. And yet, all their vitals looked fine on her monitors. She called Spoiler to check it out since she was the closest. What they found was nothing at all. Except the dust was unnatural. No foot prints or evidence of crawling. Like something had been dead there for a long period of time, then suddenly scrambled awake and disappeared. The way some of the dust was still settling when she got there was eerie and sent chills down the purple bat's spine. They set up a camera and motion detector to monitor the space, and after 2 months nothing came. Still, for Oracle’s sanity and Batman's paranoia, they left the camera there as a precaution.
Other than that, Gotham seemed to have less attacks, or crimes in general, than usual. Even crime alley, things were actually running. According to Intel, some homeless kid called Scraps was fixing things for small businesses and people who simply couldn't afford to replace things in exchange for food or pocket change. Sometimes he even did it for free if it was urgent. Not only that but apparently the kid could defend himself. Had saved a couple of the night girls from people who didn't understand the word “no”. They'd give him treats when he came by once in a while. Simple things like a lollipop or a granola bar. Concerningly though, they also said he'd eat it with the wrappers still on. Kid was eating actual trash to survive. That, meant Red Hood had to try and keep an eye on him. The problem was the kid kept fucking disappearing. No one knew where he was living, or if he even slept. Sometimes he'd be around early morning, or late at night. The kid had no schedule except for Sundays. When no one was watching the dump, he go and steal broken tech or salvage tools and other scraps. It was the only time Hood managed to get a glance at the kid. Didn't even need to be close because damn those blue eyes were bright, even under his hoodie. Fuck, that was adoption bait and the others were going to go nuts. Tying to follow Scraps back to his hide out was another loss, he completely disappeared around a corner as if he was never even there.
“Hold on, you said this kid works with tech but you can't catch him?” Red Robin asked.
“Nope, couldn't even find anything through the power grid. He might be working on something but he's not even using electricity for it. Or he somehow managed to get it while staying off the grid,” Red Hood responded. Red Robin was the last person he wanted to ask for help, but it had been 2 months, and this whole week not one person had been able to confirm if Scraps was around. No one had seen him since he said he had a job. Not Hood or Jason had been able to make contact since he first popped up in crime alley. At this point he was going to break his TV and hire the kid just to make sure they were okay. Kids disappearing was never a good sign. No one fucked with kids on his turf.
“Jason… what does the kid look like?” Red Robin sighed while working on the batcomputer to check crime alley more thoroughly.
  Taking a deep breath and sighing he spoke up, “Adoption bait.”
“We can not let B know about him,” Tim groaned as he drank out of a nearly empty coffee mug.
“B is not taking another kid to put into a suit. The kid’s mine to keep an eye out for,” Red Hood growled below his helmet before taking a breath, “Besides, with how smart the kid is, he'll probably get a scholarship to some school out here and end up at Wayne Enterprise anyway. He can wait a few years to meet him.”
“Hey boys,” Oracle chimed in from the Bat computer, “I've located the kid, he tends to make camera a little fuzzy around his face but those eyes are recognizable. He was spotted a week ago in the warehouse district. The same place we have a lead on scarecrow’s fear gas.”
“Fuck,” was all Red Hood said before getting back on his bike.
“Red Hood is going to investigate. Anything else you can find on him? Maybe a facial scan so we can get him back to his family?” Red Robin began going through the warehouse cameras to find which warehouse he went into, “Damn it, the same night as that storm? We can't get any good views after he entered Warehouse 56.”
“I'm going to check it out now,” Red Hood responded, “Keep B off my back. I don't want him involved, Scraps is my case.”
“I'll try, but you know he still makes mistakes with boundaries,” Oracle responded, “Should I call in Nightwing for you?”
“No, not yet. But fill him in. Something doesn't feel right about this. Red Hood out.”
  It took four days and about 24 renewed microchips for Hatter to keep Danny asleep. It frustrated him to no end that the chips kept wearing out after four hours. Eventually he decided some hypnosis was in order and asked the kid directly why It wasn't working.
“Regular tech doesn't respond well to my presence,” he answered soullessly.
“Really? How can you get it to work?” Hatter was surprised his Alice understood what was going on and how to fix it.
“It needs to be infused with my blood,” he answered a half truth. While under control his subconscious need to keep everything ghostly a secret somehow still came through.
“Is that all? That's so simple… Go back to sleep Alice. When you wake you will be perfect,” he ordered and Danny's eyes shut.
  Danny wasn't in anything impressive at the moment. A white night gown, plain and simple, while laying in a bed. They had moved from the warehouse to Hatter's hideout where he had access to all the tech he needed. Hatter wasn't happy to see the scars over Danny's body. His poor Alice had be hurt, been held captive by the looks of the marks on his wrists and ankles. A scar hidden in his freckles on the bridge of his nose along side others, Hatter could hide them with make up but still he felt distaste for who every damaged Alice’s face.
 In another day's time, Hatter had created a diadem with multiple chips throughout it's construction as a failsafe. All, infused with Danny's oddly green glowing blood. When it came time, his Alice was properly cleaned by the March Hare and her now finished dress was applied, along with the waterproof silver diadem. It locked into place, no simple tug off from Batman or any of the birds would work. It had to be completely unlocked to be removed. His Alice, harmed by someone else's touch was too precious to lose. It was a hard battle to get her fully under his control after all. He wasn't going to risk anything. He skin was already pale, pale like a porcelain doll. That was what this Alice was for. A doll to admire from afar for her beauty alone. Dressed in her sky blue dress with her white apron. Her puffed sleeves and white gloves to cover the scars on her wrists. Bloomers for added volume to the ruffle skirt, and of course the thigh high white socks with mary jane's shoes. A long blond wig with bangs to hide the diadem was placed on her head, another chip in the wig before the wig was glued down, as he didn't want to risk damaging her precious skin more than it was. instead Of a headband, A ribbon was tied into her hair instead. A porcelain Alice, one Hatter would keep by his side so as to not lose her.
His perfect Alice.
Staking out the warehouse didn't find Scraps, but they did find a surplus of fear gas being manufactured by scarecrow with what was the most efficient assembly line these goons could have put together. It was an easy take down when Nightwing and Spoiler joined in for a takedown to stop the plan to gas the city before it started. The goons were hardly a challenge, and Red Robin would be able to make a new antidote for the rebreathers incase there was another warehouse like this one. The one thing that caught their attention was a gutted microwave on display on a side table. Evidence Scraps was here. Fuck.
“What did you do to the kid?” Red Hood growled, grabbing one of the few conscious goons who had been ziptied.
“What kid?” Spoiler hadn't been let in on the Scraps case.
“Kid?” the goon looked confused.
“Scraps. What did you do to Scraps? He fixes tech to make money. You guys had him here. Tell me what you did with him or yours knees are going to bend in reverse,” Hood snarled and the guy pales.
“We hired him to fix the assembly line. Told him it was for screwing tops on bottles. Paid him and fed him. He pulled the microwave out of thin air, and used it to fix the motor or something. He left into the storm after we paid him,” the goons caved and Hood tossed him towards the pile of them where they were waiting for the police.
“So the only evidence of Scraps is a microwave he pulled out of thin air? How does that even work, it's a microwave. You can't just hide that thing. That's not even a little one, that one looks like it was built into the wall originally,” Nightwing looked at the microwave and used some light dust from his bag before brushing it away, “There's fingerprints all over. Mostly large ones, how small is Scraps?”
“Little smaller than Robin,” Red Hood answered.
“Red Hood, Nightwing, I have eyes on Scraps with Mad Hatter,” Oracle chimed him, and the tension in the warehouse rose, “3 days ago he's spotted leaving warehouse 64 with the March Hare and Scraps following.”
“Fuck,” Hood punched one the machines, as he processed the information. Scraps was pretty androgynous looking. Hatter usually preferred natural blonde but those glowing blue eyes probably drew his attention. A wig would be an easy fix, “Scan everywhere you can Oracle, if Hatter has him we’re on a time limit.”
“Littlewing,” Nightwing placed a hand on Hood’s shoulder, “We'll find Scraps. She- they can't be gone for long. Hatter never stops with just one Alice, he'll leave a trail and we'll follow it.”
“Red Robin, Oracle,” Hood spoke into his com, “Do you have any other leads to Hatter’s location?”
“No yet, but we'll keep searching,” Oracle answered.
“Can I get in on this Scraps case? The tower ghost is coming up dead,” Spoiler asked and Nightwing left to talk with the arriving officers who took the goons into custody.
  Red Hood sighed. He'd like to keep crime alley business out of the rest of Gotham, but this kid could be anywhere in Gotham now. He needed to keep an eye on Crime alley too. He needed more eyes, as reluctant as he wasn't to accept it, “Fine. You and Orphan are in because I know you will tell her anyway. Keep Robin and Batman out of it. Kid looks like adoption bait. Goes by Scraps on the streets, their real name is unknown.”
“Sound like so are their pronouns,” Spoiler laughed, “Well keep our eyes out for them. Send the case file to me and Orphan. I'll fill her in about tonight. Should we tell Duke?”
“No, not yet,” Red Hood answered, “He can't keep a secret from B if he thinks it’s serious. We might have to if we can't find any leads to check if he can see something we can't. Scraps’ eyes are blue, like they're glowing. It’s hard to miss.”
“So, their a meta in hiding?” Spoiler asked as she walked away.
“If they are, Batman is gonna be pissed,” Nightwing responded on come.
“B can fuck off. It's not like people chose to be metas, kid probably didn't even know and has no where else to go. I'm checking out warehouse 64,” Hood left, riding his bike to warehouse 64 where he found a mostly empty lot.
  There were a few forgotten things. Evidence of a tea party and a few discarded headbands. Timbit would be able to look at them later. What pissed Hood off to recognize the edging of green in his vision, was a discarded backpack, and clothes that had long since been hung to dry.
“I found Scraps personal belongings. He was here during the storm. His clothes are hung over a banister to dry. And his bag was left behind,” Hood opened the bag, two different tool boxes inside along with smaller parts of tech. Some snacks- a frozen apple?
“Spoiler might be right about this kid being a meta,” Hood spoke up.
“Really? What gave it away?” Spoiler responded through coms.
“I found an apple that's been frozen solid in a layer of frost in their bag along with tools and tech. They're an ice meta of some kind,” Hood examined the apple. The frost was intricate like lace and beautiful as it glistened in the moonlight. No evidence of melting at all. It was freezing to touch even through his reinforced gloves.
“But they left 3 days ago. How hasn't it melted?” Nightwing asked.
“Don't know but it's still cold. The kids got a bigass first aid kit in here too. Not even a water bottle. A frozen apple, three granola bars, and the rest is all tech or tools. He carries his work more than his survival supplies. He's got a place to stay somewhere but I haven't found it yet,” he put everything back into the back pack along with his clothes.
  For now, it was a dead end. They needed a new trail, a clue, but they'd have to wait. Still, the idea of a child younger than Robin in the hands of the Hatter, it made Red Hood’s stomach churn something ugly as he fought back against the pit. When they found Jervis Tetch, he'd have first dips on punching the guy so hard he'd have to get replacement buck teeth.
Alice was still odd to Mad Hatter. She was under his control and the chips were no longer dying out. However there were small things she did. He complained about the temperature of the room being too high, and suddenly the room cooled while her eyes glowed even brighter. He never ordered her too, she did it on her own. She wasn't programed for that. He mentioned finding another girl to dress up  Alice disappeared from his side and reappeared 20 minutes later with an unconscious woman in her arms. Blond hair, and blue eyes. Again, he never ordered her to do so. And yet, Hatter only felt glee as he realized his Perfect Alice could do more than his henchmen ever could in a very fast amount of time. But the best part was when he asked her to disappear for two minutes and she turned invisible right in front of him. His buck toothed smile was mad as he had a tool he'd never had before. A silent Alice who was as skilled in shadows and she was in the light. An Alice the bats couldn't follow back.
“Alice, my wonderful Alice, you are more than I have imagined. We are going to send some invitations soon. So for now, go rest in bed. Your mission will be ready by tomorrow night,” Mad Hatter grinned, “I have a Tea Party to plan for a special guest!”
---
  A girl was reported missing, blonde hair and blue eyes. But no evidence of a break in what so ever. No locks were touched, only the bed where she had been sleeping was touched. Nothing on the camera aside from the quality being fuzzy. Odd, those should be updated cameras. This one may have to be replaced, or there was someone altering the feed. Oracle has yet to find evidence of tampering with the cameras. By appearance alone, one suspect on Batman’s list was Mad Hatter. He'd have to keep track of other kidnappings of women with similar appearances to be sure.
With nothing left to examine at the scene, Batman moved on. Robin following close behind, annoyed at the lack of evidence he'd managed to find. Not even a finger print, the culprit was wearing gloves. Most criminals wore gloves, it wasn't unusual.
The Batman came to a sudden halt, “Robin, we have confirmation Hatter is involved with the case.”
  Robin landed besides his father and saw a blonde dressed in a blue frilly dress with an apron. It wasn't the same woman taken from her apartment. This was a child, probably a little younger than Robin, himself. She was alone, on a rooftop. Scanning the area there was no one else around. Just this child dressed as Alice, trapped under mind control.
“I shall remove the wig,” Robin approached.
“Oracle we have an Alice, send medical and alert the police,” Batman ordered as Robin slowly approached the hostage.
“B, are their eyes glowing?” Oracle asked.
“Oracle, does this have to do with Hood, Nightwing, and Spoiler’s sudden team up?” Batman asked, voice gruff with annoyance and frustration with their lack of reports from that event.
“Yes. The kid is called Scraps, and is suspect to be an ice meta. They had a frozen apple in their belongings. According to Hood it hasn’t melted yet. Kid went missing a week ago. We had a lead that revealed Mad Hatter is the one who took them,” Oracle gave a short report, and Batman grunted in return.
“Mad Hatter has invited you to a tea party,” a soulless voice suddenly came from the child as Robin was closing in.
  The child was now holding out a green envelope. Masked eyes studied the arm holding out the letter for a moment, something made Robin stiffen subtly, Batman nearly missed it. Robin took the envelope and then tried to grab their wrist only for Alice to pull free and jump back. Now standing on the ledge towards the open street. 
“Come forward, you will fall standing there. I mean you no harm,” Robin held out his hand to Alice.
“You are not permitted to touch me. The invite was delivered, goodbye,” With that, the Alice stepped back and fell.
Robin jumped after them, shooting his grappling hook to catch the wall only to find the Alice was gone. Batman had run after the child as well, both splitting into a silent search of the perimeter to find nothing. No sound of foot steps, nothing but the cars and people below. The Alice was gone, and no trail to follow them with.
“Nightwing, Spoiler, Red Hood, Batcave. Now,” Batman motioned for Robin to follow, clicking his tongue as the mysterious child escaped.
“Father, we still have the invite,” Robin handed the green envelope to Batman as they were returning to the manor. Only a quick pause to check the letter for trackers. The only thing inside was coordinates, a time, and the date two nights from now.
  At the cave, Batman was forced to wait for the trio to appear. Nightwing arrived first, then Spoiler. No surprise Red Hood was last and took as long as possible.
“Report,” Batman ordered, sternly. Eyes narrowing at his children who yet again hid something from him.
“Scraps was taken by Tetch during the storm. Red Hood started the case a week after Scraps went missing. We want to find this lost meta kid and get them into a safe place or back home. Hood’s area says they has an accent so they might not want to be in the city,” Spoiler answered, “They work as a handyman, fixing up anything. A tech nerd like RR.”
“Tech nerd? The kid had garbage in his backpack. Broken everything and mangled parts that should have been considered unsalvageable. How the hell are they gonna build anything from that?” Red Robin groaned, getting Batman's attention, “Shit.”
“Anything to report, Red Robin?” Batman glared as another one of his children was in on the withholding of information.
“The kid makes cameras glitch out or just fuzzy sometimes. We can't get a facial scan no mater how much we try and salvage the images or the cameras themselves. Scraps does something to them that we haven't managed to bypass,” and that made a sad piece click into this new case.
“We just ran into an Alice with vibrant eyes. They jumped off the roof after giving us a set of coordinates, a time, and the date 2 nights from now. I went to catch them but they disappeared. No sound of the landing, just silence,” Robin spoke up.
“These coordinates?” Red Robin took the paper from Batman and found the location on Gotham’s map.
“Hm,” Batman replied, looking up at the screen. A trap, but there was time to prepare.
“I shall prepare a guest room, then,” Alfred appeared behind them with a trolley of sandwiches and tea for an after patrol snack.
“No, we are not bringing Scraps to the manor,” Red Hood argued, although it was pointless to argue with Alfred.
“So you say Master Jason. I just like to be prepared,” Alfred left as quickly as he came.
“Scraps looks like adoption bait,” Nightwing sighed as Orphan came in with a smile.
Bruce just sighed as he removed his cowl, “If this hostage is a meta, we'll need to focus on trying to free them from the mind control. We night need to use suppressor cuffs, or a collar. What ever we can get on them temporarily to avoid injury. We will prepare in the mean time. Hatter uses mind control, we will be fighting civilians, keep that in mind.”
“Father, there was an observation I had when I was close to the hostage,” Robin spoke up again, “When they held out the invitation with their left hand I could see lichtenberg scars traveling up their arm. But instead of being pink and irritated, they were almost pure white. Along with several other smaller scars on their arms. They felt cold for the second I grabbed them.”
  Lichtenberg scars… They fade after a few days, which meant the kid was recently electrocuted… But why were they white? Red Hood took a breath, counting to 10 before focusing again.
“I need to know what happened to that kid and who's ass I need to kick,” Red Hood growled, after setting his empty plate back on the trolley.
“We’ll find them, now that we are all keeping an eye out. Tomorrow we patrol as normal, then we send a team after Hatter.”
Signal had been having a good morning patrol. He was quickly filled in on the Hatter situation and to try and follow the meta Alice if they came into contact. Signal was having a pretty normal patrol. Stopping a car jacking, a convenient store robbery, a mugging, and a purse snatcher. Nothing he couldn't handle on his own. Finally, a glimpse of shimmering sky blue caused Signal to stop in his tracks.
“Hey, there,” Signal turned to find the Alice, and just as described, their eyes were glowing. But so was the rest of their aura, it was flickering in an odd way, “Are you lost?”
“No,” they responded, and the aura began to fade a little more.
“Okay, you need me for something, right? Are you going to invite me to your team party tomorrow night?” Signal slowly approached. He just needed to be distracting enough that he could use a shadow to grab the wig.
“You do not have permission to touch me,” Alice turned transparent. The aura flared just as the shadow fell through them, missing the wig completely.
“Okay, I won't touch you,” Signal reached up to his com and spoke silently. Of course he didn't know Alice could hear him anyway, “Contact with meta Alice. They can density shift. My shadows passed through their body.”
“See what else you can learn about them. So far Meta Alice doesn't seem hostile,” Oracle responded, “If you can free or follow them back we might get a lead on either the trap or Hatter's base.”
“Copy,” Signal nodded, keeping the com on and recording the conversation for later. Alice was deathly still but their clothes and hair were flowing as if gravity and the wind had no effect on them, “Can you tell me what you need from me?”
“Has Robin read his invitation?” Alice tilted their head slightly, a habit Danny still maintained.
“Yes, was it just for Robin? Batman thought it was for both of them,” Signal hadn't actually seen the invitation himself, just the report about it.
“Just for Robin. Batman isn't invited,” their monotone voice continued. They lifted their left hand and held out a yellow envelope, “Mad Hatter has invited you to his tea party, Signal.”
“Okay, thank you,” Signal approached and took the envelope. Through Alice's gloves and his own, Signal felt a cold chill up his arm and down his spine.
“Goodbye,” they spoke before jump off the building, much like with Robin.
“Wait,” Signal tucked away the letter and followed Alice as their aura flared again. They never landed on the ground. Instead they were invisible on the physical plain and floating away slowly. Unfortunately the aura he followed soon disappeared with Alice all together, “Alice went west before disappearing from my vision. I'm attempting to follow. They can float, apparently. And go completely invisible, even hiding their aura. They're hard to track but if I can get another glimpse of their aura or find them with some light manipulation I can follow.”
“So definitely a meta,” Oracle was typing again, probably updating Scraps’ file, “Use the cuffs if you can get close, Signal. Scraps also causes camera to go a bit fuzzy when nearby, I'll let you know what areas I notice they might be in because of the glitches.”
“Still heading west as far as I can tell,” it wasn't an exciting chase since the hostage floated away at a jogging pace, but that didn't mean Signal wasn't having trouble. It was as if Scraps was using their aura like breadcrumbs for Signal to follow. Eventually, Scraps’ aura stopped appearing, they were gone, “I lost Scraps, I'm going to check the area incase I was lead here for a reason. We can pin the coordinates for later.”
“Already on it. Looks like you're pretty close to the coordinates on the invite,” Oracle responded, “Mad Hatter might be leading us to his base. Its obviously a trap, he must have confidence to be so careless.”
“My invite has the same coordinates as Robin's,” Duke looked in the general direction of the coordinates, the Botanical Gardens.
“Keep an eye out, we don't know where Scraps may next appear,” Oracle signed off and Signal moved on with their patrol.
Orphan was the next to receive an invite. It was the first time a civilian noticed her while blending with the shadows.
“Orphan, Mad Hatter has invited you to a tea party,” Once again holding out an envelope for the vigilante, Scraps stood unmoving until the letter was taken.
  Orphan attempted to follow, listening for breathing or foot steps, once again no one could follow them.
Spoiler was invited, and she tried and failed to grab the wig before Scraps disappeared.
Even Nightwing received an invite. Although his attempt to free Scraps was as fruitless as with the others. He did notice when he made a pun that Scraps had a habit of tilting their head to the side. A hint of a personality trapped inside.
Red Robin followed, but didn't immediately take the invite. His theory was Scraps would only leave after the invite was taken. It had been five minutes now. While he couldn't remove the wig, he was taking a few scans of Scraps.
“Shit,” Red Robin cursed as he scanned Scraps' vitals, “Scraps’ heart rate is dangerously low and is hardly breathing. Their temperature is insanely low at 90°F. They're hypothermic.”
“Please take the invite,” it was the first time Scraps has said anything since offering the invite and telling Red Robin not to touch them.
“I will, but can I get you to a hospital first- Hey!” Red Robin was quickly cut off by an ice shard suddenly flying his way.
Scraps was fast, slamming the letter roughly into his chest and freezing it to his suit before disappearing.
“RR what happened?” Nightwing spoke up on coms.
“I was trying to negotiate, and Scraps didn't take it too well. Fired an attack and now I have an envelope frozen to my chest,” he wasn't going to mention how that same push forced the air out of his lungs and bruised him.
“We can't wait for tomorrow with their current vitals, Scraps is going to die if we don't get them into a hospital. They need an ICU in that condition. Hatter is going to kill the kid at this rate,” Red Robin spoke up, trying to pull the letter and the ice off. The ice wasn't melting or breaking at all. Not even a scratch when he tried to use a bird-a-rang to pry it off, “What the fuck is this ice made of? I can't get it to budge. Can't even scrape off a sample.”
“You couldn't even get a sample off the apple,” Red Hood responded.
“This ice has an edge to pry under, the apple is solid all the way around. I thought if maybe… ha!” the entire chunk of ice along with the envelope came off in one solid peace, “I finally have a sample I can work with.”
“Everyone return to the cave for a debrief. We'll be infiltrating the tea party tonight,” Batman ordered his brood who wrapped up their current tasks to return to the cave.
It was time to crash a Tea Party.
~~~
Master List
Part 1
Part 3
187 notes · View notes
roses-and-revolutions · 2 years ago
Text
DP x DC prompt:
Daniel was seething. It's been a year since he left the league and they've already found him. Well, it was his mother who found him. Not that that was any better but at least it wasn't Grandfather.
It also shouldn't have taken him so long to dispose of those soldiers. They weren't even that capable. Far below his level and yet he struggled. He needed to resume his training soon or else he would become rusty.
He cursed himself for getting too comfortable with civilian life. Not that his life was comfortable, far from actually.
He had been adopted by a pair of mad scientist with no concept of lab safety; and for all the intelligence they had, they couldn't fathom how to properly take care of a child, leaving their daughter to take care of herself and now her newly adopted sibling!
He sighed. He was starting to get angry. He couldn't afford to get angry. Especially not at Jazz. She was only two years older than him and was doing her best. She's also the only good thing in his life right now meaning that he had to cherish her, not break her. (He wouldn't be like his brother)
His mind stayed on Jazz for a while before immediately increasing his speed. He really needed to resume his training. How could he be so slack to forget such a possibility! Daniel desperately hoped that his sister Jazz was okay and that they wouldn't dare.
Entering through his bedroom window he rushed straight to Jazz's bedroom. It was open. She wasn't there.
Daniel started to panic when he heard a muffed scream coming from downstairs. Adrenaline coursed through his veins as he rushed down the stairs and into the kitchen.
In all honesty Daniel expected the worse. To see his sister Jazz dead on the floor, thick red gushing from her neck, the scent of blood in the air. And there was blood, it just wasn't her's.
Daniel always prided himself on having a vivid imagination. It was a great way to escape after an especially hard training session with his brother. But he would have never imagined this.
In the small, laughably suburban kitchen of the Fenton household was a sight to behold. In the air were two mangled bodies, unidentifiable if not for the league's emblem still visible on one of them. And on the wall was a splatter, a rather big one. It wasn't blood. It was too dark to be. But whatever it was was very unlucky.
In the center of the kitchen was Jazz. Her arms were outstretched, burning sigils rotating at the end of each palm. Her eyes glowed a bright icy blue.
Upon noticing him everything stopped. She looked fearful. Tears threatening to come forth.
"Wait I can explain, just don't tell mom or dad! Please!"
Daniel, still a bit shocked but not as much, simply walked into the kitchen towards the cupboard. Taking out a clean towel he unsheathed he sword and began to clean it.
He looked over his shoulder towards Jazz. She didn't look as scared but her eyes still held some fear. So he spoke, making sure the still bloody sword was in veiw.
"I won't tell if you don't." He flashed a grin his tiny fangs peaking out.
Jazz sighed as in the weight of the world was lifted off of her. She looked at him and smiled.
"Mom and Dad aren't going to be back for a while. Wanna help me clean up?"
2K notes · View notes
thebubblesareevil · 2 days ago
Text
Good Parents, bad scientists…
I always see the bad Fenton parents au but what if they were actually really kind, loving and accepting parents but they truly believed their son was dead and a ghost had decided to take his form to torment them. Warning ⚠️: angst
It had been two weeks since they learn the truth, two weeks since Maddie saw that thing change its form to look like her baby, two weeks since she broke down in tears to her husband and told him their baby boy was dead.
Two weeks watching as that thing played with them like a predator stalking its prey, tormenting them with the memory of their son.
When it went to school that day to continue its charade Maddie stood frozen as she stared at the door. She knew what they had to do, they’d been working on a weapon that would wipe that creature from existence.
It hadn’t even crossed her mind to dissect the vile creature.
She knew what it was, she knew it wasn’t her baby..
But the thought of seeing her baby on their table-
Just the passing thought had her rushing to vomit in the trash and weep until Jack wrapped her up in his warm, strong, LIVING arms and held her close until her tears stopped.
It would be over soon…
Soon she could mourn her baby without that creature mocking his memory….
It walked in on her looking over her sons baby pictures when it got back from school and it took every ounce of strength to not flinch when it sat beside her and started act like it remembered certain moments.
She fled with the pathetic excuse of making dinner when it started to talk about her daughter. The thought of it targeting her little girl turning her blood cold.
When she heard it talking to Jazz that night, asking her if she noticed anything off with their parents lately, she knew they were out of time.
They had to act now before it realized they were onto it.
The next day as Jazz left the house they asked ‘Danny’ to wait a moment so they could talk.
Unfortunately the vile creature caught onto their plan when Jack activated the ghost shield to keep it trapped it the house.
She didn’t know how it managed to get the portal open, she didn’t really care.
Jack had managed to hit it with their new weapon.
It would either destabilize in the ghost zone or at the very least, it would never be able to take her sons form ever again.
It was finally over…
They agreed to seal the portal after it went through, no amount of scientific discussion was worth letting that thing loose…
After the shut down the portal, making sure no one would ever be able to turn it back on, she climbed the steps and walked into her little boys room.
She looked around at the model rockets and plastic stars and collapsed to the floor followed by her husband and together they could finally grieve their baby boy.
Her little astronaut that would never again see the stars he loved so much…
108 notes · View notes
minty364 · 1 year ago
Text
DPXDC Prompt #58 Part 1
His parents studied ghosts. Danny didn’t understand as a kid why everyone made fun of his parents. Now that he was 12, the thought was ludicrous and yet his parents continued their work on the portal. Danny had his sister Jazz though and the siblings were rather close. 
Jazz had spent a lot of time studying lately stating that she wanted to get into a good college. Danny understood he did, but being alone sucked and he couldn’t help it as he sighed kicking a pebble down the sidewalk. 
It was a nice hot summer day, the kind of day you’d want to spend at the beach or a pool. Danny however had other ideas. He was on the way to the local library. If Jazz was going to spend her summer studying for the ACTs then Danny was going to study what he wanted, Space. He quickly found a few books and got settled into a chair as he read. Space really was fascinating, he hoped one day his dream of becoming an astronaut would come true. 
An hour or so passed before Danny was interrupted, “what are you reading?” The voice started Danny out of his trance as he looked up at his interrupter. A boy about the same age as Danny with the same black hair and blue eyes that Danny had. His skin was more tan than Danny’s own pale white. 
Danny fidgeted in his seat for a moment before answering, “Astronomy: guide to the stars” Sure, Danny knew the text was college level but he already read all the ones for high and middle school. 
Damian seemed to hum thoughtfully with a hand on his chin before speaking again, “the book you're reading seems advanced, you seem smarter than your age would dictate. Father has requested that I visit the library and try to ‘make a friend or two’ in his words. I don’t see the need for companionship but if I must I’d rather it be with someone intelligent. My name is Damian.” It was a bit much but Danny guessed from what Damian said that he was complementing Danny. 
“Uh, Danny… I guess most of the people in my family are pretty smart.” He replied after a moment. 
Danny thought it was odd that someone wanted to be friends with him. Everyone at the public elementary school he went to knew who his parents were so they wanted nothing to do with him. It was lonely but Danny didn’t mind it too much, but Damian didn’t act like he knew Danny’s Parents. The thought of having a friend that didn’t judge him for who his parents were made Danny a little excited. 
“What occupation do your parents have?” It was a simple question with a not so simple answer. 
Oh, Danny’s heart stuttered a little bit at the thought of Damian knowing anything about. He didn’t want to lie, especially to his new friend but he didn’t want to tell him the truth. 
“Uh, they’re scientists but I don’t really know what they do…” Danny said carefully and slowly. He was sure Damian bought it. 
The two spent the next couple hours just talking in the library. It had started to get late and Damian needed to head back home. 
“Do you own your own phone?” Damian asked, it wasn’t uncommon, for most kids in his class had a cheap hand me down phone for emergencies. Danny unfortunately didn’t as his parents probably didn’t care where he was.
Danny shrugged, “not really, I could borrow my sisters but it really only gets used for emergencies.” 
Damian seemed to frown at this thinking for a moment before nodding as if he came to a conclusion, “my brother Todd has mentioned that it’s hard for low income houses to afford something I’d consider a necessity in this city. You do know how high the crime rate is, yes?” Danny nodded but he didn’t know what that had to do with having a phone Damian cleared his throat before continuing, “as you are now my friend I’d like to offer to purchase one for you.”
Danny hadn’t owned anything like a phone before, “a-are you sure? I don’t really need one, my parents don’t really… care?” He felt uncomfortable with his new friend spending money on him, Damian seemed like an important person especially with the clothes he wore and how he carried himself. Danny felt like he’d be taking advantage of his new friend if he bought Danny a phone. Danny closed the book he was holding and took a breath before speaking again, “I appreciate the offer but I wouldn’t have anything to offer you in return.” He let his gaze fall to the cover of the book, a swirling galaxy on a black background and bold yellow text. 
“I would not have offered it if I wasn’t sure.” Damian stated firmly causing Danny’s head to snap back up, “I do not need anything in return, however if you really intend to pay me back, Father has insisted that I bring a friend home sometime. Since we have established that we are friends I insist that you come visit every so often to, as Richard puts it ‘get him off my back’.” It sounded like a simple request but Danny was unsure. If Damian was someone important then his family was bound to be even more important. 
He took a moment to think about it, but Jazz would be happy Danny finally made a friend…
“Alright, I accept,” Danny said as they shook hands. It might have been a little childish but he could tell he made some sort of bond with Damian. 
After that they had quickly become friends. Once Danny had become accustomed to being in the Wayne house he basically became family, and was often visiting, especially to eat Mr. Pennyworths cooking. Mr. Wayne also seemed fond of Danny, he even offered to pay for Danny to go to Gotham Academy along with Damian. Danny had been hesitant at first but Damian quickly wore him down. Tim eventually wormed his way into the group as he and Danny bonded over the latest video game releases. Soon Jazz got roped into the group too as she started to visit the manor to get away from how noisy the lab got. 
A couple years had passed since the day that started the road to their friendship and the four of them had really bonded since then. Unfortunately their parents had finished the portal and its here where things go downhill for Danny.
In the next one Danny dies and all 4 of them are deeply traumatized.
Damian saw his dad doing research on the Fenton family, Bruce is just looking out for potential rouges and Damian took the opportunity to become friends with Danny. He figured that he could just bribe Danny into being his friend like all the kids at his school try but Danny is a lil cinnamon roll. Taken aback from how sweet Danny is Damian decided that Danny really was smart and worth being a friend. Tim has the same thoughts especially as Danny starts visiting the mansion more. Jazz loved that Danny had a spot to go where people seemed to actually care about him and she eventually gets dragged into the group. You can only drop off your brother at the Wayne’s so often before you get dragged into the group as well and I thought Tim and Jazz can be the same age and can bond over being older siblings.
723 notes · View notes
aroace-madness · 26 days ago
Text
I absolutely adore those fics/prompts of Pariah Dark, after Danny defeated him going "is anybody gonna parent that child?" And not wait for an answer
(bonus points for Dark Ages/ Pariah x Clockwork)
So let's say that the whole "becoming the ghost king after you defeat the previous one" thing only works when the previous king allows it
Pariah Dark seeing that Danny beat him fair and square but being like "that's a baby ghost there's no way i'm letting him become a king"
So Danny doesn't, he becomes a prince instead
You see, Pariah saw the great potential in Danny and decided to help him nurture it, and seeing that his human parents are constantly hunting him? He needs some stability and a break from all that
And he gets along with his beloved already win-win situation (his darling Clockwork had talked with him about having a ghostling of their own before his corruption)
His ghost form even looks like a mix of Pariah and Clockwork, so it wasn't that difficult for other ghosts to accepted the fact that Danny is their child
(many believe that he's their actual biological child that Clockwork had somehow manage to hide in the human realm)
Danny is confused about the whole situation, going from being hunted by his parents, the GIW and other ghosts, to fighting the Ghost King to becoming a prince of the Zone, but he's not complaining. If this is what it takes for him to finally get some rest and for everyone to stop chasing after him? Then let it be
Clockwork is more than happy about the entire situation, they finally got their beloved back, the Observants are finally off their ass and they have the cutest little ghostling in the entire Zone that is finally in not in constant danger anymore. They couldn't be happier
83 notes · View notes
books-not-people · 8 months ago
Text
AU where when Danny first got in the portal for the picture jazz being the protective older sister she is and knowing her parents "lab safety" she goes in with Danny and when he trips her immediate thought was to save him from falling in the danger trap she considered the portal and they both become halfas que the canon ghost shenanigans but add protect younger siblings obsessed jazz being a absolute nightmare standing behind Danny the hole time just daring someone to go after team phantom and any time they do they immediately regret as they have angered the older sibling and mercy is not an option.
When pariah dark happens they team up to own him no suit required and jazz and Danny become sibling rulers of the realms.
Somehow their parents find out and go mad scientist on them jazz is 18 in this so says fuck you takes Danny and as the nature secretly petty as shit just calls CPS and takes Danny and sues her parents for child support.
They + Sam & Tucker (because they can convince Tucker's parents it will be good for his future tech career and Sam just tells her parents she's going to stay with her dads side of the family(the drakes)) go to Gotham because no GIW unlike Amity and is ecto rich I also imagine that both are on their way to becoming Ancients of space (Danny) and as odd as it seems older siblings(jazz) they are confused at first until it's explained that the belief of the love and protections that older siblings are some of the most protective and also mischievous towards their younger siblings has built up to for an ancient and jazz just happened to become that ancient.
Que jazz helping college students in the Gotham U library study when they miss their older siblings help like when they where growing up and just being a protection spirit but to siblings in particular. This becomes super annoying when the bats and the birds start setting off her instincts after joker escapes and she can only relax after beating the shit out of him with the anti-creep stick in front of red hood who promptly falls in love with her much to the annoyance of Danny who was already secretly dating tim and meeting at the local coffee shop and ordering their coffee
Feel free to add your own ideas and if anyone writes it please send me a link or title I would love to support your story💖
295 notes · View notes
clockwayswrites · 1 year ago
Text
By the Scruff (Start?)
“I didn’t—” the man cut himself off with a carefully measured breath and pinched the bridge of his nose so hard it had to hurt. “Jasmine, I didn’t kidnap you, I’m saving you!”
“Oh so you’re that type of fucked up freak, got it,” Jazz growled.
The way she bared her teeth reminded Danny of a feral dog. He’d never seen her like this. She tucked him further back behind her again, shielding him from the strange man.
“I am not—” Another careful breath. “I am not that type of freak. I am being sincere here, Jasmine. Your parents hurt me also—”
“Our parents love us!”
“Your parents let your brother die!” the man screamed.
Jazz stumbled back a step into Danny.
Danny who felt like he would throw up.
Jazz wasn’t supposed to know.
Jazz wasn’t ever supposed to know. He was supposed to take this secret to his—
Well, no, he didn’t get a grave, did he. He died and he didn’t get a grave. Danny clamped a hand over his mouth.
The hysterical giggle slipped through anyways.
“Danny?” Jazz asked. Her voice had dropped the growl. She wasn’t the feral animal anymore, she was addressing one.
Danny couldn’t meet her eyes. She’d know if he looked at her.
“They let him die, Jasmine,” the man said, voice a bitter whisper, “just like they let me die, alone and without them. Their inventions killed both of us. They killed both of us.”
“Danny?” Jazz tried again.
Danny shook his head, hand still clamped over his mouth. He thought if he moved his hand he would throw up. If he moved his hand he would answer her.
“I went to Amity Park to— to see them. To show them what they had left to wither away. To show them— it doesn’t matter anymore. When I saw that Daniel— when I saw that they had done the same thing to their own son… well, what was the point?” the man asked. He sounded so broken under the perfectly enunciated words; perfectly trained like a prize pet. “I had to get you both out of there, Jasmine, before they hurt you too or before… or before they discovered what Daniel was and ripped him apart… molecule by molecule.”
“Danny?”
Danny couldn’t—
“Oh, little badger, I am so sorry.”
Danny sobbed.
He had died, and he didn’t even get a grave.
1K notes · View notes
too-much-tma-stuff · 1 year ago
Text
Finally Getting Help (pt 3)
first | last | Masterpost | Next
What Tim and Bruce found was completely ridiculous. It really wasn’t hard to find the Doctors Fenton’s website but it was ridiculous! It was outdated and gaudy with animations of cartoony ghosts everywhere. If it hadn’t been for how clear Danny was about his parents' names Tim would have skipped right over it. But when he got past the terrible website design and started reading it his stomach just dropped lower and lower.
The writing was clean and scientific though it couldn’t disguise the malicious delight they took in tearing the creatures they called ‘ghosts’ apart. Whatever these ghosts really were Danny had been internalizing this attitude about Himself for years! They also bragged about their weapons and their government contract. So whether that was true or not Danny hadn’t been lying or delusional, it was his parents. And regardless of what these ghosts actually were it was obvious they were supernatural so RR sent a link to the website to Zatana.
(link)
RR: What do you think?
Tana: Lol is this a joke?
RR: I wish, I know it looks like one but no, this is deadly serious.
Tana: Hang on
Red Robin put down his phone to give Zatana the time to read over the site and looked more into Maddy and Jack Fenton while she did. He found their graduation certificates, and pictures of them in college with what must have been a much younger Vlad. So they were actually doctors of some sort, they had their doctorate, though that didn’t exactly make it any less likely they had gone fully off the rails now.
His phone dinged and he picked it up to see one short message from Zatana.
Tana: I’m coming to the cave.
Tim sighed and put his phone back down, spinning his chair to face B who was hunched over the computer typing furiously. “Zatana is on her way, I asked for her opinion of the Fenton’s research and she must think it’s big.” He said as he dug out a domino mask.
“Hm,” B sounded and went to get his cowl. “Report?”
“The Doctors Fenton are doctors, they got their doctorates though I don’t know in what yet. They’ve been friends with Vlad since university and they certainly at least think they’re studying ghosts. Their website has articles on behaviours and biology, and how to hunt and hurt ghosts. They brag about a government contract.” Tim summarized. “You?”
“The Ghost Investigation Ward does exist and they are a government agency but they only seem to be active in the town of Amity Park and they’re so inept! It wasn’t hard to hack them, they’re trying to sound mysterious and a little dangerous talking about protecting humanity from invasions from other worlds but I don’t think they’re actually that competent,” Batman said with a scowl.
“The only reason we didn’t know about this was because we weren’t looking! And it’s possible Danny is right and they were jamming calls from Amity to the JL, but I have a terrible feeling what actually happened if that the call came through and someone heard them talking about ghosts and rogue government agencies, assumed it was a prank and blocked them,” Bruce said massaging his temples.
“Ah,” Tim said, his heart dropping at how plausible that sounded. Could they have saved Danny before, if they had taken that call seriously.
“And Vlad is the mayor of his town, there are articles about Danny fighting him in public. It seems like everyone knew their relationship was antagonistic at best and No One defended him. The GIW also listed him in their special thanks for helping fund them. I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s been using them as a tool to threaten and control Danny.” Batman said with cold fury. Tim took a deep breath, and exhaled slowly.
“We weren’t able to protect him, but we will avenge him. And we’ll keep him safe Now,” Tim reminded his father. Privately thinking that as soon as he could he was going to tell Jason about this so they could Really make sure Vlad never came near Danny again. An arrest just wasn’t strong enough for a man like that. He wasn’t going to tell Bruce that though, obviously.
The sound of the Zeta tube interrupted their moment as Zatana arrived, looking slightly more ruffled then she usually did. She must have really rushed here, which was a bit worrying.
“Zatana,” Batman greeted.
“Hello Batman, before we talk I need to check your wards.” She said already walking past them.
“Hm,” Batman sounded, making RR smile a little, how Batman made that sound mean so many different things always sort of amazed him.
“I need to check the ones on your home too. And I’d like to meet the boy you have under your care,” She said briskly.
“How did you know about the boy?” Batman asked gruffly.
“Lucky guess,” she said briskly, her hands glowed as she walked around the cave, making seemingly random gestures as if touching or pulling on invisible threads. None of the bats really understood magic so they left her to it. When she was done they let her up into the manner, she knew their identities already after all and she checked all the wards on the home very thoroughly, occasionally casting spells to reinforce them. They collected Dick and Damian trailing after them curiously as they went as well.
“Alright, can I meet the boy now?” She asked, turning towards Bruce who crossed his arms and puffed out his chest a bit.
“Not till you explain to us what’s going on,” He growled and Zatana looked over the curious stubborn faces surrounding her and sighed.
“Fine,” she allowed, resigned. She rubbed her temples as she looked around for a chair and sunk down into it. “So what the Fentons seem to be referring to as Ghosts are actually denizens of the Infinite Realms, the space in between every world and afterlife. Some of the beings there were once people who died but many aren’t. They’re also known to be very powerful and quite violent though thankfully not particularly interested in the living. The fact that the Government is apparently messing with something like this is very bad news.
“Constantine and I have been keeping half an eye on the situation in Amity Park but they had their own pair of Heroes, Phantom and Red Huntress, who seemed to have the situation well under control so we weren’t all that worried about it. We weren’t tracking the more human elements of the GIW and the Fentons,” She bit her lip and thought for a moment.
“When Tim sent me that website and I was made aware of those, that changed things. What’s worse is the photo the Fentons’ have of their family. Their son… we knew Phantom looked young but ghosts often stay at a younger age than they really are, with how powerful he was we assumed he was Old. But he looks exactly like the Fenton’s son. Did they not notice he was dead or…” She looked around at their faces, apparently getting her answer from their expressions.
“There have been rumours for a long time about a very rare and powerful sort of living dead, humans soaked in the pure energy of the infinite realms resulting in a still living ancient. It’s so rare that people usually think it’s a fairy tale but with the work Phantom’s parents do it makes a sick sort of sense. And what it means is that that boy you have stashed away is basically a baby God and we all have to be very careful.”
There was a heavy silence as they all processed what she was saying. “Are you… sure?” Tim asked, uncertainly.
“I won’t be till I meet him, but I’m as sure as I can be without that at the moment,” she said firmly.
Tim sighed and pulled out his phone. “Cas is with him, I’ll text her to see if she’s up to meeting you. If he’s that powerful we don’t want to push him right?” He asked as he typed out a text to Cas.
“Yes. Like I said he’s been acting as a hero in Amity, he seems like a good kid but I have no doubt in my mind if he’s pushed too far we could have a truly apocalyptic situation on our hands,” She said which made Tim swallow thickly.
His phone dinged and he checked it. “Danny is willing to meet you but he’s really tired so go easy on him and don’t stay long,” Tim relayed her message.
“Alright that’s fine, thank you. Show me the way please,” She requested.
Bruce took over, leaving the way. “We don’t want to overwhelm him, I think only I and Zatana should go in, with Cas still there since he seems to feel safe with her,” Bruce informed his children.
“Alright, just tell us everything soon!” Dick demanded and Bruce’s lips twitched up in just the suggestion of a smile as he nodded to them.
He took off his cowl, he wasn’t in his full uniform anyway and he didn’t want to scare Danny. Besides if he had been a hero even if he clocked Bruce he would understand.
“Hello Danny, it’s a pleasure to meet you, I’m Zatana,” She introduced herself s she followed Bruce in. She would have offered her hand to shake but Danny was half hiding behind Cas sitting on the bed.
“It’s nice to meet you too. What’s with the outfit?” He asked curiously which made her laugh.
“I’m a hero, one of the less known ones. I’m part of Justice League Dark which is their supernatural division along with Constantine and Deadman and a few others. He’s a ghost, but I assure you the government hasn’t been giving him any trouble, probably because they knew they wouldn’t get away with it.”
“So I’m just lucky then,” Danny said with a bitter curl to his lips.
“As a hero, I want to ask, are you Phantom?” She asked rather bluntly.
Bruce shivered as the temperature in the room suddenly dropped a few degrees and Danny’s eyes started to swirl with green as he glared at Zatana who managed to barely react. Batman noticed how her back tensed a bit but it was barely there. “You know?” Danny demanded. “You knew about what was going on in Amity and you didn’t help?!”
“I’m very sorry Danny,” She said genuinely. “We knew something was going on, but we didn’t look closely enough. We thought that you were an older ghost just of someone who died young because of your strength, and it looked like things were under control. Normally our involvement wouldn’t have been appreciated, intruding on someone’s haunt, so we didn’t look any closer. I am so sorry we overlooked you but we’re going to make up for it now I promise.
“I’ve checked and reinforced the wards on the house so nothing should be able to come in uninvited, and I’m going to contact the rest of the JLD. We’re going to go to Amity, we’ll figure this out and deal with it I promise.”
The temperature in the room slowly went back up, Danny was still upset, but he didn’t seem like he was about to snap anymore. While Zatana had been talking Cas had started gently rubbing Danny’s back and that seemed to be helping too. After a moment Danny looked up again and nodded, accepting the help.
“The veil must be very thin there, to let so many ghosts through?” Zatana probed gently.
“It is, but more than that two years ago my parents succeeded in building a portal to what they call the Ghost Zone. This kinda green world of floating islands.
“A portal,” Zatana said flatly, blinking rapidly. “To the Infinite Realms?”
“Ah is that what it’s really called? Ya probably? That’s how everyone’s been getting through. How I got my powers too, the ghosts call me a halfa, but I’m not the only one. Vlad’s one too.”
Batman heard Zatana mutter “Two?” softly, baffled and alarmed but she nodded. Bruce filed that information away too, it seemed Vlad was even more of a threat then he’d first appeared to be.
“Alright, I’ll get as many of the JLD together as I can and we’ll head to Amity. We’ll shut down the portal and deal with this.” She said determinedly.
From the look on Danny’s face he didn’t really believe her, but he nodded again and leaned against Cas. “Good luck I suppose,” he muttered and sighed, rubbing his face.
“Just… tell me if you get in over your heads okay, I’m used to dealing with all this stuff.” God he sounded so tired, the poor kid.
“I will, but don’t worry about us, just take care of yourself okay? This is a good place to be, I promise you won’t have to be alone anymore.” Zatana assured him. She probably had more questions, but it was very obvious that Danny was getting tired.
“Bruce is good dad,” Cas chimed in, speaking up for the first time. It embarrassed Bruce a little but he smiled at them and nodded a little.
“Thank you,” Danny said, his shoulder slumped and his back curled. “Can I go to bed now?”
“Of course Chum,” Bruce agreed, starting to shoo Zatana out of the bedroom with Cas on their heels. When they closed the door behind them Bruce heard the lock click quietly closed behind them. He really hoped that Danny would feel safe enough to sleep well.
@zlinen  @sebas-nights   @littlefeather345  @isnt-that-grape     @idontgetpaidenoughforthisshit  @shadowkatt99  @fantasticstoryteller @blackshuckatdusk @blacksea21090  @sithlordchimchnga @fanfictionforme2 @imalittlefangirl25 @bushbees @yotsubaayase @thomasdimensor @ultimatebluff
2K notes · View notes