suppose-i-was-worm

[suppose-i-was-worm]

This is Money Snake. She only appears every 312 years. 

If you reblog her picture within the next twenty-five seconds you will have good luck and fortune for the rest of your life. 

[suppose-i-was-worm]

Marzipan Boy part 5

https://archiveofourown.org/works/64048147/chapters/173345350

“So your siblings live in Star City?”

Danny nodded absently, inspecting the parts laid out on the desk in front of him. Tim had invited him to Wayne Industries to look at trial components for his gaming setup- apparently Wayne Electronics was looking into custom computers, and Tim needed a test dummy.

Danny was happy to stress test free tech. Tucker would be ecstatic.

“Yeah- Jazz and Dante are in college there- Jazz has custody of Ellie.”

“Why did you choose Gotham?”

“Sam and Tucker, really. I mean, I’m currently sleeping on their couch, but two years of free rent isn’t something to shake a stick at.”

Tim made an inquisitive noise, and Danny looked over to see the CEO writing some notes on his tablet.

“Long story. In any case, I’m here for college- Gotham U’s Intergalactic Relations program is second only to Metropolis U, and we can’t afford Metropolis.”

“Intergalactic Relations?”

Danny put down the SSD he was toying with and picked up a different one.

“Yeah, figured it would be useful. I don’t like it much, but with my positi- I mean- Well, can’t get to space otherwise.”

“Because of the nerve damage?”

“Exactly. Can’t do a normal spacewalk.”

With a laugh, Tim put down his tablet and wandered over to stand next to Danny- Danny intentionally leaned a little closer to his crush, but not too close as to crowd him.

“I’m sure you’ll do great at Intergalactic Relations.”

“I’m passing so far!”

Danny grinned down at Tim, who handed him a motherboard component.

“Try this one, it’s probably the best for gaming.”

The two of them smiled at each other for a second before they were interrupted by a cough from the door.

“Excuse me, Mr. Drake-Wayne, you’ve got an appointment in fifteen. I’ll give you two time to kiss goodbye.”

Tam winked at Tim as they sheepishly turned toward her, and then closed the door to the office again.

“Sorry about her.”

It was surprising to see Tim flush so deeply, so Danny decided to shoot his shot.

“We can, you know? I wouldn’t be opposed. Unless I’m reading this wrong.”

“I’ll be rude, then.”

“Rude?”

Tim reached up and grabbed the back of Danny’s neck, pulling him into a sweet kiss, which Danny returned enthusiastically. He could survive a little ‘rudeness’, as a treat.

~~~

Phantom wrapped his skeletal form around Phantasm, staring down at the assembled Justice League with an unreadable expression on his gaunt features. Phantasm had her arms crossed, looking belligerent. Bruce resisted the urge to pinch the bridge of his nose.

“Welcome, Phantom of the Frozen Citadel. Might I ask why you joined us on the Watchtower?”

Phantom’s great hollow eyes turned to Diana when she spoke. He was much larger than anyone in the room- smaller than when Bruce had first encountered him, but still towering.

“Phantasm forgot her lunch.”

The young ghost in question threw her hands up in exasperation, a gesture Bruce often saw from his own children.

“We would have appreciated prior warning before your arrival- no offense, but you caused great alarm with your approach.”

The surrounding heroes lowered their weapons as Phantom swung his head around to view them.

“Ah. I see- my apologies. I will send warning prior to any future visits.”

Phantom reached inside his chest and pulled out a lunchbag that looked tiny in his hands, balancing it carefully on Phantasm’s head despite the fact that she was covering her face with her hands.

“Do not leave your lunch at home, and I won’t have to visit you at work.”

“Daaad!”

The massive ghost smiled, and Bruce would almost describe the expression as smug.

“If you came to visit more often, I wouldn’t embarrass you in front of your friends.”

Phantasm snatched the lunchbox off of her head.

“Just you wait, I’m gonna crash your next date with your boyfriend.”

Bruce couldn’t help but exchange glances with Diana and Clark- what sort of power might the significant other of such an imposing figure have?

Phantom’s smile grew warmer, the star freckles across his sunken cheeks standing out more and more against his pale green skin.

“I would love that.”

With a shriek, Phantasm shot out of her father’s embrace, dropping her lunchbox as she brought her hands up to cover her mouth.

“You’re actually dating him now?”

The stars got brighter- Bruce surmised a blush, before Phantom blinked out of existence. Phantasm growled and landed.

“Damn him, now I have to visit.”

“Where would you be visiting, Phantom?”

Bless Diana, sneaking in a question about the Infinite Realms while Phantasm was distracted.

“Oh, Gotham. Dad spends most of his time there, after all.”

What.

~~~

Tim donated a few hundred to Danny- He’d been doing it quite often since the kiss, so much so that he had to program a shortkey into his phone so that it only took a few taps. His phone rang shortly after.

“Hey boo!”

“Hey Danny- was just thinking about you.”

“Lucky for you, I was thinking about you too- do you drop money every time you think about me? Is that what that is about?”

With a chuckle, Tim answered the affirmative.

“Of course. I love thinking about you, and I think you deserve good things.”

Danny was silent for a moment.

“Am I your sugar baby?”

“By definition, no,” Tim had looked up the definition. “You’d have to be younger than me for that- aren’t you a few months older?”

His boyfriend started laughing, and Tim grinned smugly. He loved Danny’s laugh.

Said laugh was cut off by Tim’s phone ringing through the call.

“Gotta go, babe, Bruce is calling.”

“Work thing? Knock ‘em dead!”

Tim sent another hundred as his call with Danny hung up, and then answered Bruce’s call.

“Hey B, what’s up?”

“The Voice of the Crown lives in Gotham.”

“Isn’t that a little… He’s a ghost, how can he live anywhere?”

“Tim.”

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll do some research. Do we have a general area, or?”

Bruce grunted a negative, and Tim sighed. Looks like his workload just doubled. Again.

“Send me the info you’ve got, and I’ll start looking.”

[suppose-i-was-worm]

The other night husband and I were watching a documentary about the yeti where they were doing DNA analysis of samples of supposed yeti fur, and every one of them came back as bears.

Anyway, the next night we watched a thing about some pig man who is supposed to live in Vermont. People said it had claws and a pig nose but walked upright like a man. Now, I happen to know that sideshows used to shave bears and present them as pig men. So every piece of evidence they gave of this monster sounds to me like a bear with mange.

So now the running joke in our house is that everything is bears. Aliens? Bears. Loch Ness monster? Bear. Every cryptozoological mystery is just a very crafty bear.

Bears. They’re everywhere. Be wary. Anyone or anything could be a bear.

[suppose-i-was-worm]

Always a good time to burn down yet another village!

Patreon

[suppose-i-was-worm]

One like = one smooch on his little head

One reblog = granting him access to the nuclear launch codes

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*dies hundreds of years ago as the village fool* well that fucking sucked lol let’s try again *reincarnated as a tumblr user* FUUUUUUCK

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hold on a fucking second. delaware is a state?? i thought it was a river? or is the river more important than the state? why don't i know this? (i should mention i don't like in america, i'm just confused)

there is delaware (state) and delaware (river) 

both are equally strange

the state is a tiny little cryptid thing

the rive is a monster that spans new york, pennsylvania, new jersey and delaware. also washington crossed it once and that was like kinda a big deal i guess. like crossing the rubicon in rome.

the state tries to me more important with its “im the first state!!!” bs (seriously its even on the fucking license plates) but we all know. its the river.

[suppose-i-was-worm]

i actually need to know people's thoughts on this because at least in my experience the answer to this has drastically changed since i was on tumblr in the 2010s and its driving me fucking insane

*im talking about fandom takes specifically. not someone being horribly evil about a real-life issue or or blatantly factually incorrect. literally just harmless fandom disagreements or differing interpretations of a text/character/etc.

[suppose-i-was-worm]

Marzipan Boy pt 4

https://archiveofourown.org/works/64048147/chapters/169063705

“I don’t bloody have time to tell you about the pecking order in the Infinite Realms unless you tell me why the hell you’re looking into it.”

Tim glanced over at Batman, who was glaring Constantine down over a video call.

“We met a ghost who called themselves the Voice of the Crown. It sounded important, so I wanted to make sure we weren’t making any interdimensional blunders.”

John Constantine cursed a blue streak back and forward.

“Stay where you are. I’ll bring the presentation.”

With one hand, Tim signaled to the others in the batcave to put on their masks and cowls as he did the same. Justice League Dark knew who they were, but they did have images to maintain.

Moments later, Constantine opened a swirling gold portal into the cave and tossed a thumb drive at Batman.

“It’s one o’ yours, there shouldn’t be any bugs.”

Bruce checked it anyways on his wrist computer before plugging it into the main bat computer.

Tim and his siblings crowded around the large screen and the magician.

“So. You met the Voice of the Crown. Probably one of the most powerful beings in the entire Realm, and you made it out alive. Well done.”

“I would assume the King would be more powerful? Or whomever wears the crown?”

John glared at Dick and took a long drag of his ever-present cigarette.

“That’s the thing, the Voice is the one who wears the Crown.”

A grunt from Bruce prompted the Brit on.

“The Crown is the ghostly manifestation of the concept of monarchy. The Voice becomes the Voice when they make an oath to uphold the virtues and values of a good monarch.”

“So this Voice hasn’t always been the Voice?” Duke spoke up. “I thought ghosts were pretty static. Unchanging.”

“The previous Ghost King- feel free to laugh, he was a Voice with delusions of grandeur who insisted on that name- broke his oath centuries ago in his pursuit for power. He took on another oath, therefore breaking both and driving him mad. The current Voice has only been in power for a decade or so.”

Constantine took the computer mouse from the desk and clicked to the first slide of the PowerPoint.

‘Ghosts and How to Respect Them’

Tim grabbed a nearby tablet to keep notes.

~~~

Danny watched his two best friends bicker with a level of disinterest honed by years of watching the same argument. He knew the argument would continue up until they reached the mall food court, and then possibly until after they had all eaten.

Part of him wondered why they were rehashing the vegetarianism vs meat eating argument again, but the rest of him knew they would be fighting over it until their death beds and beyond.

“Oh, is that Tim Drake?”

Sam’s comment stopped Danny in his tracks, and he looked up. Sure enough, Tim was standing by the Wayne Electronics shopfront, fiddling with his phone.

“You should go say hi, Danny!”

Tucker ducked around Danny’s back and pushed him forwards gently, but it didn’t take much persuasion.

Tim looked up as Danny approached, and his face lit up, which was honestly flattering.

“Danny, hey! Wild running into you here- shopping for something?”

“Yeah, Sam and Tuck dragged me out to get a birthday present for my little sister. Not that I wouldn’t have gotten her a gift, of course, but I probably would have just ordered something.”

Danny turned to gesture to his friends, but the traitors had vanished into the crowd at the food court.

Tim chuckled at what was probably a frustrated expression on Danny’s face.

“Well, I don’t know your sister, but I’d be happy to help you look for something if your friends have abandoned you?”

“I would like that.”

Grinning, Tim lifted his phone as if showing it off.

“Sure! Let me text Jason and let him know that I’m leaving him behind. Why he insists on coming to the shopfront when I literally run the company, I’ll never know.”

Danny chuckled and waited for the other man to finish his text. When Tim slid his phone into his pocket, Danny held out his arm as if to escort him.

Tim slid his arm into Danny’s, and they both blushed.

“Well, tell me about your sister, and we can start our search.”

~~~

“You got me a skateboard?”

“Yeah! Apparently there’s a really awesome skate park in Gotham, so next time you visit, you can check it out!”

Ellie Nightengale kicked her feet in the air excitedly from where she sat on the edge of the apartment building. Dan was behind her, braiding her hair and silently listening to the conversation she was having with Danny.

“That sounds great! Jazz is gonna lecture us about safety.”

Danny laughed, the sound distorted by the phone despite the ectoplasm in the inner workings.

“By the way, how was the reaction after I left the other day? Sorry I couldn’t stay at family day longer.”

“There were a lot of questions, but you know me! Obfuscate, Complicate, and Discombobulate!”

“Of course, much better than Gaslight, Gatekeep, Girlboss.”

“Duh.”

“I hope they won’t bother you too much with their prying.”

Dan’s ring got caught in Ellie’s hair, and they spent a few moments disentangling it before she spoke to Danny again.

“They’ll pry, but it doesn’t bother me. It’s kinda funny? Like, there’s Batman, the world’s greatest detective or whatever, and he’s calling Constantine to ask about ghost culture. Instead of asking the actual ghosts- just because he’s emotionally constipated about the idea of a teenage girl having died.”

“How do you know he called Constantine?”

“Connie told me himself. Something about wanting to know why I was palling around with the Voice of the Crown? He was pretty shocked to learn I hang out with the Rage Bearer too.”

Danny and Dan both chuckled, clearly pleased that the laughing magician was bothered by it.

“Like, can’t a girl be the mirror born of the two most powerful individuals of the realms in peace?”

“You’re only Dan’s mirror-born on a technicality.”

“Hey! It would hold up in a court of law! I’m half you and Vlad, he’s half you and Vlad- it all comes together.”

“Gross. Don’t remind me of that Fruitloop.”

The window below Ellie’s feet slid open and Jazz stuck her head out.

“Dinner’s ready, you two. Say goodbye to Danny and get your butts in here.”

Ellie obliged, and she and Dan climbed down the fire escape, closing the window behind them.

The Star City night was quiet outside their apartment.

[suppose-i-was-worm]

I love every fucking part of this.

[suppose-i-was-worm]

Marzipan Boy part 3

https://archiveofourown.org/works/64048147/chapters/165131485

Danny sat in his favorite spot at Beanify, lounging in the perfect picture of indolence. He’d shown up early, and was nervously sipping at his coffee while watching the clock.

Sam and Tucker were sitting outside, enjoying the warm weather and ostensibly keeping an eye out for Tim Drake. They had insisted on coming along, deciding on their own that Danny couldn’t take care of himself.

Danny would remind them that he couldn’t die a second time, but then Sam would get the pinched look on her face and Tucker would start looking soulful.

“Hey sugar, you need another drink?”

Colleen, the sweet barista who clearly wanted to wrap Danny up in an inordinate number of blankets and make him sleep until he’d regained color, swung by with a smile.

“Not yet, Colleen, thanks.”

“Sure, honey. You waiting on someone? I saw Sam and Tucker come in earlier- did they abandon you?”

Danny smiled up at her.

“They’re outside, I didn’t want to third-wheel.”

She nodded and patted his arm as she headed back behind the counter.

“Let me know if you need anything!”

Taking another sip of his coffee, Danny chanced a peek out of the window, only to see his friends standing threateningly over Tim Drake, who looked like he’d been bullied into the patio chair.

Danny shot out of his chair, leaving his coffee on the small table in his mad rush out the door, almost colliding with another young man walking in.

“Hey! What are you two-“

Tucker waved his hand behind his back in a shooing motion.

“Go back inside, Danny, Sam’s threatening his manhood and hasn’t gotten to the good part yet.”

“His- Sam!”

Tim Drake looked surprisingly unbothered by having his manhood threatened- in fact, as soon as he made eye contact with Danny, he grinned.

Danny felt himself flush to the tips of his ears.

~~~

Tim was thrilled. More than- Danny Nightengale was sweet, funny, and hotter than Hades.

Danny was tall- probably about the same height as Jason, and he had a sturdy build- not burly, like Bruce or Jason- a little softer than that. He had dimples when he smiled his small, shy smile, and his blue eyes were almost- almost Kryptonian, with how blue they were.

The streamer’s two friends stayed outside when Tim and Danny went into the coffee shop, and Tim could almost feel their equally bright eyes burning into him the entire time he and Danny were talking.

And then Tim got Danny talking about astronomy, and the other teen literally lit up. Blue eyes became bluer, and the freckles on his soft-looking cheeks glittered like stars.

Definitely a meta, but who was Tim to complain? His best friend was half an alien. Well. A whole half-alien. Anyways.

Astronomy. Maybe Tim could take Danny to the Gotham Observatory for their next date- or, their next outing? Tim would definitely prefer it to be a date, but… Danny’s comfort was his top priority.

“I’m so sorry, I’ve been talking your ears off.”

Danny flushed to the tips of his ears, and Tim felt butterflies flutter around in his stomach.

“No worries, I’ve enjoyed learning new things.”

He smiled at Danny, and the other man flushed even deeper.

“If it makes you feel better, though, I’m happy to change the subject. I’m curious about the mods you use- you’ve mentioned them a few times. I’m interested in game modification myself.”

Danny lifted his left hand, and Tim watched as it trembled visibly.

“I’ve got- um- nerve damage. Tucker fixes the games so that they’re not as sensitive to movements on the controller for my left hand.”

Tim took in the severity of the tremors, as well as the lichtenburg figures lancing from Danny’s palm.

“That makes sense- electrical damage?”

“Yes- I don’t like to talk about it.”

Nodding, Tim took a sip of his coffee, and Danny let his hand fall- he looked uncomfortable, so Tim changed the subject yet again.

“If there was one video game you could play again for the first time, what would you choose?”

Danny lit back up, and the conversation flowed once more.

~~~

Duke squinted at the three individuals leaving the coffeeshop, leaving Tim behind looking smitten. He walked over to his adoptive brother and sat down heavily in the seat Danny Nightengale had vacated.

“They’re not human, any of them.”

Tim looked at him sharply.

“What do you mean?”

“The big one- he had the brightest aura of the three of them, but none of theirs looked human. Maybe they were human once, but not anymore.”

The rest of the gooey look faded from Tim’s face, and he slumped over the table with a groan.

“I thought they might be metas, but non-humans? Not that there’s a problem with them being non-human, but… Did they look like anyone you’ve seen before?”

With a grimace, Duke nodded. He wasn’t sure he wanted to tell Tim who the other person was- Tim was clearly starstruck by the young streamer, and the comparison Duke had was… Not pleasant to hear.

“Lay it on me.”

“Danny Nightengale’s aura looked a lot like Phantasm, the new ghost hero with Robin’s team.”

“So they might be-“

Duke nodded again.

“Constantine said-“

“He did say. Tim, if those three are really ghosts, they’ve got to be extremely powerful, to look so convincingly human.”

Tim groaned again.

~~~

“Father, why are we having a ‘bring your family to work’ day?”

Robin frowned up at Batman, who was currently shepherding him and Red Robin through the halls of the Mount Justice.

“Phantasm suggested it, and, as previously discussed, we are interested in learning more about her. This is an essential information-gathering event.”

“But why am I bringing the two of you?”

“I’m working on a case involving beings much like Phantasm, and would like her input. Batman is just being protective.”

Batman grunted, and Robin had to concede. Red Robin presented a good point- even if Robin didn’t know what case the other was working on.

Damian wasn’t entirely sure what to expect of Phantasm’s family member. Phantasm herself looked quite- not normal for ghost standards, maybe, but for human standards. She almost reminded him of a cross between a human and Martian Manhunter. In any case, no matter their appearance, Robin would be professional and not treat them any differently because of their visage.

Batman, Robin, and Red Robin were always early. Phantasm and her companion were earlier- the three Gotham heroes entered the main hall, and Robin was greeted cheerfully by Phantasm from where she lounged.

“Hey Rob! You brought your dad and your brother? Cool! I only brought my dad.”

The young ghost made to hop up, but the much larger ghost she was lounging on wrapped a skeletal arm around her midsection, staring intently at the three from behind Phantasm’s white head.

The bigger ghost was startlingly different from Phantasm in all but coloring. Where his daughter was about the size of a human teenager, with wispy white hair that floated in an invisible wind, he was much larger, towering over the three of them even when seated on the floor.

He was also dissimilar in form- Phantasm looked airy, like the wind would take her away, but still a solid humanoid. Her father was all bones and ice, Phantasm tucked securely into the space between where his ribcage and where a pelvis might be. Where Phantasm had legs, the larger ghost coalesced into a large serpentine tail.

The menace in his gaze would give pause to a lesser being.

“Greetings, father of Phantasm. I am Robin, and this is my brother and father, Red Robin and Batman.”

Phantasm slapped the arm circling her, and it loosened, allowing her to slide out underneath it and land on the floor.

“You’ll scare them, dad!”

A disapproving look appeared briefly on the larger ghost’s sunken face, before the imposing figure sighed and then shrunk down to a less colossal size. He was still large, larger than father, but not quite as threatening.

“Greetings from the Frozen Citadel, Phantom, the Voice of the Crown, is before you.”

Phantom held out his left hand, first to Robin. Damian shook the proffered hand seriously, and then watched as Batman and Red Robin followed suit.

Phantasm beamed, flitting around her father to stand beside Damian.

“I think he likes you guys.”

[suppose-i-was-worm]

To the person going through my AO3 and reading + commenting on every single one of my DPXDC fics- you're a godsend. Dunno if you're on Tumblr, but I wanted to say thanks anyways. Anywho, if you see this and are GreetingsFromSpaceWhale on AO3, please accept my sincerest gratitude and this rock picture I found online.

[suppose-i-was-worm]

[suppose-i-was-worm]

Marzipan Boy part 2

As the windows darkened in his office, Tim hummed quietly to himself. He couldn’t wait to find out what Nighten’s on stream reaction was to his… donation. If he was being honest with himself, he didn’t know what he expected the reaction to be- but he did expect a reaction of some sort.

“Good afternoon, my name is Tim Drake, and I spend ridiculous amounts of money on stupid shit.”

Tim blinked at the absolutely ridiculous caricature of himself in the bottom left corner of Nighten’s screen.

He hadn’t expected… Whatever this was.

“I assume every streamer who mentions my name must be absolutely destitute, and send them pity money. I’m not wrong, but what a way to make a guy feel small.”

It hadn’t been pity money! Tim had- well. He wanted NightenGames to smile, that’s all. Anybody would appreciate money, right?

“Sorry guys, we’re playing Silent Shadows today- don’t expect much commentary.”

Fuck. Tim had screwed up, and now Danny Nightengale was mad- he only played Silent Shadows when he was in a bad mood and didn’t want to talk, since the game was a horror based game that reacted to sounds heard through the mic.

Tim’s next hour was spent listening to the few comments from the stream while he struggled to formulate a response to the other man.

He should have left a comment on the donation- he hadn’t thought to at the time, just getting back from patrol and ready to crash for the few hours he had before time to wake up for WE.

But now here they were, and it was time for the thing Tim was normally best at- damage control.

~~~

Danny paced the living room, trying to parse out the meaning behind Tim Drake’s recent Chirper post.

Tucker watched tiredly from behind his PDA- Danny may or may not have kept him up all night making the Tim Drake avatar.

“He might just mean exactly what he said, man.”

“What is it, if not pity? ‘It wasn’t pity’ tells me nothing. What kind of person- ugh, Tuck, I’m so angry.”

“I can tell.”

Tucker rolled his eyes- Danny knew, at some level, that he was being unreasonable at this point, but- what in the realms else was he supposed to think? There was no chance Tim Drake of all people watched his stream- sure, NightenGames was popular enough, but not that popular. He probably saw a clip of Danny’s prior confession and thought it was funny. Or something.

Danny sat at the dining table and slumped over the homework scattered across it.

“How do I give the money back, Tuck?”

“You’re a moron.”

Flipping the finger in Tucker’s general direction, Danny mashed his face into his engineering notes with a groan.

“Keep the money, bro! You’re set for like, six months with that!”

“Mfmmrmner.”

The front door opened- Danny didn’t look up from his posture of despair as it closed behind the entrant.

“What now?”

Sam’s sharp query echoed through the apartment.

“Danny got a big donation from his celebrity crush and now he’s moping about it.”

Danny flipped Tucker off again.

“Aww, poor baby. Did you say something stupid afterwards and probably ruin any chance you might have had with him?”

He did not flip Sam off. That was not a battle he wanted to fight. Also, Jazz would know somehow and lecture him.

Sam ruffled his hair teasingly as she walked past to greet Tucker with a kiss, and Danny mumbled approvingly at the warm fingers through his hair.

At least Sam loved him.

“But ancients, what an idiot.”

Never mind.

~~~

Tim wasn’t sure if his attempt at diffusing the situation had worked. The next few streams were normal- no Tim Drake caricature, and no Silent Shadows. But also no Tim Drake mentions.

A different approach, then.

Clearly Nighten hadn’t liked the large donation… Maybe a lot of small donations would work? It’s not like Tim was hurting for money- he was, in fact, often actively trying to get rid of the Drake fortune, so. Easy.

He started sending increments of $100 every time he thought about the streamer. A few hundred here, a few there- it would be fine!

And if he thought about Nighten more often now, what harm would it do?

Tam clearly thought he was losing his mind, based on the number of donations he was sending out, but had the grace not to mention the silly grin on his face every time he did.

Several days passed before he got any response from Nighten’s side- a DM from a person named GoingGoth on Chirper.

GoingGoth: what the fuck do you want with Nighten.

TDrake: I like supporting independent artists.

GoingGoth: bullshit. What. Do. You. Want. With. My. Friend.

TDrake: I’d like to get to know him personally.

GoingGoth: Ancients. I should have been a lesbian, men are idiots. GoingGoth: DM him, dumbass. Ask him out or some shit. We appreciate the help with rent, Tuck and I, but Nighten is… overwhelmed.

TDrake: You’re protective of him.

GoingGoth: he deserves protecting.

Tim used his other phone to shoot a couple hundred over to NightenGames again.

GoingGoth: ... Fuck you. I know ghosts that are more emotionally intelligent than you. GoingGoth: men

Ghosts? Whatever. This person did proclaim gothhood.

Tim swapped chats to the draft he had ready for NightenGames.

TDrake: I’m sorry if I offended you. I was really flattered by your comments on your playthrough of Elder Ring. You’ve mentioned being stationed in Gotham, would you like to get coffee sometime?

NightenGames: the fact taht u literally sent me thousands makes it impossible for me to say no.

Fuck. Tim hadn’t thought of that.

TDrake: I don’t know how much a banana costs, please don’t feel obligated to say yes just because of my financial decisions.

NightenGames: I don’t want to be a sugar baby

TDrake: no worries there, I just like giving money to my friends.

NightenGames: and to random streamers?

TDrake: not any streamers. Just my favorites.

NightenGames: you watch my streams?

TDrake: best part of my day.

NightenGames: There’s a coffee shop a few blocks from wayne ent- I think its called beanify. They have vegan pastries

TDrake: Name a time and day.

NightenGames: ill check my schedule

Tim pumped a fist triumphantly.

GoingGoth is typing…

PharaohTuck is typing…

Jazzercise is typing…

DanDanDan is typing…

When did all of these people get into his private DMs?

DNClone: we’ll find you if you hurt him!

[suppose-i-was-worm]

Marzipan Boy part 1

Tim shot a quick message to Tam, letting her know that he would be busy for a while, and then he shoved his headphones on and pushed the button to darken the windows of his office.

Tam thought he was taking a nap, and encouraged his daily hour of “dark time”.

Tim was NOT taking a nap, he was watching the love of his life play video games (sue him, he might doze off once or twice during the stream, but it wasn’t on purpose.)

“Good afternoon, gamers. It’s NightenGames here, and I have not had enough coffee.”

Chuckling at the semi-regular intro, Tim took a sip of his dark roast and settled back into his desk chair.

“Today we’re playing Elder Ring- My friend PharaohTuck finally finished setting up my mods.”

Tim wasn’t entirely sure what exactly the mods NightenGames used did, but apparently they were necessary for him to play. The Yeddit threads were full of speculation- from control mods meant for metahumans/aliens, to cheats to make the games easier.

Very few fans believed that one- Nighten died too many times to be cheating with his mods.

“Ooooh, what a fancy character creator! Alright, folks- who should we mock this time? I’m seeing a lot of votes for Lex Luthor in the chat, a few for Bruce Wayne- which, let me remind you, I’ve already done both Wayne and Luthor in the last month, so they’re out.”

This was why Tim had originally followed NightenGames- the streamer would pick a rich person and then pretend to be them for the entire stream, as if they were playing the game. Yeddit had checked- most of the quotes Nighten used were straight from public videos of the target.

“Tim Drake, huh? CEO of Wayne Industries? Isn’t he, like, the same age as me? I dunno, guys- like, nepo baby for suresies, but…”

Tim startled at the sound of his own name, and swooned a little at the way it rang out in Nighten’s rich baritone.

“You’re right, BarleyWater32, I have not picked on Tim Drake yet. In my defense… I have no defense. He’s hot and I’d smash. Don’t want to spoil my minuscule chances, right? Right. Anyways. Oh! Oliver Queen, I can do him. Well, not DO him, but- make me shut up.”

Blinking at his computer, Tim couldn’t help but flush at the knowledge that his internet crush thought he was “hot and would smash”.

Tim would smash too, honestly. He’d done his research. Daniel ‘Danny’ Nightengale was VERY attractive behind the virtual avatars he used.

“Let me pull up Ollie-boy’s avatar- ah ha! Can’t miss that mustache anywhere.”

The avatar finally popped up in the video- Nighten didn’t usually have one up until the chat had chosen a victim, even if he did have a standard avatar for after he was done gaming.

If he had to pick, Tim liked the avatar for Queen the best. He wore a silly pair of green sunglasses, and his matching green mustache twirled far beyond his face- the real Oliver would never, but the mockery was funny.

“Ahem. Yes. Hello. My name is Ollie Queen and I’m richer than anyone else in this city. Let’s get this bread!”

Elder Ring went well- through some chance Nighten picked an archery build for his run through, which Tim thought was quite ironic- and the stream went on for a whole hour before Nighten switched to his standard avatar.

“Okay, folks, I’m going to shut down now- and Tim Drake? If you’re watching? DM me.”

Nighten chuckled a little, like he’d made an impossible request, but Tim was vibrating in his seat, reaching for his phone to DM the streamer.

The video ended abruptly, and Tim’s autotimer on the darkened windows ran out.

Tam was standing expectantly outside of the door, smiling serenely in- but her arms were full of folders that she undoubtedly need signatures on.

With a sigh, Tim took off his headphones, dropped his cell on his desk, and waved her in. Work waited for no man.

~~~

“Danny, are you sure you don’t want me to make you an avatar for one Tim Drake?”

“Positive, Tuck.”

Tucker pouted and draped himself over the back of the couch, leaning his head into Danny’s space as he worked on his essay.

“It would give you an excuse to watch videos of your cruuuuush!”

Danny felt his face go hot, and he shoved Tucker’s face away from his ear.

“Get off, man. I have to finish this paper before midnight.”

His friend stood straight, presumably looking at the clock on the oven.

“Oof, bro.”

10:30PM wasn’t a great time to be writing an essay. Danny knew he should have done it earlier, but, well. He had to film and edit a video for his second channel. UTube wasn’t earning him money yet, but hopefully soon?

Who was he kidding? He would probably have to go back to Vlad for money soon, and he hated the thought of it.

It was hard enough to live in this ramshackle Gotham apartment with both Tucker and Sam, keep up with UTube and streaming, and get through school, without having to cater to Vlad’s whims on top of it.

Sam had only promised to help with his portion of rent for two years, and he was almost hitting that deadline. He hated taking advantage of her guilt for getting him killed in the first place, but she had insisted, even if she couldn’t sustain it for their whole college career.

Danny groaned and turned his attention back to his paper.

11:15 rolled around, and Danny finished checking his paper for mistakes before sending it in. He shut his laptop, planning to brush his teeth before crashing out on the couch.

Tucker had already gone to bed, and Sam was out on an internship trip for the week, so he didn’t have to worry too much about being disturbed after he fell asleep.

His phone chimed with a donation notification and he lazily opened the message.

Tucker came running out of his and Sam’s bedroom, wrapped in a bathrobe and wielding a Creep Stick at Danny’s resulting screech.

“TEN THOUSAND DOLLARS? FROM TIMOTHY DRAKE-WAYNE?”

[suppose-i-was-worm]

Dragongirl kidnaps a maid instead of a princess by mistake; comes back to her lair after a hunt to find the coins and gems in her hoard have been organized into neat piles sorted by type, value, and kingdom of origin.

[suppose-i-was-worm]

Okay, folks, I have options. I can do one of the following things in the next few days:

Let me know what y'all think!