#(Danny doesn't feel his age as a ghost in any case. Even if he looks 139 he won't have any of the limitations of his human body.)

[asjjohnson]

Immortality

(a ficlet written for Dannymay 2024 prompt 6: Immortal AU: What if Danny/Halfas couldn’t die?) Also on AO3.

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He actually didn’t know whether halfas were immortal or just lived longer than humans.

Now at around age 140, give or take a few years (what year was it now? he could calculate it), Danny was an old man in his human form—wrinkled skin hanging from his arms and face like unironed fabric; hunched over to half his original height, bones grated down as though left exposed outside over the past decades; eyes milked over; ears inadequate despite their larger size; mind fogged.

He had no one to look to. A few years ago, or maybe a decade or two ago, he’d searched the Zone for any sign or rumor of the existence of other halfas. He wasn’t sure how long he’d searched, talking to distant ghosts, visiting places he never could have imagined existed, the Ghost Zone stretching on and on, toward infinity, before he’d given it up as a lost cause.

Vlad (though only a few years older than Danny and thus wouldn’t have been of much help anyhow) never returns to his human form. Had stopped living as a human altogether once he’d realized he was ‘growing old’.

Of course, this had been before Vlad was anywhere near an old man. Back when he’d only been about 60 years old. A few wrinkles and thinning hair, and his vanity and pride had had him abandoning his human half completely.

Not to the extreme of extracting that part of himself, of course—he had known better by that age—but of denying its existence; living solely as a ghost.

Danny had grown fond of humanity, however. The light touch of gravity, an embrace that kept him tethered to reality; the life found everywhere he looked, in the grass at his feet, in the air around him, or even just walking by him—so unlike the void of the Ghost Zone, the vast empty space with small pockets of ecto-life scattered across its depths; even the ache in his bones, the proof that he was alive, still belonging to this planet. It was all fondness.

Even as his senses continued to fade—the details of leaves and faces blurring even with thick glasses, the chittering of birds growing silent even with hearing aids, the difficulty of holding objects (connecting with the world around him) with pain and trembling hands—he clung ever more to the human world and its small wonders.

And though all his human friends from over a hundred years ago might be lost, he wasn’t alone.

They were still here.

Alive and well, living echoes seen in their grandchildren, great-grandchildren, great-great-grandchildren, and teenaged great-great-great-grandchildren. A town composed of familiar faces. And sometimes those echoes were so strong, he called someone by the wrong name.

Matilda wears a black shirt one day and, even with the pink floral patterns, Sam is so strong within her.

Derek tries out for football, and the way his smile pulls across his face is all Dash, even through the freckles and shaggy brown hair.

Nicky’s righteous glare is Valerie shining straight from his heart. Although the light in his eyes as he talks about psychology is all Jazz.

Danny was trying. Trying so hard to stay with them all, as they continued to live, fully alive, forever onward.

He didn’t know whether halfas were immortal.

[annastylepie]

The messenger

Dp x Dc prompt 2 uwu

imadgine danny moves to gotham for a new life and trying to no longer be a hero decides to therefore move to a place that already has heroes and enoght ambient ectoplasm to sustain healty or something. I imadine this appening after jason just started as robin

What danny seems to only realize after a couplt weeks in the city is that the other citicents can't see all the ghosts around them, or well any ghosts at all not even him when in phantom form and that is when he isn't invisible. Why can the Amity parkers see the ghosts? I believe that all the ecto exposure gave them the ability or smth.

So danny goes around greeting the Ghosts talking to them chilling in random corners and vibing with different ghosts talking about live and death. I imadgine danny would help some ghosts into the Zone to help them. After some time and many recently deseased asking him to deliver messenges to their loved ones he gives and finds the families friends partners pets and in very rare cases even plants of the ghosts to deliver the messenges. Some ghosts feel ready to move on afterwards and go to the zone others stick around and regularly chill with Danny. I imadgine some would also just always stick around with him and might help him out at times like reminding him of some stuff or warning him when he is about to get mugged or jumped or whatever.

The Gothamites after some time take note of the deadly pale young man delivering the last masseges of their loved ones. He soon becomes a legend and if he approaches you with the look of sorrow you just know someone died or you will recieve the saddest "they loved you, they missed you, they are so so proud of you, they are sorry etc, etc" at times it seems that if you touch the massenger you can see the ghost of the ghost standing with you after delivering the massege and asking if they have any last words for the person to be delivered. Afterward the boy and the ghosts would dissapear from view

The young boy wandering the streets at all hours that can't be mugged jumped or even suprised is the legend you can't find him if you search for him nobody knows who he is or where he'd come from or where he'd go.

Some would call him cotton eyed Joe

Some Says he is a ghost

Others say he is a Grim reaper

Some says he is the murderer of the people whose massenges he delivers

and then others don't believe in him until they saw him with their own eyes

Whoever he is he is sitting dangerously close to the edge of a building currently as Batman is watching him. Batman makes a step closer to the boy. In the exact moment said boy turns around. A sorrowful looks comes over his face. He makes a step closer to Batman.

"Bruce Wayne" The Boy spoke looking seemingly right throu the cowl and taking bruce by surprise

"What?"

"your Parents are so Proud of you they hoped to have more time to be with you in Person."

"they wh-"

"They never blamed you and want you to know that they are so proud of you and your new family and to never forget what is important"

"I- they- "

"Do you have a messege for them?" the boy asks touching the hand of bruce. Bruce sees a flash of his parents next to him before reflexively pulling his hand back and slowing down.

"Is-Is this real?"

wordlessly the boy touches his shoulder and he sees them a tear escapes his eyes and a soft "I am so sorry" escapes and after the blink of the eye the boy and his parents disapear.

This was not how bruce wanted this to go.

He didn't see the boy again but not because of lack of trying but because there is litterly nothing to find of him it is like he doesn't even exist unless he stopped aging at some point. He does look a lot like the missing fenton kid from a couple years back.

However after jasons death after Nightwing tried to kill the Joker he sees the kid again not a day older then when he first saw him this time however bruce was just bruce and not batman.

"bruce wayne"

"yes"

" Your son Jason"

"Can I see him" he asks looking hopeful but unsetteld he was never this open he already acted weard when the kid showed up the first time. This wasnt any betters.

the boy touchers his shoulder and there he is his Jason his youngest bird, the late robin. Tears well up at the corner of bruces eyes but not letting them fall.

"I am so so sorry. I wasn't fast enoght I couldn't protect you" bruce weeps

"There was nothing you could have done. He forgives you for not saving him in Time. He wants Justice for his death and want s you to take care of it"

"I will do my best" not a moment after those words left bruces mouth the child and his late son dissapeared and Bruce has a mission. He will destroy the Jokers live he will make sure he won't hurt anyone ever again. But he won't kill him.

[kawaiijohn]

prompt: Jazz vibing with Quizz and chatting about their younger siblings

OKAY NGL I WENT 👀 AT THIS ONE. They'd be friends so here we go.

CW: mentions of death, death of a child, mention of misgendering? kinda??

"Does it ever get easier?"

Quizz hums in response, his mug floating down and landing with a small clink. "Y'gotta specify- does what get easier?"

Jazz looks away, nervously chewing on her nails- a habit that not even bitter polish could break. Quizz waits patiently for her to speak; the few false starts makes a shiver of anxiety race through his Core, especially paired with her grim expression.

"Does it get easier? Knowing you could have been there for him- er, them in your case- like, knowing they'd died- and yeah! They got better! But the mere concept that they went through that sort of trauma and kept going? Without any sort of help from anyone?!? Without parents or adults?!? Without..."

'Without you' remained unspoken, but they both get the gist.

"It doesn't sit with me right, and I feel selfish for wanting to have known earlier. I deal with it every day, and then there's the lying to our parents thing, and-"

Quizz puts his hand up, stopping Jazz in her spiraling tracks. "First things first, you gotta breathe, kid. Okay? Ya good? Cool! Now, second thing second- you're doin' great with the boy, you're a tried and true ally for him and it's what he needs. You're doin' whatchya can to keep him kickin', and that's all ya can do as a big sister, trust me."

Jazz finally sets her mug to rest with the other. She takes a few minutes to think it through before speaking again. "Was it the same for you and Stuffie then? The anxiety, the secrets?"

"Hell no! Stuffie passed in a house fire when they were younger than Danny! It's similar but not the same, y'know?"

"Oh uh... I'm sorry for- I never asked how I guess?" Jazz backtracks.

Quizz scoffs and offers her a smile. "No, you did the right thing in not askin'. Ghosts don't like talkin' about it- their death or death in general, but you're practically a younger sister to me through your dork of a brother, so it's all good.

"I think I was like, your age-ish when it happened, and I don't remember the full of it, but ever since I found the blog I kept while I was still alive I can pretty much taste the guilt from how angsty my teenaged ass got. And sister, what you have is kinda similar to mine- but mine? It ate me away for years. Even now it kinda eats at me, but I promised to never let someone I care about down like that again.

"S'why I do what I can for Stuffie now that we're both miraculously too stubborn to pass on. Like, what I went through? It was a different beast of burden and guilt 'n shit compared to yours. And again- I've done the whole 'guilty big sister' thing enough for one lifetime, s'why my afterlife is 'protective big bro' hours all day, every day."

"So... it might get easier?" Jazz finally speaks up, eyes sad and full of hope.

"Well, yeah! You gotta repeat the mantra that the past is the past n' you can't really change it... unless you got powers or some shit? But like- you didn't do anything malicious. You're a kid, and it ain't your responsibility to parent your little bro, even if your parents make you feel it sometimes. You're doing what you, at your current age and ability, can handle emotionally n' financially. Just be there for Danny so you won't miss anything else."

Quizz crosses his arms and huffs in accomplishment. He was never the best at giving pep talks, but with Jazz's happy tears he feels a bit accomplished.

He's about to grab his coffee when wiry arms wrap around his waist and squeeze.

"Thank you- it just gets hard when there's no real adults that can help us."

"Not a problem kiddo, just don't try to be Atlas with your bother's issues, you got a wicked tight-knight support group, after all."

Quizz hugs the girl tight, wishing he could have spared more of her pain, but growing up is never easy. Neither is having an undead younger sibling who loves to cause chaos.

Jazz pulls away, wiping a stray tear from her eye with a smile. Quizz watches as her expression changes to her standard 'baby psychologist' one and smiles back nervously. "So... big sister, huh?"

"Listen, as someone who transed their gender after death, I can only be described as the omni sibling- both brother n' sister at the same time. Quizz, the blue hair n' pronouns ghost, as your bro calls me when he wants to piss me off!" they laugh heartily.

"It don't bother me to talk about my pre transition shit, hell my body was buried in a dress since I wasn't out yet- which is HILARIOUS to me, since this is what I look like now. Got them with my transgender genjutsu so hard I didn't even remember what I looked like before. So go on, Jazz- let those gears in your head run wild, I can talk gender bullshit until Danny gets here."