#Danny once again picked random names and they somehow all fit

[dcxdpdabbles]

Cave boy Danny starts talking about one of the debates Tucker and Sam without mentioning their names when asked who the two are,Danny panics again and says that Sam is Selina since that's not that big of a jump when he starts saying her name

"One of my best friends would agree with you." Brucie suddenly speaks up one night at Dinner when Damian rants about his school not offering enough Vegetarian options. "She is an ultra-recyclo-vegetarian."

Bruce blinks having never heard the term before. A quick glance around the table tells him that neither have the others. Must be slang from his universe then. "What does that mean?"

"She doesn't eat anything with a face," Brucie explains. The curve of his lips has the tiniest amount of bestowed fondness that could only come from infatuation. Oh, Brucie is sweet on the girl. Bruce feels mildly alarmed as all his kids and Alfred sits up in interest when spotting it.

Unaware of what he just unwillingly gave away Brucie continues "Not to be confused with being a vegan because she will eat bread and cheese, but not often. She gets real mad when people mislabel her."

Dick grins, leaning over his forgotten dinner to pin Brucie under an eager stare. "I bet. Mislabeling is the worst."

"It is!" Brucie agrees, seemingly satisfied that someone else feels the same. "Especially when getting her to like you is like trying to get a cat's approval. But it's totes worth it when you do. No one has your back better than her."

A....cat's loyalty? Oh no. Surely it couldn't be-?

"What's your best friend's name?" Steph speaks up asking what's on everyone's mind. They all lean in a little closer as Brucie mindlessly gathers some rice on his fork.

"Her name is Sa-" Brucie takes a bite of his rice before swallowing. It takes everything in him not to quote Alfred and scold him for speaking with his mouth full. How Brucie grew up with such manners, Bruce would never know. "Selina! Her name is Selina."

Oh.

It seemed even in another world Bruce's heart would fall into Selina Kyle's hands.

His kids all but burst into cheers. Even Jason, and that was very hard to accomplish in the last few years.

"I knew it! I knew it!"

"Of course, it's Selina! Who else could it have been?"

"I suppose Kyle is not too horrid a partner for Father."

Duke and Cass high-five while Alfred seems to be glowing in parental pride as the other kids chat about his on-and-off girlfriend again. If a civilian version of himself still fell for her, Bruce could convince his Selina to quit the crime life and be his permanently.

Brucie stares a comprehensive eye around the table, so Bruce takes pity on him.

"I have a Selina as well. My kids....enjoy her company." He says, watching blue eyes swing at him as tiny black bangs fall slightly over them. It's adorable, and he finally understands why he had so many admirers. He bets civilian Brucie breaks just as many, if not more, hearts than he did at that age. "How long have you known Selina for?"

"Um...since she moved to my school when we were ten, so about four years, give or take?" Brucie shrugs, a slight blush overtaking his face. "She's great."

Oh, Bruce bet she is.

"Wait." Tim suddenly speaks up, eyes narrow in mistrust. Bruce had noticed before that the second youngest was suspicious of their dimensional visitor. He had been meaning to pull him aside to talk about it. "You said one of your best friends. Who is the other?"

"...Ethan. My other best friend is Ethan," Brucie says after a moment. He must mean Ethan Bennett. Bruce thinks wistfully of the old days when he would play basketball with his dear friend before he was lost in Clayface.

But why did Brucie pause on Ethan's name like that? It almost seemed like he was very carefully selecting that name or was trying to control his facial reaction to it.

A familiar blush bloomed over Brucie's checks and- oh. The boy had spoken about wishing he was from a world where bisexuality was more common, didn't he?

It would make sense. It's not like Ethan hadn't crossed his mind once or twice when Bruce was a teenager, either.

Tim's eyes narrow further. "I don't believe you."

"And I believe you can't stand the sight of your reflection because you're convinced no one will ever want it either." Brucie cheerfully chirps back before closing his eyes and sighing as if tired. He slumps in his chair, leaning his head against the headrest. "Sorry, that was mean. I'm trying to be less mean."

Bruce frowns at him, aware of Tim's eyes going glossy to his right but his son doesn't seem to want to step away. All conversation stops as they glare daggers at Brucie. Dick especially seems the most upset. "That was uncool Brucie"

"Yeah, sorry force of habit. My older sister and I-"

"Your what?" Bruce cuts him off, wondering if he heard right.

"My older sister?"

"You have a sister?"

"Yeah, don't you?"

"No," Bruce whispers. "No, I don't. I'm an only child."

"Oh. I'm the second youngest. I have an older sister, an older brother, and a younger sister." Brucie turns over to Tim to offer a sincere apology that the other gracious takes, but Bruce can't hear him over the sound of blood rushing between his ears.

"Mother and Father had more children?"

"Kind of." Brucie's face twists slightly in consideration. "Tommy and Harley are adopted. They are technically cousins since they were made by my uncle Vlad. Kate.....my older sister Kate, is my aunt Alicia's bio-kid but she was raised by my parents since she was one since Aunt Alicia wasn't...in the best mental state to care for her. No hard feelings are between them."

"Tommy, as in Tommy Elliot?!" Dick gasps, springing to his feet. "He is your adoptive older brother!?"

Brucie appears startled by his reaction, but he nods all the same. Bruce feels dread sink into his stomach.

"He's evil!" Dick shouts.

"I know." Brucie shrugs, uncaring. "Tommy has some issues, and he had them since he was...fourteen, but he's not dangerous.."

"Did you all miss that he said Harley is his younger sister? Harley as in Harleen Quinzel?" Jason cuts in, twisting to pin Brucie with a hard stare. "That's her real name, isn't it?"

"Well, her real name is Harleen Wayne, but she prefers Harley," Bruice says carefully. "Why? Do you know her?"

"She's evil too!" Dick gasps. "Brucie, you're in terrible danger with those two around!"

"Nah, Kate will stop them." Brucie waves his hand. "Sides Tommy and Harley are always traveling. Neither are home much these days."

Bruce feels a headache growing behind his eyes as Dick desperately tries to explain what happens to Brucie's adoptive siblings in their world. At the same time, his counterpart argues on his sibling's behalf.

(No one knows about the electric candles disappearing from the dinner table as the house descends into madness, trying to make the dimension travel realize his danger. Even fewer are aware of Danny's silent apology to Sam, Tucker, Jazz, Dan, or Dani for butchering their names and somehow still connecting them to someone in this world.)

Master Post Link

[sanchoyo]

danny phantom, season 3 episodes 3-6 thoughts!

see prev episode thoughts in this tag <3

-johnny was actually pretty civil with danny and left when he asked! thats nice. also, SKULKER?? HAD A FRAMED PICTURE OF EMBER?? oooo fuck wait had they established they were a Thing Before?? I dont think so. thats weird. its like that country boy/goth girl meme lmfao. I think i am going to choose to ignore this new info and pretend I didnt hear it. 100% unrelated to the jazz/ember fanart I already drew and posted....😳

-LADIES NIGHT EPISODE THIS IS WHAT ITS ALL ABOUT. wish it didnt really center around the guys or them being pissed at them, but. willing to bet this was written by men lol

-THEY ERASED ALL THE MEN??? meanwhile, jack and danny are fishing at. silent hill or something. im glad jack is trying to read a parenting book and making an Attempt. (theyre at lake erie, but, they made it actually eerie...thats fun)

-the girls alt outfits...cute. EMBER MADE A NEW SONG TOO!!! kinda. jazz being one of the backup singers and being AWFUL. NOOOO

-'how are we going to get kitty to blow a kiss?' 'she'll have to think there are still some males in town!' ...i dont know how to break it to you, but I dont know that a 100% het girl would wish for all men to Begone. I think. I mean im not a het or a girl so I dont really know for sure. she Is probably Bi tho. esp having the other ladies in town chanting NO MEN!!! excitedly............(then again, the kiss is to get Rid of men, so, she probably would have blown it at the ladies only if they were actively trying to attack/stop them, so...I MEAN. THE DRESSING LIKE DANNY BIT WAS SO EXTRA)

-I feel like an all female cast ep couldve been way way way way cooler than that was. like. why was it still somehow all about Men. ...anyway. (where was valerie...)

-next ep opens with the observants, and, way way more of them than I expected...existed? I mean I guess them being a council/jury of some kind is what I expected from their first appearance (bc at that time they were basically TELLING clockwork to kill danny, not asking,, so I figured they had SOME kind of authority) but. there were so many. anyway, here goes vlad! letting his own hubris go brrrr. releasing a weather ghost for political gain! #justvladthings

-okay say what you will about him (he IS an asshole) but having an umbrella with his own face on it and more prepared to share is SUPER FUNNY. and him being fanned by huge wads of money by his bodyguards. SO ineffective but so Dramatic. He UNDERSTANDS that if youre rich you need to be. you know. obnoxious and kinda eccentric about it! fuckign hate when rich people are boring about it. I would trust vlad with nothing except to not be a boring rich asshole who wears...fucking khaki or some shit. man knows his Presentation Skills. and that 'V' chair in his mayoral office. is that fucking embroidered?

-maddie get your MAN PLEEEEASSSE. IM SO EMBARRASSED FOR HER. the way jack stays simping for this man. in FRONT OF HIS WIFE!!!! ...my god its like a love triangle. jack clearly loves vlad, who loves maddie, who loves jack. jack fenton is at the very least bi, right................. this is an OBSESSION . 'THE V MAN COMETH'???? i...my god. (also, on a serious note, to have a friend THIS SUPPORTIVE...and still be SUCH A DICK TO HIM (TRYING TO KILL HIM AND STEAL HIS WIFE??) NOT COOL VLAD. JACK IS YOUR 1 AND /ONLY/ HYPE MAN. if someone loved and supported me THIS HARD...LIKE. CMON DUDE.

-STOMP the fucking GAS, JACK

-this would make a great shirt design, looks like a metal band design! we love The Maelstrom

-oh, so vlad did in fact get a mansion in amity park. and its purple! good color choice! not as flashy as a CASTLE or MURDER CABIN, but still pretty eccentric, which I appreciate.

-...vlad knows the difference between picasso and da vinci? in the ep last post where we were watching him fail at conquering every historical time ever he didnt seem to know history well enough to like. be effective...was vlad taking art history at college?? (was he an art MAJOR??? we never DID KNOW WHAT HE WENT TO SCHOOL FOR. I kinda assumed business because in the masters of time ep he was still rich without ghost powers so he had to have..known something about business or something, right...but also, art and or theater FITS HIS PERSONALITY. possibly also something science-y, I guess, but I always felt like he got roped into that, esp how pessimistic he was about the ghost portal in the flashbacks to college, like, i felt like he was just there for maddie and was uninterested/un-invested at the time...)

-THIS GHOST JUST ELECTROCUTED MADDIE (THE CAT) BITCH!! THATS MY FAVORITE MADDIE!!! vlad going after vortex and being ~shocked~ .....WHEN. WHEN WILL YOU LEARN. THAT YOUR ACTIONS. HAVE CONSEQUENCES!!!

-the way this random man with a camera sees the mayor laying in an alley covered in TRASH AND DECIDES TO TAKE A PICTURE HAHAH

*snap* this ones going in my cringe compilation!

-vlad 'if we're going to defeat vortex, we're going to have to do it together!' *immediately dips after dropping danny off in front of vortex* JKASDFHKJHJKN

-DANNY CAN DUPLICATE!!! ...he couldnt even attack with it, but he DID IT!!! INTO (4) OF HIMSELF!!! SO PROUD!!!!!!!!!!

-'THE ROLLER COASTER EMOTIONS OF A TEENAGER THREATEN MY PLANS!' ...0 self awareness of his own dramatic moodiness. incredible, how dumb this man is. its very close to circling around to endearing, if he was less of an asshole. at least its very very funny to see danny shooting him with tiny lightning bolts anytime he's even slightly irritated! vlad you should be nice to danny anyway. this is what you GET

-...making sandwiches and ice cream and playing video games with your nephew is a totally normal thing. WHY is vlad acting like this is the end of the world. if you were a GOOD UNCLE YOU WOULD ALREADY BE DOING THESE THINGS!!! bitch I make my nephew food all the time and dont forget what he does and doesnt like. if u didnt know danny didnt want tomatoes, thats on u. if u, a grown adult, are gonna piss of the 14 yr old by not letting him win, u deserve to have to pay for the arcade machines he ruins because he now has uncontrollable storm powers because YOU THREW HIM INTO A FIGHT WITH THE STORM GHOST. fuck u vlad. paypal me $400,000 while ur at it tho. (also, gamer vlad confirmed)

-VLAD CAN COOK THOUGH???! I assumed he had...people working for him that did that. I mean. billionaires usually dont do that. then again, we've only seen those vultures working for him (and I guess the dairy king was AT his old mansion, but it was never really clarified if he worked there...I think he probably just Hung Out and they Enjoyed Cheeses Together. thats what I think, I dont think a KING would be working for anyone and also the dairy king was nice <3) but then again he would be a private person and we cant have anyone accidentally finding Ghostly Things, so...still, that's hilarious. pour one out for that really cute banana split that got ruined 2 seconds later

-vlad just fucking picking danny up and THROWING HIM AT VORTEX TWICE WITHIN LIKE A MINUTE. JUST ABSOLUTELY LAUNCHING HIM. BITCH THATS MY SON BE CAREFUL!!! HES GOT ORGANS AND THINGS!!!!

-danny seeing those animal commercials and feeling sad is the biggest 2000s throwback so far. i legitimately had to change the channel or walk out of the room when those came on bc id CRY AND BE SAD ABOUT THEM FOR DAYS AFTER. fuck those commercials and fuck that IN THE ARMMMS OF AN ANGELLLL song 😭

-'vlads ego almost got the town destroyed!' yes danny thats the entire episode. the entire series anytime vlad shows up honestly. this episode was just him being really embarrassing the entire time, and, me laughing about it. 10/10 would laugh at him again

-NEXT EP WE HAVE A SHAPESHIFTING GHOST?? I've said it before but shapeshifting is the power I would want when asked those 'what superpower do you want' questions...its the Best power! this guy looks like a homestuck character. ive never read homestuck but thats the vibe

-I love every time we see tuckers family, they are by far the most functional family. and dash has a lil chihuahua!!! named pookie!!! i am crying (I've had 3 chihuahuas, so I am very biased, but...) AND HE WATCHES THE ROMANCE CHANNEL WITH POOKIE. POOKIE I WILL DIE FOR YOU YOU SWEET LITTLE BABY.

-danny can lift a bus! I shouldn't be surprised, but i am proud of my son. hes got lil kid fans. i am going to cry about this

-JAZZ KEEPS A SCRAPBOOK WITH DANNY'S LIL HEROICS AND NEWSPAPER CLIPPINGS!!! we've actually seen it on her floor before, but I didnt realize it was a scrapbook!! thats sooo cute.

-...and danny has to stand there listening to his parents saying danny phantom sucks and is a 'filthy ghost' and calling him egotistical...i am once again stealing their kids!

-THIS GHOST RIPPING JAZZ'S SCRAPBOOK!!! ILL KILL YOU. SHE WORKED HARD ON THAT!!! BITCH

-yes, maddie, the one with red eyes is For Sure Actually Your Son. ignore the, red eyes... (CLEARLY she hasnt watched the other 2 eps where danny has been evil, she doesnt know red eyes= evil!!!)

-'billy fenton'.......................

-danny being stuck as phantom in his own house, no way out is a fucking NIGHTMARE. his parents pointing giant weapons against him and SHOOTING AT HIM. THIS IS A HORROR MOVIE.

-NINE INCH NAILS POSTER.

-this is the most screenshot of all time

-amorpho turning into mr. lancer because hes 'someone no one will want to be around' BUT HES WRONG, I WOULD BEFRIEND AND HANG OUT WITH MR LANCER SO FAST.

-tucker dressing as danny, now I have the full Tucker set of him being sam and also being danny. also saying 'the ghost...uh...RIPPED MY FACE OFF.' and then running. SMOOTH. NOT AT ALL CONCERNING TO ANY PARENTS.

-sam accepts the toast from jack. and then 2 seconds later is like 'why am i eating this.' THIS SHOWS HUMOR IS SO UNEXPECTED SOMETIMES ITS REALLY GOOD. and then the scene after, mr lancer running into his ghost doppelganger and being like 'YOURE GORGOUS' THEN FAINTING. I AM CRYING. AND DASH FAINTING TOO.

-sam disguising herself as danny again to help tucker run from the fentons. but leaving him shirtless in the streets. incredible. 'plEASE DOnt NOTice MY FACELessNESS I MUST LIVE IN EXILE' this episode is destroying me the humor in this show is exactly my brand of corny and cheesy

-the impromtu story made up by danny and amorpho to explain stuff to the fentons. my god they are both such bad liars. but amorpho is a good egg. wish danny wouldnt have said he didnt wanna see him in town again!! I want him to be reoccurring. not that thats gonna matter since I'm almost done with the series, but the idea of this being the Only Time We See him is :(

-NEXT EP SAYS STARRING MARK HAMILL??????!!! hello ! mr . joker....mr. star wars.... I feel like I should be. idk. taking off a hat im not wearing in respect. I shouldnt be surprised tho bc hes in a lot of cartoons as a very good voice actor, and dp has already had a lot of talented ones so I've been looking out for ones I might know, but....mr. hamill....

-sam has her own greenhouse, names all the plants, and says thank you to them (in the languages from where the plants are from) whenever she harvests from them. thats SO cute. and her lil gothy lunch box...

-and danny's lil red fuzzy lined jacket!!! ive said it before but every time the characters get alt outfits im like :D

-danny has ice powers now!!! THATS WHAT FROSTBITE MEANT. HE KNEW SOMEHOW WAY BACK THEN

-THIS SHOW NEVER LETS YOU FORGET VLAD IS A BILLIONAIRE, HUH.

-danny's lil 'holy hibiscus!' first off the 50s batman swearing is hilarious. 2nd. my username is from the flower sanchoyo hibiscus, so, shoutout to ME this ep. hi :)

-EURGH UNDERGROWTH MAKING EVERYONE PLANT ZOMBIES. HIVEMIND PLOTS SCARE THE SHIT OUT OF ME. and this dude made the city SO overtaken so quickly like how long was danny asleep?? oh god

-evil fucked up sam! now the whole trio has gone evil at some point! the voice actress did a really, really good job with making her sound like a zombie...

-frostbite's paws are so so so big compared to danny. oh my god. i want to hug the snow dog...

-the far frozen has an advanced medical stuff!!! very cool. very smart snow dogs

-im so glad danny has a friendly ghost snow dad to explain this new power and teach him!!! this is so sweet. DANNY'S GHOST SENSE WAS A PART OF HIS ICE POWER?? OOOH. COOL. we love a training montage!!!

-danny saying if he cant defeat overgrowth, that he'd want to stay with frostbite...oh my god...do you think this is the first real supportive adult figure in his life (I am NOT counting his parents because they threaten him on the daily even if they dont realize it.) I mean mr lancer is a Teacher, but he was also nice but this is different, but this is a GHOST WHO IS WILLING TO HELP HIM with his powers and also will help him when hes injured and is so so nice and comparatively so much more mature than 90% of the adults in this show!!!! god. dad frostbite is my everything.

-the framing and lighting this episode, and all the angles...they went all OUT and it looks really really good. this is my nightmare scenario, tho. like, FUCK zombies and dead city zones and hivemind shit. and using the humans as 'nutrients for the children' i am going to THROW UP.

-MALEFICENT VIBES WITH THE HORNS AND GREEN EYES! this costume kicks so much ass. sam is now mark hamills daughter, I guess.

-danny's ice powers making his eyes blue!!! thats neat. and him going for the roots underground was SO SMART. i will not stand for danny ever thinking hes stupid, hes SO smart.

almost done with the show... :"( thats a sad thought!!!

[scientifically-strange]

Bored part 3

Danny looked around at the small group that had decided to join, all geared up and ready to go. There were more volunteers than Danny was expecting. When he had asked them who wanted to pay Vlad a visit to help Tony out, almost every hand in the room went up. Thor had just shrugged ad left the room with his poptarts, not wanting to get involved with how mortal businesses work. But Steve had immediately volunteered, and because he did Sam ad Bucky joined in. When Bucky sighed and agreed to come along, Danny didn’t miss the worried look on Steve’s face, but he also noticed how Steve didn’t protest. And then of course Tony was more than willing to fight for what was his. Danny could respect that.

The fastest way to get there was through a portal, but with Vlad’s ghost proof mansion he could probably only get them to the fancy gates. When he told them this, Sam groaned.

“You mean we have to go through one of those gross portal things you shoot out of your hands?” He asked.

“Yeah. Relax, it’s not like you’ll be going to the Zone. Just to Vlad’s mansion. You won’t feel a thing,” Danny said with a roll of his eyes. Bucky snickered as Sam groaned again, and the Falcon couldn’t help but shoot him a glare. It had no heat behind it, though.

Danny held up his hand as it began to glow before focusing his ectoplasmic energy into the portal, imagining exactly where he wanted to be. The circle came out of nowhere, swirling beautifully with foreign shades of green. Danny smiled to himself before quickly turning to the others.

“After you,” he said. They all hesitated for a moment, eyeing Phantom with a sort of worry, but in the end it was the great Iron Man who went first. Then it was Cap, Falcon, and finally Bucky, who hadn’t said a word since he agreed to come along. He tested it out with his metal hand first before walking all the way through. Danny was right behind him, closing the portal behind him.

A part of him was happy to see such a familiar place, but a knot formed in his stomach. It was only familiar because Vlad had this-used to have-this obsession with making Danny his son. Danny couldn’t help but briefly wonder if the cat was still kicking.

The mansion hadn’t changed a bit on the outside. It was still the giant green long and tall silver gates and the red brick walls. Danny walked in front of them, his cape fluttering around his ankles. Vlad had to answer to his crimes, and Danny was more than willing to make him pay up, whether it was ghost related or not. You mess with Danny’s friends then you get the full wrath of the ghost king.

“So, do we just knock?” Sam asked, picking up a rock and flicking it at Bucky. He was completely unfazed by the action. It must have been normal, then.

“Something like that,” Danny grinned. He walked up to the lock, giving it a nice coat of ice before stepping back. He brought his knee up and kicked it as hard as he could. The gates opened with no problem, and they were now horribly dented. Oh, Danny had missed this.

“Looks like he’s not home,” Tony observed. “Should we come back later?”

“Nah, he’ll show up. His sensors have already picked up ghost energy, so it’s not like he already doesn’t know I’m here.”

“Wat about the rest of us,” Bucky said. His gravely voice almost sounded worried, but his face remained completely void of emotion.

“I ind of have to agree with him on that one,” Sam said. “If we weren’t going for stealth then-”

“-You guys worry to much. I said he knew I was here. His equipment isn’t going to pick up on you because it’s to focused on me. Now come on, I know where his lab is.”

They all shared a look as Danny turned and started floating up the long driveway and through the front door. He opened it for them, gesturing for them to enter.

The place was just as massive as Danny remembered, and he couldn’t help the feeling of nostalgia of the first time he ever walked these halls, where he didn’t have to worry about his parents’ old college friend murdering him. Ah, good times.

He led them past the lobby and past the display cases filled with Packers shrines. They didn’t stop until hey reached the den, where everything was coated in a very thin layer of dust. Danny eyed the giant painting of Vlad above the fireplace, his eyes boring into your soul. For a moment Danny thought they flashed red, but no. It must have been in his head. PTSD fro his years of fighting the older halfa.

“Grab onto me,” he said. Iron Man took a shoulder, and Sam took the other. Steve and Bucky each took a hand, and Danny slowly brought them down. Somehow he thought holding four grown men up would be hard, but his ghost strength really paid off. It was almost effortless, really.

After maybe ten feet of dirt it opened up into this blinding white room with equipment everywhere, and old inventions that hadn’t been touched in forever. Over on the far wall was the ghost portal, and on the long wall closer to the exit were several chambers that once held clones of Danny. He walked over and placed his hand on the broken on, thinking of the time he and Dani had kicked Vlad’s butt when Dani was destabilizing.  He let his hand slide down as he continued looking around.

Bucky watched as Phantom walked around like he knew the place. The way he looked at the chamber, the weapons, and especially the large doors off to the side with caution tape around the eight edges. What was that? And why was Phantom so chummy with this place? When had he had time to learn the terrain of Vlad Masters’ home?

“I remember this,” he said, picking up a small cube. He threw it to the ground, and it grew. The top of it had a large hole in it, enough to fit a head, but no more. “See, before I became a full ghost me and Vlad always fought. The whole arch nemesis type thing. He kidnapped me a lot, because I was just a scrawny teenager who had had my powers for a few months. He had had his since his college days though. He used to be a lot stronger than me.”

“Why was he always kidnapping you?” Iron Man asked. The helmet gave a sort of ting to his voice.

“He had a major thing for my mom, who married my dad. Bu my dad was kind of an idiot sometimes. He was the one that caused Vlad to get ecto acne, and Vlad wanted him dead. He wanted to marry my mom and make me his apprentice, so I ended up down here a lot. It was awful. Now though, I almost miss it. I mean, not the whole fighting part, but the adrenaline and such. But I’m all ectoplasm now. It made my core feel good.”

“Your core?” Steve couldn’t help but ask. The boy looked so nostalgic, like he was stuck in the past where everything was right. Steve could relate to that more than he wished to admit.

“It’s like a heart, but for ghosts. When I was a halfa is sat right next to my heart. It’s als what gives me the ability to make ice. Different cores for different ghosts, depending on the obsession or how they died. Sometimes it’s random. I think that’s how I ended up with ice.”

“So you weren’t obsessed with the cold or anything, or died by ice?”

“No, not at all. I was actually obsessed with space. See, my parent had a portal just like this, except the on button was on the inside. It’s what killed me the first time. A part of me feels like I should have gotten electricity powers. But when I died it gave me a new obsession.”

“What was it?” It was Bucky that spoke up this time, eyeing Phantom warily. A look quickly flashed over his face, something to quick to read. If you blinked you would have missed it, but Bucky was searching for that reaction ever since they came down here. His shoulder was starting to itch.

“Something wrong?” Bucky asked. His voice still held no emotion, but he knew how to get into people’s heads. He guessed ghosts weren’t much different after all.

“No. But it-” Phantom sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. He closed his eyes for a brief moment, and Bucky couldn't help noticing how the ghost’s hands wrung. “Don’t ever ask a ghost what their obsession is,” he said slowly. Steadily, like he was trying to choose his words carefully. Like if he didn’t control his language he would blow up in their faces. “It’s very offensive. It,” he paused, opening his eyes and turning to him, “it’s like asking you why you’re alive. Why do you keep living? What is our purpose on Earth?”

That made the other heroes think for a moment. They could all see how it was offensive, ad how it could have gone way worse if Phantom didn’t know how to control himself. After all, he had to. He had to keep up his image, even in front of his friends. But within a few moments he was back to normal. Or at least as normal as a ghost could be.

“It was protecting, by the way. I just-I could never stop myself from getting a cat out of a tree or running into a burning building, you know? It-Your core pulls at you. Going against your obsession could be catastrophic to your very being. I didn’t know anything about that at the time, though. I just...Did. Hell, the media even coined this dumb name for me.”

“What was it?” Sam asked, because now he had to know. Phantom chuckled.

“It was,” his chuckles grew, and his shoulders were shaking from contained laughter, “It was Inviso-Bill! God, I used to hate that name so much! It was freaking genius!” He was laughing now, the kind where you can’t stop, and you’re bending over backwards. It echoed around the room, and as they watched this, Phantom looked twenty years younger, almost like a happy-go-lucky teen. They couldn’t help but crack a couple of smiles.

However all of them instinctively got into their battle stances when a figure in while floated through the large octagon doors, rolling his eyes as Phantom laughed. He was so focused on the ghost king he didn’t notice the few others.

“Daniel, don’t you have a kingdom to be running?” The older ghost snarled. His fangs were bright against his pale blue skin and red eyes, almost matching the white suit he had on, with the long cape behind him. This guy seemed more mildly annoyed at Phantom’s presence than anything. Phantom wiped a tear from his eye as his laughter died down, and he faced Vlad, getting serious now.

“What are you doing buying up Stark shit, dude?” He asked, eaning against the table.

“Nothing that involves a child like you, little badger. Besides, I don’t think you’re small mind can handle it.”

“Well, knock it off, Fruitloop. Give it back to Stark,” Phantom snapped at him. He got off the table and stood to his full height, which was  few inches over the other man. “In fact, I’m gonna need you to give it back to him.”

Sam felt as though he was going to get whiplash from this guy’s mood swings. One second he was laughing his ass off, the next he was deadly serious with a flaring aura. Vlad, however, just scoffed.

“And why should I? It’s not like it involves you,” Vlad sneered.

“Oh, but it does, Vlad.” His voice boomed throughout the old chamber, and Tony was jut going to assume that that was his cue to make themselves known.

“Listen, Drac,” he said, gaining the attention of Vlad. he bared his fangs at them. “I don;t like it when people take my stuff. So why don’t you just give it back, and we’ll call it a day. and my boy Phantom here won’t blow you to bits.” As he talked he walked over, finally putting his elbow on Phantom’s shoulder. Phantom smirked, his confidence growing as the others slowly came as well, surrounding Vlad from all sides.

“The great ghost king couldn’t come by himself?” Vlad haunted. “He needs these second-rate heroes to come with him? How pitiful, really. When you were a halfa you were much more frightening.”

“They came because they wanted to. You know good and well I would have gotten the Fright Knight to come if I needed backup.”

Something shifted in Vlad’s face. Barely, but Bucky caught it. His lips dropped, and there was a brief flash of fear that was gone as quick as it came. So apparently Fright Knight was a big deal. He glanced at Phantom, who seemed to have notice the change in Vlad’s mood.

“Just one little call would all it take. Now, you don’t want that, do you?” Phantom asked, a sickly sweet. Vlad growled at him, but after a few moments of consideration, gave in.

“Very well. But if I see your face in here again I won’t hole back, King or not. Now get out.”

Phantom smirked as he nodded, giving Vlad a lazy two-fingered salute as the others began to get behind Danny so he could take them back to the Tower. Before he flew up threw the ceiling, he grinned at Vlad.

“Well, Fruitloop,” he said, “as always, it was a pleasure doing business with you.”

And then they were gone.

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It was a matter of minutes before they were walking back into the Tower’s kitchen. The phone inside of Tony’s armor rang, and it was quickly answered. Danny tuned it out though, knowing that it was good news about Stark’s business. Judging from the grin on Tony’s face when his face mask pulled back, he was right to assume everything went well.

“Thanks, kid,” he said. Phantom just nodded at them with a smile, and Tony led him to the tbale where everyone else had sat back down.

“So,” Tony said, a shit-eating grin on his face. “Daniel, huh? Makes you sound like an old man.”

“Whatever, Anthony.”

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You know, I really need to work on my essay, not this, but I just couldn’t help myself. You guys are going to be the death of me (hehehe)