#Danny: hey dad so i made another thing—

[medusas-graveyard]

Retired hero & current (almost) mad scientist/engineer Daniel James Wayne where he's absolutely oblivious. And I mean that in a batfam knows everything about him but Danny? Has not pulled the dots together.

Danny "Oh yeah my family's a bit weird and I could smell lingering death on them but that's pretty much it what's wrong with it?" Wayne.

Danny who is allowed to do anything as he please and coming to Bruce just giving him new inventions, ghost related or not, and flatly asking weather or not it was possible to give it to Batman to test.

[b00tyliciousbabe]

gingerbread

himbo bf x male reader

summary: spending time with your boyfriend and his family for the holidays. some fluff, lil angst, bad jokes (i apologise in advance), and minimal smut of course.

notes: merry chrysler! hope y’all pretty people are doing amazing. notoriously indecisive in true bootylicious fashion, i settled on one of my fave typa men - gentle giant himbos. think danny wheeler from baby daddy. now, i would never call my men dumb, but always be saying real stupid things. there’s a specific kind of wonder that you can see in their eyes…i’m whipped.

disclaimer: i also tried to keep it as open to as many tastes as possible, so a lot of who he is, you can do create yourself. but i had to make him a bit of a redhead, they too fine.

y’all better gass me because the way i wrote this 3 hours before the end of xmas day, enjoy babies <3

saved in his phone as gingerbread - he’s a ginger, and you get bred xx

you always loved spending time with your boyfriend’s family, almost as much as they loved you. his mother was the first to catch Y/N fever, mostly because you reminded her of herself and it was a relief to know that someone could handle her son’s antics . then it was his brothers, they loved how mellow you made him, as if all of his struggles melted away when you waltzed into his life. they felt like your guardians, wanting to protect you because they knew how much you meant to their baby brother. and his sisters…they’re lowkey your best friends. when you first met, y’all got on so well with one another bonding over fashion, pop culture, and weirdly philosophy.

his dad liked you as a person, believing you were a kind soul, but not the person for his son, because of how different you two were. they were a quiet luxury kinda family, which didn’t necessarily coincide with how connected you were with celebrities. this was until he saw how well you worked together. whilst working on a huge project for the family business, your boyfriend was stressed in the office. you walked in, ready to go on a date after he’d finished. ‘hey baby, you look hot, where you going?’ he’d forgotten, but you never held it against him. you loved to see the cogs turn in his head as he came to a realisation. ‘shit. it’s date night.’ he groaned head in hands. ‘I’m so sorry Y/N, work’s just been so busy, the clients wanted to move the order forward, the contractors needed more data on the financial markets, and…’ you sat down on his desk, holding his chin so you guys exchanged eye contact. ‘babe, it’s all good, i know it’s a really busy time for you.’ you stroked his face reassuringly, a sigh of relief emitted from his lips. ‘i ain’t leaving your side, we’re in this together,’ you said as you went in for a kiss. it was deep and sensual, and if you didn’t stop when you did, you would’ve left that room walking side to side. ‘so, what can i help with?’ you responded, looking at the documents on the desk. he stared up lovingly, ‘i don’t deserve you,’ he admitted ‘too good to me.’ which garnered a little chuckle from you. his dad saw how supportive you were, pulling an all-nighter for the benefit of your man. you were so tired that the two of you spooned on the couch in his office, and slept there. early the next morning, the two of you were met with a breakfast course on the coffee table and your respective starbucks orders. you kissed your bf goodbye, so he could work, and just as you were about to leave, his father stopped you. ‘good morning Y/N, did you enjoy the food?’ he questioned as you entered the elevator together. ‘it was lovely sir, thank you.’ you replied hesitantly. ‘the only thanks due is to you, i appreciate how you’re always there for my son.’ you smiled inside, longing to prove yourself to him. ‘I love him sir, he needs to know that any problem he has, automatically becomes our problem to solve together.’ he knew at that moment, you were the perfect fit.

one of the core memories of your relationship was the weekend in the alps. your boyfriend thought this would’ve been the perfect opportunity to have some alone time with you before the new year. with award season coming up, many celebrities needed to be styled, you legit had no time to see him, it was going to be amazing. you stayed in the chalet his parents owned, but neither of you knew that it’d be an entire sibling getaway. the two of you snuggled under the blankets, drinking hot chocolate, whilst listening to some quiet smooth jazz in the background. revelling in how cozy and warm it was, he was dozing off whilst cuddling and you decided to follow suit, but not before a quick kiss on your bf’s nose - he’s so cute. unfortunately, like most precious things, this didn’t last long. there was a huge clatter at the door, awakening you two. ‘what the fuck are you guys doing here?’ your man blasted at them. ‘oh hey lil bro,’ one of them said as the others made themselves feel at home. ‘we heard you lovebirds were here and wanted to see Y/N again, we missed him.’ they all waved at you. you blushed and immediately got up greet them all with hugs and squeals. ‘omds, i haven’t see you guys in ages, we have so much to catch up on.’ you blurted out in an excited frenzy. your love, on the other hand, didn’t share the same energy. whilst you had walked to his sisters, his brothers playfully punched your bf to cheer up. ‘you idiots, have the worst timing, he said as they got ready to get some wood for the chimney.

it was just you and the girls, as you gossiped about the drama that went down during fashion week as they ate up every word. you mostly had done a lot of listening to their relationship dramas and work lives, as you shared a couple giggles. you has made gingerbread men, as his sisters watched the master at work. ‘Y/N, these are delicious, how are you so good at everything?’ they praised which made you blush. the boys had returned, with your man wincing with pain as his brothers carried him in. ‘the dummy tripped on the snow’ they said snickering as you walked to help him. ‘how many times have i told you to be careful out there?’ you said, concerningly staring at the bruise on his hip. you touched it gently earning a wince from him as he pushed away your hand. ‘sorry babe.’ he stared dead in your eye and looked away, giving you the silent treatment. ‘what do you need?’ he continued airing. ‘i’m gonna get some bandages’ you said, unsure of what you did to hurt him emotionally.

‘the fuck is wrong with you?’ his sisters protested, thumping his head. ‘ow! what do you mean?’ ‘that boy loves you, so much so that he puts up with all of your shit and stupidity.’ they come to your defence. he looks to his brothers for help, but to no avail. ‘dude, I’ll be real, you fucked up.’ one says. ‘he was just trying to help’ another adds. like the youngest, he continues to deflect ‘well, if you guys hadn’t come, i wouldn’t have gotten hurt, and me and Y/N would have been happier. he finally admitted. ‘oh damn.’ their faces became gentler as they circled in on him. ‘I just never get to see him now, with work and everything, and i don’t want him to get used to not seeing me’ he started to get teary but hid it behind a scowl. ‘bro, you are meant to be with Y/N, i see it in your eyes every time he walks into a room, like he’s the only one there.’ your bf smiles at the mere thought of your face. ‘see, he ain’t even here and you’re cheesing so bad rn.’ they all laugh. ‘i don’t know how to tell him, he’s so good at communicating his feelings, i just, i just can’t do it the way he does.’ his heart begins to beat faster. ‘that’s the thing though, he knows you better than you know yourself.’ the eldest brother says ‘there’s nothing that he won’t be able to understand because the two of are so connected.’

you enter with the bandages and medical supplies. ‘here’s a chance to fix that’ his twin sister says as they leave and move to the other side of the mansion, locking the door behind them as they wave you bye for now. you sit beside him on the sofa, placing a hot compress on his bruise. ‘Y/N, we need to talk.’ you decided to give him a taste of his own medicine by being stand-offish ‘speak then.’ you say glaring into his eyes that made you melt every time but now. ‘i am so sorry for my rude behaviour, i know you were just tryna help my stubborn ass.’ you continued tending to his wounds, with an apathy rivalled only by the unconditional love you have for him. ‘whatever.’ you muttered. ‘aw, come on baby, don’t be like that.’ he grimaced. ‘like what,’ your voice growing in confidence ‘like someone who, as hard as they try, can never get their boyfriend to fully open up?’ you admitted. ‘you know that’s not the whole story.’ he looks down. ‘mkay’ you say, tired of arguin, he just needed to cool off. he takes a deep breath. ‘Y/N, you know i love you more than anything ’ your boyfriend boldly states, deepening your eye contact. ‘and you know i love you the same, but sometimes love is not enough,’ you struggle to get the words out, getting choked up as you hold his cheek for stability. he turns to kiss you, it’s like nothing you’ve ever experienced before. he caresses your thigh, as your tongues dance for dominance in the warmth of your mouth. you pulled back. ‘here goes nothing, babe, I’m afraid, afraid of losing you.’ he admitted desperately. ‘we barely ever see each other and I’m scared that it has, um, like, maybe, um’ he failed to articulate his thoughts, angering him further. ‘calm down love, i hear what you’re saying. you’re worried about the possibility of us being comfortable with rarely seeing one another and what that means for us.’ you always knew how to soothe his heart. ‘exactly, you’re just so good at letting me know what we need to do to make this relationship work that I’m clueless at asking for help.’ he smiled earning a chuckle from you. ‘we’re in this together boo, you won’t ever lose me.’ as he sneers into another smooch. ‘fuck.’ he moaned into your mouth as a tent forms in his boxers. ‘your voice always gets me going.’ you looked down and immediately dropped to your knees.

you hadn’t sucked your boyfriend’s cock in what seemed like forever. you pulled his boxers to his ankles as his thick cock sprung up, throbbing in the cool air of the room. you grabbed his pole, gaslighting him into thinking you were going to start at the tip. instead you began to massage his beefy, low-hanging balls in your mouth. ‘Y/N, fuck, that’s where the spunk is stored, not where you drink it from’ he snickered, removing them from your mouth. ‘you’ve got to st-UGHHHH’ you deepthroated with ease, loving how his dumb, naive nature was still translated to your time in the sheets. ‘that’s it baby, good boy’ he praises, looking at the slobber that made his dick glisten. ‘shit.’ he cums without warning, giving you an impromptu facial. ‘sorry darling, i came as soon as i saw you slap my dick on your thick lips.’ your boyfriend helped you to clean up, pushing his hand all over your face and fingering your mouth with his nut.

you moved to undressing, as you straddled your man. ‘i know you wanna pound me into tomorrow, but you can’t,’ gesturing to his bruise. he whined and cooed. ‘however…’ you whispered into his ear, jerking him of with a mix of his cum and your spit ‘imma help my man out tonight.’ as you sank onto his schlong with ease. his hands immediately grabbed your globes, as he licked his lips salaciousy, enjoying your physique. ‘so fucking hot.’ your bf mumbled. you started bouncing on his cock as he slowly rutted in you from beneath, your hole was already sore.

it was gonna be a long night…

@gayaristocrat imma save your fantasy for dacre, that man is 90s fine fr

[five-rivers]

vacation in camazotz

@rgbyshipper101

.

“... keeps going like this, he’s going to end up dropping the house into another dimension again.”  Danny sighed heavily.  

“Well, that’s not really fair,” said Sam.  

“Huh?  What do you mean?” asked Danny, blinking blankly at her.  “That’s definitely a thing he did.”

“Yeah, but that wasn’t totally him.”

“He was pretty tangential, actually,” said Tucker.  “Unless there’s something you aren’t telling us?”

“I… haven’t I told you about the time he sent the house into a parallel dimension?”

“You didn’t exactly need to.  We were all there.”

“No,” said Danny.  “What are you guys talking about?”

“Yes, we were.  The whole town was there,” said Tucker.  

“You know,” prompted Sam.  “Vlad pawning the Ring of Rage off on Valerie, you pulling Fright Knight’s sword out of the ground, Pariah Dark.”

“Yeah, you’re more related to us winding up in the Ghost Zone than your dad is.”

“Ooohhhh, I get what’s going on.  You’re thinking of a completely different time.  The time I’m talking about is way back in sixth grade.”

Sam’s gamer cave (she did not call it that, but that’s what it was) went quiet enough that the faint hum of the computer screens could be heard.  

“Your dad sent you guys to another dimension when you were in sixth grade,” said Sam, spinning her chair around and pointing a painted fingernail at Danny.

“Yeah,” said Danny.

“Three years before your whole…”  She waved her hand at him.  “Thing.”

“Before you got zapped, she means,” said Tucker.

“Yeah.  So?”

“So,” said Sam, “why is that, even though you knew alternate dimensions were a thing and your dad could get you there, you didn’t believe in ghosts and were okay with walking into the portal?”

“Okay, but, look,” said Danny.  He put his controller to one side.  “That’s– That’s a false equivalency.”

“Spending time with Jazz, I see,” said Tucker.  He was now the only one still playing the game.  

“Shut up,” said Danny.  “I know stuff without Jazz telling me about it.  But just because one unbelievable thing is true, that doesn’t mean that all unbelievable things are true.  Besides, the dimension we wound up in was way different from the Ghost Zone.  Had nothing to do with ghosts at all.  Definitely not something you look at and then go, ah, yes, ghosts exist.”

“But you knew that other dimensions existed.  Even if there weren’t ghosts on the other side of the portal, you still could’ve realized that it could take you to another dimension.”

“But it didn’t do that.  It just half killed me.”

“By opening a portal to another dimension in you.”

“And?”

Sam glared at him.  “You’re just playing dumb at this point.”

“Neither of you are playing anything, and I think at this point we can just say that Danny’s dumb.”  Tucker’s computer let out a little jingle as his character completed a quest.  

“Hey!  Most of their stuff doesn’t work,” said Danny, exasperated.  

“But you were messing around with something that they had made work before.  Didn’t you think that could be dangerous?  Or have consequences?  Drop you in yet a different dimension?  Something?”

“They said it didn’t work.  I believed them.  And you guys kept hassling me about it.”

“Someone skipped out on the ‘don’t give in to peer pressure’ PSAs,” said Tucker, singsong.  

“You are not innocent here, Tucker!  We’ve all done dumb stuff.  Can we drop it?  I thought we were playing games today, not playing ‘gang up on Danny for stuff we all did.’”

“Fine,” said Sam.  She picked her controller back up.  Danny picked his up a second later. 

They continued playing the game.  

Then Sam dropped her controller again, this time in her lap.  “Okay, actually, this is going to bother the heck out of me if I don’t know.  How did your Dad drop the house in an alternate dimension?”

“And what was it like?” added Tucker.  He, of course, kept his eyes on the game.  

“What was it like…” said Danny, contemplative.  He made his character run around in circles.  “How to explain?”

“Start with how you got there,” said Sam.  “Go from there.”

“Okay.  Well.  It started off– It was pretty normal.  You know.”

“Uh, no,” said Tucker.  “Sending your house to another dimension is not normal.”

“Normal for them.  For my parents.”

“Define normal here.  Like, describe it,” said Tucker.  

“Working on the portal.”

Sam let out a slow, exasperated sigh.  “Really, Danny?”

“Well, it was that or weapons.  Do you think their weapons teleported us to another dimension?”

“They could’ve.  The bazooka does,” said Tucker.  

“Fair,” said Danny.  “But, like, they were working on the portal, but then they were going over some of the math - it was wrong, obviously - and they saw that there was, like, there was a, um.  There was an ‘interesting result.’  Supposedly, distance fell out of the equation if you had the right inputs.  Something like that.”

“Which means… what?” asked Sam.  

“They thought they could make a teleporter.”

“What!”  Tucker finally whirled away from his monitor.  “They have a teleporter?  They made a teleporter?”

“No.  That’s the whole point.  No teleporter.  They messed it up.  But, like, they built what they thought was a teleporter.  And, of course, as soon as they built it, they had to use it.  Mom wanted to do small tests, sending an apple back and forth or something, but Dad decided to jump right into teleporting the entire house, because it was vacation time.”

“Yeah, okay, that sounds like your dad,” said Tucker.  

“Doesn’t it?  Which is why I’m worried now, because it’s the same thing all over again, he keeps getting too excited and then doesn’t slow down to make sure things work the way they’re supposed to.”

“You have no right to criticize that, Mr. Walks Into a Portal and Dies,” said Sam.  

“I think I’m the only one who does have the right to criticize it.”

“And the dimension?” asked Tucker.  “I want to know about the alternate dimension.”

“Right,” said Danny.  “Well, when Dad ‘teleported’ us, we knew things were wrong pretty much right away.  You guys have read a Wrinkle in Time, right?”

“Sure,” said Sam.  

“Yeah,” said Tucker.  “It was assigned last year, wasn’t it?”

“Right, so, you know the planet with the brain?  It was– It was kind of like that.”  His character died and he sighed.  “I suck at multitasking.  It wasn’t even just the stuff, it was, like, the air was flat.  The texture of everything was wrong.  Everything was… fake?  Like a performance, except it was the whole world.  Everyone just had these smiles on their faces but they were… empty.”

Sam propped her head up on her fist.  “Your parents sent you to play outside and didn’t notice any of that, didn’t they?”

“They did.  But they did notice stuff.  Like, all the houses being the same, the creepy sky–”

“The sky was creepy?”

“Super creepy.  It was like.  Segmented.  Triangles.  Like we were inside a pyramid.  And all the roofs were also pyramids, now that I think about it.  Just, pyramids everywhere.  Really pointy ones.  Oh!  And gravity was also a pyramid.”

“What?” asked Sam.  

“Gravity was a pyramid.”

“What does that even mean?”

“It was a pyramid.  Gravity.”

“Okay, okay, I think I’ve got this,” said Tucker.  “What shape is gravity here?”

“It’s round,” said Danny, “duh.”

“It’s round, so there you go, Sam,” said Tucker.  

“It is round,” said Danny.  “Like, gravitational fields, they’re round.  But they were pyramids there.”

“Wow,” said Sam.  “I wouldn’t have expected that.  Pyramids.”

“See?  Ghost Zone is totally different.”

“Yep,” said Tucker.  His computer let out another chime.  “By the way, you guys owe me soda now.”“How did you do that?” complained Danny.  “You weren’t even looking at the screen!”

[nerdpoe]

Like Facing off Against C'Thulu, but it's Really Just your Fears. Part 2

Part one, Part three, Part four, AO3

Danny stared down at his hands, partially hiding behind the stack of paperwork on the detective’s desk, the blanket he’d been given pulled tight around himself to hide the scars.

Orphan had removed the Specter Collar, and Red Hood had escorted him to the waiting police car.

He had been taken away as they spoke with the police, but once he got to the police station and gave his statement he’d just…been left to his own devices.

They said they were waiting for one of their emergency foster parents volunteers to let them know if he had any room for another kid. If they didn’t, he was likely going to be put in the only place that they could force to have room.

The juvenile detention system.

So there Danny sat, trying desperately not to turn invisible and just disappear.

He’d thought he could reason with them.

Mom and Dad hadn’t always been like that, they’d  just kind of lost it after catching Phantom.

It really was his fault, honestly. He’d have to find and apologize to Nightwing later for that. If he had been able to prevent all of himself from reverting to human when they’d cut him open, then they wouldn’t have made that mistake and gone after a real person.

But it had been so hard to stay awake during…well. During that.

Some of his internal organs had started flickering to their human default instead of the ghost one, and it had triggered something in his parents.

They hadn’t been the same since.

If he’d just been able to hold on instead of checking out like a coward, they wouldn’t have seen red blood coming from Phantom, they wouldn’t have had a reason to kidnap Nightwing.

If he had been better at handling his own mess he wouldn’t have freaked out in science class and they wouldn’t have had to move in the first place.

If he’d just been a little-

“Hey there.”

Danny looked up cautiously, but it wasn’t a detective.

It was a man in a suit, looking frazzled, with a CPS worker tailing after him.

The man held out his hand.

“I’m Bruce Wayne, and if you’re willing, I would like to foster you.”

~~~~~~

Daniel stared at Bruce, distrust clear in his eyes.

And for a half a second, he was staring down at another black haired, blue eyed kid. One who had just stolen his tires and hit him with a crowbar.

Then the second was over, and it was Daniel again.

Bruce held back the wry smile, instead wriggling his fingers a little.

Daniel begrudgingly reached out from his blanket and shook Bruce’s hand in a quick motion.

Not quick enough.

That scar managed to peek through, mocking him.

Bruce carefully kept his face clear of any rage directed at the Drs Fenton.

“Are you willing to let me look after you for a bit?” He asked instead, hooking his thumb in his pocket.

“...I have a godfather.”

“Who is under investigation for tax fraud as well as…other things. Things kids shouldn’t be concerned about. You don’t have to worry about him anymore.”

That had been another thing Tim had picked up on, the increase of injuries every time Daniel was with Masters.

No, the kid deserved a good home. Not whatever that man had been doing, isolated in the woods.

Said kid was still glaring at him.

“Is this a publicity stunt?”

“No, not at all. I genuinely just want to help you get back on your feet.”

Daniel’s head cocked slightly to the side. Just like it had done when he’d finished treating Dick.

Super hearing?

Possibly, although he wouldn’t pursue it.

There was a high probability that any superpowers were the result of Daniel’s parents and their experiments; forcing someone to relive trauma like that wouldn’t do anyone any good.

If Daniel wanted to come forward at some point with that information, then he would do it in his own time.

Unless some of his powers proved to be truly destructive, Bruce saw no need to push.

Regardless, he wasn’t lying, and his heart rate would prove it.

Finally, Daniel nodded and slowly stood up.

“I want a lock on my door.”

“Done.”

“I want to be able to leave any time I want.”

“I can arrange a list of other fosters if you want to leave, but I can’t condone running off unprepared in Gotham.”

“...You don’t limit my food intake.”

Bruce had to fight very, very hard not to make a fist.

“I wouldn’t dream of it. Do you want a small snackbar in your room?”

Daniel nodded, his shoulders slowly lowering as he started to trust Bruce at least a little.

“And you can’t stop me from talking to my friends.”

Bruce was going to go after the Fentons personally if they ever broke out of Arkham.

“I can get you a phone on the way to the house, all yours.”

“...Okay. Alright. Let’s uh…go. I guess.”

The response wasn’t very enthusiastic, but to be fair Bruce was finding it hard to find a reason that Daniel would be happy in the current circumstances.

Ms. Villareal, the Social Worker at his side, moved forward to walk Daniel through what to expect and who to call if Bruce turned out to be one of the bad guys.

Gordon pulled Bruce to the side and in the hallway, where a paramedic was waiting.

“How bad is it?” Bruce asked quietly.

Gordon and the paramedic exchanged looks.

The paramedic opened his mouth, but Bruce held out his hand and turned around to pick up a spare notebook and pencil off of a desk.

‘He has super hearing. Write here.’

Gordon pursed his lips but acquiesced. 

‘Alex says his vitals are all bad,’ the Commissioner wrote, slight anger bleeding through, ‘Heart rate too slow. Breathing too slow. Temp too low. Kid needed a doctor yesterday.’

Bruce closed his eyes.

Opened them.

Took a deep breath.

“If Daniel agrees to a medical checkup, then we’ll do it. Right now his comfort comes first.”

He made sure to say it out loud, made sure that Daniel would hear him.

He had a sinking suspicion that his parent’s hadn’t particularly cared whether or not Daniel knew he was about to have a medical procedure performed, and he wasn’t going to make the same mistake.

There was a long road to recovery ahead, but Bruce would make sure to ease it out as much as he could for his new son.

~~~~~~

Duke finished installing the new state-of-the-art locks on the door.

They’d received the text from Bruce of Daniel’s demands, and after taking a breather at the realization that the new kid thought they needed to be made in the first place, they had set to work doing what they could to make the kid comfortable. 

Alfred had taken the most insult at the ‘limitation of food’ thing, and had started a veritable feast in response.

As if Alfred would ever let a child go hungry on his watch.

Jason hefted a small refrigerator into the room, shoving it unceremoniously in the corner. He was still livid about being forced to let those people live.

Duke…kind of agreed.

Dick had just finished his surgery when Bruce had finally left to go pick up Daniel.

He hadn’t woken up. 

They’d known that, realistically, he wouldn’t wake up from surgery like that immediately; but it had still been disappointing.

Dr. Thompkins had told them that it was likely he wouldn't wake up for a few days; his body needed the rest and his mind needed the time to come to terms with the massive shock.

Duke hadn’t woken up until Steph had come in and gently shaken him awake.

Dick had been severely injured, she said.

He wouldn’t be able to pick up the mantle for an unknown amount of time, she said.

Dick was in surgery, she whispered.

It was bad, he understood.

Duke had been expecting a lot of things.

A botched jump resulting in a fall, a gunshot wound, a beating, the list went on.

He had not been expecting a literal vivisection.

“The fuck kind of monsters are this kids parents?” He muttered, cradling his head in his hands.

No one called him out on his language.

No one disagreed with him.

Jason just focused his efforts on stocking the minifridge with soda and water, his eyes still a glowing, sickly green.

Duke took a moment to fortify himself, and went to help Stephanie convert the extra dresser they’d dragged in into a snack bar. 

Coffee maker, electric kettle, basket of wrapped goodies and treats, the usual.

Then Duke reached into the magic snack box and pulled out a small single burner hot plate.

…Okay, some not so usual stuff as well. That was cool.

He wasn’t jealous.

He wasn’t.

He set the hot plate up, unplugged, at the corner of the dresser; then one of the many five-packs of mac and cheese next to it.

It was best to be clear what the hot plate was for.

No one spoke.

No one wanted to.

To speak would be to remember their oldest brother tucked away in the cave, healing and injured and very likely traumatized.

Tim walked past him, drill in hand, with some speakers.

“Uh…I don’t think he asked for those? What if he thinks they’re listening devices?” Duke asked, not wanting to traumatize their new little brother any worse that he already was.

Which, like, given what little he knew would be almost impossible.

Kid’s parents were uh…perfect for Arkham.

“Bruce says the kid’s got super hearing,” Tim’s exhausted voice carried through the room, the teen himself balancing precariously on a night stand, “Speakers for white noise, so he can sleep. One of us has to.”

Duke winced, deliberately not imagining how the kid had gotten those powers with parents like that.

“Oh, okay. That’s. That’s a thing, then. Alright.” Duke nodded to himself, resolutely closing the Fruit Roll Up drawer. “We can work with that.”

He had no idea how they would work with that.

Super hearing meant no talking about their other jobs in the mansion. Where they lived. And had a base for said work underground.

It was fine. It would be fine.

They’d….find a workaround. Somehow.

~~~~~~

Cass lingered underneath New Brother’s window, setting up the garden decorations in a way that would allow him to break free.

She understood.

The option was what mattered, that it was there at all. 

So she worked to make sure that if New Brother wanted to get away, he could.

The lattice was subtly added and reinforced. It was painfully new, such a security risk would never be allowed anywhere else on the mansion, but she didn’t mind.

She didn’t think he would mind either.

A sturdy decorative column that Jason had helped her move earlier was strategically placed near enough for a jump off from the lattice.

From there, it was just a puzzle game.

How to make a stairway from the window to the garden without making it too obvious to New Brother?

Simple.

It just had to not be too obvious.

She knew growing up like he and she did meant there would be no hiding it.

The mind recognized patterns, followed them, learned from them, and categorized them as a threat or not a threat as needed, a tool to be used or a thing to be ignored.

He would definitely notice.

She just had to make it so she wasn’t calling him stupid.

It had turned into a project without meaning to.

A small circle of decorations, each increasingly shorter than the last, formed a sort of spiral.

It was pretty.

So she added a bench.

New Brother would probably think it was pretty too. Maybe he would like to sit and relax in it.

She wanted to sit and relax in it, too.

Maybe he would want to sit together, someday.

~~~~~~

Danny nervously toyed with the new phone in his hands, making himself as small as possible in the back seat as he stared at Mr. Wayne.

The phone was the newest in Wayne Enterprises Technology, and the man had even bought Danny a shirt and hoodie for him to slip on under the blanket.

And Danny was thankful for that, he was; that scar was something he would gladly never look at again, thanks.

But his new Foster parent was a little…too good to be true.

Mr. Wayne had given no indications that he was not to be trusted.

He had flat out told the mustache detective, whatever his name had been, that Danny’s comfort came first. Additional medical testing came after.

Mr. Wayne’s heartbeat never wavered; the entire time he’d been with Danny he hadn’t lied.

He was, for all intents and purposes, trustworthy.

But.

Mom and Dad had been trustworthy people.

They’d been a little off the deep end, but the compassion they showed towards Danny and Jazz meant that they cared.

That they wouldn’t hurt people.

But they had.

Because of his fuck up.

“Hey, kiddo,” Mr. Wayne started from the drivers seat, pretending not to notice Danny’s flinch, “You need to call your sister? She was in your file. She may want to know you’re safe now.”

Danny couldn’t stop the tiny laugh that jumped out of him.

“There it is.”

Mr. Wayne’s heart had sped up at ‘she was in your file’.

Mr. Wayne’s confused eyes met his through the rearview.

“There…what is?” The man asked, immediately focusing on traffic again.

“The lie.” Danny was too tired to beat around the bush. The way there had been a pause and absolutely no talk leading up to the ‘his comfort comes before blah blah blah’ had been way too unnatural. Somehow, this man knew he had super hearing.

Mr. Wayne pursed his lips, not answering.

“I’m not gonna be your weapon,” Danny hissed, pretending his voice wasn’t starting to shake, “and if you try to force that you’ll get to experience first hand what it’s like to get punched by someone who can chuck a bus.”

Blue met blue in the rearview mirror, and Mr. Wayne pulled over.

He turned around in his seat, facing the teen in the back of the car.

Danny tried to act like his breath wasn’t picking up.

That his hands weren’t shaking.

That he wasn’t terrified of having nowhere to go, no one to turn to.

Vlad would try to make him a weapon, and Jazz would try to stop him, and he couldn’t risk her like that so if this man turned out to be just as bad he’d have to go on the run and-

Mr. Wayne took a deep breath, steadying himself. 

Then Danny found himself at the end of a very serious stare. 

“I know you have powers, yes. I noticed them through the feed on my son's mask, when you saved him.”

Danny froze.

What?

Wait.

What?

Mask?

Nightwing?

Son?

“Batman?”

“There’s no point lying to you. Super hearing, super strength, who knows what else; you’d find out eventually. It’s best you find out now. No, you are not going to be a weapon. I intend to keep you far, far away from being a vigilante.”

Danny couldn’t speak.

This was Batman?

The Batman?

Mr. Wayne’s face cracked a soft smile.

“I would like to adopt you, not just foster. But if you don’t want to, we won’t. I just want you to have a good life, kid.”

“Why…why would you tell me? Trust me? Why would you do something so stupid?” Danny wheezed, wide eyed and shocked out of any rational thought. Like, maybe, not calling the man who could take on literally twenty men and walk away ‘stupid’.

But sue him; he’d been a vigilante too, once, and intimately knew the importance of secret identities.

This couldn’t…Batman couldn’t…why?

“You didn’t have to help, but you did. Then you risked yourself to keep him safe. You did it with no expectation of reward. You’re a good person,” Mr. Wayne shrugged, turning back to the road and pulling into it, “I’ve decided to trust you. It’s okay if you don’t trust me.”

“But that’s…but it was my fault.”

The car jerked a little, before Mr. Wayne corrected it.

“And we will address that falsehood later, when you’re ready to. Right now, you should call Jazz; she’s spent every day of her first semester apartment hunting for the two of you.”

Danny winced, not wanting to ask what kind of access Mr. Wayne had to know that.

Then he looked down at the phone.

Unlocked it.

Took a deep breath.

And dialed out.

The phone was answered halfway through the first ring.

“Hello? I’m sorry, but whoever this is can you call back? I just got word of a family emergency and I-”

“Hey, Jazz.”

~~~~~~

Bruce pulled into the drive, internally screaming.

Everything he had was focused on forcing his heartbeat to remain steady.

There really had been no other way.

He knew it, but to just…out himself like that. Out his family like that.

But logically, there had been no other way.

Daniel had super hearing. He didn’t know if it was better than or worse than Superman’s, but it was bound to pick up on him or the kids talking. He may even have been able to listen in to the Cave.

And punched by someone who could, as Daniel put it, chuck a bus?

He actually really needed to sit the boy down and ask what else he could do. 

He could have Black Canary on standby, in case asking actually did bring up traumatic memories, because the whole ‘but it’s my fault’ thing was absolutely a trauma response. 

But he needed to know.

If nothing else but to make sure he knew who to point him towards if he needed training with his powers.

Also for potential property damage, so Tim could plan the contingency around if Daniel slipped up in public.

This also cemented in his mind that Daniel could not become a vigilante. Absolutely not.

Powers like that, mixed with Fear Toxin? Joker Venom?

No.

His kid was staying safe and sound in a civilian bubble.

Logically, he knew he should have just called Clark the second the phrase ‘chuck a bus’ had left the kids mouth, but.

He glanced in the backseat as he got out of the car.

The subject of his inner turmoil was gawping at Wayne Manor, eyes wide and full of wonder.

For the first time since he’d seen him, Daniel looked like a kid.

And if Bruce was being entirely honest with himself, he was already attached.

Had been when he’d seen the look on Daniel’s face after being told to run, how he had stubbornly refused to abandon someone in need.

Adoptivitus indeed.

“Welcome home,” he said, motioning towards the mansion with a grin that only grew bigger when Daniel actually smiled, “Let’s get you settled in.”

~~~~~~

Jason kept his distance, watching Bruce guide the new kid in from the shadows.

His emotions were still too unstable, and his eyes showed it in a blindingly obvious fashion.

The kid came in through the foyer, all slack-jawed and bright-eyed. Alfred introduced himself, and from there the rest of his siblings stepped in to do the same.

Damian had even stuck around to keep watching the new kid, eyes suspicious as he observed the newcomer for any tricks.

They all knew Bruce had no intention of making Daniel Robin, so he wasn’t even trying to murder the little meta. Demon Brat was being a goddamn shining example of courtesy by his own standards.

Steph had very obviously been holding herself back from going in for a hug, her grip on the stair rails had her knuckles white from the strain.

Duke had offered to give Daniel a tour when he was ready, but only when he was ready. Jason couldn’t help but notice he was looking everywhere but the new kid.

That was interesting.

He wasn’t squinting, either. He just looked a little green around the gills.

Huh.

Jason cataloged that for later.

Cass had kept a respectful distance, but anyone who knew her could tell she was practically vibrating with excitement.

She’d also signed to New Kid that if he ever wanted to escape, she would help him if he needed it.

The kid’s shoulders relaxed, just a little, once Steph translated it for him.

Jason got it.

He did.

Being dragged out of a shitty situation into an unknown one wasn’t a very fun time, and it helped to have an out.

Tim greeted the kid with a tablet and an offer to stay in the same general room as him if he wanted company but didn’t want to talk. Basically, Replacement was telling New Kid that they could pretend to acknowledge each other and not put in any effort.

Even though that basic companionship probably was what the New Kid needed.

Jason still felt like judging Timblerina.

Jason had no intention of introducing himself, but when he shifted to leave the kid’s head snapped around and two glowing blue eyes locked with his glowing green ones.

He froze.

Right. Meta. Super hearing.

“Jason. I don’t live here. Welcome. Bye.” He didn’t bother to raise his voice, New Kid could hear him just fine.

The kid’s eyes faded back to regular blue, just as Jason saw the green finally recede from his vision.

Something clicked in place.

…

Something clicked in place?

Jason frowned, feeling his expression settle somewhere on the spectrum of ‘confused’ but not quite reaching ‘what the fuck’.

Bruce nodded in approval.

When the fuck had Jason asked for approval?

Why was he being given it?

“Everyone, this is Daniel. He’s going to be staying with us for the foreseeable future,” B’s face did that thing where it looked like he was constipated, then smoothed out, “He knows.”

Jason’s brain paused and proceeded to reboot itself.

“He what?”

“He knows.”

“Tt,” Demon Brat scoffed, looking at all of them impetuously, “Obviously he had to be told. A meta with super hearing? Better to divulge it and observe the reaction, than to have him find out by accident and run away.”

The Foyer was awkwardly quiet, New Kid shifting from foot to foot.

“Well, if you know already; d’ya wanna see Dick?” Duke offered, shrugging.

“Who?”

New Kid’s voice was soft, like he was afraid of making noise. Jason also understood that; he’d done the same shit at first. Duke had as well.

It was a ‘going from the streets or rough living situation to being richer than god’ thing.

Daniel’s, though? 

He spoke softly as he tried to fold in on himself, make himself as small as possible. Everything about him screamed not to notice him.

There was really only one reason kids did that.

“Nightwing, kid.” Jason offered over his shoulder, taking the encroaching green as his sign to leave.

He needed to get out and punch something, and he knew of a trafficking ring that had just been begging him to teach them a lesson.

And no weird little meta kid to stop him from putting them all down.

@skulld3mort-1fan @zelabee @waspsarebetterthanbeesanyways @ailithnight @randomkiddoscrewingaround @apointlessbox @pyramaniac @emergentpanda-blog @pastalavistamf @gin2212 @beacedocrime @spectralstardustandphantomnights @introvert-even-on-the-internet @candeartist422 @icarusinstatic @overtherose @toomanyfandoms11 @redhoneysugarorange @vythika96 @blueflipflops @undead-essence

[fangirlwriting-stories]

First Blood

Summary: Danny should have expected that he wouldn't be able to do this ghost fighting thing by himself forever. Though admittedly, he didn't expect things to go quite like this.

Author's Note:

My brain: Hey you should write a Danny Phantom AU

Me: Wtf? Why?

My brain: I wanna

Me:

Anyway I do partly blame this fic on AO3 by artistfingers for giving me the inspiration.

…

He’d meant to tell them, was the thing.  It was entirely a coincidence that they weren’t there when it happened in the first place.

Sam had been the one to first have the idea of checking out the ghost zone, even if Danny had been desperately curious before that too.  But she’d been the one to convince him to try it, and he’d even gotten into the suit his parents had designated for this purpose (thankfully with a thought from Sam to pull his Dad’s face off his chest), but before he could actually go in the portal and turn it on, Sam’s parents showed up and dragged her and Tucker home.

They had never been the biggest fans of Danny or his parents, and weren’t super happy when they learned Sam was there.  Tucker had tried to protest against getting dragged along, but Sam’s parents kind of had a presence you couldn’t stand up to for very long, so they’d both left eventually.

But Danny was only more desperately curious after almost going in, and he couldn’t know when his parents would both be out like this again.  So, he’d gone back an hour later and turned the portal on.  And then…

Well.

Then he’d started trying to come up with a way to say “hey guys I’m sort of half ghost now” without sounding like a total lunatic.

And then the ghost fights had started, and Danny Phantom became well known before Danny Fenton could come up with a way to explain it to them.  And then he didn’t want them to get hurt.  The fights were hard enough on him, and he had superpowers.

He’s… definitely regretting that decision now.  He should have known eventually he’d come across something he couldn’t defeat on his own, for one reason or another.  But he’d always assumed if that came up it would be a ghost that was just too powerful, and he could ask someone for help.  Hard to do that when the problem is an evil but human ringmaster with a ghost-controlling crystal ball.  Admittedly, he hadn’t thought that far ahead.

He’s not quite sure what’s going on when he comes to, but the crystal ball is shattered in pieces at his feet and the other ghosts he’s become familiar with are blinking in the space across from him.  Freakshow himself is in between them all, staring at the crystal ball like he’s trying to process what’s happening.

Danny’s doing the same thing.  This isn’t Amity Park, that’s clear enough, but he doesn’t know where he is.  He doesn’t know what’s just happened, though he has a vague memory of an overwhelming sense of anger giving him enough force to throw the crystal ball to the ground.

“You know,” Freakshow says, looking up with a terrified grin.  “When I called you, uh, ‘minions,’ it was really a term of endearment, like, ‘Oh, I love my minions!’”

Danny scoffs, meets eyes with the other ghosts, and finds them in agreement.

They drag Freakshow to the haul he’s made them all put together, call the cops, and fly off into the night.

But while the three of them go who-knows-where, Danny changes forms and heads for a grocery store or a gas station, any place where he can find a newspaper and hopefully figure out the date or his location.  Preferably both.

…It’s been weeks.  It’s been weeks and he’s halfway across the country.

Danny sits on the ground outside of the gas station and drops his head in his hands.  The homework alone is going to be a nightmare.

His stomach growls.  He’s been in his ghost form for who knows how long, and it’s probably been just as long since he ate, but he doesn’t have any money on him.

So, in a move he’s not exactly proud of, he steals a couple apples and bags of chips from the gas station and practically inhales them.  He sits on a bench for another hour or so before he realizes he probably can’t put off the inevitable anymore.

He switches forms again and starts flying home.

He’s pretty fast at this point, so it takes him no more than a couple hours to get there, but he has no idea what he’ll find when he arrives.  The past couple weeks get blurrier the closer the time gets to the present, but he has the feeling he’s done some bad stuff.  He doesn’t know what his public image in Amity Park is anymore, but he has an inkling it’s not exactly great.

And that’s just the Phantom side of things.  He’s going to have to deal with the Fenton side first, and that almost sounds worse.

First, however, he’s exhausted, and still hungry, and he can’t deal with this tonight.  So he resigns himself to worrying everyone for one more night, grabs some stuff from the fridge, and flies silently up to his bedroom.  He eats handfuls of whatever food he grabbed with his back to the door, and then leans back against it and breathes, taking in the feeling of at least being home.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem he’s going to get even a night of reprieve, because the next second someone bangs on the door he’s leaning against, and he splays forward on the ground with a surprised yelp.

He turns to see Jazz forcing the door open.  She freezes when she sees Danny, and for a couple seconds, they stare at each other.

“Uh,” Danny says.  “Hi?”

Jazz blinks.  “Hi?”

Danny swallows.  “Yeah?”

Jazz balls her hands into fists and glares at him.  “Where have you been?”

“Um.”

Jazz buries her hands in her hair and pulls on it, giving a frustrated scream.  “Danny!  Do you have any idea how worried we’ve been?”

“Sorry,” Danny mutters, not sure what else to say.  He still has no idea what’s happened the past few weeks.

Jazz runs her hands over her hair, smoothing it down, and takes a deep breath.  Then she kneels down and pulls Danny into a crushing hug.

“Why would you run away like that?” Jazz says, but there’s something else in her voice, like she’s trying to get at something.  “Are you okay?  Are you hurt?  Do you want to—” she pulls back, and looks Danny in the eyes with a very pointed expression.  “Do you want to talk about it?” she asks, her voice suddenly very soft and gentle.

Danny stares at her for a second, not sure where the sudden shifting emotions from her came from.  Either way, he shakes his head.  He doesn’t even know what he’d say.  He’s going to have to come up with some kind of story, but how is he supposed to do that without contradicting something he doesn’t remember happening?

“Are you sure?” Jazz says, still looking at him intentionally, and Danny does not understand what she’s trying to say.  He’ll blame the exhaustion and brain fog.

Jazz sighs, and pulls him back into a hug.  “Okay.  But you’re going to have to explain to Mom and Dad why you’ve been missing for weeks.  Uh… for exactly three weeks and four days, as we both know very well of course.  And you’ll also have to explain why no one knows anything at all about where you’ve been or what you’ve been doing— as far as I know that is.”

Danny pulls back and gives her a baffled look.  “Why are you talking like that?”

“Excuse me!  You’re the one who runs away for, just to reiterate, exactly three weeks and four days to an unknown location, and you’re asking me why I’m being weird?”

Danny stares at her.  “Uh, I mean I kind of am now?”

“I can’t believe you!” Jazz exclaims, waving her arms up without actually looking that exasperated.  Then she leans forward and wraps her arms around Danny again.

“I’m really glad you’re okay,” she whispers, with a suspicious sniff that Danny doesn’t acknowledge.  “Please don’t scare me like that again.”

Danny reaches up and wraps his arms weakly around her.  “I’m sorry,” he murmurs, which is all he can say, because he can’t exactly guarantee that nothing like this will happen again, can he?

For a minute, they both just sit there, and Danny tries to ignore how good it feels to be hugged by his sister, because that’s a totally lame realization to have, and he doesn’t need any more reasons for people to beat him up.

But then another familiar voice comes from behind them.

“Jazz?  What are you doing up—”

Danny jerks around and meets eyes with his mother, who stares wide-eyed back at him.

After a second, she turns and screams, “JACK!” then rushes forward and pulls Danny towards her.

“Are you okay?  Are you hurt?”  She takes his face in her hands, turning it back and forth.  “What were you thinking, you’re grounded for a month!  You look terrible, when did you eat last?  When did you shower?  Do you have any idea how worried sick we were?  I’m never letting you out of my sight again!  Was it ghosts?  What can you tell us about them?”

Danny laughs despite himself.  His mom is being so incredibly normal (well, normal by her standards) that it immediately brushes away quite a few of his worries.

Then he remembers what his best option for a cover story is, and his smile fades.  His dad shows up in the doorway a second later, looking half-asleep.

“It… it wasn’t ghosts, Mom,” he says, and at least that part is true, if misleading.  “I just… I’m sorry.”

His mom presses a hand to her forehead, looking like Danny’s taken about ten years off her life.  “You’re grounded for two months,” she amends.  “What were you thinking?”

“I wasn’t,” Danny says, which is also true, if… also misleading.

“You got that right,” his dad said, putting his hands on his hips in what looked like his best impression of a stern father.  “You’re grounded for three months, mister.”

“That’s just going to keep going up, isn’t it,” Danny says with a sigh.

Jazz reaches over and gives him a side hug and a sympathetic smile, and Danny really isn’t sure what’s going on with her right now.

But honestly, for the moment, he’s just glad to be home.

…

Danny still isn’t quite sure how he manages to get out of giving any details to the police, but he does it.  He’s given back to his parents to decide his punishment, meaning he’s confined to house arrest for the next five months (it did keep going up).  That’s going to make ghost hunting a little bit difficult, but he’ll burn that bridge when he gets to it.

The one exception to grounding, obviously, is school, which Danny is equal parts dreading and looking forward to.  It was a Saturday when he got back, and of course Sam and Tucker know he’s returned, but he hasn’t gotten to see either of them.  He doubts he’ll be able to see them much outside of school or the occasional study party.

Stupid Freakshow.  This is going to ruin his life until Christmas.

Either way, Monday comes.  And Danny walks into the school and over to his locker and tries to ignore everyone staring at him.

A loud bang at his left causes him to jump and turn to see Sam leaning against the lockers, looking none too pleased.

“So,” she says.  “Have you finally decided the rest of us are worthy of your presence again?”

“Come on, Sam,” Tucker says, walking up behind her.  “You said you weren’t gonna be like that.”

“Sorry, he just screws off to nowhere and you expect me to not be upset?” Sam asks with a glare at Tucker before turning back around.  “Honestly Danny, you know I’m all for escaping awful parents, but you didn’t even tell us where you were going!  We didn’t know if you were okay!”

“My parents aren’t awful,” Danny mutters as he looks down at his feet, all he can think to say.

“Then why did you leave?” Sam snaps, leaning into his face.

Danny winces, leaning back.  “Do we have to do this out here in the hallway?”

Sam huffs, standing up straight and glaring away.  “Fine.  Whatever.  I’m going to class.”  She stalks off without another word.

Danny sighs and turns to his locker so he can put the textbooks he needs into his backpack.  It’s not his fault, and he knows that, but he still feels like the worst person on the face of the planet for making them worry.

“So…” Tucker says slowly, leaning back against the locker much less angrily than Sam.  “Why did you leave?”

Danny closes his locker and swings his bag over his shoulder.  “Doesn’t matter.  I’m back, aren’t I?”

“Yeah, except it kind of does, though?  Dude, if you feel like leaving again, I want to help you.”

Danny turns to look at him and sees nothing but honest concern in Tucker’s eyes.

He wishes it was that easy.

“You can’t,” he says.

“Why not?”

“It’s not—” Danny sighs, looking around to make sure no one’s listening.

Everyone is listening.

“Not here,” he says, turning back to Tucker.  “And not now.”

Tucker looks at him for another second.  “Okay,” he says finally.  “But don’t think I’m letting up on this.”

Danny smiles just a little bit.  “I know you’re not,” he says.

The warning bell rings.

“I have to go,” Danny says.  “If I cut first period on my first day back after running away, I think my parents will actually kill me.”

Tucker smirks.  “Sounds like you brought that one on yourself, dude,” he says.  “But sure.  See ya at lunch.”

“See ya,” Danny says, and turns to walk the other way.

The day is about what he expects.  Mocking and socks in the stomach from Dash, dry remarks and glares along with piles of makeup work from teachers.  He’s exhausted, but he deals with all of it and prepares to work through it until things are at least marginally back to normal.

He can’t wait for Sam and Tucker to not be mad at him.  That would help a ton.

There doesn’t seem to be much of a chance of that when lunch arrives, however, because Sam starts glaring at him the second he sits down, and Tucker just gives him that same concerned look that Danny is pretty sure he can’t make go away without spilling his guts.

…Well, not that “hey Tucker I was actually being mind controlled by that ringmaster from Circus Gothica” would make him less concerned.  If he believed him in the first place, that is.

Danny doesn’t know what to say to break the awkward silence, but apparently Sam has that covered.

“So, Tucker,” she says, very loudly.  “Are we still on for Nasty Burger after school?”

Ouch.  Fair enough.

“Uh,” Tucker says, rubbing the back of his neck.  “Maybe that’s not such a great idea anymore?”

“Why?  Are we supposed to drop our plans the second Danny decides to stop being childish?”

“Okay,” Danny says, turning to face her.  He’s positive he doesn’t have the energy to deal with an angry Sam for the weeks it takes her to forgive him.  “What do you want me to say to you, Sam?”

Sam turns her glare on him.  “I want you to tell me why on earth you left with no notice of when you’d be back or whether or not you were okay or why you were leaving,” she snaps.  “Why the fuck would you do that to us?”

“I wasn’t trying to,” Danny says, looking down as guilt stabs him in the chest.  “I’m sorry.”

“What do you mean you weren’t trying to?  What were you trying to do?”

“I don’t know,” Danny says, because it’s true.  He doesn’t really remember the exact specifics of when and where and why he left Amity Park with Freakshow.  He is pretty sure he wasn’t around as Danny Fenton for at least a couple days before that, though, meaning Jazz’s random ‘three weeks and four days’ comment was probably more accurate than the one he’d worked out from the newspaper.

“I really don’t know what I was thinking,” he reiterates, forcing himself to turn and look at Sam.  “I don’t know what else to say.  I’m sorry.”

He watches anger and concern and something else war on Sam’s face for a second before she scoffs and glares away.  “You’re really not going to tell us what happened?” she asks.

“I… don’t know if you’d believe me,” Danny says quietly, looking down at his awful school lunch that is leagues better than the almost nothing he’s probably eaten the past couple weeks.

Sam gives a bitter laugh, shaking her head.  “Oh my god.”

“Sam,” Tucker says, narrowing his eyes at her.

“What?” Sam asks, turning her glare to him again.  “Are you trying to pretend you haven’t spent the last three weeks terrified out of your mind too?”

Danny fights to not hunch over on himself.

“I’m sorry,” he says instead, turning to look at Sam.  “I really am.  I didn’t want to scare you.  I’m sorry.”

Sam looks at him firmly for a long second, and she must see something in his face that makes her believe him, because she stabs at the limp broccoli on her tray without looking at it and says, “You gonna do it again?”

Danny shakes his head and prays to whatever’s out there listening that he’s not lying right now.  If Desiree was around, he might even make a wish on it.

Sam seems to accept that at least a little bit.  She turns and takes a bite of her vegetables.  “If you do I’ll murder you,” she says.

You’re a couple months late for that, Danny doesn’t say.  Instead he just nods.

“So,” Tucker says, drawing both of their attentions with a much more easygoing smile on his face.  “I imagine you’ve got a lot of homework to make up, Danny.  You want to move our hangouts to after school while you’re doing that at least?”

Danny smiles gratefully at him, and Sam sighs and mutters, “Yeah, sure, whatever.”

So that’s where they end up, and Danny immediately appreciates how almost-normal it feels.  One of the last clear memories he has before things start getting fuzzy is studying in the same library with Sam and Tucker, so in a way it feels like picking up where he left off— with some unwelcome tension added to the air.

Danny spends the first half hour or so doing homework while Tucker and Sam talk idly next to him about things they’ve done in the past three weeks that he’s apparently missed out on.  Unlike lunch, there’s no anger involved, just awkwardness and hesitation, which is… better, he supposes.

Finally after an hour, when he’s only finished a tiny bit of homework for one of his classes, he sits back in his chair and massages his temples.  “This is gonna take me a month.”

“Well, you did miss almost a month of work,” Sam says, with a not-very-sympathetic smile.  “You don’t really have anyone to blame but yourself.”

“I’m gonna get so tired of that sentiment,” Danny says, dropping his head into an open textbook.

“It’s true.”

“I know,” Danny mutters without lifting his head.

“Did you at least have fun while you were on your runaway vacation?” Tucker asks.

Danny pulls his head up and finds Tucker now leaning on the table in front of him.

“No,” he says, because he’s sick of lying.

Tucker winces.  “Ouch.”

Sam snorts.  “Serves you right.”

“Sam,” Tucker says, at the same time Danny waves her off with “I know, I know, I get it.”

Sam sighs, and pushes herself up on the table.  “Alright, look.  You should probably lie low for the first month or two.  But when your parents eventually stop watching you closer I can help you sneak out for a little fun from time to time.”

Danny gives her a grateful smile.  “Thanks, Sam.”

“Yeah, yeah.  You owe me one.”

“I already owe you one,” Danny says.

“You got that right,” Sam says, crossing her arms with a smirk.  She probably thinks he means her forgiving him so quickly.  He doesn’t.

They don’t stay much longer, because the hour after school in the library is the only time his parents gave him before he has to go home.

As soon as he gets a free moment, when his parents are busy making dinner, he sneaks downstairs and looks up Danny Phantom on the computer.

Just as he expected, it’s not great.  Most of the things it lists Phantom as doing are robberies and property damage, about what he expects.  But there’s also quite a few mentions of him being cruel to the other ghosts in Freakshow’s circus, and he… cannot figure out how he feels about that.

Fighting ghosts is nothing new, obviously.  But the ghosts in Freakshow’s circus didn’t choose to be there.  He didn’t choose to hurt them either, but he still feels kind of uncomfortable with it, with the idea that it happened and he doesn’t even remember it.

“Danny?”

Danny yelps and closes the window on the computer, spinning around to see Jazz standing there.

“Jazz,” he says weakly.  “I uh, I didn’t hear you come down here.”

“Dinner’s ready,” Jazz says, giving him a look he can’t read.

She looks at the computer, and it’s way too obvious she saw what he was looking at.

“You know,” she says, turning back to him.  “Unless you’re just catching up on the ghost fighting from the past couple weeks, I wouldn’t put too much thought into Phantom.”

Danny blinks.  “Uh, why?”

Jazz rolls her eyes.  “He was so obviously under the control of that Freakshow guy,” she says.  “Don’t you think?”

“What?” Danny stares at her.  “How would you know that?”

Jazz gives him a soft smile and leans forward to kiss the top of his head.  “Just a hunch I have,” she says.

“Gross, get off me,” Danny says, though he can’t put any real bite into it and he’s pretty sure Jazz can tell.

“I pay attention, you know,” Jazz says, stepping back.

Danny swallows.  “Yeah?  How much?”

“Enough to know that robbery and property damage isn’t Phantom’s MO,” Jazz says with a roll of her eyes.  “And that those reports aren’t gonna say anything about what he’s actually like.”  She pauses and looks at Danny for a minute, then clears her throat and looks away.  “You know, just in case you’re curious about that kind of thing.  You should find better sources.”

“And what are you, a journalist?” Danny asks.

“I’m just… concerned,” Jazz says hesitantly.  “I hope that… wherever Phantom is, he’s doing okay.  I hope he knows it’s not his fault.”

Danny doesn’t say anything, and he and Jazz stare at each other for a minute.

They’re interrupted by their mom calling from upstairs, “Kids, are you coming or not?”

“We’re coming Mom!” Jazz calls back.  She looks back at Danny and nods her head up the steps, and Danny shuts off the computer and follows her up.

…

He’s not that shocked when he gets nightmares about Freakshow, but it’s definitely inconvenient.  If he can think of one thing that won’t help with getting things back to normal, it’s being consistently sleep deprived.

The worst part is that he can’t really be sure which of the nightmares are his brain throwing his worries back in his face, and which parts are actually his brain putting together things that have happened that he can’t remember right.

Honestly, maybe it doesn’t matter that much.  Either way, he doesn’t get a full night of sleep once for the first week he’s back.  He can tell Jazz notices, though he’s pretty sure his parents aren’t picking up on anything, and none of them say anything.  He tries his hardest to pay attention at school, because he really can’t afford to fall behind due to falling asleep in class.

Unfortunately, between trying to act normal around his family and pay attention during school, that means he usually spends the first half hour with Sam and Tucker passed out asleep on top of his textbooks.

“Dude,” Tucker says, after the fifth school day in a row of waking him up so he can do at least some of the homework he’s missed.  “What time are you going to bed?”

“Yeah Danny, I never thought I’d be the one to say this, but maybe you need to go to sleep a little bit earlier,” Sam says, raising an eyebrow.

“You act like I’m not trying that,” Danny mutters, rubbing at his eyes.

“What’s stopping you?” Sam asks.

“Uh,” Danny says, not having thought that far ahead.

“Danny, seriously, on top of being the only time you can get your homework done, this is also the only time we get to hang out with you for a while,” Sam says.  “I’d appreciate it if you could stay awake for all of it.”

“I’m trying, honestly,” Danny says, leaning back in his chair.  “It’s not like I don’t care.  I do.”

“Then what’s going on, Danny?” Tucker asks.  “You know you can still talk to us, right?  You can always talk to us.”

Danny winces.

Well, maybe he can start small.

“I… I’ve had a couple nightmares,” he admits, running a hand through his hair as he sits up.  He pulls his homework closer so he doesn’t have to look either of them in the eyes.  “It’s not a big deal.”

“Nightmares about what?” Sam asks, giving him a look he can feel without looking back.  “Did something happen?”

“I really don’t want to talk about it,” Danny says.  “Can we just acknowledge it and move on?”

“Uh, no?” Sam says, reaching forward and pulling the homework away from him.

“Hey!” Danny says, turning to her.

“You can’t just say something like that and not expect followup questions,” Sam says, crossing her arms.  “Nightmares about what happened while you were gone?”

Danny sighs.  “Maybe.”

“What happened?” Tucker asks, obvious concern in his voice and on his face.

Danny looks up at him, not having a clue what to say.  Should he explain the one about blasting all of the other ghosts into the concrete hard enough to cause a dent, or the one about terrorizing a small child and her mother to get them away from the paintings they were trying to steal?

Neither of those sound like they’ll come without follow up questions.

Danny reaches over and pulls his homework back over in front of him.  “There just wasn’t a lot of food going around,” he says, settling on the one human experience he can reliably count on.

There’s a couple seconds of silence, and then Tucker gives a long sigh.  “Dude,” he says.  “Why did it take you so long to come back?”

“I need to get this science homework done,” Danny says in lieu of a reply.

Neither of them say anything back to him.

Strangely enough, the first one who comes up with something that’s actually helpful in regards to the nightmares is Jazz.  And she seems to do it unintentionally, like she’s been doing a lot lately.  She very casually at dinner one night brings up an article she’s read about how rewriting the endings of nightmares can sometimes be a good way for someone to calm down after having them, then starts discussing the science of dreams and sleep and how both of them are important and how to make sure both of them are going as smoothly as they can.

…Okay, maybe this time it’s a little more intentional than she wants to let on.

That doesn’t mean her ideas aren’t worth trying, though, so Danny gets a notebook to keep on the nightstand for alternate endings to write down.  (He’ll destroy the pages every morning for privacy purposes, but he draws the line at getting a night light.)

It ends up being helpful enough that he can at least fall back asleep, which is a big improvement, if the ideas he writes down seem a little unrealistic, with how hard it actually was to break out of Freakshow’s control.  Either way, he’s not so tired, and despite how loathe he is to admit it, he has Jazz to thank for that.

Not that he’ll ever tell her that, of course.

…

It’s a week and a half after he returns that things change in a meaningful way.  He hasn’t had any ghost fighting to do since getting back, but that changes during lunch on Monday.  Not anything he can’t handle, just a quick eye roll with the Box Ghost, but it apparently means something very different to the rest of Amity Park, and, more important to him personally, to Sam and Tucker.

“I mean honestly,” Sam is saying when Danny shows up at the library after school.  She’s pacing back and forth across the library, and though Tucker waves at him when he notices him, Sam continues marching angrily in front of the table.

“Who does he think he is, showing up like nothing’s different?  First of all, he ruined Circus Gothica, and then he just shows up expecting everyone to still see him as the hero?  That’s not how that works!”

“Hey Danny,” Tucker says as he approaches.  “Don’t mind Sam, she’s pissed off about the ghost fight today.”

“Why?” Danny asks, setting his bag down on the table.  “I didn’t think that was really your scene.”

“Not until that Invis-o-Bill idiot made it personal by messing with my circus,” Sam says, rolling her eyes with obvious anger.  “And then expects everything he’s done in the past couple weeks to just be brushed off.”

Danny sighs, reaching inside his backpack for his homework.  “Yeah, that figures.”

“What figures?” Tucker asks in confusion.

“Math figures,” Danny says, dropping his notebook on the table.  “Gonna try and knock out a lot of the math homework today.”

“Uh, fair enough?” Tucker says, still sounding confused.  “But honestly Sam, at least he seems to have gotten over whatever’s been going on and isn't actively being malicious anymore.”

“Great, so we’re supposed to reward him for the bare minimum?”

“Do we have to talk about this right now?” Danny asks, looking up with what he hopes comes off as annoyance.  “I get enough of ghosts from my parents, I was kind of appreciating you guys actually being a break from all of that.”

“Look, you don’t get it,” Sam says.  “I don’t imagine you’ve been following ghost news for the past couple weeks, but he’s—”

“I don’t want to talk about him,” Danny snaps, giving Sam as firm a glare as he dares to right now.

Sam raises her eyebrows.  “Excuse me?”

“Sam, honestly, I’ll let you be as mad at me as you need for as long as you want,” Danny says.  “But please, can you back off with the ghosts?  My parents already think I was kidnapped by them or something, I don’t want to talk about them during the only time of the day I can actually relax for a little bit.  Okay?”

Thankfully, Sam and Tucker both go quiet.  Now he’ll just have to hope that neither of them actually ask his parents about that excuse and realize he already told them that’s not what happened.

But apparently he’s misjudged their silence, because after a minute Tucker taps his textbook with a pencil, drawing his attention.

He looks up and finds Tucker and Sam both looking at him like they’re trying to come up with the right way to say something.

He blinks.  “What?”

“Danny,” Tucker says slowly.  “If I ask you something, can you promise not to freak out?”

“No,” Danny says honestly.

Tucker considers this for a second.  “Fair.  I’m gonna ask anyway.  Did you actually run away of your own free will?”

Danny goes stiller than, well, a dead person.  “What?”

“Did you actually run away?”

Danny looks back and forth between him, and then Sam, and then back.  “Why are you asking me that?”

“Dude,” Tucker says, leaning closer.  “You’re not acting like yourself.  Even ‘just made a huge mistake and now everyone’s mad at you’ yourself.  You’re having nightmares, and you don’t want to talk about what’s causing them.  Did you actually run away?”

Danny opens his mouth, shuts it, and looks down at his math textbook.

“…Danny,” Sam says, sounding baffled and angry but also more concerned than he’s heard from her since he got back.  “Why didn’t you say anything?”

“Because that’s something you just say in the middle of the hallway,” Danny snaps despite himself.

“Danny, come on,” Sam says.  “Why are you just letting everyone be mad at you then?  You need to tell someone—”

“No,” Danny says.

“What?  Dude,” Tucker says, leaning forward with obvious worry.  “They could go after someone else, or come after you again—”

“He won’t.”

“You can’t know that!”

“Yeah, well, I do,” Danny says, keeping his gaze very firmly on his math homework.  “And I don’t want to talk about it.”

“You know what?  Fine,” Sam snaps, pushing her chair back and grabbing her bag.  “Because you’re being ridiculous.”

With that, she turns and marches out of the library.

Danny doesn’t say anything in protest and starts working on the first math problem on the sheet.

“You know,” Tucker says quietly.  “She was really really scared when you weren’t here.”

Danny keeps writing.

“She was worried something was gonna happen to you and she’d never see you again,” Tucker continues.  “I…” there’s a pause, and then he sighs.

“I’m not gonna make you talk about anything you don’t want to, dude,” he says.  “Just… know that she’s not actually mad at you.  She’s just still scared.”

Danny sighs and puts his pencil down.  “Yeah,” he says.  “I know.”

Tucker reaches out and puts a hand on Danny’s shoulder, in a way that should feel really awkward but somehow doesn’t.  “You know you can tell me anything,” he says.  “Right?”

Danny looks away.

“Okay,” Tucker sighs.  “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

He picks up his stuff and leaves.

…

Danny spends the night laying on his bed tossing a ball up in the air and trying to catch it.  He has to get up and chase it down more often than he’d like, he’s not exactly the most athletic person out there.

He ignores his growing stomach and skips dinner, telling his mom he’s not feeling well.  He can always go down and grab something after everyone else falls asleep.

After dinner, however, he hears a knock on his  door.

“What?”

“Can I come in?” Jazz asks.

Danny pauses in tossing the ball in the air and considers for a moment.  “Yeah.”

The door opens as Danny resumes tossing the ball.  Jazz walks in, then closes the door behind her and heads over towards the bed, already looking concerned. 

“Are you doing okay?” she asks.  “You were upset about something when I came to pick you up, and now you’ve been up here for hours.”

Danny manages to actually catch the ball and sits up, setting it down next to him.  “Okay, what is with you?”

“What do you mean?”

“You’ve been acting like, aggressively supportive since I got back,” Danny says.  “Sam is angrier at me than you.  Mom and Dad are angrier at me than you.”

“I’m your sister,” Jazz says.  “It’s not my job to get angry at you.  It’s my job to support you.”

“No, you’re my sister,” Danny says.  “It’s your job to tease me relentlessly and make my life way harder.”

Jazz gives him a look.  “You really don’t need that right now.”

“And why should you care?” Danny snaps.  “I brought this on myself, remember?”

Jazz doesn’t say anything.

“I just, I’m trying to understand what your deal is,” Danny says.  “Do you want something?  Are you trying to butter me up for some reason?  What are you getting out of this?”

Jazz gives him what almost seems like a sad look, then reaches forward and squeezes Danny’s hand.  “I’m worried about you,” she says quietly.

“Why?” Danny says, pulling his hand away.

Jazz sighs, looking down at the bed.  “Because we both know you didn’t run away, Danny.”

Danny throws his hands up.  “This again?  I’m fine.  No one died, no one hurt me, I didn’t have to hurt— people, so I’m fine!”

Jazz gives him a look.  “That is in no way how that works.”

Danny shakes his head, glaring down at the covers.

Jazz nudges him gently in the side.  “I’m not going to make you say something you’re not ready to,” she says.  “Just know that you can tell me anything, Danny.”

With that, she stands and starts to walk out, and Danny feels a weight press down on his chest, one he’s barely sure he can take anymore.

“Jazz, wait,” he says, reaching out and catching her arm.

Jazz pauses and turns back around.  “Yeah?”

“I—” Danny says, and stops.  Nerves start to crawl up his throat.  He half expects his ghost sense to go off, but it’s not that kind of anxiety.

He takes a deep breath.  “If I tell you something,” he says.  “Can you promise to let me explain everything before you make any kind of judgment?”

Jazz smiles at him.  “I promise,” she says with a nod.

Danny takes a shaky breath.  “I, um.”  He stops.

“Yeah?” Jazz probes gently.

“Sorry,” he mutters, looking down and clenching his hands around his blankets.  “I don’t think I’ve ever actually said it out loud before.”

Jazz reaches out and puts her hand over his.  “You don’t have to if you don’t want to,” she says.  “I… already know.”

Danny jerks his head up.  “What?”

By the look on her face, he can tell they both mean exactly the same thing.

“You…” Danny says weakly.  “How long?”

“Uh, since the Spectra thing,” Jazz says, rubbing the back of her neck with a sheepish smile.  “I wanted to give you a chance to tell me yourself.”

Danny gapes at her for a second, Jazz gives him a soft smile.

“And you…” he says finally.  “You don’t care?”

“Of course I care,” Jazz says, crossing her arms.  “I care that you’re safe.  I care that if you don’t want someone to know, they don’t find out.  I care that you’re my brother and you’ve been trying to do this all alone.  I care that some jerk ran off with you and has been forcing you to do things you clearly don’t want to do for the past month.”

Danny winces and looks down.

“Are you okay?” Jazz says, sitting down on the bed next to him.

“Not… really,” Danny says.

Jazz wraps her arms around him and pulls him over towards her, and this time he doesn’t pull away.

“I don’t like watching you do this all by yourself,” Jazz says.  “Can I help you?”

Now Danny does pull away, if just to stare at her in bafflement.  “You want to help?”

“Of course I want to help,” Jazz says, like that’s obvious.  “If anything, the past month is a clear sign that you shouldn’t be doing this by yourself.”

Well, he can’t exactly argue with her there.  Still…

“It’s dangerous, Jazz,” he says.

Jazz raises her eyebrows.  “All the more reason I don’t want you rushing into danger without backup.”

“I can handle it,” he says.  “That’s what the ghost powers are for.”

“Danny.”  Jazz leans forward, giving him a pointed look.  “I want to help you.  Okay?”

Danny looks at her for a minute.  He takes a breath.  “Okay.”

Jazz leans forward and pulls him into another hug, and for once, Danny can know she means it.  His brain can’t make any arguments about how she wouldn’t be doing this if she knew, because she does know.

And, well.

He could get used to that.

[nobodyfamousposts]

How would Littlebug react to characters like Doofenshmirtz? Or Jack Fenton?

(In Doofenschmirtz's living room...)

(Doofenschmirtz and Littlebug are having tea.)

Doofenschmirtz: …all that to say, I am kind of off the market for an arch nemesis, though I do appreciate the offer! But I promised Perry the Platypus that I wouldn't take on another arch nemesis and then I promised my daughter, Vanessa, that I would stop my acts of villainy after she made me see that it wasn't actually healthy or what I really wanted in life. And now I'm helping out at OWCA, supporting my daughter, and sharing my non-evil inventions meant to help the world instead of trying to settle petty grudges. So I am sorry, but I hope we can still be occasional rivals or maybe allies?

Littlebug: (Confused)

Littlebug: (Looks down at List)

Littlebug: (Looks up at Doofenschmirtz and points to name on the List)

Doofenschmirtz: (Looks at the name) Oh! I see where the mixup is! I'm Dr. Doofenschmirtz! Mr. Doofenschmirtz is actually my father!

Littlebug: (Tilts head)

Doofenschmirtz: Well you see, a lot of my villainy has been related to my backstory…backstories. You see, back when I was…

(15 Minutes later.)

Doofenschmirtz: (Still going)

Littlebug: (Eye twitching)

Doofenschmirtz: And then there was the time I was shamed for not jumping off the high diving board and—wait, where are you going?

Littlebug: (Leaves)

Doofenschmirtz: Okay! Well feel free to drop by again sometime! What a strange girl.

(Suddenly, Perry the Platypus bursts in.)

Doofenschmirtz: Perry the Platypus! I'm not evil anymore! What are you doing coming in through my window?

Perry: (Chitters and pulls up a screen showing Littlebug)

Doffenschmirtz: Oh, the little living doll thing. Yes, she just left.

Perry: (Looks around warily and chitters)

Doof: What? No! She was perfectly nice!

Perry: (Gestures to Doof)

Doof: Oh, it turned out she actually wasn't looking for me, she was looking for my father.

Perry: (Worried)

Doof: What? What harm could she do?

TV Announcer: This just in! An attack in Gimmelshtump as an elderly citizen is being dangled from a rope off the condemned diving board at the old community pool.

Doof: (Eyes widen) …oh.

-----------------------

(In another universe, in the Fenton household...)

Jack: (Going to the kitchen when he sees a piece of fudge on the floor) Floor fudge!

(As he picks up the fudge, he notices another piece on the floor and proceeds to pick that up as well.)

(Then he notices another piece.)

(And another.)

(He follows the trail of fudge all the way into the basement and leading to the Fenton Stockades.)

Jack: And that's the last piece! (Picks up the piece inside the Fenton Stockades)

(The door slams shut on him, trapping him in the Fenton Stockades.)

Jack: HEY! Who's there?! Let me out!

Littlebug: (Nods resolutely and marks Jack Fenton's name off The List and starts to leave the Lab)

Voice: Ahem?

Littlebug: (Turns)

(Danny is standing there.)

Danny: You're not another ghost sent by Vlad to kill my dad, are you?

Littlebug: (Shakes her head and shows him her Bad Dad List)

Danny: Why is my dad on this list?!

Littlebug: (Gestures to the Fenton Stockades with a flat look)

Danny: Okay, I know that looks bad. But he's a good dad, really!

Littlebug: (Frown)

Danny: Look, I know he's fought me, but that's only because he doesn't know I'm half-ghost. And the times he found out, he was pretty supportive. I mean, there were situations going on at the time, so we didn't really get to talk it out, but he still seemed to care about me. Even in an alternate reality where I accidentally erased my existence.

Littlebug: (Uncertain)

Danny: If you want to look for bad dads, you should see Vlad Masters. He keeps wanting to kill my dad, marry my mom, and make me his son like some sort of twisted setup of Hamlet.

Littlebug: (Eyes widen)

Danny: So yeah, there are already enough plots against my dad, so I'd really appreciate if you—wait, where are you going?

Littlebug: (Holds up The List, now with Jack Fenton scribbled out and "Vlad Masters" written in on it)

Danny: ....you know what? Have fun.

(They leave.)

...

...

Jack: Hello? Anyone?

[wolfjackle-creates]

WIP Wednesday

So, here's a short excerpt for WIP Wednesday (963 words)! Thank you for everyone who followed my new writing blog, the response has been so unbelievable.

Trigger Warning: Discussion of parental death

Original Prompt Fill

1st Shared Segment

-----

IKnowYourSecrets: hey

IKnowYourSecrets: I know this isnt something weve done before

IKnowYourSecrets: you said you got a cell for your last bday

IKnowYourSecrets: can I call you?

IKnowYourSecrets: heres my number XXX-XXX-XXXX

-xXPolarisXx-: is everything ok?

-xXPolarisXx-: dont answer that

-xXPolarisXx-: obv not

-xXPolarisXx-: my phones in my room brb

Danny ran up stairs to grab his phone and return to the computer before anyone could close out of his chat. He checked the number and dialed it, closing out of everything and logging out as the call connected.

“Tim?” he asked as soon as the ringing stopped. “What’s happened?”

“Danny? I… this is weird talking like this.” Tim’s voice was rough and Danny couldn’t tell if that was from emotion or just how he normally sounded.

Danny laughed a little. “Yeah. It is. Give me a sec, let me get to my room and I’ll shut the door. Give us some privacy.”

“I… yeah. I might need a few minutes.”

“Are you okay?”

Tim made a sound that was somewhere between a laugh and a sob and Danny all but ran up the stairs. “No, not really. Um. My mom’s dead.”

“What?!" What was the appropriate response to something like this? Sometimes he wished he had Jazz's way with words. "What happened?”

“She and dad were in the Caribbean." Tim let out a huff. "I didn’t even know they were in the Caribbean.”

Danny made a noise to indicate he was listening, but waited for Tim to continue.

“There was a local villain named Obeah man. He captured them and held them ransom. Gave them some water to drink at some point, but… it was poisoned. By the time Batman got there, it was too late. Mom died.” Tim gave another half-hysterical laugh. “And my dad is in a coma. He may never wake up.” His voice trailed off.

Danny swallowed. How does anyone respond to news like that? “I’m so sorry, Tim. How are you holding up? What’s going to happen now?”

“The funeral is in two days. Bruce is organizing it. And I’m going to stay with him, I guess. He said he’d be happy to foster me until my dad gets better.”

“Shit, Tim. Text me during the funeral if you need to.”

“I might take you up on that. You won’t mind?”

“Of course not. Every 5 seconds if you need to.”

“Distract me. What’s going on in your life? I don’t want to think about any of this anymore.”

“Oh, uh, all right. Are you sure?”

“Please, Danny.”

“If you change your mind, interrupt me anytime.” Danny chewed his lip. What on earth could he talk about in response to news like that? The test he had in English last week? That sounded so trite. “I did start karate training with…” he trailed off before he could say his mom. “Anyway, it’s going all right. I’ve basically only been taught basic moves. I only get lessons two or three times a month so it’s slow going.”

Tim’s voice was still shaky, but he seemed to latch onto the topic to Danny’s relief. “You really have to give it your all if you want to succeed. Have you learned the basic stances and things?”

“Some, I think.”

“Hold those positions. Stand in your room and just hold them for ten minutes at a time. And practice the same punch over and over. Even if your m—” Tim’s voice caught and he changed course “—instructor can’t make it. Would you be allowed to sign up for classes? Get something more consistent?”

“We don’t have the money.” Danny bit back the embarrassment he felt at admitting that. Tim was rich-rich and never had to worry about things like bills. “Ghost hunting doesn’t really pay. My parents are at least good engineers so they can fix our own appliances and vehicles. Sometimes dad or mom will fix stuff for the neighbors for some extra money.”

Tim hummed in understanding and didn’t push the issue. “How did they even get into ghosts to begin with?”

“If we ever end up in the same place, you are not allowed to ask that directly to my parents. Don’t mention ghosts at all. They won’t stop talking for hours. As for how they got into it… Dad’s always believed in the supernatural. He could’ve just as easily started tracking big foot or the Loch Ness Monster. But he met mom in university and she was stuck on ghosts. Dragged him in, too. And he’s obsessive. Once he decides on something, that’s it.

“They were both studying the supernatural and had to decide what to focus on for their doctoral research. Mom’s hated ghosts since she was a teenager. Apparently she and a friend were dared to go into a haunted house one Halloween. She doesn’t talk about it much, but her friend died that night. She blames the ghosts and has dedicated her life to hunting them ever since.”

Tim clicked his tongue. “Wow. It almost makes sense with that back story.”

Danny snorted. “Ghosts aren’t real. I dunno what killed her friend, but it wasn’t a ghost. Wish they’d decided to hunt Bigfoot instead.”

“Really? Why do you say that?”

Danny looked out his window and stared at the setting sun. “If they were hunting bigfoot, we’d probably go camping more often. And I like camping. You get the best views of the stars that way.”

“What’s your favorite constellation?”

“That’s like asking who my favorite Star Trek character is! There’s too many to choose. But do you know the folk history of Polaris? It’s why I chose my username.” Danny talked to Tim about the stars and space until Alfred called him away for dinner. They made plans to talk online again later.

-----

Next

Now, I have a question for y'all. I was planning on finishing the entire work then publishing on a once a week basis until finished (or twice a week if I had more chapters than I expect). I've got the first chapter mostly done, just need to rewrite one section and change a few lines elsewhere. I also have the next 1.5 chapters mostly done on a first draft. I could start posting now, but I can't guarantee a posting schedule and I'll probably have to take a hiatus or two as I plan to get a new job and move sometime in the next few months.

So my question, do you want me to post now or wait? It'll probably be several months if not a year before I finish depending on how long I take and how many other projects catch my eye.

-----

In other news, the creator of the original prompt started their own fill, too! If you read mine, I am requiring you to check theirs as well because it is amazing 💕. Tumblr Link and AO3 Link

Tag List

@gremlin-bot, @bonebrokebuddy, @britcision, @lady-time-lord-, @welcometosasakiworld, @akikkobara, @phoenixdemonqueen, @dolfay, @skulld3mort-1fan, @we-ezer, @markus209, @sjrose1216, @onyxlightdragon, @dragonsrequiem, @jesus-camp-the-sequel, @spidey29phangirl, @kyrianclawraith, @evilminji, @introvert-even-on-the-internet, @emergentpanda-blog, @lexdamo, @v-inari, @idontgetpaidenoughforthisshit, @longlivethefallen

I removed the names of some people who requested a tag back in November but didn’t interact with the last snippet I shared. Since it’s been so long, I wasn’t sure if you were still interested. I’ll be more than happy to add anyone else, re-add anyone I took off, or take off anyone who doesn’t want future tags! Or start a separate list just for after there’s an AO3 link. Just let me know!

[stealingyourbones]

Danny learns bruce is his bio dad when wayne visits fentonworks. That night batman shows up to meet him and immediately shares his identity as bruce. Apparently b had danny pegged as a secret vigilante the moment he laid eyes on him, and identified him as phantom halfway through his introductions. Danny's smart enough to realize he just won the fucking superhero allegiance lottery. He's gonna milk this so hard, he's gonna THRIVE. Just point bats at all of his enemies and watch the world burn.

Oh man I’ve seen many variations of Danny’s reaction to being Bruce’s bio kid but it’s never been something like this.

Danny not going “yeah this is my town” and instead going “thank gOD now I can get some REST! Hey Damian, can you fight this guy who wants to take my skin so I can study?”

Batman goes and instantly creates dozens of contingency plans for all of the ghosts. Is a ghost harming Danny? Cool they’re getting captured in a Even Better ghost thermos that allows the ghost to still communicate even when captured and Batman terrifies them into not returning to Amity.

Both Batman and Danny fully accepting the situation, (there’s still some holy fuck I have another dad/son crisis but that doesn’t linger for too long).

Batman so glad that he has a son that’ll accept his fucking help whenever he’s asked and he doesn’t have to bully his kid into needing assistance.

Danny is so happy because he has a mentor figure that he knows is fully capable as a vigilante and doesn’t have to worry about them dying in a fight with his rogues gallery.

There’s so much angst with the debacle of “wait what the fuck I got another kid.” Sure, it’s a fun thing to write, but in doing this you can write about other conflicts:

Bruce or Danny patching the other up after a fight and chiding them for not blocking themselves more.

Bruce or Danny teaching the other how their tech works. One being the dozens of Bat gadgets, the other being Fenton gadgets. Could be a fun bonding moment talking about either technical stuff, Bruce being fucking baffled that Danny’s parents seem have their machines made out of mostly duct tape and prayer, discussions about how ectoplasm is used as a power source, or things of the sort! Don’t make Danny hide his tech! He goes “fuckin take these blueprints and help me make something that’s 100% effective” to the Batfam.

Bruce making Danny a new suit for better protection and Danny making Bruce a new suit so he can punch ghosts and be brought into the GZ.

Bringing the Batfam into the GZ to meet Frostbite, Fright Knight, or Clockwork! Have the strange father figure meet the other strange father figure and have them bond about worrying over this strange little halfa boy.

Worrying about if Jazz will accept being adopted too and Jazz going “it’s about time” and accepting far easier than they expected.

Jazz walking into the Batcave, sees Jason’s Robin suit on display, and goes “yeah that’s gonna have to be moved. Oh and Bruce, you’re meeting me in the third floor grand office closest to the stairs and we’re having a therapy session.”

Since Danny isn’t hiding from his family or anything, (well maybe but these guys are oblivious as hell. Let them just strangely accept that their kids have caught the attention of another billionaire and that they’re glad that Danny seems happier ever since he first met Mr. Wayne.) so he can have Tucker and Sam over to Wayne Manor. He can stay the night at Wayne Manor (Bruce tells them he uses a private helecopter, Danny just ghost zone portals himself over) and hang out with his new friends.

Anon you are fucking brilliant and I love this oh so much. This is a “Danny is Wayne’s Bio-kid” concept that NEEDS to be tapped into.

[zepskies]

Never Say Goodbye - Part 5

Pairing: Dean x Female Reader

Summary: The first time you and Dean sensed each other’s thoughts and feelings, you were just kids. It would take years to realize that you both were bonded for life, and even longer to finally meet. [Soulmate AU] (Rated M for eventual scenes – 18+)

Word Count: 4,800 Warnings: **(Trigger warning) physical assault, mentions of blood, language.

Part 5: Self-Defense

Your scream muffled as another hand grabbed your arm, pulling you tight against someone’s chest.

Terror was a living thing inside you. It paralyzed your heart and lungs and mind, but thankfully not your instinct to get away.

You thrashed and kicked over a lamp trying to escape the hold. You were all but dragged across the living room and into the kitchen. There you caught a glimpse of your attacker through a reflection on the microwave—it was a man and he was tall and blonde.

Your mind finally cleared of your panic just enough to remember the years of self-defense your dad had taught you. So you used your somewhat free arm to grab the man’s hand and bite down hard.

He yelled in pain and loosened enough for you to throw an elbow back into what you hoped was his face. (It was his throat, but you didn’t know or care at the time.)

You were able to scrape a bit of freedom, getting just a few steps away until he grabbed at you again. This time he forcefully turned you around and slammed your head on the counter. Your senses fuzzed as you slipped and fell into a heap on the ground.

You struggled through a haze of pain to open your eyes, but your vision was blurry. Your face felt wet. And for a second, all you could see were shapes.

Those blurred edges cleared up when the man knelt down and took your throat in his hand. You blinked through a few drops of blood dripping down your face, when you finally saw his. And you recognized him.

But then he started squeezing. The panic started in earnest as you clawed at his hand on your throat. Behind him on the counter were the kitchen knives, but you couldn’t even get up, let alone reach.

He had you pinned on the floor and you couldn’t fucking breathe.

Dean was in a panic.

One moment he was washing his and Sam’s dishes in the kitchen, teasing his girl. The next, the icy grip of your fear (and your scream) squeezed around his heart like a vice. He’d felt the intensity of your fear before, but not like this.

The force of it actually made one of his knees buckle and he accidentally cut himself with a small steak knife he’d been washing. Fuck!

But the pain persisted. It brought him down as he tossed the knife into the sink and clutched his chest.

He could only try to make sense of your thoughts. You were instinctively imparting to him one after the next, but it was a blur of jumbled words and emotions that he couldn’t make out. 

You couldn’t hear him calling your name either. All that came through his connection with you was your terror.

And then…nothing at all.

It terrified him into stillness.

Dean slowly raised himself into a sitting position on the floor, and he called your name, repeatedly.

Hey, can you hear me?   

After along moment, he realized that the silence didn’t mean you were gone. He could still feel you. You were just in shock. Frozen. 

Sweetheart, you with me? he pressed. You finally roused enough to reply.

Yeah…I’m…here.

Good. Dean closed his eyes and released a breath. Fuck, sweet relief. He sat up against the kitchen cabinet. His hand was still bleeding all over him, so he held it closed with his other hand.

Good. I need you to tell me what happened just now. Are you hurt?

You looked down at the body in your kitchen: Danny Schmitt. He laid face down on the yellow tile with a chef’s knife lodged deep into his spinal cord.

Your throat and neck hurt (along with your head), so it was a good thing you didn’t have to speak to communicate with your soulmate.

Someone broke in, and…

You realized that your hands were shaking. As you saw again in the microwave reflection, tears streamed down your face. You had a stream of blood drying on your forehead and down your cheek.

And you had no idea what to do next.

Dean swallowed a surge of protective anger and nervous suspicion, trying not to assume the worst.

Did he hurt you? he asked.

He um…he’s dead. And I…

Your reply shocked him, but he let out another relieved breath. He carefully picked himself off the floor. Okay, call 9-1-1.

My…my dad is a cop. I have to call him.

Interesting.

Good. Call him now, Dean said. But what’s your address? I’m coming now.

On shaking legs, you left the kitchen to find your phone—in your purse in the living room. There was broken glass everywhere.

What’s your address? he asked. I’m coming now.

You froze, clutching your phone to your chest. No.

No? What do you mean no?

Fear and shock were making your erratic, but all you could focus on was the fact that you were in absolute shambles. You didn’t want him to see you like this. You didn’t want to meet him like this—with literal blood on your hands.

No, you repeated.

This isn’t up for debate. His tone was firm and worried. Don’t do this to me. Come on.

He called your name, but you stubbornly shook your head.

And you shut down the connection between you two. You didn’t know you could do that, but you did. And then you sat on the couch and wept.

Dean was paralyzed with shock. I can’t believe she just did that.

You were still terrified, probably hurt, and now he couldn’t get to you. He didn’t even know your last name. He didn’t have your number or anything to go on.

“Shit!” he growled, slamming his good hand on the counter.

“What the hell happened?” Bobby asked from the doorway. He took in the blood on the floor and Dean hunched over the sink with a bleeding hand.

“Think you can guess, right?” Dean snapped, gesturing to his hand. That was frustration enough for anybody, but he knew that Bobby didn’t totally buy it.

Right now, he didn’t care. He had to find you somehow. Right fucking now.

Your dad’s embrace was warm, protective, tight with worry and relief simultaneously. You sat in the back of the paramedic truck while they wrapped your injured head and checked your vitals. Jack was patient as he went through the questions he needed to ask about your attacker.

Your house had already become a crime scene, swarmed with police personnel. They’d already taken the body out of the house.

The paramedic advised getting you to the hospital for a head CT. Your father agreed, but you held onto his arm.

“Can you give us a minute?” you asked the paramedic. The woman was probably just a few years older than you. She nodded and went to connect with her partner on getting ready for your transport. Slowly, you got off the back of the ambulance.

“Whoa, what are you doing?” Jack said in alarm.

“Dad, listen to me,” you said. You guided him closer to the house and away from his unit of policemen. You opened your coat enough to give him a folded towel. He took it and unraveled it, revealing the bloody knife.

“Jesus Christ,” he muttered. “Okay, don’t worry. This is standard self-defense.”

“Dad, I don’t remember grabbing the knife,” you said.

Jack rested a hand on your shoulder. “That happens. You’re in shock—”

“No. I don’t remember because it was never in my hand,” you whispered harshly. “I didn’t grab it. The kitchen knives were too far away. It’s impossible!”

“Okay, calm down,” your dad said gently. “You…you’ve been through a lot. You’re just in shock. You’ll get checked out at the hospital, but when all this clears, you’ll be fine.”

“Think what you want, Dad. But when they dust that knife for fingerprints, they’re not going to find mine,” you snapped.

Slowly Jack’s expression dimmed from patient to understanding. At the very least, he finally believed that you believed what you were saying–that you had no idea how that knife ended up in Danny Schmitt.

After discreetly taking a quick look around, Jack held out the knife to you, hilt first. He looked into your eyes. “Grab it.”

You released a breath and, for the first time, took it in your hand. You held it at the angle you would’ve needed to stab the knife downward. As if you had really stabbed that man.

Then Jack took the knife back.

“It’s cut and dry this way,” he told you. “Self-defense.”

You nodded, even though you regretted the motion immediately. The left side of your head ached terribly.

“This place is still going to be a crime scene when we get you out of the hospital,” Jack realized.

“I could ask Bobby if I could stay with him,” you said.

“No,” Jack said firmly. “The last thing you need is to be around that drunken idiot. No, you can stay with Jody Mills. She’s good people.”

“Dad,” you tried, but he was already calling Jody over.

“Hey Jody, can she stay with you tomorrow? I’ll bring her over once we’re done at the hospital tonight,” Jack said. Jody nodded and rested a hand on your shoulder.

“Of course, hun. Call me when you’re on your way,” she said. Jack nodded, and Jody got back into the fray of policework in your house.

You glared at him. “I’m not a kid. I can make my own decisions.”

Though you rubbed at your aching head. Jack ushered you to the ambulance and the paramedics strapped you in.

On the bumpy ride to the hospital, you felt terrible. Not just because your body was a walking welt, but because you shut him out of your mind. Whatever his name was.

You craved feeling his presence. Even though you still didn’t know what your soulmate looked like, you could imagine what it would be like to be held by him. Comforted, safe, with that deep voice like rich whiskey and still somewhat boyish, to tease a smile onto your face.

You wanted to open the connection and say, I’m sorry.

You almost did. But right now, you were a coward that let your fear win.

You kept the connection closed.

The next morning, Sam and Bobby sat at the kitchen table with mugs of coffee. They shared a mixed look of confusion and annoyance as they watched Dean make a pan of scrambled eggs.

It was the aggressive stirring and none-too gentle banging of various spices and cooking utensils that had them concerned (and significantly weirded out).

When Dean served up the food and set down their plates with a clang, Sam looked up at his brother with a raised brow. Dean didn’t notice though. He just sat down and tasted the eggs. A bit dry. Goddamn it.

“Dean?” Sam tried.

“What?”

“What’s up with you?”

“Nothing,” Dean said. Even he knew it wasn’t convincing, but he didn’t care. His mind was too preoccupied with what happened with you last night. His connection with you was still on radio silence. He heard and sensed nothing at all…

And he was worried.

He debated going through the old-school yellow pages for every person with your name in Sioux Falls, but that could be hundreds. And he didn’t know your last name, or anything concrete about you except…

Shit, I’m a freakin’ genius! he thought. Dean remembered one thing: you were a student at the University of South Dakota. History major.

“Well, I’m gonna head out,” Bobby said. “Got a sixteen-wheeler to fish out of a gutter.”

He purposefully didn’t mention the tense atmosphere, but he gave Sam a look. Work it out, it said.

Dean turned to his brother after finishing up his coffee. “Look, before we hit the road, I’ve got something to take care of.”

“Oh yeah? Is it whatever’s got you on edge right now?” Sam asked.

Dean kept a stubborn lid on it. “It’s just an errand I’ve gotta run.”

“Uh-uh.” Sam shook his head. “What’s going on with you? Where are you going?”

Dean got up and ignored his brother’s questions. He didn’t know why his instinct was to keep this to himself, but it was easier than explaining the mess he’d gotten himself into.

Sam followed him into the living room and watched Dean grab his phone and the keys to the Impala. So Sam grabbed his wallet and phone too.

Dean shot him a firm look. “Stay here, Sam. It’s no big deal.”

“If it’s no big deal, then I’ll just come with.”

Dean made a sound of aggravation. Sometimes, Sam could be a massive pain in the ass. Dean’s lips were tight as he left Bobby’s house and headed for the Impala. Sam was hot on his heels. They got into the car and soon enough, Dean drove onto the highway going south.

“So where’re we going?” Sam asked.

Dean shot him an annoyed look, but his brother was unrepentant. So he gave up. “To the university.”

Sam had to think for a moment. “Of South Dakota?”

“That’s the one,” Dean said flatly. He stared out at the road ahead.

Sam had a feeling this wasn’t hunting-related, or Dad-related.

“What, are you scoping out chicks or something?” he asked, only half serious. He watched his older brother’s expression tighten.

“Not exactly.”

“What does that mean?”

Dean glanced at Sam, then made a sound of both frustration and defeat. “Chick. Not chicks.”

“Excuse me?”

“As in singular chick,” Dean emphasized. “A girl, Sam. My…well, not my. Not yet anyway—”

“Dean,” Sam interjected. “What the hell are you talking about?”

“I’m looking for someone, okay?” Dean snapped. “You could say I’ve been hearing thoughts that ain’t mine, if you catch my drift.”

For a moment, Sam couldn’t compute. He stared at the side of Dean’s face, burning a hole in his head.

“Damn it, would you just say something? My head’s about to spontaneously combust,” Dean snarked.

“Your soulmate?” Sam clarified. “Your damn soulmate. You couldn’t just tell me that?”

Dean shot him a defensive look. “It’s a little personal.”

Sam released a frustrated sigh.

“Fine. You know where she is?”

“Kind of,” Dean admitted. “We haven’t met in person yet.”

Sam blinked in confusion. “Okay…this still doesn’t entirely explain why you’ve been so on edge. Damn near crazy.”

Dean hesitated, but eventually he explained.

“Something happened to her last night. Some guy broke into her house.”

Sam frowned in concern. “Is she okay?”

“She’s fine. Well, she’s alive. But she isn’t fine,” Dean said. “Anyway, I just want to be sure.”

Sam’s eyes widened a fraction, both incredulous and recognizing his brother’s knack for downplaying these things, like he had with Cassie.

Well, it didn’t matter. Sam wasn’t going to let Dean let go of his happiness this time. 

After you were cleared to go home from the hospital with a concussion, but nothing else majorly wrong, your dad dropped you off at Jody Mills’ house.

You liked Jody, but you didn’t appreciate your dad controlling the situation—and by extension your life, as he usually tried to do.

So once you’d said goodbye to Jody and her husband when they left for work (and to drop their son off at pre-school), you took your keys that Jack had left you, grabbed your bag, and snuck out of the house.

It was more effort than you should’ve exerted, but you walked the two blocks home. Then you grabbed some more clothes, toiletries, and your car keys.

While the brothers Winchester searched for the university’s History department, Dean continued to beat himself up internally. Sam noticed his brother’s less than peppy attitude and shot him a questioning look.

“I should’ve just gone to meet her the first night she reached out,” Dean muttered. “I should’ve told her my name, at least.”

He should’ve reached out four years ago, when he had the chance.

“You didn’t even tell her your name?” Sam asked. His surprise was followed closely by anger. “You’ve got a chance here that not many people get in life, and you’ve been playing games.”

“I’m not fucking playing,” Dean shot back. “Do I really gotta remind you what Dad went through after Mom died? Not to mention how freakin’ insane our lives are. How can I seriously bring someone else into this?”

Sam understood how Dean felt, to a degree. He felt guilty for what happened to Jess every day—for not being there. He’d loved her with everything he had, and he still missed her. He wouldn’t stop hunting the Yellow-Eyed demon until he avenged her.

But he wasn’t like Dean.

Jess hadn’t been his soulmate.

Sam had a feeling Dean was hesitating because of something else. Something deeper than Dad’s example. Something that had a lot more to do with how Dean saw himself.

So as they walked down the hall towards the Dean of Ancient Studies’ office, Sam held Dean back a second by his arm. He was gentle, but firm.

“Dean, most people spend their whole lives looking for this, waiting for this to happen to them,” he said. “How can you shut her out?”

Dean slipped his arm out of Sam’s grip. “Right now, she’s the one shutting me out.”

Sam frowned, but Dean didn’t give him a chance to reply. He followed Dean over to the office and watched him knock on the door.

A woman answered. She looked refined, with her pencil skirt and severe heels. Her thin blonde hair was twisted into a tight bun, peeling back the skin of her face. She also looked irritated to be bothered by anyone.

“Yes?” she asked. Dean glanced up at the name plate on the wall. Dr. Helen Birch.

“Hi there, Dr. Birch. We’re looking for a history major, graduate student,” Dean began. When he gave her your name, she recognized it instantly.

“Yes, she’s my graduate assistant. She’s not in today,” said Dr. Birch. “She had an accident last night, poor thing.”

“Well, wasn’t really an accident,” Dean said, his mouth quirking humorlessly. “Someone broke into her house and attacked her.”

Dr. Birch nodded.

“A hellish thing, to be sure. But she sounded all right on the phone this morning,” she said, adjusting her Prada-framed glasses. She released a hum of a sigh. “Though you know, my husband died last year. I still came to work bright and early the next day.”

Dean’s gaze hardened, and Sam knew the tell-tale signs that his brother was about to lose his temper.

He laid a hand on Dean’s shoulder and cut in quickly, “Well, we’re her cousins. We just wanted to grab some of her things for her.”

Dr. Birch pointed at a room to the left of her office. “That’s her office right there. Give her my best for me.”

“We’ll do that,” Dean smiled thinly, but he allowed Sam to pull him away towards the office. Sam gave him a warning look.

“That lady’s lucky I’m a gentleman,” Dean muttered. “Freakin’ old bag.”

She wasn’t that old, but Sam wasn’t going to point that out.

“Just calm down,” Sam whispered back. They squeezed into the closet-like office and went over to your desk, where Sam sat and opened up your laptop. It was password protected. He worked on cracking it while Dean surveyed your work desk.

It was very organized. Your notebooks were piled neatly with various pens and highlighters in their own container. He felt bad about this, but he looked through the drawers next and found an old picture. He had a feeling it was of your parents when they were young. It was even labeled on the back: Jack and Christine — November 1985.

“Sam.” Dean showed him the picture. Sam nodded, taking the hint. He thought for a moment, then tried Christine as the password.

It wasn’t a match…until he tried Christine85.

Then the home screen finally booted up. From there it wasn’t hard for Sam to get into your email so they could find your full name. Next, he found your address from a PDF scan of a payroll stub in your documents folder.

“You’re too good at that,” Dean said. His guilt was growing; normally he would have no compunctions about rifling through people’s junk, but this was your stuff. They were invading your privacy to the nth degree. This is an emergency, he rationalized.

“There,” Sam said, after taking pictures with his phone. They knew exactly who you were and where you lived.

“How do you want to play this?” Sam asked, once he and Dean were on the road back to Sioux Falls.

“Let me handle this,” Dean said. It was a delicate thing. Their plan was essentially dropping in on you, whom he’d never officially met, after stealing your private information. Not to mention, you’d already gone through a lot in the past 24 hours.

Dean shook his head. “Let’s just regroup at Bobby’s. I’ve gotta think.”

An hour later, they were pulling into the driveway at Singer Salvage. Next to Bobby’s truck was a blue Camaro.

“I guess his niece dropped by again,” Sam said. Dean was curious, but that was quickly swallowed up by his ever-mounting problem: going to see you. How the hell am I gonna do this?

His mind was so consumed when they walked in, that he almost missed seeing Bobby’s guest in the kitchen.

You were sitting with Bobby at the kitchen table, drinking lemonade. Sam and Dean shared a curious look though, because you had a bandage on your left temple and scattered bruises on your neck and arms, but you still looked friendly, casually dressed in jeans and a soft college shirt.

Dean noticed your pretty face, the shade of your hair, your curves…but he narrowed in on the shirt. It read University of South Dakota.

His heart started to beat faster, though he didn’t realize it.

“Boys, this here’s my niece,” Bobby said. When you stood up and greeted them with your name, Dean knew it was you—the girl he’d practically been scouring the entire state for.

His brain caught up with his heart, which had already recognized you from the second he stepped through the door. Your name fell from his lips, and then your head tilted curiously, like you’d recognized his voice.

Finally, finally, the bond between your souls flared in his mind and warmed through his chest. You’d opened the connection again, and he felt your shock, your recognition, your wonder. Dean grabbed ahold of that pulsing thread of energy.

Hi, sweetheart, he said with a crooked smile. Except, you didn’t exactly have the reaction he was expecting.

You gasped and nearly dropped your drink.

All three men lunged to help you, but you caught the glass yourself. “I got it!”

You then set it down carefully on the table.

“What’s happening here?” Bobby asked. He seemed very confused. Dean couldn’t blame him. He only just now realized that Sam and Bobby were still in the room watching their little movie play out.

Bobby turned to you next. “You know Sam and Dean?”

You wiped your hands on your jeans, looking embarrassed. You gestured vaguely at Dean. “Well, just…kind of…”

“Me,” Dean said, pointing at himself, then at you. “I’m…we’re…”

Because Bobby was smart and intuitive, his face slackened in realization. “Hells fuckin’ bells.”

“Yeah,” Sam nodded with a smile.

Meanwhile, you and Dean took each other in. Slowly you approached each other from opposite sides of the room.

Your gaze fell to the cut on his hand, which he’d bandaged up last night.

“Are you okay?”

Dean gave you a rueful look. “I’m the one who needs to ask you that.”

Your eyes lowered as you bit your lip. “I’m fine.”

Dean would be the judge of that. He drew close enough to examine the gauze bandage on your head. His hand raised to ghost along the bruises on your neck. It stirred his protective, righteous anger again, but he did his best to put a clamp on it for your sake. You were a scrapper, a survivor, and for that he was proud of you.

“Are you in pain?” he asked.

“The meds work just fine,” you said with a smile, but it soon fell as you chanced looking up at him. Dean looked into your eyes for the first time. They were beautiful, but sad and contrite.

“I’m sorry for shutting you out,” you said.

Dean huffed. “Yeah, that wasn’t pleasant.”

Behind him, Sam snorted and gave his brother a pointed look, which Dean ignored.

“I know. I was just…scared,” you admitted, gesturing with a hand to your injuries. “I didn’t want this to be the way we finally met.” 

Dean could understand that. He reached out and tucked a loose strand of hair behind your ear.

“Still, can we keep the heart attacks to a minimum?”

You smiled again, and it reminded him of all the times you’d teased him through his mental connection with you. “No promises.”

Then you stared up at him with more of that wonder on your face.

“What?” Dean quirked a smile. You were starting to blush; he could see the faint pinkness spreading across your cheeks.

“You’re…tall,” you said.

Dean grinned. “Just tall?”

You crossed your arms in amusement. “And other stuff.”

“Yeah, that’s nice. Poetry, really,” he teased. “Definitely uh, putting that college stuff to good use.”

Sighing a laugh, you covered your face with a hand, fighting further embarrassment. It made Dean chuckle.

“All right, just teasing,” he said. “No need to hide.” He bypassed your hand to prop a finger beneath your chin so he could see your face. You met his gaze, waiting somewhat patiently while he looked you over. He could feel the heat rising off your cheeks though, and his smile deepened. You were adorable, and all too easy to tease.

But you were also beautiful.

Without really thinking about what he was doing, Dean found himself leaning down to brush his lips with yours—

Until your voice stopped him. “I, um, have to go. Take a shower.”

Your eyes were wide and somewhat nervous. Dean backed off, cursing inwardly at himself. His hand fell from your face.

“Okay,” he said slowly. “Need help?”

Your lips fell open in a soft “o” shape. Once Dean realized what he’d said, shock gripped both of you.

“Up the stairs,” he clarified. “The shower’s upstairs.”

Behind him, Sam made a pained face—like he was watching a car wreck and couldn’t stop. It made you smile, despite your lingering embarrassment.

But for Sam, he’d never seen his brother tripping up this bad over a girl. Usually he prided himself on being “Señor Smooth” (Dean’s words, not Sam’s).

Meanwhile behind you, Bobby rolled his eyes at you both.

“Sure, thank you,” you said.

You took Dean’s hand as he led you up the stairs. Maybe you shouldn’t have been trying to climb stairs with a concussion, but the pain medication really was helping you enough to be functional. Besides, Dean was supportive and went slow to help you.

When you made it to the top, you let go of Dean’s hand to grab your bag of clothing from the guest bedroom. When you came back, Dean was still waiting outside the bathroom with his hands in his pockets.

He really was tall, you thought. His grip while helping you had been gentle, but you’d felt the strength in his arms. You knew he wasn’t going to let you fall.

There were so many things about him that you hadn’t expected. His green eyes and sandy brown hair, his boyish, charming smile, his confident swagger, his lips…

“I’m sorry for putting Sam out of his room,” you said, mostly so you would stop staring. Dean rubbed the back of his neck.

“Nah, Sam’s like a dog. He can sleep anywhere,” he said. “On the floor, even.”

You laughed, though you tried not to at Sam’s expense. Dean smiled at the attempt.

“So, you’re Dean, the traveling exterminator,” you said.

His smile kicked up into a smirk. “Guilty.”

Your lips curved, a bit shy, but also a bit mischievous. He had spent a long time playing games with you. Now it was your turn.

You leaned up toward him on the tips of your toes, so you could reach his lips. With a raised brow, his body bowed towards you.

Once your lips were just a whisper away from his, you stopped.

“Good,” you said simply.

And you closed the bathroom door in his face.

AN: Okay, so an action-packed chapter for ya. And yay, they finally meet! Dean also encounters the infamous Dr. Birch, Jody Mills makes a brief cameo, plus Sam being a supportive brother.

One thing I want to note, in case people have questions about "Jess not being Sam's soulmate" here. I just really couldn't do that to him (losing his soulmate in his 20s on top of everything else). It was really so I could keep things open for Sam, not anything against Jess as a character.

That being said, let me know what you think about the first meeting!

To keep reading: PART 6

Series Masterlist

Dean Winchester Masterlist

Main Masterlist

This thing keeps on growing! Thanks to everyone following this story so far.

@curlycarley @buckywenal24 @jamerlynn @iprobablyshipit91 @globetrotter28 @deamus-liv @irgendwas122 @deans-spinster-witch @dogbarkbark4445 @my-proof-is-you @vera0124 @deans-baby-momma @lacilou @samanddeaninatrenchcoat @happygoodvibe

[flamingpudding]

Modern (Fenton) Ghost Hunting Part 1

Ties to: Post from under 'It started with a Ouija Board' found in the Masterpost

A/N: I got a little stuck with this and there is another bigger fanfic project I started working on that has me distracted. But I wanted to post at least part of this before I might end up in radio silence for three weeks cause I am visiting family out of country and have no idea about internet access there yet 😅

Danny was in a good mood as he slurped the ecto-shake his mom had made upon his return from the Zone. It was one of the more harmless and ghost helping food inventions his parents had come up with, once the truth was out of the bag when he was more or less forced to take on his kingly duties. Though his mom's ecto-fudge special (that was also one of the few ectoplasm infused foods not coming back to life) made for only him and Ellie was even better than the shakes. It wasn't better than their special family recipes their Dad loved so much but it came a close second.

He sipped on it more as he fell back into the couch as he flicked through some TV channels. His last trip to Gotham had been a month ago and he mused that he probably would need to visit soon to update Lady Gotham on the status of the Garbage Disposal Leaks. It was a pain to deal with but hey at least he, for once, got to be the mean guy to yell at the observants how they could have left these alone for over a hundred of years.

Seriously? If he could, he would stick Sam and one of her righteous rants onto them too.

So yea Danny was in a good mood he had gotten rid of another leak which only left a couple more to take care of and then put the observants into their place with another petty with hidden insults filled and Sam inspired as well as co-authored lecture.

He would give Lady Gotham a present for giving him such a great opportunity with this problem, even if that wasn't her intention. There was also a rumor in the GZ that Box Ghost and Walker had gotten beat up by Lady Gotham several times while he was busy, he would like to hear what that was about.

In all this Danny completely forgot about his encounter with the vigilantes and that his parents told him about a new business partner that was interested in their Fenton Ghost Tech that wasn't weaponry but focused on co-existence, like the Fenton (blob-)ghost feeder.

So when the doorbell rang and Danny went to open the door, thinking it might be one of his friends. He nearly choked on his ecto-shake as he came face to face with a person he only knew from paparazzi shots or Tucker's endless rants about their technology.

"Hello, I am Tim Drake-Wayne! I believe I have an appointment with the Drs Fentons? I am not too early am I?"

-------

Red Robin was on his wits end. After the first success he had used various more 'modern' summonings in hopes of getting their ghost to show up again. But most of them ended with the same white ghost or only one other ghost claiming their name as Box Ghost to appear. Strangely when they did appear, after about a minute after their appearance an invisible force started to attack them to which these ghosts instantly turned tail and 'unsummoned' themselves. They didn't even give Red Robin the chance to ask anything.

In the end after the third time of summoning that white ghost called Walker, the ghost peeked out from that portal once and the moment they spotted him sunk back into it. Not even bothering to tell him about any rules RR might have broken. Since then none of his summons appeared to work anymore.

Though the vigilante at least concluded that whatever had attacked their teenage ghost most likely was also the driving force behind Walker or any other ghost refusing to answer his summonings. He had suspicions that might have something to do with Lady Gotham, the teenage ghost mentioned and had been unable to summon at all.

Of course Red Robin couldn't leave it like that so he dug deeper into the whole ghost cult thing and came across published research papers. Apparently the ghost cult wasn't just an occult but also a science, that he highly doubted was real. The deeper he dug the more concerned he became, for one that ectoplasm they mentioned looked awfully a lot like Lazarus Water, and second the research from the Drs Fenton he found was awfully a lot biased until a year or so ago when they suddenly invalidated all their previous research and published a nearly completely different thesis.

Though the teenage vigilante had to admit everything they offered on their website looked a whole lot more modern and right out of a SyFy movie than any of the tools he had already purchased, from a ghost Wikipedia (which surprisingly included information about Walker and that Box Ghost), to protective gear, to feeders and ectoplasm infusers.

So after a small recon with his siblings and listening to their disagreement and another rant from their youngest about Pit Demons, Red Robin made the decision to check these Drs Fenton out undercover. And who better to do that than Tim Drake-Wayne, CoCEO of Wayne Enterprise who got interested in their ectoplasm-powered gadgets designed for co-existing. After all Gotham might just be as hunted if not more with the crime rate they had.

His siblings were not happy, he knew that but he took the earliest chance he had, to take a private plane to Amity Park and made an appointment with the Fentons on a saturday afternoon.

He made sure to smile pleasantly as the son of the Drs Fentons opened the door and took his time staring. Before finally inviting him in after a shout from the Drs. resounded somewhere behind him in the house. Tim of course eyed the glowing green shake the other teenager was drinking, already forming plans on getting a sample of it the first chance he got.

"Mr. Drake! Such a pleasure to have you here! You have already met my little boy Danny, my husband will join us later he got hold up by my daughters. But we do have a couple of inventions prepared for showcasing, we could also go over some of the theories first if you prefer until my husband can join us.." A woman came up shaking his hand and the teenager, Danny, stepped away from them retreating further away but staying in earshot, Tim noted.

"Dr. Fenton, thank you for having me. I am looking forward to learning about this ecto-energy and your Fenton-inventions, I believe one was called an Ecto-Infuser?" Did he imagine it or did that boy cringe? Also the boy was clearly watching him, he tried to appear nonchalant but the way the other teen's eyes followed Tims every move as well as the guarded look in his eyes was making it obvious.

"The Ecto-Dejecto, originally designed to weaken ghosts but is now one of the many medical tools that can help a ghost survive if they do not have a steady supply of ectoplasm." Dr. Fenton easily explained while leading him over to the seating area.

"Danny be a dear and bring our guest something to drink. Coffee or Tea?"

"Coffee would be fine." Not like he would actually drink it. As much as he and his siblings made fun of Bruce's paranoia, he was not about to drink coffee offered by people who research ghosts. Besides, looking around, he wasn't sure how well they followed OSHA and he wasn't about to potentially drink a coffee infused with Lazarus Water. If that ectoplasm was Lazarus water. But he would take it with him as one of many samples.

"Sure things mom. Should I bring out the fudge too?"

Tim's ear twitched and he turned ever so slightly in the direction of the son. No it couldn't be, could it?

"Oh please be so kind."

"Will be right back."

Now Tim wished he had forced at least one of his siblings along. Because if his ears didn't betray him then this teenager had the same voice like the ghost kid. Though his memory could be slightly impaired because of the time frame since he had last heard it. He would need to get a voice recording now too and play it to his siblings.

[call-me-strega]

How to Become a Step-Dad in 5 Easy Steps: part 2 (chapter 1/?)

Here is part 1, lore

Edit: ao3 link now here

They do go to a library in this chapter so there are a lot of references to books in this chapter. I've read some but not all of them so I can say anything about their quality more than as things that I thought sounded interesting in theory. A lot of the stuff at the library was inspired by my own experiences with public libraries.

~~~

Step 2: Get to know them

Within the next 4 months Jason ran into Danny several more times. Each time becoming more and more enamored with the young man. It was hard not to when he saw how kind and hard-working he was.

~

The first time he ran into Danny after their first meeting he actually ran into Ellie first. Well, technically she ran into him but that's beside the point. But if you were gonna get technical about it he heard her little giggles before he saw her.

He had been at the library during some of his downtime to peruse some books and relax. The life of a vigilante crime lord isn't a very peaceful one, go figure. That's why Jason liked taking some time to himself every once in a while whether it was to have tea with Alfred, hang with one of his friends or siblings, or in this case visit Gotham Public Library.

Sure he could've gone to the Manor Library or gotten something online but the Manor was pretty far from the Alley and preferred having physical copies of his books rather than a computer or tablet. Electronics just didn't have that nostalgic book smell or the soft touch of a well-loved page.

Going to the library also came with its own perks. For one, he got to visit Barbie at work. It was always nice to see her as they had this unspoken solidarity between them. The atmosphere was also a plus. There was just something special about being able to be completely solitary yet still have this special connection to the other patrons. Seeing the old man enjoying a novel with his wife, the book club that met on Sundays, the haggard office worker winding down on the weekend with a graphic novel, the young woman teaching herself sign language, the teens goofing off while they were supposed to be studying, a mom reading The Kissing Hand to her kids, all of the various people here for various reasons; all of it made Jason feel like he was a part of something bigger.

He was currently browsing a display of LGBT+ books for young adults that the library had put up for Pride Month. '"Cemetery Boys", "Aristotle and Dante", "You Should See Me in a Crown", "Six of Crows", "Boyfriend Material", "Red, White, and Royal Blue", "Carry On", Oh- "The Song of Achilles" that sounds interesting?'

That’s when he felt a small chill pass behind him. He initially dismissed it as a draft from the air conditioner, but soon after he heard the sound of excited giggles nearby. He didn't think too much of it assuming it was another kid on their way out of the children's section. However, something niggled in the back of his head that this particular giggle was one he was familiar with.

That's when he felt something collide with his leg. He looked down to see a small child with a head of glossy black hair in a red beanie glomping his leg. Suddenly, the child looked up and beamed at him. Jason's eyes lit up with recognition and he laughed.

" Hey there munchkin, how are you?"

Ellie continued to smile, releasing her hold on his leg.

" I'm doing really good Mr. Jason! Daddy told me he didn't have any work today and he said we could go anywhere we wanted! First, we went to the bodega a got these really big breakfast sandwiches! Like really really big! Like the size of my face and we shared! And then Daddy took me to the park and it was really fun! I saw a squirrel there but it ran away before I could pet it! And then we came here and Daddy said we'd make me a library card so I could get whichever books I wanted. He read Oh The Places You Will Go and Where the Wild Things Are to me and then they were gonna have story time and Daddy looked tired from the park so I told him to read one of his space books and rest while I went to story time like a big girl! When story time was over I looked around and saw you so I came over to say hi and thank you for the cookies and food because daddy says we should always say thank you when people give us gifts!"

Damn, the girl sure had one hell of a motor mouth on her. It seemed she and Danny were in the middle of a father-daughter day. It brought a smile to his face to see that she was well taken care of, but based on her very informative rambles, it seemed they were taking care of each other.

" Why don't we go say hi to your dad, huh Elle?"

The young girl gasped, "That's a great idea! Then Daddy can say thank you too! And then you can read with us and come to our house for dinner! Daddy kept saying how he wanted to make something for you too since you made us the-, the- uuh... luz-on-ya and cookies!"

" Whoa there munchkin, how about we just start with hi?"

Ellie nodded with a determined look on her face, she wrapped her little hand around his pointer finger and pulled him along to the semi-secluded corner of the children's section. Sitting there in an armchair next to a small pile of books was Danny, who seemed to be out cold, The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy slipping from his fingers.

'Aah he must be tired from moving in and probably from working too' Jason thought to himself. A smaller voice in the back of his chimed in with its own two cents. ' He still made time for her. He took her out and is spending the whole day with her even though he's tired. He's a good dad.' That's when he made up his mind not to disrupt Danny's nap and let him get some rest before he had to tackle the rest of his father-daughter day with his hyperactive six-year-old. He placed a hand on Ellie's shoulder, stopping her as she was about to shake Danny awake, and leaned down to whisper in her ear.

" It looks like you were right about your dad being tired. How about we let him rest for now and I'll say hi another time? Besides I wouldn't want to interrupt your daddy-daughter day now would I?" He started to guide her to a different portion of the library quickly forming a plan, "Hows' bout we do something I think you'll like? Did you know sometimes they bring puppies and kitties into the library?"

The young girl gasped, " REALLY!"

" Yeah, sometimes puppies and kitties can help people who are feeling sad or nervous feel better. They also help teach kids how to act nicely and quietly so that they don't scare animals by letting them read to a puppy or kitty. I can help you sign up to read to a puppy or kitty today if you want? Then afterward, you can go tell your dad and he'll be really proud of you."

The young girl seemed so excited by the prospect that Jason worried for a second that she might explode.

" That's a great idea Mr. Jason! He'll be so proud of me and he'll bring me again! And I'll get so good at not scaring animals that the squirrels in the park will let me pet them! Then, Daddy will be so impressed that he'll let us get our own puppy and Cujo can come live with us!"

Jason winced, perhaps his plan had been a tad too effective. Single parents had a hard enough time keep themselves afloat while looking after their kids, a pet was extra expenses and another commitment to devote time and effort to. Pets were usually out of budget and out of question for anyone living in or near the Alley.

Well, he'd cross that bridge if he ever got to it. For now, he focused on getting Ellie signed up to read to Charlie, the old St. Bernard that was at the library this today. He and the trainer, he squinted reading her name tag, Amanda, supervised the session. Jason would be lying if he wasn't endeared by the sight of a young girl reading Dragons Love Tacos very enthusiastically to a dog nearly twice her size.

" It's nice to see a young father spending time with his daughter."

'I agree' Jason thought before realizing Amanda thought he was Ellie's dad.

" Oh- ah no I'm her -," Jason quickly made up his mind on the least creepy excuse he could find, " -babysitter. Although, her father does make a lot of effort spend time with her."

The dog trainer flushed and apologized for her mistake but Jason waved her off saying it was no big deal. Silently, he wondered how often Danny got time to himself. When he realized what he was thinking he raised an eyebrow at himself before dismissing it as worry for a young parent and wondering how he divided his time to be able to take such good care of his daughter.

Ellie was saying her final goodbyes to Charlie when he got a text from Alfred reminding him he had promised to meet him for tea and some chitchat. Once Ellie returned to his side he let her know that he had had fun seeing her today but that he had to go spend some time with his granddad and that he'd have to say hi to her dad another time. She accepted this with a surprising amount of maturity for a 6-year-old but made him pinky-promise that he'd definitely spend some time with the both of them next time they saw each other. Jason happily accepted and sent her back off to her dad before heading over to the tea shop he and Alfred liked to meet at.

" It is so nice to see you again Master Jason. I'm happy to see arrive in one piece. Usually when you are delayed it is due to some rather -ah, unfortunate hold-ups," Alfred greeted him. He returned the smile, sinking into his seat across from Alfred, ready to unload.

" Not this time Alfie, though it is a bit of a story."

" One I'm sure you'll be pleased to tell me all about," he challenged, raising an eyebrow. Jason just shook his head and chuckled.

" Sure thing Alfie."

~

The next time he ran into Danny and Ellie he was at the grocery store.

Jason had been examining a piece of zucchini when he felt a light, cool breeze quickly followed by the sensation of someone walking past him. A lean figure came and stood nearby inspecting the squash. Jason glanced up, having registered a new presence, before doing a double take. A small grin graced his lips as he spoke,

" Well hey there neighbor, didn't expect to see you today."

Danny looked up, slightly startled before he saw that it was Jason. He smiled back and returned his greeting in a warm tone.

" Hey neighbor, I didn't expect to see you either. Honestly, I was hoping we wouldn't meet till I had made a batch of my family's signature fudge to give you as a thank you when we returned your dishes for the food and for looking after Ellie that day in the library."

" Ah~ the little munchkin told you bout that did she?"

" She was pleased to inform me about how she was learning not to scare animals and how Mr. Jason was sooo nice and even pinky promised to spend some more time with her." he teased.

Jason flushed slightly, his hand coming up to the back of his neck,

" Oh yeah, I hope I didn't overstep my bounds there. She just seemed so excited."

" Yeah, that sounds like my little spitfire!" he chuckled fondly. He took a deep breath and continued. " Well if you don't have anything else going on tonight I'd love to have you over. Ellie has really been looking forward to seeing you again and I can whip up some fudge that you can take home with you if you stay for dinner?" Danny seemed to flush at his own forwardness before rushing to continue, " I mean- not that you have to, especially if you're busy! I just- thought it might be nice to get to know my neighbor, especially since Ellie seems to like you so much! But-"

Jason, who had just finished processing the dinner invite, interrupted before Danny spiraled deeper into his nervous rambles. He place a hand on Danny's shoulder to get his attention and spoke,

" Sure. I'd love to come over Danny." He smiled, puffing up his chest, “ Besides, I have a pinky promise to fulfill.”

Danny returned his smile with a laugh, giving Jason's shoulder an embarrassed shove. Jason grinned at having successfully made the other laugh. The two stared at each other for a beat, coming down from their high of making each other laugh, before flushing and looking away. A look of realization passed over Danny's face and he turned to speak to Jason again.

" You probably have your own groceries to finish and put away. How about you come over around 7:30? I can have the fudge cooling in the fridge while we eat, oh which reminds me, you’re not allergic to anything are you?"

Jason smiled back. "7:30 sounds great Danny and no, no allergies as far as I’m aware, though I’m not particularly fond of most shellfish."

“Well alrighty then I’ll see you at 7:30,” Danny confirmed with a smile and rushed off to continue his own shopping.

And that’s how Jason found himself standing outside the Nightingale residence in a casual maroon 3/4 sleeve tee, a dark denim jacket, and some of his nicer trousers with a bouquet of flowers he put a frankly embarrassing amount of thought into. He figured bringing more food wouldn’t be appropriate since he was a dinner guest, dessert wouldn’t fly either as Danny had claimed he’d be making fudge, and wine didn’t seem appropriate with a 6-year-old also in attendance.

‘Come on Jason, it’s just a casual dinner with your neighbors! Normal human interaction, nothing to be nervous about! You can do this!’

Jason took a breath and knocked on the door. He heard a pitched squee followed by a “it’s him daddy!” come from behind the door. Unconsciously, Jason smiled as he heard the door unlocking. As it opened he was met with a cool breeze from within the apartment and the sight of his two neighbors. Danny was in a pale, moss green apron, smudged with what appeared to be powdered sugar, over a pale blue button up with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, and cuffed jeans. Ellie was dressed in an interesting combo of pink crocs, neon green leggings, a sparkly, powder blue tutu, a white shirt with glittery black script declaring her “Daddy’s little princess”, a denim jacket embroidered with flowers and vines on the back and sleeves, and a plastic tiara with a big purple gem in the middle fixed atop her signature red beanie.

“Hi,” Danny greeted a bit breathlessly. His young daughter stood in front of him beaming up at Jason.

“ Mr. Jason you came!” She bounced excitedly on her heels before launching forward to hug his leg. She tugged at his jacket before pointing to her own, “Look! We match!”

With a smile, Jason got down on one knee and offered the flowers to her, “ And what an honor it is to match with such a beautiful princess! Please, accept these flowers as a token of my goodwill m’lady!”

“Thank you!” The girl giggled, accepting the bouquet and scurrying back into the apartment. Jason watched her go with a smile. He then turned his gaze to look up at Danny who watched the whole interaction with a glimmer of amusement in his eyes. He met Jason’s gaze and smiled.

“Why don’t you come in too my good sir,” he teased, holding out his hand to help Jason up. Jason smirked at the opportunity Danny had unknowingly presented him. He took Danny’s hand but made no move to get up. Instead, he ran his thumb over the other man’s knuckles and slowly brought the hand closer to his face. He glanced up once more, teal eyes connecting to icy blue ones.

“Of course my dear king,” he whispered. His breath dancing over Danny’s hand, his lips ghosting over his knuckles. Maintaining eye contact, the kneeling man placed a gentle kiss on his knuckles, watching a beautiful red flush bloom upon the young man’s face.

‘His hand is cold. His fingers have the beginnings of callouses on them. It feels like his hand was made to fit in mine. This feels right’

Jason is snapped out of his reverie when Danny clears his throat. He coughs into his other hand while trying to hide his blush, averting his eyes in embarrassment. He doesn't withdraw his hand however, allowing Jason to continue to hold it. Jason took that as his sign to get up before this got too awkward.

He rose from the ground still not letting go of the other's hand. The pair stood there for a moment with their hands intertwined, as if a message was being passed through their tingling palms. A charge filled the air with an exhilarating tension. The kind you feel before trying something unfamiliar and new that, unbeknownst to you, will become your favorite.

“So, uh, let’s head in then?” Danny said, slowly withdrawing his hand from Jason’s, almost as if he was reluctant to do so.

“Let’s,” Jason replied and the two turned into the apartment.

Danny had Ellie show Jason to the bathroom so he could wash up as he set the table. He had made grilled squash, a macaroni and beef hotdish, and some Greek salad on the side. The three of them sat at the table making some small talk ( how are they liking it in Gotham, how did the rest of daddy-daughter day go, does Jason have restaurant/activity recommendations, would he like to see Ellie’s favorite model airplane, etc.) and laughing with each other over horrible dad jokes and Ellie’s antics.

Jason could feel his chest fill with an almost unbearable warmth. He would’ve sworn it’d have melted him from the inside out if it hadn’t been accompanied by an overwhelming feeling of joy and desire. The traitorous little whisper in his head returned to comment on how much he’d love to be a part of the Nightingale’s family.

Soon enough it was time for Ellie to head to bed and Jason to head out, lest he be late for patrol.

“Here, I can clear off the table while you put her to bed.”

Danny rushed to stop him despite the young child koala wrapped over his torso. “Oh, you really don’t have to do that. I can-”

“Relax your highness, let me take care of this while you put the princess to bed.” He gave Danny a kind look, hefting up the dirty dishes. Danny returned it with a grateful look and turned to go put his daughter to bed. Over his shoulder, Ellie looked up sleepily and weakly waved one last time saying “Goodnight Mr.Jason” in a small voice.

Jason smiled gently at her and replied, “Goodnight princess.”

He then turned back to his task of clearing the table. Moving the dirty dishes to the sink and the serving dishes to the counter. He figured he’d get started on the dishes while he waited for Danny to return. He let his mind wander as he covered a plate with soapy suds. Danny and Ellie seemed like a good pair of neighbors. He doubted they’d cause him any trouble and if they ever unintentionally did, Jason found himself thinking he’d find it rather easy to forgive them. The two were both so welcoming and full of life. They made Jason feel so happy and peaceful tonight. They welcomed him into their home and made him feel as if they enjoyed his company and wanted him around for more than just a cursory “return the favor” dinner. ‘As If he belongs there. With them.’ The little voice returned, prompting Jason to reel in his thoughts. He’s only known them for what? Two weeks? These weren’t the type of thoughts he should be having at this point. He tried to rationalize it telling himself he just missed the domesticity of family dinners like he had when Catherine was in a good stretch or like he had with Bruce, Dick, and Alfred as kid when they were all getting along. He made up his mind to attend one of the bi-weekly family dinners at the manor coming up. It’d be nice to see the little demon brat, big bird, and nerd bird again now that they were getting along like actual brothers.

“Oh! Jason you didn’t have to do that!” His train of thought broken by Danny rushing over to protest him doing dishes. “You’re a guest! You really didn’t have to-”

“It’s okay Danny, I wanted to,” he reassured the fussing young man who pulled him away from the sink. The young man responded by pushing him out of the kitchen and telling him to grab his jacket before turning back to grab something from the fridge.

And there he stood in the doorway, 20 minutes after he had intended to leave, still saying goodbye. Danny pushed a familiar Tupperware container into his hands, which recognized as the one he had given them lasagna in, now full of dark squares of fudge sprinkled with a bit of white and green on top.

Danny smiled as he handed him the sweets. “A family recipe with my own little twist on it,” he winked. Jason gratefully accepted, wishing the young man well and agreeing that he hoped to see the other again soon. And with that, Jason rushed off hoping that he wouldn’t be late for patrol.

~ Later that night Jason returned to his apartment, exhausted. He chucked his helmet off onto the bed and stumbled to his kitchen. He pulled open the fridge in search of something to eat when his eyes landed on the fudge his neighbor had given him. He pulled it out and grabbed a square, giving it a sniff before biting in. His eyes widened at the taste.

The fudge was, well fudgy, but not overly sweet. It had a richness of dark chocolate and a sweeter note from the white chocolate chips mixed in. There were also candied orange peels mixed into it which gave the fudge a bit of chew and acidity to break up the richness. The fudge was topped with pistachios adding a nutty, earthy flavor to the experience. He’s sure that if Martian Manhunter ever tried these he’d accuse Jason of giving him hard drugs. But what Jason liked most of all was the quality only homemade food and family recipes passed down over generations have. He could practically taste the amount of love and thought that went into this fudge.

Jason smiled to himself finishing off his square and decided the save the rest for later. He headed off to bed with a peaceful smile on his face and a warm, full, feeling in his chest.

~~~

I tried very hard to balance out the dialogue and description as well as to not make it too long winded and keep the story moving so please let me know what you guys think. I love receiving feedback so if there is anything you want to see more or less of let me know. I’m also open to suggestions of where Jason should run into our father-daughter pair next.

If anyone's interested here is what the bouquet was comprised of: apple blossom- preference, basil- good wishes, white camellia- you're adorable, goldenrod- encouragement/good fortune, violets- watchfulness/modesty/faithfulness

I actually looked up a real fudge recipe so that I'd have and easier time describing it. You can find it here: https://www.midwestliving.com/recipe/candy/creamy-rich-pistachio-tangerine-fudge

[gracev0609]

I Was Born to Love You - Jake's Version Pt. 1

A gracev0609/ @losfacedevil collaboration.

We are so excited to release this installment in our little universe. This story runs parallel to Josh's.

Meet Jake and Sevda, and the things they left unspoken...

Warnings: Struggling to Conceive, 18+ Only, Minors DNI, Explicit Sexual Content, Adult Themes, Breeding Kink

Jake rolled his eyes as his older brothers name lit up his phone screen. Sliding the answer bar across his screen he quickly tapped the speaker button and continued to pluck away at the guitar in his lap. 

“This better be important dude.” Jake almost growled, unsure of what could be so important as he had just seen Josh yesterday. He heard Josh take a deep breath over the speaker.

“Jake listen, you can’t tell mom or dad or Sam or Danny okay?” Jake quirked a brow before placing the guitar in his grasp on the floor and scooped up his phone, quickly turning off the speaker function and pressed it firmly to his ear.

“You didn’t kill anyone did you? You didn’t crash the car? Y/N’s alright, right?” Jakes mind began to move a mile a minute, unsure of what could be so important that he was being sworn to secrecy. He could hear Josh pacing, the sound of the breeze through the line changing every time he turned. 

“No, I didn’t kill anyone or crash the car, yes she’s okay. She is better than okay actually. Jake, you’re gonna be an uncle.” 

Jakes mouth fell open as tears quickly sprang to his eyes and the phone slipped from his hand, clattering to the floor and drawing the attention of his girlfriend, Sevda. She turned her head quickly and her eyes widened slightly at the look of shock on Jake’s face. She made her way over to him quickly and perched herself on the arm of the couch, reaching over to press his jaw together.

“What’s the matter Jake? Who’s on the phone?” She bent at the waist and scooped the phone up off of the floor, tapping the screen to light up the caller ID. 

Josh could hear the commotion on the other end of the line. Sevda remained calm as she tried to shake Jake out of whatever trance he was in. Pulling a deep breath in through her nose she tapped the speaker function on the phone screen. 

“Josh what have you done to break your brother? I think he’s forgotten how to function outside of letting tears stream down his cheeks. Jake, darling what happened?” 

She heard a nervous chuckle escape Josh as he prepared to say the words once more. Sevda cupped Jakes cheek in her hand and swiped her thumb under his eye to rid his skin of the tears that lay there. 

“Sev, she’s pregnant.” 

A soft gasp escaped Sevdas lips and she turned her attention to the phone in her hand. Another nervous chuckle escaped Josh in the deafening silence, both his brother and sister in law now both shocked by the words that had come out of his mouth. 

“Hey, guys? Can you say something… anything?” Josh pleaded.

Jake sniffles as Sevda murmurs soft words of encouragement. We're okay baby… Her forehead pressed against his as she held the phone away from their faces. She hoped that Josh couldn't hear the vulnerable moment happening.

Jake blinked his eyes a few times, regaining his composure, “I’m sorry, it’s just.. I’m so happy for you Josh, you’re gonna be the best dad. And she’s gonna be the best mama, you see how she is with Jade even though she’s older.” Jakes eyes danced across the room to where Sevdas four year old Jade sat and his heart soared with the idea of her having a baby cousin. 

“Where is she, Josh? Can I speak to her?” Sevda asked, her mind reeling with just how she had felt when she found out she was pregnant. 

“She’s shopping for all the babies apparently, I thought we were here for Bennie but I’ll have her call you guys as soon as we get home.” 

Jake pulled another deep breath in through his nose as Jade found him across the room and reached out in his direction. He smiled softly at the little girl and nodded. 

“I’m being summoned to the tea party. Princesses know nothing of their Kings importance. I’m so happy for you guys.” 

“Send her all our love, Josh. We’ll talk to you guys later.” Sevda kept her voice light and sweet as she bid Josh a farewell and hung up the phone.

Jake picked up the little girl and held her in his lap as her fingers twirled around the ear of the stuffed bunny she had in her hands.

Breathing deeply his mind reeled with doubts and insecurities, it was almost paralyzing. 

You're not good enough to be a real father.

Y/N got pregnant so easily, there must be something wrong with you.

You're not good enough.

Something is wrong with you.

Sevda pets Jake's hair noticing how stiff and silent he's become,” Hey, don't get stuck in that brilliant mind of yours. Tell me what's going on.”

Jake clenched his jaw before speaking,” Not right now Sev, just give me a few.”

Her hand lovingly skirts down his back before she picks up Jade,” I'm going to go put her to bed, and then we're talking about this.”

He gives her a soft smile,” Okay baby. Goodnight Jade, I love you.”

A small,” I love you Jakey.” Comes from Jade's mouth, muffled into her mom's shoulder.

Jake made his way to their master bedroom, the heaviness in his chest becoming almost unbearable. He curls up on his side of the bed, hugging one of the pillows to his body and he can't help the tears that start to flow. His shoulders shake and it feels as if his chest is collapsing in on itself. 

Jake starts to get pissed at himself for bawling like a baby as he forces himself to calm down and get a grip. He sits himself up slightly and wipes his face with his hand.

Sevda makes her way into the room and takes in his position on the bed along with his red tear stained face.

Softly she murmurs his name as she climbs onto the mattress to get to him.

She intertwines their fingers together,” I'm upset too babe. I can't help but feel disappointed, it's natural. We've been trying to have a baby for months.”

“ Six. Six months Sev.”

She lets out a shaky breath,” Yeah. Six months.”

Jake's voice booms, completely laced with hurt,” We've been diligently trying to have a baby for six months and Josh just gets the idea in his head and now she's pregnant! Why was it so fucking easy for them!” His voice rang out in their otherwise quiet bedroom.

Much softer now,” Is there something wrong with me? Y/N got pregnant so easily, you got pregnant with Jade so easily. When is it our turn?”

Sev gulps down the lump in her throat because she knows she doesn't have a concrete answer for him, and she wishes to God that she did.

“All I know baby, is that I want this so badly. I'd have a thousand babies with you if I could Jake. For whatever reason it's not our time yet, but one of these days, it will be our time.”

She threads her fingers in his hair, pulling his head forward so she can place a soft kiss to his lips,” I know your hurt love, but please. Please don't hold any anger towards Josh, he's going to want to share so much with you.”

“I won't. I promise I won't, I don't want to take any of this away from him. I don't want him to know that we've been struggling. He shouldn't have to censor himself around us.”

“I agree love. Soon enough we'll be the ones giving him a call.”

Jake swallows hard,” Soon enough… can't come soon enough.”

After a few moments of silence Sev picks up their hands that are interwoven, placing delicate kisses to Jake's knuckles. 

“I have to tell you something.”

He utters a soft,” What is it babe.”

Now turning his hand over she kisses his palm, feeling the rough calloused skin.

“When I picked Jade up from daycare today she was carrying a picture that she drew.”

He furrows his brow lightly as if to ask what's so special about it?

“ The assignment was to draw their families, and she drew me and you.”

“That's sweet Sev.”

“She labeled us as Mom and Dad Jake. She finally referred to you as Dad.”

Jake felt his hurt melting away. Sevda's daughter, his stepdaughter finally thought of him as her dad. 

“Can I see the picture she drew?”

She laughs lightly,” I think she left it in the car”

Jake juts his bottom lip out to pout,” Well tomorrow morning you're running your cute little ass out to the car and getting it. That piece of art is going on the fridge!”

Sev rolls her eyes lightly,” Okay Daddy.”

Jake whips his head towards her,” Enough of that, I get a very different reaction when you say it.”

She gets up from the bed and walks over to her dresser, picking out pajamas,” Don't be gross Jacob.”

“Gross? You've said it before Sevvie.”

🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷

The pitter patter of Jades sock clad feet sounded from down the hall and a faint ‘Honey, we’re home!’ Could be heard as Sevda closed the back door behind them. Jakes ears perked up at the mixture of the sounds and he slipped the bookmark he was holding in between the pages of his book before placing it down against the tiny table to his right. 

“Jacob!” Jades tiny voice carried as she ran into the living room, tossing her coat on the couch before she jumped up into his lap. He couldn’t help the chuckle that slipped past his lips as he wrapped her in his arms and pressed a soft kiss to her cheek. 

“Hi my love, how was school?” He asked, brushing the loose strands of hair out of her face. She pulled her little legs up and tucked them next to his as she turned to face him. 

“So guess what happen?! My friend Wyatt has a new little brother at home and his mama brought him today so we could meet him! His name is Liam and he is just so so soooo tiny!” Her little hands flailed about at she spoke, and her big brown eyes grew wide with excitement. 

“Did she? Did you say hi to him?” Jake asked, a soft smile playing across his face as he continued to tuck her hair gently behind her ear. She nodded enthusiastically, a smile as big as her face spreading across her lips. 

“Yeah! And I got to touch his hand. He was so soft like my baby doll. But we couldn’t hold him, it was not safe Wyatt’s mama said!.” Jake nodded along and let his hand fall, resting it against his thigh. 

“She’s right you know, you have to hold a baby just right so they don’t get hurt.” Jade nodded softly and rested her head against Jakes shoulder, letting her eyes flutter shut as thoughts of the new baby danced in her head. 

Jake reveled in moments like these where she felt safe enough to cuddle up with him and tell him all about her day. He rocked her gently, watching as she reached over for his hand with her two tiny ones and began to spin the ring he wore on his finger. 

“Jakey?” She cooed, her little voice even smaller as she relaxed fully against his chest. 

“Yes baby?” He tilted his head down, trying his best to find her eyes in the position they were seated in. 

“When… when are you and mama gonna have a baby?” Jake took a deep breath, his heart shattering in his chest at her innocent question. She pushed up off of his chest and looked up at him with her big brown eyes full of unanswered questions. 

“I don’t know baby, maybe one day we will when the time is right.” A soft smile spread across Jades face as she looked up at him and leaned up, pressing a kiss to his cheek. 

“Mamas a good mama, and you’re a good daddy. Mama should have a baby.” She giggled. Jakes expression softened and he fought the tears that threatened to well up in his eyes. Pulling a deep breath in through his nose he tipped his head back and stared at the ceiling, exhaling through his mouth.

“Am I a good Daddy, Jade?” He kept his voice soft, not trusting his tone to break. She nodded her head enthusiastically and nuzzled her face into the crook of his neck.

“You take me to school when mama can’t and we get McDonald’s for lunch! You play dress up with me and let me brush your hair. And you make good snacks and cuddle when I’m sick. You’re the best daddy.” She mumbled against his skin. 

A soft sigh escaped his lips as he leaned down and pressed a kiss to Jades head, thoughts of the night before dancing in his head. His heart swelled at the thought of her thinking of him as  her dad. 

🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷

A soft sigh slipped past Jake’s lips as he slid into bed. Another long day in his music room took a toll on him as his eyes fluttered shut and he wrapped his body around Sevdas sleeping form. It was then that he realized there was a little body wrapped up in Sevdas arms. Something between a tired chuckle and a sigh escaped him as he pulled himself out of bed and walked around it, bending slightly to find Jade tangled in the blankets. 

“You’re not safe on the edge, baby girl.” Jake muttered and slowly wrapped his arms around the sleeping baby, lifting her gently and rested her against his chest. He knew he should turn and bring her to her bed, not wanting to create a habit of her sleeping with them but something in his heart warmed as he looked down at her peaceful little face. He shifted his arm and brought her face closer to his, leaning down to press a soft kiss against her warm skin. 

“Alright, fine. You win.” He muttered, just loud enough to cause Sevda to stir. She peeked her eye open and looked up at Jake, a soft smile spreading across her face as she watched him swaying and gently speaking to Jade. 

“Where are you taking her, love?” She mumbled, rolling so she was laying flat on her back. Jake nodded to his side of the bed and slowly maneuvered his way back around, sitting down slowly and placing Jades sleeping form gently between his body and Sevda. 

“She won my one sided fight. I was gonna put her in her own bed but she said ‘no daddy, I wanna sleep with you and mama.’ And I couldn’t resist that little face.” Jake reached out and placed his palm gently against Jades cheek and pushed his fingers up into her tangled hair. 

“She said I’m a good daddy, you know. Earlier when she was telling me about her classmates baby brother. ‘When are you gonna have a baby? Mamas a good mama and you’re a good daddy.’ I just about cried.” Sevda reached out and laced her fingers with Jakes, running her thumb gently along the length of his palm. 

“She told me she wants you to go to lunch with parents' day this week, not me. I’ve gotten stood up.” Sevda giggled quietly. A soft smile spread across Jakes face as he looked down at Jade once more. 

“Me? She wants me to go?” Jake asked, the high pitch tone of his whisper clueing Sevda into the tears that were welling in his eyes. Sevda nodded gently and squeezed Jakes hand. 

“She does, she wants to introduce them to her daddy since they all know me, or at least that’s what she said. I just think she’s hoping for a happy meal for lunch since I always bring her a sandwich.” Jake couldn’t help the chuckle that slipped past his lips as he reached over and gently brushed some fly away hairs out of Jades face. 

“It’s okay, you know, if we stop actively trying and just enjoy Jade for now. Maybe the stress of wanting a baby of our own is hindering our ability to conceive.” Jake fought the tears that threatened to well up in his eyes and swallowed hard around the lump in his throat. 

“But I want to keep trying babe, until we get it right.” Sevda pushed herself up and rested her head in the palm of her hand. Jake pulled a deep breath in through his nose and let his head fall back as he exhaled silently. 

“I know you do, my love. But something tells me the more we actively try the more something isn’t going right. I think if we just have fun and let nature take it’s course we might have more luck.” Jake mumbled, flicking his gaze down to Jade as she rolled over and nuzzled her face against his thigh, her little hand reaching out and swatting at his leg sleepily. 

“Shhh, daddy, sleep.” She mumbled, wrapping her arm tightly around his thigh. A soft gasp escaped Sevda as she processed what Jade had just mumbled. Jake chuckled lightly and pried the tiny arm off of his thigh, slowly lowering himself to lay down next to her. Jade quickly snuggled into his side, rubbing her cheek soothingly over his chest. 

“Daddy…you’re her daddy.” Sevda mumbled, scooting over to wrap herself around her little family. Pushing up slightly she pressed a soft kiss to both Jake and Jades cheeks before settling in and snuggling up to her baby girl. 

🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷

Sevda came into the kitchen, over to where Jake was loading the dishwasher. As she made her way over to him a playful smirk appeared on her lips. She places her hands on his hips as she tucks herself into his side,” My mom just called. Jade was begging to sleep over there tonight.”

“Yeah?” Jake bent down to grab the door to the dishwasher, closing it and pressing the ‘go’ button. He turned in her grasp facing his love.

“ I told Mom it's okay.”

“Yeah? You did now?”

“I did. I was feeling a little needy today Jake, and this is the perfect excuse. Now I can be as loud as you want me to be.”

Jake felt himself stir in his pants, briefly picturing the love of his life writhing beneath him, with her unbridled whining echoing through their empty home. 

“Go upstairs and get ready for me love. I'll be right there.”

As she stepped away her hand slid from his hip to cup him in his pants, squeezing lightly.

“Don't take too long Jacob, I want you.”

He releases the breath he didn't realize he was holding as she walks away, heading to their bedroom. Quickly he goes over to the wine rack and selects a bottle. Bringing it over to the counter he uncorks it and pours some into two glasses. Stopping the bottle he puts it in the fridge and grabs the beverages making his way to meet Sev.

He toes the door open with his socked foot, to be met with the sight of his beautiful girl in her light pink silk nightgown hiked up around her hips with her hand between her legs.

“Oh. Sev, baby. You are a needy little thing tonight aren't you. I brought us a glass of wine so we could relax and enjoy each other, but you want to get right down to business, huh?”

“I miss you, you know Jade hasn't been sleeping well. That's definitely put a damper on things.”

He chuckles lightly knowing all too well that a baby with nightmares is the biggest cockblock. Jake sets the wine down on his nightstand and removes his clothes. He smirks to himself as he catches her staring at his half hard cock as he maneuvers into bed.

“Come here, relax with me.”

She quickly scoots in close to Jake, half laying on his chest as she takes a first sip of her beverage.

They mindlessly chat as she melts against him, letting go of her usual responsibilities and just letting herself enjoy him.

Once the wine is gone she places her free hand on his soft stomach, gently tracing shapes teasing his skin and making his muscles flutter. 

“Can you touch me baby?” Jake asks softly, kissing the top of her head.

She dips her hand down under the covers and grasps him, thick and heavy in her hand as he pulses reacting to her touch.

She feels his body melt underneath hers and her hand lightly pumps him.

She whispers into his chest,” I love how big you are.”

The praise made him flex his hips into her touch. 

Jake snakes his hand down her back, grabbing a fistful of her ass before reaching down further. His fingers part her lips before running his digit through her slick. Her eyes flutter shut as she finally gets the attention she's been craving.

He circles her clit a few times before prodding at her entrance, her hand stutters on him as he dives his middle finger inside her. Gently pumping in and out.

“Jake, can I have your mouth? I've been thinking about it all day.”

Her words are sent straight to his cock as it throbs. Gently he scoots her off of him and lays her down on her back. He kisses his way down the silky fabric, and her hips buck impatiently.

“Lucky for you Sevvie, I've been thinking about sucking on your pretty little clit all day too.”

She's sighs a breathy, Jaaake. 

“Remember love, be loud for me baby.”

His tongue licks up her slick, sweet and salty on his taste buds. After just a few laps he places hot open mouth kisses to her achingly hard clit.

She arches her back away from the mattress, threading her fingers into his hair,” ohh, Jaaaake.”

Softly swirling his tongue around her bud until her legs are clamping down on his head. He shifts his face down dragging his tongue over her entrance, nudging it inside as his nose brushes her clit. He gulps down her arousal, tasting more divine than the wine they were consuming.

She gasps,” Getting close.”

“Cum in my mouth Sev. I need it.”

His thumb glides over her clit as his tongue reaches as far inside her as it can go.

His eyes flutter closed as he feels her clenching around him.

“There, there!” She pulls him by his hair even closer to her cunt, pushing her hips into his face as her high rips through her body.

Jake licks and sucks like a madman, moaning and growling into her heat.

Her body relaxes around him and he disconnects from her. The entire bottom half of his face is glistening with arousal dripping off his chin.

He looks up at her, eyes lidded with lust,” More.”

She smiles at him as he ducks his head back down, lapping at her center. Jake sucks her swollen puffy lips into his mouth, relishing in the feel, the taste, and the smell of her. 

“God I love your pussy.”

As he goes to dive in again she lifts his head up, “No baby, I want you.”

The ache between his legs making itself known again. He rises to kiss her, her cum dripping onto her hot skin. She gives him her best doe eyes before tentatively licking his cheek. His breath catches in his throat as she continues to lick herself off of him.

Giggling, her voice full of sex, “ I just wanted to see what all the fuss was about.”

A sigh escapes his chest as he lightly shakes his head in disbelief at her lewd gesture. She always knows how to make his head spin. He grabs his cock in his hand and runs the head through her soaked folds. She shifts her hips down impatiently asking him to enter her. Giving into their desires he nudges into her entrance, reveling in the soft stretch of their bodies meeting. Sevda lets out a sigh once Jake is fully seated inside her.

“Fuck, my cocks missed you.”

She giggles lightly tapping the tip of his nose,” Just your cock baby?”

“No love, not just my cock,” Jake laughs placing a kiss to her lips before rearing his hips back and sinking deeper inside her.

Her hands glide down his broad back settling on his ass, pulling him even closer to her. His pace stays steady, just enjoying her fully, he doesn't want to rush.

Sevda whines underneath him, lightly thrashing her head in frustration, throwing her blonde locks over the pillow,” Come on Jakey, harder. Give it to me good.”

Jake leans up on his knees, pulling her hips into his lap as he thrusts sharply into her,” Is that better? Is that what my girl needed?”

His mind gets sidetracked as he can't help but watch his cock disappear into her pink folds. Over and over again he watches himself sink into her.

“Like the view baby?” Sevda coos. His heavy gaze meets her and he can't help but smile when he sees how fucked out she looks.

“I love the view. My girls going to go to bed sore and full of my cum how does that sound?”

“Perfect Jakey.”

He adjusts his hold on her hips, driving himself deeper. He thrusts into her hard, driving them to their ends. She's clenching around him so sweetly. He's overtaken by the feeling of love flowing through them, he so badly hopes that this time it'll work. He yearns for it to be the time they make a baby. He needs it deep in his being.

The word please echoing in his head as he met his final thrusts, chanting it over and over like a mantra as he poured his entire being, his entire soul into her. Desperate to create a life that was equal bits of him and his soulmate.

🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷

Sevda sighed and collapsed on the couch next to Jake. Another night Jade was out on the town with Josh and Y/N, taking a walk with them through the park and skipping off to dinner at the restaurant of Jades choice. Sevda reached up and rubbed at her eyes, the quiet nature of the house causing her lids to get heavy. 

“You know what sounds so good right now? Tomato soup and grilled cheese.” Jake scrunched up his nose and turned his attention to Sevda. 

“Excuse me?” He chuckled, pushing himself up into a seated position. Sevda nodded her head and pushed his feet off of her lap before pushing herself up off of the couch. She made her way slowly into the kitchen and pulled two blocks of cheese out of the fridge and, bending at the waist, pulled out the bottom utensil drawer and began digging around for the cheese grater. 

“Creamy tomato soup and a buttery, stringy, warm, grilled cheese. Doesn’t that sound so good?” She giggled, slowly unwrapping the block of cheese to begin to grate. 

“Tomato soup and grilled cheese? Do we even have any tomato soup?” Jake questioned, raising an eyebrow and turned to begin raiding the cupboard. Sevda picked up a slice of cheese and began to munch on it. 

“I picked some up when I went to the market the other day, it’s on the second shelf.” 

She slowly continued to grate enough cheese for their sandwiches. Jake snatched two cans of condensed tomato soup off of the shelf and plucked a pan out of the dish drainer. He placed the pan on the stove top and popped the tops off of the cans, dumping their contents into the pan before making his way over to the fridge to get the gallon of milk.

Jake gauged the look on Sevdas face as she began to slowly butter the bread and placed it off to the side for him. Making his way over to her he placed the milk down on the counter top and wrapped his arms securely around her waist, letting his fingers sneak up under the bottom of her shirt, splaying them across her stomach. 

“What’s going on in that head?” He asked, leaning down to press a soft kiss to her temple. Sevda pulled a deep breath in through her nose and nodded before exhaling it in a whistle. 

“The last time I craved this… hell the only time I craved this was when I was pregnant with Jade.” Her voice was just above a whisper and she dropped the knife in her hand to the counter with a clatter. Jakes body tensed in a way that he wished it hadn’t, and he tried to relax around her body, pressing soft kisses to her cheek. 

“Don’t play with me, Sevvie. Do you think you should take a test?” He mumbled, running the tip of his nose along the length of her cheek. She shrugged her shoulders, not really wanting to get her hopes up. Sevda shrugged her shoulders but ultimately nodded and continued to butter slices of bread. 

“Maybe after we eat, I might start crying if I don’t get my grilled cheese.” She giggled, laying her head back against his shoulder. 

“Deal.” Jake mumbled, pressing a kiss to her temple and unraveled himself from her, snatching up the milk jug and slowly made his way back to the stove. 

🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷

Once the both of them rush into their master bathroom, all smiles and giggles, Jake stands behind her with his hands on her hips as she reaches up into the medicine cabinet grabbing a pregnancy test. He smiles through the kisses he places on her shoulder, excited butterflies fluttering around in his stomach. She's been having cravings, that's a good sign, right?

Sevda stifled a giggle,” You know you're going to have to let go of me for me to actually take the test right?”

Jake slides his hands from her hips to rest across her stomach, holding her close to his body,” Give me a kiss, for good luck.”

She cranes her neck and places a soft kiss to his waiting lips, he deepens it softly sucking her bottom lip into his mouth before letting go,” I love you baby.”

Jake walks over to perch himself on the edge of the bathtub, pulling his phone out to start a timer for her while she takes the test. She quietly finishes and places it face down on the bathroom counter and turns to look at him. Sevda takes in Jake's sparkling hopeful eyes and it makes the butterflies dance in her stomach. 

Jake eventually drops his gaze to his phone,” Thirty seconds left, baby.”

Sev nods and removes herself from the spot against the counter she's been leaning against, walking over to him,” Give me a kiss for good luck.”

She captures his lips with her own yet again as the timer goes off. 

Jake studies her body language as she flips the test over to see the results. She's still as a statue for a few breaths, and he waits for her to do something. She grabs the white plastic pregnancy test in her hand and forcefully throws it into the trash can, the sound of plastic clinging against metal echoing off the bathroom tiles. Jake's heart shatters once again in his chest. She storms out of the bathroom and Jake follows her. She only makes it a few steps into their bedroom before her head hangs and she starts to sob. 

He reaches out for her, wrapping her up in his arms, trying to shelter his soul mate from the blinding heartache they are experiencing. The sounds of her cries are making his ears ring as he holds her close, slowly he works them over to their bed. Laying her down he covers her body with his before rolling them to their sides. His own tears fall from his eyes. He knows she's tired of this. The ever constant disappointment. He provides her silent comfort as she cries into his chest, his hands rubbing soothing circles over her back. Her tears that are soaking the fabric of his shirt are tearing the hole in his heart a little bigger.

After a long time, their tears run dry, and she's sniffling into his chest.

Sev speaks, for the first time in a while, voice unsteady,” Jake… I don't know if I can do this anymore.”

Yet again his heart breaks in his chest, and he pulls her body closer to his,” I know Sev,  l know.”

🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷

Josh sets his drink down and moves his hand to lay flat against your bump, “ The other night we felt her kick for the first time and it was the coolest thing Jake.”

Jake smiles at his twin.

“ Come on Sunshine, I know you want to kick your little feet out for us,” Josh cooes.

“Babe, I don't think she's going to do it on command.”

As the words leave your mouth, you feel your baby press on the right side of your stomach. Quickly you grab Jake's hand and press it over the area she's nudging, next to Josh's palm.

“Holy shit,” Jake whispers. His eyes widen as he looks at Josh. You notice Jake's eyes soften and he leans in and places a gentle kiss on your temple. He looks at you, “ You're so beautiful,” his gaze shifts to your stomach and then to Josh,” This is so beautiful. Thank you for letting me experience this with you.”

“Jake-” you start.

“I just, I just love you guys okay?”

He removes his hand from your stomach and you wrap your arms around him instead, “ She's going to love you so much, you're her Daddy's other half.”

Pulling away from you slightly, he wipes his under eyes, “ Damnit Y/N, don't make me cry.”

Jake pulled a deep breath in through his nose as he pulled up to his home, willing the tears that collected in his eyes and spilled down his cheeks to stop. He was so happy to have felt his niece kick, but the moment solidified what he wanted even more. Jake threw the car into park and reached up to wipe the tears off of his face. 

He made his way into the house, taking note of how quiet it was and wracked his brain for Jades whereabouts, making a mental note to ask Sev where she had gotten off too. The smells in the house were heavenly and Jake followed his nose to find Sevda standing at the stove in the kitchen. Her back was to the cut in the wall between the living room and kitchen and she tossed a look over her shoulder as Jake sauntered into the room. 

“Hi, Handsome. My mom took Jade for the night so it’s just the two of us.” She cooed, slowly stirring the cheddar broccoli soup to make sure it didn’t burn to the bottom of the pot. He nodded softly and made his way slowly over to where she stood. He reached up and rested his hands on her shoulders, slowly kneading the tense muscles before he wrapped himself around her and placed his hands gently against her stomach. 

“I thought you’d want something cozy to eat and we could curl up to watch a movie since Jade’s gone for the night.” She giggled, tilting her head slightly as Jake leaned down and buried his face in the crook of her neck. 

“I felt their baby kick.” He mumbled, pressing soft kisses to her skin. Sevdas eyes widened as the realization of what he said set in. She placed the wooden spoon she was holding down into the holder beside the burner. 

“What?” She kept her voice light, treading gently around the subject matter at hand. He nodded against her shoulder, letting his head fall to the side so she could hear him clearly.

“Yeah, I felt their baby kick. Josh said they had felt her kick for the first time and started harassing the poor little one, and Y/N got so excited almost like ‘Uncle feel’ she reached out and grabbed my hand, placed it against her stomach and boop a little foot kicked my palm. I cried…it was the most embarrassing thing, I couldn’t hold back the emotions and just cried. It was such an intimate moment you don’t expect to be a part of.” Jake couldn’t hide the way his voice cracked or the tears that slowly welled in his eyes. Sevda remained quiet for a moment, silently processing how big of a moment Jake had with Y/N and Josh. Her heart broke in her chest at the thought of that being them, how badly she wanted there to be a baby of their own to kick at his palm and lips when he pressed soft kisses to her bump. 

“Are you okay?” Her voice was a whisper, her own emotions slowly beginning to become bigger in her chest. Jake smiled and nuzzled his face back into the crook of her neck, letting his fingers dance lazily over her stomach and the thoughts of putting his baby in her took over his mind. 

“Yeah baby, I’m okay. It was exciting to feel how the tiny life they’ve created can be so powerful while still in the womb. Just think one day we’ll have a little life in here that we can feel kick and move.” He spoke in a dreamy tone and his fingers never stopped their dance along the expanse of her stomach. Sevda nodded and leaned her head to the side, pressing her cheek against the side of Jakes face.

“Soon baby… that’ll be us soon.” Her voice was barely a whisper as she reached forward and scooped up the wooden spoon to continue and stir the soup in the pot. Jake nodded and slowly began to sway their bodies, lulling both of their minds into a sense of peace and thoughts of little ones running through their heads. 

🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷

Sevda kisses Jake on the cheek before leaving him and Josh to get some creative work done.

“Us girls are gonna go take Jade to the park for a bit, and probably some ice cream or something. We'll be back in a couple hours.”

Jake walks with her to the door, where Y/N and Josh stood, kissing goodbye.

“Dude, let her breathe! She'll be back soon.” Jake busts on his twin.

“Sorry, sorry!” Josh's cheeks flame,” Be safe okay, I love you.”

Once the girls left for the afternoon Jake and Josh found their way into the music room filled with the various instruments he owned.

Settling down on the couch Josh pulled a small pre roll and a lighter out of his pocket,” Care to get the creative juices flowing?”

Jake snatched it out of Josh's hand,” Fuck yeah. Let me open a window so it doesn't reek in here when the girls get home.”

After finishing their session, they tried to work on new music, but the conversation kept veering elsewhere. 

Josh leaned back on the couch, relaxing fully,” Dude. The other night was insane. I was admiring her bump, it was all very wholesome. But uh, it got heated really quickly, I ended up finger fucking her in front of the floor length mirror -”

“Woah woah woah. I don't want to hear that! That's Y/N you're talking about. Sweet little Y/N. She's nice!”

Josh blinks blankly at his twin who is sitting crosslegged on the floor in front of him.

“How do you think she got pregnant Jake?”

“I mean I know how she got pregnant Josh, it's just she's so sweet. You're dirtying her all up man,” Jake laughs. “ Defiling the poor woman.”

“I'm not defiling her! She's got a breeding kink too, ya know.”

Jake runs his hand through his hair getting flustered,” No I didn't! I didn't need to know either Josh.”

Josh rolls his eyes,” Yup, yup, I've never touched her, we got pregnant because we wished really hard on a shooting star Jake.”

“Fuck off man, you're such a dick,” Jake chuckles. 

Josh laughs,” Look, I just thought you'd want to know about the mirror thing because it was fun. Maybe try it out. Do another position other than missionary for once.”

 Jake scoffs,” We don't just fuck in missionary…”

Josh waves his hand in the air,” See! I knew Sevvie isn't always that prim and proper act she puts on for all of us. I know you well Jake.”

A shit eating grin appears on Josh's face as he takes in his twins reddening cheeks, telling that he was indeed correct. 

“I'm sure pure filth comes out of her mouth behind closed doors, but you can keep it to yourself.”

 🩷🩷

Jake groans as Sevs cool body meets his as she snuggles back into bed with him,” I just dropped Jade off at school. You're off today too right?”

“Well good morning to you too. Yeah, no plans today love.”

“Okay good.”

Sevda slides herself down under the covers, maneuvering herself between Jake's legs. 

“What do you think you're doing?”

Silently she softly sucks his soft cock into her mouth.

Jake mutters, oh fuck, as her mouth begins to work over him as he hardens.

He exhales shakily as she spoils him, licking and kissing it before bobbing her head down his length.

He laces his fingers in her blonde locks, encouraging her to take him further.

“Fuck you're so good at that.”

She swirls her tongue over all of his sensitive spots making his hips buck. When she couldn't take anymore she pulls off of him, a string of saliva connecting her bottom lip to the tip of his cock. He swipes his thumb over her bottom lip, cleaning her up.

“So pretty baby. You always look so sexy with my cock in your mouth. I'd take a picture and hang it in our bedroom if you let me.”

She laughs and shakes her head before rising to straddle him. She grabs him in her hand, lining him up with her entrance before slowly sinking down, taking him to the hilt.

She sighs placing her hands on his chest,” You fill me up so well Jake,” grabbing his hand and placing it on her lower stomach,” I feel you up here baby.”

Sev places her hand back on his chest and begins to rock her hips, grinding on him. Lifting her hips and slamming them back down they groan out in unison, wet slapping sounds fill their bedroom as she rides him.

“You're so fuckin wet baby, just dripping all over me.”

Jake raises his hands to her chest, pinching her nipples before soothing them with his thumbs. She clenches around him, capturing his length in a silken vise grip.

“Fuck Sev, not gonna last like this, flip over.”

He pulls out of her and flips her around on the bed. She wiggles her ass in the air, enticing him to enter again. Roughly he grabs her ass in his large palms spreading her before he leans down and spits directly on her entrance.

She moans out, in disbelief,” God Jake that was so hot. Are you going to fuck your tight little pussy now?”

A feral groan rips from his chest as he pushes himself in to the hilt.

His hands find her hips, pushing and pulling them to match the brutal pace he has set. He feels her walls fluttering around him, signaling that her orgasm was approaching.

He leaned down over her hips,” Getting close baby?” 

She whined a breathy yes, as he felt himself start to reach his end.

Jake tangles his fist in her hair, pulling lightly as he feels her let go around him,” Fuck… I'm gonna fuck a baby in you Sev.”

Jake's eyes roll back as he reaches his high, releasing deep inside her.

He leans down, placing his forehead against her back breathing heavily.

“What did you say to me Jake?”

His cheeks flame as his brain back pedals,” I, uh. Did you like it?”

“ Trying something new are we?”

Gently he pulls out of her and she sits back down on the bed,” It was hot Jake. Did you like it?”

“Maybe? It didn't turn me off.”

“Good, because the more I'm thinking about you saying it the more it's turning me on.” She leans her body flush against his and takes two fingers, gliding them between her legs gathering his cum before grabbing his still hard cock, lightly pumping him. 

“I think somewhere in that brain of yours you liked it too, Your cocks still hard love, you like thinking about getting me pregnant huh?”

Jake pants lightly as she continues to pump his length,” I like hearing you say it.”

“ Go ahead Kiszka, put a baby in me. Fill me up to the brim. Fill me to the point your cum overflows and runs down my thighs.”

“Christ Sevda, that's so hot.”

Jake pounces on her, pushing her back against the bed kissing her rough. When he pulls away she looks up at him with round doe eyes,” Make me messy Jake.”

He growls, pushing his hips into hers, entering her in one swift thrust.

“Gonna cum in you so deep, fill you up, get you pregnant so fucking fast.”

His hips find a quick to the point pace, both of them feeling close already in the heat of the moment. Sevda claws her manicured nails down his back, surely leaving red lines in her wake.

“Fuck Jakey, do it, put a baby in me.”

He pulses and throbs inside her, getting so close to releasing.

“Here. Here baby, take it. I'm cumming-” his moan cuts his sentence off as he finishes, throbbing wildly as he cums harder than he has before. The feeling sending her over the edge once again.

Breathing heavily they come back down, his body shaking from exertions.

“I came so hard…”

A soft fucked out smile spreads on her face,” I know, I can feel it dripping out of me.”

Jake nuzzles his face into the crook of her neck,” You're going to be the death of me I swear.”

After he pulls out of her for the final time this morning she snuggles into his side, reveling in the post orgasm bliss. Sevda lightly chuckles.

Jake looks down at her face,” What could you possibly be laughing at?”

“Oh. Just that I owe Y/N $20. Since we just discovered that you also have a breeding kink.”

Jake's jaw drops as she laughs harder into his chest.

“God you two have no secrets do you?”

“Nope, none.”

🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷

Sevda sets the plastic pregnancy test face down onto the counter and squirts a few pumps of soap into her hands, working it into a lather. Seizing the moment to herself, Jade busy with her imagination playing with Barbies and Jake off at rehearsal, she took it upon herself to take a test. Her period was late, but she hasn't put much faith in that since stress has greatly interfered with her cycle before.

As she shuts the water off she hears little footsteps heading her way,” Hi mommy.” Jade makes her way into the bathroom, little fingers grasping at the edge of the counter hanging off of it, peering at what was on top.

“Hi baby. Done playing with Barbies?”

Jade nods her head, the static-y fly aways swooshing around like a halo,” What are you doing mommy, what's that?”

Sev grabs the hand towel and drys her hands before replying simply,” Just taking a test baby.”

Jade tries to climb up the counter, her little feet kicking on the cabinets of the vanity.

“Hey, don't do that love. We have to be nice to our things so they don't break, furniture included.”

Jade nods her head and Sev could tell she was hurt by her gentle scolding,” Hey, can you help Mommy?”

Jade's eyes light up, eagerly replying,” Yes! Let me help!”

Taking a deep breath Sev picks up the test, still face down,” Can you be a big helper and tell Mommy if you see one line or two lines?” 

Sev holds up her fingers to accentuate her words. Jade shakes her head yes over and over.

“Okay, you tell me what you see!” 

Sevda holds the test out to her daughter so she can tell her the results.

“I see two lines Mommy! Two!”

Quickly she turns the test around so she can see the results for herself, and indeed there were two pink lines.

Two lines. 

Finally two lines.

Pregnant.

Her free hand comes to her mouth as she gasps. Elation, relief, and joy harmonize within her body as she finally sees the results she's been waiting for. What her and Jake have cried for. What they have prayed to the higher powers for. 

Tears spring to her eyes and run down her cheeks as the biggest smile spreads on her lips. Her daughter looks up at her with wonder,” Mommy?”

Sev puts the test back down on the counter and pulls her little girl into her body, careful not to crush her as she holds her close.

“Jade! Mommy's so happy! These are happy tears baby.”

Jade's little eyebrows furrow as she asks,” Happy tears?”

“Yes! My love, Mommy's going to tell you a secret, we can't tell Daddy. It has to stay between us, it's for girls to know only okay?”

Jade nods her head, eager to be a part of the secret,” Mommy has a tiny baby growing in her stomach. You're going to be a big sister.”

“Mommy and Daddy have a baby?”

“Yes sweetheart, Mommy and Daddy have a baby.”

“Yay! I want a sister!”

Sev laughs and puts her pointer finger in front of her lips,” Remember Jade, it's a secret. Only for you and me.”

Sevda let go of her daughter and she goes back to her Barbies, eager to get back to imagination land. She decided to hide the positive test in her nightstand within the pages of a Cosmo magazine knowing that's the last place Jake would look. As she sat down on the bed she placed her palm against her stomach, Sev couldn't wait for there to be a bump. She knew Jake was going to be so incredibly happy, this was the only thing he had wanted for so long. The more Sevda thought about how he would react the more she realized that she needed to keep this a secret until she knew for sure everything will be okay.

Hearing Jade yell that Jake was home, an enthusiastic ‘Daddy!’ ringing out through the house, her heart dropped into her stomach and she wiped her eyes and went to the bathroom to make herself presentable. Making sure everything was in place and nothing looked suspicious as Sevda knew she guarded the information that would turn Jake's life upside down.

🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷

“Jake, can I ask you something? Something like a favor, if needed.” Josh asks his twin, twisting his fingers in his hands.

Jake furrows his brow lightly and sets down the acoustic guitar he was holding.

“What's up?”

“Um, would you be able to be there for Y/N, if needed of course, for the birth? Like in case we, I, need back up.”

“You want me to be there for your daughter's birth?”

“I mean yeah. If needed. Most likely you will just wait in the other room until she's born. If for some reason I can't handle it, I need to know that someone I love, someone that loves her, is going to be there to support her through this.”

“ I'm honored Josh. Of course I'll be there,” Jake chuckles softly,” If needed.”

Josh exhales, relieved for the conversation to go the way he imagined. The men fall silent, the only thing being heard is the dull clinking sound of the girls washing the dishes in the kitchen.

Nerves begin to amp up in Josh's stomach, he feels like he just needs to get some things off of his chest, things he couldn't possibly worry Y/N with.

His voice slightly shaking Josh asks,” So. How do I get a feel for what the baby is going to want? Like how do I know that she's crying because she's tired, or if she's hungry?”

Josh picks at the skin of his fingers, waiting for Jake to respond with something.

Jake clears his throat before answering,” Um, I'm not really sure Josh. You'll get the hang of it.”

“But, how am I supposed to be supportive and help Y/N navigate breastfeeding? I don't think I exactly understand what that means.”

Jake sighs,” Yeah man, I don't know. I met Jade right after she turned 3. Sev already did all of that by herself before she let me meet her.”

Jake feels his emotions rising as Josh keeps asking questions that he isn't sure he'll ever know the answers to.

“How am-”

“Josh I don't know! I'm Jade's stepdad. I don't have the answers to what you're looking for,” he mumbles,” I don't know if I ever will.” Jake clenches his jaw hard,” I don't want to talk about this anymore.”

Josh clasps his hand over Jakes squeezing it tightly. Josh is picking up on what Jake isn't saying reading between the lines.

“Jake…. I'm sorry.”

After a few breaths Josh asks if he wants to talk about it. Jake stays quiet, not trusting himself to speak, he simply shakes his head no.

“ You know you can trust me. Always.”

Jake's bottom lip quivers as he ducks his head down, his hair shielding his face. After a few breaths he pulls himself together enough to speak.

“I haven't told you because we didn't think it would take this long, and then Y/N got pregnant and you've been so busy with that. We've been trying to have a baby for so long, Josh.”

“Jake, I -”

“ It's been so hard. Every single test she's taken has been negative. I just….. I just don't think it's going to happen.”

Jake finally lifts his gaze from his lap to meet Josh's and there's tears in his eyes that match his own. Josh can barely stand watching his twin's heart break in front of him. 

“We may just have Jade, and only Jade. It just… it hurts to see you guys living what we want… and I don't mean to sound rude but it hurts.”

Josh responds by moving closer to Jake on the couch and wrapping his arms around his brother. He could feel the dampness of Jake's tears against his shoulder.

Josh rubs comforting circles over Jake's back as he quietly asks,” Is this the real reason why you cried when I told you that she's pregnant?”

“Yeah Josh, it is.”

“I'm so sorry Jake. If you would have told me sooner I would have been sensitive to the topic. I didn't know.”

Jake sniffles,” No! No. I didn't want you to censor yourself around us. I want you to fully feel the joy you're experiencing. As much as it hurts, I really love watching you grow through this.”

“I love you Jake. And I'm really so sorry.”

“I guess if the time is right it'll happen, and if it's not…” he shrugs his shoulders.

Josh places his palms on his thighs,” I mean what about surrogacy? Y/N could -”

“No we couldn't ask that of her, oh my god.”

“ Okay well there's artificial insemination!”

“Josh. It's okay, you don't have to come up with an answer for us.”

“I know I know, we just love you, and we'd help you anyway we can.”

A smile cracks on Jake's face,” I know. Really just having this talk and you finally knowing what has been going on really lifts some weight off of my shoulders.”

A matching smile appears on Josh's face,” I’m glad I could help.”

🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷

It was late in the evening, Sev had already put Jade to bed hours ago and she was sat on the couch in one of Jake's worn tshirts and sweatpants. She had decided to put on a corny movie from her youth, something she knew Jake would have no interest in watching, Legally Blonde. She picked up her phone, texting Y/N, chances are she was doing the same thing Sevda was, the boys being out late at the studio. 

Sev- Are you up still?

Y/N- Bitch, you're really sending me a ‘you up’ text?

Sev- Fuck off, I wanted to show you something.

A thumbs up reaction appears over her last text. With trembling fingers Sevda locates the picture she took of her positive pregnancy test and pressed send. She was dying to tell one of her closest friends about her news. A minute or so after she sent the picture an incoming call from Y/N appeared.

“Hello?”

“Sevda you're pregnant?!”

A huge smile forms on her mouth as she giggles ,” Yes!” 

“Oh my God! Did you tell Jake yet?”

“Not yet, I was trying to keep it under wraps, I told my mom but I couldn't wait any longer to tell you. I want to surprise Jake, I'm waiting on a few things from Etsy to come in.”

“He's going to be so happy babe.”

Sevda hears small sniffles over the receiver.

“Sweetie, are you crying?”

Y/N laughs,” A little, it's these damn hormones.”

Sev and Y/N talk for the better part of an hour before Y/N got too sleepy to continue the conversation. Sevda said goodnight and let her go after making her promise to keep her secret.

Shortly after she presses play on her movie once again, soon she hears Jake's keys in the door. He quietly takes his boots off before making his way into the living room where he can see the tv illuminating on the walls.

“Hey Sevvie, I'm surprised you're still up, it's almost two a.m baby.”

Jake sits down on the couch beside her and picks at the shirt she has on. He cocks his head,” You're wearing my clothes? You never wear my clothes.”

She snuggles into his side, resting her hand on his upper thigh,” I do when you're away. They smell like you, makes me feel close to you.”

He pulls her into his lap, “ You were missing me today my love. I'm sorry I had to be gone all day.”

“It's really alright, I understand.”

She kisses his cheek, smirking lightly, knowing that part of the real reason she was wearing his clothes was that the usual silky nightgowns she wore were getting a bit tight on her midsection. It wasn't quite a bump yet, but she didn't want to draw his suspicion. Her body was starting to show her second pregnancy much sooner than her first and she couldn't risk spoiling the surprise she had for Jake.

“You should wear my clothes more often, you look really cute.”

She cocked her eyebrow,”Yeah? I'll have to, your shirts are soft.”

“Are you ready for bed?”

She yawned into her palm before agreeing. Jake helped her up off of the couch and she led him up the stairs. Jake's palm squeezes into the flesh of her ass and he comments,” I think you should wear my shirt to bed tonight, you look hot baby.”

Once in their bedroom she pulls the borrowed sweatpants off of her body and crawls into bed with him, the soft fabric and scent of her lover wrapping her in comfort as he positions himself to spoon her.

“Goodnight Sev, I love you.”

“Night Jake, I love you too.”

Jake lightly snores behind her sound asleep already, Sev can't help but smile into her pillow as she runs different scenarios in her head, A little boy with Jake's features playing with toy monster trucks, or maybe a little girl playing dress up with Jade when she's old enough. Careful not to disturb Jake, she laces their fingers together and moves his hand so it's splayed over her slightly swollen stomach.

🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷

“Do you mind driving, love?” Jake asks Sev, holding the key fob in his outstretched hand.

She grabs the keys from him and hops in the driver's seat, adjusting the rear and side view mirrors. They sit in Josh and Y/And driveway for a moment collecting their thoughts.

“I can't believe that just happened. Like I saw Halina be born with my own two eyes! I held Y/N’s hand and told her it'll be okay! That's fucking insane.” Jake runs his hands through his hair, processing the nights events. 

Sev reached for his hand, squeezing it tightly,” I am so proud of you Jake. They love you. I know Y/N is so thankful that you were there for her.”

Jake murmurs,” I love them too. I'd do anything for Josh, even help birth their baby, I guess.”

Sev starts the drive home, the overwhelming amount of love she has for Jake swirling in her chest. During the ride she realizes that she has to tell him that she's carrying his baby. Tonight. She was going to wait until a few days after her birth, but she can't wait any longer.

“Jake… I love you so much. I'm not even sure I understand the magnitude of how much I love you. I am so in love with you.”

She turns her head to look at him and she's met with a smile and glossy eyes, surely his emotions are fried at this point.

Once back at their home, she leads him inside,” I have a gift for you Jakey, so does Jade.”

He smiles,” She was saying something about a gift earlier. I just figured that could mean anything from a rock to a Polly Pocket shoe.”

Sev laughs grabbing Jade's gift from the kitchen. She meets up with him and presents him with a shotglass full of yellow dandelions. “She said,’ Daddy needs flowers too.’”

He lets out a small chuckle,” I love them. I'll be sure to thank her.”

“Okay love, your gift is in the spare bedroom closet, let me go get it. Just wait in our bedroom”

She retrieves the blue bag with silver tissue paper sticking out, and butterflies erupt in her stomach. She was actually about to tell him that she was pregnant. 

When Sev walks into their bedroom she's met with Jake sitting on the edge of the bed, twirling a single dandelion between his fingers.

“Sev? I want to thank you for letting me be Jade's dad. I know she isn't mine, but I really love her and that's enough, ya know? She's enough for me.”

Sevs bottom lip trembles as she places the gift bag in his lap, and she whispers,” I think you should open it now.”

He pulls away the tissue paper and it reveals three gifts placed in the bag. He furrows his brow and dumps them onto the bed in disbelief. He's met with a personalized guitar pick, engraved with ‘Soon to be Dad!’. Sevda's positive pregnancy test, and a newborn size onesie with ‘Newest Member of Greta Van Fleet’ on the front.

He immediately sinks to his knees in front of her, his face turning red and twisting with emotion as he hugs her body to him. He lifts her shirt pressing wet tear soaked kisses to her stomach,” You're pregnant?!”

“Yeah baby. We did it. We made a baby.” She pets his hair, holding him close. 

“I can't believe it, oh my god. How long have you known?” He presses more gentle kisses to her skin,” My baby.We made a baby.”

He stands and pulls her with him to the bed, sitting down,” I've known for a few weeks love. I had to wait for your presents to arrive.”

He leans her back, kissing her softly,” I love my gifts, I do, but next time, I don't need them.”

Sevda lets out a laugh that echos in their room,”Next time?! This one isn't even here yet and you're talking next time.”

He presses gentle kisses to her face, trailing down her neck, “ You know I'll give you as many babies as you want.”

After a moment he raises his head again,” I'm seriously so happy Sev. This is the best gift I could have ever gotten. I love you so much.”

“I love you too Jacob.”

“Can I show you? Show you how much I love you? Let me make love to you Sevda.”

“Please do baby.”

Jake trails hot kisses down her body before lifting her shirt, paying special attention to her swollen stomach. 

Fin.

Tag list🩷 @lipstickitty @joshsindigostreak @myownparadise96 @stayinginthesun @vanfleeter @lyndz2names @takenbythemadness @sinarainbows

[vickwrites]

Hey! Can we get some fluff with Danny Ric with your baby boy like choosing his outfit and getting him dressed?

Little Ricc - Daniel Ricciardo

Author's note: omg I love this so much < Dad! Daniel 3

Warnings: none

You were all getting ready to go to the track for the race. You, Daniel, and your two-year-old baby boy. Much to your surprise Daniel made you sit on the hotel room bed after your shower, before you could get dressed. He came over with a rather large box, “I got these made specifically for us my love.” You could tell his excitement was through the roof for whatever he had in the box.

You slowly pulled off the ribbon that was wrapped around the box and open its lid. Inside were three different shirts all different sizes but with the same design, Daniel's rodeo merch. His said 'big Ricc' yours said 'lady Ricc' and your baby's said 'baby Ricc'. You looked up to him in awe, "Daniel this is the cutest thing I've ever seen, god you're making me want another one." That wasn't necessarily a joke, you and Daniel had been talking about expanding the family once again.

You both got dressed in your shirts and began to wake up your baby boy. "Good morning my little honey badger, are you ready for daddy's race?" As soon as the words race left your mouth your son sat down on the bed as fast as he could. Daniel and him always had a routine for getting ready, you were actually kind of jealous of their bond. They would go brush their teeth (well however many teeth your son had by now) together, do their hair together, and get dressed together. After getting him dressed and fed you all headed to the track for the race.

Needless to say your little family won everyones hearts thay day with your matching outfits.

[nerdpoe]

Of Kindness and Empathy 6

First, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, AO3

Danny had been having a good day.

It had been two weeks since he’d returned to Amity, and his parents were actually calmed down a little from the experiments. Some reporter had dropped by from Metropolis, of all places, and somehow made them see that Ghosts were not only sapient, but had their own culture and hierarchy.

Danny did not ask what the reporter lady had said to them, but when Tucker had asked his dad had gotten a haunted look in his eye and just. Shut down, for a bit.

Even his mom looked ashamed, and ever so slightly traumatized.

Jazz told him and Sam and Tucker that she hadn’t heard everything, but that the reporter had torn them a new one for so long it was sunset by the time their dad distracted the lady with the portal.

She’d gotten there at lunch.

Newspapers were the newest addition to the list of things banned from the house.

So instead of running from his parents shooting at him, he was instead running from them holding notepads and asking him cultural questions about Ghost society.

Which would have been great, if Danny knew much about Ghost society, but Danny did not know much about that culture.

He was incredibly tempted to get one of the eyeball ancients and sic his parents on them.

Or maybe sic them on Tucker, for how weird he was being.

His best friend had been stand-offish for a couple of days before coming back with an almost smothering vengeance, quoting books written by politicians for whatever reason.

Then, there was the fact that Tucker kept looking like he knew something, constantly staring at his phone and making Phantom pose for shoots, but he refused to say what.

“It’ll be funnier,” was all the techie kept saying, hiding behind his phone screen.

Danny didn’t think Jazz or Sam were in on it, they looked about as confused as he did. Jazz saying she was writing her entry essays to different universities, and Sam going on a tangent about how social media was a parasite on the human brain.

It had been just that morning that she and Tucker had been wrestling for Tucker’s phone.

Currently, however, his parents were duking it out with the GIW (and wasn’t that wild?) and the rest of the GIW unit that was not fighting them was chasing him down.

Their weapons were new, brutal, and they were operating like this was a kill mission. There was no regard for civilians, no signs that they were trying to hold back. They’d shot him with a tracker chip that burned and hadn’t stopped chasing him since.

Huntress was preoccupied; a family reunion four states away, so no help from there.

Sam and Tucker and the Phantom Phan Club were trying their best to distract the GIW, but after the bastards had dumped specialized pepper spray on them Danny had resorted to leading them away.

He really hoped that there wouldn’t be any permanent side effects from that; it’d had a strange green glow mixed in. If something had happened to his friends, he’d never forgive himself. He just needed to get away long enough to get the tracker out, and he’d double back to make sure they were okay.

But he’d been flying for so long, and he’d already been shot more than a few times.

This was…not going well.

He needed help.

He hated asking for it.

He had no choice.

The phone was slick with his own blood as he pressed the speed dial to get Mr. Wayne.

“Phantom?” Ah, that was his Batman voice. Whoops. Oh well. 

“Hey Batman, I think I messed up,” Danny started breathlessly, almost losing altitude before putting on another burst of speed, “GIW tracked me down mid rounds and uh, I wasn’t vigilant enough.”

“Are you injured?”

Danny winced, lifting his free hand away from his new set of holes. Hmmmm. Yup. That was ‘you should probably get stitches’ levels of blood.

“...Yes. I think I’ve been shot three-” Danny let out a sharp yelp as another shot managed to hit, dropping a good fifty feet before rising again, “-Four. Four times. They can track me when I phase, they shot a tracker in me. It’s…moving. I can feel it. I can’t hide. I don’t know what to do.”

The last bit felt like it was being physically ripped out of him. He hated, despised, being forced to admit a weakness like that.

“...Help is on the way, keep your phone on you. I’m sending Superman. Keep talking to me.”

“Wait, you’re sending who-?”

Danny cut himself off and dodged another shot, careful to keep the phone in his hand and not crush it.

“Phantom, come in. Are you there?”

“Yes! Yes, I’m here. Sorry. Didn’t want to get shot again, I can only make so much blood.”

“ETA One minute. Stay with me. You lied about the King of the Infinite Realms, why? Are you afraid of him?”

Danny dodged yet another shot, sure he’d misheard.

“I…didn’t? Unless I misunderstood who the King is.”

He heard Batman say…something, but the glowing cord wrapping around his ankle and slamming him into the ground with enough force to cause a crater provided a slight distraction from the elder hero’s answer.

Shit. The phone was definitely broken.

Danny pushed himself up on shaky arms and forced himself to roll over, watching the government agents swarm around him.

He didn’t have the energy to phase anymore; everything he had was going towards keeping his ghost form up.

Damn. He’d managed a good run, though. And at least the official, recognized hero’s knew he wasn’t a bad guy.

The cord was cutting into him, and really? Exactly how much blood did they think he had?

But he guessed that was the point of catching him.

To find out.

Danny was blissfully unaware of the drone that Dash had managed to cobble together with the science club recording and broadcasting everything to the world.

Blissfully unaware that due to that story in the Daily Planet that not only was Phantom a renowned hero, but had many fans throughout the world.

Blissfully unaware that for the upteenth time, Bruce was watching another kid under his watch dance with death through that same feed.

The watchers cried out at the injustice of what they saw.

And Superman answered their cries.

Superman landed in front of Danny, tanking the shots meant for him and suffering no damage for it. After all, those weapons were specifically meant for ghosts; any other species wouldn’t be hurt by them unless the setting was changed. Which, for the purposes of the hunt, they weren’t.

Superboy landed at Danny’s side, scooping him up into a bridal carry and breaking the cord with one hand.

Superman turned his head and gave Superboy one nod, glancing up at the sky. At the Watchtower, home to their best medical equipment.

Superboy returned the gesture, and shot upwards, away from the Hell he knew Superman was about to rain down beneath him. He’d never seen his progenitor so livid, and he did not want to stick around to find out what would happen.

Superman turned back towards the GIW, eyes a glittering red.

That had been a child. A kid. A young Meta or Alien doing his best to protect and serve, and these people had been legalizing hunting him for sport.

The folks at the Watchtower would take care of the boy.

All he had to do was make sure that their weapons couldn’t be used against a literal child again, right?

Easy.

…

…

…

…

The feed from the drone cut off in a flash of red.

~~~~~

Flash had been relaxing at the Watchtower-

No, wait.

Flash had definitely been doing serious business in a serious way at their space headquarters.

Yes.

Yes, that was a better way to word that. If Batman found out that his super secret space headquarters was being used as a vacation home instead of for serious business, the man would lose his mind.

Serious business.

Barry narrowed his eyes at his reflection in the glass and took a long, slow sip out of his smoothie.

Sssseeeeerioussssss bussssinesssssssss.

If he channeled it, maybe the security feeds would portray it-

-that was Superboy, wasn’t it?

Flash turned to look just as the kid sped past him and towards the medbay, someone in his arms.

Frowning, the speedster started for the medbay as well, but froze as a loud squeaking noise came from his foot.

“Please don’t be what I think you are,” the hero breathed, looking down to see what he had stepped on.

It was what he thought it was.

Throughout the hallway was a spattered trail of green blood, quickly turning red. Some of the civilian workers met his eyes, shock written on their faces.

The smoothie hit the ground as Flash raced to the medbay, desperate to see which one of them had gotten so drastically injured.

He made it in time to see a flash of white light as Superboy laid the unknown on the gurney and stepped back, and…Flash had no idea who that kid was.

It was not as comforting a thought as he wished.

“Come on Kon, let’s back off so the doctors can get to work.” He gently herded the young Super away from his…friend? Maybe? And said doctors converged on the new kid.

Kon just stepped away from him and almost ripped his own suit in his haste to get his phone out of his pocket.

Flash didn’t even bother to hide that he was listening in as he followed the kid out of the operating room.

“Tim, we got him here.”

Oh, so it was Red Robin’s friend.

“I don’t know what Clark is doing, and I didn’t stick around to find out. He was pissed.”

Superman? Pissed? 

Flash glanced through the window in the doorway, at the kid currently being stitched together.

Yeah, he could see that.

“He uh…made a small explosion of light and looked human. Is that normal?”

Flash had a disturbing intrusive thought. 

What if he wasn’t Red Robin’s friend and was another one of Batman’s-?

Oh no.

“Yeah, they’re treating him now. I’ll let you know-what? No, you don’t need to come here. No. Well, yes, technically, but-”

Kon sighed and tugged his phone away from his ear. The call was disconnected.

Then he turned and asked the last thing Flash had expected to hear.

“Do you know Constantine’s number?”

“Uh…yeah?”

~~~~~

John Constantine had done a lot of stupid shit in his life.

Selling pieces of his soul, dating people of questionable morals, drinking, smoking, blood rituals-he’d done things. Stupid, idiotic things.

But he could take a small sliver of comfort that he had never made a mistake on the level of which the American government just had.

They’d seriously injured a denizen of the Infinite Realms.

Normally that wouldn’t have mattered that much; Pariah Dark was known not to give too many shits about his subjects individually, and John had been informed that the big bastard was locked in eternal slumber anyways, so his lust for battle was a problem for those in the past.

But the new King, the one Lois Lane had managed to learn about?

That King sounded like someone who cared.

That was new.

That was dangerous.

So when he got a call from Superboy asking if he knew how to treat a being from the Infinite Realms?

John almost messed up his teleportation spell in his rush to get there.

From what Batman had said, this kid was one of the few, if only, Spirits willing to talk things out and seek peaceful solutions.

Maybe his assumption that they had been courting an interdimensional war had been off mark before, but if this kid died there was a very good chance that he wouldn’t be off mark anymore.

The leak into the Realms was in the kids hometown, yeah? The kid was the one going toe to toe with multiple Entities, some of which John Did Not Want To Think About. The little Phantom kept winning those fights.

That meant in Realms culture he was at least incredibly respected.

At max, the result John really hoped wasn’t the case, it meant that the kid was an unknowing ambassador.

That the American government had just gunned down.

John prayed he was wrong.

He knew he wasn’t.

He shoved past Superboy and Flash, ignored their protests, and stomped into the operating room.

A spell on his fingertips and leaving his lips, he got ready to get as much of a read on the kid’s stability as a Spirit as he could.

And froze.

None of the doctors were reacting to it.

No one else could see it.

Why?

Why did this child have the crown?

“No,” John breathed in horror, just as the heart monitor flat-lined.

~~~~~

Superman was…not sure how to proceed.

He’d destroyed the vehicles, the weapons, beaten the Agents black and blue, but this?

This was a little bit outside of his jurisdiction.

The entire town of Amity Park was gone.

Just…gone.

There was a crater where it had been.

It wasn’t a smoking crater, there was no real sign of destruction. The ground around it wasn’t turned up from an impact, the trees weren’t blown down.

It was like someone had reached down and just…scooped the town out of existence.

“Batman, we…have a bit of a problem,” he sighed, opting to ask the detective what was going on.

There was no response.

“Batman?”

Not even static.

“Bruce?”

“Now isn’t a good time Superman.”

He blinked.

“Nightwing? What’s wrong?”

“...Sit down.”

Clark frowned, but obeyed. He felt like he really was not going to like where this was going. 

Nevertheless, he floated to the ground and sat back on the grass.

“Okay, I’m sitting.”

He heard Nightwing take a deep breath.

“Daniel-the kid?-just flatlined. They’re trying to bring him back at the medbay.”

His ears started ringing.

“I’m sorry, Clark.”

Nightwing sounded choked up.

Superman didn’t remember taking the comm out of his ear.

He’d been too slow.

A child had been murdered in front of him.

A town had been stolen while he’d been distracted.

He needed a moment.

He just needed to think.

He-

“Hey old man!”

-was mildly offended.

“Excuse me?” Clark turned his head to glare at…another version of the kid he’d just rescued?

Failed to rescue. The boy was dead and there wasn’t anything-

“Yeah, you! Where’s my brother? And the town too, I guess.”

~~~~~

Dani had been trying to get back to Amity before her stupid brother managed to get caught by the GIW. She wasn’t sure why he didn’t just phase away, but they’d probably done something to him.

Now this sad superhero old guy was harshing her vibe. 

Also the city was gone, which like, what was with that? Probably just Ghost Zone shenanigans. 

Oh right, the old dude was saying stuff.

“-We’re trying to resuscitate him, but-”

“Why?”

“Excuse me?”

Ohhhhh, she’d made him mad. Good. That was better than the sad sack she’d just been forced to deal with.

“We’re dead, duh. We don’t have pulses normally, he’s probably just healing himself.”

He narrowed his eyes at her, full of doubt. Rude. She hadn’t done anything to warrant such mistrust.

“Look, I’ll prove it,” she said, and casually stopped her heart and breathing. She’d only kept it up because Danny had asked her to anyway.

Oh wow, this guy had superspeed? She barely even saw his hand snap out to grab the hearing aide.

“He isn’t dead!” The old guy shouted. Oh, that was like, a communication device or something. Bluetooth, then. Wait, didn’t she just tell him that Danny very much was dead? Talk about selective hearing.

“Clark I don’t know how to tell you what a lack of pulse means-” 

“It’s a species thing, he’s healing himself! He doesn’t normally have a heartbeat!”

She could mark the underwear man as rude as well then, interrupting Nice Voice like that. She’d have to get him hearing aides as a gift or something. Help an old man out.

There was more talking on the other side of the line, but she elected to ignore it. It wasn’t important anymore. 

Danny was fine, he’d been saved by a bunch of old people. He just needed to sleep for a bit.

Which meant that until he came back, the town was her responsibility.

The old man clearly didn’t know what had happened to it.

Which meant this was a job for super ultra detective Dani.

She would so nail this case on the head.

She floated down the crater, to the bottom and stuck her finger in some dirt.

She’d seen this in movies, so it would totally work.

She then stuck her finger in her mouth.

And spit it back out.

That was disgusting. Movies were dumb. Sam was right, they were just mind-control for the masses.

“Any clues?”

Dani screeched and almost jumped out of her skin, flickering in and out of invisibility.

The old man was behind her, looking a lot happier and genuinely curious if she’d found out anything.

Well well well, a fan?

She could work with that.

“Well, in my personal superior knowledge, I’d say that the town was taken into the Ghost Zone.” Dani crossed her arms and nodded. Yes, that was definitely what happened, no doubts. The how and why, who knew?

“Hmmm. And do you know how to get the town back?”

“Nope,” she answered, popping the “p”, “they should be fine though, they’re used to this. It’ll pop back up eventually.”

The man nodded, glancing around the crater.

“Well, if all we’re doing is waiting for your brother to get better and for the town to reappear, how do you feel about homemade pie? I’m hearing my Ma say she just finished one apple and one blueberry.”

Oh fuck yes she was all about pie.

~~~~~

In the medbay John Constantine had one hand in a tear in reality and the other feeding its essence into the boy.

The kid was a spirit, of course he didn’t need a pulse, that was probably just him tapping out to sleep. Of course, no one listened when John said it; Superman had to be the one to relay that news. Then it was all arse-kissing and bending backwards, ‘oh no Mr. Superman, we’re so sorry Mr. Superman, we’ll get right to work Mr. Superman’ and so on. 

It was fine.

John didn’t need them. He’d helped himself often enough that firstaide wasn’t exactly foreign to him.

The state of the Little King’s stitches were a bit ragged, given that the doctors had stopped once he’d been declared dead and John had stepped in to take over that.

Hopefully he hadn’t fucked it up too badly and the kid had a normal healing factor for Spirits.

Other than that, John had effectively taken over the operating room.

There was a sigil drawn in blood on the floor, just under himself and the King. This was what was powering his little tear in reality, and unfortunately also what was shorting out most electrical equipment in the room.

It felt like there were eyes on the other side, watching his every move, feeding him the energy he needed to give to the boy. Nothing attacked his hand, nothing bit it.

The Realms, or its denizens watching him through that crack, knew he was helping.

John was so lost in concentration that the feeling of ice cold fingers wrapping around his wrist that very much was not in the reality tear made him let out a small shriek, ripping said hand away and clutching at his own chest.

Bright blue-green eyes stared back at him in confusion and concern.

Once the fright was over John couldn’t hold back anymore.

This kid was royalty. Where were his bodyguards? Why was he in the Mortal planes when it was so dangerous? Why were teenagers like this?

So he said the only thing he really could, given the situation.

“What the bloody hell were you thinking?!”

[mortiferumsomnum]

Excuse Me, Barmaid, I’m Afraid You Brought Me the Wrong Hero

EDIT: MASTERLIST

***

Okay, so... Mayyyyybe Dash should have thought this through. And, Dash would like people to know that he was doing all this out of the goodness of his heart. Phantom was becoming... Tired. Everyone could see it. Even the wacky Fenton parents noticed it, doubling their efforts to catch the only ghost that could defend their home.

And, well, when you find an old book from your grandma's that tells you how to summon heroes, who wouldn't take that chance to help their local hero? At least, until Phantom gets better.

So, yeah. Dash wanted a hero who wouldn't get overshadowed. He wanted a hero who had the might of the gods. He wanted a hero who could also be just a regular person, able to blend in with the crowd.

"Hey, do you have any more food?"

Dash wanted to bash his own head against the wall. Because he didn't summon a hero. He summoned a scrawny, 12-years-old kid who looks like he was randomly picked up from the streets!

His mom cooed at the child.

"Yes, you're welcome to have more, sweetheart."

"Thank you, Mrs. Baxton!"

Yeah, this kid certainly isn't a hero if he's easily stealing all of his mom's love and affection like that.

His mom pinched his cheeks, commenting how polite the child is, before getting started with the dishes.

****

HAHAHHAHAHAHAHA 😂😂😂

I LOVE summoning fics and ideas!!! 💙 And because I love them, I wanted to change things around a bit! What if it's the local Amity Parker that ends up summoning heroes from another world/universe? (or they could be in the same universe if you'd like!) HERO SUMMONING! 

- Dash ended up summoning Billy Batson, who could pass as Danny's little brother if the Fentons were willing to take him in.

- But the kid, for some reason, doesn't hate him for summoning him and wants to stay with Dash.

- Dash's parents are even considering adopting the kid! As if Dash brought the kid into their home out of the goodness of his heart. (Technically, he did. 😂)

- "Oh, Dash, sweetie. This reminds me of the time you said you wanted a little brother because you found out that little Danny was actually the same age as you!"

- "Mooooom! You promised not to talk about that!"

- "Correction: your dad promised. And I will abuse my power to tease you endlessly!"

- At first, Billy did this to annoy Dash. He knows a bully when he sees one. He also wanted to see how far he could go in annoying Dash before he gets kicked out by him. But as time with the Baxters’ goes by, Billy finds that he's become very fond of this summoner who's slowly becoming like his big brother. Being annoying didn’t feel like a ‘how far could i get away with this’ but has now turned into small teasing between siblings, it was... kinda great...

- But, when Billy encounters his first ghost attack, he suddenly knew exactly why he was summoned. It could have been Superman, or Batman, or Zatanna, or even Wonder Woman! But being the Champion of Magic gave him access to the Infinite Realms, not enough to traverse it, but to at least receive contact from it.

- And so, with a loud SHAZAM! he turns into Captain Marvel and fights alongside the upcoming King to the Ghost Realm.

- Dash... He just witnessed the most insane de-transformation of his life. When lightning struck near his home, he got worried about his parents and, dare he say it, his new little brother. (Dash saw the adoption papers. But also, the kid was growing on him. He gradually stopped being a bully when Billy thought of how cool Dash was, like he was a white Victor Stone or whatever. It made him want to be better, especially when those eyes were genuinely impressed with him. It made it all the better when Danny was weirded out by his character development.)

- But when he saw the newest Hero, Captain Marvel, the very example of what a hero should look like, should act like, and should be like, transform back into his little brother, so many questions started filling Dash's head. Was Billy actually an adult? Or was Captain Marvel really just a child?

- Dash really did summon a hero.

- Dash confronts Billy, because there was no way Dash would be able to pretend he didn't see anything.

- The more Billy talked, though, the more Dash felt... panic rising in his chest. He summoned a hero, yeah, but the hero is an ACTUAL KID who TRANSFORMS INTO AN ADULT.

- That's not what makes him panic, though. What does is that he became so attached to this scrawny kid who keeps raiding his secret sweets stash, who keeps stealing his parents' affection, who Dash has to visit his room at night because he seems to be the only one who can quell the kid's nightmares.

- The newest hero is his kid brother. His annoying little brother. His newest precious little brother who laughs and smiles at him, and calls him the coolest when he manages to throw the football so many meters away.

- It's not about Phantom anymore. Dash needs to be there for his brother.

- He comes to a realizatiom that maybe, maybe, all this time Phantom didn't need another hero to help him. Maybe, all he needed was people who cared to just back him up and give him support. Give him encouragement that he was doing great. That what he was doing was appreciated.

- Because Billy seemed to get better and better when he was told how good he was being in this hero gig. How relaxed and relieved he was when he realized that Dash wasn't going to leave him alone in helping Phantom.

- So, Dash also tells Phantom what he said to Billy, that he has Phantom's back. Phantom didn't seem convinced, most of all Manson and Foley. But Phantom takes it, especially when Dash was being genuine about it.

***

- And then there's Wes. Nosy and annoying, and bordering on stalkerish. Maybe he might be right about Phantom being Danny Fenton, but he really needs to leave his little brother alone. Dash won't hesitate falling back to old habits if he won't stop.

- "Why are you so calm about all this, Billy?"

- "Oh, well, Batman was more of a stalker than Wes is. Oracle and Red Robin, Batman's hero partners, are actually scarier because they thrive in this. The way he's going about it is actually pretty cute, in comparison."

- Cute? "We need to do something about how desensitized you are about this."

[radiance1]

ANOTHER FUCKING GAME AU BITCHES!!!!!

Or maybe not game but you get the idea, or don't. That works too.

Anyways.

Inspired by: These songs

Now stay with me, is this well thought out? NO!

But come along for the ride anyway!

Anyways.

So, Danny is mad bored and because he's mad bored it inevitably ends up both Sam and Tucker's problem. Not even DOOM can cure Danny's boredom surprisngly.

Meanwhile in the ghost zone:

Pariah Dark, taking out a tray of ecto-cookies in a kiss the cook apron with a tone of skulls on the design: My father senses are tickling.

Which leads to him just showing up out of bloody nowhere and dragging Danny + his friends off into the zone when he finds out Danny's bored as shit.

Pariah Dark: Wait for the cookies to cool, just got out the oven.

He says before going around to rummage in his treasury because he's sure he has at least something in there to stave off his adopted son's bordom.

If his countless priceless artifacts can't even do this, what's the use of keeping them?

A few minutes later as Danny is eating the surprisingly hella good cookies (Which is weird considered that his adopted dad was like, asleep for eons or whatever). Pariah walks back out with a very big, like big enough to touch the floor on him, cape.

He's happy to see Danny enjoying his cooking (Yes, he can cook Pandora nobody is going to almost die for a second time this time he got better and that was literally eons ago stop bringing that up-), but then gets on to what this cape is all about.

He got it about, a century after his coronation by an unnamed ghost, it quite literally just showed up in his castle one day with little to no explanation and he just went with it. Although he didn't use it much, he knows it has some amount of cosmic power in it, doesn't know what it does but its there.

He does know that its 100% safe though.

At least to beings of their level of power.

Though it might have some kind of effects on the regular living if exposed to for a long period of time. Probably, maybe.

He doesn't know, doesn't care.

So, he just drops it on Danny and takes a moment to see how he's just engulfed by the thing, before giving a hum in consideration and snapping his fingers, the thing shrinks but enough for Danny to actually be able to put it on, but still dragging a good distance of the floor behind him.

The cloak's outer appearance is a brilliant glowing white, while the inside looks as if space itself was woven within it.

When Danny put it on, it just felt, right. He couldn't explain it, but it just felt like it was always meant to end up in his hands. No matter if it looked like a toddler wearing his dad's clothes, he's willing to look past that.

Then he just, takes Danny to a very dead vat of space and tells him to have fun (Nothing there should be capable of harming Danny since he made sure of that even before having a child). Like, there's quite literally nothing there and Danny doesn't know what to do.

So, he just fucks around and finds out.

At least the cloak floats behind him as he flies around and looks really cool in space.

Meanwhile Sam and Tucker are just there, left behind, standing around with Pariah Dark. Waiting for Danny to come back.

....

......

Sam: Hey what if you-

Pariah: No.

Sam: I know magic...?

Pariah: Considering hum

Tucker: I have a scepter that can warp reality that was owned by my probably great ancestor.

Pariah: Considering hum increases in intensity

He ends up throwing them in there to, well, after Tucker got the scepter, reality manipulation to allow them to breath in space as a treat (And also for a semi-logic way for them to not die in space).

Danny fucked around and found out he can apparently make stars now.

The three then work together to create an entire solar system.

Danny, making the stars and then the motherfucking sun (with help from Pariah Dark).

Tucker, using his powers to make what is basically the rough drafts of various planets. I.e. just giant rocks. Then carefully using his powers tweak at their designs and make them actually bloody planets.

Sam? Sam just takes a look at one planet and goes: Yea, this would make a great earth.

And proceeded to make earth.

Like no shit, she just filled that shit with her magic and carefully created a working ecosystem and then the planet just, lived.

Is Sam's new world populated? Hahaha, no. Well technically it is, but really only by her and the other two on occasion.

Basically just one gigantic oversized garden.

Tucker set up a base on one of the moons (the one near Sam's planet) and somehow managed to get himself some wifi???? No one knows how he did it, and they aren't going to sit through his explanation.

Danny? Danny's just chilling bro. Most of the time he just kicks back and relaxes in the void of space, occasionally drifting past worlds and stars and sometimes sleeping too.

Basically, just one very big playground for the trio. Sam taking care of her planet garden, Tucker making the entire moon into his personal tech base, and Danny just drifting around in space doing spacing (hehe) out or sleeping.

Me: Oh? What is this? Is that a Dc content over there?

Dc content: rolls

Me: No Dc content! Don't roll into my Dp ideaaaa!!

Dc Content: Rolls into Dp idea

Me: Noooooooo.

Cut forward awhile in time and then a supervillain accidently pulls up into the trio's playground while running from the Justice League, accidently knocks into this random glowing thing in space and then escaped, Danny meanwhile gets rudely awakened and is so surprised the area around him gets enveloped with ice that the Justice League just has to, kinda, move above, below or around.

Which gave the villain good enough time to run.

Then that villain wandered too close to Tucker's moon base and almost got shot to death (Tucker why the fuck do you have space weaponry!?!??!) and then had to make a hasty landing on the nearby planet.

Which is what he wanted so like yea ok.

Same thing happened to the Justice League.

So now both the Supervillain and the Justice League have to navigate Sam's planet. Not knowing that they rudely (in the supervillains case) woke up the prince of the dead and alerted Tucker's moon base.