#They hunt and hunger for ecto

[puppetmaster13u]

Prompt 97

Hear me out. You listening? Reading? Good. 

 Cryptid batfam, but they’re very ecto-contaminated. I mean, in some continuities they straight up have a lazarus pit in the batcave. At least five of them have died before! Everyone in Gotham is ecto-contaminated in some way or the other- there’s a reason normal poisons don’t really work or how they’re not lead poisoned despite Gotham canonically being half made in its entirety with lead mixed in. Now everyone is variously ecto-contaminated, some more than others. But the batclan, who have a lazarus pit? Who have died and returned or been born from those waters? 

Liminal. Hella liminal. That pit is exposed, there’s nothing stopping the ecto energy! There’s already another lazarus pit under Gotham itself! And curses! And several pits of hell and temples to gods! Batman canonically had a portal opened on top of him by Barbatos- hell he was the portal. Sound familiar? 

Now imagine you are a normal goon. You might have a bit of eye-shine, but that’s nothing new here in Gotham. You’re a henchman, you do the job, get paid, hope you don’t die, and go home to pay your bills. Batman? No idea what that is, you think it’s some sort of hazing. Robin? Yeah right. But you swear that light was on over there, you know you put those boxes up in the proper way, so how did it fall? That window didn’t have a crack on it, and you can feel eyes on you. And it’s not the way you’re used to, like a mugger or something, no this is something worse. 

 This is something actively hunting you, and you can’t tell where it is. 

[thenewgirl76]

The Hunter Becomes The Hunted

Ember has yet another argument with Skulker after he blows her off once again for one of his hunting escapades. When it becomes clear that nothing she says is getting through to him she gets fed up to the point of blasting his mech suit to bits.

But she doesn't stop there. The moment a nearby natural portal leading into Gotham just so happens to appear, she doesn't hesitate to snatch up the now defenseless blob of a ghost and chuck him through it, intending to leave him at the mercy of the numerous ecto starved shades for a bit.

"Get back to me once you figure out what's more important to you!

Until then, have fun dealing with those shades without all your little toys, Mister "Ghost Zones greatest hunter!" is the last thing Skulker hears before the tear between realms closes up, leaving him all alone in a random alley.

Skulker's just in the process of dusting himself off while grumbling over Ember being so overbearingly fickle and demanding when he detects the presence of something. Something deadly, not just to him but to any ecto laced being. Something feral and ravenous. This is made all the more obvious when he starts hearing heavy breathing followed by animalistic growling.

Filled with dread Skulker slowly and reluctantly turns to face the threat. And to his shock is met with a familiar face. "Whelp, is that you?" Instead of answering the ghost child steps further into the dim lighting, giving him a clearer view of his face.

Only then does the ghostly blob with legs realize this isn't Phantom. The skin tone is completely wrong, so is the hero attire. And for some odd reason the gleaming eyes staring him down while the child drooled hungrily were glowing midnight blue instead of toxic green.

"You...You're not the whelp." This time there's a response. The lookalike takes another step forward and finally speaks. "You smell delicious," he rasps out, then gives a fanged grin, licking his lips and salivating even more profusely. "and probably taste even better."

[jadedwolf18-blog]

Mini Phantom Invasion.

Hi, I plan for this to be a series of inter connected one shots based on some of my favorite prompts. I’m a huge Tim Drake/Red Robin x Danny phantom shipper, so for now most of my fics will feature them. Once I’ve end this series, I’ll try branching out to other relationships Danny could have with the bats.

I can’t remember where I got all of them but I’ll try to tag as I find them. If anyone notices a prompt or plot they’ve seen please let me know or tag the person it came from. I’m knew to posting on Tumblr so I’m still getting used to how to tag and insert links. Thank you.

🤍🖤💚💙💚🖤🤍

Chapter 1

Danny was not having a good day. He’d had a fight with his parents about ghost hunting, stating clearly that he had no interest in their bias views on an entire species based on one encounter when they were young. It had escalated to the point where they blamed his lack of interest on the fact that he was spending to much time with his sister and his female friends. 

He’d had enough! He left mid argument and was contemplating just packing up and moving into the Ghost Zone permanently. As he’d slammed the door he could hear his parents shouts for him to come back and once again blaming his behaviour on a ghost.

What did his sexuality have to do with ghost hunting? And what was wrong with wanting to be more feminine sometimes? He honestly didn’t understand why they found it so weird or wrong for him to swap between genders and pronouns? Jazz, Sam and Tucker accepted him as he was, they didn’t but an eye when he would randomly say ‘she’, ‘they’ or ‘him’, they just continued the conversation with the new pronoun and that was that. They understood and accepted that sometime he felt male or female or neither. He was lucky to have them. 

The day just seemed to continue down hill from there. It was summer vacation so Sam was forced to spend time with her parents at some rich holiday resort, Tucker had won a spot in some sort of tech camp and Jazz was still at College working on a finals thesis and was unable to come back for the summer. He was essentially alone for the summer. He could hang out with Val but she was working a lot and he didn’t want to bother her. He still felt guilty about her dad losing his job, even if it wasn’t entirely his fault.

*****

After leaving the house he’d found a place to transform and let the cool rings of light soothe him and took off into the sky. After finding out they could survive in space it became their favourite way to relax, they’d spend ours exploring space, even hang out on the moon. Thank you high speed and portal powers. Their Phantom form had changed in the last two years. People could no longer tell if they were male or female and he looked less human now. Thankfully, they looked nothing like their alternate future self. When their legs melded together their ghostly tail looked more eel like and their ears were longer and thiner, resembling delicate fins. Jazz and their friends had joked about how the acted like cat ears. Lastly their face was now a pale mint color, almost white and translucent, his eyes were still the same luminous ecto-green with deep blue pupils. The only similarity to Dan, that they could see, were the fangs and longer hair both of which were also present in their human form.

*****

They had been flying around Amity, a somewhat lazy patrol of his claimed haunt, it was a calm night. Ever since they had defeated Pariah Dark the other ghost had calmed down and came to Amity less frequently. A few still came to bug them, namely Skulker, Ember, Johny and Kitty. Young Blood and Boxy more frequently than the others and of course Cujo came by often. Their visits were more to do with fulfilling their obsessions than anything else. Danny’s obsession was Space but so was Protection. They needed to fulfil both to some extent or suffer from a form of ghost hunger. It was a win win situation even if they did go back… home? Was it really still a home? 

Before they could go down that dark spiral again their instincts took over and they narrowly dodged a bright green shot that had been aimed at their head. Whirling around and flying higher out of range they looked at their attacker and just stared.

“of course it’s them.” They muttered. Before repeating it with more venom than they thought they were capable of. Which was shocking because not even Vlad had receive as much hatred in the entirety of the time they’ve known him than in that split second they felt it towards their own parents. “Of fucking course it’s them!”

They blink away the shock of such an intense emotion and huffed. Not even bothering to acknowledge them they turned around to leave. That had been a mistake. They’d barely made it a few paces before pain bloomed across their back as an Eco-blast shredded the fins on their lower back and bit deep into their flesh. They bit back a cry of shock as they felt themselves plummet from the sky. It took a moment but they gathered enough concentration to open a portal. He didn’t care where they ended up as their only thought was ‘Somewhere safe.’

They fell through and just before they lost consciousness, they heard their parents yell after him.

“Get back here you ghost scum, so we can rip you apart molecule by molecule!”

“We won’t forgive you for corrupting our Danny!”

‘Of course… It’s always Phantoms fault…’ Danny’s world turned black as he continued to fall. Maybe when they opened their eyes again all of it would have been a dream.

*****

Somewhere in the infinite green a Grandfather clock chimed. A screen flickered. Time flowed on.

“All is as it should be.”

Chapter 2

(I'm Not A Cynic Song by Alec Benjamin)

Danny pulled their little floating ducks out of their personal pocket dimension and set them to gently drift in the hot spring. They had found it while wandering the forest. Their lower back still ached and they were a little worried about how it hadn’t healed completely yet.

*****

They didn’t know where they were or how long they had been in this dimension but they were safe and alone for the time being. When they’d woken up, the first thing they did was try to figure out where they were. thankfully no-one had discovered them, tucked away in the underbrush of the forest they had landed in. They’d let invisibility wash over them and flew high enough to get a view of the land. They recognised asian architecture and flew in the direction they had spotted a small farming village. With a closer look they determined they had landed in some version of Japan. Instinctually they knew they were not in their home dimension. Everything, even the air and feel of the atmosphere felt slightly shifted to the left. It was like that feeling of entering a hotel room, they were all essentially the same but there were the little details that told you it was a different hotel. 

*****

Brushing the thought, and everything associated with the reason they were injured and alone in a foreign dimension, aside. They coiled their tail in the centre of the spring and sank down until their lower back was submerged in the healing warmth of the spring. Closing their eyes in content they began to hum. Their eyes shot open when they felt a gentle nudge against his arm but smiled gently at the little wisp as it bobbed and drifted in the breeze. They continued to hum and watched in amusement as more joined the first. The little orbs of light ranged in color from soft pale blues to vibrant greens and warm reds, oranges and yellows.

They lost themselves in their song as they twirled in and played with the water, creating little floating ice crystals that caused mist to form around them as hot and cold air danced around each other. Humming soon gave way to words as they swayed to the rhythm only they could hear. 

“I'm just bein' realistic, bein' honest with myself

I've tried bein' optimistic but it doesn't seem to help

So I'll just have to admit this is the hand that I've been dealt

I'm not bein' pessimistic, just bein' honest with myself”

They were thankful to Pandora, who had taught them to sing in an effort to train his ghostly wail, for realising he was taking on the form and habits of a triton. 

“I'm not a cynic, oh, today's just not my day

I've tried to spin it 'bout a thousand different ways

But from every angle, oh, the outlook is the same

I swear that I'm not a cynic, my glass just has no water in it today”

They poured all the hurt, betrayal, anger and loneliness into their voice, allowing them to release it all in a more melodic call than his previous wail. That, as pandora explained, had been an unhealthy burst of emotion and they were lucky they hadn’t blown out their vocal cords the last few times they used it. 

“I swear that I'm not a cynic, my glass just has no water in it”

Through their practice they found they could influence emotions but not out right control them. They were glad, influencing them was bad enough, he didn’t want to manipulate anyone. They didn’t want to spend their life wondering if the people around them truly cared or if they had somehow manipulated them into caring. They may me a budding empath but they still struggled to tell the difference between a sincere emotion and a projected emotion.

“You only get that which you're given, it's not always up to you

Not every Sunday is a picnic 'cause the sky ain't always blue

You can't just change the weather by changing your point of view

Some days you have to wait until the storm just passes through”

Danny’s voice grew louder as their emotions poured out into the lyrics. They knew they still had their friend, their sister, Elle and everyone in the Infinite Realm. They were also the Half Ghost son of ghost hunters and scientist with a heavy bias against Ecto-entities. They will be the rulers of an entire realm in only a few short years.

“I'm not a cynic, oh, today's just not my day

I've tried to spin it 'bout a thousand different ways

But from every angle, oh, the outlook is the same

I swear that I'm not a cynic, my glass just has no water in it today”

They gave a bitter sweet smile as they watched the wisps duck and weave between the ice crystals. They looked around for their ducks and their smile turned a little more sad as they waved their hand and the little ducks joined the dancing lights and crystals. Each one was modelled after his favourite comic book vigilante. They’d had to save them from the dump truck once, they’d been looking for them when he’d asked his parents, their father had made an off hand comment about how he should throw out old toys and they’d panicked. They’d manage to find and save them all just before the truck arrived.

“So like a boat on the ocean, I'll rock with the waves

God, I'm so sick of this notion that I have to fake

Fake my emotions and pretend I'm okay

So like a boat on the ocean, I'll just rock with the waves”

Jazz had bought them for them, after they had told her about being gender fluid and pan, they were probably one of their most treasured possessions. Jazz had gone on a whole spiel about how it’s important that she show support and provide a safe and understanding environment. They hadn’t been listening, they’d been crying. To caught up in their overflowing emotions and happiness. It lasted a day, their parents had been less than understanding, with their passive-aggressive comments and actions. 

“I'm not a cynic, oh, today's just not my day

I've tried to spin it 'bout a thousand different ways

But from every angle, oh, the outlook is the same

I swear that I'm not a cynic, my glass just has no water in it today”

Their frown returned. They had shot them, that in itself wasn’t unusual, as Phantom. Isn’t that a sad thought. What was was that there had been no prior warning. It was a sniper shot, from their mother. Only their heightened hearing and instinct had saved them from ending up dead dead instead of a Halfa. That bothered him

“I swear that I'm not a cynic, my glass just has no water in it today”

They returned to humming the last notes of their song as the dunked under the water to rinse off. They popped back up and gathered their ducks, floated up out of the spring and laughed as the wisps twirled around him. They landed on the ground, allowing their legs to form and walked off into the forest, dancing lights trailing after them. Completely unaware of their watchers.

*****

The shadows slunk away to report their findings. While two birds hesitantly returned to their temporary nest, One worried and wanting to help the being that reminded him so much of his younger siblings. The other having felt a connection to a being that had shared similar experiences, someone they wanted to help and if they wanted to end the beings loneliness… that was no one’s business but their own. Both slept little that night, both determined to find the being again and offer what they could to help.

*****

@im-totally-not-an-alien-2

@alinmenttreasure

@blackroserelina

@blacksea21090

@seraphinedemort

[occasionally-good-ideas]

Amity Park

It’s been three years since the portal opened in amity, and since then the people have changed. ‘Liminal’ is what most people call it ‘death touched’ has also been thrown around. It made the people, the kids mostly, different, faster, stronger, higher endurance, almost silent, sensitive hearing.

to them it was normal, and besides! being able to run full speed for long distances was useful when your town was constantly under attack, and extra strength and agility is great for games!

Ever since the town got yoinked into the ghost zone amity’s had its own electricity and plumbing systems, the world outside the town doesn’t hear from the folks inside, and the people inside just don’t need to talk to outsiders, what would they even talk about anyway?? School? They don’t have ghosts, or the same standards! The weather?? ‘Hey did you feel that ecto-storm last night? I couldn’t sleep till it died down at 4!!’ Nope, definitely not the weather.

But this isolation forged a close community in the town, they were all in this together and they all knew it. Working parents, little kids and rebellious teens, when it came down to it they all had each others backs

The teens ecpetionaly bonded through CHAOS!! Pranks and sceems targeted at each other and the mayor, games of Extreme Tag (which was like a mix of tag, parkour, and the occasional gun) were the norm for the youth of amity park.

Shouting and laughter followed them as the kids ran up walls, across rooftops and through the streets and alleys of amity. For normal kids they would tire themselves out in three hours TOPS, but this is Amity, and the kids here are anything but normal. A single game could go from sunrise to sunset without even a water break, ‘if you’re thirsty get water. Just don’t get caught’ and who would back down from a challenge like that??

One summer they decided to do their own version of the hunger games, half in the woods on the outskirts of town and all through the streets, it was all fair game.

They built their own bases, going home was forfeiting, from holes in the ground to multi story lairs of wood and rubble. Food was foraged or stolen, if you got caught? Youre out, if you got tagged with paint (or otherwise incapacitated) you’re out. trust at your own risk. it goes till the last man standing.

Friendships were made and broken, old enemies became trusted allies, teens found love in the heart of battle and even more found the thrill of the hunt, the satisfaction of seeing your enemy fall and emerging victorious in the face of all odds.

It went on for a straight month before the parents had to band together to bring their kids home.

The Games were over, but no one forgot them, the high of adrenaline and Victory was one they could chase, and in the case of the towns sports coaches, one they could profit from.

The Amity Park Ravens became infamous for their endurance, their strength and speed, but mostly, their bloodlust, they were ruthless. Word of them spread through schools like a legend, the unbeatable, almost inhuman nature of them.

Outside of games they were always easy going and good sports about the competition, but on the field? Where Outsiders had to face off against dozens of amity parkers dead set on victory?

They were only whispered of with one name.

The Unkindness 

TLDR- amity park kids take competition WAY too seriously and they end up scaring the shit out of the whole public school sports program 

They also did a diy hunger games and I WILL read anything anyone makes about that bit (please tag me)

[shower-phantom-ideas]

Oh while im writing bullshit how come we don’t talk about ghost fish floating around danny all the time to feed on his passive ecto output?

Hes like a filter we put in fish tanks? Yall see that episode of doctor who about the skyfish? Solid Christmas special but that around Danny.

Do yall think if a shark didn’t feel hunger it would eat other fish? Like imagine how cook and chill a shark ghost would be. Don’t gotta attack cause it’s dead and never feels threatened. No need to hunt or anything no hunger.

Anyway Danny with a let ghost shark that is smooth

[omegasmileyface]

Bound by the Food Chain

"man what if there was something incorporating both the Ghost King and Ghost Hunger aus" i say, not prepared to spend weeks writing up an entire ecosystem structure for the ghost zone,

thanks @attackradish and @ectolemonades for help figuring out the science and writing!

summary: The ghostly Staff who've taken up residence in Phantom's Keep notice Danny doesn't eat any ectoplasmic food. That can't be good for him.

warnings: detailed description of ghost hunger, which is vaguely like cannibalism

words: 2830

AO3 link

===

“King Phantom, when do you feed?”

“Huh?” Danny looked up at the Keep’s Librarian, Vellum. It felt like an odd question, seeing as he was currently actively eating a sandwich he had packed up with him into the Zone. He was spending a few hours in the Keep that day since it was nice and quiet for getting work — from both realms — done, and he had brought some earth food over. Ghost plants just didn’t taste very good.

Vellum looked a little shocked, like she hadn’t realized she’d asked her question aloud. “I mean, clearly you eat human food quite a bit,” she gestured to his sandwich, “but I’ve never seen you take in any sort of ectoplasmic substance.”

Danny wasn’t an expert on the (strangely psychological) ecology of the Infinite Realms, but he was familiar with the fact that all ghosts had to take in some sort of ectoplasm if they wanted to be anything more than an inert impression of emotion. Since he had never gotten any enjoyment or significant energy from eating ghost plants or breathing in the stuff ambient in the air, he pretty much just stuck with eating human food and converting the chemical energy between his forms. He was lucky that he could do that, being part human. He knew he automatically gained some energy from the human emotions around him (including his own, another benefit of being liminal) but it was negligible. He got drained pretty easily, and he knew there were things he wasn’t trying, but… he was tired, not desperate. He’d be tired anyway, with his lack of sleep.

“That’s because I don’t. I can still use the chemical energy I get from human food in my ghost form, so…” he shrugged. “This is pretty much it.”

Vellum’s brows furrowed in concern. “Are you not a—” She pursed her lips. “Are you not tired?”

“What do you mean? I definitely eat more than a regular human, and as far as I’m aware I don’t lose any of my energy in conversion. I’m getting by.”

“I think we should talk to Dr. Marchs. I don’t know if it’s… ok, that you’re not feeding ectoplasmically.”

With some exasperation, Danny let himself be brought back to the Throne room, the preferred place for anything that could constitute a “meeting”. Apparently, talking to the Keep’s Doctor, Chef, and some other Staff members about his diet counted.

The various adult ghosts looked at Danny with shared expressions of confusion and concern from where they stood around him. He was sitting on the arm of the Throne, not the most comfortable but it still felt wrong to be properly seated in it unless necessary.

Dr. Marchs finally spoke their piece. “Forgive me for asking, Your Majesty, but… are you not a hunting-ghost?”

Danny was already out of his league culturally. He had a lot to learn. “As in… like, a predator?”

“Exactly! Your core best processes ectoplasm directly from other ghosts, correct?”

Danny paled. “I don’t… know? I tend to avoid going around, just… eating other sentient creatures.” He tried to say it in a humorous way. It didn’t work.

“So you’ve never tried! I had thought… Well, I think you must be a hunting-ghost. You put out a radiant power that is only associated with that core type.”

“None of us have seen you feeding,” added Vellum, “so we weren’t sure you didn’t just defy that association. I don’t think anyone really understands all the complications of half-human physiology.”

Dr. Marchs jumped back in easily. “It’s still just speculation. You have said that you don’t enjoy eating plants from this realm, yes?” Danny nodded. “And you don’t seem to get significant relief from human emotion. Well, we’re just going to have to have you try feeding on some ghosts.”

Danny jumped to his feet. “What?! I don’t… need that, I get by fine on human food!”

“But aren’t you tired?” pointed out the Chef. Her eyes widened. “That’s why you get so drained after using big attacks! Your energy reserves aren’t being nearly refilled.”

“I believe she’s right, Your Majesty. There’s only so much energy you can take from human food, which isn’t even alive… I think you’re always tired because your core is designed to have a level of energy that you can’t provide it without processing Vital ectoplasm.”

Danny didn’t want to admit that he was consistently pretty damn tired. Instead he tried to change the subject. Ghosts were passionate beings, and as much as he hated to take advantage of that, having one of the Keep Staff gush about one of their passions to him was much better than talking about his relationship with what was essentially cannibalism. “Vital?”

Dr. Marchs’ eyes sparkled a little. “Vital as in living, not as in essential. Ectoplasm comes in three major forms. Ambient plasm makes up most of the Realms, in environments and atmospheres and auras. All ghosts are made up of Vital plasm, and those with cores have their Obsession or Purpose imprinted into the crystal structure of their own ectoplasm, which can be turned into Charged ectoplasm. The Charged form can take up an elemental type according to the ability of its source, and it has the most capacity to hold or be converted into ectoenergy. The Charged form is used to transmit intention onto a target, so it’s generally created by Cored ghosts, who are creatures of intention, in attacks or construction. Regardless of type or state, ectoplasm processing depends on its form — Uncored ghosts can process strong human emotions or Ambient ectoplasm into the Vital type. Among Cored ghosts, hunter-ghosts can best process Vital ectoplasm, gatherer-ghosts the high-activity type of Ambient plasm found in ghost plants, and scavenger-ghosts human emotion. Additionally, Charged plasm no longer linked to the source of its intention will eventually disperse into Ambient, as its most inert form.”

Danny, sitting down, had already known part of that, but the Doctor was properly smiling at this point. Dr. Marchs blushed as they realized they had just been talking, but none of the other ghosts in the room appeared to mind.

“…Regardless, King Phantom, we should really find some blobs for you to try eating. I cannot in good conscience leave you persisting off such low energy.”

He wanted to argue, he really did, but all the Keep Staff present were looking at Danny with this pleading expression. They looked genuinely concerned, and he remembered a comment he’d heard before about some of the Staff latching onto the King with their Obsessions. Some unfortunate result of the connection they’d formed with the Keep, Danny certainly didn’t deserve it, but he did know how it felt to Obsess over taking care of someone and have them turn down that care. With the same concerned look directed back their way, he got up and was led to the Garden out back.

Danny was having second thoughts again once he found himself surrounded by blobs that had been enjoying the intricate plants and high Ambient ecto levels of the Keep Garden. They were squishy but soft, like mochi coated in a good layer of starch, each a bit smaller than his head, and they all looked at him with these big vibrant eyes. Their postures were energetic, like they expected to play a game.

Once he sat down with the rest of the small group — why did he have to have an audience? — the blobs swarmed around him, resting on the sky blue grass and on his shoulders and in the others’ laps. They looked almost as expectant as the Staff in front of him.

“I…“ he bit his lip. “I can’t justify eating a living creature when I can choose not to. I know lots of ghosts have to eat others to persist, but I have the privilege that I can eat human food instead. Since I have that option, I can’t just… end another creature so I can feel a bit better.” Hey, Sam would be proud of him.

The present Staff donned looks of confusion. An Advisor who used the Keep as a home spoke up, eyes wide with realization. “Ah! Living creatures all share a survival instinct — that’s a natural result of evolution, yes? Things that do their best to live have their genes passed on? That’s not necessary for Uncored ghosts, since they do not reproduce and therefore don’t evolve. The only instincts experienced by the Uncored are instincts to better the Realms. Unless they’ve developed a strong individual personality, the Uncored are much more interested in contributing than in persisting.”

Danny’s head tilted in curiosity. Dr. Marchs took the reins on the rest of the explanation.

“The Realms are built socially where the living realm is built physically. Our homes and well-being are made from emotion, belief, and community. So for Uncored ghosts, spawned of the dimension itself, they want their ectoplasm and energy to be where it supports those communities the most, and that means ensuring the health of the ghosts in charge. Generally speaking, the more powerful a ghost is, the more likely they are to have some importance to the Realms. The Uncored — and many Cored — can sense a ghost’s power due to how much excess ectoplasm they let off. In fact, that excess is almost immediately put off as Ambient ectoplasm, meaning that there is simply more Ambient plasm around a powerful ghost, and the Uncored are often attracted since that provides sustenance for them . It’s a mutualistic relationship where one entity feeds off another, and in the end the resources of the weaker ghosts are given to the stronger, supporting the Realms. In fact, there are some cultures who believe that converting ectoplasm into a form the Cored can process is the entire reason for the existence of the Uncored.”

Vellum smiled slightly as she added on, “It’s not an entirely accurate strategy, as the most powerful ghost around is not always going to be a hunter type. They usually are, seeing as that’s the most efficient form of feeding, but it’s not impossible to be otherwise. The result in these cases is Uncored ghosts following around said Cored ghost, and as the same aspect of community comes into play, that ghost soon ends up hanging around a hunter type, who feeds on the prey that was collected.”

Danny cringed a little at the use of the word “prey”.

He looked around at the blobs nuzzled up against him. Those who didn’t look to be something resembling unconscious were peering up at him. They certainly looked expectant, as much as something without even a permanent mouth can.

After he was silent for a few moments, another Staff member spoke up, likely wanting to lighten his mood. “They really do like you! I’m not surprised, even aside from your natural power, the role you play as High King causes ectoplasm to be magnetized to you. I’m sure they’re having a little feast themselves!”

It did not lighten his mood. Danny felt genuinely guilty. Even if he wasn’t doing it on purpose, wasn’t he effectively manipulating these creatures into offering themselves up to be eaten? It wasn’t right, to make them feel as if they want to be ended, just because he had some sort of aura.

But the gathered Staff were still concerned, and anticipatory, and, somehow, hopeful . He couldn’t turn them down at this point. He’d just have to bite into one of the little ghosts surrounding him, just once. He’d throw up, disgusted with himself, and the Staff would realize it wasn’t better for him, and the remaining blobs would remember that they don’t want to die, and they’d flee, and everybody would just leave the subject alone . He only had to try.

(The human dread he was emitting at this point must have been feeding everyone else.)

“…Okay,” he said simply, and gently picked up a blob that had been sitting on his leg.

Before he could rethink himself again, he brought it to his lips. He opened his jaw slightly wider than a human’s would likely go and, fangs instinctually extended, bit down.

Danny was familiar with the scent of ectoplasm. Copper and citrus and battery acid and salt. But when he broke the surface of the small ghost and the viscous fluid burst into his mouth, the salty and bitter aspects were lost on his tongue, replaced by a thick sweetness and the cold tingle of energy. Where his fangs pierced an inch down into the substance of the ghost, he tasted this fulfillment in its emotional ectoplasm. He’s not sure he would have been able to taste it if he weren’t part human. Still, the feeling was something distinctly ghostly, a similar satisfaction to fulfilling an Obsession or a Purpose. It was hard to feel bad, sympathizing automatically with that simple rightness. The way the emotion pressed at his brain, the way the semisolid edges of the ghost slicked against his tongue, his own self-revulsion melted to the back of his mind. The ectoplasmic flesh met his teeth with a thick resistance, but it was nothing to break past it and open up to the deeper substance. It was vibrant, a pure cool energy that pulsed against his fangs. (His core sucked it up greedily.) His mouth met the energy with a pulsing of its own, a harmonizing signal sent from his core throughout his body like a heartbeat. It came out as a low purr that vibrated deep through the charged air around him. He couldn’t help but rush to swallow, though his body absorbed it just as easily without.

The blob ghost had been the size of his foot, and now it was part of the energy making up his own form. Compared to the power his core was passively putting out, to the amount it longed to have refilled, it wasn’t all that much. Unconsciously, his core put out an ectoenergetic signal that he was ready to feed. The blobs around him nuzzled closer yet, making themselves available. Danny could feel a few other Uncored ghosts who were drifting nearby come into the garden and join them.

He looked up from his ectoplasm-stained hands at the Keep Staff. They were looking at him, relieved, pleased (even though they just watched him tear into a living thing and then absorb it into his being like it didn’t even matter, said a part in the back of his consciousness. It was hard to focus on, though. It was coming from his brain, not his hungry core, after all). With his core this active, he could feel the presences of all the other ghosts around. The blobs flocking around him had auras that were weaker than the Cored Staff, but sturdy. There was a balance to them that signaled the ectoplasmic types they were taking in and storing. He sensed the Uncored pulling in the Ambient ectoplasm that sloughed off of him, barely connected to him anymore if not for the weight of the space surrounding him. And he could feel all of their stores of energy-dense Vital plasm.

He could also feel, just as an aspect of his being, his own energy stores. The metaphysical space in his center that his form and all his strength drew from. He could remember, abstractly, the moment he died and that reservoir came to be and was instantly flooded with energy. The way the portal had searched the air until it found his body and his little human soul and used him as a conduit, and all that electricity punched a hole between planes right where his ghost was trying to form, and something tore outward from that starting place just on top of his being, and the vacuum that formed on earth and in the Zone and everything in between pulled until the Infinite Realms rushed his body and in one instantaneous moment his forming core was flooded with enough ectoplasmic energy to become entirely corporeal (if it hadn’t, his ghost wouldn’t have manifested nearly quickly enough to keep him alive), and his being was stretched beyond its limits containing everything. For one moment, he had been filled with more energy than he had thought possible, and his ghost had formed itself to accommodate. Since then he’d felt so… empty. His body took what it could from human food and environmental energy, but it was made for more than that. He had blocked out the awareness of his reserves and gotten used to trying to power all his defenses on so little. He was always so tired.

He still felt low, running on just enough to operate something humanish. But his core had latched on to the ectoplasm provided by the blob, the kind it was designed to process, and finally felt a little relieved. Most ghosts that stayed within the Realms were almost always full. Danny wasn’t nearly there yet.

He reached down and grabbed another blob.

[ffenton]

My older Phantom design

Here's a description of Danny's new suit, I have an Au explanation coming and I'm almost done with it so stay tuned for that ;)

"Made after the homemade suit, the Mk 2 "Phantom" is to deal with any ghosts that come from the Ghost Zone. The suit is designed in such a way that can harness Ecto Electricity from his core along with combining with future suits if things get to dangerous, the helmet of the Mk 2 is inspired by Soul Eaters, a Soul Eater or for a better term, a Devourer of Ghosts, they used to live in the Ghost Zone in tribes, they ate every ghost they saw or hunted, they were widely feared in the Ghost Zone, but their main enemy were the Yetis from the Far Frozen who the Soul Eaters fought many wars against. Since they had ravenous hunger, they eat the core of any ghost to gain more energy but they were wiped out by Pariah Dark who saw them as pests. The skeletal engraving on the helmet resembled a Soul Eater, that's supposed to strike fear into ghosts that Danny fought against."

[lover-of-skellies]

Ahh! Congrats on 500! 🥳 Sooooo I’m really digging adrenaline racing stuff rn for some reason. So if it compels you maybe the hunted down prompt with either mutt(swapfell red) Or Axe OR nightmare being the hunter and reader being the hunted??

Ahhhhhhhh :D thanks so much, dude!!

Here's your fic request! I really hope you like it ^^

-

"Human... come on out, kiddo. You don't have to hide from little ol' me. S'not like I'm gonna bite or anything."

You remained crouched behind a stack of wooden crates, a hand pressed over your mouth to muffle your breathing. There was a moment of silence, save for the sound of old shoes shuffling across the concrete floor, and you glanced around, your heart racing in your chest. What could that skeleton possibly be doing now?

You very carefully slipped under a nearby table, curling in on yourself in an effort to take up less space. As long as you stayed back out of the light, everything would be-

Lights flooded the room and you blinked, willing your eyes to adjust as fast as they could. You cursed under your breath; damn it. He'd turned on the lights, so now you'd have a harder time concealing yourself.

He suddenly whirled around, your body jolting in surprise as he brought the head of his axe down onto a crate, the blade splitting it with ease and causing it to fall apart. Was he... Was he intending to break all the crates now? No. God no. That wasn't good.

He let out a deep sigh, smashing another crate before he rasped, "Come on, buddy... I'm not gonna axe you again. Come out, come out, wherever you are." Another crate was demolished and you watched him with wide eyes, shrinking back and trying to press yourself against the wall.

The skeleton tilted his head, momentarily still before he went to work, breaking apart whatever crates were around him. When he stopped again, his chest rising and falling as he tried to catch his breath, his single scarlet iris now fully dilated.

He took a deep breath through his nasal cavity, tipping his head back, and then to your utter confusion, he chuckled, his voice gravelly as he spoke again, "I gotta hand it to you, kid. This was a pretty cleaver place to hide." You silently clutched your injured hand closer to your chest, biting your lip as you glanced down, noticing the blood oozing out from under the makeshift bandage you'd created. Not good.

The skeletons' once irritated expression shifted into something dark, a wide, manic smile stretching across his face as he inhaled deeply again, continuing, "Unfortunately for you though, small fry, I have one thing you don't, and that'd be my sans of smell. Eye don't need my vision to see you, so even if we did this in the dark, I'd still find ya." You could've sworn you felt your heart stop as he turned, facing in your direction.

He began to move toward your hiding place and you froze, your eyes widening in fear. You buried your injured hand beneath the fabric of your shirt, hoping to hide the scent of your blood. The skeleton continued walking toward you though, the expression on his face just as manic as before, and when you came to the conclusion that he wasn't going to check anywhere else except where you currently were, you frowned.

And then an idea struck you.

You slipped the blood soaked bandage off of your hand and laid it on the ground before beginning to crawl away, slipping behind another stack of crates. Carefully peeking out from behind them, you watched as the skeleton tapped his rather sharp phalanges on the table you'd just been hiding under. He then curled his hand into a fist, roughly bringing it down onto the tabletop and causing it to crack right down the middle.

Seeing that you'd changed locations, he huffed, bending down to scoop up the bloodied bandage. Your stomach churned as he lifted it to his face, sharply inhaling its scent, and then even grosser yet, he opened his mouth, a faintly glowing sapphire ecto tongue slithering out to trail along the fabric. Having gotten a taste of your blood, his body trembled the smallest bit and an almost gutteral growl slipped past his maw.

Tightening his grip on the axe he was carelessly dragging along the floor behind himself, he took another deep breath in, and then he lifted his weapon, hurling it full force at the crates you were hiding behind. Some of them immediately broke into pieces at the impact, and you yelped, practically throwing yourself backward to avoid being hit by the axe. With the crates now scattered everywhere, you were revealed to the skeleton and his grin turned malicious, his eye light nearly burning into you as he purred, "Found you, pal."

You were on your feet in a matter of seconds, immediately bolting toward the nearest exit. Except... wait, this wasn't right. Why couldn't you move?!

Blue magic enveloped you, essentially freezing you in place, and the skeleton sighed. You felt your body being tugged backward, presumably toward him, and a shrill scream of complete and utter terror ripped past your lips, and you could hear the skeleton monster chuckle. He reached out, roughly gripping your arm and turning you to face him, his stare much more intense now as he hummed, trailing the tip of a claw along your cheek. The digit bit into your skin the smallest bit and you whimpered, feeling a familiar, warm substance run down your face.

Your captor grinned widely in triumph, leaning closer to you, and you whined, feeling the tip of his tongue trace along your injury, licking up your blood. Your face stung and your bottom lip quivered as a purr rumbled from within his chest, his voice becoming a husky tone that sent shivers down your spine, "You know... you're cute when you're scared. I could just eat you right up. In fact," he paused, his eye light glowing brighter than before as his presumably nonexistent stomach began to growl with hunger, "I think I will, actually."

[ciestessde]

Phantasma Magica Ch. 1

STORY SUMMARY Clockwork and the Observants send Danny to Hogwarts on a special mission. But, cryptic as ever, that Old Stopwatch never actually told him what would happen on it!!! “All you need to do right now, Daniel, is stay focused on your mission. And remember, the-” “‘The Lions with the time-turner, lightning-bolt scar, and hair like fire are friends; watch out for the rat; and the black dog is not a threat.’ Yeah, you’ve only repeated that a few dozen times today.”

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Podfic Version

Ghost Zone - Clocktower - Sometime in the 2000s

After the accident that transformed him into a dangerous creature known as a “phantasm,” Danny had been staying with Clockwork, the Keeper of Time. The ancient being had saved Danny many times, and in many ways, by then. He’d even taken Danny under his wing as his apprentice. And as his apprentice, Danny was often sent on missions – either by the immortal Keeper himself, or by his bosses the Observants. It was one of these missions that Danny was currently trying to find out more about.

“Why are these things so much trouble, again?” Clockwork was floating around the room, his purple robe and spectral tail flowing behind him, working on making his apprentice a few extra batches of imitation ecto-energy, or “substitutes.” Just in case Danny ran out while on this mission. (Not that Clockwork was trying to hint at anything… Because honestly, if he did, it would just make things worse for the poor boy.)

“They are only trouble if they fall into the wrong hands. I had planned to discreetly destroy them myself, but…” By the way he trailed off, Danny knew he would never get the end of that sentence. “Alriiiight… So are you at least going to tell me why you’re sending me to a MAGIC SCHOOL first?” Silence. “Aaarrrgh!” He bumped his head against the nearest wall. “*sigh* Fine. Whatever. Why do I even bother asking questions, anymore…” Clockwork handed him a large backpack with the substitutes in them (all 3-years-worth… And, yes. It WAS heavy), and, after Clockwork formed his legs once more and retrieved his staff, they walked in silence to one of the innumerable clock-shaped viewing screens.

Clockwork twisted a few mechanisms on his staff and waved it in front of the screen, and, with a sound like tv static, a view of a dark, mysterious forest appeared on it. “Y’know, just because no time will pass HERE, doesn’t mean it will F E E L like it to ME.” “All you need to do right now, Daniel, is stay focused on your mission. And remember, the-” “‘The Lions with the time-turner, lightning-bolt scar, and hair like fire are friends; watch out for the rat; and the black dog is not a threat.’ Yeah, you’ve only repeated that a few dozen times today.” Clockwork stepped out of the way of the portal, and Danny flew through.

Despite knowing the most likely outcome (and having a backup plan for all over-fifty likely dangers), he couldn’t stop himself: “… Be safe, Daniel.”

Hogwarts - Forbidden Forest - 1993

As expected, Danny had arrived above a forest and about a mile away from the school in the late morning. He took his time flying, and, after a few minutes, he was about halfway there. At this point, he decided he should probably go ahead and take one of the substitutes, seeing as it had been a while since he last ate. But as he was about to uncap the bottle, he noticed a strange black shape moving toward him from the school’s direction. It was moving rather quickly…

He could feel his hackles rising from the aura the creature was giving off and the way it made the space around it darken. It was too close, and coming in WAY too fast. He managed to get the bottle back in the bag, but he didn’t notice the OTHER of the creatures come up from below him in time. It knocked the bag out of his hands before it-

Pain. Electricity. Screaming.

The creature shrieked when the blast of ethereal fire hit it. But, although he’d fended off the one, its buddy was only a few feet away now.

Danny picked up speed – still trying to get to the school – before realizing how much weaker he felt. ‘Those things must feed off ectoplasmic and ethereal energy. But how? What are th-? OH!’ Now he remembered: Dementors. They were Spirit Eaters, just like phantasms like him. Except they usually only fed off of emotions. ‘So why do I feel weak? … Wait, I feel wea- The substitutes!’

Danny turned around to try and find the bag and the (hopefully not broken) bottles of imitation ecto-energy, but the dementors were done only trying to snack on him. They were still starving, but anger and ages-old hatred between their kinds had overruled hunger. If Danny slowed… they would destroy him.

So Danny flew. And he fought. And he became weaker and weaker, and – eventually – hungrier and hungrier. And by the time the wizards showed up, he was starting to fall apart…

Hogwarts - Defense Against the Dark Arts (DADA) Class

Professor Remus Lupin was writing on the board in silence, finishing his final preparations for the day’s lesson, while the third-year Slytherins and Gryffindors – including the Golden Trio themselves: Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger – settled into their seats. But while the rest of the class were preoccupied by today’s lesson, the latest gossip, or a forgotten textbook, Hermione…

“Professor? Could you tell us a little about phantasms? They were only briefly mentioned in the book.” She continued to flip through her textbook until finding the page in question. A brief paragraph greeted her with the challenging lack of information that had left the brunette in an absolute storm of frustration, no matter how many times she went over it.

Remus Lupin, dressed in his usual ragged robes, turned his gaze to her with a mixed expression. His normally sad, wistful smile fell, and a sigh left his lips. But his tired eyes brightened at the topic, as a hand brought itself up to rub his furrowing brow in thought. “You bring up an interesting topic Miss Granger. The little information that is written – is true to the fact that there is little known about them.”

The class was silent, waiting to sate their curiosity. Despite the numerous times most of the students would simply roll their eyes at ‘Know-It-All’ Granger’s antics, this was something even many of the pureblood Slytherins in the room hadn’t heard of. All ears honed in to hear the professor’s next words, hung with anticipation.

“From what little we do know, I can tell you that phantasms are very rare creatures of the spectral class. Not unlike ghosts or poltergeists with their varied appearances and personalities; and yet they hold a frighteningly close similarity to dementors in the dangers they pose. They are, indeed, Dark Creatures.”

Harry shuddered as the rest of the class broke into nervous murmurs. Snickers came from some of the Slytherins, followed by teasing gestures imitating dementors aimed at Harry. The raven haired teen just gave a huff in response, turning his attention back to the professor, while Ron continued to glare at Malfoy and the other Slytherins. Hermione then broke the moment of tension and returned the eyes of the class to their professor. “How is it possible for a ghost-like creature to also be a dementor-like creature?”

Lupin pondered her words for a moment, his mind attempting to piece together the few existing bits of information regarding the matter. “In that lies the mystery. From what little is known, we can only piece together a few facts, considering that they are, in fact, corporeal beings – unless they wish otherwise – and are extremely aggressive in demeanor.”

It was Ron’s turn to earn a few points for curiosity, “But if they’re so aggressive… how come almost no one’s ever seen ‘em?” “Good thinking on your part Mr. Weasley, though that in itself brings up more questions than answers. As your book states, many old stories of ghost attacks or hauntings are results of phantasms holding claim to their territory. More often tormenting muggles and going out of their way to avoid the wizarding world.”

This brought another snicker from the Slytherin group. Malfoy leaned back in his chair and shared a cruel smirk with some of his housemates. “Seems there’s actually a respectable creature out there after all.” More bits of smug laughter came from the group at the implication their ‘leader’ had made. The weary teacher cleared his throat to grab the attention of the students before a fight broke out.

“They’re not to be taken lightly, Mr. Malfoy. Most reports of attacks – from the few who have survived – have been upon unwary witches and wizards that stumbled into their haunts. Despite their preference to muggle neighborhoods, they will not differentiate when it comes to what they claim as their territory. Though I have not met one personally, from what I’ve heard, they can make even a dementor look docile in comparison.”

The class fell silent once more with the weight of the professor’s words. The meaning in his tone was clear: This was not a matter to be taken lightly. The silence was only broken by a nervous squeak from Longbottom. “P—pp-professor…. Are they….. r-really that dangerous?” Neville chirped, his body attempting to sink below his desk. “Indeed. They are one of the few dark creatures that dementors will respond to in earnest – and violently for that matter. Usually the two species will avoid one another, but should they cross, a fight will undoubtedly occur. “It is also said that their presence can often be mistaken for that of a dementor’s, as the room will become as cold as ice. But rather than the happiness being drained out of you, a sense of feeling hunted will settle in your gut… ”

And right then, what would have otherwise been an inconsequential lesson – doomed to be forgotten except for the occasional nightmare or horror-story – became a well-timed joke for the old, meddling Keeper of Time.

Lupin found his words cut short as his gaze turned towards the window in surprise. Every pulse in the room raced, adrenaline pumping through them to prepare them to fight or run – but a feeling of despair soon layered on top, competing with this sudden desire for life. Harry, Ron, Hermione and the others, turned in the direction of their professor’s gaze; expressions of fear, horror, and curiosity forming upon their faces, as all eyes fell upon the window glass. Crystals of ice crept up the window panes like an all-consuming fungus, encrusting the view to the outside world in a layer of frost – just as a black figure flew by, followed by another two, much larger, forms. Gasps rose from the crowd of students as they darted over to the window to see the spectacle that had just raced by. Professor Lupin pushed his way to the front of the group, peering out the frigid glass towards the scene playing out less than thirty meters from them.

Two dementors encircled, and were lashing out randomly at an unusual entity. A teenage boy, not much older than Harry or the others, floated there in the middle of the two wraith-like creatures. He was dressed quite oddly: a long-sleeved black shirt and black pants; white boots, belt, and gloves; and a sleeveless, white hoodie. His snow-white hair hung down into his face – but it didn’t hide the blazing green glare and bared fangs the boy directed at the two dementors. Just as they lashed out again at the floating boy, a yelp rang out from most of the class. A flash of neon-green light had tumbled one of the beasts backwards! However, it quickly recovered from the intimidating attack, and all three specters shot off across the grounds – the two dementors remaining in hot pursuit of the ghost-like boy.

Hermione was the first of the class to recover from the shock enough to speak; her gaze turning from the window, to Professor Lupin, and back again. “Professor, was that… ?” Remus remained in stunned silence, staring out the window in his own spell of disbelief. However, quickly shaking himself from his thoughts, he turned to face the students. “So it would seem. Class is dismissed – and I want you ALL to head to your houses immediately! I must speak to Professor Dumbledore.”

Hurried footsteps clattered down the stone corridors as students and teachers alike scattered about. The Golden Trio darted through the crowd and over to the nearest window that viewed the grounds. Soon followed by the Weasley twins, who’d spotted them slipping by. “Wotcher, Harry! This has to be one of the weirdest sights Hogwarts has seen, ‘eh?” George grinned, patting the raven haired teen upon the shoulder, as he and his twin peered out through the glass.

A black-and-white speck went whizzing by the gamekeepers hut, with the two other figures in hot pursuit. The extremely large man that resided in the hut could be seen exiting and flailing up at them in agitation. “Hagrid!” Harry jolted, looking ready to leap through the window and save the man from the angry specters.

“Easy now, Harry. I think we best let the professors handle this one.” Fred had the same grin as his twin, his hand coming up to pat Harry’s other shoulder. “Yeah, even the professors are gonna have trouble with this,” George chimed in. Harry heaved a sigh in response. Hermione shook her head, “I just hope Professor Dumbledore knows enough about them to do something.” Ron was about to smack himself in the face at her comment, but stopped when the scene swept by the window. The blur of motion caused him, and several others, to yelp in surprise.

Outside the Entryway

“Merlin’s beard!” Professor McGonagall swore, a hand held to her chest to steady herself from shock. The three specters just whisked by centimeters from the tall, severe-looking teacher’s head as she stepped out onto the grounds. Her eyes followed the scene fly out across the lake and back again. Her gaze then shifted over towards Dumbledore, who had just arrived in the entryway of the castle. “It’s trouble enough just having dementors around the school grounds, but in Heaven’s name! This is too much, Headmaster!” The old wizard chuckled, his piercing blue eyes twinkling behind his half-moon spectacles. “There, there Minerva. This will be settled soon enough. But first, it would be best to separate them before this matter escalates. Severus?” Dumbledore turned to look back up the stairs, a serious look on his face as blue eyes met jet black.

“Yes, Headmaster?” The thin, sallow-skinned man remained stoic, his tone flat with a hint of irritation. Although it was likely due to general frustration (with the DADA professor), rather than with the situation at hand. “If you would?” Professor Snape nodded, his wand at the ready for the creatures’ next pass. The group of professors (as well as the unavoidable huddle of students behind them, just inside the entryway) watched the creatures’ exchange nervously.

As they flew, the black-and-white blur would sporadically fire green projectiles at the following dementors, causing one or both of them to briefly fall behind. They sped over the lake, the Forbidden Forest, and made several laps around the castle once again, before coming within reach of Snape and Dumbledore’s wands. “Expecto Patronum!” yelled the Potions Professor, successfully blocking the dementors’ pursuit. At almost the exact same instant the Headmaster cried “Irretio idolon!”

The boy-like apparition immediately fell, as though snagged on a line. When he hit the ground, there seemed to be a physical struggle – as though the phantasm were trapped in an invisible net held together only by the tip of Dumbledore’s wand. Once he regained his bearings, the phantasm tried to fly away again. The old wizard wasn’t expecting the smaller creature to be so strong; before he knew it, Dumbledore was pulled a couple meters forward. He quickly started shaking and sweating from the strain of trying to keep the phantasm in place. “Pomona!” The dumpy, dirt-covered Herbology professor quickened her pace from the Greenhouses, carrying a sack of what resembled roses in one hand and glowing green dust in the other. She carefully combined and formed these into a circle around the phantasm, being sure to stay well out of striking range. When she finished, Dumbledore immediately released his hold on the spirit.

Professor Sprout fell back in fright when the phantasmal boy sprang at her, fangs bared and growling so low she could feel the ground vibrating beneath her. She breathed a sigh of relief when the barrier held. Everyone took a few moments for the shock to wear off, before Hagrid approached Dumbledore. “Wha’ should I do with…” Dumbledore shook his head, “I’m afraid, Hagrid, that this will take the care of professionals to be dealt with safely.” “Ay, ay, Headmaster, sir.”

“And who, may I ask, has the most unfortunate job of supervising the creature until such professionals arrive?” asked McGonagall. “I believe that falls to whomever is most familiar with and knowledgeable on such matters.” His eyes, duller than usual (though not by much), turned questioningly to the other professors on the stairs. Remus stepped forward. “I suppose that would be me… Though I’ll need at least one other to help me, as I can’t be watching it at all times.” “I’ll take the night shift, professor, don’tcha worry none,” said Hagrid, “I’ve ne’er met a creature I couldn’t take a liking teh.” “Yeah,” whispered Malfoy, near the back of the huddle of students still just inside the doors. “But I’ve never met a creature or wizard who could take a liking to that oaf. Except blood-traitors and mudbloods.”

The Heads of Houses quickly began ushering students back to their dormitories after that, and the search began for how such a dangerous and powerful creature had managed to come so close to Hogwarts without being detected by the castle’s barriers. And that evening, in a corner of the Gryffindor common room, a certain group of students discussed how they could use this situation to learn more about the elusive creatures called “phantasms”… as well as whether, and how, this might give them a new way to fend off the ever-lurking threat of the dementors.

This fanfic is a crossover between the Harry Potter book series and the Danny Phantom AU “Time’s Apprentice” by Atrieisan on deviantart (check out her comic – her artwork is beautiful!)

This is only Arc 1 of 3, but all of this arc has been written. So you can expect regular updates every Wednesday until Arc 1 is finished! You can find this fanfic here, as well as on:

Fanfiction.net/~ciestess ArchiveOfOurOwn.org/users/Ciestess/profile Deviantart.com/Ciestess

Also, if you like my writing, you should check out my other series “One-Shot Wednesdays” where I write a requested short story every week! I’m also in the process of writing an original book series called “Crossroad of Infinity,” so if you want to know more about that, you can check out more of my Tumblr (#CrossroadOfInfinity , send me asks, etc.)

Finally, I want to thank everyone who helped beta this story, including Jay. Bloodworth  ( @jaywrites101​ ).

I hope you enjoy! And if you did, please REBLOG!

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[therein-their-den]

Current Character List-

[available for interaction]

Bells- the lich maker's heir, destroyer of their maker, master of the tower he had made and all the magics it contains. a construct, a creature never of Life's realm, and condemned never to know Death's, their place can only ever be eternity, or oblivion. in the time between family becomes everything, and the only thing worth either.

Tremer- lich made- he/him- undisclosed- Bells' elder brother, woken from a deep torpor to find sire dead, and a younger sibling made his heir. furious and distrustful, and bitter at the tower's choice, he makes no effort to hide that the moment he gains his freedom, this 'new' sibling will fill a hunger grown across a thousand years.

Pyre- grillbitty lamia- he/him- undisclosed- ruler of the kitchen, and anchored to the magic of the tower when his began to fail, he exists as one of three tied to it. this vast and ancient magic is used to help the small snake prepare very big meals.

Worth- king lamia- he/him- aro/ace- keeper of his den and the pair of cats who call it home, as well as snake dad to Feather. this is the first home he's ever known, and even if the void has claimed it now, he's not going anywhere.

Kudzu- horror papyrus lamia- he/him- demi/ace- a forty plus foot long bitty with severely damaged bone structure, so chronic pain mean rarely leaving his garden. a gentle soul usually content to tend his greenhouse, but can very much pose a danger if the urge to hunt grows too strong-

Chomper- horror sans blaster beast- he/him- undisclosed- this aggressive beast only has a soft spot for young children and his brother Kudzu. very food aggressive, very protective, and extremely loyal, he poses constant danger to anyone his brother doesn't make a point of protecting.

[available for interaction by mun discretion- non animal edition]

Weaver- error drider bitty- he/him- undisclosed- tsundere jerk who prefers his solitude, but with a surprisingly soft spot for young children, his blue webbing is extremely strong and useful for many things. at least, if you can find him.

Wraithe- winged reaper lamia bitty- he/him- gay- happily married, has seven children with his nightshade hubby. with a transparent ecto tail and a charming smile, he's smoothly punny and flirty, and also packs a death touch/potent venom combo, hunting silently through the darkness on pitch black wings.

Tower Spirit- doesn't care- child, not applicable- the tower was first built on the shattered hopes of a dying species, shells crushed, and lives ended before they began. a single egg remained, only bones within. 'hatched,' the little one chose to return after it's faint red soul fell to pieces, it's claim here, now second only to the lich's own.

Banette- pokemon- they/them- nonsexual (now)- nothing holds a grudge quite like a dark spirit whose happiness dies in their arms, crying out for a stolen egg. it took months for them to find the poachers, and months more to find their egg. but behind that permanent grin, burns the soul of one who will never forget, and never forgive.

[available for interaction by mun discretion- animal edition]

Puppy- cat- he/him/ doesn't care- nonsexual- a thick solid gray cat with a skeletal prosthetic, every high shelf exists as his domain, and every toy, serves as his prey. you'll learn it soon.

Sapphire- cat- she/her/doesn't care- nonsexual- a svelte gray tabby, disdainful queen of cats. you are honored by her presence, whether you realize it or not. now, don't interrupt her beauty sleep.

Todd- undead fox skeleton- he/him/doesn't care- nonsexual- an example of what happens when a fox attempts to hunt a necromancer's apprentice, fails, and becomes the familiar and seat of his soul. can become a paint puddle, teleport through liquids, and pass through solid objects, leaving only smears of ink behind.

Fenrir- undead wolf- he/him/doesn't care- nonsexual- wary and stand-offish, a wild animal, a loyal familiar and friend. when the gates between worlds began to close, he followed them into the void itself, surrendering the world he'd known, forever.

Source- void touched canine- she/her- child/pup, not applicable- a new friend?? she's a pup, alright!

[available for interaction by 'their own' discretion]

Skald- he/him- inkish bitty- bi/ace- lich's apprentice, semi retired from the public eye. still a menace, it's been only a month since his XP last went up, but family life has very much changed him, made him soft. he now only occassionally twists the laws of god and nature beyond moral excusing... and then does so much more discreetly.

Rus- he/him- fellish sort of swap papyrus- pan- older brother of Black, what his brother can't afford to do as co-captain of the guard, he'll see done anyway, znd go to little effort to hide that fact from anyone but Black. plausible deniability fir his brother and all. he's never seen without his father's old lab coat, now dyed black.

Black- he/him- fellish sort of swap sans- undisclosed- his low stats couldn't keep him from becoming co-captain of the royal guard, even if the guard itself is now gone. a master of runeworking and extremely skilled with weaponry, he's never seen without his armor. he stands ever vigilant, and ever lawful, and blade ever at the ready.

Abie- he/him- asriel bitty- minor/not applicable- slow growing for a bitty, the goat child has nonetheless reached adolescence. little us known about his past, but the official story is that Todd dragged in him and his sibling until Skald gave up on throwing them out. and the official story is pretty much true.

Rena- they/them- ghost chara bitty- minor/not applicable- they weren't always a ghost, but they have always been an extremely determined child. their spirit is bound to the mortal plane through their strong attachment to their brother, and refusing to leave him behind. despite being the younger sibling, they aged more quickly, and played the part of the big sib, at least until recently. ghosts don't really age.

[not currently interactable]

Seb- assumed human- he/him- demi- former partner of Bells' mother, their only surviving teacher, and the source of everything they've learned of enchanting, despite seeming to lack any magic of his own. remaining in the tower after Bells' claim, he quickly earned the lich's trust, but upon Gatefell's end, he simply vanished.

RiverGast- [redacted]- he/him- [redacted]- ??????- the father of Black and Rus, condemned to the void when his sons were children. upon freeing himself, the former royal scientist lost part of himself, and became reclusive, only rarely seen on moonless nights poling his boat along rivers. the RiverGast is now returned to the void, anything lost since regained many times over. it's not clear if he can be trusted.

Abaddon- unknown- the lost heir- a young boss monster believed to be the son of the long absent prince. powerful and often unpredictable, he tends to vanish as soon as he's spotted, making him considered something of a former cryptic of GatesFell, and now, perhaps of the only part of it still left, the tower.

[intractable solely by mun invitation]

Origin- lich tree- all- nonsexual- caught in a gravity well of voidstuff so dense that it tore through the very code of reality, it's empty branches reach out, eclipsing countless worlds. soulless, ammoral, desperate and hurting, and its power existing beyond measure, it feeds its eldritch magics to any twisted soul willing to help the tree achieve it's end. once an entity of great worth and need, any mind it once held is long since lost to what it's become, its worth lying forgotten in darkness. now it is only the lich tree, and any bargain made with it will be paid in blood, dust, and tragedy.

[very dead, no interaction possible]

Lich Maker- complicated- he/him- unknown- sire/maker of Bells, the sadistic creature with a curious nature, the dealmaker sought out kind and generous souls, fascinated with twisting them into becoming something as cruel as himself. upon losing the favor of his patron he found himself caged by one of these very people, only freed centuries later by Bells' mother in an act of desperation. intent on twisting them as he had others, he failed to realize how far his magic had waned until it was too late to regain his strength alone. this time, no one would accept his bargains, and finally his own creation was able to put an end to him.

[generic-insane-fangirl]

Danny Phantom Headcannons

Sooo a few days ago i asked if anybody wanted to hear some of my danny phantom hc’s, and a couple people said yes so here y'all go :]

A/N: HEYYYYYYY!!! Did I get your attention? I just wanted to let anybody know who has read this list before now know that I recently added a few things and did some basic editing to make my post more readable. Nothing big or anything, but I just thought that I should let y'all know incase anybody is curious.

On the subject of ghost cores:

·       Vlad has a fire core

·      Danny has an ice core

·      Dan has an unstable electric core that dangerously fluctuates between fire and ice when he is weak or tired out.

·      Skulker does not have a developed ghost core due to his small size and his lack of exercise regarding his real ghost powers in favor of relying on his suit.

·      Technus has an electric core

·      Ember has a fire core

·      Clockwork has a time core, which is unique in that only he alone possesses such a core.

·      Pariah Dark has a core of decay, but the combined power of the Crown of Fire and the Ring of Rage also gave him temporary control of a fire core.

On the subject of Ghost and Ghost Zone qualities:  

·      On top of teaching Danny the bare minimum of ghost core control, Frostbite also neglected to teach Danny about ghost common knowledge (G.C.K.) like core flares, heat cycles (for the more beast like ghosts), ghost hunger, ghost obsession, ghost lair possessiveness, etc.

·      All ghosts instinctively know ghost common knowledge (G.C.K.) upon death. This is due to the fact that all ghosts are somewhat connected via the ghost zone. Upon death, they are re-made from the ectoplasm that runs through the viens of the Ghost Zone and are no longer human in any way.

·      Halfa’s unfortunately do not instinctively know G.C.K. because they are not fully death and thus are not “one with the ghost zone”.

·      All ghosts share a common pansexual nature. They do not care for gender or apparent age since in the ghost zone the ghost of a teenager can possibly be much older than the ghost of an elderly person.

. However, there is a small exception to this rule. Ghosts of children who died before puberty usually share an asexual nature, since they died before they could really understand and discover human carnal desire.

. Ghosts are stuck in the mindset that they died in. They can learn new tricks and strategies and just be clever in general, but they will never mature emotionally or mentally. This is why no matter how many times Danny defeated the Ghosts or tried reasoning with them/saving them, their attitudes toward him stayed hostile. Ghosts cannot "learn valuable life lessons" and grow up. They are stuck and dead. Growing is for the living.

·      On the other side of the sexuality coin, most ghosts also share an almost aromantic mindset. It is very hard for a ghost to express many human emotions outside of territorial possessiveness or obsession. This makes romantic relationships extremely difficult to create, especially since if a ghost is faced with a decision between its obsession and its partner, it will always choose its obsession.

·      Halfa’s can of course experience and express human emotions and thus are exempt from a ghosts aromantic lifestyle however, they do have trouble with prioritizing their obsession over any relationships they may or may not have. This is why Vlad and Danny have such trouble retaining relationships and friendships.

·      Ghost’s by design cannot ever feel satisfied, or rather the only way to for a ghost to feel satisfied would be to obtain/achieve their obsession. This results in a feeling of inner peace and a prompt ascension to the unknown.

·      Halfa’s are not fully exempt from the ghostly dissatisfaction. They will always feel a slight unease no matter how happy they are unless they are actively pursuing their obsession. This can be a factor in why Vlad, despite being unbelievably rich and decently handsome, is still a bitter, lonely bachelor. His obsession with Maddie and Danny, coupled with his need for power and control over his life has left him forever wanting.

·      The Observants are a hive mind race created from the Ghost Zone itself in order to ensure its continued existence. Their responsibilities include watching over the human world as well as the Ghost Zone since life and death are intertwined and the Ghost Zone’s health is a reflection of Gaia’s.

·      The Observants, while immortal, were not powerful enough to ensure the safety of both worlds on their own, so they used their ancient power and created Clockwork from the ambient ectoplasm of the Ghost Zone. By gifting him the power of time Clockwork became able to control the fate of both the living world and the Ghost Zone.

·      Clockwork, like the Observants, is immortal, but he is also all-knowing. Mastery of Time has allowed him to gain all the wisdom and knowledge that humanity will ever know and all that it won’t know. He is a God in all but name though few know of his existence.

·      Clockwork finds himself helplessly drawn to the beings called Halfa’s. This attraction is caused by the fusion of life and death that make up a Halfa’s DNA, a very similar mixture to the one that makes up his own existence. Clockwork is a ghost in the sense that he is made of ectoplasm, but at the same time he cannot be killed unlike all other ghosts, whose forms can be destroyed and assimilated back into the Ghost Zone, making him neither a member of the dead or the living. Clockwork was not born from a human like every other ghost, and he was also given his own conscious unlike the Observants who are nothing more than an extension of the Ghost Zone itself. Clockwork is very fond of his kindred spirits for being completely unique beings like him. Niether live nor dead and yet both anyway. He saw kinship in their shared contradictions and wanted what was best for both of them, even if they are somewhat annoying and/or evil.

·      The existence of Halfa’s defies all laws of Nature and Natural Order, and their presence can potentially unbalance the scale between life and death. They would bring about the destruction of both worlds if their population should rise. When the Observants informed Clockwork of these ticking timebombs, he merely smiled and assured them that everything would be okay.

On the subject of the Halfa’s:

·      Nobody really knows what will happen to Halfa’s post mortem. Vlad has guested that they will simply turn into full ghosts.  However, he has also speculated that the Ghost and human DNA will conflict upon death and result in the destruction of the Halfa’s soul. There's no real way to be certain since he and Danny are completely unique beings.

·      On that note, Vlad is frustrated with the lack of Halfa’s to experiment on. He has experimented on himself for years, but can only do so much alone, even with clones to aid him.

·      Vlad has thought about kidnapping Danny to use as a lab rat, but can never bring himself to act upon it because of his feelings for the boy (and his trauma caused by being a lab rat himself for the government)

·      When Vlad was admitted to the hospital for ecto-acne, doctors noticed his unstable ghost powers and notified the government. Vlad was taken to a secret government facility and experimented on. Vlad was stuck there for 3 years as he struggled to control his powers enough to escape.

·      Vlad’s escape from the government facility lead them to create the Guys in White Division to specialize in ghosts and ghost hybrids.

·      The GiW primary mission was to re-capture Vlad and other ghosts samples in the process for experimentation, however years later Vlad invaded the facility and wiped all of their ghostly information and his identity from their data banks after copying the intel for his own use.

·      Vlad then hunted down and destroyed all of the GiW facilities and killed all who knew of his ghost genes. That is why the new GiW did not know about the existence of any ghost-human hybrids until they discovered Danny.