#Yes it was Vlad's fault

[dcxdpdabbles]

Red Yummy

Based on the post by @spacedace. Basically it's a joke that Red Robin (the restaurant with the little jingle: Reeed Robin: Yummm.) Isn't a thing in the DC world but is one in the Phantom world.

The rip in the multiverse was an issue the Justice League was not at all prepared for. Sure they had incidents where visitors from an alternate universe have crossed over to their side or they have gone to one. There are times when they meet doubles of themselves, both as allies and as enemies.

They have been to different Earths, with different histories, different countries, and that one particular time, even different beings that ruled the planet.

It's always been an adventure where at the end of it, the doorway to both worlds is sealed shut, with little or no chance of it opening again. The friends they made. The sights they saw. All gone. Fine. Over.

That was, until a villain from a different world, attempted to attack Clockwork's Tower. The Justice League was not aware of Clockwork- Master of Time, Weaver of Realms, The Concept of Between- but they noticed that he had been attacked when other worlds started spilling into theirs.

People were falling through glowing green portals, stumbling into buildings that weren't there before. People who were just going out for walks would be zapped away and replaced with their confused counterparts.

Parts of the sky glitch into others, replacing the soft blue with brown or black, little patches scattering around the world. Cities vanish for a few hours, sometimes replaced by others sometimes not, and animals never before seen running amok.

It was a mess.

The League did everything it could to help, but it was hard to stretch their reach to the help then world when all reality was being thrown into a mixer and set on chaos.

A lot like busted pipes, the Leaugers would run to cover a leaking pipe only to have the water build up in another and burst there and then scramble to cover that one before the rising water drowned them all.

Thankfully the Justice League Dark was able to use magic and find the source of the leak. The Infinite Realms known as the web that linked all universes, are usually only accessible by the dead, or in Constantine's case having friends in high places.

"Ghost Writer owes me a favor," Constantine said while the rest of the Leauge watched a flouting green book descend from the sky. It flipped open, expanding into a gateway. The smoke of the book curled into little missy hearts.

"Ghost Writer?" Zatanna gawked "How did you get such a powerful, and notoriously recluse, being to owe you anything?"

"Let's just say, we both appreciate the finer things in life and that ghost has a rather fine ass" Constantine leered. No one had asked for any more detail, although Zatanna had the expression of someone who had bitten something sour the whole time.

Ghost Writer had given Constantine a warning that his power would only be able to protect five living souls. Any more would be at the mercy of the Infinite Realms'.

Humans that wandered into the Realms were more often than not driven into madness, became hopelessly lost, or had their souls swindled by beings that dwelled there. Not that it wasn't surprising.

After all, the living did not belong there, so of course they were a danger to the Realms' structure. Hell, there were rumors that a living being could produce fresh uncorrupted ectoplasm when killed or even kept like livestock.

Constantine did not want to find out if the rumors had any truth to them.

To be able to travel safely they had to fall under a powerful ghost's protection and Ghost Writers let them know to pick their five best.

It was decided that Constantine would go as their expert, Batman as their strategist, Wonder Woman as their diplomat and protection, Superman as second protection, and Zatanna as another magic user that could combat the dead.

The rest of the league remained, doing their best to hold their universe together as the team of five rushed off to put everything to right. It was agonizing not knowing what was happening or how the mission was going but they did what they could and placed their trust in the five.

Many of the Justice League didn't say it, but it was the remaining Bats that sort of kept everything afloat in their father's absence. Each one leads a group of young heroes, easily countering and controlling their self-appointed sectors of the world.

Nightwing and Titians.

Red Robin and Young Justice.

Red Hood and the Outlaws.

Oracle and the Birds of Prey

Robin and the Blades.

All five groups agree to use the Watch Tower as a central base to coordinate their defenses against the world falling apart. Trading information with each other quickly and efficiently, and using this new information to prepare for more ripples of universes, showcasing that Batman had taught them well.

Following their example, the rest of the Justice League did what they could to minimize the damage. It was on the second day of constant relief efforts that everything was snapped back to normal.

A giant wave of sound- the noise sounding a lot like a grandfather clock strick repeating over and over again- as things that were not meant to be in their world vanished and their own people and things returned.

The shy's patches were removed and the right color returned.

Even property damages that were caused by the incident were reversed as if reality falling apart was nothing but a dream. No wreckages to clean up, no people had gone missing, and best of all, no casualties had been taken.

The Leauge gathered around Ghost Writer's book watching it open as the five returned, cheering and screaming, giving them the proper hero's welcome. Then right behind their teammates, a second group followed through.

Three glowing figures, all dressed in the same black and white outfits, and a ship carrying four humans. Batman introduced them as the allies who helped defend Clockwork's Tower and keep the multi-universe from collapsing.

He did admit that just because it was no longer falling apart, it did not mean that the rip had been closed. In fact, it was the only thing left to do but it was proving to be difficult due to Clockwork himself not understanding why their world wasn't healing.

Clockwork couldn't leave the Realms for too long- if no one was there to keep Time running the same thing would happen all over again- but he did give them equipment that could in theory patch things up on their side.

They just needed someone who understood the equipment.

Team Phantom, led by Danny Phantom, one of the flowing figures was happy to volunteer. They would be staying for three years, to strengthen and rebuild their Universe structure.

Team Phantom consisted of Dan Phantom, Danielle Phantom, Jasmin Fenton, Tucker Foley, Samantha Manson, and Westley Weston. All young, kind, strong- Batman vouched for the non-powered members claiming they could go toe to toe with his kids- and all much to the joy of many young heroes- attractive. They played an essential role on the team, doing whatever their people and kind did to help Clockwork, staying out of the League's way.

They all seemed happy to live as close to civilians as possible and despite their strength and combat training, Team Phantom was more like a research party instead of a hero.

Since they would be there for three years- more depending on the Speed Force's effect on the timeline grumbles Tucker- the seven had chosen to set down some roots within their dimension.

The three Phantoms needed Ectoplasim to live- a rare substance in the Justice League's universe- so they chose Gotham as their new home. Batman was more than willing to allow them into his city, as long as they knew not to interfere with his work.

Things settled, The Justice League moved on to other missions and other issues while Team Phantom ran tests, gathered information, and worked on the timeline.

The only real issue Bruce had with Team Phantom, was that a majority of his kids were romanticly interested in them.

Dick's love-struck sigh, whenever Dan wandered by, would often lead to useless backflips in an ill-fated attempt to impress him.

Jason would conventionally be lifting weights shirtless whenever Jazz came by with an update report. Then he would mention some novel or other that had the girl's attention far better than his abs.

Steph had taken a very large interest in gardening and at the same time, started wearing shorter shorts and tighter tops because Sam seemed to adore flowers.

Cass meanwhile found every excuse there was to be dressed in the prettiest dresses she owned whenever Wes was anywhere near her. She even wore light makeup- a real sign of how much she was interested in the conspiracy theorist.

Duke seemed over the moon whenever Tucker asked for his personal help on anything technical-related. It did his son wonders that someone thought of him first when it came to tech- Duke has always been a bit self-conscious of his place among geniuses- would be all but speaking in poems to the bemused teenager.

Damian's crush on Ellie did melt Bruce's heart a little. It was his baby's first after all, but he wasn't sure if Damian's approach was doing anything. Put him on the battlefield and Damian could lead to victory. Put him next to a pretty young girl and all his son was capable of doing was stare and babble.

The only one that didn't seem to have a crush on Team Phantom was Tim. Which should have given him reassurance except for the small little detail.

"Red Robin" Danny sings upon Tim's arrival at the cave. Officially tonight they are all going over the results of the latest tests on the universe's structure. Unofficially Team Phantom had been invited over for dinner by Alfred and they were looking over the Batcave as their butler finished preparing the main course.

At once every member of Team Phantom raises their head, turning away from his love-struck children to his flustered son and singing "Yum" with wide smiles.

Tim's face goes bright red.

Apparently, Tim was their universe version of Adonis and Team Phantom had no issue with expressing how yummy they found Tim. Now Bruce isn't saying that he would be against Tim having more than one romantic partner- he has made sure to look up proper healthy poly relationships and given Tim a PowerPoint version of it.

It's just that he isn't sure how he's going to handle supporting one of his children while breaking the heart of another. Tim seems unsure how to handle so much romantic attention- he's had plenty of relationships before- but said attention is picking him before any of his siblings is a first.

Bruce knows that deep down Tim still struggles with thinking he's not as good as the others. That he really is just a placeholder in the long run.

Then there is the fact he isn't sure how their culture works. Is the singing like a mating call? Was there a chance they would earn the irk of Clockwork himself if Tim accidentally accepted their advances? Why was it always Red Robin and not just Tim himself that made Team Phantom go yummmm?

"Hi guys" Tim greets at least and Danny grins wider.

"Reeeeed Robbbbbin" " The ghost boy says throwing an arm over Tim's shoulders. Sam and Tucker surround them, making their voices sound strange as all three start singing, rocking Tim back and forth in a strange little dance.

"Yummmmm!"

From the corner of his eyes, Bruce makes out Dick's protective Older Brother's face, as his eldest starts marching towards the group with the intent of breaking them apart. He's been very vocal about putting an end to Team Phantom's flirtations if he saw so much as a hint of Tim's unease.

Except that Tim looked utterly bliss being pressed up against Danny. Maybe he should rethink Tim's disinterest in Team Phantom. The rest of his children looked murderous as more members of Team Phantom gathered around Tim also singing.

Bruce had to deal with this for three whole years. He can physically feel his hair turning greyer.

[dp-time-police]

Always good to get the hang of a canon design

[nonbinaryphantom]

roleswap danny’s arc hits very similar to a tragedy where he’s the tragic hero but due to his own hamartia he’s leading his own downfall he even has a revelation on his own self and his relationships which leads to him getting Worse. but unlike a lot of tragedies he’s. not a high status person or a great hero he’s just a kid who just got lucky/unlucky to become half-ghost and everything that comes with growing up snowballs

[satoshy12]

My hero actually DID his job!

It had been a political meeting with the big media, as Vlad had to listen to other citizens talk about their heroes and complain about how they have more supervillains and damage. As a reporter, asked Vlad, the mayor of Amity Park, what he thought about it. He himself didn't talk about villain attacks or similar.

Vlad:" It's not my fault that your heroes are failures."

Yeah Vlad insulted every hero and city just with 1 sentence.

Politician angry from Metropolis:" What the hell are you talking about?"

Vlad:" How many years did your heroes fight their villains in your cities with collateral damage?"

Someone from Gotham said, " Maybe now 20 years maybe more."

Vlad:" The hero in Amity Park only took 1 year to show all his villains the right path, that they dropped being evil, and only once in a while visit to fight the hero without any damage to the city other than that place where they fight."

Vlad had built an Arena for it; it helped both Ghost and Danny fight and train.

Many of them are silent, as if they couldn't believe 1 word to say, " Impossible. Our heroes tried it for so many years."

Vlad:" If your failures did their job, you wouldn't have any villains years ago. So, yes, I don't think your heroes do their jobs."

Vlad then didn't talk anymore about this theme; he got bored of it.

And for the media and politicians, 1 online search and they saw Vlad told the truth... And they were kind of angry and confused. How comes that boy in 1 year fixed all his villain but someone like Superman or Batman wasn't able to do it for years!

[thebibliosphere]

From what I've seen, I think the Batkids would like your book.

Hunger Pangs? You flatter me.

But also, yes thank you for this particular strain on self-indulgent brain rot. I am going to be absolutely abnormal about this.

I’d like to imagine Dick picks it up at an airport somewhere on his way back from a trip and becomes hooked on the “clever, pretty, jumps-from balconies-for-the-thrill-of-the-fall vampire and goes, “oh, same.”

The fact that it’s got a rugged, soldiery werewolf with a heart of gold who enforces self-care as a form of kink-play is also doing stuff to his brain. (That’s a thing? He can… he can ask someone for that? Who does he ask for that? It’s been weeks since he slept more than a few hours and ate more than cereal for dinner. Seriously, who does he ask? How much is it? He’s got money. He’ll pay.) The uh, the need for validation and the budding praise kink is also hitting a little too close to home.

As is “all powerful witch with the power to pick you up with her mind and throw you around like a rag doll.” (LiStEN, he spent a large chunk of his formative years surrounded by tight spandex suits, villains with sexy mind control pollen and getting kidnapped and tied up every other week. It’s not his fault he’s Like This.)

He’s not mad about it, though.

*

Babs catches him re-reading it during downtime. She’s not even that interested, more asking what it is to be polite, but the way Dick jumps and turns red, like he didn’t even realize she was in the room is… intriguing.

“I can see why you like it,” she says, several days later, casually drinking her coffee while Dick stares straight ahead, willing the floor to open up and swallow him whole. “Magic, politics. Saving the world from certain doom with the power of knowledge and ecological preservation.” She glances sideways at him. “Vlad’s got some interesting quirks.”

“Shut up.”

“Are we sure you’ve not been compromised?”

“Babs, I mean it.”

“Mean what?” Tim appears in the kitchen as though from nowhere, pouring a red bull into the coffee pot.

No one tries to stop him.

“Dick’s reading a new book,” Babs says, ignoring the murderous look Dick sends her way.

“Oh? What book? Is it any good?”

“Uh, yeah, uh.” Dick rubs at the back of his neck, glaring daggers at Babs as she rolls out of the room, cackling. “It’s uh, romance. Kind of silly actually…”

“Oh?”

Dick nods. “It’s got a vampire and a werewolf. Two guys. And a… well she’s just sort of magic. They break into a library to save the world from ecological disaster. They’re all bi. Together. Or they will be in the next book. This one’s more about the vampire and the werewolf getting together. Um...”

Tim’s gone very still in the way he does when his brain has caught hold of something and he’s absolutely about to let it consume him. “Oh?”

“Yeah.” Dick shrugs. “It’s got some kink in it,” he warns, not wanting to expose his younger brother to something he’s not ready for. Which is ludicrous because he’s Robin. And from the way Tim’s not drinking his ‘coffee’ he can tell this is only going to go one way no matter what he says. He brightens, remembering something. “But there’s, like, a non smutty version too? Or a less smutty version, I guess? I don’t know, I haven’t read it yet. I could, we could go to the bookstore, maybe stop at the art store too…”

“I’ll meet you in the car.”

*

“So,” Jason says, and Dick can already tell where this is going by the shit-eating grin on his face. “Vampires, huh? Or is it more the werewolves you’re into?”

“Who told you?” Dick bemoans. “Was it Babs?” He bets it was Babs. Fucking Babs.

“Oh, no one told me anything Boy Wonder. Tim found out the author has a go-fund-me for some medical shit that exceeded his monthly allowance and he’s been harassing Bruce to “fix it” for several days now. He’s down in the cave making a nuisance of himself right now. Apparently he quote “needs more of the bisexual monster books Dick told him about” unquote, and the author can’t do shit if she up and fucking dies because this country’s a fucking for-profit shit hole.”

Dick places his head in his hands. “Oh, God. Is Bruce mad? He’s mad, isn’t he?”

Jason shrugs. “Couldn’t tell you. Last I heard, Tim was playing him the audiobook over the bat computer to make his case.”

Dick let’s his head thump against the table. This is it. This is his villain origin story. He’s going to run away and join the Rogues. Or maybe he’ll go back to the Circus. Either option is better than the idea of having to meet Bruce’s eye later over the dinner table.

“Personally, I thought the plot was a little weak but the characters are compelling,” Jason says, sipping his herbal tea. “I liked the chill necromancer doctor. I feel like he’d be able to fix me.”

[radiance1]

Danny owns a ship.

A giant, wonderous piece of technology he is even! He made his ship from scratch!

Well, with a bit of help here and there from his parents, mom with the blueprints, him and his sister with design, and his dad showing how to fit certain pieces with each other that he couldn't do himself.

All of that resulting in the birth of his son, Tempest!

He did wonders on open water, a great ship all around that really only need him and him alone, usually at the very least. If he wasn't inviting a few friends on board, that is.

His ship was also fitted with some very good tech, wouldn't be of Fenton design if it weren't! Ghost shields, ectoplasmic canons, an engine running off of ectoplasm, etc, etc.

After he well outlived his friends and family (discounting Vlad, but that fruitloop would never die on his own anyway) he decided to sail Tempest into various waters, and by various, he meant various. Tempest, a ship unbound by time and able to sail along the timestream as long as he doesn't accidently fuck things up, lest Clockwork get on his ass about that.

It took a while of pleading for him to even agree to allow him to sail a ship as advanced as Tempest into the past, but he managed to do so. On an agreement that he would sail over to changes in time and fix them, which he does, and in the future it's pretty rad he won't lie.

Of course, then everything got kinda fucked up. You see, he was going back to his timeline via the timestream, and was going to drop by Vlad's place to drop off a few of his more recent spoils-

And yes, he dumps various things from his adventures on Vlad, least he could do after that whole trying to get with his mom and kill his dad thing. The dude's chill now, or as chill as he can get anyway, and has quite the interest in appraising the stuff he drops off, so a win-win for both of them honestly. Also, he uses the guy and his resources to upgrade Tempest here and there.

-When he uh, he well. He kinda, fucked up. Now you see, it wasn't his and it obviously wasn't the fault of Tempest either, but something outside the timestream (That Clockwork told him specifically not to look at) dragged his attention for a mite too long and suddenly he wasn't in the timestream at all.

Okay, so maybe it was his fault.

So now he was outside his dimension's timestream, and oh boy was trying to get back to it far harder than he was expecting. No wonder Clockwork constantly told him to be careful and pay full attention to navigating the timestream.

And he kinda, lost his...

He isn't a Master of Time like Clockwork is, though he does hold a good knowledge of the timestream he isn't as capable as Clockwork. So now he's lost navigating... wherever the hell he is, and is kinda hoping Clockwork would realize and find him.

He does manage to get back on a timestream though. He doesn't recognize it, but hell he only recognizes his because it was the only one he's ever entered so far. So he pops off to the present time of this timestream, and thinks that hey, yea, this definitely isn't his timeline.

Because there was a fuck ton of heroes, supervillains, magic, you name it, its here.

So, what was one eternally young-looking captain the Tempest, a time sailing ship, to do?

Explore of course!

[iguessthisisanewobsession]

Danny would like to state to the record that it wasn’t his fault.

He didn’t start the fight in anyway .

That being said ,he was very much so a main participant of said fight.

Vlad can try all he likes to make it out that the move was not that bad, the fact that the two of them were halfway across the country and play dolls was a testament of that bullshit.

He was mad and in need of some sort of release.

So when some guys were making gross remarks about a kid who was clearly not fully comprehending what they were implying, Danny just thought it was only fair if he leveled the playing field.

No Danny did not throw the first punch, but he was glad join in.

~~~~~~~~

Damian would like it to be understood that the fight was clearly not his fault.

He may had thrown the first punch but the repulsive implications that had been thrown directly to his face made it clear that he was not in the wrong.

The recorded conversation prior to the brawl that his companion had discreetly taken left little doubt.

He may had not known what they were implying at first but with new context, he felt that his actions were completely justified.

Sitting with his ally, the two of them shared a look before making quite a show to the principal on how upset they were.

By the time their guardians had arrived it was already too late for their opponents.

Yes Damian could state quite clearly that he believed that he had gained a new confidante.

[skylersprompts]

DC x DP Prompt *31*

Dan… no, Bruce often thought back how his life had started. A young kid – not older than four years of age - had died in his sleep. His soul was leaving for the realms. And the Ancients had asked him if he was ready for redemption. Ready to live a new life, with all the happiness and pain it had to offer. He said yes, because nothing could be worse than rotting in the Thermos.

He had been wrong.

He had been shoved in the dying body of a little kid, his memory's of his past life simplified, so that his new brain could still grasp them without hurting him. He knew that he had been Dan once. Now he was little Bruce Wayne. He wasn’t allowed to ever take a life while he had his free will. He wasn’t allowed to ever tell anyone about his past live. He wasn’t allowed to use his powers, should he ever find the strength to reach his core again. The Ancients had made it clear that they would otherwise take everything from him. He remembered that his original, Phantom the Ancient of Balance had been against this, but he had been outvoted. If he should be able to heal his obsessions and never kill somebody, he and his family would share an afterlife together. His obsession unwrapped itself. Without being able to reach his core it was easier. His core was mending itself back together, his broken obsessions healing. From Danny's side he got the obsession to protect and belong in his fraid. From Vlad he got the obsession for control and family. And everything seemed to be perfect in the beginning. He had his Mother and Father. They were all safe. And he had as much control as a small child could have. He really was striving.

And then his parents died.

It broke him, not completely, but enough. And then he became the Batman. Being a hero, while also having something that was so vampire-esque was almost like a homage to whom he had been made of once. And even though he didn’t have a family anymore, except for Alfred, he at least could protect other people and gain some control back.

Than he got Dick, his first Robin. And everything was wonderful again, he healed again. Then he found Jason and he was brought into his little family and he loved it so much. All of this was worth it. Having his two sons and his father in all but name by his side was so much better then the Thermos.

He had been wrong again.

Bruce need for control and protect made him sometimes a bad parent, he knew this. But he never wanted to push his children away. He needed to find Jason and apologies.

And then he hold the broken body of his son.

This time the crack was bigger. Because he should have been able to protect his family. Because it was all his fault! He wanted to hunt down and kill the clown, he was holding onto a thread. He knew he would lose everyone if he let himself slip, but it was so hard.

And then Tim came into his life, holding him together, even though it shouldn’t be his job. But he healed, little by little. Until the Red Hood came. Until Jason came back and asked the impossible.

He couldn’t damn everyone and Jason to be erased. He couldn't lose his family, his son again.

[halfagone]

Is Good Parents Maddie and Jack Fenton even possible?

Specifically, would they be able to change their mindset after over twenty years of bigotry and scientific curiosity?

If they saw their human son turn into Phantom, would they still think of him as their kid? Would they love him, accept him and support him?

I, personally, can't see the canon reveals as anything but a kid friendly compromise of giving the viewers the satisfaction of a reveal and keeping the status quo of the light-hearted show going.

But with everything the Fenton parents did, said, and invented... is it possible for them to turn their backs on their research and start from scratch? To admit that they were wrong after decades of being called quacks, crazy and idiots?

The only thing they were right about was the existence of ghosts, but now they endangered the whole world by building their portal that half-killed their son and traumatised millions of people.

So. Is it possible to write a Good Parents Jack and Maddie fic that doesn't shy away from all the awful things they did and how would you go about it?

Thank you for your time!

The short answer: Technically? Yes. Realistically? Probably not.

The long answer: Everyone is capable of change but not everyone will. For all intents and purposes, they are capable of growing as people and learning to recognize their mistakes and biases and leaving those behind... It just likely wouldn't be a simple flick of a switch. At the same time there is reason to believe that the Fentons wouldn't change their minds.

You said it yourself, over twenty years they've acted like this and so logically you would begin to assume that's just how they've always been and always will be. That shows this goes far beyond their parenting style and skills, and has everything to do with who they are as people.

(Buckle up, this one's a long post.)

We don't actually know all that much about the Fenton parents in canon. We don't see any grandparents or relatives other than Aunt Alicia. Although we have headcanons as a fandom that Jack and Maddie have ghost-related trauma, or it's a family tradition from the Fenton side with Jack Fentonightingale, to explain why they've always been like this, that is still no canon confirmation. (Fentonightingale was a witch hunter, not a ghost hunter after all.)

As far as we are aware, for one reason or another, one day Jack and Maddie started to believe ghosts were real and not just real but malicious. I may not be a scientist by career but even I can tell you they've failed in their duties as scientists the moment they chose their hypotheses over the evidence. That is literally something they teach you in high school science class; you ask a question and then research for evidence supporting that question. (Otherwise known as the "if... then" statement.)

Sometimes that means your first assumption was incorrect, but the evidence cannot be changed. So to me, the Fenton parents aren't ghost scientists, they're ghost hunters and those implications have connotations all of their own. And those connotations reflect poorly on them. And this isn't even to mention their general lack of workplace safety.

When we look at their friendships- they have no friends. They had Vlad in college, but they fucked up that relationship and don't even seem too broken up about it. They hadn't spoken to each other in twenty years until the reunion, and they obviously knew he'd made something of himself; Jazz recognized his name from Billionaire of the Year I think the magazine was supposed to be or something.

When Jack explains what happened to Vlad in "Bitter Reunions", he literally mentions how he thinks Vlad has forgiven him now. So obviously he acknowledges that what happened between them was due an apology.

Do you know something that's noticeably absent? A single apology from either Jack or Maddie. Yes, Jack might be more at fault in his accident, but Maddie ignored him for twenty years too. Vlad can talk whatever crap he'd like about Jack, but Maddie is just as culpable in his 'abandonment' as her husband is. We have proof from "Masters of All Time" that Maddie isn't afraid to go behind her husband's back and do what she wants. If she truly cared about him, she would have made an effort and she never did.

But of course, now we have to talk about them as parents. That's where things get... a lot more complicated.

In "Maternal Instincts" at one point Maddie is shown carrying Danny piggy-back style. It's never explained, it's not played off as a joke. Danny isn't injured and neither is he faking an injury. It's literally just something Maddie did, probably with the idea that she's taking care of and protecting him. And Danny isn't embarrassed by it at all, even when he's been shown to be ashamed of some of his parents' other antics.

In "Girls Night Out", Jack takes Danny fishing as a father-son bonding activity. And I mean that literally, he got the idea from a book called 'Father/Son Relationships For Stupids!'. That might imply that he's a bad parent but that also goes to prove that he's aware of his shortcomings as a father and is genuinely trying to do more for his son. Not everyone comes to parenthood naturally, so for Jack to actively search for advice- even if it comes from a book- says that he wants to do this parent thing.

But in my opinion, the episode that best reveals how the Fentons function as a family is "The Fenton Menace" (and no, that's not just because my blog description references it lol). In that episode, we see Jazz's failings as a supportive sister almost from the very start; in her opening narration, she talks about how she knows his secret and yet when he insists through and through that he sees a ghost, she still thinks she knows better/otherwise. We also get a touching moment where Maddie talks about spending quality time with the people you love (which is a line almost word for word from the show, by the way).

However, there are two things that stand out the most from this episode. This is the episode where we get the line: "Whether it's air, land, or sea I won't stop until we capture a ghost and tear it apart. Molecule by molecule." In response to this, Danny gets visibly upset. It is probably one of the most damning pieces of evidence in the entire series that his parents' behavior genuinely bothered him. He makes jokes about them shooting or experimenting on him, but humor can and often is used as a coping mechanism. After that quote? Danny didn't try to hide his reaction until later on when Jazz asked him. And even then he dismisses it with a quip.

The second thing from this episode also so happens to feed into my main point for this entire argument: This is the episode where Jack and Maddie attempt to 'spin the crazy' out of Danny. That kind of behavior is something you'd find in places like Arkham Asylum, which is notorious for their inhumane treatment of its patients. Decidedly not something you expect to see from supposedly loving parents. That absolutely constitutes as cruel and unusual punishment and yet it's not even meant to be a punishment.

They sincerely think that they're trying to help him by doing this. And that's the heart of the issue, in my opinion. Jack and Maddie don't think about other people. They don't think about their feelings or their safety or their privacy. They are so caught up in the idea that they are doing good that they never stop to think that they're part of the problem. Or the entire problem altogether.

The only time that we get some decent self-reflection is during Reality Trip, when Danny's identity is revealed by Freakshow and the Fenton parents and Jazz are taken as hostages. While they're stuck and trapped, they question why Danny had never told them his identity before, which is when Jazz comments about the poor way they used to treat his ghostly side. It's only then that it clicks for them that oh yeah we did that. That's what it took for them to recognize that their actions have consequences and even with good intentions, you are capable of hurting the people you love.

And I think that's one of the best ways to go about it. You need to give them the time and opportunity for that self-reflection and reclamation. Jack and Maddie are- naturally- a shoot first and ask later (if ever) type of people. One way or another, there needs to be a way for them to pull back and sit and look around for once.

There are many ways to address this too and make way for the possibility of Good Parents Jack and Maddie. One of the fics that immediately comes to mind for me is @akela-nakamura's Not Everything Is As It Seems. In this one we focus on Jack's perspective, and this fic made me So Unwell with its quiet gravitas, I can never recommend it enough. But if you want something from Maddie's perspective, then you can read @peachdoxie's incredible Trust Your Instincts fic. It is 36 chapters, already completed, and it's this beautiful journey through Maddie's Outsider POV.

As for me personally, I explored the subject in Chapter 51 of my fic lex luthor's ascent from supervillainy to fatherhood, Interlude III: Dynasty. We actually get two different reactions from the Fenton parents, one that is more from a 'Good Parent' and one from a 'Bad Parent'.

I think the most important part is to never shy away from talking about and exploring all the horrible things they did and have done. It's difficult to discuss, but the subject is complicated and to address it as anything less than complicated wouldn't be fair to those moments where the Fentons genuinely did want to be there for their children.

Does it make any of their behavior right? No. Does it prove that they can change? Yes. Will they? ...That will have to be left up to each individual writer.

If you found yourself in a similar family situation, of course you're gonna want your family or your parents to grow or choose you. Because you love them, and you want to keep them in your life. But at some point you have to think about yourself and your own safety and health. That doesn't mean you give up on them, but you protect yourself from the fallout in case they don't change.

Every person is capable of it, but not every person is willing to. The Fenton parents are no different in that regard.

[picturejasper20]

For all the mess that is Phantom Planet, there is something i really like about it and that is the fate of Vlad Masters when he tries to turn the asteroid intangible.

What i'm refering to is the conversation that Vlad has with Jack before leaving the spaceship, which is pretty well written in contrast to the rest of the episode.

Jack: ¨How could you hold the world hostage like that Vladdie? And after the good fortune you've had in your life.¨

Vlad: ¨Good fortune?! You infect me with ghost DNA then steal the love of my life and you call that good fortune?¨

Jack: ¨I infected you? You mean…¨

Vlad: Yes fool! It was your bumbling that made me what I am today!

There are plenty of aspects that i like about this conversation, but the part that gets me is ¨It was your bumbling that made me what I am today!¨.

Because that's basically who is Vlad at his core. He blames his bad actions on the accident and Jack. He doesn't see himself as a villain. He believes that his justified in his own actions because of his own victimization, in the sense he is never at fault of why others leave him or why things go wrong for him, it always someone else's fault, or Jack's.

Vlad's villain/antagonist arc in the main series is bit by bit loosing everyone that cares about him, either because he pushes them away or they find out what type of person he truly is but he never realizes that he is the reason this happens. He is so absorbed in his own delusion that he can't see what he is doing wrong. In result he ends up more frustrated that he already was, and thus more alone.

When Jack tries to explain to Vlad that he didn't intend to hurt him and what happened was an accident there is a moment that Vlad... stops walking, turns around and listens to what Jack is telling him.

It is interesting because it is almost like there is a part of him that wants to know what Jack has to say, even if moments later he doesn't care about that.

Jack: I never meant to hurt you. What happened was an accident. I'm your friend, Vladdie. I've always been your friend. 

Sadly for Jack, he finds out that ¨his friend¨ has become a very different person from the one he knew back in college.

Vlad: I'll remember that when I steal Maddie from you and make her my queen!

Which leaves Jack rightfully devastated that he has been friends with someone who was lying to him all this time.

Vlad flies to the asteroid and finds out that he can't touch it because it is made out of ectoranium, a sustance that ghosts can't touch and get hurt by it.

Then he realizes how screwed up he is because 1) The Earth is really doomed since he can't make the asteroid intangible and 2) he revealed his own ghost identity to the whole world and he ¨will be forever hunted¨.

Vlad: Ecto-ranium? Then I can never touch it. No ghost can. That means…the Earth is doomed. And even if it wasn't I could never go back. I've revealed…my true self. I'll be forever hunted.

Seeing that he is in real trouble he happens to ask Jack for help, minutes after he revealed what type of person he is to him, leading to one of my favourite exchanges in the series:

Vlad: Jack, you have to help me. You wouldn't turn your back on an old friend, would you?

Jack: An old friend? No. You? Yes.

And just like that Jack punches the fire jets control and leaves Vlad stranded in the middle of space, almost as a final ¨screw you¨ to his ¨best friend¨.

Desperately Vlad calls out for Jack's name only that this time there isn't anyone to answer him back. That is the moment Vlad realizes that he finds himself truly alone now, that he ended up pushing away the person who cared about him the most and that everyone on Earth hates him now. Or as he says it in ¨A Glitch In Time¨ novel: He has nothing to return to.

Then he flies away, not having the courage to get to see the Earth getting destroyed because of the asteroid.

I personally like this a lot because Vlad wasn't defeated in a epic battle, put behind bars or anything of that stuff. He was ¨defeated¨ by pushing away someone when he needed his help the most, in a sort of karmatic way.

Due to his obsession with controlling everyone and forcing people to ¨love¨ him he ended up in the way he hated the most and tried avoiding all this time: Completely alone, with no one that wants him around.

And to me, that's a satisfying way to end his arc in the main series since, again, his arc wasn't about him taking over the world or the Ghost Zone. It was about the way he treated others and how his obsession with power drove everyone away.

What it is more, i think it is one of the scenarios that makes the most sense to me for the development he gets in ¨A Glitch in Time¨ because he has to lose everything or being shown that his actions wouldn't get him what he was trying to achieve.

[satureja13]

Good news: Both, Bunny and Vlad survived the night! (And of course Diablo too :)

Vlad slept like the dead (that he actually is) even though he only had a quarter of an inch hay between him and the hard, cold soil. After he woke up, he felt like he'd been hit by a tractor - twice. He moaned and crawled up like an old man. Apparently Diablo woke him.

Diablo: 'Omg, get up already! Finish your job and let's leave this foul place! They devour me with their eyes!' Vlad, barely awake and full of aches: "Sure, pal. Let's get this over with. Keep your distance to the village until I finish work."

Diablo: 'You betcha.'

Vlad shuffled over to the sculptor's shop. From what he sees, he is a master of his craft and he has no idea why no one wanted to work for him. Well, he'll soon find out. Not that he cared much. This is just a game and he dealt with harder tasks. He'd even been to hell and back. So one day working here won't kill him. It's for Ji Ho and Saiwa - and his best friend Jack after all. There was music playing in the shop, so the sculptor is already there too, despite the early hour.

'Enjoy what'chas got, not what you have not 'tis a weak heart lamenting with sorrow When the days seem cursed, it could always be worse Fight depression with sword and arrow'

The Sculptor: "Good Morning! You're early, that's great. Take off your shirt and let's start right away. The queen is eagerly waiting for her statue!"

'When the zeppelinous clouds of trouble abound And thunder is clapping and lightning strikes ground Just when yer thinking this may be your last Throw a lash 'round the mast, hold fast!'

Eh - take off his shirt? He knows this voice. It belongs to the very person who always demands him to take off his shirt!

'When the world ain't right, and it smithes ye with strife Ye can now buckle down, it's a test they call life Very soon you will see what kind of animal you'd be Taking the bite outta life'

Leander! Vlad's nemesis! The very man who never fails to make him lose his composure! The red-haired devil who wanted to marry him. Yeah - he only cursed Vlad and dragged him down to his hell to protect him - but that does not mean he'll ever forgive him that he touched Ji Ho and almost drowned him! (Which actually wasn't Leander's fault either...)

'When they're testing the gallows, yer hung like a dog Or they're marching us out to a firing squad We just smile and recall all the good times we had It's the best 'til tomorrow It's the best day 'til tomorrow'

But of course NPC Leander did not recognize him. Because this is just a game. A stupid game! He'll have a word with Tiny Can when he's back, that's for sure... Leander: "Ah the gods sent you! You're beautiful - the Queen will be pleased! Sit over there."

'No considering surrender when yer down in the dregs If ye look down and notice you still have your legs So stand up and fight you just might seize the day It's the best day 'til tomorrow'

The Real McKenzies - Best Day until Tomorrow If you happen to like punk: this song is really good! I just found it by chance and it fits so well!

And so Vlad took off his shirt (and his pride) for Leander - again... He grit his teeth and tried not to freak out and kill this annoyingly oblivious NPC. And he reminded himself over and over again that this is just a game. And for whom he does this. Ji Ho. Jack. Saiwa. Just. A. Game.

(It seems like NPC Leander ist just as full of himself and annoying as real Leander and therefore the village folks avoids him ^^')

From the Beginning  ~  Underwater Love ~  Latest 🕹️ 'Therapy Game' from the beginning ▶️ here 📚 Previous Chapters: Chapters: 1-6 ~ 7-12 ~ 13-16 ~ 17-22 ~ 23-28

[kisses-for-you]

Blood - Vlad Tepes

Dracula X Fem!Reader

Summary: You hate being a vampire and you don't believe anyone can change your mind. But can Vlad do the impossible? Or will he fail?

Word Count: 1,134

Vlad slowly opens the door to your shared bedroom in his grand castle and his eyes stop on your small, frail body laying in the bed. Vlad observes your weakened state. He can't help but notice the sickly paleness of your skin and the fatigue in your eyes. His gaze now holds concern as he decides to address what's been bothering him lately.

"Why do you persist in these inefficient methods, my dear?" Vlad questions, his voice a velvet whisper. "You must drink blood to thrive, yet you deny yourself."

You almost physically recoil from the mere suggestion, fear etched across your face. Just the thought of consuming the blood of another human being sends shivers down your spine.

In the dimly lit room, Vlad approaches you, his presence commanding yet strangely gentle. "My love, you need to embrace your true nature," he urges, a hint of desperation in his voice. As he reaches out to caress your cheek, you can feel the familiar warmth of his touch, giving you a sense of comfort.

You meet his intense gaze, torn between your human morality and the undeniable reality of your weakening state. "I cannot, Vlad. I did not choose this fate, and I shall not inflict suffering upon others due to it," you protest, your voice wavering.

As Vlad contemplates your words, a conflicted expression crosses his immortal face. The tension in the room thickens, accentuated by the flickering candlelight. "I understand your moral quandary, my dear, but you are withering away before my very eyes," Vlad murmurs, his crimson eyes reflecting both love and worry.

After a moment of pure silence, you decide to speak up, your voice slowly getting quieter as a result of your lack of energy. "Why can't you see that this is not about morals? Vlad, I truly loathe what I have become. And if I must continue to live like this... then I harbor no desire to continue living."

Vlad's eyes darken with a mixture of frustration and sorrow. "You do not mean that," he mutters, unable to comprehend that his wife, the love of his life, would feel such a thing as this. You love him, despite the fact that he is a vampire, yet you despise yourself for the very same thing.

"I love you, Vlad. However, I do not wish to continue this conversation for any longer. I am far too fatigued and simply desire some rest," you say, hoping that he will finally stop talking about this. Yes, you hate yourself for being a vampire. You didn't choose this life so why should you make others suffer for it? Animals, humans - it isn't their fault that you are the way you are so you will not inflict harm upon them simply to sustain yourself.

With a deep sigh, Vlad reluctantly nods, his expression a mix of resignation and concern. He leans down to place a gentle kiss on your forehead, whispering, "Rest, my love. We shall revisit this discussion another day."

He gets up to leave but you reach out, grabbing his hand. "Can you stay with me?"

"Of course, my dear," he responds softly, settling beside you. You lay your head on his chest, listening to the sound of his heart beating. He wraps a protective arm around your waist, pulling you closer to his side.

As you drift into a troubled sleep, Vlad remains by your side, watching over you with a worried gaze. After some time goes by, Vlad carefully gets up, making sure not to wake you. He leaves the room and returns minutes later with a vial of blood in hand. Vlad carefully approaches your sleeping form and with a tinge of guilt, he administers you a small dose of blood, hoping it's enough to keep you alive until he can find some way for you to drink blood without harming others.

Silently, he curses you and your stupid morals; if it wasn't for them, you wouldn't be suffering like this. But he knows he can't change the way you are so all he can do is try to find a method to sustain you without resorting to the traditional vampiric ways.

He heads to a different part of a castle where he immerses himself in ancient scrolls and tomes, seeking a solution. Vlad can't bear to see you so weak for much longer. He knows that if he doesn't find a solution, the fate that awaits you is something he doesn't even want to consider a possibility. He can't fathom losing you.

The next morning, you wake up to find the room filled with an eerie silence. Vlad's absence is palpable, and a sense of foreboding settles over you. As you explore the castle in search of him, you suddenly feel very dizzy. You lean against the wall for support but it's not much help. After a couple of seconds, your vision goes black and you faint, your body falling to the floor.

Vlad hears the sound of your collapsing body and within seconds, he's by your side. He finds you unconscious on the floor, and panic grips his undead heart. His eyes are wide with worry, concern etched on his face. He gently lifts you, cradling you in his arms. The guilt gnaws at him; he wasn't able to help you in time, and now you're paying the price.

"I should have been faster," Vlad whispers to himself, regret coloring his words. He carries you back to the bedroom, placing you on the bed with utmost care. As Vlad lays you on the bed, a mixture of guilt and determination fills his crimson eyes. He gazes at your unconscious form, vowing silently to find a solution before it's too really too late.

With a heavy heart, Vlad continues his relentless search, the castle's ancient texts and hidden knowledge becoming his refuge. Days turn into nights, and Vlad's desperation intensifies.

But in the end, it just wasn't enough.

In your final moments, Vlad kneels by your lifeless body, grief-stricken. His crimson eyes, once vibrant with determination, now reflect the emptiness that consumes him. For the first time in years, he is truly alone. He clutches your lifeless hand, feeling the chill that has now replaced the warmth he once cherished.

As Vlad gazes at your lifeless form, a single tear slips from his eyes. "I'll love you forever, Y/N Tepes," he whispers, wishing you were actually here to hear his words. But you're not. And Vlad feels that it's all his fault. It's all his fault that the love of his life died. All his fault that you're no longer here. He wishes he could bring you back, but this isn't some romantic fantasy where you can just magically come back to life; this is reality.

[friendly-neighborhood-imbecille]

Only 900 words, still looking for a title, art at the end. @schnuffel-danny @lemon-snake

Jack Fenton was a peculiar man. Intelligent, yet idiotic. Intimidating, yet soft. He was the most normal and easy to understand man that Vlad had ever met in his life, yet he made absolutely no sense.

For twenty two years Vlad had resented Jack, hated him even. He had tried to kill the man, but what had Jack done in return? He laughed, invited Vlad over, sent him gifts, letters, cards with dumb jokes on them, he even sent a cat when he worried that Vlad wasn’t getting enough social interaction. No doubt Daniel was the one to give him that idea, but the way he proudly smiled when Vlad accepted the offering rather than slamming the door in his face. Why couldn’t he stop thinking about it?

A peculiar man indeed. No other was able to get under Vlad's skin in quite the same way. It was easy to hate him, so why was it getting harder to enact his revenge plans as time went on? Why was it harder to keep away since the reunion? Why was it so much harder to hate Jack when he was sitting right in front of him?

For years, all he wanted was to eliminate Jack, and live out the rest of his life with Maddie by his side. For so long, this was the only route to happiness. But now? The path didn’t seem so clear. 

He had believed he could never be as happy as he was before the accident, not without Jack dead and Maddie by his side. But recently that ideal world has shifted. Just as his dreams changed last year to include Daniel as his son, they were changing again to bring Jack by his side. But this made no sense. It was Jack who ruined him, Jack who destroyed his life, Jack who killed him. 

But the more he thought about it, the more complicated it became. 

Yes, it was Jack that activated the portal. Yes, if not for Jack, he would still be human. Yes, it was because of Jack that he went through years of medical torture, but Jack was not the only variable. He could just as easily say it was the hospital’s fault for allowing its doctors to run those tests and experiments, that it was his fault for getting so close to the portal, or even dear sweet Maddie’s fault for having a large hand in developing the technology necessary to create the portal. 

It seemed so silly to pin everything that went wrong in his life on one single man. A man who had, in truth, meant none of it. 

Of course, there was the matter of Jack leaving him alone to rot all those years. Not one single phone call in twenty two years. But Maddie didn’t call either. He had resented Jack for abandoning him, but didn’t Maddie do the same? He always excused her absence, reasoning that she was unable to contact him while he was in the hospital, and then may not have known how to contact him after his escape, so why didn’t he excuse Jack’s absence the same way?

And why was he learning to excuse it now?

Vlad stood up and made his way to the library. Maddie, his cat, close at his heels. She really was quite the affectionate animal. Though he did feel a tad bit insulted by the gift at first, he had grown to appreciate her as a companion. It was nice to have someone to take care of. 

He knew she should be an unwelcome reminder of his old friend. But strangely, when he looked at her and thought of how excited Jack was to gift her to him, how it didn’t take thirty seconds before the man revealed what he was hiding behind his back, the way his hands shook and his entire body bobbed up in down in anticipation for Vlad’s reaction, he felt amused, endeared even. 

This was all so confusing. For twenty two years he had hated this man. For twenty two years, Jack Fenton had been the bumbling idiot that had cost him his life, his love, his freedom, but when he thought of the man now, it wasn’t hate he felt. 

He didn’t hate Jack Fenton. 

As he sat in his armchair, Maddie the cat in his lap, and a book he didn’t remember picking up in his hand, he realized that his entire world was changing.

He didn’t hate Jack Fenton. 

Shit.

———

Jack Fenton sat at his kitchen table, trying to make sense of the strange readings the scanner he was working on was emitting when he heard a small knock on the front door, followed soon after by the doorbell. 

He stood up, chair scraping against the floor and made his way towards the source of the sound. “I’ll get it!”

He reached the door and was met with the most peculiar sight upon opening it.

There stood Vlad, standing straight up, breathing heavily, dressed in the nicest suit Jack had ever seen, hair frazzled (yet obviously expertly styled not long ago), a fistful of flowers and the odd blade of grass in hand, many petals missing, stems bent, and what looked like roots with clumps of dirt still attached at the bottom of some.

“Hello, do you know about polyamory?”

[petite-phthora]

His Dark Roast-- what now?

[DP x DC fic]

[Love at first... murder? - part 8]

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Part 1

Ao3

---

Tim doesn’t take his eyes off of the monitor in front of him as he takes another sip of his Dark Roast MonsterBull, AKA his beautiful homemade concoction of dark roast coffee, Monster, and Red Bull.

The taste truly isn’t that bad, and easy to ignore. The caffeine is the main benefit of it anyway. Though he’s contemplating experimenting with it again by adding some Mountain Dew sometime to give it some more… kick.

After Tim maybe not so accidentally spilled the beans on Jason, he decided to leave the Bats to chasing him around while Tim got the hell out of dodge before Jason found out who discovered his date and snitched on him to the rest.

It’s Tim’s fault for telling them, yes, but he’d still prefer to live, thank you very much.

And so Tim had made his way back to the cave, claiming to be exhausted and that he was ‘trying to be responsible by going to bed at a decent time, for once’.

Besides, he’d clearly need to be well-rested to be able to help out in the case and find the Joker.

…

Yeah, he saw the looks he got and he wouldn’t have believed himself either.

But hey, it worked.

Once he’d gotten back, Tim wasted no time in making himself his Dark Roast MonsterBull before getting behind the monitor of the bat computer and starting his research on the guy Jason took on a date.

After briefly updating his will real quick, you know, just in case. Which is not ‘wasting time’

However, what Tim hadn’t been expecting was the challenge it actually took to find anything useful on the guy.

He started by going through the cams of the apartment building, restaurant, observatory, and their surroundings in an attempt to get a clean shot of the guy, which he had unfortunately forgotten to take with a picture camera earlier when he was still following Jason.

But when he went through the footage, everything was corrupted.

Every single audio and video file of the cameras in the vicinity of Jason and his date was overcome by static and distortion up until the moment when they were fully offscreen and a few hundred meters away, at which point the files went back to normal and were completely fine.

Either one of them has some kind of really good signal jammer on them, or the dude is great at hacking and covering the tracks of having tempered with the files, or the dude’s a meta with some awfully convenient powers.

Tim tried fixing the footage for a while before giving up on it. Since the footage was clearly a bust, he had made the decision to go about getting more information another way.

He knew where the guy lived, as he’d seen where Jason had led him out of the window, and he had a vague description of his appearance from having seen him from afar. Besides that, apartment buildings usually register their residents.

And so Tim hacked into the apartment’s system with ease and pulled up the residents’ information. After filtering through the data by only looking at residents who live on the correct floor and who loosely match the guy’s description, Tim managed to find something.

His name is Daniel Fenton. He’s 20 years old and he has no registered meta status. His previous residence was in some obscure city named Amity Park which is located in Illinois. He moved into his apartment just about a week ago.

He is currently unemployed and has a scholarship at Gotham University. Rent is paid through autopayment from a bank account in his name, though the account is also linked to one… Vlad Masters?

After noting down that interesting piece of information, Tim moves on to Daniel’s school records, which don’t seem to be all that interesting. He majors in aerospace engineering and minors in both astronomy and astrophysics, which might be why Jason took him to the observatory.

So Jason has either known the guy for a while, or he also did his research on Daniel like Tim is doing. Or both, which is just as likely.

Besides that, Daniel uses he/him pronouns and his ICE contact is his sister, Jasmine Fenton, who has recently gained her doctorate in psychology, becoming Dr. Jasmine Fenton.

She recently moved to Gotham City as well, though she lives in a different apartment building, and has applied for a position in Arkham Asylum as one of the psychologists there.

After reading that, Tim had wished her a mental good luck as if she was a soldier getting sent off to war.

After going through the school records, Tim started searching around for some of their social media accounts.

However, he did not end up getting anything due to any and all pictures and videos of Daniel or any of his old city’s residents sending out error messages and ending up being endless loading screens.

Seeing that he wasn’t getting anywhere through social media, Tim instead decided to just go for the obvious and look up the city of Amity Park in itself. However, that’s the moment Tim ran into a huge firewall.

Which is what he’s currently still inspecting.

Not one to back down from a challenge, and actually intrigued by the firewall, Tim tries to break through. It seems to be pretty easy at first.

Thinking like that is his first mistake, he notes as he hits a wall.

The second mistake he made is apparently not accounting for self-writing code that will learn from hacking attempts and proceed to patch up and reinforce any discovered gaps along the way.

Undiscouraged, Tim tries again.

And again.

And… again.

He’s stumped…

It’s almost like the code is… for a lack of better word, living…

Tim startles out of his reverie when hands slam down on the desk in front of him and another pair takes his Dark Roast MonsterBull from his hands. He looks up and makes eye contact with none other than Dick, who is still in his Nightwing costume.

Looking behind him, he notices Steph holding his mug and smiling sweetly. She unsubtly tries to take a sip from it only to end up on the floor, gagging and practically coughing her lungs out.

Tim, unconcerned, turns away at her strained “Oh my God, this is horrible! How are you still alive?”

She’ll be fine, he decides.

He looks around to see everyone back in the cave, most likely having just arrived back from the patrol. Most don’t pay him any mind, discussing something amongst themselves. Duke notices and gives him a small wave though, which Tim returns.

He looks back at Dick when he starts speaking again and oh, the does not like what that smile implies.

“So Timmy, I need you to tell me everything. Pretty please?”

Oh boy.

---

Taglist:

@i-always-say-yea   @uraniumwizard    @why-must-i-be-like-this   @griffinthing

[inthememetime]

DP × DC but it's a tired and burnt out Danny that makes landfall in Gotham, in this AU Danny is a halfa but it is his sister that plays the role he does in Canon and he only got his powers via ectoplasm contamination. He got burnt out acting as his sisters occasionally sidekick and her alibi in regards to their parents, so after he finally graduated from Casper High he opted to find himself while Jazz joined the Justice League.

So here we have a severely overtired and burnt out Daniel Fenton working at a local Lexbucks Coffee Shop when out of the blue he gets involved in the usual Gotham drama that results in a drive-by shooting wherein Danny gets shot. Danny, being a Halfa, gets up despite having been visibly shot in locations that would be fatal to anyone else but for him it's nothing and he goes back to work.

So begins the interest in Gotham's newest criptid; The Undead Barrista.

👀👀👀

(Lmk if you'd like to read this on my A03, and/or a version from his coworkers POV!) Ok so I did a fic!

Length: short boi. Save about 10-15 minutes.

Summary: see ask above. PLUS Danny sasses Gotham's Rogues Gallery into submission and finds out he really wasn't as useless as he felt.

Danny was second; he was the second child. The second smartest child. The second best as dealing with people. The second one to DIE and get superpowers.

At first, it was exciting! Phantom and Wraith, superhero duo of Amity Park! But Jazz- or Wraith, when she was in ghost form- had the ability to make people feel safe. To calm down situations before they ever started.

Danny had the ability to tear enemies to shreds, destroy infrastructure, and scare people.

Even Sam and Tucker agreed, although not in so many words. They didn't need to; after Dan, after they knew what he'd probably become, things really changed. He was watched, less to make sure he was safe, and more to make sure he didn't become Dan.

When he started sympathizing with that Fruitloop, Vlad, he knew something had to change.

So he flew up, up, into Earth's orbit, so he could look at the planet below. He didn't know how long he stayed there, but when he saw the sun set over the Himalayas, he felt something in him... settle, somehow. And he came to the realization he needed to leave.

It wasn't their fault- his sister, Sam, Tucker. He was the worse liar, so their parents suspected him of everything. He dealt with ghosts better than people, so Wraith was more trusted. As they aged, and Wraith looked the same but older and Phantom started looking like Dan- well. It wasn't the people of Amity Park's fault, either. Besieged by monsters, who would want to rely on one?

He got his things and left. He left a note saying he needed a fresh start, and then took off. He didn't leave the name of the city he was moving to. He didn't know.

That was how he became a barista at a Lexbucks in Gotham with a tiny loft apartment. And for the first time since he was 15, he was happy. Really, truly happy. He made friends in an astronomy club, and got together every other Friday withe people to watch old movies.

He was about to start a management program at Lexbucks. He would be 'needed' by Clockwork every Monday for an unknown amount of time (it was hard to tell time when CW paised as needed. Sometimes Monday lasted weeks, if he thought it was warranted.)

Clockwork being Clockwork, that sometimes meant he needed to solve some ghost issue, or fix a paradox, or come over for dinner, or take a vacation. (Was there a portal in his closet? Yes. Yes there was.)

He saw Frostbite once a week too, Gotham being closer to the Far Frozen, and was learning Greek- both ancient and modern- from Pandora.

He was finally going to ask out Eduardo from the bookstore across the street today.

That meant, of course, he was shot right outside his apartment. Danny left for work around 3 AM; his apartment was pretty close to the edge of Crime Alley, he was the store opener and they started serving customers at 4 AM. A match made in hell.

He heard the gunshots before he felt them, and reflexively turned invisible to change into Phantom. The drive by shooting ended as quickly as it began, leaving Danny to curse and change his shirt. Dammit.

Ah well. Gotta love Tuesdays, right?

Next Tuesday was when Condiment Man walked into the Lexbucks. Probably to try and rob it, but it was difficult to understand over all the giggling from his regulars.

"Bring Gotham to-"

"Sir, this is a Lexbucks. Please just order your coffee, tea, other drink, or something to eat."

Condiment Man gaped for a moment. "I- I don't want coffee. I want villainy."

He nodded. "Fair. But this is a Lexbucks. No villainy, just coffee, tea, sodas, food. No evil available except the evil inherent in corporations."

"I. Um. Ok?"

After a moment, Danny cleared his throat. "So about your order?"

"Um. Well. Can I order you to join me in my quest to bring Gotham to its knees?" He asked nervously.

"Kinky." He said, and Condiment Man sputtered. "But no." His calm demeanor changed in the blink of an eye. "Get your hand off the trigger for that mustard right now, or you'll be cleaning every inch of this place with a toothbrush until it sparkles!"

Condiment Man yelped and left. The locals- regulars and newbies- started laughing. He was pretty sure somebody started crying. His tips were glorious.

Maybe Tuesdays weren't so bad after all.

XxXxXx

"I got a hit on Danny!"

Jazz spun around. "Really? You're sure, Tuck?"

"About 50%, the video is pretty grainy. But you tell me somebody else who deescalates villains with sass."

"Where?"

"That's the problem. They were using a VPN. It's somewhere in the US, probably Gotham, Metropolis, or League City- Gotham Rogues get around sometimes."

Jazz's face started to fall. "Tucker, thank you, but- it's been 5 years. Are we sure his face didn't totally change? I mean, remember Vlad's before and after?"

He sighed heavily. "Jazz, we failed him. I failed my best friend. I missed that he was hurting for 3 years before he ran. No matter what that note said, I was probably part of the problem. Give up on him of you want. But I'm gonna keep looking."

God, those notes had been like kicks in the teeth. If it was Vlad, he'd say it was orchestrated. But it was Danny. He very much did not blame them. He didn't want to go. And what was carefully not said, but pieced together when they compared the note left for him, Sam, Jazz, and the elder Fentons was they were the biggest reason he left.

XxXxXx

"I, the Baffler, will bring chaos and confusion to Gotham's streets with your assistance, Undead Coffee Person!"

That was, oddly enough, better than Inviso-Bill. Still. "Hey man, this is a Lexbucks. And I have a name."

He seemed delighted. "Wonderful! What is your villain name?"

"No, no, no villain name. I'm not a villain. Just a barista. My name's Jack. What's your order?"

The baffler seemed. Well. Baffled. "But aren't you going to join me in my life of crime?"

Danny sighed heavily. "Dude. I just wanna pay my bills. Coffee, tea, what do you want?"

"You can pay your bills with crime!"

The Baffler seemed so honestly pleased it was hard to get angry. Just a big guy in a dumb costume, and Ancients he missed his dad. But then he shot the cash register. "See? Crime!"

Danny snarled and, quick as a blink, The Baffler's hamds were frozen to the counter. "You have ice powers?!"

"And you have dumbass powers, you knockoff Riddler. I'm calling the cops."

XxXxXx

"You must be truly desperate to come to me for help," Vlad said with amusement plain on his face.

Sam narrowed her eyes, and Tucker scowled. "Yeah, well, we need untraceable cash, and you're the kind of guy to keep that on hand."

"And why do you need it?"

Sam grit her teeth, but replied, "let's just say if we find what we're looking for, the number of halfas might be back up to 4."

His eyes flashed brightly. "Well, then. How much do you need?"

XxXxXx

"Together, we will bring Gotham into the next ice age!" Mr. Freeze roared.

Danny narrowed his eyes. "Doctor, this is a Lexbucks. What do you want to order?"

"You, too have powers of ice! Together, we can bring Gotham into the cold!"

He sighed. "Ok. So frozen. Small, medium, or large?"

"I- I am ordering destruction, not coffee!"

Danny pointed to the menu. "Do you see destruction on the menu here? No. No, you don't. Your order?"

He gaped. "Chai latte? Mocha cappuccino? You seem like a smoothie kind of guy, want one of those?"

Mr. Freeze cleared his throat. "What kind of smoothies do you have?"

XxXxXx

"Are you seriously going behind my back with Plasmius?"

Wraith stood, arms crossed with a scowl. "Oh back off, you're nowhere near as scary as Phantom. Or even Skulker." He snapped.

Batman cleared his throat. "I'm told you have information about an incredibly dangerous illegal meta in Gotham?"

Sam shook her head. "I wish I could say I couldn't believe this. He's your brother."

Jazz swallowed. "You don't even know for sure if this is Phantom. This could be a legitimate threat."

"Every time I start to wonder why he left, all I have to do is remind myself about-"

"Sam."

"He's our best friend, Tucker! And she just might've gotten him thrown into Arkham, because Batman doesn't believe in rehabilitation!"

And another argument began.

XxXxXx

"I'm so sorry, Jack. I really like you, I do! It's just..." Eduardo trailed off, shaking underneath Danny's jacket.

"It's ok. You didn't sign up for getting kidnapped by the Penguin in a sick job offer."

He smiled a little shakily, and Danny hugged him tightly. "I'll see you around, ok?"

"Thanks, Jack."

Why the hell was he so broken up over a guy who didn't even know his real name?

XxXxXx

Thursday began at the sight of the Joker prowling around. Danny let his jaws drop and released a hiss that made fully grown ghosts back the hell up, following it by the unearthly rattle he learned from Fright Knight.

The Joker backed up. Swallowed. Put on his trademark grin, and stepped back in. Albeit a little further from the front counter. "Now, now, kid, I'm a clown! Kids love clowns, yeah?"

Another hellish hiss echoed from behind the Joker. He paled, then stiffened as a massive blue hand was on his shoulder. "Perhaps this isn't the best place for you."

The Joker laughed shakily. "Hey, pal, I'm-"

Plasmius' glowing eyes flashed, and the Joker's started glowing red. The clown's face fell slack. "This isn't the best place for you."

"This...isn't the...best...place....for me." The Joker slurred.

"Leave." Commanded the vampire ghost.

The Joker staggered out drunkenly. Plasmius turned his attention to the counter. "Can I get a large black coffee? With a shot of espresso, please."

Danny cocked his head and tried not to laugh at Kristen's face when the fruitloop sat next to her. "Sure. Kristen?"

She looked at him, wide-eyed. "He's not going to hurt or overshadow you. Right, Plasmius?"

"Of course," he agreed magnanimously.

Plasmius drank his coffee at the store. He bought a blueberry donut. Gave him a $500 tip. "The number hasn't changed. Call me, and we'll see about moving you before Batman and his friends crash the place."

"I can fly, you know."

"He has multiple jets. And besides, from what I've heard, Wraith is helping him track down the big, scary meta."

"Thanks for the warning, Plasmius. I'll think about it."

The elder halfa nodded and left, phasing through the door.

Jazz was hunting him. Jazz was hunting him. His sister was- it wasn't fair. He left her the entire territory of Amity Park. She had the undivided love and attention of everyone in Amity Park. Inside the roll of $100 bills was a business card.

He pocketed it, and yet another super came in. Plasmius was right. They were hunting him. Red Robin frowned at the menu.

"Hey, do you still have the mint hot chocolate?"

"Yeah," he said quietly. "Small, medium, or large?"

"Large, please." Red Robin waited in silence while his drink was prepared. "So, Jack Walker isn't your real name."

Danny shook his head. "Nah. If you're going to arrest me, might as well just call me Danny."

He observed him carefully, then nodded. "I'll see you around, Jack. Try to keep out of trouble."

XxXxXx

"He isn't a threat!" Tim snapped.

"You deliberately disobeyed me! We agreed not to approach the person who can use mind control!"

"You agreed, B. Wraith, just leave him alone, ok? He just wants to make his coffee and leave every day."

"Is he my brother or not?"

"Does it matter? He left." Tim snapped. "That guy is just trying to make a living. He's not going to hurt anyone who doesn't start trouble."

Jazz embraced both Sam and Tucker, feeling real, true hope for the first time in years. "It's Danny! Guys it's Danny, we can bring him home!"

"None of you are leaving until we can bring him in for questioning."

Jazz's face hardened, then she agreed. That was alright. She had a secret weapon. Two of them, actually.

XxXxXx

"Jack, you've got people asking for you."

Danny groaned.

"Sorry Jack, you're the one who made the rule about people in weird suits with guns."

"Yeah, fair. Thanks."

He stepped out behind the counter, and froze. "Danny?"

He swallowed. Blinked to make sure he was seeing what he thought. "Mom? Dad?"

For the first time in 5 years, he was embraced by his parents. He didn't feel bad about the tears. He couldn't. "Let's go home, baby. Let's go home."

"I can't. I- I'm not..."

"It's ok, Danny. We know now. About Phantom."

"I'm so sorry we made you feel your only recourse was running away."

XxXxXx

He had started to get the idea Jazz might be hunting him in a violent way. The only violent thing was the force of her hug, and the way her nails dug into his shoulder to keep him close.

Danny couldn't quite understand her over the blubbering, but that was fine; he had always been a sympathetic crier. Although the way all of the bats, Constantine, and Superman were shifting awkwardly, trying not to watch them while watching them, was pretty funny. It got worse when Sam kicked Batman in the knee and joined them. Then there was Tucker, and his mom, and- his dad was squeezing them tight enough to pick them up a few inches.

It took a ridiculous amount of time to get them all to stop crying- and Danny included himself. He had a good 5 years of believing he did nothing but harm to his human(ish) family to cry over.

"So just to be clear. You are not a villain."

"Yep. Used to be in the hero game, even."

"And you're not going to start being a villain."

He chuckled. "No, I won't."

"For now, your stay in Gotham is fine, though you should start using your legal name. If you don't like Danny Fenton, you can always legally change it. Can we call on you if we get a ghostly threat closer to home?"

"Absolutely."

"Wait! Danny, you're going home, though, right? With us?" Jazz asked hopefully.

"I'd like to visit," he said quietly, "but Jazz- I scare humans. Pretty badly."

"The ghosts negotiate with you, they listen to you! And people- look, now that Phantom's not there stopping fights by talking to ghosts before they start, or helping the new dead solve their murders- well. Phantom has been missed."

"Jazz, you do all that too. And you calm humans down way better than I ever have, so-"

"Danny," Tucker interrupted, "please, buddy. You don't have to stay, just come for a week. Things are different now. Promise."

And. Well. Even if they were wrong, he missed them. So much. "I can do a week."

[tanglepelt]

If he is a Monster, what were they?

A03

Danny is used to nicknames after being exposed they changed for the worst.

Danny is used to nicknames. His parents had always been big on them.

Dan and Dan-o to start.

The normal ones. Nothing extreme nothing bad. Then high school came.

Fenturd, Fen-toenail, and Fentonowski

Dash’s insult we’re comical at best. His own way to attempt to humiliate Danny. Danny did that well on his own. Sleeping in class, the drooling. His pants falling off.

Then the ghost appeared all on their own.

Ghost boy

Ghost punk

Baby pop

Only to annoy him. Danny was just used to nicknames. New ones always seemed to take him by surprise, but names never really hit him hard in the end. That’s not to say they never bugged him but something he could live with.

Then they changed for the worst.

Freak

Abomination

And the one that hit the most.

Monster

All because he was a halfa. All because of an explosion gone wrong. A freak accident. Something he didn’t want. He shouldn’t have gone into the portal, but it should have had some safeguards. Becoming part ghost had never been a plan. He just wanted to be an astronaut and work for NASA. That would never happen now.

He just had to be exposed.

Skulker had to hunt him during school hours. Had to expose him with the silly nickname he gave Phantom. Called him ghost boy. Threatening to skin him. Danny left to transform only for Skulker to call Phantom ghost boy.

Something so simple. Such a minor detail had sent his life spiraling downwards.

Valerie was the one to piece it together. She was the one who outed him. All because she held a grudge against Cujo.

Jack and Maddie held no sympathy.

Grave robber

Body snatcher

MONSTER

Just an uncaring unfeeling ghost. One who stole the appearance of their son to hurt them. This had to be why Danny’s grades slipped. That had to be the reason he snuck out.

A monster had taken over their son.

He tried to explain it to them. Explain he was still him. That he was still alive. It wasn’t his fault that his molecules got all arranged.

They didn’t listen.

Just ecto blast and screams. Swearing they would hunt him down and make him release their son. That he had to just ruin everything. He was the one who brought the ghost into the town. He was the one causing problems for Amity.

Every event, every ghost was all Phantom's fault.

Danny. The main reason life in town still functioned. Did he accidentally suggest to Technus to take over the world? Technically yes. Danny still fixed his own problems. Even if he did have help. Imagine the damage that would be done without him. Spectra would have caused Jazz to go out with a bang, Box Ghost would have invaded every store to take their boxes, and the damage the ancients would have done.

Danny didn’t tear the hole in reality. He didn’t keep the portal open. Wasn’t injecting ecto-entities with experimental drugs. Danny wasn’t antagonizing a whole new dimension.

Well… he might… have you know antagonizing some people.

Mainly his rogues. They didn’t count.

If anyone was the problem. It was Jack and Maddie.

They opened the portal. They infected Vlad with ecto acne. Not properly confirming the results, Jack used soda rather than a purifier. The Doctor Fenton’s experiments should have failed. They had no reason to be successful in the one thing that endangered the world.

They let Jazz raise him.

Too consumed with their work, constantly going after ghosts. Almost every adventure ended with a ghost. Days used to be spent outdoors pr at parks now in a lab. Coming to his school to hunt ghosts to “protect” them. Neither he nor Jazz felt that was true. It was all to fulfill a sick twisted obsession to tear a being molecule by molecule. The lab, the OSHA not approved lab, was a perfect place for a subject.

The random explosions, blowing the power lines, once blowing up the town water supply, and so much more. There was no care for anything minus the lab or showing off to the public.

The lack of protocols killed him. Even if he had walked in of his own free will, they should have had a lock or anything. Not a basement just open to their children. They weren’t even a danger to just their so-called “family”. No, they endangered the town every day.

Destruction of buildings. Jack drives through walls, hits and runs, and the number of times they’ve nearly hit the citizens. Why did the people of Amity do nothing? Why weren’t zoning laws enforced? Why didn’t the town do anything?

Why was it excused?

The school had been infected. The parents were just okay with not seeing their kids. Those guards didn’t even look human. Even if they were contagious. They didn’t question why they couldn’t see their kids behind a glass window. Or even a photo. Nothing.

The only adult who seemed to care was Mr. Lancer. He pushed students to do their best. He cared about them. In his own way.

Despite everything Jack and Maddie have done the town trusted their words blindly. Anyone could see their research was biased, that their experiments were dangerous, and if anyone bothered to look the ghost coming into town always came in by FentonWorks.

The ones who opened the town to untold terrors. The ones who blew the power grid constantly. Causing blackouts. The two who caused more damage than those in the infinite realm. Minus Vortex and Undergrowth.

No one in town listened. Valerie only concurred with Jack and Maddie. Accusing Phantom of planning to ruin her life.

Monster

Sam and Tucker spoke up. They were ignored. The Fentons Claimed he was controlling them. Jazz spoke up, she was just caught in her grief.

Danny wasn’t wanted by anyone. Except for his friends and sister. Then those who hunted him.

If the town didn’t want him so, be it.

Packing wasn’t hard, the four already had bags. Getting out of town wasn’t hard, somehow the school boiler exploded. Everyone in town assumed the monster had started an attack.

No one would expect a vice principal with a key. Would they?

Leaving town was hard. They all grew up there it is always hard to leave memories behind. They’d have to flee the country as well. Seek asylum somewhere else. Somewhere without the GIW.

Amity would always see him as a monster.

If he was a monster, what were they?