Crack prompt: Danny has declared war on the curses in Gotham. He is armed with a water balloon gun, but the balloons are full of medical-grade ectoplasm. He targets any location, ghost, or liminal being tainted by curses and/or corrupted ecto - absolutely drenching them before yeeting off again.
This includes the Bats. Danny is smart about it, though. He lived in Gotham for several months before acting, so he could get the lay of the land. He also waits for patrol to be finished before hitting the Bats - he doesn't want to interrupt their Quest to Better Gotham (or be labeled an invader to their haunt).
One night, Danny happens upon Batman patrolling alone and waits for him to finish cleaning up a crime scene before hitting they guy with a half-clip of balloons. Batman gives chase, like he always does, and Danny runs, like he always does. He knows by now that, for whatever reason, Crime Alley is off limits to Batman. The whole alley just gives off "no (other) bats allowed" vibes.
Red hood is just more territorial. Whatever.
At any rate, Danny is enjoying the chase, using just enough ghost powers to stay ahead of batman, almost-but-not-quite taunting him. Crime Alley isn't too far, so instead of turning invisible around a corner like he usually does, he makes his way to the Alley to see if the no-trasspassing rule is enough to stop Batman mid-chase. He leaps across rooftops and weaves through fire escapes, ecto-balloon-gun bouncing by its strap against his back, until finally he's at the border, slightly tapping into flight to make the jump across a slightly wider road into the alley proper.
He turns around immediately, spotting Batman skulking on the rooftop on the other side of the road, stopping the chase and suit half-covered in healing ectoplasm.
"Sanctuary!" Danny yells, pumping his fists in the air from getting caught up in the exciting rush of adrenaline, "I claim sanctuary!"
"Who the fuck is claiming sanctuary in my territory?" Red Hood booms from almost directly behind Danny. He would have yeeted out of his own skin from surprise if he hadn't spent years honing his ghost-fighting instincts. As it was, Danny instead whirled around and emptied the clip of balloons into Hood, purely out of reflex.
Hood stood there, drenched in ecto like his fellow Bat one rooftop over, glaring murder at Danny with glowing eyes. But his haunt betrayed Hood's true emotions.
Surprise, concern, impressed, you-little-brat.
Danny booked it to the fire escape and turned invisible the second he was out of sight.
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Fox is in the middle of decoding a message when Breha runs into the room.
Fox doesn't need to look at her for more than a second to see that she is frightened.
"What is it?" He asks. He is already on his feet before he has gotten all the words out of his mouth. "What's going on?"
"They know", Breha says, and Fox's insides turn to ice.
He is not thinking about the message anymore. He is not thinking about anything he had been doing just a moment before.
The only thing he is thinking about right now is Leia.
Leia, who is sleeping just in the next room over. Breha runs in there, and Fox starts to grab anything that is around him.
Comlink. Weapons. The little clothes the nanny droid has just piled up from the laundry.
He doesn't have the time to pack much more, because Breha is already running back, with blearily blinking Leia in her arms, still wrapped inside her blanket. She gives Fox a look, and Fox leaves everything else and follows her out of the room.
The whole castle is in alarmed by the time they have made it to the main corridor. Sateen is there when they turn towards the hangar.
"Where's Bail?" Fox asks. They don't have any time to spare. They need every second in order to get as far away as possible.
In order to get away at all.
"He's packing up the ship", Sateen says. He joins them as they make their way downstairs. "He sent me to meet up with you. Your armor is already in the ship."
Fox had not even thought about his armor. He had not even touched the entire thing after leaving Coruscant. He had not needed it, not with going through all the treatments and physical therapy, and then focusing on tending to Leia and helping the Rebellion.
He had thought that his days of fighting inside an armor had been long gone.
Leia whines against Breha's shoulder. She is more awake now, and even if she doesn't understand a word any of them are saying, she looks like she understands fully that something is wrong. Her eyes are wide, and she looks scared as she looks at Fox.
Breha wraps her arms tighter around her and shushes her. It makes Leia quiet down, but doesn't make the look in her eyes go away.
For a second, there is an image that forces its way into Fox's mind, of Leia, with that same, scared look on her face, in the arms of someone entirely else, someone cold and dark.
He pushes it away. He would rather die again than let it happen.
Bail is waiting next to the ship when they make it to the bay. It is not one of the ships they usually use, nor is it any of their personal vessels. Fox is fully aware that they had aqcuired one, of an entirely different model and make than all the other ships they were known to use, and seeing it now makes the sitation settle in even further.
"Is everything ready?" Breha asks. Bail nods. He looks too grim, the seriousness casting a deep shadow on his features.
Breha nods as well, and then draws a deep breath. She pulls Leia off of her shoulder, and looks at her for a second, two, three, with a look of grief and finality on her face that Fox hates.
Then she kisses Leia on her forehead, on her cheeks, rapidly, like she is trying to kiss her as many times as possible with one, single breath, and then she turns to Fox.
Without word, she pushes Leia onto Fox's arms.
Somehow, Fox gets even more cold.
"Breha-" he tries to say, but Breha sushes him, and lets go of Leia, in order to reach for Fox now. Her fingers brush up on Fox's face, and she looks at him too, silently, for a couple brief seconds, before she reaches up and presses a hasty kiss on his lips, on his cheeks, everywhere she can reach in her hurry.
"I love you", she says, and then she lets go of Fox too, and turns around and runs back towards the Palace.
"Breha!" Fox calls after her, but then Bail's hand is on his shoulder, gripping it hard.
"Fox", Bail says. His other hand grabs at Fox's arm, and he turns Fox around.
Fox looks up at him.
Bail looks sad.
Fox hates it, too.
He hates it, especially when the understanding dawns on him.
"Bail", Fox says. He is not pleading or begging, no matter how much he wants to. "Do not do this."
Bail looks sad. He shakes his head.
"I'm sorry", he says, and he leans down, and kisses Leia on the forehead. He lets go of Fox's arm, and he cups Fox's face and traces his thumb over Fox's cheek, slowly and carefully, like he is doing it for the last time. "I love you."
"Bail." Fox is pleading, now.
"I'm sorry", Bail says, again, and then he leans to kiss Fox.
Then he steps away, and just like Breha, he turns his back on Fox and Leia, and runs after her.
Fox stands there, staring after them, his entire body freezing cold, his hands gripping onto the blanket around Leia.
"Fox", Sateen says. Fox cannot turn to look at him. "Fox, you need to go, now."
Leia's hand reached out from inside the blanket, and it curls around the collar of Fox's shirt.
Fox rips his eyes away from the receding forms of Breha and Bail, and turns towards the ship.
Without another word, he climbs in, with Leia in his arms.
The door closes after them.
Fox doesn't bother to put Leia down as he sits on the pilot's seat and starts the engine. Leia holds onto him, quietly, as he flies the ship out of the hangar.
She stays quiet as Fox flies the ship out of Alderaan's atmosphere.
Fox holds her closer as the ship jumps into hyperspace.
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