Family Dinners - dpxdc
"Holy shit, you're Bruce Wayne!" Danny gaped, jabbing a finger at the man sitting at the head of the table.
The bustling dining room goes silent as everyone turns to look at him.
"Danny, who did you think was going to be here?" Tim asks, disbelief plain in his voice and Danny feels his face flush red.
"Sorry, I, uh, I guess I just never put it together. Tim Drake-Wayne. Wayne Manor. It, uh, makes sense now." He laughs sheepishly and scrubs at his neck before slumping back down into his chair.
"Well," Tim says with an indulgent sigh, "at least I know you're not just friends with me for my connections."
"Yeah, I'm really sorry, I just never thought about it, I guess."
Danny sinks lower as everyone around him laughs. Come to dinner, he said, the food is the best, he said, ignore the family, he said. Danny really wishes he'd listened to Tim and just ignored themâalmost as much as he's regretting accepting the offer in the first placeâbut... he's having dinner with Batman.
Ancients, that's so weird!
The last time he saw Batman was in the future and, suffice it to say, it was not going well. There hadn't really been time for family dinners there.
Wait. Family dinners?
He peers around the table, openly gawking at everyone as it all clicks into place.
"Everything alright, Danny? Now realising who everyone else is?" Tim asks with a roll of his eyes.
"Uh... something like that..." Danny mumbles as everyone laughs again.
From further down the table, the smallest Wayne scoffs and clicks his tongue.
"I thought you said he was smart, Drake?"
"So, you all do it, too, then?" he asks, ignoring the jibe. Danny's only a little bit jealous as he thinks of how much easier they must have it, how much easier it'd be if his family had been on his side, too. "You all work together?"
"Nah," Dick says from across the table with a brilliant grin. "Tim's the only one that works with Bruce, we all have different jobs. I'm a police officer in Bludhaven."
"Disgusting." Danny blurts out without thinkingâbecause seriously, what kind of self-respecting vigilante would also be a police officer?âbefore clapping a hand over his mouth. "Sorry."
The whole table laughs again, the loudest being the blonde girl a few spaces down from Dick. Look, Danny wasn't really paying attention to names when they were all paraded in front of him. Dick only gets remembered because his name is a joke.
Come on, Danny, recover!
"That's, uh, not what I meant, though."
"Oh?" Dick asks, cocking his head slightly to the side. Is it Danny's imagination or does his smile tense slightly?
"Yeah, I mean like, you know, in costume. It must make it so much easier to have everyone together like this."
"Costume? What do you mean?"
Yeah, Danny's not imagining it, everyone tenses up at that. It's really only now that he's realising that this probably isn't how he should bring up that he knows about their... night time activities. In fact, he probably shouldn't be bringing it up at all.
"Uuhhh..." Danny looks wildly around the table as he continues making his stupid noise. Think, think, think! There must be a way out of this!
"Danny?" Tim asks, looking concerned.
"Oh, Ancients, this isn't how I wanted it to go at all," he mutters, slipping even further into his chair. He's almost on the floor now and he so, so wishes it could just swallow him up.
His real first meeting with Batman was meant to be cool! He had planned to be Phantom, maybe save them from a tight spot, prove his worth as a mysterious and powerful ally as thanks for the help Batman gave him in the future.
"Danny, what are you talking about?" Tim starts tugging on his sleeve in an attempt to pull him back up from his pit of despair.
Eventually, Danny relents and sits up straighter, hiding his face in his hands and whining all the while.
"I'm sorry, I just didn't expect him to be here and it threw me off so now I look stupid and it's so embarrassing!" he wails, flailing his arms wide. "Why wouldn't you warn me that Batman was your adopted dad, Tim? Couldn't you have let me know?"
"I'm sorry, what? Danny are you alright? There's no way Bruce can be Batman, look at him!"
"Yeah," the blonde girl laughs from the bottom of the table, "look at him! That's a wet noodle of a man! Batman can actually do things, B is incapable of pretty much everything."
"Thank you, Stephanie," Bruce sighs, massaging his forehead.
It's... Those are the first words Danny's heard Batman say since everything went down and it's enough to knock him out of his embarrassment.
It's really good to hear his voice again. Especially now, when it's strong and healthy and full of personalityâeven if that personality is little more than a tired father right nowâfar better than how it had been, at the end.
Danny sits up, back straight, and grins. He's got this. He remembers it perfectly. Some people count sheep to fall asleep, Danny repeats his mantra to be certain that he'll never forget it.
"Gamma alpha upsilon tau iota mu epsilon, 42, 63, 28, 1 colon 65 dash 9."
Once again, the whole table falls into silence.
"Holy shit..." breathes the other D name (Duke? Danny's pretty sure he's Signal) from opposite Stephanie. "Isn't that...?"
"The time travelling code." The littlest Wayne says stiffly. "We have met in the future?"
"That's not just the time travelling code, Dami." Dick says, looking between Danny and Bruce. "That's the family time travelling code."
Danny's grin freezes in place.
"I'm sorry, what?"
"1 colon 65 dash 9." Dick explains, still flicking between him and Bruce. "It means you've been adopted into the family and we should all treat you as such, no questions asked."
"Tell you what, I'm about to ask a question." Danny says, dumbstruck. "You just told me it was a code to identify time travellers, not anything about being adopted! What the hell, B?"
Bruce looks about as shellshocked as Danny feels.
"We must have been close," he says finally, after opening and closing his mouth like a fish out of water a few times.
"No! Not that close!" Danny reels back, taking a deep breath ready to refute it all, but... "Well, I mean, you found me when I first got stuck, and you helped me get better despite being... And then we fought together against the, uh, bad guy, before he, um, he... before you couldn't."
An uncomfortable beat passes while they all pick up on what Danny tried so hard not to say.
"So, you're not from the future, then, you travelled there and came back?" Tim asks, breaking the tension and leaning forward with a glint in his eye.
"Yeah, it was a whole end of the world thing, but don't worry about it," Danny says with a hand wave, "It's all kosher now, won't ever happen."
"What did happen?"
"Seriously, don't worry about it, we cool."
"How long in the future was it?"
"About ten years? You were pretty spry for an old man, B," Danny laughs, wishing they'd get off the topic of what happened and get back to the adoption bit.
Everyone shares degrees of a cautious smile as they relax out of the shock, and Dickâwhose grin is the biggestâsays, "No wonder you got the family code, you're already riffing on him like one of us. How long were you there for?"
"A week, before I managed to get back to my present and stop him then."
"A week? Jeez, B, that has to set some kind of record, seriously."
"Oh!" Danny says, sitting bolt upright and blinking in surprise before pointing at Dick and bouncing in his seat. "You're Nightwing!"
"What?"
"That's exactly what Nightwing said when Batman told me the code! Makes so much more sense now."
Dick laughs and claps his hands, delighted.
"You were not formally adopted?" The grumpy small oneâDami?âasks, his face pinched.
"I didn't even know I was informally adopted."
"And your parents? Are they alive or dead?"
"Damian, stopâ"
"They were dead in the future, but they're alive now." Danny says, looking down. He fiddles with the tablecloth, twisting the fabric around his fingers as he fights down the pang of sadness that he always feels when he thinks of them now. He forces a bright smile on his face and hopes it doesnât look too strained. "I just, uh, can't talk to them much, anymore."
"Damian," Dick warns, "1 colon 65 dash 9. Treat them as family, no questions asked."
"This is Damian treating him as family, the little turd has no manners." Tim scoffs, rolling his eyes, but he gently bumps shoulders with Danny to knock him out of his funk. Danny can't help but send him a watery smile.
"I have the most exemplary manners, Drake, unlike some people." Damian spits, crossing his arms with a pout. "I was merely ascertaining his status to see how he could possibly fit into the family."
"I know this is all a bit sudden, Danny," Bruce smiles, ignoring Damian and reaching out to lay a warm hand on his arm, "for all of us. But if I felt strongly enough to give you that code after spending a week with you in the future, then you are more than welcome in this family, if you so choose it. I think I can speak for all of us when I say we'd like to get to know you a bit more."
"I know a threat when I hear it, Bruce." Danny snorts. "But, yeah, I get it. I'm sorry this is all so weird, it really wasn't how I wanted to find you again, but... I'm glad I did."
"So are we, Danny." Dick says, with a warm smile. "And formally or not, 1 colon 65 dash 9 means you're family. Welcome to the fun house! No take backs or refunds, sorry. You're stuck with us."
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I'll ask after that secret number 8!
I only remembered secret number 8 because I saw your wip here! I'd started this one based on the same prompt, then lost said prompt and stopped working on it đ
Instead of a snippet, I'm just dropping it all here - maybe that way I'll feel inspired to finish it?
âââ
Itâs a full house for dinner tonight and, really, that should have tipped him off.
Bruce sits at the head of the table, smiling softly as he watches over everyoneâs antics. Damian is regaling Dick with everything they saw at the zoo that day (Danny had been so happy to see Delilah the purpleback gorilla again, and her new little additions to the troupe, too!) and how well they are implementing the grant the Wayne Foundation had gifted them. Tim, Steph, Cass, and Duke are all engaged in a thumb-war tournament which Danny has no interest in participating in. It just wouldnât be fair on them.
Danny loves that look. The one where Bruceâs eyes crinkle when he thinks none of the kids can see him. It oozes love and it makes Dannyâs heart, his core, ache.Â
Itâs been a little over a year since Alfred found him on the street and managed to wrangle him back to the manor to stayâeven after the whole biting thing when he realised how rich they were.Â
A little over a year here and Dannyâs starting to feel like family.
Starting to feel like he might, just maybe, like to make it official.
âDanny,â Bruce says, drawing everyoneâs attention. Danny starts at his name, but Bruceâs voice is warm and calm, and his shoulders lose their tension almost immediately. âDanny, I have something I would like to tell you.â
âUhhhâŚâ is all Danny can croak out, eyes flicking back and forth between Bruce and the rest of them. Smooth. Looking good, Danny.
Except⌠theyâre all happy. All smiles, all relaxed body language, all radiating calm and love and acceptance. Well, not Damianâhis face is as thunderous as it always isâwhich at least means itâs nothing too out of the ordinary.
âDanny, first of all, I just want to impress upon you that this is in no way something you have to do. You are under no obligation to join us and, no matter what, you shall always be welcome with us in the manor.â
Wait, what? Danny squints at Bruce, trying to parse exactly what heâs saying⌠Is heâis this them asking to adopt him? Do they want to make it official, too?Â
Itâs been a little over a year and of course Danny has imagined calling Bruce âDadâ. Of course heâs imagined being part of the family, of course he wants to make it official!
He canât help the beaming grin or the bright and bubbling âYes!â already waiting on his lips. All Bruce has to do is ask, all Danny needs to hear isâ
âIâm Batman.â
The smile freezes on Dannyâs face.
His lungs stop working, his heart stops working, he stops working, he justâ
âAnd Iâm Nightwing,â Dick smiles, breaking the awkward silence.Â
Dannyâs eyes snap to him, and then down to Tim when he admits to being Red Robin. Duke is Signal, Steph is Spoiler. Damian begrudgingly tells him heâs Robin, but Danny can barely hear it over the ringing in his ears.
âIâm Black Bat.â Cass cocks her head, almost looking concerned. It always felt like she understood him the most. Whenever he was feeling low, too in his memories, or stewing after a nightmare, she was always there, ready to card her fingers through his hair and never mention his tears. It makes his heart ache to think of it now. âItâs okay, Danny.â
Itâs meant to be reassuring, but howâhow can it be okay? How?Â
Dannyâs spent a little over a year with them. A little over a year with Batman.Â
Batman, who works with the Justice League, who works withâŚ
A little over a year.Â
Just under 16 months since he escaped.
âDanny? Are you alright?â Bruce asks
Finally, his lungs kickstart and suck in a shuddering breath, only for everyone to drop their smiles.
Didnât take them long, did it? Now that their ruse is up, thereâs no kindness in their eyes, theyâre just⌠cold, calculating. Evaluating.Â
âWhy?â Danny gasps, his fingers tingling, his heart in his throat.
Just under 16 months since heâhas he escaped? Or was this just another one of their experiments?
"I... I trusted you, whyâ" Danny chokes back a sob, gritting his teeth as his shoulders shake. Why? Why would they do this? "I was happy here, with you. I thought... Weren't you happy?"
"Danny..." Bruce is looking at him, eyes narrow and eyebrows pinched, in some cruel facsimile of confused concern and all Danny can think is how much of an actor he is. How well he can play the part of a doting father. How much he made him want that.
"I don't understand, why..."Â
"I'm sorry we didn't tell you before, I can imagine that it comes as a shock. We shouldn't have lied to you, Danny, butâ"
"Stop it!" Danny slams his hands down on the table and pushes himself up on wobbly legs. Even standing, he feels so small. Smaller than Bruce, than all of his adopted siblings. They crowd above him when they all stand, too. "Just stop it! Why are you doing this, why are you still pretending? Stop it!"
It was easier, with Danny's biological parents. The knowledge that they'd do anything to get him on a lab table, to open him up and see what makes him tick, to rip him apart molecule by molecule, had always been there. He knew they hated ghosts. He knew they hated Phantom. He knew they hated him. It was easier because it was something he'd known all his life. When he died, when he became a ghost, he knew what to expect from them. It hurt, of course it did.
But it was easier than this.
"Danny, I'm going to need you to take a deep breath. You're having a panic attack and you need to breathe."
"Breathe?" Danny laughs, the sound harsh and choking, too high pitched in his hysteria. "You're joking, right? Or is this just more of theâthe experiment?"
"Danny, please, we don't know what you're talking about, youâ"
"You don't know? You're Batman! You work with the Justice League, you work withâ" His words choke off as his stomach churns, bile rising in his throat. His whole body itches, screaming at him to leave, he can't go back, he can't, he can't, he can't!
Bruce takes a hesitant step forward and Danny scrambles back, his feet catching on the chair behind him and sending him careening to the floor. Where are the agents? Why aren't they swarming in, ready to apprehend him, strap him back on the table, carve him from the inside out.
"Please, Danny, calm down. We don'tâ"
Danny stops listening. His back hits the wall and he pulls his knees into his chest, his shoulders dipping down as he begins to sob. His heart throbs inside his throat, too painful to swallow around. Tears fall hot and heavy on his face.
Sure, he could run. He could phase out through the wall and he could be out of Gotham in a couple of hours. He's escaped the GIW once, he can do it again.
But that was before Batman knew who he was. Before he had the World's Greatest Detective on his tail.
Before he...Â
He really thought this would be different, you know?
He wanted to make it official.
"Why did... Why were you so nice to me? Why did you make me like you? I reallyâI really liked you. I-I thought we could be a family."
"Danny, we are aâ"
"Don't lie to me!" Danny snaps, but the force of his anger leeches all the fight from him, and suddenly all that's left is a bone-weary tiredness. Thereâs a lump in his throat that hurts. Thereâs a line down his chest that burns. "I don't care. I don't care anymore, I don't. Just... don't make me go back there. Please."Â
Is it futile? He thought he knew how the GIW operated by now, the depths that they would go to achieve their results, but this... this was a whole new level of pain that Danny thought he had left behind him in Amity.
"We're not going to make you go anywhere, Danny, you're safe here, I promise."
"Safe? Safe? You must haveâ" he takes a deep breath, tries to stop the quivering of his voice. Itâs all starting to make sense, now. "The reason you're telling me who you are is because you must have told them everything already. I know the Justice LeagueâI know you're working with them, which means the ex-experiment is over now, and they're coming to take me back. And I can't go back."
"Dannyâ"
"I canât!â Danny glares at Bruce with all the rage he can, fingernails digging into his skin. âIâm not going back!"
"That's right, you're not going back, Danny. I won't let that happen." Bruce crouches down in front of Danny, his hands open and raised as if he's trying to say he's not a threat. "I don't know who you're talking about, and I'm sorry about that, but I can promise you that youâre not going back there. We will keep you safe."
Danny pulls himself closer, tucks himself further into the wall, eyes flickering all across the room waiting for that tell-tale flash of white as the agents start to swarm.
He should take his chances now and run, he should go, he needs to go!
The rest of them, his brothers and sisters of a little over a year, are spread out, giving him and Bruce some space. The same concern colours all of their faces. Why are they still pretending?
Steph is chewing on her thumb.Â
Danny liked Steph and her brash confidence, her jokes. She's been promising to paint his nails for months now, they've just never found the time. He was going to go for green and black, or maybe a galaxy theme, depending on what she felt comfortable doing.
He likes them all.
"You were supposed to be my family." His mouth turns down at the corners and his voice shakes like a child. "You were supposed toâwhy? Why would youâI don't understand why you would make me like you..."
"This isn't an experiment, Danny," Bruce's voice is steady, soothing. "I promise."
"But you work with them andâ"
"Who do I work with?"
"The Justice League."
"Yes, I do, but weâ"
"And the Justice League works with them. The GIW." Danny trembles with the name, clutching tightly onto his hoodie. "I'm not going back there, Bruce."
Danny doesn't miss Bruce's look over his shoulder, nor Tim's nod in return. Tim turns slightly to the side to hide his movements, but Danny bets he has his phone in his hand, probably letting them know they can take him now. Guess this is it, then. They'll be here soon, and he'll be gone.
"Kill me."
"Danny? What doâ"
"If you ever had any kindness for me, if you ever cared, kill me. Please, Bruce. I can't do it again."
"Danny..."
"End me now. Take my core out and break it, please, before they get here."
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For the prompt ask game!
9. Sleep deprivation and/or 37. Secret Relationship and/or 40. Identity reveal/major secret reveal
(I selected a few so you can chose the one that resonates the most.)
For any DPxDC characters. <3
*emerges from a google docs, covered in blood and panting* i did it... it is done.
thank you for the prompt!! because i love a challenge, or because i can't stop myself, i went and did all of them!! for everyone!! everyone is sleep deprived and everyone is revealing secrets ^^'
Danny/Tim, mentioned Jazz/Jason
(ŕšâ˘Ě â â˘Ěŕš) enjoy!! prompt ask game
kid napping
âRed Robin, sound off. Status?â
âAll good here, Oracle. Everything okay?â
Itâs been a slow night, never a good sign. Pent up energy itches under his skin and he stretches when he stands, preparing for whatever Oracle is going to throw his way. Itâs going to be something, he can tell.
âGood.â Relief briefly colours her voice answers, before she becomes serious again, keys clacking away in the background. âThereâs been a report from Agent A. It appears that one Timothy Drake has been kidnapped and is being ransomed for five million dollars and a helicopter. Iâm tracing the call now.â
âA helicopter, too? Kidnappers these days, used to be they just wanted their money and that would be the end of it⌠a fucking helicopter, wow.â Red Hood scoffs, and Red Robin canât help but join in the laughter over the comms.
âDoesnât exactly sound like these are the brightest tools in the shed now, does it, Hood? Wonder what poor schmuck theyâve got instead.â Nightwing says, slightly out of breath.Â
The smile slips off Red Robinâs face and clammy, cold dread shivers down his spine. A stone settles in his stomach. He wets his lips and clears his throat. âOracle, can you pull up the CCTV on my apartment near WE? Any closer to tracing the call?â
âStill on the trace, theyâre using a jammer. Agent A is cooperating so they should phone back soon, which will help.â she reports, falling into silence as he finds the video feed.
âYou know who it is?â
âI hope not.â
Itâs tense, he taps his feet on the rooftop, fingers tightening over his grapple as he fights the urge to fly off the roof and check for himself. It better not be him. Please, dear God, donât let it not be him.
âWhat are you thinking, Red Robin?â Batman growls through the comms. Red Robin can hear the wind under his words, whipping fast as he no doubt makes his way over to his position.
âI had a, uh, a friend coming over tonight. From behind, he⌠he could be mistaken for Tim Drake.â
The jokes fall silent, the comms growing serious as they pick up on his tone.
âWell, fuck.âÂ
âEloquent as always, Hood.â
âShut up, bat-brat.â
âYou were right, Red Robin, it looks like it was your⌠friend they caught, instead. About two hours before the call came in. Iâm following their van now, I should have the destination soon. In the meantime, it looks like theyâre heading towards the docks.â
Red Robin throws himself off the building, shooting his grapple as low as he dares to get the fastest swing he can.Â
They have Danny.Â
Worry gnaws at his gut even as gravity pulls it into his throat with another swing.
Danny is⌠And Red Robin means this in the nicest way possible, but Danny is fragile. They havenât talked about it, but RR knows that Danny has health problems. Something plaguing him since he was young, thatâs landed him in the hospital more than once. A weak heart, far too slow to be normal, possibly chronic fatigueâheâs always so tired, falling asleep anywhere he can.
Sometimes, he doesnât even need to put his head down. Once, when they had gone to the corner store to get some popcorn to enjoy their movie (which Danny had explicitly and repeatedly promised he wouldnât snore through this time), Danny had rested his head on Timâs shoulder while they were waiting and heâd just⌠gone. On his feet, asleep, just like that.
Heâd laughed, when Tim woke him up. Apologised. Said Tim made him feel safe enough to fall asleep just about anywhere andâ
Red Robin grits his teeth and corrects his course as Oracle updates them with more precise coordinates.
Tim had carried him home that night, piggy-back for four blocks, but by the end of it, he wasnât tired at all. And thatâs another thing, Dannyâs just so light. Itâs concerning.
They never did watch that movie, but itâs a night that Tim canât help remembering fondly all the same. Theyâd ended up rewatching some old sitcom that Dannyâs seen countless times but Timâs never really bothered with, Danny drifting off to sleep again and Tim eventually following him, because⌠sleep is easy with Danny.
Itâs the same for him, he thinks. He canât explain it, but he feels safe enough to sleep with Danny, too.
He needs to be alright.
âSo⌠Is this friend just a friend? Or a friend friend?âÂ
âA friend, Nightwing. Now hurry up.â
Heâs not in the mood to play these games, not now. Thereâs a reason why none of them know about Danny, and this is one of them. His family, as much as he loves them, are just too damn nosey for their own good.
âYou know that doesnât answer my question at all.â
âThen why donât you ask something intelligible, rather than continue with your childish antics?â Robin snarks, and for once, Red Robin has to agree with him. Or, rather, heâs grateful for the distraction that it gives him.
Tim has secrets. Heâs sure that Danny does, too, and so farâaside from the standard background check he always runs on new friends and friend friends alikeâheâs done very well to respect them. He just canât say that his family would do the same.
They can be overwhelming, to say the least, and Tim has tried his best to protect Danny from that.
Only to fail to protect him in every other way that it counts.
âHow long have you guys been âfriendsâ?â
âNightwing, save it, please.â
âWhatâs his name?â
He ignores him.
Red Robin lands on the building first, thank goodness. He wastes no time in finding a skylight that can be pried open fairly quietly, slipping inside without a second thought.
âWait for backup, Red Robin, that is an order!â Batman says, when he lets them know heâs in.
âNegative, Batman. Iâm getting him back.â
âRed Robin!â
He weaves silently through the desks on the second floor of the warehouse, always moving, always keeping a trained eye on the shadows around him.
When he reaches the stairs, he hears voices.
âLooks like three of them, armed. The-the hostage is tied to a chair in the middle of the room, heâŚâ Red Robin takes a steadying breath. The person has a burlap sack over their head is slumped to the side, from where he is, Red Robin canât see if his chest is moving. Thereâs blood on the floor. âHe needs medical assistance. Another two on the northside entrance.â
The comms explode in admonitions, everyone pleading with him to stay where he is, to wait for help, but fuck that. With a tap, he switches them off and he can finally, just about make out the words of the kidnappers as he creeps down the first few steps.
ââshouldnât he have woken up by now?â
âI donât know, man, youâre the one that hit him! Do you think heâsââ
âNo! I didnât even hit him that hard, I swear!â the man cries, holding his hands up in surrender. âI just couldnât take any more of his stupid jokes!â
If there was any doubt in Red Robinâs mind that they picked up Danny by mistake, itâs gone now. Yeah. If you get Danny, you get his stupid jokes, too.
He creeps closer.Â
Thereâs some storage crates between him and Danny, if he can get behind there without being seen then that leaves him in a good position for when whoeverâs next in takes out the guys at the front. He canât do anything without them gone first, not without risking them taking shots inside and endangering Danny.
The man that hit Danny circles round behind him and grabs at his hands.
âWhat are you even doing, Pat? Who gives a shit, leave him alone.â
âIâm just checking! I just gotta see!â
âFuckâs sake, guys, who cares? We just gotta get our money, thatâs itââ
âAnd our helicopter!â
âAnd ourââ
âShit, I canât find a pulse! Shit, Frank, I killed him, Iââ
Jason told him once that when the Pits overtook him, he used to see green. Instead of blacking out, heâd be swimming in that putrid Lazarus colour and heâd slip into that rage and bad things would happen.
Heâs heard of people seeing red, too, but really, he thinks thatâs more of a literary device.
Tim doesnât see anything aside from his targets.
A barrage of birdarangs take the guns from the guys at the front, the three around Danny startling badly enough that the guy that kilâthatâs behind Dannyâstumbles, losing his footing.
Only one of them shoots.
Amateurs.Â
Thereâs a round of curses on the comms as the shots come through. Oracle must have turned them back on.
âFucking hellâNightwing and I are at the front, Red Robin, donât worry about them.â
Red Robinâs barely listening.
He spins, kicking the largest guy in the stomach hard enough so that he doubles over, wheezing. Following through the movement, another kick lands on the side of his head and heâs down.Â
The second one, Frank, gets his wits about him and raises his gun, spraying wildly. Heâs a shit shot, going wide in panic, and Red Robin simply ducks and rushes forward, keeping low. Tackling the guy, he grabs the gun off of him and uses it to smash him across the face, once, twice, three times, before he stops moving.
âOracle, get police and paramedics on scene, now.â Batman says, the displeasure in his voice evident. âRed Robin, Robin and I are coming in from the top.â
Pat hasnât even made it up off the floor yet, scrambling backwards, fear plain on his face.Â
Red Robin stands, breathing heavily, gun still in hand.
âIâm sorry, Iâm sorry, I swear I didnât mean to do it! Pleaseâplease, donât, please!â
Red Robin doesnât kill.
Well, no, Red Robin doesnât normally kill.
No, thatâs not quite right, either.
Red Robin has killed. Red Robin will more than likely kill again. Red Robin sees no problem with killing.
The gun is up, pointing towards the guy without any real thought about it.
Footsteps rush behind him, the familiar heavy footfalls of Batman and Robin, so he doesnât bother turning around. The gun follows the guy as he keeps pulling himself backwards, snot and tears mingling down his face.
âRed Robin,â Batman says, softly.
Itâs always weird hearing Batmanâs voice like that. Itâs not the first time, obviouslyâBatman canât use his scary intimidating voice on victims or children, after allâbut having it used on him is weird.Â
âBreathe.â
âHeâs dead. They killed him.â
If hearing Batmanâs voice was weird, Red Robin canât even recognise his own.
Distantly, he realises heâs dissociating. Thereâs a tightness in his chest, itâs hard to breathe, a growing buzz drowns out any noise in his ears and he canât think, he canâtâ
A heavy hand squeezes his shoulder, jolting him out of his thoughts. Batman reaches around and gently removes the gun from his grip, and Tim feels the instant loss of it. He should have done it, why hadnât he done it?
Robin takes care of the last man, his crying cut off by a swift kick to the head. Nightwing and Red Hood join them, zip-tying the men on the floor and starting to drag them back to the entrance of the warehouse one by one.
No one says a word.
Shrugging off Batmanâs hand, Tim moves towards the chair.
Shaking, he takes a deep breath and removes the sack. The small part of him that was left hoping it wasnât him, it couldnât be him, please dear God let it not be him, shatters.
Even dead, he looks peaceful.
Timâs seen death. Heâs no stranger to it, heâs seen what it can do to a person. Thereâs some blood coagulating over his eyebrows, but otherwise, he looks peaceful. Is that comforting? That he didnât suffer?
Dannyâs head lolls to the side as the sack comes completely away, his hair flopping over his eyes. Timâs been on at him to get a haircut lately, he thinks itâll be nice tidied up a bit, just on the sides. Itâll get rid of that permanent bedhead. Help him with job interviews, heâs got to be thinking about that now that heâs in his last year of college.
Itâs about the only thing thatâll hold him back, Tim thinks. Dannyâs brilliant. Any employer would be a fool to turn him down because of his shaggy hair, but employers are stupid so it makes sense to put your best foot forward andâ
Tim falls to his knees.
Fuck.
Heâs dead, heâs reallyâDannyâs skin is horribly pale, cold to the touch. Gone is his bright, cheerful smile.Â
âDanny, Iâm sorry, Iâm so, so sorry, IââÂ
He stops himself with a deep, shuddering breath. He canât break down here, he canât, he canât, he canât.
Instead, he tips forward to rest his head in Dannyâs lap, arms curling around himself. They were too late. They got here as fast as they could and they were too late.
 âDanny, Iâm so sorryâŚâ he whispers. âI⌠I love you, I love you, Iâm sorry.â
Dimly, he can feel the others standing around them. Someone crouches down beside him, resting a comforting arm over his back, but he doesnât turn his head to see who it is. He squeezes his grip on Dannyâs legs tighter.
âCome on, baby bird. Letâsââ
Theyâre interrupted by a huge, honking snore as Danny jerks himself awake.
Timâs head snaps up, staring at Danny with wide eyes.
âYou were asleep?â Red Robin springs up, several different emotions rapidly flip flopping through him.
âWha⌠What?â Danny heaves a yawn, blinking blearily down at him. âSorry, Iâm just⌠they were shit kidnappers, man, really boring. Honestly, worst abduction yet.â
âYou were asleep? I thought you were dead!â
âNot mutually exlusive, you know.â Danny says through another yawn. He rolls his neck around with an almighty crack and glances at everyone. âDidnât think Iâd warrant the whole Bat brigade, thoughâŚâ
âThe kidnappers thought they had Tim Drake.â Batman supplies, while Red Robin tries to work through the emotional whiplash.
âAh, makes sense⌠wait.â Danny sits up suddenly, squinting at Red Robin. âDid you say you loved me?â
âNo, of course not, why would Iââ
âTim? Is thatâare youâare you Red Robin?â
âEveryone, hold the fuck up!â Red Hood shouts from the other side of the warehouse, having finished securing the perps to a streetlight outside. âDouble R is dating Danny fucking Nightingale?â
Well, there goes his identity⌠Oh, whoâs he kidding, Dannyâs smart. Thereâs no way he could have salvaged that. This was not how he thought the night was going to go.
âCranberry, is that you?â Danny twists in his chair, somehow delighted to see Red Hood rescuing him, too. âI thought I smelled you lurking about!â
âShut it, you little shit. Since when were you dating this dweeb?â
âIâm sorry,â Red Robin pleads, hands in the air to try and slow down the onslaught of information and insults, âyou two know each other?â
âCranberry?â Nightwing echoes, looking as lost as Red Robin feels.
âYeah, CranberryâThe Cranberriesâzombie, zombie, zombie-ie-ie. Obviously. Also heâs wearing a big, fuck off red helmet.â
âYeah, sure, makes sense.â
Itâs about the only thing that does.
âAnd please donât call my boyfriend a dweeb, Cranberry. Especially when he just said he loves me for the first time.â
âHe only said it because he thought you were dead.â
âI am dead, so it counts.â
âOnly half, so Iâd say that puts you at a solid âlikeâ. Timâsâand savour this, Tim, because Iâm only going to say it onceâTimâs intelligent, so Iâm sure heâll come to his senses soon.â
Danny just throws Red Hood such a shit-eating grin. A level of feral that Timâs only seen before in Damian.Â
âThatâs what I used to say about Jazz, too.â
Hood scoffs in offence, and to be honest, Timâs not sure where he should go from here. What the hell is happening, how do they know each other?
âCome on, is anyone going to untie me or am I really meeting your family mafia-style?â
âDo it yourself, Slimer.â Red Hood laughs, crossing his arms.
âUgh, you suck so much. Iâll fucking slime you, just you wait. Canât believe Jazz even likes you, I preferred it when she was dating Johnny.â
And then, without Danny doing anything other than muttering obscenities at Red Hood, the ropes fall to the ground. In one swift motion, Danny stands up and stretches himself to his full height of 5â6.
âAll of you need to explain, now.â commands Batman, and honestly, Red Robinâs very much on his side of it.
âI canât believe it⌠Jason and Timmy are both in secret relationships? Thatâs⌠How come no one told me?â Poor Nightwing sounds the most shocked out of all of them. He turns to Damian and clasps onto both of his shoulders. âYouâre not secretly dating, are you, D? Please tell me youâre not, please tell me youâre single, please?â
Of course, Robin just clicks his tongue and pushes his hands away. Really, Red Robin doesnât think that Nightwingâs in any danger of that happening, heâd be surprised if anyone could stand Robin enough to actually date him.
He shakes his head and turns to Danny, whoâs staring right back at him, worry clear on his face.
Fuck, he... He's alive. He's really alive.
Tim pulls him into a bone-crushing hug, fingers buried deep in his NASA shirt. Tucking his face into the crook of Danny's shoulder, he laughs wetly with the joy of it. He's alive. He hasn't lost him. He's safe.
âIâm sorry I havenât told you before now, starshine, butâŚâ Danny breaks the hug and softly pulls away from him to rise on his tiptoes to place a kiss his cheek. The skin burns cold where his lips touch. âI love you, too. Also, youâre gonna wanna sit down. This is going to be a lot.â
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Are you still doing the wip ask game? If so, can i ask about number 5?
I love this one and I'm so embarrassed that it's still a wip oh no!!!! This should have been completed a long time ago to celebrate hitting 1,000 followers but uh... it sorta snowballed into way more than I thought it would and this cute little oneshot is now way more than that. Whoops.
It started as a @stealingyourbones prompt that I added on to, which you can read here! Then I posted a wee little wip wednesday sneak peek, and this snippet (is it still a snippet if it's over 1k words?) carries on from there :)
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Danny doesnât join him for what is, unexpectedly, a pretty great meal.
âHoly shit, you guys,â he murmurs, wiping his mouth with a napkin. "Youâre missing out.â
âCome on, Jay, it canât be as good as the Big Bat Deluxe.â Dick whines in his ear. âYou love those.â
âNo, I love the Red Hot Hood Bites. Thatâs all I get at Bat Burger, and donât let me hear you telling the others that I get anything else.â
âPlease, Jason, donât think we donât have everyoneâs BB order on file, who do you think youâre talking to?â
âFuck off, Timbits. Go eat at Red Robin.â
âHey, fuck you!â
Jason elects to tune out the ensuing list of threats in favour of finishing his burger. Heâs heard them all before and heâs like 80% sure that Tim wonât actually hide his body in a Red Robinâif only because it wouldnât take the Worldâs Greatest Detective to figure out who did it and he'd be so deep in the fucking shit that he may as well join Jason.
Aside from the food (seriously, that sauce! Heâs going to need to rustle up a copycat or something, he canât leave here without a recipe), the Nasty Burger is a pretty sad affair.
Itâs a little run down, the vinyl covers on the seats peeling and suspiciously sticky, and incredibly quiet. The only other people around are the two teens behind the counter, bored and on their phones, and two kids, probably around Dannyâs age, sitting in the corner quietly arguing amongst themselves. Thereâs an ungodly amount of food in front of them, but only the guy seems to be eating.
Jason sighs and looks at the rapidly cooling Supremely Nasty Meal meant for Danny. Taking a few of the fries wonât hurt, will it?
He peels the paper bag away from the greasy mess and digs in. Huh, they really skimped on his lot, thereâs only like half a carton in here.
âSo, you gonna bring us back something or are we going to have to starve?â
âHavenât decided yet.â
âWhat a shame,â Timbo starts, with a theatrical air, âfor I am still trying to decide whether or not to tell you everything Iâve learnt about the Fentons. Perhaps we could come to some sort of arrangement?â
âYou finally made yourself useful and got through those firewalls?â
âYeah, once I managed to get my hands on a native laptop. Itâs weird, but whatever was keeping out my tech lets anything bought directly from Amity in. Having such localised securityâto the point where even my stuff canât penetrate?â is beyond strange. I donât like it.â
Jason leans back, and reaches for Dannyâs milkshake, finding it surprisingly light when he lifts it up. Seriously, what is with the half portions here? He turns round and glares at the spotty teen behind the counter, who doesnât look up from his phone. Whatever. It's not like Dannyâs going to drink it anyway.
Looks like the two kids in the corner have made up, if their stifled laughter is anything to go by. Most of their own food is gone now, too, so perhaps the real reason itâs called the Nasty Burger is because they stiff you on the food.
âThis place is weird.â says Dick, in a rare case of being right.
âYou donât know the half of itâŚâ Tim sighs but doesnât offer up anything else.
Jasonâs been trying his best to ignore it.
The weirdness, that is.
Thereâs an electrical charge in the air so strong it almost feels like heâs swimming through static. Each breath makes his steps bounce like heâs walking on the moon. If he turns too quickly, if he stands up too fast, his head spins like he's breathing too much oxygen.
No matter what Tim thinks he knows, itâs not the full weirdness of Amity Park, Jason's sure about that. Being here itches under his skin, and he resolves not to delve any deeper into it. Not with the way the green swims on the edges of his vision.Â
The sooner they figure out whatâs happening here, the better.
âWhatâs your price?âÂ
âTwo Supremes and a six pack of Nasty Nuggies. Cake shake with two shots of espresso.â
Jason rolls his eyes as Dick splutters in concern.
âShake and espresso? Tim, you have a problem.â
âItâs just a frappuccino. Thereâs no difference.â
âThen get a frappuccino.â
âI want a shake.â
âThen there's a difference! And the difference is that Alfred will kill us for enabling you!â
âAs riveting as watching Timberlyâs mental and physical wellbeing disappear before our very eyes is, whatâs your info?â
âThe same for me, please!â Dick butts in, yet again. âExcept with a coke instead, because Iâm normal.â
Both Tim and Jason snort.Â
âYeah, not gonna touch that. Tim, info, come on.â
âAlright, alright. Hey, so, whatâs your favourite thing about being adopted?â
âTim, I swear to God, if you donât get to the point right now, Iâllââ
âYouâre right! Itâs that none of us are actually related to you.â
âAnd yet somehow, Iâm still stuck with you all. Point, Tim, get to it.â
He grabs the burger meant for Danny and begins to unwrap it. If he has to listen to Tim being all smug about whatever heâs found out, heâs doing it with a burger in hand.
âDid you know that Willis Toddâs Great-Great-Great-Great-Great Grandfather was a Nightingale?â
âWhatâs a Nightingale? Aside from the obvious.â
âA Nightingale is about two generations away from becoming a Fenton.â
âOh, what the fuck? You cannot be serious!â
âSerious as a cake shake with two espressos in it.â
âNo, my⌠Someone ate my other fucking burger!â
Dannyâs burger has a huge, bite-sized chunk taken out of it. Literal teeth marks in the bun. A slice of tomato slops limply onto the table, painting his shirt with splatters of weak tomato juice, the red half moon taunting him. Sauce dribbles out mournfully.
The two kids in the corner are staring openly now, faces red with how hard theyâre laughing.
Jason sinks into his chair with a groan.
This fucking town.Â
Is this how they treat outsiders? Take bites of their burgers while they laugh onâbut then why only do it to his spare and not both meals? The teenagers behind the counter aren't even paying any attention, so why bother pulling a prank like this if you're not going toâ
Danny.
Jason whips his head around as if he can catch the invisible little shit, but just like on the street, there's no sign of him.
Has he been here the whole time, invisibly eating the food Jason offered him? Except the packaging was still perfectly wrapped, the sticker still attached, how in the hell had he managed to eat the burger without damaging it? Did he get to it in the kitchen? Or does heâ
âWait, hold up. What the fuck did you just say?â
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Wip Wednesday babeeyy
eyy I've finally remembered that wip wednesday exists!! here's some proof that i'm working on something, and that something is the follower milestone gift i said i was going to do and i promise i'm doing it! i'm doing it it's happening i promise!
so here's a little taster!!!! and here's Part One if you want a refresher!
And then the kid just vanishes.
In the blink of an eye, in the time it takes for him to look down, screw his face up because this is all confusing as fuck, and look back up, heâs just gone. Thereâs nowhere to hide, thereâs nowhere to go, Jason can see everywhere around himâbut he canât see Danny.
âWell⌠shit."
âWhat, what happened?â Dickybird hisses in his ear, the unsaid, exasperated ânowâ very clear in his voice.Â
As much as he loathes to admit it, Jason is feeling very much the same way right now. What was meant to be a simple case of âinvestigate the potential child abuse and put an end to itâ has instead become something⌠less simple. When is it ever simple in his life?
Still. If working with supers, metas, vigilantes, whatever, has taught Jason anything, itâs that just because you canât see someone doesnât mean theyâre not there.
âHey, kid⌠Danny. Listen, Iâm not here to hurt you and if youâre still here, if you can still hear me, then, I donât know, do you want to get a bite to eat or something? I just want to talk. I just want to figure out whatâs happening.â
Jason doesnât hold his breath.Â
Okay, no, thatâs a lie. Jason holds his breath, but he swears heâs holding it so he can more accurately hear if Danny is still around. Thatâs all it is, heâs not attached to this kid already. Heâs not.
When no answer comesânot even a whisper of a breath or the scuff of a sneaker on the pavementâhe suppresses a frustrated growl and opts instead to breathe deeply and pinch the bridge of his nose.
âSoâŚâ Tim begins, drawing out the word.
The urge to growlâhell, the urge to pull out his comms and smash them on the floorâgrows.
âThe kidâs a meta, then. Potential powers including but not limited to: invisibility or teleportation. You think heâs still there?â Thereâs no reason for the kid to still be around, not at all. If it was Jason, heâd have scattered as soon as he realised the stranger impersonating his dad wasnât the guy he thought was impersonating his dad, and honestly, wasnât that extra fucked up? That someone impersonates people in this town often enough that itâs not a surprise? The way Danny spoke about him⌠What was his name?
Amorpho. Amorphous. Without shape.Â
A shapeshifter?
Whatever. Itâs a mystery for another time, because thereâs still a more pressing mystery in front of him.
Or,. rather, not in front of him.
Yes, thereâs no reason for Danny to still be here, butâŚ
Jason sighs.Â
âIâm going to BatâNasty Burger. Really? Is that the best burger joint here? Nasty Burger? Whatever, Iâm going to get some fucking fries.â
Jason feels fucking stupid talking the air like this. He must look fucking stupid, too, but the thing is⌠Thereâs a prickling on the back of his neck, a rolling taste of green on his tongue when he glances through his peripheral, the vague weight of an unseen eyes on him.Â
Call it wishful thinking, call it a hunch, call it something else, but Dannyâs still here.
âThereâll be a burger waiting for you, too, if you want it. My treat.â Jason turns in a full circle, examining everything in his surroundings. Nothing seems out of place, nothing screams wrong to him. âI just want to talk.â
He waits for a full minute with no success, which makes Jason feel even more stupid, before clicking his tongue and making his way to the, hopefully ironically named, Nasty Burger.
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Is your username undergoing carcinisation?
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