#surprise adoption?

[sinning-23]

Socket Wrench: Chapt. 4

so ladies and germssss this is the final chapter...uhhh I'm very much not 1000% happy with the end so I may end up tweaking it more. ANYWHO after this will be someeee oneshots so keep those eyes peeled! ENjoy btw!

Chapter 3 found here

Chapter 4: Shitty Finale

Your idea worked, the rocket managed to shoot out of the eel's mouth and head back in the direction of the Mushroom Kingdom. You were left gripping onto DK’s waist for dear life, his fur soft beneath your fingers as you buried your face into his back. 

“You alright back there?” He shouts, knowing that the height was somewhat bothering you based on how tightly you had him in a grip. He wasn't complaining though, he rather liked having you this close to him. 

“Just steer.” You groan, trying to distract yourself as the rocket whizzes past, various mushrooms beginning to show up on your path.

Bowser's castle was hovering now, the cloud of darkness it brought trying to spread. 

“So what’s the plan? Fly up there, kick-ass, and the day is saved?” You question, the silence following making your once jokey smile drop. 

“ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?!” You groan, preparing to jump from the rocket once you reached a good enough point above the debris.

 You manage to land almost slipping, but DK grabs your hand, pulling you forward. A flurry of blue flashes of light appears from the top of the floating structure. The princess must be fighting back like the bad bitch she is. You return your focus to the scene in front of you, various Koopa troops taking items from the kingdom, trying to store them for later.

Maybe it was time to put all that par core you did in high school to use. DK and Mario were already headed towards the soldiers, dodging attacks from shells all the while grabbing any power-ups they could find. You sprint forward, hopping up on one of the blocks, and using shells you grabbed to throw in any direction. 

“DK!” You call out, sliding under the mystery box two of the shoulders happened to be carrying, your legs beginning to burn. 

He turns his attention to you as you throw a power up to him, sending a wink his way before sliding into another tunnel. He chuckles, following your lead as Mario does the same. You pause, looking to see if the pair was following close behind and sure enough, they were. The next step was to get to the Princess. You hit one of the mystery boxes, eyes brightening at the power-up. 

You climb the chains latched to the kingdom's foundation, just barely making it to the top to see the Princess standing from the stairs, her power up now gone. You wave to her, running towards the mechanisms dropping what looked like dozens of prisoners into lava, you try pulling but it was no use. Finally following behind was DK and upon seeing you struggle DK quickly runs over trying to reverse the chains. 

You were able to grab each prisoner and melt the bars with the fire flower you’d scored, trying to work quickly at setting them free. Mario scooped up Luigi, and they share and embrace, happy to be united again. You climb back up to meet the group, the rest of the newly freed prisoners following you. 

And right when everything seemed to be fine, Bowser broke free of the ice he was trapped in, the single command he spoke launching a bomb into the air and setting direction for the Mushroom Kingdom. 

Mario follows it, trying his best to redirect its attention. Sure enough, the bomb is hot on Mario’s tail (literally) as he tries to guide it as far from the kingdom as possible. 

“What’s he doing?” You whisper out, seeing the bomb head straight for the tunnel where this mess has started. 

You walk forward a bit, DK only a few steps behind as you feel the world shake, a low rumble soon sounding into the aftershock of the bomb. You stumble a bit, falling to your knees, DK quickly finds himself hovering over you to try and keep you out of harms way. 

“Get down! We're getting sucked in!” You explain the gust of wind that began pulling the large mushrooms off the ground and into the void was beginning to do the same to Bowser’s Castle. 

You hold onto his arm, trying to figure out what the next step was. The pipe had sucked the remainder of the castle in, Brooklyn waiting patiently on the other side as you warp through it. In a flash of light, you were transported right back to where this had all started, the manhole right above The sewer system, or at least what was left of it. 

Rubble crushed cars and businesses to dust as streets were destroyed. The power star that Bowser had been holding onto was now begging for help from what could only be described as his henchman while the group was surrounded by Koopa troops, yourself included. 

“What do we do? I don't know what that star does and I’m not tryna find out either.” You whisper, still feeling DK close behind you. Speaking of which he hadn't left your side since before you left the Mushroom Kingdom. 

What was there even left to do? There was really no saving the situation and if Bowser really wanted to he could take over the city. Hell, he had gotten this far. Mario of course was taking the fall now, seeing how Bowser was on a rampage since his surprise wedding was ruined and his plan somewhat foiled.

This wasn't working in anyone's favor, Luigi now stepping in to try and save his brother. Maybe…. You glance at Peach who seemed like she was also trying to come up with a solution. You tap her shoulder, passing a nice-sized boulder and motioning to the star with your eyes. 

“Throw this as hard as you can, it should give them a chance to use it and turn this whole situation around.” You speak, just below a whisper. 

She nods, following your instruction as you push past the troops, using one of the shells discarded to launch the star even more forward towards the brothers. Bowser'sgaze is threatening, eyes glowing red as he grabs you by your shirt and throws you aside, the wind leaving your lungs as you gasp for air when you hit the rubble behind you.

It was instant when DK came to your aid, throwing a punch at Bowser while the brothers reached the power star.  Trying to get to you was easier said than done when Bowser had in him a chokehold as he struggled to break free. You try to stand again, wobbling at first but quickly letting your legs move on their own. You manage to grab what looked like part of a discarded pole and slam it into Bowser's stomach, making him flinch only slightly and drop DK.

 His attention was back on you and before you could dodge, another backhand sent you flying into a car. DK rushed to you, seeing you wince when he went to pull you up, the bruises and cuts over your body filling him with dread. Despite gaining these earlier in the beetle he still hates seeing you even mildly injured. 

“Are you okay?”He huffs, not sure where to put his hand as you wheeze out a groan, trying to get yourself steady. 

“Oh, yeah I just got thrown across the street, no biggie.” You try and joke, leaning against him to steady yourself. He's warm, and inviting even when he guides you closer to him. You can’t help but stare upward considering how much taller he was. 

“Thank you.” You hum breathlessly gaze trailing from his eyes, then to his lips, and back again.

“Wanna call it even?” He sighs in relief, at least you were conscious. Maybe a bit delirious but conscious. 

“What? For saving your ass from drowning earlier AND just now from getting choked out? No way baby.” You test, leaning more upward, a coy smile parting your lips. 

He chuckles a bit, swallowing hard at what you were trying to get at. This was hardly the time but he didn’t care. After fighting off this feeling for 3 days you knew you both needed some kind of confession. Something, anything, to break this growing tension. But before his lips could meet yours you press your finger to them, smirking. 

“Save it for after the fight, yeah? Then we’ll call it even.” You wink, slipping out of his grip to help fight. 

He went to reach for you but ended up joining you and fighting by your side, having your back when you were turned, and you do the same. There was a rhythm between the two of you, your punches being thrown just as he followed close behind, he pulls you from any attacks you may not be able to doge and you take the chance to save his ass when he was too busy saving yours.

The brothes on the other hand managed to land one final blow on Bowser as he was finally knocked down, captured by the princess, and placed into a jar, courtesy of a blue mushroom. The fight was over! You’d all won! 

The fight was over….

Your smile of relief and victory was replaced with a soft frown. DK of course was excited to soak up the attention, standing beside the Princess and the two brothers who were also celebrating. You decided to push that empty feeling aside and celebrate with them, taking a stance next to DK who smiles and throws his arm over your shoulder. 

“I know that look on your face, I told you that line was gonna become permanent.” He hums, stepping aside with you to talk, even if it meant just for a minute. 

You avoid his eyes, only to have him frown and turn your face to his gently. Well, you were home now, and at this point… the end goal was complete.

“Welcome to Brooklyn. Sorry, the reveal wasn’t under better circumstances.” You try joking, swallowing hard at his previous gesture. 

“Is that what really bothers you? How we got here? C’mon, I can see right through you.” He explains, arms folded now.

“I-I just ended up getting home faster than I thought. I don’t wanna leave you behind.” You whisper out, dread filling you as you realize that not only him but Peach too, would have to leave and go back to their realm. 

“Then come home with me…us. We can fix the pipe and you can just…I don’t know visit somehow.” He corrects, biting his lip as he gauges your reaction. 

“How would that even work DK? I have a business here and I worked my ass off for it but…”  Your eyes are beginning to burn now, one of the toughest decisions you’d have to make leading to you creeping closer and closer to tears.

“I can’t leave you behind…I can’t. I haven’t been on an adventure like that ever in my life. And I haven’t felt so comfortable around someone in so long and so fast. And don’t look at me like that either because you’re making it hard to say no. Shit dude, why did you have to make me like you so much!” You ramble, wiping your face as the frustration of the situation had made you cry.

He pauses for a bit, unsure as to what to do. He wasn't used to seeing people cry, especially not one that had managed to make him fall so hopelessly for them. He knew he didn't like it though, any of your current state. You're sad, stressed, beat up, and bruised. How could someone so sweet and witty feel so helpless…

“Hey hey, take a breath. We’ll figure it out! And everything will work out fine. Just, please don't cry.” He comforts you, giving you that goofy smile you loved. 

“This is so stupid.” You huff, letting your head fall onto his chest as he hesitates a bit to pull you into a secure hug. 

“No it's not, listen let's just get this figured out first, and then we can work on visiting, sound good?” He suggests, motioning to the damage from the battle that had taken place. 

___________________________________________________________

It had been about 6 months since your surprise adventure in the Mushroom and Jungle Kingdom. Bowser's castle was transported back to the Darklands through the tunnel where the whole mess started in the first place. Apparently, the tunnels had connected back to their paths between kingdoms and everything was somewhat restored.

Toads had managed to work together to clean up any other damage done and the city was good as new! Of course, the press had questions galore all of which were answered quickly and closed out to keep others from feeling as if they could just go back and forth between the two realms as they please

It's summer now, and the heat getting to you a bit as you tighten the nuts and bolts on the rims of the tires. This was the final step in your rebuild process, the rest of the vehicle looking almost identical to how it looked before. You step back admiring your work, mostly the painted lipstick print on the front left rim. 

“Good as new right?” You hum, falling back into DK’s arms as he smiles and presses a quick kiss to your lips. 

“It's perfect. Looks exactly like how it did before. You’re too good to me, how’d I get so lucky?” He questions, kissing you again, this time more playfully as he spins you in a hug. 

You only giggle in response, stretching a bit as he releases you from his grip. 

“I don't know you're just sooooo charming I couldn't help but fall for you.” You tease, placing the socket wrench you’d previously used back in its place.

Moving to the Jungle Kindom had to be one of the best decisions you'd made, and moving your business here was also on that list. Best of both worlds, fortunately. The transition wasn't the smoothest, but being here was bliss in its purest form.

The two of you weren’t exactly official but, you were definitely sticking to just each other. You both established the growing feeling between the two of you but never really addressed whether or not you were TOGETHER. It didn't matter though, you were happy,' and that's what did matter. 

Maybe one day youd be bold enough to pop the question but for now, this was perfect.

OKAY YAL THTS IT THATS ALL LET ME KNOW IN THE COMMENTS IF YALLLLL WANT ANY OTHER X READERS OR HAVE ANY OTHER COMMENTSSS. LOVE YA AND THATS FOR READING!

[emacrow]

Damian and the Dumpster baby.

Damian was doing patrols, with a bit of a minor rescuing and feeding the strays animals until he heard a noise from a dumpster.

Tonight was going to be a storm coming, and he rather check up on the strays, feed them, fixing any of the secure hiding places he put out for them for rain occasionally, and try to smuggle 1 or 6 into the barn again without Father knowing. Alfred can keep a secret sometimes.

Jumping on the edge of the dumpster to see a plastic bag tied up on the pile of trash with something squirming inside, alive obviously. Oh if this another group of puppies, he going to find the culprit himself and break their kneecaps and arms this time.

Easily untying the plastic bag and opening to reveal.. a little baby.

Not a kitten or a puppy, a living breathing human baby, cut and tied umbilical and a pale with a unique birth mark in a shape of a lichtenberg from his tiny hand fading to his chest.

This..

This was out of Damian's comfort line.

He had dealt with saving animals, people, children, hell even toddlers. He never dealt with a baby before much less a newborn.

He could panic later as he hear the sounds of a storm brewing. Carefully picking up the baby by the back of the head and and by the body, using his cape to as a blanket to cover the obvious nudity of the baby. Climbing onto his Red Robin theme Doom Buggy.

Taking care of a baby is no different then taking care of a baby animal, right?

.....

.....

.....

.....

He got caught after 5 month and a half by Alfred during feeding Danyal time, while scolded him about hiding the baby instead of coming to him.

He had a good reason to though, last time he told Alfred about the last newest addition, Bruce sended the Jafar the Ligor to a sanctuary. He still felt betrayed by that.(even though now Jafar is happily spending his days with the other mixed big cat breed but still)

He done a good enough job taking care of Danyal, even though he had to secretly look up baby stuff, medicine, clothes, a soft bedded cot and diapers.(the smell was much less worse then the sewer) he considered himself a great care-taker.(even though in the back of his mind, he feared that he might had unlocked that genetic adopt-bat bait traits that Dick warned him about)

Damian had gotten.. a bit attached, considering the idea of putting danyal in orphanage or a foster care wasn't ideal afterall the corrupted ones that Father and him had broken through over the years left a bad gut feeling if he had actually gone through with his plan. Danyal was one of his babies, only not covered in fur, scales, or a shell.

And he didn't do everything all on his own, Cass was the only who figured it out, kept it a secret and help out.. then steph found out... and Jason, Tim and Duke unfortunately found out after Cass and steph snuck danyal in the manor for a nice bath.

Only reason Dick didn't found out because everyone know he can't keep a secret away from Bruce's ear for long after found out Jason's new girlfriend was the new therapist in Gotham, and telling Bruce would feed his adopt-holic again and he end up having baby fever. (Tim didn't tell him what that word meant but he did look it up in a baby care guide book for new parents. And EW)

They were going to wait it out til Danyal was at least toddler age before sneaking him in the manor to gatekeep gaslight girlboss Father into thinking he already adopted him. (Steph's words, not his)

[puppetmaster13u]

Prompt 304

SO. Turns out that Danny is apparently a clone. Who knew? Not him! Would have loved to know that earlier, but he doesn’t exactly have time to freak out about that because Ellie is melting. She’s going to die if he doesn’t do something and he already gave so much ecto that they both look ten now, but the only thing he can do is pray to everything and Clockwork that this portal works. 

Because Ellie needs their Original’s dna to stabilize her, not his own slowly destabilizing blood, and that means going to another dimension to where they’re still alive. This has to work- even if they can never go back, it’ll be worth it if he can just make sure Ellie lives. She’s all he has now.

[tending-the-hearth]

*stares at jack darby and miko nakadai and raf esquivel and charlie watson and noah diaz and kris diaz*

[shower-phantom-ideas]

Danny is just a kid ya know? Like he is just a little guy. A baby really. 14? Tiny child! Look at him, he needs to be protected. Someone has to help this poor little dude. I mean he forgets to use his own powers to avoid attacks all the time.

Anyway cut to Batfam not knowing all of Dannys power set cause the lil dingus keeps forgetting he can do that stuff in the heat of battle.

Danny uses his invisibility all the time… to avoid being followed. But in a fight? Oopsies hes too busy thinking of funny one liners to realise he could do that.

Intangibility? Give the guy a break. I mean who calls themselves condiment king. Even he was stunned.

He so rarely actually uses his biggest advantage powers that the League doubt he actually has them. He, like any naive child, trusts them and reported fully on his power set. Instead of just asking him to demonstrate his powers they instead start watching him and try to find evidence of his powers.

At least they know duplication was true since they watched him make a copy of himself to go to the bathroom and not miss any of his fav tv show.

[batty-pham]

You know how in twin Damian and Danny AUs Damian always assumes Danny is a clone?

Well what if Danny is a clone of Damien.

The league fucked around with Lazerous water in making a new Damian clone and ended up with a super powered Damian clone.

This one is a little bit...off though.

It smiles more than any other clone, it jokes more, lighter on his feet.

But the league sees him as too valuable to kill, the powers are too hard to replicate.

When Damien comes head to head with this clone he is 100% expecting to kill it no problem, his blade goes through it's chest and-

It goes through it's chest??

No blood. No resistance. No- what??

The clone takes advantage of Damian's surprise and knocks him on his ass and beats him??

Oh this won't stand.

[phantomskeep]

The Early Bird Gets The Worm - Chapter 1

The Early Bird Gets The Worm

Chapter 1 -  9 Out 10 Doctors Prescribe Child Rearing for Emotionally Constipated Families

Written by @agent-sushi-fbi & myself uwu

Read it on AO3 here!

Masterpost | Chapter Two Was he still wearing traffic light colors? No. Was Bruce going senile as he got older? Yes, and he was gathering evidence of it every day.

Dick wondered once again why they were having so many issues between them as he swung to the next rooftop, landing almost gracefully amongst the leftover rain on the asphalt. Stumbling on his feet was embarrassing nonetheless and he grumbled to himself as he kicked a pebble across the roof, watching as it hit an old AC unit with a hollow clang. Honestly, he came to Gotham to help Bruce out of the goodness of his heart while Tim is out of town and how does the man respond? By treating him like he's still a little Robin meant to dutifully take orders without question!

“Fucking old man, treating me like I'm a kid,” Dick muttered under his breath, not caring who heard him nearby, he was alone on the roof anyway.

“This ‘fucking old man’ can still hear you,” Batman’s deadpan voice came over the line. Dick froze on the spot, shoulders tightening as he heard the quiet undertones of anger. Oops, comms were still on and open to the shared channel… “Either mute your comms or keep those thoughts to yourself, Nightwing.”

Dick pondered for a minute, putting his hand on his chin like he was really thinking on the idea before he responded. “Nope, I'll pass,” he told Batman cheekily, smirking to himself. He was an adult now. While Bruce may have taken him in and taught him all he knew at Dick's lowest point, it doesn't mean the man gets to treat him like a child anytime he comes by home Gotham.

He was his own grown man. Nightwing had his own city to protect now–he was even a well-established member of the hero community in his own right! He didn’t need some emo flying furry telling him what to do anymore. Covering his eyes from the light drizzle that had picked up again, he observed the area below him, staying alert for any sort of disturbance that may pop up and ignoring Bruce’s displeased grunts. It wouldn’t be good if Dick were to miss a crime after their little “spat” earlier, as Aflred would call it. A screaming match was a more accurate description if you asked anyone else, and he was not willing to let it open him up to more criticism from the “World’s Greatest Detective” later on when they were back in the Cave.

Stiffly, the black and blue clad vigilante stalked to the edge of the darkened rooftop, trying his best to not clench his fists like some angsty teenager. What was he even hoping to gain, coming back here? The man stood, pondering as he gazed down at the busy streets of his childhood home. A pat on the head, like the good little dog he was acting like? Bruce calls, so he comes running? Dick scoffed at himself, turning his head sharply. He aimed his grapple, firing it at the corner of a nearby building. With the grace born from years of practice, Nightwing danced between towering structures as he continued his Batman-approved patrol route.

“Nightwing, behave yourself over comms or you will go back to the Cave for the night.” Dick grit his teeth, jaw clenched tight as Bruce tried to basically ground him. He shook his head, preparing to land on the next rooftop, but stopping just shy to grab onto a gargoyle sitting on the edge of a lower office building. Leaning against the cold surface, Dick felt the sharp points of the creature’s horns digging into his back help to ground him in the moment. 

“Batman, you do not have a say over my actions or whether I am benched anymore,” Dick told him, evenly spacing out his breaths as he tried to keep the rage at bay. He felt like there was a ball of heat in his chest he was desperately trying to cool as he methodically rubbed his gloved fingers over the stone ridges of the statue's ugly face. 

“Nightwing–” Bruce started to grunt, so Dick turned off his comms as a response and took in a deep breath of the familiar, smoggy Gotham air. This city may not have been where he was born, and he may not live here anymore, but the man found peace flying through her night sky. This would always be his home. As ugly and villain-infested as it may be… This shithole was his shithole.

Ever since Jason passed, Dick knew things needed to change so he could preserve this feeling and keep this dysfunctional family intact. Tim helped a lot in the beginning, when Dick was too bitter to do more than practically tell a thirteen-year-old to handle a drunkard on his own. But, he's trying to make up for it now by helping on patrol and making them all participate in family dinners twice a month. It wasn't much, and he could admit it wasn't really working since he'd noticed Tim wearing sound proof headphones more often than not when Dick and Bruce were together. It broke his heart that another little brother of his felt like he needed to prepare himself for an inevitable screaming match from his family members. 

Dick was trying, he really was. But Bruce just made everything so hard. 

He was brought out of his thoughts by the sound of multiple trash cans falling over each other nearby. His face twisted in confusion, eyebrows scrunching together as his head whipped around to find the source of the noise. Body becoming a tightly coiled spring of focused intent, he silently crept closer to where he heard the cacophony. The noise became apparent in the way of a metal lid rolling out of the alley below and into the street like a quarter, spinning and spinning for a moment before falling flat. Dick cautiously peered over the edge of the roof, eyebrow raised at what he could imagine he'd find. A goon passed out drunk? A working girl kicking the nuts of a deadbeat harassing her? An internet famous Gotham-patented radioactive raccoon?

What he certainly did not expect was an unruly mop of black hair peeking out above the trash cans, only visible against the dark of night in contrast to the silver metal they clung to with tiny baby hands. He watched in disbelief as this child (so tiny and cute, he had to admit) stumbled to their feet, swaying as little as they reached for the contents of the trash. Dick felt sick just looking at the spill, but he felt worse knowing the child was doing this out of desperation. Tapping on his lenses, they zoomed in on the kid and he saw how small they were and how scrawny they looked. Alfred would faint at the sight of how skinny this child was and Dick would be right there with the old butler.

Making a quick decision, Dick hastily hopped onto a pipe that clung to the building he stood on and quietly slid down it like a fireman's pole. He didn't want to scare the small child who, at closer inspection now that he was on the ground, looked similarly disgusted at their options before them. The kid was still swaying, the movement picking up in speed before they plopped onto the asphalt, groaning. 

Dick rushed forward, panicking, but his sudden burst of speed startled the child. The tiny twig of a human scrambled back, a weakened wheeze of panic bursting from their lungs as they held out a small hand to ward off the vigilante.

“Hey, hey now,” Dick soothed as he crouched down to make himself seem smaller. “It’s okay, you’re okay…I’m not gonna hurt you.” The practiced “soothe the victim” voice was easy to fall into as domino-covered eyes worryingly took in the shaking child. He wanted to reassure this kid as much as possible, but he knew that he couldn't promise them anything. Making a promise to a child was important, he learned young that if you couldn't keep that promise the child would see it as a loss of trust.

“S-stay back!” The kid’s squeaky voice tugged at Dick’s heartstrings with how much terror it held. “Yo-you can’t t-take me!”

Dick slowly lowered himself to fully sit down on the filthy, trash-covered alley. He grimaced at the smell (was that sludge on his glove?) and he crossed his legs, letting his arms hang disarmingly on his knees. Keeping his body language loose and unassuming, Dick smiled goofily at the other. “My name’s Nightwing, I’m one of the heroes here in Gotham tonight. You’re safe now, no one’s going to take you while I'm here.”

Icy blue eyes peered out from behind a dirt-stained hand, reminding Dick of a different time, a different alley-found kid who was taken too soon. By Batman's stinky cowl would he let another one be lost to the horrors of this city as well. When the kid spoke, their voice was full of doubt. “How can I trust you? For all I know you could be some weirdo looking to kidnap me!”

A surprised laugh burst from Dick before he could contain himself, causing the filthy child to flinch away with a startled squeak. He sobered up quickly at that reaction however, leaning away from the kid to give the illusion Dick was no longer directly in their space, but still close enough to keep an eye on them. He's met children like this before, wary of adults or the world around them in general, only relying on themselves at an age where they can't do enough to keep their heads above water. Blinking rapidly at the thought to hold back his tears, Dick remembered when Jason first came to the manor. Even as distant as he was with his brother at the time, he saw how the pre-teen acted out of self preservation even months into Alfred's mother-henning.

This kid had the same fear written in the lines on his young face, as well as the same steel of determination in his eyes. Dick respected it, but he still was worried about this child who looked like they hadn't eaten a proper meal or slept in a bed in months. 

“I might be a weirdo to some people for sure,” Dick agreed casually. The kid blinked in surprise and he grinned a little in triumph, quickly smothering it with a serious expression. Exaggerating his actions, Dick twisted his head this way and that around the alley as though checking for anyone listening in, before he leaned a little bit forward with his hand blocking his mouth. The child shuffled forward a few inches, alternating between staring him down and checking the alley themselves with wide eyes. Dick resisted the urge to laugh again, focusing on trying to ease the kid into believing that he was safe.

“Between you and me? My friends think I'm a super big weirdo for putting peach jam in my pb & j's,” he told the kid, nodding his head sagely. All he got was a deadpan look in response, all of the sudden interest he got was lost from the kid before him.

“So you're not just a weirdo, but also super lame with no taste buds?” 

Wow, okay, so Dick was a little offended… or maybe he was impressed? The kid gave him a look that was reminiscent of Alfred or Jason when he tried to argue he could help in the kitchen. The “are you seriously this stupid to defend yourself like that” look. 

Yeah, maybe a little more offended than anything. Didn't mean the kid wasn't cute while doing it. 

Quick thinking made Dick grab at his uniform with striped fingers, gripping the fabric around his heart. “Ouch!” He wailed dramatically, flopping his legs forward as he used his toned core muscles to lean backwards, careful to not let more of the filthy alley touch him. “Ah! Truly a strong opponent, I cannot win!”

Quiet giggles echoed around the alley, causing Dick to grin in triumph. He titled his head to the side a bit to better see the small child. Their face was scrunched up in mirth, both hands covering their mouth in an attempt to better muffle the joyful sounds trying to escape. Encouraged by this, Dick resolved to continue to give the best performance of his life.

“I will simply never recover,” Dick moaned, making his body twitch dramatically. “This is how I die…the great Nightwing, struck down in a battle of wits by a toddler!” He gasped, reaching one hand up to the sky as he gave his big finale. “I can…see the light! It’s calling me…must…go…” He murmured quietly before giving a final spasm with an extremely convincing “blegh”, letting his arm drop to his chest and sticking his tongue out of his mouth.

As the giggles continued, they got closer. Peaking an eye open just a bit, Dick could see the kid toddling closer to the felled hero. “You’re silly,” they said, poking at Dick’s cheek hesitantly. “That’s not what death looks like.”

Dick could feel his heart shatter. This kid, no more than, what? Maybe four or five years old? This poor, tiny child was trying to correct Dick on what dying looked like. It made Bludhaven’s protector want to just scoop them up and wrap them up in a giant, fluffy blanket and protect them from the world.

“It’s a good thing I’m not actually dead then, huh?” Dick said with a grin, trying so hard to not let what he was feeling filter through. Bright smile for the tiny concerning child, bright smile.

The child cocked their head to the side like a curious puppy. “Well, duh,” the little thing scoffed, relaxing a bit at the horizontal hero. “I'd know it if you were actually dead.”

*****************

He really needed to get some meat on this kid’s bones, like immediately. Dick felt like he was carrying a small bag of potatoes while he grappled through the streets of downtown Gotham towards Wayne Enterprises to meet B for their patrol check in. Maybe if he showed the kid to Alfred, he could just keep him safe at the manor and he wouldn't worry about the tiny thing in his arms being so tiny anymore.

“Where are we going?” A squeaky voice shouted in his left ear. Was there a ringing bell nearby? 

Dick smirked, glancing quickly at the child before shooting his gun at the side of Wayne Enterprises, clicking the side button and rocketing them up the side of the skyscraper. He heard a soft gasp over the rush of wind before his world was filled with small, uncontrollable giggles and Dick tightened his hold.

“We gotta meet up with someone, little one!” He cheerfully shouted back as the duo landed at the top of the tower. With his feet squarely against solid concrete, Dick set the child down to face away from the large drop off the side of the building. He was worried the kid would either get scared, or want to try jumping off and he wasn't sure which was worse right now. A quick glance around told Dick that Bruce was still doing his own patrol. “Just stay away from the edge, okay?”

“Yeah, yeah,” the little sass monster said as they shakily walked towards the center of the helipad. “I’m not dumb.”

“Uh huh,” Dick sassed back as he hovered over the kid. “You wanna tell me your name yet?”

Cold eyes narrowed as the child looked up at Dick. “No, you’re still a weirdo.”

Yikes, Dick thought. Whoever this kid's parents were deserved an award for raising such a menace to society. “Okay, okay,” he said airly. “I’ll figure it out one day, just you watch.”

“Oh, so now you’re a stalker, too?” The kid said as they flopped onto the concrete flooring. “Maybe I should’ve run away. Stranger danger and all that nonsense.” They flapped an itty-bitty hand dismissively.

“I thought we established that I wasn’t a stranger already?” Dick wasn’t pouting. He was an adult, and adults don’t pout at children winning in a battle of sass.

“No, we just established that you don’t know what it looks like when people die. Do you even pay attention to anything?”

Dick rolled his eyes, sauntering over to nudge his foot against the kid's thigh. “I paid enough attention to notice that you're good at avoiding questions. Why is that?”

“Nunya,” they told him. Dick felt the urge to pinch the bridge of his nose. No, he would not act like Bruce.

“Nope, I'm not playing that one,” Dick told the kid, who pouted that they couldn't finish the joke. “Come on, I can't keep calling you ‘kid’ or ‘that tiny child lighter than a grape’ now can I?”

They squinted at Dick, crossing their arms awkwardly since they seemed to refuse moving from their starfish position on the ground. “Rude. You talk to every kid you meet like that?”

Dick smirked, “Just the ones who think they’re tall enough to talk back? Where do you reach on me again?” Dick mimed checking the kid's height against himself and stopped with it below his knees. Was it petty to make fun of the small child’s height? Yes, but he didn’t care. “Oh right, sorry but you're not tall enough to verbally attack this adult.”

“Whatever,” they muttered, turning away from Dick. But he noticed the kid kept him within their peripheral vision, just enough of an angle to pretend they couldn't see Dick even if his every movement was being tracked by blue eyes. It was just like how Jason acted, back when he was first introduced to life in the manor. Luckily, that meant that Dick had more than enough experience with snotty scared children to make sure this one kept feeling safe around him.

“So,” Dick said after a few moments of silence. “Like I said earlier, we’re gonna be meeting up with someone. But what I didn't mention was that it's Batman.”

“What kind of name is that?” The kid said, their spunk seemingly reviving itself in the few minutes where they didn’t speak. “Who wakes up one morning and decides to name their kid things like Nightwing and Batman?”

Dick spluttered. “It’s a superhero name, kid. It’s meant to not be normal.”

“You should’ve been named Jeff. Now Jeff is a good name.”

Dick paused, scrunched his nose a little in confusion before responding. “So, do you want me to call you Jeff since you like it so much?”

The kid scoffed, not fully paying attention and obviously still insulting him mentally. “Pffsh, no, call me Danny because my name isn't Jeff, stupid.”

Dick smiled like the cat who ate the canary. “Well, well, Danny is such a nice name,” he told Danny. Dick was enjoying the expression on his face when he realized that he messed up, the horror seeping into his features and a devastated tilt to his lips as he turned to Dick. “Thank you for telling me, now is Danny short for anything?”

Danny pouted and it was so cute Dick wanted to coo and squish his little cheeks. “No, just Danny, you weirdo.”

“No last name?” Dick prodded, poking at Danny’s thigh.

“You’re subtle.”

“And you’re going to answer!” Dick cheerfully said, walking around to stand at the front of the black-haired boy.

“You can’t make me do anything,” Danny glared up at Dick, arms still crossed. “You’re not my dad.”

Dick wasn't sure why that comment stung unlike the others, but he moved past it. He scoffed obnoxiously and mimicked Danny's pose, jutting his hip out in a move of pure sass. “Well I may not be but–”

“Nightwing.”

Dick froze with whatever bullshit he'd pull out of his ass dying on his lips. He saw Danny raise a questioning eyebrow at the scene, clearly interested in the drama, but Dick didn't focus on it. Instead, like always, he responded to Batman's voice. It didn't matter he wasn't Robin anymore and someone else held the title, it didn't matter he was all grown up and had his own name now. When Batman called, a Robin always whistled back, standing at attention like the “good little soldiers” they were. 

Sighing, he turned around and put his hands behind his back, feet spread apart as he nodded at Batman. Because this wasn't his father figure, the man who raised him despite the emotional intelligence of an ant. This was Batman, who didn't take disappointment or inadequacy from his sidekicks. No matter what happens, we'll always be little soldiers reporting for duty, won't we?

“Batman, no unusual activity for the night. There were the two robberies I reported on patrol, as well as stopping a street girl from being taken into an alley and shot. Oracle has the recordings from my suit already uploaded for review.” Simple, to the point, just the way Bruce liked it. All done.

“Hrn.” 

What? What did he forget?

“Hey! Why do you go around with your underwear outside your pants like that?” Danny interrupted.

Oh…right, he forgot about Danny for a minute there.

The silence across the rooftop was louder than any words shouted into the night sky could be. Dick tensed as he shifted, covering more of Danny from Batman's view as he watched the man's cowl wrinkle up. Internally he winced, wishing he had honestly thought this out better but at the time, he had only been focused on gaining Danny's trust. Once he had it, something in him wouldn't let the kid go and, frankly, he didn't want to. But in hindsight, this was definitely not one of his best ideas. He snorted lightly, thinking Jason would have made fun of him for being an idiot right now–like the time he tried to catch a runaway ice cream cart and slipped into a pile of cold sugar that spilled on the ground instead.

“Why do you have a civilian child here, Nightwing?” Batman practically growled, causing Dick to frown and tense his shoulders in a defensive response. He knew the man had been having problems since Jason's death. Tim had been trying his best to help Bruce out of a dark place, but sometimes he seemed to fall back into those old, angrier patterns on them. It was not appreciated, but he knew it took time to work through grief. It was small mercies the man wasn't sending people to the hospital or himself into an early grave on the daily anymore.

He cleared his throat awkwardly. “Well, during my patrol I noticed a disturbance in an alley and–”

“He met me! So, why are you looking at Nightwing like he's a bad guy, Batman? Aren't you two friends?” Danny popped up at his side all of a sudden. Dick startled, quickly shooting a glance at where the boy had been five feet away and he wondered at how he didn't hear so much as a squeak until Danny spoke. “You shouldn't be mean to your friends,” he nodded sagely at his own words and Dick held in a snort of amusement. “That's what she always used to tell me.”

Dick paused. Danny hadn't mentioned anyone he knew before now. Ignoring Batman's glowering, he tilted his head down to catch Danny's eyes. But the kid was gazing past them both, the bright blue dulling in the throes of some kind of possible memory. Telegraphing his movements slowly, Dick lightly touched the tips of his fingers to Danny's shoulder and whispered his name. “Danny? You okay in there, bud?”

It took a moment for the kid to shake his head like an old, wet dog, blinking slowly and gazing back at Dick. He nodded, glancing down at his tiny hands as though they held all of the answers to the universe’ most difficult questions. “Yeah, I’m good. Why?”

“You spaced out there a little bit,” Dick carefully told him. He watched Danny’s eyebrow’s furrow and mentally debated pushing. He was curious if the child would open up to him a little despite the hulking bat furry standing behind him like a living shadow. Cautiously, he held his hand a little more firmly on Danny’s shoulder and asked him what he was wondering. “Danny, who is this ‘she’ you mentioned?”

“Uhh…” Danny stalled, titling his head and giving an awkward smile that was barely more than a tick of the lips and didn’t reach his eyes. “I don’t know?”

“Alright, kiddo.” Dick murmured, a bit disheartened hearing the response, but doing his best to not show it. He gave a sharp nod and turned his head to look at his mentor. “But, yeah, B he’s right. Shouldn’t you be nicer to me?”

“You’re endangering a child, Nightwing.” Batman growled, disapproval practically flowing off the man. It took years upon years for Dick to understand the different levels of Bruce’s inflections and what they meant, like learning a whole new language. But now? It was clear as day to him looking at the man. The big, bad bat was pissed and disappointed at his oldest protege’s actions. Dick tried to not let it hurt him (and show on his face) as much as it did.

But he also felt a flare of anger swell up in his chest. Indignant, Dick stepped forward, close enough to block Danny completely from Batman's sight and get in the Dark Knight’s face. “You want to talk about endangering children, B? You would know all about that, wouldn't you? Picking us up off the streets like party favors.” 

Dick shook his head, a scoff falling from his lips as his hands vibrated with the anger now burning his veins at the hypocrisy of the moment. A quick tug to his leg made him stumble though, and he almost fell when Danny barged past him. A cry on the tip of his tongue, Dick watched as the little tyke stomped over to Batman and crossed his tiny arms. 

“Hey! He may be a total weirdo, but Nightwing is really nice and he's been taking good care of me!” Danny pointed a finger at Batman and Dick realized with dawning horror and amusement that this child was lecturing B, for him. He felt his heart beat as tears pricked the corners of his eyes. “So you stop bullying him right now!”

“Kid,” B started gruffly, reaching a hand to grab him, probably. But Danny smacked his gloved hand away and took a shaky step back. He stumbled over his feet closer to where a stunned Dick stood, gaping at the scene before him. 

“NO! I DON'T WANT YOU TO TOUCH ME, I DON'T CARE WHAT YOU SAY! HE'S NOT NICE!” Danny shouted at the top of his lungs, shaking arms firmly clung to either side of him. His body faced Batman, but his head was turned to a spot just over the man's shoulder. The kid started swaying side to side again, and Dick knew that tears were welling in Danny’s eyes even if he couldn’t see the boy’s face.

Dick scrambled forward, recognizing the signs from earlier. The vigilante caught the child in his arms and pulled out his grapple gun. “We will discuss this more later, at the Cave. But right now Danny is upset, so I'm going to take him to Agent A. For the rest of the night, you're on your own.”

He whispered comforting nonsense to the shaking, brooding child in his arms as he walked away and didn't look back. Not even when Danny heavily propped his chin on Dick's shoulder to keep an eye on Batman as they left. “What was all that about Danny? Who were you yelling at?”

Dick was sure Danny wasn’t talking to Bruce at that time, his head had been tilted too far to the left and he spoke as though he were talking about Bruce to someone else. But no one had been there. It made him a little concerned he might have something in his system and resolved to have Alfred examine him after they got some real food into Danny. 

Danny cut him a quick glance out of the corner of his eye, not bothering to move his head’s position and smirked maliciously. If he didn't think everything about this kid was adorable, he'd probably be unnerved at the expression, paired with little baby fangs poking past his lips he hadn’t noticed earlier. Danny replied to him, but in a loud enough voice so that it would carry across the roof to where they left Bruce, no doubt standing guard as he watched them leave.

“I was talking to the ghosts that follow him, duh.”

[opbackgrounds]

For those who don't know, Kumacy is a pun. It's just Kuma (bear) with the letter C at the end. When she was a kid her actual bear's name was Kuma A. God only knows what happened to Kuma B, but knowing the nature of Thriller Bark it's probably best not to speculate

[bet-on-me-13]

Lady Gotham raises Bruce Wayne

After the tragedy that happened on that fateful night in Park Row, the Spirit of Gotham understood something.

Bruce Wayne was destined to become the Dark Knight of her City, the Protector of Gotham and all of her peoples, as well as one of the Greatest Heroes to ever exist. And to fulfill that Destiny his life would be filled with hardships and pain beyond what most Mortal men would be able to Handle.

So, she decided, "Nope. My child, my rules."

She may not be as caring or compassionate as her Sister, Metropolis, but she can still feel enough compassion to know that she doesn't want this little boy to suffer all that alone.

So she takes on a Mortal Form and crafts herself an Identity, and then gets herself Hired as the new Maid, as a partner to Alfred.

She take up a Maternal Role in Bruce's life, similar to Alfred's Paternal Role. But while Alfred starts teaching Bruce about all of his old MI6 Training, Lady Gotham starts training Bruce is more Mystical stuff.

She basically teaches him everything there is to know about Magic, everything he could possibly ever need.

She teaches him about the different monsters of the world, how they can be beaten and how they can be befriended.

She teaches him about all the different types of Magic she knows of, just so he knows what he is getting into if he ever decides to learn how to use it. Or how to counter it.

She teaches him about all the different dimensions she can think of, from the Fae Wilds to the Ghost Zone. In fact, she teaches him mostly about her own original home, the Infinite Realms.

She tells him about the history of the Realms, how they came to be and all about the beings thay reside there.

She tells him the story of Pariah Dark, the good king who fell to his own Hubris and became a tyrant.

She tells him about Clockwork, the Ghost of an Ancient Tita who now lives in search of redemption by keeping the world safe.

She tells him about the Ancients, who banded together to Seal away the Tyrant Pariah, and then split up to rule over their own Kingdoms.

And this information comes in handy when he eventually becomes the Batman. While he never did learn how to use Magic, he is still one of the most accomplished Magical Consultants in the World (Something that really ticks off a certain sad trenchcoat man). Whenever the League has an Issue with a Magical Threat, they always turn to Batman.

So Lady Gotham thinks she did her job pretty well.

And then he adopts kid...and she absolutely ADORES THEM!

Dick is so Carefree and fun! Jason was such a bookworm, even after his death and resurrection! Tim was such a smart kid, she was honestly hoping he would be chosen as the next Robin. Stephanie added a much needed air of joy to the house, for her short time with them. And Damian was such a petulant but creative child!

She absolutely loves them!

So when some crooks manage to kidnap HER Grandbabies while they are on a civilian family bonding trip to the Park, there will be Hell to Pay.

She may not be as compassionate as her sister, but she can be twice as Vengeful.

[just-ornstein]

Chrysalis or Chrissy for short, the rambunctious daughter of the Mighty Monarch and Council Member Dr. Mrs. The Monarch! And collector of all types of plants and insects…

[glasscitadel]

Atlas

(And a close-up cause I like da fish)

[fizzytoo]

Who is Andrew Park?

Transcript:

(2nd image) [social bunny notification]

(4th image) [message from andrew @.definitelynotandrew]

“hey…i know this is sudden and you don’t know me. please hear me out. my name is andrew park and i think you might be my sister.”

(5th image) [moodlet]

Lost sibling? From strange new message. Despite being adopted, Karlee has never wondered about her birth family. Until now, when a person named “Andrew” claims to be her sibling.

[emacrow]

Alfred's is a father once more... Bruce is not handling this well. Pt 2

Sequel to the first post of this.

Bruce and the batfam are very used to alfred's schedules that he put them all on so that both daytime and vigilante night time are perfectly schedule.

So to enter the dining hall with their food already present, Bruce's newspapers and coffee with his pain pill on a napkin already set without the butler man himself ready to scowl him into next Tuesday because he was supposed to be on a 'break'.

Something was definitely wrong...

Everyone is commentary concerns wondering if Alfred is sick or just very upset about Bruce. Duke suggests they check his room or the kitchen.. which they did and he wasn't there at all. Damian suggested his personal green house garden which Dick isn't allowed back in yet. He still have 3 week left before alfred take the banned from the green garden after the last incident.

At this point everyone is highly concerned and Tim is ready to hack into the mainframe of the manor to look for exactly where alfred was.

Only for alfred to lightly cough a bit in his hand, at the front of the backdoor porch of the Wayne Manor holding a tiny baby boy in new soft button up one piece baby onesis that was light pastal blue easily with one hand.

"My great grandson will be living with me in the nursery room after I had dusted it clean, and cookies will be done in 45 minutes." Alfred said softly yet sternly as he turn around walking back inside the manor.

Everyone of the batfam is shocked like a deer in headlights, except for Damain who looking awestruck with literal stars in his eyes and Bruce who look frozen or his rebooting in his mind after a 20 seconds of overanalyzing short-circuit because Alfred didn't mention much of his Family beside a very over-energetic and smart granddaughter and her a bit dim-witted but intelligent husband in a orange suit.

Damian's and Bruce's reaction in my opinion

New post

[puppetmaster13u]

Prompt 344

(Slightly based off a previous Prompt in design) 

One Damian Al Ghul-Wayne is frustrated to say the least. 

It isn’t like he’s unused to kidnappings and hostage plots, it’s Gotham, but Father has rules about getting kidnapped in civilian identities. Which is what he’d gotten kidnapped as, alongside a few of his honestly idiotic classmates. (Genuinely there were a few he could tolerate, but no, the kidnappers had grabbed the most annoying and shrill-voiced of them all, and if he was alone he could deal with it as Robin but no. Ugh)

So here he is, stuck with annoying whining children who wouldn’t know a kukri from a dagger. He doesn’t even have to pretend to be upset by the time the idiots get around to whatever they needed a dozen children for. 

And look, he did halfheartedly struggle and even got a good stab in, but apparently the imbeciles weren’t completely idiotic. So here he is, stuck with several other idiots in the middle of some sort of ritual. Some sort of summoning if he’s not mistaken and damnit why is his family taking so long. 

The children are screaming and crying in the shrill ear-splitting way that he hates, and honestly he’d rather be surrounded by animals. Like cats, they were quiet! Or even a bird- 

The light turns blinding, the crackle of energy drowning out the chanting and- 

Huh. 

Huh. 

That didn’t look like any sort of eldritch deity or demon if he was being honest. Damian almost scoffed. Of course the imbeciles couldn’t even do a summoning properly. (The three feline-esque beings squished into the summoning circles didn’t look to pleased, and honestly he’s nowhere near surprised when they break out like Alfred the Cat when his siblings try to put him in a carrier)

[dcxdpdabbles]

I just finished reading Adoptive Son. And mah god. Like the incoming angst/misunderstanding. THEY ARE IN LOVE, please my heart is gonna break.

Does Dick and Batfam do more investigations or does Dick straight up confront Danny? And Tim! He’s been hinting to Dick that he’s wrong, why you no listen!?!

The pure angst when Dick discovers that Danny is helping kids not trafficking them.

And poor Danny he is going to be devastated! He’s trying to help people and get kids into better homes, and the love of his life thinks he’s a child trafficker.

Oh, it's going to be a painful reveal. I hope to drown you in angst. (I do plan on some hurt /comfort, so there will be some upside.) But first, everyone must suffer.

[devils-yui]

Now if I listen closely, I can probably hear a hundred Bi-Han/Noob Saibot enjoyers screaming “THAT SHOULD BE MEEEE” right abt now

(I should know. I’m one too tbh lmao)