#now to actually get a possibly haunted manor

[owlyjules]

You know, there is a pretty high chance me and my wife will never have kids and you know what? The idea to be the excentric Great-Aunts who suddenly leave everything to their Niece or Nephew in their will, and them turning up to a potentially haunted manor in the countryside is very appealling!

#just thinking #now to actually get a possibly haunted manor #yeah #not with this salary #but one can dream? #I would def hide criptic letter and journals all around #keep them on their toes

[wolfish-chan]

More of my batfam headcanons since you guys liked them

- After Dick moves out, Alfred finds Bruce in Dick’s old bedroom staring aimlessly

- Sometimes, especially in the beginning years as Batman, Bruce has days where he can’t stand to look in the mirror because those aren’t his eyes staring back at him — they’re Martha’s

- There’s a lullaby that all of the family knows because Alfred would sing it to them on their hardest nights, even when they were adults

- Alfred has made the habit of becoming fluent in all the languages his family speaks

- Bruce tries to do the same, but he’s not nearly as fluent. There’s still a lot of proper pronunciation he can’t get right and the kids make fun of him for it constantly

- Alfred speaks with them in their preferred language as often as possible, but usually sticks to English when they’re all together

- Everyone is a polyglot, except Cass, who currently only knows English and ASL

- Cass doesn’t speak often, as she’s still not used to having the ability to, but she wants to become a polyglot eventually, too. Her brothers help her practice

- It’s become a running joke amongst Bruce’s kids that whenever Father’s Day rolls around, they make cards for Alfred instead of Bruce

- Alfred keeps every single one

- No one has any idea what Alfred’s room looks like. Stephanie is convinced he doesn’t have one and that he sleeps in the cave (“I’m telling you guys! He sleeps upside down like a bat!”)

- Bruce is impossible to sneak up on, unless it’s Cass. She likes jumping out from behind corners and spooking him.

- He doesn’t react aside from throwing whatever is in his hands into the air. One time he threw an entire cup of hot coffee in his own face without so much as blinking

- Tim absolutely despises Country music, but Kon listens to it non stop and it’s drives Tim crazy because it’ll get stuck in his head for weeks on end

- Dick and Wally love going to haunted houses together, but only the intense ones where you have to sign a waiver

- They tried to take Starfire with them once, but she knocked out one of the employees when they jumped out at her so she now has a permanent ban

- Dick used to keep those alphabet fridge magnets at his apartment, but he kept finding them rearranged to spell swears and he still has no idea who was doing it

- Tim has a photographic memory which he uses to spout off random facts when someone annoys him

- Bruce: “try that again and I bench you” 13-year old Tim: “well did you know pigeons can be trained to tell the difference between Picasso and Monet paintings” Bruce: “okay”

- All of the younger bats think Jason was the problem child, but it’s actually Dick. Bruce tells them this constantly and they never believe him

- Jason doesn’t visit the manor often, but when he does, he always makes sure no one’s home. He’ll sit in his childhood bedroom that Alfred has kept immaculately clean with all the lights off for hours. He slips out as soon as he hears someone come home

- Jason chooses to ignore that his bedsheets are always newly washed because he knows Alfred is doing it in case he ever decides to come home

- He doesn’t know that Alfred used to do it when Jason was dead, too

- Alfred only ever lets Duke wash dishes because he’s the only one he can trust not to break them

- Dick is ridiculously good at juggling

#batfam shenanigans #bat bros #batfamily #batman #batfam #dcu headcanons #dcu #dc universe #dick grayson #starfire #koriand'r #wally west #bruce wayne #alfred pennyworth #tim drake #jason todd #damian wayne #stephanie brown #cassandra clare #barbara gordon #I’m convinced Tim has a slew of random facts #duke thomas #shitpost #kon el kent

[britcision]

So I made it 4 years without being struck down by AO3 Author Curse! But here we are. I’ll spare y’all the details but let’s just say “fuck this year” and leave it there. We’ve had the requisite Third Bad Thing and I will burn the universe down if it goes for a fourth

What this means for y’all, of course, is that there’s been a long ass break between last chapter and this one! Aaaaand this one is being broken in half because it is Longer Than Tumblr Allows

(And they’ve lessened how many paragraph breaks you get cuz this one is only about 9.5k and it made me add it in thirds, woe is me)

So, as usual, links to the first chapter, last chapter, and the link to the AO3 version is I think in BOTH, so if you can’t find it from there I can’t help you 😁

First Chapter:

Last Chapter:

And just a little recap where last we left off:

Bruce has gone to the Watchtower to debrief the Justice League about Amity Park and the Anti Ecto Acts, and been told that Jason has left the land of the living! But like, on purpose

Jason and Danny have gone to visit Frostbite and learned that they are ghost-bonded, which you should take seriously like being ghost-married, and that Jason is gonna pop out Pitty in a couple more days/weeks and have to emotionally raise a ghost-baby

Tucker, Tim, and Conner are all playing video games and hiding out from the Amity Parker/Bat Chat for Tim and Tucker’s mutual stalking ways, which Sam blew wide open by sharing Timblr, as punishment for Tucker not telling her they were all alive

(Danny’s off the hook cuz Tucker was haunting his phone with soundtracks for half the day)

And Damian’s off being Sketchy And Mysterious

————————

Well You Did Get Down On One Knee (part 1)

The evening was beginning to draw in, the sun getting low over Gotham city. Between her patrol the night before, helping Signal out with a case, and then that brief group heart attack about Jason, it had already been a really long day.

Spoiler cracked her neck a couple times and sighed, then sunk into the shadow behind a gargoyle.

It was smaller than usual… and occupied. Robin glowered up at her, leaping up to sit on the gargoyle’s head instead. He looked for all the world like he wanted to hiss at her like a cranky cat, which diffused all of Spoiler’s tension (but would only make his worse if she mentioned it. Maybe tomorrow).

Sighing philosophically she settled back against the base of the gargoyle, tipping her head back to see him.

“Hey… what are you doing out so early? Usually you lot wait until sundown to swing from the shadows,” she pointed out (rather fairly, she thought). Totally ignoring that she was 1000% usually one of “you lot”.

Robin just scowled disdainfully down at her, then twisted his head away to glare at the city instead.

“As if I needed any more reason to be out than you do,” he sniffed archly.

Spoiler grinned, puffing herself up. She did have an answer for this one, and, being generous or not, winding Robin up was always a treat.

“Hey, I was actually requested today. Signal needed a second pair of eyes on the back door of a bust. Didn’t see you there,” she added innocently, a brow rising.

It was technically possible that Robin could have suited up and left the manor in between Bruce’s message and Tim’s response. Spoiler wouldn’t put money on it though.

He’d have had to be on his way down already, and while they could all change quickly, there were no rushed or sloppy patches to her experienced eye.

His hair was even neatly slicked back into the traditional Robin spikes, one every Robin but her and Duke had used during their time as the baby bird.

Nah, he’d not rushed out in a panic, even if he was still more tense than he should have been. Every line of the kid was tight with… Spoiler cocked her head thoughtfully.

Frustration?

Definitely not unusual, Damian didn’t have Dick’s temper but he’d spent pretty much all of his first few years in Gotham unbearably frustrated with them all. It had just been a while since she’d seen it so… visibly.

And for all Steph was a gleeful little shit and loved poking at trouble, she wasn’t cruel. There was no point in pushing Robin if he was already on edge.

So she shrugged nonchalantly and looked forward instead, reaching back over her head to pat him gently on the foot. He didn’t dodge, which only cemented her decision.

“‘Course, no rule against taking a daylight run if you’re in the mood. See anything interesting?” She asked innocently.

Kid wouldn’t admit it if he had been worrying.

Silence reigned for another long moment, and then Robin huffed and dropped down to the rooftop beside her, folding himself back into the sharper shadow the waning daylight provided.

“No.” Short and sweet, unlike the kid himself.

But he also hadn’t left, and Spoiler was gonna call that a win.

“Will you be out tonight too?” She asked instead of pushing, reminding herself yet again; he’d open up in his own time.

Hypothetically.

Robin made a soft, disgusted noise, glowering at the smog filled sky. Probably even in the right direction for the Watchtower.

“I intend to be. Someone must keep an eye on things,” he grumbled, and Spoiler made an effort not to take it personally.

B had been majorly distracted with all this Amity Park business, not even breathing down their necks about the usual nightly reports. The rogues hadn’t exactly noticed yet, but the goons had.

The big Bat himself not making an appearance for a couple of nights usually attracted some comment, and an up-til-now entirely Bat-free new year?

The guys she’d helped Signal grab today had been muttering about it right until they ran into her arms. Fists.

They’d mentioned not seeing Stabby Robin either though.

Which she might as well also mention.

“Weren’t you out last night too? I saw your gear missing when I dropped by at the end of the night,” she added when he tensed again, hands wedged in her utility belt. “Didn’t hear you on comms though.”

And that was more than just rude; it was bad protocol, and Robin, for all his other faults, respected the strictness of protocol. Not being chatty was one thing, but if you were out on the town you had to call in.

He stayed silent, not looking at her. Spoiler decided he could use just a little nudge. Totally not because she was getting impatient. And nosy.

“Y’know unless you went out tech free I can just ask Oracle,” she pointed out gently, giving his shoulder a gentle bump.

It got him to glower up at her anyway.

“I was not on patrol,” he grumbled, whites of his mask narrowed before returning his glare to the city at large, “like I am not today.”

When he didn’t elaborate, Spoiler flipped a mental coin. Figured why not; they were already doing well.

Kid must be on the verge of having to, dread the thought, ask for help.

“And what would you be doing out and about if not patrolling…” she began, then stopped when a piece clicked suddenly into place.

Robin, Damian, was about as social as a feral cat. And about as friendly with anyone who got close to those he considered his.

Right now, Danny Fenton and his friends had more than half the family utterly wound up. All except Bruce in a good way, Spoiler was the first to admit, but Robin wouldn’t see it like that.

The only trick was, how to word the question.

Spoiler liked blunt. It made her stand out from the bats, who all played way too much mental and emotional chicken to be healthy. She’d always been more of a bird that way.

“Wouldn’t have anything to do with Hood’s little disappearance today, would it?” She asked instead, grinning broadly when Robin twitched.

Hit the nail on the head.

From the scowl he shot her he knew it too, and looked away quickly enough that he knew there was no taking it back. He folded his arms across his chest and sulked and fuck he was just adorable.

She’d bet anything Dick used to pout exactly like that.

Still, she tempered the grin down to a slight smile. Dropped a hand on his shoulder, squeezing gently and letting go when he pulled away.

“Worried me too. Were you close enough to see anything?” Because yeah, if Robin was already at least on his way into uniform before the message arrived?

Spoiler would put easy, easy money on him having been already tailing Jason and Danny around. Last night too, probably. She and Cass had left early to take the night shift, leaving Tim and Damian with the Amity Parkers.

Damian had one hell of a dose of his father’s paranoia, and Steph considered it a solemn duty to teach him about personal boundaries to keep him from turning out just like the old bat.

Just a little friendly stalking from the rooftops didn’t really count though. Not between family.

Robin had tensed right up again too, but when she didn’t push the contact or needle at him he slowly relaxed back down. Scowled at her feet instead of his own.

“No,” he admitted bitterly, both at definitely having been busted and probably at having nothing to report, “Todd… Hood spoke to the magician. They argued, he went back inside Freeze’s place and did not reappear when his tracker went through the roof and into the sky.”

Spoiler blinked, mildly surprised.

“Hood was wearing a tracker? Didn’t think he was in the mood.”

“He wasn’t,” Robin corrected with a derisive sniff.

And… yeah, they were gonna have to do a little more work on that whole “boundaries” thing. Although the odds of Hood not noticing that he’d been tagged were lower than Robin probably thought. Keeping a tag on him that he didn’t want there?

Nah. She may not exactly trust Jason, but that was how she knew how good he was at finding and disabling rogue trackers. And sure, Damian was better than her at some things, but if Cass couldn’t sneak a tracker onto Red Hood no one could.

Kinda cute that Jason let the little guy think he’d successfully bugged him.

At least the constant mild stalking was just standard for the family.

Shaking her head, she gave him a gentle nudge with her elbow.

“That’s rough. Flying’s cheating,” she commiserated with a sly look to the sky.

She’d heard a super cross Oracle’s radar. Conner, almost certainly if Robin was still out alone.

Too bad he’d not thought to call his own Superboy, though taking flight himself wouldn’t have helped if dimensional travel followed.

Robin made another disgusted little tut, then pushed off the gargoyle and stormed away. Spoiler watched him go for a moment, then shrugged.

“Hey, go get some sleep if you’re coming back out tonight,” she called after him. Grinned when he flipped her off without turning.

If he’d been off stalking Jason and Danny two days in a row, he’d need some rest.

“And don’t forget your report,” she teased and actually laughed when he raised his other hand to flip her off with both before leaping off the edge of the roof, swinging back towards the bat cave.

Stephanie Brown had never been prouder in her life than the first day Damian had said “fuck” in front of his dad. Far be it from her to demand anyone transform into a social butterfly, but she personally was pretty damn sure that nothing was gonna help Damian out of his “raised by assassins” shell than learning some good old fashioned swearwords.

And a little teenaged rebellion. The proudest day was totally gonna be when he finally told his grandfather to fuck off (or any suitable equivalent; Steph wasn’t choosy).

Leaning back into the gargoyle’s shadow, Spoiler surveyed the city below. Technically, she’d been out as long as Damian had; if she wanted to be out tonight she’d need a quick nap too.

Or, more fun, she could nip back to the manor, kidnap Cass, and they could find and bully Tim and Tucker in person. Yeah, that was gonna be it.

**

Jason was feeling good, really. Actually a little surprised at how good, considering.

That crunchy little ecto-ice chip had been better than a gallon of coffee, filling him with energy like he’d actually gotten a full night’s sleep. (Not that he knew much about how that actually felt, at least not when not recovering from serious injury.)

He hadn’t actually felt this good since the night Danny slept over, which had been the night before last. Didn’t sound all that impressive, except that it had been the best he’d felt in half a decade.

Maybe the full decade. For all Robin made him magic, skipping sleep to fight crime had done a number on him in his teens. If he’d been as willing as Dickie and Tim to slack on his schoolwork, maybe…

Yeah, no, Tim was the poster child for Do Not Emulate This Sleep Schedule.

What mattered was that even after running the docks down with Black Bat for more than half the night and then getting up to get Danny, Jason felt fucking great.

Even after three separate courses of Bruce’s bullshit, both directly and through the medium of John fucking Constantine. Not so long ago, Bruce would never even dare call him, much less try and set up a bat cave ambush. That… was probably technically a good sign?

Didn’t feel like one at the moment, but Jason actually felt almost good enough to be charitable with the old bat. A little emotionally wrung out, sure, but he felt lighter for… having whatever that had been. Like the stress that had been compacting his chest had finally eased.

Jason was self aware enough to admit he’d probably had more than one breakdown owed to him. Maybe not a “take to the bed”, “trip to the sea” full Victorian lady meltdown, but he’d had a whole baby dropped on him. Except somehow worse.

He damn well deserved that freak out, and now that it was over and he’d been given what kinda felt like the ghost equivalent of speed… He felt like his brain was finally working again.

Which… meant he was fully processing that his fucking soul was vibrating in time with Danny’s. And every other ghost could just. Tell.

That was gonna make fight club… actually, Jason had no idea what the fuck it was gonna make fight club. By all accounts Danny being the Ghost King hadn’t made any of them less likely to throw down with him.

If anything, Danny had warned Jason that him being a “young” ghost would make the others more eager to fight. It was a kind of play, bonding and teaching the new baby their powers.

Sounded fucking terrifying by all accounts and Jason was just glad he had Danny to explain it to him, since apparently full ghosts just… knew it wasn’t serious. Even baby ghosts came into existence recognising the game.

Halfas didn’t.

Whiiiich meant that all the “playful” threats of dismemberment had sounded pretty fucking real to Danny, back when he’d been a baby ghost and had half the Zone flocking to “play” with him.

Pitty let out a rumbly little growl, like a sulking dog and Jason hid a snicker. Yeah, he’d also be kicking their asses that little bit harder for that given half a chance.

Actually, if they kept holding fight club, Pitty could take a chunk out of them itself.

That thought got him a contented little purr, which was weird enough that Jason was going to focus back in on Frostbite’s broader explanation. Which… he should have been doing anyway. At least this part wasn’t solely for his benefit though.

“In the sense that you have tied yourselves together, it may be somewhat like a marriage… however, it is a very different relationship. In a true love-union, your signatures would beat in time,” the yeti explained, gesturing once more to the screen.

Jason’s blob continued to pulse and blur a fraction of a beat behind Danny’s. Definitely not quite in time.

This was a relief. Yup. And Jason’s cheeks definitely weren’t any warmer than they’d been a minute ago, before he knew that, again, his fucking soul was echoing Danny’s.

Frostbite gave his tablet a couple more taps, and a pulsing blue line linked the images on the screen.

“In your case, young knight, your allegiance is marked in both your resonance and in your aura, which now carries a link to your King. In this way, even if the Great One is not beside you, all ghosts will know that you are the chosen protector of their King. His status is what defines your role as a knight, instead of a more casual bond.”

“No one’s king yet,” Danny protested, folding his arms and leaning into Jason’s side. Letting a little more of his weight rest on him.

Jason leaned in too, frowning from the screen to Frostbite.

“And all the other ghosts can just… see this?” He asked, not really sure what he was hoping to be told.

Frostbite switched from giving Danny a fond smile back to Jason, nodding brightly.

“Oh yes. Ectoplasm is very easily influenced by emotion, and bonds can form quite quickly. I presume you took an oath?” He asked, eyes sparkling in a way that made Jason pretty damn sure he’d met Clockwork.

Which, now that he thought about it…

Jason huffed out another deep breath, running a hand through his hair. As much as John Fucking Constantine specifically could ride a cactus straight to Hell… the guy mighta had the faintest inkling of a point about one thing.

“Yeah… about that.” He pulled a face, gaze tracking away from the others and down to the floor.

Would they think he was a dumbass too? Danny had been there when Clockwork made the offer and he’d been pretty against it, but Jason had thought he understood why.

It hadn’t sounded anything like Constantine’s claims of what he’d signed up for.

In the end, it was easier to address the question to Frostbite’s large hairy toes.

“I, uh… I made an oath to Clockwork, but do I have… a contract or something? The asshole magician I mentioned earlier was going on and on about eternal fucking servitude bullshit but it’d be nice to have something to shove in his face,” he added quickly, arm slipping back and almost around Danny (but with his hand still firmly on the table).

He didn’t need to wait to feel the guilt in Danny’s aura to head it off.

Jason wasn’t having second thoughts. He wasn’t sorry for what he’d signed up for, and when it came right down to it…

He didn’t think people could lie through their auras. Even when he was trying to project something like “I’m fine” and he wasn’t, he was pretty sure Danny could tell.

He could sure as hell tell when Danny was bluffing through his, which had happened maybe once total.

He trusted Danny. He trusted Frostbite. He even mostly trusted Clockwork, because for all the guy had been a little sketchy, Jason had felt his sincerity. How deeply he cared for Danny.

Keeping Danny safe forever didn’t sound like eternal servitude. Eternal babysitting, maybe, if Danny was being a pain in the ass, but he’d never top Damian at his most bratty.

Jason woulda been trying to protect Danny anyway. As far as he knew, knighthood just made that easier.

Which was another reason he’d like a look at his contract. You didn’t make it onto the streets as Robin without learning to read for loopholes, hidden clauses, and fine print. He may have already signed on the dotted line, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t find some wiggle room.

Danny, about to say something either apologetic or self deprecating, huffed out a breath as Jason’s arm slipped around him. Winded up giving him a half smile instead.

“Yeah… that’s a good point. I still need to find out if I can fire your ass.”

“Still didn’t hire me,” Jason pointed out archly, bumping his arm to knock Danny forwards a little.

The other halfa huffed a laugh this time and bumped him back.

“Yeah, and I gotta work out how to hire you so I can then immediately fire you,” he shot back.

Frostbite cut them both off with a raised hand, though he still looked fondly amused. Like they were cute little kids or something stupid.

“You will have to discuss this with Clockwork directly, young knight, but I do not believe a knighthood typically comes with a contract. It is a duty one is granted, and one that may be rescinded if you fail, but it is not a deal,” he explained patiently.

Jason’s brows furrowed a little, but at least he could feel Danny’s confusion-puzzled-not sure beside him too. He wasn’t the only one who wasn’t quite sure what that meant.

Maybe he shoulda looked a little more into magic shit while he was with the League of Assassins. That would have been the time, especially if the Lazarus Pits were the just grunged ectoplasm.

“It kinda sounded like a deal when he offered it,” he said almost as a question, glancing back at Danny for confirmation.

Danny nodded. So it wasn’t just Jason.

“He gave me a cool magic gun in exchange for keeping Danny hale and hearty. Protecting him in the living and Infinite realms,” Jason added in case the wording counted, more sure as he remembered some of the reasons.

Fuck, had that only been a week ago? It felt like it’d been a whole year.

Frostbite gave them a neutral shrug, inclining his head.

“As I said, you will need to ask Clockwork directly. All I can tell you is that it is not innate to the position; a knighthood is not usually something bought and sold,” he explained patiently.

Danny hummed an agreement, cheek resting on Jason’s shoulder again.

“It’s normally all ghost-to-ghost too, so is there a way we can check if the halfa thing has changed it?” He asked Frostbite, leaning against the table too and totally not actually putting his arm around Jason back.

Jason felt a little more tension leech back out of him. Which raised another good point, actually.

“And not related or anything, but if you gave me a buncha those ice crystals could I just chew them to get the ecto for…” he hesitated, waving his free hand at his general chest area again.

Honestly, given half a chance he’d love to get a bowl full and try and pop the pit out in one go… it’d probably be easier to train from outside his body where it wouldn’t immediately know he was so full of shit… his own aura notwithstanding.

Yeah, he was still a little worried about being anyone’s emotional guide, but if he could just get the damn thing out in the world… maybe it could have other guides too.

“To answer the simpler question first, young knight, unfortunately the energized ectoplasm is only a short term boost and will not affect either of your cores. I will provide you with a small supply to assist your emotional control whilst you stabilize, if you wish?” Frostbite offered gently, a slight smile on his face.

Jason hesitated, considering things for a moment, then nodded. Sure, it wasn’t a solid “yes here is the answer to all your problems Jason just smack it in”, but it was a concrete solution to what had actually been worrying him.

Having another one of those weird “episodes”. He’d still be waiting to get Pitty all the way out, but at least he had a backup plan until then. He could pop an ecto-crystal each morning, get some energy, and worry less about night patrols.

Shit, he’d have more energy than he’d had since he died. The others were gonna be jealous as hell, but it wasn’t like they could steal and take his ghost meds. Probably.

Jason… wasn’t quite ready to think about the panic attack itself. He felt fine now, way better, and it wasn’t like it was the first he’d had.

Just…

Just the first that he remembered. That his heart started racing, his head rushing, ears filled with rushing static and the world hadn’t just melted into a green haze of blood and violence.

His early training with the League of Assassins had involved a lot of losing himself to the Pit. He’d wake up days later, body aching with exertions he couldn’t remember, and be told how many he’d killed.

Good news: no fear of that either, apparently. Pitty wasn’t pulling for control anymore, so the green haze was all Jason’s own.

Joy.

He had a nasty feeling that Danny would notice him spiralling from anywhere in Gotham. And probably ditch class to come check on him.

Like Hell. Jason’d fucking call Harley first, put himself through some breathing exercises or whatever, he did not need an emotional support Ghost King.

He gave Frostbite a quick nod, a small smile forming almost without thinking about it. The yeti was just… so caring and helpful. Not exactly something Jason had a wealth of experience with. He’d probably be a great example for Pitty.

Frostbite returned the smile, making a quick note on his tablet.

“And of course, your ghostly parent or a mentor should also be able to assist you. Spending time with those who are important to you, especially a comforting figure will help both your control and your core formation,” the yeti added in a slightly pointed way, like he’d read Jason’s mind, and Jason had to stifle a laugh.

Frostbite might be an eight foot tall hairy yeti, but he’d get along with Alfred like a house on fire… he was even as stubborn about not using their names as Alfred was about nicknames.

And when Jason thought about someone comforting, the beacon of emotional maturity and constraint… it could only be Alfred. He was more grandparent than parent, but certainly the only mentor Jason still looked up to. And a paragon of control besides.

Alfred could help him with Pitty. Model a little actual emotional restraint and control for the both of them. The only question was if Jason could just be up front and ask him, possibly revealing the secret early, or if he’d have to come up with an excuse for them to hang out.

Stupid thought. Jason knew damn well he could just walk into the kitchen and Alfred would be more than happy to spend time together. He wouldn’t need a ruse; he wouldn’t even need an excuse.

The knowledge settled warm and soft and happy inside him, until his brain caught up with his ears and stopped him short.

Wait.

“Ghost parent?” He asked cautiously, looking from Frostbite to Danny again. Danny pulled a face but Frostbite beat him to the punch.

“Ah, yes. We did not discuss that last time either. Your ghost parent, young knight, is the second strongest bond a young ghost can have. They are the ghost who welcomes you into the Infinite Realms, who will guide your steps and protect you until your own haunt has formed.”

Brows furrowing, Jason twisted to frown more directly at Danny, not quite sure if he was looking for confirmation or asking a question of his own.

Cuz, y’know, other than the whole “protecting until his haunt formed” (and Jason certainly didn’t need protecting), that sounded a lot like what Danny had been doing. Which would totally make it weird if Jason was a knight to his own ghost-dad.

Clearly following the same lines, Danny raised both hands and shook his head, almost but not quite stepping out of reach.

“Oh no, it’s not me. You’ve had a ghost parent long before I came along,” he said emphatically, the sudden panic on his face making Jason feel better about his own response to surprise parenthood.

He magnanimously decided not to tease Danny about it, turning instead to give Frostbite a questioning look.

“Should I know who my ghost parent is? Who gets to decide?” He asked cautiously. He’d never met another ghost before Danny, but he had this awful sinking feeling that Ra’s al Ghul might have more to do with the realms than just the pits, and he was the closest proxy. Even Tallia would be better. Maybe even Bruce.

Reading his tension, Frostbite clapped a massive furry hand on Jason’s shoulder, smile and aura both full of comfort-reassurance-calm.

“Normally yes young knight, though yours is a special case. Usually when a young ghost first finds its way to the realms, one of the first ghosts they encounter will take them under their wing. It is an honour to care for a young ghost, and a halfa even more so,” he explained gently.

Beside Jason, Danny snorted loudly.

“Oh, yeah, they totally come running to play happy families. Super wholesome,” he grumbled, arms folded as he leaned back into Jason’s weight.

Honestly, Jason could kinda spot common threads between what Frostbite just said and what Danny had told him about Fight Club; the play fighting was supposed to be about sharing powers, right? Just, y’know, between people with shit verbal communication to actually check in that everyone was on the same page.

The yeti sighed fondly, his hand moving from Jason’s shoulder to rest proudly on Danny’s. Given the width of Danny’s shoulders respective to the hand, the last two fingers were back on Jason’s other shoulder.

“Again, Great One, your circumstances were also exceptional. You did not explore the Ghost Zone until after you had established yourself to many as a competent fighter and protector of your haunt, which along with certain… adventures led most to believe you were far older than you are,” Frostbite explained patiently, with just the faintest hint that they’d been through this before.

Danny rolled his eyes and shot Jason double finger guns.

“Yyyyup, which is why I don’t have to deal with any of this “ghost parent” business,” he agreed brightly, tipping Jason a smirk, “get good.”

Jason flipped him off, but there was something… not in his aura, Frostbite’s was still very carefully toned back all calm medical professional, but in the creasing of the yeti’s eyes. Now, ghost yetis were definitely a new species and Batman drilled them all on the dangers of extrapolating body language on new species, but Jason had done his time on alien planets.

Something in the change, something in the shift, a little quirk of the brow Jason had noted when the yeti was amused. There was something funny here, and it wasn’t Danny’s quip.

Putting his suspicions aside for now, Jason settled on the more pressing matter.

“So who is my ghost parent? When do I get to meet them?” He asked cautiously, still not entirely convinced he hadn’t accidentally imprinted on Ra’s or Tallia. Cuz he hadn’t been in the Zone before Danny either.

Danny himself, much less concerned, waved a hand vaguely.

“Oh, we’ll deal with that on the way home. Go do a proper meet and greet, that sort of thing,” he said nonchalantly, and Jason’s shoulders settled a little.

“They’re in the Zone then?” He prodded a little further, not fully willing to let the matter just drop. If he had to ghost-emancipate himself, he’d rather be ready sooner than later.

Danny grinned toothily at him.

“Usually. We’ll see if she’s around, but it might have to be another day. Gotta deal with our other list first, like if our whole halfa deal is gonna do anything to the knight thing, or your core coming in,” he added, looking expectantly at Frostbite.

Jason almost missed what he said next as his heart skipped a beat, a possibility he’d never even considered slamming home.

She.

Someone dead, if they were in the Ghost Zone.

Someone who’d claimed him as her son long ago, guided him as best she could. Someone he’d never expected to see again, not even having died and returned to life himself.

No chance, he told himself quickly, hurriedly refocusing on the conversation at hand. About his bond with Danny, about their shared fucked biology, about his whole undead future.

There was no point dredging up the past until he actually knew.

Frostbite was back in his familiar role of teacher, that same proud/warm/fond smile crinkling the corners of his eyes as he looked at Danny.

“For your bond, Great One, I am not sure what I would even test for. The young knight presently has no ghost form, yet the bond is present exactly as if he had. I am afraid we have no records of former halfas, so any problems which occurred before are long lost.”

The yeti gave the tablet another few careful claw strokes, pulling up lines and lines of scrolling numbers and data beside each of their silhouettes on the wall screen. Forcing himself to the present, Jason scanned them quickly.

Unsurprisingly, he couldn’t actually make heads or tails of it; ghost vitals couldn’t really include things like heartbeat, blood oxygenation, or anything they’d test for in the med bay.

Not until Bruce found out about all this crap anyway - Jason wouldn’t put it past him to try and buy out everything the Far Frozen had in his latest snit of paranoia. The second he got over his “oh no Jason is going somewhere I can’t supervise him”, obviously.

Frostbite clearly knew what it all meant though, highlighting a couple of different areas where Danny’s numbers were very different from Jason’s and giving him that reassuring smile.

“After your first transformation I would expect some of these to change, and it is likely that any differences in your particular bond would show then as well. Your ghost form will of course be entirely ectoplasmic, so the bond will be more present than it is even now.”

That snapped Jason from his internal flailing, and he grimaced at the reminder.

Because… yeah. They’d talked a lot about his first transformation, he and Danny. But the only thing Danny hadn’t really known was when to expect it.

“Yeah… about that. I know the basics, inversion of my moment of death crap, I’ll be able to change it eventually, yadda yadda,” and that was its own sword of Damacles hanging with the mistletoe, “but… when will it happen? Like, will it just… happen? Or will I… yeah.”

Even wording the question made him feel like the whole thing was just too complicated. He wasn’t even sure what he wanted to ask; what to look for? Would there be symptoms? Would he just un-die again in the street?

Luckily Frostbite seemed much more comfortable, hitting a few buttons on his tablet. Jason’s scan took over the full screen once more, zoomed in on the two orbs in his chest.

They were pulsing too, growing brighter and dimmer along with the more defined throb of the ectoplasm. Which was actually when he noticed that both cores were throbbing, so… was Pitty also a knight?

That was going on the list of questions for Clockwork like, yesterday. If he could get it its own little fear gun…

“As you can see, your core is still fuzzy around the edges and incompletely formed; once these edges have smoothed out, you will hypothetically be able to transform at any time,” Frostbite explained, blissfully aware of Jason’s new train of thought.

Probably for the best. Jason reluctantly refocused on the screen, tabling the idea of Sir Pitty for now. Nice to have something actually positive to look forward to.

He didn’t really remember seeing much of the screen during his last appointment, but he had seen the perfect sphere of Danny’s core, and his looked… well, like Frostbite said, smaller and kinda fuzzy. Like a ball of dough after it started sticking to your hands and losing its shape.

He frowned and nodded, looking back to Frostbite and then glancing around at Danny.

“So not until the next appointment, probably? Will it just… happen out of nowhere? Or will I need to trigger it?” It kinda helped, narrowing the scope. Dealing with it one step at a time.

Danny gave a helpless shrug.

“My powers started activating randomly, but I didn’t actually transform until I was in danger. Not like, life threatening danger,” he added with a roll of his eyes, like he’d heard Pitty’s growl… or maybe Jason had echoed it. “It was just Lunch Lady, she was never gonna really hurt us. She just made a mess and tried to feed everyone meat.”

Jason privately added Lunch Lady to his “asses to kick” list. On principle.

Frostbite gave a thoughtful nod, a large hand clapping down on Jason’s shoulder a lot harder than he’d probably intended. He didn’t flinch, but before his pit-growth-spurt it might have knocked him over.

“We can experiment more once your core is complete here in the Zone, and I would recommend waiting until Pitty has been expelled, if possible. Of course, any other changes in your knighthood bond will likely make themselves known with your first change as well,” the yeti mused, quite pleased with the idea.

Jason hesitated before agreeing, worry twisting through him again before he tamped it back down.

He wasn’t that scared little boy anymore; not inside. Besides, the bond was already firmly in place.

His soul was resonating a pace behind Danny’s.

It wasn’t like that little trip back to the moment of his death was gonna make Danny suddenly reject him.

The poor guy was probably stuck with Jason for life anyway at this point, which for a pair of halfas meant pretty much forever.

**

There was not a single thing on Earth or the Watchtower that he wanted less than to stop and talk to John Fucking Constantine and Diana after the meeting.

To be completely fair, Constantine clearly didn’t want to have that conversation any more either; Bruce had not been wrong about how well the magician would take the news that the United States had declared war on an entire dimension.

He was visibly green, had actually ground an unlit cigarette into a grainy mess against the table in lieu of lighting up, and looked about ready to lick up the tobacco.

Diana did not look happy either, but she never had. Her face was as stony and grave as Bruce had ever seen it, concern writ large even as she caught his eye.

The sure knowledge that her lasso would follow if he tried to leave was the only thing that kept him from ignoring her.

But since the only thing he wanted in the world at this moment was to have his son in his arms, and there was no chance of that happening until they were in the same dimension once more…

Bruce shot a quick, questioning look at Clark as the traitor made his way to the exit along with the rest of the Justice League. The Kryptonian at least had the grace to look a little guilty as he shook his head, stepping quickly out the door.

Wonder Woman hadn’t specifically told everyone else to get the fuck out. She had simply molded herself into an immovable force, concluded the meeting, and instructed Bruce alone to remain and discuss these… complications.

Bruce considered making an argument for Superman’s inclusion. They were the original three, and they’d probably need at least his and Aquaman’s help to handle the diplomatic situation.

Possibly the Oa, and Bruce was quite sure Green Lantern wasn’t looking forward to that possibility any more than he was. Hal Jordan talked a good game, always far too flippant, but he’d been pale enough by the end of the lecture that his suit made him look frankly unwell.

Unpleasant times would be in all of their futures it seemed. It was no real comfort as he slipped into a seat across from Wonder Woman and the slumped form of John Constantine.

The magician didn’t even look up, but clearly noticed.

“Didn’t fuckin’ think anyone’d fuck this up worse’n you, Bats,” he groaned, face still pressed into the table.

Bruce grunted, uninterested in his judgement.

“There are new complications we should focus on.” A vain hope, and one Diana instantly crushed.

“One that makes the contents of our discussion all the more vital,” she corrected sharply, piercing blue eyes narrowed as she watched his face. “It seems we have already caused unintentional offence.”

Which was an extremely light way to phrase the declared genocide, but Bruce didn’t bother arguing that position. Not when Constantine would do it for him.

But the mage just let out a long, hearty groan.

“Offence. Yeah. Maybe if we saw off the United States and toss it through a portal the rest of us will be fine,” he snarked, raising his head just enough to bang it off the table. Repeatedly.

By the third bang Diana gripped the back of his head, holding him in place against the table.

“Whatever the situation,” she growled, her tone daring either of them to comment, “we must deal with it as it is. You believe we would have noticed any countermeasures from the former Ghost King?”

She released her grip a moment later, and Constantine rolled his head just enough to glare at her through one eye.

“Pariah Dark? Sister, it wouldn’ta been a single town bein’ pulled off the map. We’d have lost the continent, and probably the world. You wouldn’t miss it,” he added with a bitter laugh, clearly considering banging his head off the table again.

Diana placed a hand on the table. Constantine set his head back down gently.

“And the new king?” She prodded, all icy control.

Bruce had to admit, even he felt calmer watching her.

He knew all the follies and foibles of gods, had no delusions about the limits of her power. He also knew her strengths. Her wisdom. Her ability to cut through complex issues with sword or words.

Whatever he missed, she was removed enough from this mess to catch.

Constantine shrugged, still not rising.

“No fuckin’ clue. All I know is they’re better’n Pariah, which is the lowest damn bar I ever saw. They call them Balance, and we’re not gonna fuckin’ like when the scales come due.”

Bruce’s brows furrowed. What could be a sufficient counterweight for demanding a whole people be hunted and experimented on until extinction?

The dead always vastly outnumbered the living.

Diana cut across his thoughts, her tone as sharp as her blade.

“So you believe we’d notice.”

Constantine sighed heavily and flopped back in his seat hard enough that he nearly toppled over. Diana steadied the chair with one hand, eyebrow rising archly.

Constantine stopped flailing, went to fold his arms, and instead stuffed his hands in his pockets.

“Probably’d be pretty hard to miss too,” he agreed gruffly. Diana nodded, having received the answer she wanted, and interlaced her fingers.

“Then we have time to rectify matters before word reaches his ears.” She paused, brow furrowing as she recounted John’s words. “Do we not know if the King is a man?”

Constantine shrugged again, pulling something unidentifiable from his pocket before hastily shoving it back in, coming out again with a lighter. He spun it between his fingers, eyes fixed on the metal lid.

“Nah. “King” is just a loose translation to living tongues, for what yer used to. Easier to say than “Supreme High Ruler, Core of the Realms”. Not even likely that they were ever human; not even the Ancients could take Pariah solo to take the crown, so a human ghost wouldn’t stand a chance.”

Huffing out a mighty breath, Constantine looked from the lighter to Bruce, his gaze somehow immeasurably more tired. Bruce had imagined that talking about Amity Park made the man look ancient.

He looked haggard enough to be an ancient ghost himself now.

Raising his other hand, he began counting off points on his fingers.

“We know they’re young. Everything agrees on that. Could be any time in the past few centuries, but it’s still a timeline. We know they’re tougher’n Hell and all its demons put together, cuz they put Pariah down single handed. Had to to get the throne. Might not have Ended him, the Casket of Eternal Slumber’s not turned up looking for a new occupant.”

The magician stared at his two fingers for a moment, then sighed and raised a third.

“And we know ghosts like them. They’re less scared, though most of ‘em never knew shit about Pariah. Didn’t even react to him waking, which had to happen for the change in power. That or it all went down too fast for the shockwaves to reach us here; not bloody likely. Wouldn’t take more than a day, and ghosts fight for decades on a whim.”

He hesitated for a moment, considering that last finger. Finally he sighed and shook his head.

“Can’t rule it out though. Pariah waking up’d be as much an emergency for them as it’d be for us, putting his ass back down is an all hands on deck situation on either side of the veil. If this new king is Balance, Pariah’d be their opposite,” he finished gruffly, glaring at all three digits before stuffing both hands into his pockets.

Bruce nodded, drawing a deep, calming breath in through his nose and then out through his mouth. Even this much discussion had something itching in the back of his mind, a building tension that he had to Get Away.

He was in control of it though. Could tell the difference between his own unease and the burning ember of the oath.

Turn and run right away his ass. Magic could never hold out against cool, calm logic.

“And this new king, Balance, has stamped a damn mark on Jason.”

And his breath hitched.

Sharp, white hot panic flared behind his eyes, every muscle clenching with the effort of not leaping straight from the table. The only reason he didn’t was because he had no idea where to go.

What would he even do? Run to Jason’s side? The boy was in another dimension, far beyond Bruce’s reach.

Again.

He was losing Jason again. Losing him to this Ghost King, this Balance, this-

Diana’s hand clamped firmly over his, the amazon’s grip immovable steel. Bruce felt his bones grinding together before he even noticed he’d stopped breathing, before he managed to look up enough to meet her eyes.

Stern, determined, brilliant blue locked with his. Her grip tightened a little further, the ribbing on his gloves creaking with the pressure.

She wouldn’t break them… probably. They were designed to hold up against any of the supers the League dealt with. Prolonged contact was another thing entirely though.

His attention now locked on her face, Bruce managed a deep breath in along with her. Held it when she did. Let it out.

She didn’t release him for another few repetitions, until he was breathing mostly on his own again. Then she returned her attention to Constantine.

“What.” It wasn’t aggressive. Just a completely flat, completely toneless statement.

Constantine gave her an entirely hopeless smile, pulling his hands from his pockets to give her jazz hands.

“And that’s what he’s not ready to hear yet. Your boy, Jason, Red Hood, has gotten himself personally warded by the Ghost King. He’s the next thing to invulnerable right now,” he added bitterly, as if that made any of it better.

An icy hand clenched in Bruce’s chest again, but he forced himself to still. To breathe through it. To not turn and run, run until he found his child and tore him away from whatever influence had him.

The Ghost King had a hold of Jason. Jason who’d all but ordered Bruce to let him go.

“And Jason must have been in direct contact with the King to receive these wards?” Diana asked sharply, and Bruce’s head snapped back to her.

It was a good question. Important, obvious, there was a connection there that he should be making, but he couldn’t think. His head was spinning, heart pounding, and every shadow seemed black as pitch.

Constantine grunted an agreement, shooting Bruce an almost sympathetic look.

Could. Could this be the oath? Not his own instinctive, natural panic?

Bruce couldn’t tell, he’d been so afraid for so long, ever since he held Jason’s broken body in his arms. Ever since he buried his son.

It felt the same. But he had mastered that fear long ago, so this would not control him now. He had to be better.

Frowning at Diana, he leaned forward.

“Explain.” She’d probably assumed that he’d made the same connection. He probably should have.

There was just a brief flash of surprise on her face before her expression softened, her hand gentling over his.

“Jason was the one who told you of these Anti Ecto Acts, was he not?” She asked pointedly, a dark brow arching delicately.

Bruce about managed a grunt of agreement, his jaw clenched too tightly to speak. She waited a moment longer, watching his face, and then sighed.

“Then is it not likely that either he has told Balance of these Acts, or that Balance was the one that told him?”

Constantine jerked and got halfway through a bellowed curse before she cut him off with a glare. Her tone brooked no argument as she continued with a firm, frosted patience.

“Jason is a principled young man, even if not of the exact principles you prefer. Either he has warned you because he believes we have time to fix this, or because the King would prefer we handle it,” she said bluntly.

It sounded so simple, put like that. Far too simple. Bruce shook his head, leaning in.

“We can’t know for sure-”

“Batman.” There was nothing harsh in her tone. Nothing so overtly aggressive as the glare she kept giving Constantine. Just a calm, cool statement that sucked the air from his lungs.

The weight of her own mantle, the Amazon princess who would one day be Queen. Not his friend Diana; Wonder Woman.

Once she was sure he wouldn’t continue, she fixed him with a sapphire stare.

“Do you believe Jason Todd would condone the end of the world?” She asked simply, and that at least was that plain.

“No.” It didn’t even require thought; whatever he feared ever since his son took his first life, Bruce knew that.

Jason was fundamentally a good boy. So kind, so giving, ironically he had been the most well adjusted boy Bruce had ever given the mantle to.

Which was what made what he’d become so painful. It was everything he never should have been.

Wonder Woman nodded as if that solved all the rest.

“And yet you called the meeting, not him. He has known for several days already and did nothing to alert any of us. Therefore, he does not believe this is an urgent threat.”

It sounded good, and Bruce almost believed it before Constantine snorted.

“Yeah, great, except the kid has no fuckin’ clue what he’s dealing with. Didn’t even know he’d been fuckin’ marked or that sellin’ his fuckin’ service was the dumbest fuckin’ thing he coulda done,” he grumbled and Bruce’s heart fell.

Wonder Woman was not so easily swayed. She raised an eyebrow slowly at the magician.

“And could those protective marks have been placed on Jason against his will?” She asked pointedly, like she knew the first thing about magic.

Constantine hesitated. Frowned a little, thinking hard. Finally he threw both hands in the air and leaned back in his chair, scrubbing them down his face.

“Technically, yes, alright? But I can’t think of a damn reason why they’d bother. Like I told the old Bat, it’s technically a good thing; I couldn’t even get a basic diagnostic spell off, he’s completely fuckin’ magic proof an’ anythin’ that can read that ward will run like fuck.”

Something in Bruce’s chest flickered hopefully. Wonder Woman nodded firmly, then redirected her stare to him.

“Then until we have reason not to, we assume that Jason Todd has control of this situation. He has assigned us to deal with these Acts, either before his king discovers them or on their behalf. You, Batman, will defer to his experience along with that of our experts,” she declared with all the ringing command she was capable of.

It chafed. And yet… he could hear the echo of Harley’s words in her voice.

What if Jason was wrong? It was the kind of thing he always thought about, the kind of thing he couldn’t stop thinking about. The kind of thing that had the Batman able to stand and go toe to toe with gods.

But what if Jason was right? What if Harley, Diana, Constantine were right, and his usual measures would spell disaster?

He had a dozen contingency plans that any member of the League could use to take him down. He was painfully aware that the first one, the one he’d already shown to Superman and Wonder Woman, only had two words in it.

Diana’s Judgement.

She hadn’t technically invoked it yet. Had never bothered asking exactly what he meant by it; she wasn’t one to back down from hard subjects, which meant she’d also never bothered hiding how little she thought of his contingency plans.

His League-specific ones, anyway. She liked the ones he had for the rogues and various end of the world crises.

It meant moments like this, where she would give him her honest, simple judgement and reign him in.

(Technically it also meant that he trusted her to decide when she needed to snap his neck, but Martian Manhunter always looked at him with disappointment when he thought about that side too much.)

Looking back to her face, he managed to meet her eyes and nod once. It went against every instinct he had, every year of experience and loss, but…

If he couldn’t do things he didn’t like, he’d never have become Batman.

**

Head spinning with a plethora of new information, bag of ecto candies in hand, Jason deliberately slowed down to let Danny precede him out of Frostbite’s office.

That little suspicion had been growing, kindling the more they discussed halfa anatomy and bonds, and honestly? Yes, he had been using it as an excuse to think about something other than his own problems.

Danny seemed not to notice, disappearing past the doorway as Jason looked up at Frostbite. Figured fuck it; he didn’t know how much time he had. Best be blunt.

“You’re Danny’s ghost parent, aren’t you?” He asked, knowing from the yeti’s face as he did that he was right.

The way it froze for just a moment, eyes flicking to the door Danny had just left through. Then the smile that spread, knowing and secretive as he bent down for the first time to put his face on Jason’s level.

“He takes such pleasure in believing he does not have one; the Great One values his independence highly, and his history with parental figures is… complex. It can be our secret, yes?” The yeti winked.

Jason hesitated for a moment, thinking back to all he knew about Danny’s home life. It wasn’t actually all that much; Danny probably actually knew more about Jason’s, after the last week.

That wasn’t just a rarity, it was practically unheard of for any of the former Robins, and Jason knew exactly how Dick and Harley would react to that information.

They’d accuse him of growth. Gross. They couldn’t be told.

And yeah, maybe Jason had a bit of a personal understanding of why Danny wouldn’t want an overabundance of parental figures around. Their situations weren’t exactly the same, not really, but Jason knew enough verses of the song.

All teen heroes tended to have certain things in common, the biggest of which was whatever parental figure they had failing to protect them. Failing to keep them from the darkness, forcing a kid to take on a mantle and burdens that they never should have.

He’d wanted to pound Bruce’s bones to pulp for putting another kid in his cape. Wound up nearly pounding Tim’s instead, however the pit and Tallia had twisted things to make that seem like the same thing.

And Danny hadn’t just picked up the mantle of Teen Hero. He’d picked up a crown, a whole realm of responsibilities and rulership over the dead.

Personally, Jason thought Danny was missing out on an easy dodge of king duties by not finding his ghost parent; Clockwork was his regent but still apparently bothered him for work.

A parent ruling until the child was of age was behind most of the most brutal regicides in any monarchic system; the dead had to know about it.

But that’d mean Clockwork bothering Frostbite at all hours, possibly. Or Clockwork finding new excuses to keep checking on a crown prince Jason had already seen was a handful.

Yeah, he could see why no one really challenged Danny’s assertion that he didn’t have a ghost parent.

Jason spared a moment wondering about his own again.

He knew better than to hope, he really did. Catherine Todd deserved much better than an afterlife of watching over his many mistakes. If there was any justice to death, she’d moved straight past the realms and into the most perfect of paradises.

He liked to think she’d be proud of him. Of the work he’d done, the good he’d spread through the Alley even if it was on the end of a gun.

So long as it wasn’t any form of al Ghul whatsoever, Jason was pretty sure he could handle any other ghost parent the multiverse could throw at him.

Danny’s head poked back around the corner, grinning in a very worried way between the two of them.

“Everything okay back here?” He asked with some of the worst overhyped cheer Jason had ever heard.

Alright, maybe Danny would actually also have been a problem for ghost parent. Because Jason thought he was hot. Because he was an awful mother hen even as a friend.

Jason raised his bag of ecto candies.

“Just checking how many of these I can safely have in a day,” he said innocently, and kinda hoped Danny didn’t actually feel the wash of Frostbite’s approval as the yeti straightened.

That would give the game away.

“They are not a substitute for sleep or nutrition for your human form,” Frostbite told him, as if that was what they’d been talking about.

Jason sighed heavily, doing his best impression of Tim being handed decaf.

“Listen, a guy can hope?”

“Oh you’re not gonna win that one,” Danny snickered, brightening with the distraction and all but skipping in to take Jason’s arm, “let’s scram before he gets the powerpoints.”

Frostbite gave them a cheerful wave on the way out the door, and Jason managed a mostly sincere smile as Danny began regaling him on some of his teenaged attempts to persuade Frostbite to let him give up sleep for finals week.

Yeah, he might add the Fenton parents to the butt-kicking list. Below the ghosts, obviously, for whom butt-kicking was a social courtesy.

But, y’know. If he ever got the chance to have a quiet word about taking care of your damn kids.

———————

And here we have Part 1! Imma just yeet it up so you can all get started while I edit Part 2, because again, this is a Girthy One without an easier breakpoint 👀

I’ll still try and get Part 2 done tonight, but I’ve kept y’all waiting long enough

Tag List: @welcometosasakiworld @kyrianclawraith @someonebored0100 @stealingyourbones @starkcravingmad @frostedthroughghost @akikkobara @rainbowbunny0159 @littlefeather345 @violet-catsarelife @serasvictoria02 @wolfjackle @blacksea21090 @secretdestinywerewolf @anime-hipster-the-amazing @undead-essence @skitscratched @blackroserelina @snoodly-boop @mayoota-blog @xysidhe @little-apricot-the-writer @chaoticmistake @the-legal-shipper @bun-fish @aroranorth-west @demon-cat-goes-woof f @perfectwastelandcreation @onyxlightdragon @larks-and-katydids @peachesandcreamfemboy @jesus-camp-the-sequel @may-rbi @mothman-the-mothman87 @viyatrix @stargirl1331 @idfk-man10 @thedepressedrobin @skulld3mort-1fan @rootsmudge @ravenshadow17 @cankoking @phantom-dc @mentalcarebear @magic-pincushion @redamancyardor @lyra689 @itsparadoxlacuna @alcorbearson @asphyxia778 8 @why-must-i-be-like-this @tkiesai i @greenpyrowolf @frivolous-pastel @honeysuckletook @adorkable1291

Part Two:

#dp x dc #dpxdc #dc x dp #dcxdp #danny fenton dead and loving it #chapter 17 i bet #well you did get down on one knee #dead on main ship #danny x jason #slowest burn we burn so slow it looks like rust

[maglorslostsilmaril]

Imladris HCs that nobody asked for but I will be sharing anyway bcs I have some thoughts about that silly little elf hotel

Upon entering the borders, the magic surrounding the valley is tangible to the person entering and reflects Elrond’s opinion on them

AKA it might feel like to hug to any of his kids, or a warm greeting to a friend. I guess some sort of discomfort to come to people he doesn’t like but who is trying to enter the valley if Elrond hates them anyway

The title “Last Homely House” only refers to the home of Elrond and his friends/family; there’s a surrounding city as well tucked further into the valley

The city is actually fairly undivided in terms of Sindar vs Noldor; at this point everyone just kinda vibes.

Maglor obviously was not allowed traipsing around the city at first though; however after a couple hundred years people are more or less accustomed to “Lindir” anyways

(He mostly spends his time haunting/terrorizing guests though, much to Elrond’s dis(?)pleasure)

The grounds surrounding the main house/manor or whatever include a frankly astounding amount of statue gardens including but not limited to:

Statues of the sons of Feanor, the houses of Fingolfin, Finarfin, Beor, Hador and Haleth, Melian’s line, Beren and Luthien, the great-grandchildren of Finwe, the valar, and the kings of Numenor

The grounds also include two graveyards, one for elves and one for men.

Celebrian planted wildflowers year-round, timing them so that in the spring the grounds explode with flora. Arwen and Elrohir continue the tradition after she sails.

One of Elrond’s kids (either Elladan or Aragorn) brought a warg pup back home once. It bred, and now there are fairly domesticated wargs protecting the valley

Everyone in the valley gets excited when hobbits visit, as it’s a rare occasion; they don’t normally serenade visitors. Hobbits are the exception.

Elrond’s home and the surrounding grounds are just a tad sentiment; the paths and corridors have a habit of bringing people Elrond likes straight where they need to go, and getting others hopelessly lost.

That’s all I have for now, possibly will update later!

#tolkien #lotr #the silmarillion #maglor #lord of the rings #elrond #aragorn #elladan #elrohir #arwen #celebrian #rivendell #imladris #tolkien headcanons #lotr headcanons

[stillebesat]

*vibrating a normal amount*

GUYS. There is a Lazarus Pit somewhere in the BATCAVE.

So. Apparently at some point. Bane and Batman (probably not together? I'm sorry I'm just going off of a wiki) were both going around destroying Lazarus Pits.

ONLY.

Batman eventually found out that the Lazarus Pits are actually needed to keep the world stable. You can't destroy them all. That's bad. Very bad.

And so he decided to create his own and where would he put said pit? In the safest place he knows.

The Batcave.

Because he knows that's like the one place that Ra's will never get to so therefore The Demon Head will never use it.

But like can you imagine the DP X DC possibilities?!?!

Like what if the person who told Batman that destroying all the Pits was bad was the Ghost King?

What if Danny was the one who helped Batman to pick out a safe location in the Batcave as well as design the holding area for the Pit/Portal so that it would remain stable and be unlikely to hurt any humans?

What if the increased ectoplasm in the area makes the Batfam more liminal?

What if the increased ectoplasm in the air allows certain ghosts (Bruce's Parents, Dick's Parents, etc) to become more visible?

What if, depending on the timeline of just when the Gotham Lazarus Pit is created, if it was created sometime after Jason's death but before his revival....it's ectoplasmic presence helps to fully revive Jason. He forms a core in the coffin. His mind returns to him without the LoA having to get involved. He instinctively uses ghost abilities to escape from his grave without having to dig his way out. He returns to his family.

What if the Pit was created while Jason was with the League. And he's dealing with corrupted ectoplasm from that Pit. But when he finally finally ends up in the Cave (maybe he's severely injured and has to stay there for a while?) the pure ectoplasm in the Cave helps to filter out the corrupted stuff and helps him form a core then?

What if Jason feels like he can never go home because he's been replaced, he has too much blood on his hands....and yet the moment he steps foot in the cave or steps foot in the manor he feels like he's come HOME. And he has no idea why he feels so safe and protected there and why it's so difficult for him to want to leave when he's HOME until a while later when he finally discovers the presence of the Pits.

What if Batman created the Lazarus Pit on his own and he or some other family member accidentally becomes a Halfa in the process?

What if Ghost King Danny feels the presence of a new connection to Earth opening up and goes to investigate and discovers the Batfam?

What if Phantom (injured maybe, possibly in desperate need of a new haunt) comes through the portal/pit after they're created and feels the presence of another halfa (jason) or else feels a 'connection' to the Batfam in some way and ends up making Gotham his new home? (Found Family AU)

Also. Like. Could you imagine the freak out that Batman would have the first time an actual ghost came up through the pit? And if said ghost wasn't Phantom? Like nothing in his research mentioned creatures emerging from the pit itself! What is he to do?!

He created the pit in the cave to keep it safe from Ra's but he had no idea that the pits would come with their own 'problems.' And now suddenly there are these beings from the Infinite Realms hanging around the cave and he's desperately trying to research just who these beings are and what they're capable of and trying to find contingencies just in case they're more evil than gremlins. Plus HOW does he keep them from entering the cave itself?!

Imagine Technus messing with the technology in the cave. Skulker borrowing weapons to augment his suit. Johnny taking the Batfam's various motorcycles out for a spin.

Like...guys. There are soooooo many possiblities. So many.

#DP x DC #Lazarus Pits #Batman #Danny Phantom #Ghost Shenanigans

[wolfjackle-creates]

Ghost!Robin Part 13

THE DINNER ENDS!!!!!! Dear god, I need to write something that has less than seven characters present in the currently-being-written scene. This segment will be a bit longer than most previous ones simply because I was so close to the end.

Story Summary: Danny was invited to dinner at Wayne Manor to meet Jazz's boyfriend and his family for the first time. He worked hard to make sure no ghost business would interrupt the evening. But when he arrived, all he could focus on was the ghost of the dead Robin that seemed to haunt Jason. Looks like he was breaking his promise.

First, Previous

Word Count: 1.9k

-----

“Look, I’ve faced both an evil future version of me and have had to deal with mind control.” He looked to Bruce and, serious now, said, “As soon as the Anti-Ecto Acts are repealed and the Guys in White disbanded, I will help you write those plans myself.”

Bruce gave a single nod. “Do you know what caused you to turn evil in the alternate time stream?”

Danny sighed and nodded. “Believe it or not, I cheated on a standardized exam.”

“Okay, what?” asked Tim, incredulous. “What sort of 2000s PSA life do you live? How did that lead you down the path to evil?”

Danny frowned. “I got caught, my teacher met with Jazz, my partners, and my parents at a local restaurant to discuss it. There was an explosion and the entire place blew up killing every single person I was close to. I was then sent to live with Vlad where things got worse.”

Duke let out a low whistle. “Damn. I think I’d go evil, too, under that pressure.”

Robin flew over to him and draped himself over Danny’s back, hugging him as tightly as he could. Jazz reached over and gripped his hand. He gave her a smile and squeezed back.

Bruce nodded. “But it sounds like a future that is unlikely to happen again.”

“Grandpa says the same thing. And since he’s the Ghost of Time, I try to believe him.”

Tim made a noise of agreement. “Be glad you have that assurance. I’ve an evil future self as well. He’s such an asshole.”

Danny forced a laugh, recognizing the attempt at levity. “I’m sure. How’d you get yours to go away?”

He shrugged. “The obvious way. Threatened to kill myself so I could never grow up into him.”

Dick spluttered from his spot next to Damian. “I’m sorry, you did what? Tim! How could you?”

Tim shrugged. “Better than having an evil, gun-using Batman running around.”

Bruce was now sitting with his head in his hands. The rest of the table also started yelling at Tim, the references and names making no sense to Danny who looked over to Jazz. She just shrugged at him.

Leaning over, he whispered in her ear, “At least your in-laws won’t be too freaked out when weird things happen around you.”

She laughed. “Yeah. Honestly, I’m glad this is how the evening ended. It means no more secrets between Jason and me.”

“Guys, enough!” shouted Tim. “Look, I’m fine. This happened ages ago. But I promise I’ll update my incident report so you can all snoop on it later. Now, if you’ve all forgotten, we have guests. And ones who can help us with our League troubles. Danny, you had questions about the Lazarus pits?”

“Yeah, uh, you said it can be used to heal people? How does that work?” To Jason, he added, “And how did you interact with it?”

“I was dunked in it,” said Jason with a shrug. “After I’d been revived. I wasn’t in my right mind and Damian’s mom thought it might help.”

Robin nodded and signed something.

Dick translated for the ghost. “Baby Jason says the pit tied him and Big Jason together, but also prevented them from actually combining into one person again.”

Danny looked between them. “You were submerged in a pool of bubbling ectoplasm? How the hell did that not kill you? That shouldn’t be possible for a human. I doubt it’d be good for a ghost!” No wonder his future brother-in-law was split in two. That was probably the best that could be expected.

Danny hadn’t even realized how hard he was projecting concern until Robin trilled back at him to calm him down. Danny took a deep breath and pulled in his aura. “Sorry, Robin. I do think I’d like to get you both in to see my doctor as soon as possible, though.”

Jazz cleared her throat. “We can discuss that at home.”

Bruce stared at him. “Do you think they can help Jason?”

Danny shrugged. “He knows the most about ghost-human hybrids of anyone. If anything can be done, he’ll know.”

“I will go with you,” Bruce said.

Danny immediately shook his head. “Nope. I won’t bring anyone from Earth into the Realms until the Anti-Ecto acts are repealed. And only Jason can invite people to his private medical check up.”

Steph pouted. “But Jason is from Earth. Sure, he’s got some weird thing going on, but why does he get to go exploring other dimensions?”

“Cause he’s dead. He belongs to the Infinite Realms just as much as he belongs to Earth. I’m not gonna block someone from accessing their home.”

“I’m not dead!” yelled Jason. “I’m alive.”

Danny winced. He’d have to talk to Jazz about that. Death wasn’t really a thing that could be recovered from. Not fully. But it wasn’t his place to tell Jason he was still dead if he wasn’t ready to hear that. Jazz or Frostbite could have that conversation. “Of course you’re alive. And Earth is your home, too. But you’ve got one in the Realms if you ever need or want it. Think of it like dual citizenship.”

“I don’t want it.”

Danny sighed. “Look, then the part of you that is manifesting as Robin has a place there and you two can’t be separated so you’re allowed to follow him. It’s the only way I’ll be able to get you in to see the best doctor to help you out.”

“Jason,” Jazz spoke gently and rested her hand on his forearm, “you’re still alive. Nothing about your situation has changed. You just have some more information and more help. Which is a good thing.”

Jason frowned and didn’t answer, choosing instead to glare at his dinner plate.

No one else spoke up until Alfred cleared his throat. “Well, I believe that we should wrap the conversation up here. We’ve all received quite a lot of information and will need some time to review it and consider our next steps.”

Danny nodded. “Yeah, I think— Wait, um, before we end this, would you have a sample of the Lazarus Water I could take to Frostbite?” At the confused looks he was given, he added, “The doctor I mentioned. I think it’d help him figure out how best to help Jason and Robin.”

Bruce exchanged looks Danny couldn’t interpret with Damian and Tim before speaking. “We’ll have to discuss it. Would we be able to give you our answer in two days? At the very least, we’d like to have the report from your friend first.”

Danny shrugged. “Sure. The sooner the better, though. I’ll call Tucker on the way to Jazz and Jason’s. We’ll put something together for you tonight. I’m not sure exactly how long it’ll take, though. Depends on how much sleep Tuck’s running on.”

Bruce merely nodded.

Dick laughed and got to his feet. “Well, it’s been an absolute pleasure getting to know you. Welcome to the craziness of the Wayne family. It sounds like Jazz and you will fit right in. Let me walk you out.”

His words seemed to be a signal to the rest of the family. Most of whom also rushed over to try and insist on walking them out.

Until Jason shouted, “Enough! We don’t need a crowd to follow us to Jazz’s car. You can say goodbye from here just as easily.”

Dick pouted but acquiesced. Only after pulling Jason into a hug, though. Jason forced Dick to let him go only for Robin to rush in and take his place to Dick’s delight. After separating, they signed something to each other that had Jason blushing and scowling.

And then Dick moved on to hug Jazz, then Danny. “Come back anytime,” he told Danny. “Whether or not those two are with you. B meant it when he said you would have a room here.”

But then Steph was pushing Dick to the side to give Danny a hug as well. “What’s your phone number? I so want whatever blackmail you get on Jason. And I’ll share some of what I have.”

Danny laughed, but did agree to exchange numbers before the Duke was in front of him.

“Dude, you have to come by more often. It’s so annoying being the only meta around here.”

“I’ll see what I can do,” Danny promised.

When Tim came over, he insisted on adding both Danny and Jazz to some of the family group chats. “If you give me your sister’s number, I’ll add her in, too.”

Jazz shook her head. “We’ll have to confirm she wants to be added in first. And ask her if she’d like an introduction to Superboy.”

“His name’s Kon. Kon-El. I’ll message him tonight, too. I’m sure he’d love to meet her.”

“Dani will say yes,” said Danny, “but she doesn’t always reply right away. We’ll let you know as soon as we hear from her.”

Then Tim was being pushed aside by Barbara who wanted to make sure he knew how to send them the information about ghosts and the Realms. And Cass was waving goodbye.

Bruce was the last of the group to approach them. “Remember, if you ever need a place to stay or want to lay low, you can come here any time. Even if you just want a warm meal. Your sister as well.”

“Thanks, Bruce,” said Jazz. “We do really appreciate that. You don’t have to offer it.”

“But I want to. Jason…” he trailed off before trying again. “I would like it if you kept me informed with any updates to your condition.”

Jason rolled his eyes. “Right, because you want to know how much of a liability I am.”

If anything, Bruce’s face became more closed off at those words. “That’s not… Hn.”

Robin rolled his eyes, somehow visible despite his mask, and flew over to hug Bruce around the waist. Danny couldn’t make sense of the expression Bruce wore as he looked down at the ghost and though his arms twitched, he didn’t return the hug.

Alfred smoothly stepped forward before anyone could say anything. “Well, now that the goodbyes have all been said, I will walk you four out.”

Jason shook his head. “You don’t have to, Alfie. I know the way.”

“Of course you do, Master Jason. But I insist. We’ll stop by the kitchens and I’ll send you home with leftovers.”

Danny tried to hide his smile as Jason merely turned and walked in the direction of the kitchens. It seemed no one argued against Alfred. Once in the kitchens, they were given so much food to take home it required all three to carry it, then Alfred was leading them out a side door which brought them to the drive where Jazz’s car was parked.

Jazz nudged him and nodded her head towards the car. Danny nodded and followed her in while Jason, Alfred, and Robin remained outside to talk for a minute.

Danny took the back seat and met Jazz’s eyes in the rear-view mirror.

She gave him a wry smile and said, “What a night, huh?”

Danny snickered before bursting out into full-on laughter, Jazz joining a breath behind him.

-----

Next

Tim totally spilled the beans about Gun Batman to get people distracted from Danny. He's just being a good new friend.

I'm thinking I'll put this on a temporary hiatus as I work through how I want arc two to go. I know the story beats, but the pacing will absolutely have to change. Not gonna spend 16k words on a single evening again! (Did you guys realize it was that long? I certainly did. XP) In the meantime, I'll keep working on Bring Me Home and rewriting the Wrong Number AU.

Bonus points to anyone who can guess my favorite line from this segment!

And sorry for not replying to comments on the post from two weeks ago. I got caught up in irl stuff and wasn't able to get around to it.

Tag List Part 1

@addie-lover-of-stories, @justwannabecat, @gin2212, @amercurio, @regonold, @overtherose, @readerzj, @sjrose1216, @echoednonny, @deeterzz, @blu-lilac, @number-one-jew, @rowanaway-fromthisbs, @vythika96, @tired-yet-awaken, @themirrorghost, @emeraldcorpral, @all-mights-asscheeks, @darkhinauniverse, @blep-23, @phandomhyperfixationblog, @larkcoe1, @thegatorsgoose, @job-ross-the-second, @britcision, @lenacraft, @bubblemixer, @androgynouslordofescapism, @purefrickingspite, @leftmiraclechaos, @lizisipancardo, @starlight-sparks, @miraculousandmore, @gildedphoenix, @sometimesthingsfallapart, @letmesayfuxk, @phoenixcatch7, @skulld3mort-1fan, @abaowo, @dhampir-princess, @idkmrpianoman, @sarina-elais, @ballzfrog-blog, @undead-essence, @spookytragedyshark, @flyingpansaurus, @akintoabitch, @marivictal, @8-29pm, @justreadingthefanfics, @happybear135, @kisatamao, @spoopyspoony, @adorablechaos, @sara0055, @screamingtofillthevoid

#dpxdc #my writing #danny fenton #jazz fenton #anger management #all the bats #the endless dinner is done! #you guys have no idea how happy i am about that #i'm really proud of this work though #it was a challenge but i think im a better writer for it

[piedpiperart]

Phantom of Gotham 17

Chapter 16

“Shoot, we didn’t ask Phantom about Danny,”Dick groaned. 

“I asked him a bit, but it uh. It seemed private,”Tim chimed in from where he was sitting at the batcomputer with his pajamas on. They’d changed when they had gotten back, but stuck around to debrief. 

“Yeah, what the fuck were you thinking going into some glowing green portal by yourself?” Jason let out, exasperated. Tim just shrugged, not pausing in his typing. 

“You could have come with you know,”Tim argued. “He said it was safe, and we just flew to this frozen island to get Frostbite, then flew back.”

“Frozen island? Wait a minute, what was it like in there?” Dick asked, bouncing on his feet with Damian scowling at his side in batman pajamas. 

“Well, it’s kind of like… okay, imagine the sky is green, just like the portal. Now imagine you’re floating in the green sky and theres no ground. So theres only sky around you and as you keep moving theres things floating in the sky as you go along, like random doors and floating islands,” Tim explained. “Its really interesting actually, apparently most of the floating islands or doors lead to a ghosts haunt, or territory. Frostbites was huge and he and his people lived in these snowy mountain caves, but their technology was super advanced. I didn’t get a lot of time to ask about it but apparently Frostbite is like the Zone’s doctor.”

“Huh,” Dick murmured, trying to wrap his brain around all of that information. The other bats didn’t seem much better. 

Tim sighed. “Just read my report.”

“Creepy ghost zone aside,”Jason shuddered,”What did you mean when you said you talked to Phantom about Danny? And why were you two running around looking for boxes?”

“I asked why Danny had uh.. Autopsy scars, and Phantom said that the Fentons found out about Danny and locked him in their lab. Phantom couldn’t get to him immediately, so they had time to uh, do a few experiments,”Tim gritted out.”But Phantom got him out eventually and they made their way here.” 

None of them were happy about that, but it was mostly what they had speculated. Still, confirming what they thought wasn’t a good feeling. Tim could see Jason’s fists clenching and decided on a distraction. 

“As for the boxes,”Tim grinned.”On our way back we ran into a ghost who had an obsession with boxes, so I promised to give some to Frostbite for him when we were done.” 

Jason didn’t know what to do with that information, so he just elected to ignore it. Dick on the other hand, had many questions. “Why boxes?” 

“I was told he is the ruler of all things cardboard and square,”Tim repeated, laughing internally at their faces. “Phantom calls him Boxy.”

“Huh,”Dick said again, and Tim was starting to get concerned. He shrugged, they could just read his report about it. 

“Wait, was Boxy the one that had a kid?” Jason said suddenly, and they all grimaced. 

-----------------------------------------------

Flying back to the Wayne Manor, Danny could see hardly any snow outside. He knew they’d probably continue school tomorrow, or the next day. Part of him trusted the bats, but he wasn’t sure if he was ready to reveal his identity yet. He knew he couldn’t stay there any longer for fear of the Wayne-Bats wanting to find him a place to stay or getting involved more than they were, but Danny didn’t want their civilian sides getting too involved. 

He knew that after three portals were opened in one space had a high possibility of alerting GIW or Vlad of his location. If he wanted to avoid them, he couldn’t stay with the Waynes. Danny wasn’t sure if they still had a way of tracking him, but they could definitely track huge power sources like the portals he’d made.

Danny floated down to his room and eyed his bag in the corner. He’d kept it fully packed in case he needed to leave, but he felt bad leaving without a goodbye. Maybe he could write a note? It was for the best, really. He didn’t want his parents or Agent K breaking into the manor or hurting the Waynes. Sure, they could fight the agents no problem, but they might give their identities away. Or worse, Vlad could break into the manor. It would be easy for Vlad to find him if he ended up on any of the Wayne’s social media. Danny was pretty sure the fruitloop jealously stalked Bruce on every social media platform that ever existed. 

Maybe that’s how Vlad got the idea to adopt a blue eyed black haired teenager? Danny mused, then shook his head. Then he stopped. Actually, that made some sense. Danny frowned. Okay, so maybe Vlad’s plans weren’t even original. Whatever. Either way, he had to leave.

Yeah, he could write them a note, he thought, ignoring the sad feeling permeating his core. 

---------------------------------------

Despite the fact that they had school that morning, Tim hadn’t seen Danny yet. Usually, the boy would be in the kitchen cooking breakfast with Alfred, but not today Part of him wondered if Danny was sleeping still when he caught sight of Alfred’s face and the note laid on the table. 

“What’s up Alfred? Where’s Danny?”Tim asked, taking a seat. Uncharacteristically, Alfred frowned and passed him the note gently. 

“Master Danny has decided to return to his old place due to the snow letting up,”Alfred informed him, and Tim’s heart dropped. He grasped the note tighter and jerked his gaze to the letters. 

Waynes-

Thank you for letting me stay with you all during the blizzard, but now that the snow has let up it’s time for me to leave. Sorry for not staying long enough for a goodbye, but I figured you’d try to convince me to stay, so, yeah. Don’t worry about me though, I’ll be fine. You have my number and I’ll be seeing Tim and Steph at school. Just please don’t call CPS or anything, I promise I’m much better off on my own. Anyways, thanks for letting me stay. It was nice to meet you all. 

-Danny 𔓎 

p.s. Please don’t call Red Hood to kidnap me again. 

Tim let out a breath, reading the note again before putting it on the table. His mind was already racing with plans. Maybe Danny went back to the Pizzaria, so Red Robin could just swing by later. When did Danny even leave? He was sure they would have caught him on the security feed or Alfred would have at least caught him sneaking out. 

“I believe Master Danny had left sometime last night,”Alfred said, cutting through his thoughts. “He left the note on his bed, and Master Bruce is unsure how he managed to avoid the cameras on his way.”

“You think Phantom took him?” Tim asked, but frowned. That didn’t make any sense. Maybe Danny just asked Phantom to get him? Was that why Phantom disappeared so quickly after the meeting?

“It seems that way,”Alfred said, pushing a plate of food at him. “Master Jason has since returned home, but has been alerted of the situation. Masters Bruce and Dick are in the cave, and Damian has already left for school in accordance to a field trip.”

“Hm,”Tim frowned. He assumed Jason would be swinging by the Pizzeria to check out Danny’s space. At least he knew he’d be seeing Danny at school, and, the letter was right, he did have Danny’s number. No doubt Damian was mad at Danny for leaving too, but maybe Jason would be able to find him again later and bring him back. Tim resigned himself to try to kidnap Danny to the manor after school. 

In the meantime, he pulled out his phone with a frown. 

Timkerbell

You better not be sleeping in the Pizzeria again

Snowdan

Me? Pshh, nah, I’d never. What are you talking about. 

Timkerbell

I can’t believe you. You didn’t even say goodbye!

Snowdan

I will literally see you at school in an hour

Timkerbell

I can’t believe you’d rather be homeless than stay in a frikin manor. You know we’re rich right? One extra person isn’t a big deal. 

Snowdan

You guys said I could leave when the snow stopped.

Timkerbell

Yeah because we thought you’d want to stay! You know that right? Literally everyone misses you. Even Damian. 

Snowdan

Okay but I did say I was still gonna leave. Many times. 

Timkerbell

:(

Snowdan

Seriously. I don’t want to be a bother. Or have my family show up at your doorstep unannounced.

Timkerbell

Uh. Why would they do that

Snowdan

No reason. 

On an unrelated note, if anyone in Blue/Orange jumpsuits or White suits show up at your door don’t let them in. 

Timkerbell

Ah. That explains absolutely nothing thanks

Snowdan

Ur welcome. See u in class ༼ つ ╹ ╹ ༽つ

Tim frowned. So maybe people were still hunting Danny? The jumpsuits were obviously his parents, and the white suits is the Guys in White. Did Danny know that Tim would get the reference? Was it a warning of some sort? Tim rubbed his head, thinking of the impending headache this was gonna cause. Either way, if Danny was subtly warning them he’s still being hunted, then he should know they can handle themselves. And that they can protect him a whole lot better if he actually stayed in the manor. 

Sighing, Tim got ready for school and made his way to the car. At least Alfred sent him with some cookies to give Danny. Or bribe him. Tim wasn’t opposed to blackmail. 

Chapter 18

#Phantom of Gotham #Danny Phantom #dcxdp #dpxdc

[wrencatte]

I don't know about you, but that "I'm so scared." panel is haunting me....

Please excuse all the weird errors of all kinds. I once again wrote this on my phone in tumblr drafts...at work (😅😅).

I won't know how many words this is until I can get it in a doc and clean it up for ao3 posting

Bruce closes his eyes and takes a deep breath, steeling himself.

Dick had a tendency to go high. Jason's tendency is to go low. He tucks himself under tables and in small spaces that adults usually can't fit into. The Cave has a lot of places to hide under (and has a lot of places to climb onto, high into the sky where fear is just a memory and your parents bodies seem so far away) and Bruce has scoured the more obvious places before finding this one: the work table, where he dismantles and fiddles with gear.

And where Jason has taken to messing with his own gear, absolutely fascinated by the intricate mechanisms that made it all work. The kid is an absolute gearhead along with his love for literature, several books on different engines and vehicles have started to migrate to his room.

So Bruce crouches on his knees and peers under the table. The table is deep for toolboxes and a set of drawers on top, and Jason has managed to shove himself in the darkest corner, curled up in the smallest ball possible. He's hit a slight growth spurt in the last few months, leaving his elbows and toes sticking out from the shadows. His face is tucked into his knees. His breathing frantic and hitching - but still so impossibly quiet, like he's spent years teaching himself to cry silently and Bruce's heart breaks all over again at the reminder

(This isn't the first time Jason's cried since he came to live in the Manor, and every single time Bruce never knows unless he's right there when he starts or if he walks in on him mid-sob. And Bruce hates it.)

Bruce's broad shoulders block the light, and Jason flinches into a tighter ball, toes disappearing in the shadows.

"Hey," Bruce starts then stops and doesn't continue for a long moment. Jason stills like a rabbit caught in a fox's gaze, barely perceivable quivers. He exhales slowly. His knees ache on the worn thin rug that's meant to keep dropped things from rolling away. He settles down, legs crossed, hands up on his knees to show he's unarmed, though who knows what Jason's actually seeing. "Want to come out from there?"

Jason shakes his head.

"That's alright," Bruce assures him even though it can't be comfortable down there. "You don't have to so anything you don't want to do."

Jason's next breath is the loudest thing he's ever heard since he got hit with the fear gas. A new batch, more potent than the last. Half a dose could give an adult a heart attack. Jason got one-eighth of a dose via a broken mask and a second too late realization. Hell, they didn't even know he'd actually gotten hit until they made it to the Cave and Bruce turned around and he was gone, the analysis beeping behind him with the announcement that their current anti toxins would be ineffective.

He has a new anti toxin slowly being pieced together by a program and under Alfred's watchful eye, but that does nothing for him right here, right now, with Jason too terrified to make a sound.

Bruce doesn't talk much - he's never needed to - but he sits there and he starts talking. First about a case, of a long ago Rogue that had a funnier gimmick than most and did surface level property damage more than anything else - but eventually he found himself talking about the Justice League, about their unprecedented expansion, about various antics some of the newer heroes get up to.

He doesn't know if Jason's listening or even hears what he's saying. The boy doesn't uncurl. Doesn't make a sound. He hopes that he's breaking through the living nightmare somehow, but he also knows that hope doesn't mean anything.

But he keeps talking anyway.

During a lull, when Bruce's mouth is dry and his throat hurts and - Jason shifts just the tiniest bit. He peeks out from behind his knees, eyes glittering in the dark, and stares at Bruce with pupils blown wide from fear and drugs, chin trembling. Bruce feels like the kid is looking into his soul and finding him lacking, but he opens his mouth anyway and croaks out,

"I'm scared," soft and wavering, thick with tears and the type of brokenness that lends itself to helplessness.

It's a little bit like a confession. An admittance he doesn't want to make but he has no choice but to make it.

"I know," Bruce says gently. "We can fix that, though. It may seem like it, but you don't have to be scared forever."

He holds out a hand, warm and inviting in that same way he did towards the kid sitting across from him at a rickety outdoor picnic table, one who'd just finished inhaling a subpar batburger and fries, one who'd just fifteen minutes ago had even caught jacking the batmobile's tires and had the moxie to whack Batman in the stomach with a tire iron.

The kid then had eyed it warily. And didn't take it, just took a sip of his drink and quietly agreed to let Batman set him up in a warm house with warm meals and clean clothes and the most comfortable bed ever with the 'person I trust the most' - which isn't Bruce Wayne, but one Alfred Pennyworth.

The kid now eyes the hand warily. And takes it. Lets Bruce help him from under the table and lets Bruce fold him into a tight hug, his face tucked against the man's neck, breaths sobbing and hitching.

"I'm so scared," Jason repeats.

"Not for much longer, Jaylad. I've got you."

"I'm so scared," he says out loud, but there's no one around to hear it.

Jason's both grateful for it and collapsing inward when there's no assurance that'll all be over soon, that it won't be forever, that dad's got him. He drops to his knees with a gasp, heart thudding so hard he can feel it in his throat.

He's alone.

He's alone and there's a fear in his chest, invading his lungs, burrowing in his bones. It's going to be there forever. Forever and ever until he dies from it because this isn't a new life, this isn't a gift or love. This is a death sentence. Jason puts a hand to the ground to heave himself up but the thought of walking onto those streets makes him gasp and choke and the fear cycles in on itself from fear to adrenaline to fear fear fear. Never ending. Ramping up bit by bit the more Jason breathes and trembles and, fuck, he's terrified.

Jason scrambles backward on his hands until he hits a shelving unit that rattles. It feels like a knee to the spine, holding him down, driving in, and he sobs quietly. Quiet like he always is when he cries because there's never been a point in being loud about it. Being loud just got attention and attention was always bad.

And he's back to where he was fifteen minutes ago before Marquise - Scandal - showed up and dismissed him and walked away before he could explain. Knees tucked to his chest, arms around his legs, trying to convince himself to stand up, to just go already. His chest heaves. The space gets humid from his tears. He feel like he's going to pass out, dizzy and nauseous.

He's too exposed like this, Jason thinks. Realizes. Fears. (And that fear feeds back into itself, and he hates, hates this so much, but that's not enough. The hate isn't enough to override it.) The room is half trashed and covered in rubble, and he's a whole foot taller than he'd been as a kid, but there, right there -

Jason fits there. Here, under a metal table that has his mask sitting innocently on top. It got wedged against a wall, propped up slightly by some concrete. He tucks himself under it and stays there.

And thinks about - nothing. Because if he thinks about anything - like Batman across the rickety picnic table, offering him a warm house and warm food. Like Batman scolding him for doing something reckless and scaring the shit out of him. Like Bruce sitting on the floor, so patient and understanding and telling him that this fear is only temporary.

Like Batman throwing batarang and the thick spray of blood. Like Batman throwing a punch hard enough to shatter his helmet. Like Batman ripping the insignia off his chest and dragging him across a rooftop.

Jason can't help the whimper. He tips over to lean against a table leg and gasps around the vice around his lungs.

He won't make it out of here. He'll hyperventilate himself into unconsciousness and someone will find him, wearing most of his Red Hood suit, and that person will kill him. Or they'll call the cops and he'll end up in Arkham and he'll die there. There is no normal life. No identity in Metropolis for him. Even if he did make it there, he'd be dead at the first villain attack, unable to defend himself as his aderenaline surges and the fear sets in.

He never expected Bruce to be this so fucking naïve. Cynical idealism? Sure. But not this.

"Hood?"

Jason doesn't acknowledge his name, or the voice. Purposeful footsteps crunch on debris, announcing their path from the hole in the wall to Jason, getting closer and closer.

And closer.

Until there's a shadow of legs blocking the scant light. Until the figure crouches down and there's Nightwing, peering under the table with wide, concerned eyes. He's not wearing his domino, Jason notes almost distantly. His body doesn't feel like his own anymore for all that he can feel the cool metal table against this temple and the rough feel of his pants in his clenched fists.

All there is, is the fear.

"Jason," Dick says with his own kinda fear.

He's reaching under the table, not holding a hand out for Jason to take, for Jason to choose for himself - and the man doesn't know the significance of that, but something in Jason settles anyway at the stark difference.

Dick goes all the way, cupping Jason's face like he does with them all - a pinkie under the jaw for the faint hint of a heart beat, a thumb across the cheek for comfort, his palm to lean into and let him carry the weight. And Jason does lean into it, trembling and shuddery, wet eyes closing.

"C'mon, let's get out from under here." He guides Jason forward until he's spilling into his brother’s arms, face pressed into his shoulder. The Nightwing suit is too tight to grip so Jason wraps his arms around Dick instead, clinging to him tightly. Dick hugs him back just as hard, rocking back and forth.

"I'm scared," Jason whispers - an admittance he has no choice but to make.

Dick hugs him tighter, pulling him into his lap like he's a child. Under a difference circumstance it would be comedic - Jason is broader and taller than Dick - but right now he's just small.

"I've got you," Dick says gently.

He doesn't know why, but that juat makes Jason cry harder.

#jason todd #bruce wayne #dick grayson #gotham war #my writing

[darkestprompts]

Darkest Dungeon is a subversion of the gothic novel.

Yes, it plays it straight as far as lovecraftian works go, but I'm talking about a different thing. I'm talking about the OGs like Horace Waltpole, Clara Reeve and Ann Radcliffe.

If you've read some of these novels you'll notice very obvious patterns, to the point that if you've read a couple of them you can pretty much guess how any given plot will go.

It often goes something like this. Many years ago, there was a great noble house with a venerable estate that ran these lands with justice and dignity. Then, something terrible happened. Now the estate is administered by an usurper and his family (perhaps responsible by the terrible thing that happened??) that has nothing of the noble pedigree and morals of the old family. Until, that is, an enterprising youth enters the scene. He's intelligent, kind, respectful, fair, handsome, bears an striking resemblance to some old portrait in the manor and is exactly the heroine's (one of the few people to treat him fairly, along with the servants still loyal to the previous lords) type. But, le gasp, he's a stinking peasant! How is that possible? Oh, cruel fate, if only this strapping young lad was fated for something better than serving his social betters (if you are getting a *few* hints of English classism, congratulations, you are capable of synapses)! But what's this? A *ghost* is haunting the manor? It seems very displeased at the current owners, but strangely it hasn't harmed our golden boy yet. Why, the spirit of Old Baron Aristocrates is actually helping him discover the truth about his past and how it actually relates to the Terrible Thing That Happened years ago. This will inevitably lead to the proof that the current lord is an usurper, a murderer, an incestuous creep or a combination of socially punishable traits and that he, Lad McStrappington, is the true heir to the estate. After some mystery, adventure and a few deliberate and accidental murders, our boy recovers what is rightfully hears and marries the heroine as the servants cry tears of joy at the return of the rightful ruler of these lands. The end.

Now you might see where I'm going. In Darkest Dungeon, you are promised the prospects of a gothic hero: reclaim your birthright, restore the lands of your forefathers, right the wrongs of your past. You are led and encouraged by the spirit of your ancestor. You must prove your worth, which is the worth of your bloodline. It should come naturally, after all, you *are* the rightful heir.

Except, there's a catch: in this narrative, the usurper and the rightful lord are fused into the same figure. The Ancestor is both the guiding hand at the Heir's shoulder, leading them to their fate, and the wicked baron plotting their downfall. He's the spirit calling you to fix what was broken and the one who deliberately broke it. It's all a trap.

There was nothing venerable about your house, nothing "noble" about your nobility. Your purpose is not to bring justice, but to continue the cycle of misery as you feed the land with the blood of those who serve you - exactly as the Ancestor did. I can't know if the social commentary was deliberate, but the text is practically begging for one such reading.

#darkest dungeon #dd ancestor #dd heir #thoughts

[igotanidea]

The Fear : Jason Todd x fem!reader part 6

A/N: DRAMA TIME!

part 1

part 2

part 3

part 4

part 5

***

„Y/N….”

„Hi, Jace.”

„You’re not real.” he stated coldly, stern expression on his face. He let go of her hand the second he realized he was holding it.

“I can assure you I am.” She looked down, saddened. She knew this would hurt, but even the knowledge could not fully prepare her for the amount and intensity of it.

“No.” he shook his head “You’re not. You left. This is not happening.” he jumped to his feet, as far away from her as possible leaving the girl sitting on the floor, watching him walk in circles around the cave. “I don’t believe you!”

“Jay…..” she stood up drawing level with him, once again reaching for his hand but he took a step back, his hazy gaze fixed on her face.

“Stay out of my way!”

“You know I can’t.” she whispered, rooted to the spot. Any move would only make the situation worse.

“I don’t want you here!”

“I know.”

“so why are you haunting me!?”

“Haunting?” she raised an eyebrow at him “haunting, Jay? I’m still alive. Out of everyone in the world you should know how to spot a deceased person.”

“You are dead to me. You were dead to me from the moment you walked out of the manor’s door. The second you gave up on me. On us. “

“I gave up?” she hissed her eyes narrowing “you sure about that?”

“I…….” he hesitated, his eyes slowly becoming more aware, clear sign of getting back in touch with reality and Y/N decided to suppress her anger to the benefit of making hay while the sun was still shining.  

“Focus, Jay. Just for a second and then I’ll leave you alone. What happened? What do you remember?” she took a step forward“tell me…” she whispered moving even closer, within an arm’s reach and much to her surprise, Jason reached out, grabbed her waist and pulled her into his chest, holding so freaking tight. “Jaybrid?”

“It’s really you….” he whispered hiding his face in her messy hair breathing in her scent “you are here…..”

“I am….” Her voice broke when she embraced him back “And you’re safe. No one’s going to hurt you.”

“I missed you. I made a mistake when I let you go. Fucking mistake. Can you forgive me?”

“It’s in the past, Jay.” She patted his back, a bit awkwardly and pulled away making him wince from the lack of contact. “How are you feeling? Are you fully back on Earth?”

“Yeah, I guess so. I mean, now I remember what happened. Is Jimmy safe?”

“Who’s Jimmy?” she frowned but realization came upon her “you mean, the kid you were saving?”

“I wouldn’t exactly call it saving.”

“Whatever.” Y/N shrugged “and that’s the question you should be asking your brothers. I wasn’t at the scene how the hell would I know.”

“Why did you come? You wanted out of Gotham so bad and now you’re back.”

“Dick asked me for help.” She said out loud even if everything inside her was just screaming the truth. I missed you. I missed you. I missed you. She couldn’t confess to that though. Not since she was the reason of their break-up.  Or at least, she believed herself to be the reason.

One month ago

“What the hell?!” Jason burst through the door to Dick’s room, angered and worried. Y/N was laying in his brother’s bed, asleep, her face reddened, her nose swollen, clear signs of sobbing that happened not so long ago. Said brother was sitting on the edge of the furniture holding her hand, rubbing soothing circles onto her palm, making sure she was calm and no nightmares were haunting her.  “What happened?”

“She went through a mental breakdown.”

“What? Why? How?” Jason kneeled next to bed, putting loose strand of hair behind her ear, caressing her cheek. “Why didn’t she call me?”

“She did.” Dick corrected “a couple times actually. And so did I. You were obviously unavailable.”

“What? I didn’t…..” Jay reached for his phone. 10 missed calls “Fuck.”

“Yeah, that’s a good word. She couldn’t reach to you so she just came here. The best thing to do. She was shaking and sobbing like never before when Alfred opened the door and let her in.”

“Why….?” Jay panted “Did someone hurt her? I swear if anyone had the audacity to even come close I will …..”

“Hold it Jason. She never said it, but it was clearly visible it was because of you. She was worried, stressed, scared and tired. She broke down because you were ignoring her. She had no idea where you were and whether you were alive. I guess she was just as lonely as can be.”

“Fuck. She never said anything ……”

“Do you even know her?!” Dick finally snapped at his brother “of course she didn’t. She’s tough. She spend half of her life in belief she’s a burden to everyone and you did nothing to put her right! She was feeding on the scraps of your attention for weeks, Jason! Weeks! And what's even worse, she though she deserved it for being too clingy!”

“I never wanted that. I never considered….”

“Exactly. She’s too good for you, you know. She deserves so much better.”

“And you’re the one to give her that, huh? Nightwing? Of course you always think the best of yourself. You just can’t let any girl walk past you without some hookup, can you?!” Jason hissed, his voice filled with venom.

“Watch your words now, brother.”

“Or what, huh? What. Will. You. Do?”

“Don’t test me.” two vigilantes were  now standing face to face, eyeing each other, ready to strike upon slightest offensive word. They were both in love with the same girl, and even despite the fact that Dick’s feelings were purely brotherly-like, Jason was still jealous. Maybe it was because of his own insecurities and complexes. In this state, they might have really hurt one another if it wasn’t for the quiet, confused voice coming from the side of bed.

“ Guys?” Y/N lifted herself up and rubbed her eyes in a child-like manner, still a bit in a fog, from her anxiety strike and the unexpected, forced nap “what are you doing?”

“Y/N!” Jason rushed towards her, fast enough to outrun his brother “Are you all right?” he fell on the bed next to the girl, grabbing her hands in his, trying to make up for his fuckup.

“A bit dizzy, but apart from that…..”

“Do you need anything?” Dick asked, caringly

“Thank you, Dickie” she smiled at him and Jason fight the urge to clench his fists on his brother’s throat “you’ve already helped me so much.”

“Anytime Y/N.”

“I think you should leave, Dickhead. I’m here now, she’s in good hands.” Jay hissed, hugging Y/N against his chest, closer than Dick would ever be able to get.

“Y/N?”

“I’m good, Dickie. I’ll talk to you later, all right? That is, if Jace won’t crush me, cause at the moment I can’t breathe…..” she tapped on Jason’s shoulder lightly urging him to lose the grip.

“Sorry, baby” a light kiss on her forehead “You got me scared that’s it.”

“I’ll be next door, Y/N” Dick stated “if you need anything just call me, all right?” Y/N smiled and nodded and oldest Wayne left.

“Finally.” Jason sighed

“Jace!” the girl scoffed him lightly “why are you acting like a lunatic? This is your brother. And one of my best friends, so it happens.”

“But you want to be more than friends with him, don’t you?”

“What are you talking about?” she frowned and crossed arms over her chest, sitting up. The possessive attitude Jason was showing a second ago was now turning into anger. “We are friends.”

“And that is why you are sleeping in his bed?”

“Jason…..” she warned narrowing her eyes

“What? You can’t deny the facts, Y/N!”

“Maybe if you were there for me, I would be in yours!” she exclaimed “but guess what, you weren’t! Who do you think I needed most when my head started spinning and my legs gave up on me to the point where I almost fainted?! You, you dumbass! I needed you!”

“So what, now it’s my fault!?”

“YES!” she yelled and it got him by surprise “It is your fault! I never asked for anything! I never asked you to change, to stop your vigilantism! To quit getting yourself hurt. Because I knew how important it was for you. That helping people, whatever your definition of helping may be, was your thing. I just needed you with me. At least sometimes. But …..” she shook her head

“Finish it!”

“Fuck you Jason!”

“Finish that fucking sentence!”

“YOU SHITED ON ME!”

“And Mr. Grayson was here to pick up the pieces of our shattered soul, wasn’t he?!”

“YES! YES HE FREAKING WAS!”

“Well if that’s the case maybe I should just remove myself from the picture. Good luck building your life with him!”

“Wait. You are breaking up with me?!” the sudden rush of anger made her jump out of bed and face him. It was a bit funny how small she looked in comparision to him and yet, how combative she acted.

“You bet I am!” he snorted disparagingly, venom dripping from the words that burnt a bridge built between them and that he couldn't take back now.

“Oh, no, no, no, mister Hood!” she took a few steps towards him and started hitting his chest repeatedly “If anything I am breaking up with you. Not the other way round.”

“As you wish. You know, I could smell this whole relationship deal crumbling for a while now. Good thing you crashed completely. Now you only have yourself to blame. I’m out.”

“You are a bastard, Jayson Todd. But you are right, go back to Artemis. I bet she missed you so damn hard.” Y/N started shaking with both anger and pain.

“I…” he turned on his way towards the door “there is nothing between us.” he grabbed her wrist pulling her closer to him looking her straight into the eyes “Y/n. you hear me? Nothing. “

“Just like there’s nothing between me and Dick and yet you didn’t believe it. You didn't believe me.” she whispered not looking at him, and struggling free. “I think you should go now, Todd.”

She did not call him by his nickname…..

“Y/N…. I…. I’m sorry…..” the realization of everything he just said and how he acted slowly dawned on him.

“Yeah, I am too. Now, go.”

"Y/N.... Please......"

"JUST GO!"

He fucked up all along the line.

They never spoke about that situation again. After two weeks of silence on both parts, she said her goodbyes to Dick, Tim and Damian and left Gotham, and after making a promise to keep in touch moved to the neighboring city to continue her work and experiments in some other lab.

@pinksirensong

@shadow-pancake9

@lwtmonster91

@your-local-cryptid87

@princessbl0ss0m

@baebeepeach

@jasontodd-artemisgrace4life

#jason todd fanfiction #jason todd angst #jason todd imagine #jason todd #jason todd x reader #jason todd x fem!reader #jason todd x oc #jason todd x you #jason todd x y/n #red hood fanfiction #red hood imagine #red hood angst #red hood x reader #red hood x fem!reader #red hood #red hood x y/n #batboys x reader #angst #dc angst #jason todd fluff #red hood fluff #fluff #dc fluff #batfamily #batfamily x reader

[athena-writes-i-guess]

Pairing: Eddie Munson x Reader

A/N: this was a request made by @like-what-the-fuck-scoob , this was so much fun to write and theme parks are my special interest so I loved this! I really hope you love this as much as I loved writing it! Thank you so much for your request!

“Come on baby!” Eddie said with a beaming smile as he grabbed your hand softly and started weaving you through the throngs of people as you giggled at his excitement.

You were currently at a local theme park a couple towns away for a fun all day date- a surprise from Eddie. He had only told you to be up early and to dress comfortably enough to walk all day and surprised you when you arrived, knowing how much you loved amusement parks.

You had just gotten off of the big roller coaster, the main attraction for the park, where you had been screaming next to a cackling Eddie as he threw his arms in the air and felt the full force of the ride. As soon as the two of you got off the ride he pulled you into his arms and swung you around with a huge smile, “Wasn’t that amazing babe?” He had asked once he pulled back, his smiling widening as you agreed.

You loved seeing Eddie like this, totally comfortable and at ease. Having a day where the only responsibility he had was making sure you both had as much fun as you possibly could. He seemed free, light as air. And just oh so happy. If you could see him like this every moment of every day you would, but you knew that wouldn’t be possible so you’d just bask in these moments you had with him.

“Where are we headed, Eds?” You asked, walking next to him as he led you through the park.

“I think that spooky ghost ride is around here somewhere.” He said as he shot a wink back at you with a cheeky grin.

“Is it going to be scary?” You questioned, squeezing his hand in yours anxiously.

“Shouldn’t be.” He chuckled, dropping your hand to snake his arm around your shoulder and pull you close as you walked together. “But don’t worry, sweet thing. Sir Eddie is here to protect you from any plastic skeletons who get too bold and think they can frighten you.” He said, puffing his chest out dramatically as he put on his “heroic” D&D voice.

You couldn’t help but burst into laughter, “Oh thank you Sir Eddie!” You said dramatically, flinging your free hand up to your chest to grab at your heart, “I’m lucky to have a knight in jean vest armor to protect me.” You teased lightly as you tugged lightly on his patch covered vest with the arm you wrapped around his waist.

“It is called a battle vest for a reason, sweetheart.” He winked again with a grin as he walked up to the attraction in question.

A haunted house loomed in front of you; creepy music and wails of horror pulsed out of speakers around you as fog enveloped the facade in mystery. It was actually very intimidating now that you were in front of it and you gripped onto Eddie even tighter, receiving a low chuckle from him as he squeezed you to him comfortingly.

“I got you babe, let’s get on.” He encouraged, a little giddy to know that he’d get to hold you tight to him in the dark of the ride.

You walked through the line quickly as there was no one really waiting for this attraction, and got into a little car all to yourselves. “Welcome to your doom buggy.” An employee said with a creepy smile as he pulled your lap bar down. “Farewell.” He said with a small wave of his fingers before letting out a chilling laugh as the car moved forward into the house.

“I hope they’re paying him well for that performance.” Eddie whispered with a light laugh as he pulled you in so you were cuddled up to him.

Spooky, off-putting, music welcomed you both as your car pushed through the interior of the ride, it was decorated to look like an abandoned manor full of spider webs and items that seemed to be moving around on their own. You were just starting to get used to the attraction and rest into your seat when a loud crack of lightning boomed around you and lit up the hallway enough to show a giant werewolf jump out from an alcove next to you with a loud roar.

You couldn’t stop the scream that pulled from your throat even if you tried, you were so surprised. You curled into Eddie’s chest, missing the way he had jumped almost out of his skin at the scare as he wrapped his arms around you and held you close to him.

He rubbed your back comfortingly with shaky hands as he took a quick steadying breath, “It’s okay babe, it’s just a guy in a costume.” He cooed, trying to not let you see how much that jumpscare had gotten him. He had no idea there would also be actors in here. Your car moved into the next room, a kitchen scene, where there was fake food flying around the room on strings as small animatronic monsters scurried and growled all around you, it was truly a silly sight after the werewolf. “Baby, look, not so scary anymore.” Your boyfriend said, encouraging you to look around the scene again.

You did, taking in the goofy set around you as you let out a small sigh of relief but neither you or Eddie separated from each other, choosing to stay cuddled up in each other's arms as you moved through the room. You giggled lightly as a small monster screeched at you but the mechanics in it seemed to be malfunctioning as one of it’s arms was flailing wildly. Eddie squeezed your side lightly at the sound before quickly pecking your cheek. “See, it’s goofy, right sweetheart?” He mumbled against your cheek, you felt the smile on his lips as you nodded against him before he started blowing raspberries into your soft skin.

You squealed happily as you tried to pull away from him, both of you ignoring the way the scenes were changing around you as you giggled and Eddie tried to blow more raspberries into any part of your body he could reach. The scene around you eventually morphed into an outside graveyard scene as you settled down together, still safely snuggled into Eddie’s inked arms as you watched the plastic skeletons pop up around you from behind the gravestones.

“This is really goofy.” You agreed with a small smile as your car seemed to slow down as it rounded a corner leading to what looked like the exit.

“I knew it would be babe,” Eddie said confidently, “these rides always look way scarier than they actually-” he was cut off by a massive roar that made you both jump in your seats as Eddie yelled out a, “Jesus H Christ!” in fright and pulled you tighter into him as another werewolf jumped out from behind a tree off to the side and was now rushing towards your car. You squealed in fright as you and your boyfriend clung together as the car picked up speed and outran the creature.

You finally breathed a sigh of relief as you pushed through a pair of doors and were now at the end of the ride. A bored looking teen pulled up your lap bar and you and Eddie clambered out of the car and the building quickly, hand in hand. You stopped near a tree outside the attraction and turned to the metalhead, a shit-eating grin on your face.

“‘It won’t be scary’” You teased in the best Eddie voice you could muster as you poked his cute, soft belly.

“It wasn’t that scary.” Eddie said with a little smile and an eye roll.

“Right. ‘Cause that wasn’t you screaming in the car next to me?” You asked, your eyebrow raising as your grin grew wider as the metalhead bit his lip, a light dusting of pink appearing on his cheeks.

“Nope, wasn’t me.” He shrugged, “Must have been your other boyfriend.” You giggled, making it hard for him not to smile. “Remember, I’m Sir Eddie. I don’t get scared.” He said with an affirmative little head nod, “And if I ever let out some kind of noise when faced with danger, it is a yell if anything. Not a scream.” He said with faux smugness.

“Jesus H. Christ!” You let out, copying his reaction to the werewolf before bursting into a fit of giggles.

Eddie rolled his eyes again at your teasing, letting the smile pull at his lips, accepting that he wasn’t going to hear the end of this anytime soon as he pulled you into him. ‘Come here, troublemaker.” You wrapped your arms around his waist, breathing his scent in as you buried your face in his neck, his wild curls tickling your face as you let out a dreamy sigh.

“I love you Sir Eddie.” You said as you started peppering kisses up his neck to his jaw.

He beamed as you continued kissing up to his cheek. He quickly grabbed your face in between his calloused hands, a love-struck look on his face as he looked from your eyes that he felt he could get lost in to your sweet, plush, lips. You felt the heat rush into your cheeks under his soft look, full of so much love.

He suddenly started assaulting your face with kisses, basking in the way you giggled and held onto him tighter. He loved that he was able to get you like this, all to himself. God, he was crazy about you. He stopped as he finally placed a tender, passionate, kiss on your lips. “I love you too sweetheart.” He said, his lips still on yours. He kissed you again one more time before pulling back and taking in the blissed out look on your face. “How about we go get some cotton candy, okay, pretty thing?” He suggested with a proud grin as you shook yourself out of your daze.

“That sounds great Eds.” You beamed as he pulled you along to enjoy the rest of your amazing day.

Taglist: @srapalestina @yvonneeeee @aroseinvelaris @anaisweird @mrslovesmayahawke @harrys-titties @becca-alexa @catacina

A/N: I know this ride model is a little weird with the actors, I saw somewhere(though I can’t find it now) that there was a park in the 80s that did something like this so I thoughts it’d be funny ❤️ I hope you enjoyed

#eddie munson #stranger things #eddie munson x reader #eddie munson x you #eddie munson x y/n #eddie x you #eddie x reader #eddie munson fanfic #eddie munson x female reader #eddie x y/n #eddie munson fanfiction #eddie munson imagine #eddie munson fluff #eddie munson x fem!reader #eddie munson drabble #eddie munson x gn!reader #eddie x fem!reader #eddie x f!reader #eddie x gn!reader #eddie fluff #eddie fanfiction #eddie my love <3 #eddie munson x gender neutral reader #eddie muson #eddie munson stranger things #eddie munson x girlfriend!reader #eddie munson x fem! reader #eddie fanfic #eddie munson x fem!reader fluff #eddie munson x reader fluff

[haveyouseenthisskeleton]

S/O drags skeleton into a haunted manor by surprise and doesn't let him any choice before pushing him in. The house is full of actors in scary costumes. Main skeletons reaction?

Undertale Sans - It's infuriating as Sans is just punning at the scary monsters all the way, making everything a lot less scary. Sans doesn't care, he's full poker face the whole time and he doesn't even get jumpscare once. However, as soon as you're out, you suddenly find yourself all alone in the street. As you're calling him, worried, he suddenly appears in front of you with black eye sockets, scaring the shit out of you. Here you go.

Undertale Papyrus - He's having fun! He didn't know haunted houses existed and now he wants to try them all. He won't stop congratulating the actors who actually managed to scare him. That's a great day, he's glad he went with you!

Underswap Sans - He got jumpscared once and then decided he would be the actor's worst nightmare. Now he's the one hiding to scare them. He made a horrible clown cry and a zombie had to take a break because he fainted. He asks the haunted house if he can be hired the week-end after that.

Underswap Papyrus - He's crushing your hand and refuses to leave you side. He's also trying so bad to make you turn away because he's so scared every time you're both entering a new room. He hates it. He just wants to go home and watch some Disney movies, please.

Underfell Sans - He's playing all brave and all, but he's clearly not comfortable in the place, jumping at every sound and growling at any suspect movement. He won't say it out loud he's scared though. He's big boy. He better die instead of saying he's scared.

Underfell Papyrus - Not your smartest move. Edge is jumpy, and so very protective of you. He's wary, and he hates getting surprised by the actors. Every time a clown or a zombie tries to get you, he throws you behind him and summons huge bones to attack. The actors ask you to leave after a few minutes lol.

Horrortale Sans - All the lights, noise and screams give him a headache after ten minutes. He's grumpy during the visit, not even getting scared (and thankfully because he would attack). He just wants to be done with this as soon as possible. He prefers to stay home on his couch, thank you very much.

Horrortale Papyrus - A bunch of kids screamed seeing him and now Willow is just sad. People keep thinking he's part of the show and it's making him very uncomfortable. After a few minutes, he's just following you in silence, just sad :(

Swapfell Sans - His reactions are hilarious. Nox is terrified of the place. Every little thing is making him screech in absolute terror. He keeps running to hide every time a monster is chasing you, and he doesn't hesitate one second to push you towards the danger before running away. He hates supernatural shit.

Swapfell Papyrus - He takes every opportunity he can to scare you even more, randomly chasing you or touching your neck very slowly just to see you shriek in fear. He's having way too much fun and it's giving him a ton of ideas to torture you and his brother for a few weeks. You regret your decision afterward.

Fellswap Gold Sans - He can't understand why humans think this is scary and keeps pointing all of this is just plastic and doesn't look realistic at all. If you want to make it scary, actually add real monsters into it? And blood? Screams? Real torture? You're not sure if he's joking or not. You prefer not to know actually.

Fellswap Gold Papyrus - After two rooms, he's having a panic attack and cries, begging you to get out of here. He's really scared and he really doesn't like it. He's paralyzed with fear and refuses to move after a clown chased him around for ten minutes because he went the wrong way.

#undertale #underswap #underfell #horrortale #swapfell #fellswap gold #sans #papyrus #undertale ask blog #undertale asks #undertale imagines #undertale headcanons

[youngstarfishphilosopher]

Sorry to bother but with your Hatbox/Crump x Child Reader how do you think he reacts when the dream team arrive at the Mansion would he really get more aggressive with wanting them to stay away from the reader?

Oh ,absolutely

Now he wouldn't really be able to do anything during the day except for making a ghost haunt the reader if they left.

But, once midnight rolled around, he would keep the reader as far away from the others as possible.

He would, however, do this as unnoticeable and discreetly as he could until the full moon came. This included locking doors, throwing objects at them, as well as scooping the dream team or the reader up in chairs and going to another part of the mansion.

The last thing he would want is for the dream team to figure out that you actually mean something to him.

Although, Once they go to Crump manor and see the picture of his child that looks a lot like the reader , everything that happened before clicks into Ben, Kent, and Travis' heads and realize the type of danger the reader is in.

#haunted mansion 2023 #alistair crump #hatbox ghost #disneys haunted mansion #travis haunted mansion #kent haunted mansion #ben haunted mnasion #ben matthias #alistair crump x reader #ask

[citrusses]

February: 2023 Wrapped 🎁🍊

A month-by-month roundup of some of my favorite fics published this year.

January | February | March | April, May, June | July | August | September | October | November | December

All the Time in the World by @gracerene (E, 6K)

It's been two weeks since Draco—his Draco—came back into his life, and Harry wants.

I love the first fic in this series, but I think I may actually love this sequel even more. The POV of the one who has waited, the elegant way this deals with time travel... absolutely fantastic. A must-read.

All the Ways by @sleepstxtic (T, 3K)

All the ways it could have happened.

This one made my heart hurt in all the best ways. So beautifully written and deeply feeling.

find a new place to be from by @oflights (E, 48K)

Something is wrong with Malfoy Manor, and it’s driven Draco into the Muggle world. Thankfully, Harry is now on the case. A story about houses that haunt you and homes built for two.

This was a balm to the soul — incredible world-building and lovely, perfectly constructed relationship dynamics. In the best way possible this had rom-com vibes to me. Draco’s reluctant immersion in the Muggle world is a true delight. A dream of a fic.

Kinkuary by @wolfpants (M/E, 42K total)

“We get like this. Sometimes,” Ron admits.

This is cheating because this is 28 perfect fics, not one, but all 28 are must-reads. I don't make the rules! (I do). Come for the top tier Drarry (smut and romance all at once) but stay for the Viktor/Ron, Draco/Bill (what a delicious pairing I didn't know I needed), hints of Wolfstar+ Sirius/Draco (incredible, altered my brain chemistry), Harry/Teddy... the list goes on.

wild with all regret by @thehoneybeet (E, 3500)

“To be clear,” Hermione said, and Ron loved her, “you want me—you want us to humiliate you?” The tip of Draco’s tongue breached the crack of his mouth, wetted it. “Yes,” he said, voice hoarse.

Drarry is very much in the background of this one and I’m living for it! I loved absolutely everything about the Ron/Hermione/Draco dynamic here. I love Drarry fics where they can't get everything they need from each other and still find a way to make sure the other finds that fulfillment. And Ron and Hermione are just SO GOOD.

#citrus recs #2023 recs #drarry fic recs

[katherinecrighton]

Nuts and Bolts: Jump-Starting Stories

(Reposting a 2013 post from the Anna Katherine co-tumblr)

Because I just did this, here you go: Some simple ways to start a story, particularly if you don’t know what you want to write about, but you know you need to write something. (For money, for practice, for mental health, for whatever.)

Standard caveats apply. 1. The reason advice looks contradictory is because it literally is different for everyone — shit that works for one person won’t work for someone else. Just stick it in your toolbox and move along. 2. I will say obvious shit that you already know. Because it’s possible somebody else doesn’t. 3. You may totally disagree with anything/everything I say, oh my god, that’s fine.

::::

1. A line of dialogue. Particularly one that makes no sense, so you have to then have a second character explain it.

“You said what to the Queen?”

—Instantly you have to answer who said it, what was said, why it was scandalous, who the queen is, what she’s queen of, and who actually spoke the dialogue. Getting all that exposition in gracefully is at least 150 words right there.

2. (All of my points are going to boil down to variants of point 1, so, you know, grab a soda or something.)

3. A sudden burst of action. A nice explosion, maybe, or someone getting knocked unconscious unexpectedly. In medias res is always a pleasant place to start. You’ll want to start with a brief sentence that makes the reader empathize with whatever you’ve decided to blow up, and then destroy it in the second sentence, as that’s more fun.

"The Manor had been in the Candleford family for generations, a bit more curly-topped and hodge-podge than most stately noble homes. It burned for three days before anyone could put it out.”

—Now explain how that happened, or what happens next, or who’s affected, or who did it.

4. A vivid description. This one can be a bit tricky, as it can all too easily go on too long. I’d stay away from vivid descriptions of landscapes or weather or other (dare I say it) fairly boring things. Corpses — those are fun. Terrible kisses. A really interesting tentacle that maybe is touching something else that’s about to become interesting because, hey, tentacle.

“The running shoe was worn along the edges, and had a rubbed patch in the heel. It was pink and grey, and the laces were still tied, clearly toed off after a return to the house. The inspector stared at the shoe that lay on its side on the landing, and wondered where the other one was.”

Once you’ve got a couple of sentences of vivid description, stop and backfill with exposition — why are we seeing this thing? Who’s seeing it? What are they going to do with this information? As you can see, I couldn’t help but add in the inspector looking at the shoe — it just sort of starts to fill itself in.

5. A terrible secret that you don’t want anyone to know about yourself. Writing is frequently auto-cannibalism. You take parts of yourself and you write them into your stories to make them real. So if you need to write something, and you’re not sure what to write, dig out one of your secrets and give it to a character. 

I wrote a horror story (still haunting some editor’s slushpile [eta 2023: it was bought!]) about the weird urge I had when I’d had abdominal surgery to dig around in there afterward — I didn’t actually follow through in real life, but I decided to write a story about a character who did. Use first person POV if you have to, but it’ll definitely get something on the page.

.

+1. After you’ve got a story going, you can go back and delete whatever you started with. Nothing says you have to keep what got the motor running.

+2. If you’re interested, my sentence for this evening was: “It would be a bit much to say that the kiss was magical.”

#katherine crighton #writing #nuts and bolts #starting stories #cheat sheet

[t4tdrarry]

hello friends! last month was full of wonderful reads that i’m excited to share. there’s a good variety of pairings this round of recs too, with majority drarry and a few others sprinkled in. wishing everyone another month of amazing fics in august! and now here are my favourite fics from july:

Drarry

The Heart of the Manor by @kedavranox | M | 3k

i love drarry and horror and this fic was masterful. it’s able to weave such a vividly eerie atmosphere with an incredible, ominous ending in only 3k words. skillfully concise and quick, it’s like a well placed gut punch in the best way possible.

Not Nineteen Forever by @sorrybutblog | E | 5k

i am a sucker for any fic involving de-aging/age difference between Harry and Draco, especially when it has a generous dose of pining. i absolutely loved younger draco in all his funny, sexy, teasing glory!

Progressive Displacement by GatewayGirl | E | 20k

this one was a reread, but one i’ll never get tired of. universe hopping is always so so fun, and all the different versions of harry and draco were amazing.

The Matchmaker’s Spell by @kbrick | E | 20k

messy drarry has such an exquisite flavour. their dynamic when it’s a little bit fucked up is just *chefs kiss* the energy of this fic is so wonderfully intense and i felt like i was buzzing the entire time i was reading it. and can we talk about that ending? brilliant!

The Day Before the Wedding by @kbrick | E | 39k

when i saw that kbrick dropped a new fic and that it was a timeloop fic, i pretty much dropped everything to read it. harry reliving the day before he gets married to ginny over and over is all at once spectacularly calamitous and cathartic. harry and draco both work for their growth in this one, and the timeloop aspect is done wonderfully, as per expected from kbrick!

The Art of Our Necessities by dcfg21 | E | 52k

this one was another reread and one that i’d consider one of my personal drarry classics, at least in the vampire genre. we have unhinged vampire harry who is bonded to draco to keep him on a leash, with a gloriously hot dynamic featuring a possessive and protective harry. i love how much these two cant help but want each other. a drarry vampire must-read.

The Remnant by @kbrick | E | 71k

i must admit that i went on a bit of a kbrick splurge this month but i couldn’t resist this one when i saw the demonic possession tag,, possessed harry has got to be one of the most creepy hot things i’ve read and i thoroughly enjoyed everything about it (as did draco 😳)

Others

Snarry

Ingredients of Respect by Lizzy0305 | E | 27k

harry gaining a genuine interest in potions is something i love reading, especially when severus helps him realize it. but when harry also gains an interest in severus, the tension is strikingly hot. i loved the dynamic between them!

In Between Days by atrata | E | 68k

the characterization of snape in this fic is so good! he’s the perfect mix of bitterness, snark, and self loathing. paired with a messy, angsty harry, you get a snarry dynamic that feels absolutely electric.

Tomarymort

Break it Down by @acciotomriddle | M | 1k

prisoner voldemort and harry in a smutty power struggle? yes, please.

Dark Heritage by @dropsofnightshade | 342k

it’s always lovely reading harry-gets-adopted-by-adult-who-actually-treats-him-well stories. i especially liked the depiction of the black family in this one! and harry’s relationship with the greengrass family was such a treat as well. also notable is the world building, wizarding politics and dark magic!

Sirius/Voldemort

It runs in the blood by @metalomagnetic | E | 121k

this fic has haunted my mind since i started reading it. voldemort courting sirius to be a death eater, and maybe even more was something i didn’t know i needed until i got it and then suddenly it was all i’ve ever wanted. this fic immersed me into a setting i don’t read too often—during the first war with voldemort. and we really get into the thick of it with sirius and all his different interactions. highly recommend!

#this is quite late but so many good fics last month!! #reese recs #drarry fic #drarry fanfic rec #drarry fic rec #drarry squad #tomarry #tomarrymort #snarry #tomarry fic #harrymort #harrymort fic #snarry fic #sirius x voldemort #sirimort #? #voldius #?? #hp fic rec #hp slash