Okay, So Maybe Giving His Calling Card To A Kid Was A Bad Idea. He Sees That Now. Unfortunately, It's

Okay, so maybe giving his calling card to a kid was a bad idea. He sees that now. Unfortunately, it's too late to take it back. On the bright side, the kid wasn't going to be able to figure out who he is yet based solely on a summoning circle. In the pitch black void of things, Danny can sense the card and the person who's holding it.

Maybe if he leaves Fawcett fast enough he can keep plausible deniability because there's no way that the tiny homeless kid he just met is Captain Marvel. Nope, no way. Not his circus, not his monkeys. He's leaving now.

"What happened to you?" Deadman had an insufferable grin on his face. Did he have the House drop him in Gotham? Danny wouldn't put it past him.

"Don't wanna talk about it."

"Where ya going?"

"To the basement."

"Why?"

Was the other ghost always this annoying? "Because leaving was a terrible idea. I'm going to go hide in the basement until the day I fully die."

"Aw," Deadman tried to pout, but he failed and started to cackle. "Don't be like that. Did you not enjoy your trip to Gotham?"

Danny was a lot of things. Violent usually didn't make it onto that list. However, he was willing to make an assumption. "So it was your fault."

Another cackle. "Don't be like that! You've never been to Gotham before. You can't tell me you at least didn't have fun."

They were at the basement stairs now. "For your information, I have been to Gotham. I didn't get to do much exploring this time because Batman and his gaggle of sidekicks surrounded me!"

"You've been to Gotham?"

"Not important."

"Oh?" The glee on the full ghost's face made Danny uneasy. "I sense a story behind that."

Oh, no. "No. I'm not telling you." He marched past and down the stairs, not bothering to unlock or open the door.

"Please!"

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because I said 'no'."

"Party pooper." he huffed. "You know I'm just going to keep asking, right?"

A sigh. "I'm not gonna cave. No."

"Ah, but you will!" That was the confidence of a ghost who knew he was right. Danny did not like how that bodes for him. "You, my friend, are a younger sibling. I am also a younger sibling."

Shit. "That....That means nothing. My answer will stay 'no'."

Deadman had the gall to chuckle darkly. "We'll see." Then, he disappeared.

Danny didn't sigh because he doesn't need to breathe. He was not going to tell what happened because what happens in Gotham stays in Gotham. It's a rule of thumb that people don't cross. Besides, Deadman doesn't know that Danny's actually the middle sibling. Dani, introduced to his parents soon after he'd told them he was a Halfa, was the embodiment of younger sibling because he had once been the embodiment of younger sibling.

***

"Please get Deadman to stop!" Danny begged Zatanna three weeks later. Maybe he'd overestimated himself a little bit.

The sorcerer raised an eyebrow as she looked up from the book she'd been reading. Something on runes? "What's he doing this time?"

"He won't stop asking me to tell him about my first trip to Gotham."

"You've been to Gotham?"

Danny groaned into the throw pillow he was clutching. "Yes. Please make him stop!"

"Sorry, hun," she focused back on her book, "But I can't see him."

"Oh. I forgot about that."

"Why don't you just tell him?"

Danny shot up, appalled by the very idea. "It's a matter of principle!" he exclaimed, "I am both the older and younger sibling: The middle child. If I give in, I'll have failed! I can't do that. Do you want me to fail?!"

"Okay, okay, geez!" she surrendered, "Don't gotta be so overdramatic about it."

"I'm not being overdramatic! I'm being just dramatic enough!"

"Sure, sure. Whatever you say, kid."

"I'm not a kid!"

"You look like one."

"Yeah, but I'm not! I'm-"

"King of the Infinite Realms," Constantine interrupted, "We know."

"Then don't call me a kid."

"Yeah, yeah, kid,"

"I'm not-!"

"Look, we can have this argument all day and we'll still end in a tie. I've got a case in San Francisco near Titan's Tower. Raven's coming along. Do you want to come with?"

"Don't you normally work solo?" Danny asked. Zatanna still hadn't looked back up from her book and he was pretty sure she'd tuned them out.

"Is that a 'no'?"

"No! No, I'll come with." Maybe having Constantine with him will deter the JL from hounding him. What do they even want with him? If they're upset that he died at fourteen, he's gonna scream.

The Brit smirked. "You sound almost desperate to get out."

"Shut up and let's go."

"Alright, alright."

Part 3 Part 5

Tag List: @zaiothe4th @someonebored0100 @wolfeyedwitch @angelheartgamer @nymanders

I need everyone to understand that, at his core, Batman - Bruce Wayne - is a dramatic bitch

We should not have to urge men not to assault women.

Women have to teach men that they are not allowed to assault women.

"I would say that I'm your new legal guardian, but you're older than me and I can't exactly adopt a fully grown adult." The kid got comfortable on the couch, dropping his backpack on the ground and placing a dark blue binder on the coffee table. "I could say that you're my new legal guardian, but then we run into a similar problem." He paused. Dick closed the door but did not move closer to the kid. "Could you adopt me? No matter."

Dick shook his head a bit. "I'm sorry, who are you?"

"I'm Danny!" the kid smiled, holding his hand out for a handshake, "Nice to meet you!"

He didn't take it. "Likewise, I guess."

"What, no name?"

"I'm optimistic, not an idiot."

Danny, apparently, just shrugged and opened the binder to the first page, a title page, apparently. In big, bold, blue glitter pen letters, it said, "How To Balance Your Daytime and Nighttime Activities So That You Don't Burn Yourself Out More Than You Already Have". Under that, in smaller, black lettering, it said, "By Danny Phantom".

"How did you find this place?" Dick asked.

"Doesn't matter."

"Why do you think I have a day job and a night job?"

"I'm a realist, not an idiot."

This was supposed to be Dick's day off. He had gone to this safe house because it was the only one he'd managed to keep hidden from B. Not Alfred, though. He was going to spend the day relaxing. Apparently, some higher power - that he doesn't actually have faith in, despite knowing there are several - decided he doesn't get to relax. Why would he? He's only running on empty and spite.

"First thing's first," Danny, oblivious to Dick's inner turmoil, turned the page to reveal a table of contents that was written in small black lettering and numbers. Were the pages numbered? How many pages were there? It looked pretty thick. "Why did you do what you do? Why go out at night to fight crime when that's, I assume, what your day job is for? Why hurt yourself to help people?"

Oh, god. Dick needed to sit down.

Storyboard Part 2

Danny pulls an uno reverse card

ok just hear me out.

Danny decided 'you know what this man needs adult supervision' Danny had just moved to Bludhaven as small business weren't questioned even it was owned by a teenager.

So Danny opened up a very cheap mechanic store, prices were to die for and people were thankful he didn't ask questions as long as they did the same for him.

Que one very malnourished and exhausted cop coming in for a check up on their cop car. So Danny took one look at that man and thought he needed someone to help him.

Dick is so confused why plates of food keep appearing everywhere around him, with little post it notes saying he should sleep more and drink water. At first dick thought it was Alfred who finally gained teleportation powers, but one call later confirmed that his original theory was wrong.

He took the nest meal to analyze and found that it was perfectly healthy for consumption. Alfred even said that he thought the person behind it all just wanted Dick to have a more healthy life style.

Dick tried to piece together who could possibly be doing that, especially going into his house undetected. Then one day it was his one day off and the doorbell rung thinking it was one of his brothers because go the short black hair and overall build, he opened the door not to any of his brothers, but a teen nonetheless.

'good at least your taking care of yourself and actually eating proper foods, now I'm here to discuss your extracurriculars and how to time manage them appropriately without running yourself to the ground' the teen pushed past Dick who had his jaw dropped "I've brought my own board with an ideal itinerary that I expect you to follow. Any questions"

"Yeah... just one who that fuck are you kid"

No one said anything about Jason's death for a week. Not in passing, not as a caution. It had been bad when they skirted around the topic before, only bringing up what he 'did wrong' when they needed a lesson taught. Now, though, it was like they couldn't look Jason in the eye.

He knew staying in the manor for so long was a bad idea. When the weekend came around, he was up at dawn. He knew Damian would be up this early, so he took a gamble and climbed to the roof.

"Hey, kid."

"Todd."

Neither spoke as the sun rose, lighting the sky first pink, then orange, the yellow, then blue. When the sky was fully covered in the blue of a new day, Jason spoke.

"I remember when I came back to Gotham," His voice was barely louder than a whisper. "I set up in Crime Alley as soon as I could, getting a safe house put together. You wanna know the first thing I did, though?"

Damian didn't ask, but he did raise an eyebrow, looking at his older brother from the corner of his eye.

"The first thing I did was sit on the roof of the clocktower and watch the sunrise."

He knew Jason was a sap at heart, but even this was a bit much in that picture. "Oh? Why?"

"It felt, I guess, like a new beginning? I don't know, really, how to explain outside of that."

"So don't." the child said.

Again, the two lapsed into silence. Again, it was Jason who broke it. "Come on, I've got a surprise for you."

Following his brother off of the roof, Damian asked, "Now? What is it?"

"It wouldn't be a surprise if I told you, now would it? And, yes, now. I'm kidnapping you for the day."

"This is hardly a proper kidnapping if you're giving me the option."

"Not an option, actually," he smirked, "Let's go tell Alfred so he doesn't skin me when we come back."

"Don't ever go into the kidnapping business, Todd, you'd get caught before you could begin."

Yeah, that was fair. Regardless, a quick relay to Alfred in the kitchen saw the two boys headed to the motorcycle Jason had left in the garage. A one seater, but Damian was small enough to fit on with him. Tossing the boy a helmet with instructions to hold on tight, the two sped off to Gotham Proper.

Under an hour later, because speed laws are suggestions not rules, Jason stopped outside a fairly decent apartment building. Decent by Crime Alley standards, but decent nonetheless.

"Why are we here, Todd?" Damian asked, watching his brother throw a dusty tarp over the bike that he'd hid in a dark corner behind a dumpster.

"I told you," he took the lead up the stairs, "It's a surprise."

Damian did not roll his eyes because that would be uncouth of him. He didn't groan or sigh, either. He did, however, quietly note that he was too old for surprises.

Jason's heart broke a little. Damian isn't even eleven yet. He should be given surprises all the time! This was just another reason why adults couldn't be trusted. They turn children into soldiers instead of letting them be kids.

The top floor of every apartment building in Gotham was empty because of the vigilantes that ran around at night. No one liked to be woken up at two in the morning to footsteps on their roof. So, Jason's apartment sat on the floor just below that in the corner apartment. There was no one directly below him and caution tape covered the door next to him. Ideal for sneaking in and out without nosey neighbors to worry about.

The apartment itself was simply decorated, but lived in. A couch and an armchair sitting in one corner with a coffee table. A broken TV on a stand opposite those with a bookshelf beside it.

The most eye-catching thing in the room, however, was a stool that sat centered on the window between the armchair and the bookshelf. Just enough room on either side for someone to climb through the window without disrupting it.

The stool had a black and white cloth over it, hanging halfway down the legs. On top of that were two candles on either side of an empty picture frame, a vase of carnations, and three cookies.

Rarely was Damian at a loss for words. "What-what is-?"

"From what I understand," Jason explained, not moving from behind and slightly to the left of his youngest brother, "Danyal wasn't laid to rest properly." he risked a glance over, "I don't think you even got to mourn properly. I know you don't want the others to know, and I know it's not much, but-"

"Congratulations, Jason," Damian didn't turn to look at his brother, "You're my new favorite brother." Jason smiled. "Thank you."

If they shared a hug, or if Damian cried, that was no one's business.

In the Danny is Damian’s brother trope what if instead of Damian not telling the family about Danny wasn’t because of grief or shame or any of the more commonly used reasons for his silence. What if it was because he heard about how his father talked about Jason after his death, focusing and exaggerating the negative. That he was violent, angry, never listened to orders but in some iterations and popular fanon is that Jason was a cheerful and studious Robin.

What if while compiling info and researching the former robins during his tumultuous introduction he saw what kind of robin Jason was, good with kids and victims. Talking about his favorite books while on patrol and similar. Reminding Damian of his most Beloved brother.

Then he finds out about how Bruce talked about Jason after he died. Using him as an example as what not to do, erasing his good traits and just using him as a cautionary tale of what happens when you don’t follow orders. Just like what Ra’s said about Danny.

So he didn’t tell the family, not out of guilt or grief. But because his father stripped away Jason’s positive traits after death, the son he chose, adopted and loved. Who when he failed because he was a child led astray by his mother. What would he do to his brother, who loved the stars and excelled in stealth, who was quite in his kills but had no lust for killing.

Whether or not Bruce would do this to Danny’s memory doesn’t matter. B’s actions are gonna affect how Damian views his father even years after the initial actions. Because Damian will protect his brothers memory from being twisted even by their father.

Two moods