Lunacatmaniac

Vicki Vale asks & we want to know!

Is he a fruit bat? A vampire bat? A big eared flying fox?

Nobody knows

“Gotham’s first clear photo of their Cryptids”

Chapter 20 of the “Justice League’s Adventures with their new Cryptid” is up! I’m also back to regular chapter updates.

Also someone needs to move that spotlight, it’s hurting little robins eyes☹️

At one point, he gets so upset that his youngest notices. The boy doesn't know what to do and calls an expert.

Damian: The Talon is broken.

Jason: Wait, what?

Damian: He won't stop touching me and he keeps making sad noises.

Jason: Okay? What do you want me to do?

Damian: Fix it! You tamed the Talon, it's your responsibility! *beeps*

Jason: Oh, you little...

Bruce : *sighhhh*

Alfred : *clears throat and points upward to a far corner of the cave wall*

Talia : *turns head and looks up*

Dick : (🌟) ^ (🌟) *clinging to the wall, claws dug in, spying on this random intruder*

Okay, so you know how everyone talks about how Danny and Jason would recognize each other as members of the undead in a way?

Well, what about Talons? The Talons are basically undead assassins, so Danny would also recognize them. And maybe if you want to go with the idea that Danny is the Ghost King, the Talons might even feel more loyalty to Danny than the Court of Owls.

Danny watched the shadow out of the corner of his eye. He didn't know who or what was following him.

But at this point in time, he ceased to care. He was pretty sure it wasn't the GIW. They were never subtle, and probably would have attacked already.

Then again, them getting better at their jobs was the entire reason he had moved to Gotham to begin with.

Aside from that, the shadow only ever appeared to be following him at night. Dimly, Danny considered it might have been one of Gotham's many vigilantes and that his Halfa status had been compromised. But if they hadn't attacked him yet, he was probably safe. Maybe. Possibly.

And so, this went on for weeks to months at a time. But the figure never approached Danny. So, Danny decided that he wasn't going to give it much thought.

That was until of course something landed loudly on his fire-escape.

Grabbing a Fenton-Anti Creep Stick, he snuck over to his own fire-escape to just see a weird looking figure just sitting there.

The figure was dressed up as an owl? An owl assassin? It was some really weird cosplay.

Danny stared at the figure and the figure stared back. Neither of them moving. Just staring at each other.

"Are you just going to sit there staring all night?" Danny asked, exasperated. He didn't receive a reply.

Screw this, he was getting some sleep. He had work in the morning and he had to deal with people. Ugh.

He never did anything, just hung around his fire-escape. He didn't even come inside when Danny left the window open. Just sat there staring.

It was more than a little creepy, but the dude wasn't actually bothering Danny, so Danny didn't do anything about it.

But as it started to get colder and colder, and the snow began to pile up, Danny couldn't help but feel a bit concerned.

Danny could deal with the cold. The cold wasn't a problem to him, not with his Ice Core. In fact, Danny was most comfortable in cold weather. But he knew this wasn't the case for most humans.

(Not that Danny was so sure that the guy sitting on his fire-escape was human, but that was besides the point.)

It also didn't help that some part of Danny wanted to invite the guy in. That part of his Core, the part that was filled with his Obsession with Protection screamed to drag the guy inside.

Which was something Danny was a little more hesitant about. The dude was more than a little creepy. Danny still didn't know who he was. And he was always wearing that creepy owl cosplay.

But as the harsh cold of winter grew, Danny resigned himself to his fate.

Mixing up two mugs of hot chocolate, Danny walked himself over to the window next to the fire-escape.

"Do you want to come inside? It's getting cold out here." Danny inquired. He still didn't receive a reply. Figures.

So, in the end, Danny stepped onto the fire-escape himself. The birdman perked up at that, and Danny became equated with the fact that the man was decided taller than him. Curse his short height.

"At least take this." Danny handed the man one of the mugs of hot chocolate, and the man seemed to react mostly on instinct. Danny began to move back inside when a voice stopped him.

"What is Talon supposed to do with this?" The man spoke. This was the first time in all the weeks that the man had been coming to his fire-escape that he had spoken. His voice was smooth, but had a robotic lilt to it that made Danny shiver in discomfort.

"You can do whatever you want with it." Danny responded, eyeing the man up and down strangely.

"Talon doesn't have wants." The man answered back.

Okay, this was starting to get real creepy, even for him. What was up with this guy. Pausing for a moment, Danny responded.

"Then drink it. Use it for warmth. That's what it's there for." Danny pointed out.

Surprisingly, the man quickly moved to remove his mask. The sudden movement startled Danny, but the man didn't stop for anything.

He began to quickly down the glass, causing Danny to speak up in a panic. Not even having enough time to observe the man's features.

"Slowly! Drink it slowly! You'll burn yourself otherwise." And the man automatically slowed down at Danny's words. It was unsettling.

Strangely enough, Danny had never felt more discomfort around the man then when he was so clearly listening to Danny. Because that was the weird thing, he was listening to Danny's words like they were orders. Not the suggestions they were.

Quietly, Danny moved back into his apartment building.

Maybe he should be more concerned about the fact that some strange unknown was following him around.

Still though, he left the window open in case the man ever came inside. He never did.

But later that next morning when Danny woke up, he found the mug he had given the man resting on the windowsill. Completely drained of any hot chocolate.

Despite himself, Danny couldn't help but thing back to how the man looked. His skin grey with what Danny could only connect with the dead. And yet, the man's soft looking black hair would suggest he was perfectly healthy. And the man's eyes? Well Danny never saw them considering they were hidden under his goggles.

Maybe he should shoo the man away. Things were just getting weirder to the point Danny could no longer ignore it.

But his Core screamed against the idea. Danny sighed in annoyance to himself. It seems, at some point or another, his core had decided the mystery man was apart of his 'fraid.

Talon turned towards the strange man, its claws inches away from the steaming mug.

The man had blue eyes, like Those Who Talon Did Not Know. Like his family the strangers in the Memories That Did Not Belong to It.

Talon had returned to the balcony again and again for the memories. It did not like it, because Talon had no likes or dislikes, but the color of the man's eyes made the memories clearer.

The man's eyes were not blue tonight.

Tonight the eyes were a neon green. This too carried memories.

Gunfire and rage. White streak and snark. Shared meals. Quiet libraries. First of little brothers. Lost returned. Little Wing.

DICKIEBIRD.

Eyes should not be glowing green. Eyes should not be gold

the one time it had seen its reflection in the mirror, it had tried to gouge out its eyes and slit the throat of the Good Doctor who tried to sedate it

Talon did not think the Doctors were good doctors. They always made the memories fade away.

They made everything fade away, and stored Talon in the Sleeping Cold until the Court needed him again.

The Above has started to remind it of the sleeping cold. If Talon could worry, it would worry that the cold would slow his reactions and leave him to sleep in the Above.

Perhaps the cold had already slowed it too much. It did not attempt strike back at the man's attack.

Was it an attack?

The man had wrapped his hand around its wrist and was gently tugging it towards the open window.

"I don't know where you go when you leave, but it's obvious they aren't taking care of you."

The Good Doctors insured that Talon was fully functional. The Court would be angry if it didn't return and would send others to hunt down whatever had delayed it. Is that not the same as care?

"I don't have much space, but the couch is comfy and it's way better than freezing out here"

It thought of the cold darkness of the roost and the memories that would slip through its fingers like sand.

"Please just let me help."

Valerie would also probably want to kill him. Or maybe she's giving up on understanding ghost shenanigans, same with Wes.

Danny glanced at the strange man, watching him from his kitchen as the man sat on his couch. Well, Danny practically sat him there himself, but that was besides the point.

If Danny didn't know any better, he might have thought the man was cationic with his lack of responses. But seriously, this was the type of weirdo that Danny's ghost core thought was ideal to be apart of his 'friad?

(It was strange. Danny's core so rarely accepted others like that easily, especially if they were living. Danny's core only really accepted others into his fold that easily if there were also dead. The man didn't seem dead, and he wasn't setting off Danny's ghost sense, so Danny failed to see why the connection had been formed, but he couldn't do much about it now.)

"The pantry's fully stocked. Feel free to help yourself. Bathroom's down the hall on the right." Danny stated, leaving the man to his own devices, deciding to go to bed.

The next day, the man was gone by morning. Nothing in Danny's pantry had been touched. Actually, the apartment seemed as if no one but Danny had even been inside of it.

The next week, the man didn't come back. But when he did, he hanged around on his fire-escape like normal. Didn't even try to come inside even though the window was open. So, Danny dragged him inside once more.

This time, it wasn't as late as it normally was when Danny noticed the man, so Danny put on a TV show as he sat the man down on his couch. Still no response. Still no real signs of life.

"Do you want any hot chocolate? Any snacks?" Danny asked.

"Talon doesn't want things." Was the first thing said to him all night. Ah, yes, the ever so cryptic words that Danny had no context to understand.

"Would you like to try some?" Danny tried a different approach.

"Talon doesn't have likes or dislikes." And really, Danny should have expected that response. That night, Danny dropped it, left it alone. He was already having the man watching trashy TV shows with him, best not to push it.

But the next night the man came over, Danny dragged him into his kitchen instead.

"Okay, mask off. We're having a taste test party." Danny declared, having prepared a large arrange of different drinks and junk foods to try. Danny wasn't a chef of any sort, so it wasn't anything elaborate, but Danny was sure he could find something the man enjoyed.

The man obeyed, taking off his masks, simply obeying Danny without a second thought. It made Danny uncomfortable, but maybe he could use it to help the man be something more than whatever the hell he was right now.

"We're going to find out what you like and dislike. This way I'm not just shoving hot chocolate at you." Danny explained.

"Talon doesn't have likes or dislikes." The man reiterated. Danny nodded, as if that made perfect sense.

"You've said that. But everyone has likes and dislikes. Even people dressed up in weird owl cosplays." Danny pointed out.

"Talon is not an Owl. Talon is a Talon." The man stated. Once again, making a comment that made zero sense.

"And I'm sure that statement makes perfect sense to you. Now, taste test time."

Danny watched closely as they made their way through the different items. The man's face was neutral the entire time, not giving anything away. He was really committing to the bit of whatever this 'Talon' business was. But it wasn't enough to hide the subtle nuances to Danny's obsessed core that insisted on coddling the man even though he was a full grown adult.

He noticed how the man seemed to linger around the cereal, ate more of it overall. Would have bigger sips of the Sodar verses the Zesti. Small things like that. It wasn't a lot, but it was something.

So, the next time the man came over, Danny had cereal prepared and bottles of Sodar at the ready.

It wasn't just the one weirdo this time. He brought someone with him.

He brought a child that was dressed in the same weird outfit as him.

Danny took a moment to collect himself.

"Ya'know what? Why not. This might as well happen." Danny couldn't help but mumble to himself.

He got to work, setting up the TV and got even more snacks and drinks out. He pretended not to notice as the man gestured the child through the actions, as if eating and drinking wasn't normal behavior. As if being offered food and drink wasn't normal.

Then again, it probably wasn't normal to get offered food and drink by the person of the apartment that they just kinda snuck into. So why not.

Weeks passed, and this continued to happen. Sometimes the original guy wasn't there, but it'd be some other random child. But the one Danny most frequently saw was the one guy.

So what if he took all of his scarce free time, including his lunch breaks, as an opportunity to either visit amity or Sam and Tucker (or Jazz) in their universities? Not his fault portals made it so he could get anywhere he wanted in the world in a matter of seconds.

So what if he refused to even speak whenever he was focused on his latest project? He had things to do, (self-imposed) deadlines to meet. Not like he could give his work any less than 100% of his attention, that's how explosions happened. No, Kyle, he wasn't being paranoid. He had enough experience with OSHA violations to know exactly what happened when you ignored them and pretended everything was fine. He had died at 14 because of one. He wasn't stupid. Or traumatized. Nope.

The talons' now almost-daily visits hadn't really made a change on his social life except to give him an extra reason not to have one. At least not in Gotham. He did have local friends, Jazz, didn't you hear? The owl cosplayers had finally gotten comfortable coming inside his house and taking his snacks, he was thriving. No, he did not need an intervention, thank you very much.

It had still taken him by surprise when one of his more persistent coworkers had insisted on walking him home after he had lost track of time and stayed slightly after hours to finish his project. Apparently outsiders shouldn't be walking out at night alone in Gotham. Danny thought they were exaggerating but they seemed genuinely worried so he agreed. It's not like he lived far, just about a 10 minute walk, nothing was going to happen to him, even if he did find trouble. He couldn't say that, though, and his reassurances that he was truly really fine were getting nowhere so he had just given in. They did make a good substitution for small talk while they walked together, even if his companion (so he didn't actually know their name, sue him) kept looking at him weirdly after he had given a couple of toned down examples of why he was perfectly safe.

They got to his door and Danny opened it, already wondering whether to invite them in or just thank them for the company. Neither happened as he noticed the sharp inhale and sudden silence behind him where a constant stream of words had been flowing before. He turned around to see his companion frozen, eyes wide and focused on something behind him. He opened his mouth to ask if they were ok, part of him wondering what rattled them so badly to stop them mid sentence, the other part cynically thinking they wouldn't have been much protection if they had gotten attacked on their way to Danny's house. Before he could do much, they talked although it didn't seem to be directed at him.

I've really enjoyed the pajama cards and the accompanying pictures of the boys getting ready for school. But, as always, there's the question of what's going on with the camera.

Little Silver is pulling off some really good tricks to stay out of mirror shots. However, my favorite is him walking through Sebek's wall.

Poor Epel woke up to two weirdos in his room. Rook is a delight, though.

This isn't the first time I've had Floyd hoist my silly little guy. It probably won't be the last. Floyd just really seems like he'd go along with it, at least once in a while.

So when a cult managed to successfully summon and bind him, he lacked the knowledge of how to stop them.

And they tore him apart.

His core was broken into pieces, each one then implanted into one of the most loyal cult members (or potentially sold off to another person to use…) to grant them a portion of Phantom’s many powers.

However, the cult didn’t entirely know what they were doing either. You see, it turns out that shattering Danny’s core in that manner didn’t truly end him. His soul still persisted, still refused to die even as it was trapped amongst the disparate shards. Though each individual piece lacked the strength of mind or power to affect their hosts, they would gradually forge themselves together anew should they ever be gathered back together.

And after Red Hood killed several of the cult’s members, that process began. Their shards, now freed, transferred to the vigilante, instinctively latching onto his proto-core. Though still not yet whole enough to form a truly conscious fragment of Danny, they are enough to start to nudge Hood in the right direction (bolstered in effectiveness by Jason’s connection to death)

Like jason whos finally gotten all the cult members and hunted some random billionaire funding in and he swears he picked up a shard of something as evidence but when he went to get it it was no longer there

So jason continues to go about his day and nights with something feeling off but he can't quite put his finger on it until one night as he was heading to one of his many safehouses to sleep he stumbled

He felt... something indescribable he flet something moving in his chest and it wasn't good nor bad it just... felt alien before it happened

In a flash a arm of blackness topped with a brilliant white hand tore through his chest or so he thought looking down his chest is fin it just has an arm out of it

At that thought the arm lurches forward bright whote claws effortlessly gouging the ground and it started to pull and jason felt it this feeling hes had since killing that first cult member moving

In a instant a second arm burst out clutching a nearby wall slowly pulling this THING out of him slowly almost carefully this being materialised out of his chest

He had to look away almost immediately once the hair poked out it flet like looking at concentrated starlight eventually whatever this thing was was fully out and it stood towering over jason skin pitch black like the emptyness of space dotted with pinpicks of light he some how knew were universes in their own right

This thing whatever it was stood tall looking up to the overcast and polluted gotham sky opened it's mouth

And it

SCREAMED

Jason realed back at the scream because he could feel it... it felt wrong it felt like the whirl of a machine the smell of ozone the feeling of volts cascading up is arm petanrating end killing him it felt of death of... of rebirth of balance of space

And in an instant for the first time since the sailors fist settled gotham the sky and pollution was cleared away showing above gotham the true beauty of the universe

The being looked smiled and wept at the sky at the stars at everything jason took a step back kicking a can in a instant the creature turned locking eyes to hemet and it smiled at him a cruel smiled of teath

Jason flinched back overwhelmed with this instinct of fear prey run hin worship

At his reaction the being blinked before it started to change it's towering form shrunk still taller but no longer drlwarfing jason it's arms and legs shrunk to a normal size

It's skin lightend as a hasmat suit stitched into existence around it a stylied D standing proudly on it's chest smiling at it's now more human appearance it approached jason

Backing up overwhelmed with everything unable to stop it it pressed a hand to Jason's chest causing a searing pain inside himself

"There" the thing spoke "a reward for my saviour" it spoke with a sort of echo sounding from everywhere "no longer shall you be burdened by the corruption plaguing your soul, i cant fully remove it but I have locked it away, with time it shall shrivel up and cause no more problems" the being stated smiling proudly "though i wouldn't go near whatever gave you that corruption in the first place it could loosen the binding making all that for naught" it joked before settling on a more serious face "know this jason todd-wayne" it intoned "you have freed me from those who trapped and shattered me, should you have need of me simply speak my name and i shall appear" it turned to leave

"WAIT" Jason shouted body still screaming to run "who are you" he asked voice hoarse the being smiled gently "i am phantom ancient of space" it stated before it shot straight up presumably to space

And to make things more stressful, he accidentally killed the weird clown guy that did it to him. It would presumably count as self defense, but still! He doesn’t want to deal with having killed a guy! So he runs off, accidentally leaving his hand behind in the process.

So now Jason, who witnessed that happen, wants to track him down to thank him. But he doesn’t have any idea who Danny is. His only real clue is the severed hand left behind

"What, ew - is this a severed hand?!"

"Yep."

Tim stares at it, then looks up at Jason, who is watching him like a cat expecting to be praised for delivering a bird.

"Whyyyyy?"

"Want to return it to it's owner."

"They're alive? Jeez, this thing is covered in blood."

"Pretty sure most of it is the Jokers."

"What?"

"Joker tried to cut this guys hand off, so the kid just...plunged it into Mr SmileMcSmile's chest, pulled out his heart, and then his hand sorta...fell off. I wanna find it and return it. Maybe offer a robotic hand. As thanks."

The hand sits on Tim's lap, blood oozing into his tights.

"So can you find the guy?"

Tim sighs. Not like this is the first body part he's seen.

"Yeah, I can find the guy."

Turns out, finding him is harder than expected. Tim can't get a lock on his DNA to serve as a trace, but Jason draws a passable sketch and the incident was caught on camera.

"Danny Fenton," Jason reads, hand on the back of Tim's chair as he leans forward.

"He's kinda cute," Tim blurts out.

A bunch of goon amputees: Well damn! The big boss is pining over one o' our "single handed" club. (I can totally see that being a thing. If you can brag about defeating someone literally single-handedly, why wouldn't you?) We gotta go give the big man a shovel talk on behalf of our single-handed brother!

Red Hood, seeing a bunch of one-handed goons approaching him: Gasp! Are you all here to see if you're my one true love?

Goon: Nah, we just wanna high-five the hand of the guy who killed joker and tell you that if you hurt them you're dead to us. But we can pretend we all want ya if that'll tickle your fancy, boss.

Red Hood: Ya know what? Fair. Gimme whatchu got.

Goon 2: My hand! At last we are reunited!

Red Hood: They're both the same hand.

Goon 2: Hey, I could'a had two right hands, you don't know!

RH: Next!

And when they do finally find him, the single handed club is all excited to welcome another member into their arm(s) only to be sorely disappointed.

Goon 1: It grew back?! Aw, what a cop-out.

Goon 2: Yeah, way to ruin our amputee representation, man!

Goon 3: You're no longer invited to the potluck!

Danny: Can I still come if I cut off my hand each time and bear an offering of hand puns?

Roy, holding Danny bridal style while simultaneously hiding both of them on top of the fridge: hisssss

Don’t underestimate what a ghost will do for a higher education. You see, it's the custom of the Fenton family not to run away from things they are afraid of but to face their fear. So Danny Fenton, who has learned to fear scalpels, steel clamps and surgical retractors, decides to do something about it and to dedicate his life to giving souls of those who died a violent death the final rest and justice they deserve.

Well, it didn’t really come to him at once. It started out as a simple joke:

Danny didn’t think he could continue his education after school. Frankly, his grades suck. However, Tucker for fun applied for a scholarship for gifted villains from Gotham University on his behalf.

And hell, they are willing to pay money for his education. Pay in full! Living in Park Row is also incredibly cheap. And with his flying ability, he’ll also save on transportation.

Danny is not a villain. And he’s not planning on becoming one. But he couldn’t lose that chance.

Why do you deserve this scholarship? “My parents are renowned ecto scientists, and I’ve seen their dissection work at its best. Medical school is expensive, and this scholarship will help me accomplish my goal of becoming a forensic pathologist and helping maintain the boundary between the world of the living and the world of the dead…or use it for my own ends. Of course.”

Well, Mr Two-Face was fully confident that despite his grades in the subjects, Danny was fully committed to achieving high academic achievement. Finally, work experience of Dan came in handy somewhere.

There were only few things about the death that Danny didn’t find on his own or from his ghost friends, so he managed to graduate in record time. Young Fenton thought he was lucky enough to get a job near Crime Alley. It was odd that the job was available. Even a new specialist like him was allowed to work full-time. And the salary was very decent.

~~~~~~

Danny: Yes, Jazz, everything is just fine. I found a great job and I’m trying to relax and find a hobby, you know. Started feeding the local birds. Apparently they were abused, the poor things are so shy and aggressive.

The local birds:

~~~~~~

Let’s say that a returned Jason as undead cannot be killed for forever. The stab wounds heal quickly, the bullet holes sometimes itch unpleasantly for a few days, but in general his regeneration is at a level with some metahumans. This is convenient. But when Red Hood wakes up in the morgue after a particularly severe injury, he’s not happy. Sometimes even looking in the mirror at his dissection scar is difficult for him. And this situation is a fucking nightmare. Danny: Oh. Are you awake now? I’m sorry I didn’t have time to put you on the couch, I didn’t have clean sheets and my assistant would have killed me because of the new stains. Red Hood: What the hell? I’m sorry?! It’s fucked up! I’d love to see you wake up on the dissection table. Danny: Been there Done that. But hey, I didn’t put you there. You didn’t get here on my shift, give me a break.

Jason: …So, what's now? Danny: Well, I can offer you tea or coffee. Of course, only after I sew up the hole in your stomach and give you a change of clothes. Or I could go after the documents and pretend I didn’t notice one of my bodies got away. But then don’t dream about novocaine blockade. Pretty liver by the way, you don’t see that much in crime lords. Jason: Um, thank you? But you’re weird. Usually people are praised for the beauty of the face or eyes rather than… Danny: Wow, now I feel attacked.You wake up in your helmet. I can’t compliment what I can’t see. Jason: Gee, I’m surprised your colleague hasn’t taken it off yet. Danny: And lose important evidence? It is not customary for us to put curiosity above professionalism.

~~~~~

Jason learns quickly that although Batman is willing to go anywhere to track him, there are always exceptions to the rule. The morgue was one of them. Not surprisingly, the emotional constipation and uncomfortable theme of Jason’s death worked like a perfect bat repeller. Over time, Jason becomes really interested in a guy who genuinely laughs at his death jokes and listens to his problems at work without judgment. Danny is too cute and nice.

Danny*works*: No visitors allowed here.

Jason: Unless you are a zombie, right?

Danny:...Still not one of your hideouts. The book is where you left it, make some tea if you want it.

~~~~~

Jason, once again delivered without a sign of life to Danny after the fight, woke up during pupillary reflex test.

Jason: Oh, beauty, you are just dazzling today.

Danny: As I thought, your regeneration didn’t cure your concussion before your resurrection. I’ll give you referrals for all the tests and examinations. And we really should stop seeing each other like this. Please take care of yourself.

Jason: I don’t think you have the right to prescribe them to me. Danny: Technically I do not. But we live in Gotham. And for some time the hospital where I work at night is very sensitive to my requests.

Red Hood: And why? Danny: It’s hard to explain… Red Hood: Doctor Handsome, I’ve been through some shit, so try to surprise me. Danny: Okay, okay. Look, you are a crime lord for not too long, right? But criminals and cops are afraid of you and kids and your henchmen really likes you. Jason: ..So what? Danny: Can you please recommend how to maintain a reputation but so your people aren’t afraid of you? Jason: Why do you need this information? Your assistant finally realized you’re friends with walking corpses? Danny: It’s not about that! Although, like.. you aren’t wrong? It’s complicated. I may, well, accidentally, honestly, have seized power over a local secret aristocratic criminal society.

Jason: Baby, please tell me everything. I have a restaurant as a front for a business nearby. It’s a date. Let's go. Danny: Let me finish a few stitches first, Jay.

~~~~~

Red Hood and Red Robin fight near Batman: Hood: Replacement was on patrol without permission! Red Robin: And Jason is dating the new owner of Court of Owls! Batman:.. he's doing WHAT? Jason, how could you take such a risk? it is completely unprofessional and Red Hood: At least he loves me for what’s inside me! Red Robin: Yeah, like a beautiful liver. It’s a great relationship base. Red Hood: I’m talking about my feelings and interests. Dumb lil stalker with a big mouth! I’ll teach you not to bother my boyfriend.

~~~~~

Henchman: Boss. We shouldn’t go into that area, the rumors are that there are Talons here. Red Hood: All under control, they won’t touch us. Henchman: How can you be sure? The poem says 'Beware The Court of Owls, that watches all the time, ruling Gotham from a shadow..' Red Hood: Yeah yeah "speak not a whispered word of them or they'll send The Talon for your head". I’m sleeping with their boss, of course I’m sure. Henchman: Boss, don’t kid like that. Red Hood: I don’t pay you for gossip. Let's go.

Dick, to whom the memories began to return, haunts Jason because he did not cut for Lil Wing apple slices like he likes for lunch: Talon came to finish the job. Henchmen: scream

~~~~~

Jason was Thomas and Danny was Martha

Jason never told anyone how familiar the manor felt. He knew he was the only one of Bruce’s kids who had never gotten lost, but it was never talked about. Jason also never talked about how he would run his finger along his guns at times. (They could kill, but they would protect. Jason would protect his family(He wouldn’t fail this time.))

Danny never told anyone how easy it was to accompany Sam to her parent’s parties. The first time he really spoke at one, Sam’s parents had been begrudgingly impressed, and Sam had been very confused. (He didn’t know how to explain he could remember walking through galas like a storm. He couldn’t explain it anymore than he could explain his fascination with pearls.)

Very few employees at Wayne Industries had been there when the Wayne’s died, since it had been almost 30 years since. Still, those who remained were astounded by Danny Fenton, a boy who was just as convincing as the late Martha Wayne. (It was an open secret that when the Wayne Couple were alive, Martha had run the company more than Thomas had. It was also an open secret in Gotham that Wayne Industries had thrived under her guidance.)

Soon, Danny was invited to a gala as part of a fundraiser for the Aerospace Department. He hadn’t planned to go, but Sam had begged him to go, since she had to go with her family. Finally, he agreed, but not before making it known he would be wearing a dress.(part of that reason was because he wanted to scandalize people. The other part of that reason was because he’d started wearing dresses more often lately. While his teenage self would’ve never done that, he was a lot more comfortable with his masculinity. (The fact that he looked amazing in dresses didn’t hurt.)

Jason had not wanted to go to the gala, but Alfred had requested that he attend. Jason had agreed after serious pressure from Alfred, but since he agreed so late, he wasn’t going to go get a suit tailored. Instead, he went through some clothes that were in the storage closet and found a nice suit that fit him perfectly. (he didn’t understand why Alfred froze when he saw the suit. When he went to remove it, not wanting to make Alfie upset, Alfred told him softly that he should wear it. He wouldn’t argue with Alfred.)

Danny got there just in time to avoid the media circus and slipped in quietly. He let his instinct guide him when talking, and ignored the way that most of the older crowd looked at him as if he had just gone ghost in front of them. (It was bad. One lady seems like she was about to cry when he stopped to talk to her. Another man who is in his late 60s seems like he was about to faint.)

Jason got there early, and tried to avoid most of the party. He didn’t talk to people, but most of them just stared at him with an uneasiness that made him more uncomfortable. This wasn’t the first gala he’d been to since coming back, but he didn’t often make very many appearances. (He didn’t understand why they all look so spooked though or why one older woman looked a second away from a heart attack when he asked her if she knew what time it was)

Jason was so focused on how everyone was reacting that he didn’t notice he was going to walk into someone until it was too late. He looked up, an apology on his tongue, but it swiftly died as he made eye contact with blue eyes )

Danny, after having another weird interaction with someone(this time an older man named Falcone, who wouldn’t stop making eye contact and seemed almost horrified) was just focused on getting some food before he had to leave. He wasn’t focused on his surroundings, so he didn’t realize until it was too late that he had walked right into someone. He looked up, ready to apologize and try to placate whatever socialite he had offended, but the words turned ash in his mouth.

But somehow Jason finds his channel anyway, and something about his voice is captivating. The pit rage quiets down in his presence. So he starts tuning in to basically every stream, or just putting on the VODs in the background to fall asleep to.

And on the other side, Danny takes note of this new subscriber who’s quite possibly his first truly dedicated viewer. So he starts interacting with him on stream sometimes - greeting him when he shows up in the chat, specifically asking/answering questions, etc

Danny remembers being 17 and feeling so helpless and overwhelmed, especially when Jazz moved away for college. He didn’t expect that to be the end of his struggles. His sister coming back for Christmas break with the Justice League in tow was not on his bingo card, nor were his parents and Vlad being tried for supervillainy or the Anti-Ecto Acts and the GIW being a hoax. However, according to Tucker, the most surprising part of their senior year was their trio graduating with near-perfect attendance and good grades.

Nowadays, life is good for Danny. While his responsibilities as the High King of the Infinite Realms and his attachment to his haunt keep him from leaving Amity Park, he has found balance. After his identity as Phantom was revealed to the town, the community rallied in support of the half-dead teenager who saw his parents go to jail. Following Jazz’s insistence, he has enrolled in an online Astronomy and Engineering degree, which he finds much easier than high school. He doesn’t even have to worry about money, being the new owner of FentonWorks and DalvCo.

All in all, life is, finally, cutting the halfa some slack, which is why he now has more free time to fill, ergo his current situation. Sam, Tucker and Jazz are debating on his computer screen about what hobby he should try.

"Ahh, no. I AM a broke college student. I just, found the materials to make them! Really, it was just a small project."

"They're really well made have--" his phone pinged with the sound of an arrow flying past, over and over, overlapping, and he sighed. Picking it up, to see the entire batchat blowing up. Eyebrows furrowing, he scrolled up to see what started all of it, to see a link. Clicking on it brought him to a news article, released three hours ago.

The Joker was found in his cell.

Missing BOTH his kneecaps.

No wounds, no forced entry or exit. It was as though the deranged clown wasn't born with them. Tapping his nail on the rim of the cup, he stilled. Across from him, Danny suddenly seemed nervous. Jason tapped it again, holding the cup closer to his ear. It was--

"Are these the fucking Jokers kneecaps??" He pulled the cup away from his head, looking at it differently, then up at Danny. The smaller male crossed his arms.

"the rejected court jester doesn't need to cause more damage than already done. I'm doing Gotham a favor. Besides, it's like I said, materials just laying around. They were being wasted anyway."

"I'm drinking out of one of his Kneecaps?" The nervous look turned to fear from Danny, his arms uncrossing as his hands waved back and forth in front of himself.

"Ahh, if, if you don't like them or they're making you feel sick, I'm sorry! I just--- you mentioned that the Joker made you feel both angry and fearful, so I-- I just thought-"

Without breaking eye contact, Jason downed the rest of his water, gently clicked the cup onto the small coffee table and stood up.

"This? Is a cause of celebration. Champagne or wine?" The creak of old hinges, as he opened the good drawer, only for emergencies or Good days. This counted as a Really Good Day.

"You? You're not curious about this? Not worried? You're not going to call the cops or bats on me, are you??" Danny was standing now, dropping nearly to a ready stance to sprint. Whether to attempt and get past Jason to the door or our the window unknown.

"Do I look like I carry a giant bat symbol light? My phone is sitting on the coffee table next to my cup. Besides,"

The bottle was way in the back, but still relatively new. Hopefully Danny could hold his alcohol.

"You're gonna tell me all the details of why and how you decided on This as a gift. Let alone, how it was done. At this point I don't know if it's a dating gift, or if you're proposing. Either way, my answer is 'Yes'."

Danny: Yes? You'll be my partner??

Jason: Fuck yes. I do need the story though. Every detail.

Danny: I'll be honest. I have no idea why I felt like it needed to be this. It just did. And uh, well. I have powers. So. Pretty easy to get the materials.

Danny showed what he meant by shoving his hand through the table. As easy as Jason would plunge a hand into water.

Jason: Are you like, a Martian or something?

Batfam: 👀.

Bruce: Elaborate please.

Jason: My boyfriend, fiancé, something stole the man's kneecaps and turned them into wine glasses only to later gift them to me.

Batfam: ...

Batfam member who is coincidentally in the same room as Bruce: Bruce looks like he is re-evaluating his life choices and have having an existential crisis at the same time.

Bruce: He is a keeper. When is the wedding? When can I meet my future son-in-law?

Neither have any idea why that was necessary. But it was, and it worked. Jason is very pleased with himself, as he gets Danny mauling his face, while clinging to his front like a swooning maiden. Jason's siblings get shown the footage. Babs had found it due to a report of a beating. She deleted the footage from other sources but kept it on her own servers.

None of them know how to feel about them as a couple. One steals Jokers knee caps and makes cups from them. The other presents a freshly beaten thug as an offering. Just, what the fuck is this Jason?!?!?! How did you find someone that perfectly fucked up?

Jason's courting present wasn't a beaten some 2bit goon.

Danny gave him JOKER'S KNEECAP.

This would be like... handing over a macaroni painting,after getting an og 13th century golden earrings as an engagement present.

No.

Jason can do SO much better.

The beaten-up person he hands over to Danny?

Is agent G, from the GIW. That's how he learn about that fuckery.

after the date, Jason kisses his Boyfriend/Fiancé and go on a road trip.

A week later, Danny is exhausted as he enters his apartment, turn on the light, and find a beaten up human. That human is no other then Amanda Waller. Also known as Agent A, leader of GIW.

Jasn drops to one knee, making sure to stand on her body, and open a ring box: