Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Danny couldn’t move.  He was in pain, he was terrified.  The restraints holding him negated his ghost powers.  Tears slipped from his eyes.  He watched as his own mother peeled his skin back, removing his flesh.  Bright toxic green mixed with harsh red, spilling out of him.  He could see his ribs, his core pulsing underneath the bones.  His organs were moved, pain shooting through them.  He had begged them to stop.  They never stopped.  His body was in so much pain.  He felt hands touch his core.  He screamed.  A ghostly wail left him, screaming with it.  His parents and the GIW agents were blown back, the lights above him shattering.  The restraints holding him shattered.  He felt a portal open underneath him and he fell.  His back slammed into something hard and cold.  The portal closed above him.  He whimpered, pain shooting through him.  

He sat up, wincing and gasping in pain.  His eyes focused on his guts, spilling out of him.  He gathered them in his arms, attempting to force them back inside where they belonged.  They weren’t staying.  Why weren't they staying?  It hurt.  It hurt so much.  He started crying, unable to do anything else as his organs slipped through his arms.  He felt a hand on his shoulder.  His head snapped to the figure.  The figure was looking at him with concern visible under its mask.  It was looking from Danny himself to his spilling guts.  He picked up his organs as best he could.  “Help…”   

The Justice League had been having a meeting, discussing different plans.  They heard a crack.  They panicked for a moment, worried the glass of the Watchtower was failing.  They heard the sound of something tearing and suddenly a swirling green portal opened above the table.  The League all readied themself for anything to come through.  A black and white figure fell through, slamming into the table.  The portal closed.  The figure whimpered.  It sat up.  It was an older teen, but still a child.  The League was frozen, unsure what to do.

The boy began to cry, struggling with something.  Batman was the first to recover.  He moved quickly, putting a hand on the boy’s shoulder.  The boy had stark white hair and pale blue green skin, pointed ears that were drooping slightly.  The boy looked at him, glowing green eyes filled with tears and fear.  The eyes were striking, and Batman felt a small chill go down his spine at the specific color of green.  Batman saw the problem and nearly threw up.  The boy’s internal organs were spilling out of a large wound on his torso.  Bright green and red were mixing on the table.  He was worried.  All he saw was a hurt and scared child, clinging onto life.  It scared him to no end, a child dying in front of them.  The boy gathered his organs in his arms, or at least he tried.  He said one word.  “Help…”

That snapped the rest of the League back to the present.  The Flash ran to the med bay, getting it set up.  Superman helped Batman get the boy to the med bay, keeping his guts from spilling out of him even more.  Wonder Woman was talking to the boy, trying to help keep him calm.  He was terrified, they didn’t blame him.  Green Lantern and Green Arrow stayed behind, agreeing to clean the table of its green and red stain.  Aquaman gagged slightly, trying to keep himself under control.  They got him to the med bay, carefully laying him down.  They attached him to different monitors to keep track of his vitals.  They luckily had a sedative on hand so they could put him under while they stitched him up.  

Unfortunately the second they put the IV in, the boy started screaming and crying, trying to get away.  They had to hold him down, apologizing to him as he screamed, thrashing.  They didn’t want him to hurt himself anymore than he already was.  The sedative took effect, causing him to lose his strength.  He slumped against the bed, still crying.  Wonder Woman ran her hand through his hair, murmuring to him, trying to calm him.  Batman was holding his hand, comforting him in the best way he could.  His eyes slid closed.

The heroes were keeping their emotions under control.  Just barely.  Everyone was worried about the meta child who just fell into their meeting with his guts spilling out.  They put on gloves and began to carefully remove the boy’s shirt.  It looked like a hazmat suit, an insignia on the front that was damaged and cut.  They managed to get it off the boy, leaving his pants on but taking off his boots.  They began to rearrange his organs back inside his body carefully, making sure nothing was tangled.  The League literally looked up a diagram of human organs so they knew where they were supposed to go.  They noticed the blue glowing orb in the boy’s chest, pulsing underneath his ribs, just like his heart.  It wasn’t attached to anything, just floating in the boy’s chest, an almost ice-like exterior to it.  The Flash stitched him up, quick and easy.  They cleaned off the boy’s skin, careful not to cause any extra pain or jarring.  Green Lantern came in.  He took the top of the boy’s outfit and his white gloves and went to go wash them.  The League all stayed in the room for an hour, watching as the boy slept, tears coming to a stop.  Batman had to literally be pried away from the boy’s side to go eat and take care of himself.  Wonder Woman stayed in the room, fingers carding through the boy’s white hair.

Danny was confused.  Where was he?  He didn’t remember.  Why couldn’t he remember?  He heard a voice talking to him.  He didn’t recognize the voice, but it was nice.  He wanted to see where it was coming from.  He forced his eyes open, wincing at the light.  The light.  He screamed, trying to get away.  He felt hands on his shoulders, trying to push him to lay back down.  “Hey, hey it's ok!  You're alright!”  The voice said.  

“Light!  Bad!  Please no!”  Danny yelled, voice rough, throat shredded from all the screaming he did while strapped to the table.

“You don’t like the big light?  Ok, we can fix that.”  The voice said.  

He heard a click and the light was gone.  He sighed, letting the hands push him back down.  He looked around, taking in the room around him, the surprisingly soft bed beneath him.  He realized he wasn’t wearing his suit, feeling bandages wrapped around his torso.  He felt a hand in his hair and turned his head.  A woman sat there, long brown hair falling over her shoulders.  She was looking at him with concern, a sad smile on her face that didn’t reach her eyes.  “Hey there, feeling a bit better with the lights off?”  The woman asked.

He nodded, head a bit achy.  His stomach and chest hurt, pain radiating from the wound.  It hurt more when he moved, his abdominal muscles damaged.  He was also hungry.  The woman sighed slightly.  He looked at her.  “Right, you don’t even know my name.”  She said with a small laugh.

“I’m Wonder Woman.”  She said, smiling at him.

He figured that wasn’t her actual name.  Based on her outfit she was probably a hero.  “‘M Phantom…”   He said, his voice still rough, causing him to whimper in pain slightly.

Wonder Woman made a sympathetic noise, ruffling his hair.  She got up and he heard a faucet.  She returned with a cup of water.  He went to sit up to take it, but pain shot through him.  She wrapped her arm around him, helping him to sit up.  She helped him guide the cup to his lips, downing the water.  It was soothing against his shredded throat.  “Thank you…”  He mumbled.

“You're welcome.”  She said, helping him lay back down.  

He was tired, his body still healing.  He let himself fall asleep, the gentle fingers running through his hair lulling him to a peaceful sleep.

The Justice League members were sitting in the cleaned meeting room, discussing.  “We all know he can’t stay here forever…but then where does he go once he is healed enough?”  Aquaman asked.

“He can come with me.”  Green Arrow said.

“He should come with me.  I know how to raise a kid.”  Superman said.

“He’ll come with me.  End of discussion.”  Batman said, causing everyone to look at him. 

“What, why?”  Green Lantern asked.

“I have raised many kids.  I also have kids who are similar in age to him.”  Batman said matter of factly.  

“Don't you have enough little birds?”  Flash asked.

Batman glared at him.  “I was the first to move to help him.”  Batman added.

The rest of the League couldn’t argue with that fact.  They all eventually agreed.  Batman was probably the best person for this strange meta to go to.  

When Danny woke up again, the man in black was in the room with him.  He blinked at the man.  The man walked over, cautiously.  Danny went to sit up, wincing in pain.  “Hey, take it easy ok?”  The man said, helping Danny to sit up.  

“Thank you…”   Danny said.

The man gave a small, sad smile.  “You are welcome, but you don’t need to thank us.  You were hurt.”  the man said.

Danny’s stomach rumbled, hunger making itself known.  His face flushed with embarrassment, green ting on his face as his ears drooped slightly.  The man chuckled.  “I’ll have someone bring you something to eat, alright?  Do you think you can stomach some soup?”  The man asked.

Danny nodded.  The man tapped on something.  He then sighed and looked back up at Danny.  “I’m Batman.  But you can call me Bruce.”  The man said.  

“Phantom.”   Danny said.

“I just have some questions, Phantom.  You don’t have to answer if you don't want to or don't feel comfortable answering them.  I just want to know how you ended up in this situation.”  Batman said.

Danny tensed slightly.  The man sensed his hesitance.  “It’s ok if you don’t want to talk about it.”

“I was captured…They had been threatening me for years…”   The white haired boy said.

“They just kept sticking me with needles, taking pieces from me…”  He said.

Batman made an angry, yet sad sound.  The man put a hand over Danny’s.  The boy looked at him.  “Once you're feeling better, stronger, I want you to come live with me and my family.  At least until you fully recover.  I want to make sure you're taken care of.”  The man said.

Danny’s green eyes widened.  The man was offering him a place to stay when he barely knew anything about him.  He didn’t know what to make of it.  He thought he might like it.  He nodded.  The man smiled.  Danny smiled as well, ears perking up slightly.  

Chapter Text

Danny stayed in the Watchtower med bay for a week.  In that week, all the League members had made it part of their schedule to come visit him.  They were fun.  They would tell him stories about their adventures, show him cool artifacts.  He enjoyed it.  They had fixed his suit top, stitching it back together, making it look good as new, his gloves were clean, free of any stains.  He was grateful for the help from all of them, but he was getting antsy.  His body had healed up a bit, the pain from the stitches no longer as strong.  He had regained some of his powers, the most common ghostly abilities.  His intangibility, invisibility, and flight.  Batman walked into the room.  He smiled slightly at the boy.  Danny waved at him.  “How are you feeling today?”  The man asked.

“Well, I don’t feel any worse than I did yesterday.”   He said.

“The League and I agree that you are stable enough to leave now.  It's up to you if you feel you are ready.”  Batman said, making sure not to pressure Danny.

Danny nodded, ready to leave.  While he appreciated them all for helping him, he was beginning to get a little stir crazy.  Batman smiled and helped him take off the monitors keeping track of his vitals.  They said goodbye to the rest of the League.  They all made Batman promise to keep them updated with Phantom’s condition and to contact them if he ever needed anything.  He waved goodbye.  Danny had his fingers curled around Batman’s shoulder, a spot of cold against the man.  He went invisible as they used the zeta to return to the BatCave.  

The Cave was massive.  It had computers and technology scattered everywhere.  Tools and weapons filled the space.  ‘Sam and Tucker would love this place.’ He thought.  Sadness filled him at the thought of them.  He missed them.  They didn’t even know where he was.  He hadn’t realized he dropped his invisibility or started floating.  He didn’t realize until a voice spoke out.  “Bruce, who is that?”  

Danny tensed, looking at the source of the voice.  It was a darker skinned man with black hair and blue eyes.  The man was looking at him with wide eyes, a sense of wonder to them.  Danny floated down, hiding behind Batman a bit.  The man put a gentle hand on his shoulder.  “This is Phantom.  He will be staying with us as long as he likes.”  Batman said.

The man took off his cowl and cape.  Danny stayed hovering close by.  “Phantom, that’s my eldest son, Dick.”  Bruce said, motioning to the man.

“Hi.  Im Dick Grayson.”  He said with a soft, welcoming smile.  

Danny smiled back, pointed ears perking up slightly.  He flew over.  Dick didn’t seem bothered or surprised by Danny’s ability.  “I’m Phantom.  It’s nice to meet you.”   He said, smiling.

Dick reached up to ruffle Danny’s white hair.  The boy chuckled.  It reminded him slightly of when his parents would do that.  He missed when they loved him.  He couldn’t go back anymore, not now, not ever.  Dick seemed to notice the shift in Danny’s mood.  “You alright there, kiddo?”  Dick asked.

“I…It just reminded me of my parents.”  Danny said, taking Dick’s hand in his own.  

“Oh, I’m sorry.”  Dick said, a sad look on his face.

“It’s ok.  You didn’t know.”   Danny said.

Bruce had a sad look on his face.  He cleared his throat slightly.  The two looked at him.  Danny tilted his head.  Dick chuckled slightly.  “I’m sure the rest of the family would like to meet you.  We can introduce you over dinner.”  He said.

“I am a bit hungry…”   Danny said.  

“Dick, can you take Phantom up into the manor?  I need to change out of the suit.”  Bruce asked.

“Sure.  Follow me.”  Dick said, smiling.

Danny floated after Dick, listening to him talk about the members of the family.  The elevator closed and Bruce sighed.  The poor kid.  He had to get himself cleaned up.

Danny was listening intently to Dick as he talked about the different members of the family.  Each sounded interesting, they all had their own things they liked.  The elevator stopped and opened into a study room.  Dick walked out, Danny floating after him.  He clung to Dick, floating next to him.  The man seemed surprised by the cold spot against him.  “Sorry.”

“Don’t worry about it.  Just startled me is all.”  Dick said.

Dick walked into the hallway, Danny still attached to him.  Dick was telling him about the manor.  Someone heard them.  “Grayson, who are you talking to?”  The boy asked, peeking out of a room.  

The boy’s eyes widened, landing on Danny.  He hid behind Dick, nervous.  “It’s alright.  It’s just my brother Damian.”  Dick said, motioning to him.

Danny peeked back out, pointed ear flicking.  Damian was staring at him with wide eyes.  Danny waved slightly.  Damian waved back.  “I’m Phantom…”  He said, introducing himself.

“Hello Phantom.  Grayson, does Father know he is here?”  The boy asked.

“Bruce brought him.”  Dick said.

“I see.”  Damian said.  

Danny floated over to the boy.  He followed him, watching Danny.  His legs transformed into a ghostly tail, swishing under him as he floated there.  Damian was surprised but brushed it off.  “Do you like animals?”  Damian asked.

“Yeah, I do.”   Danny said, smiling.

The two started talking, Damian walking down the hall, Danny floating next to him.  Dick followed the two of them, smiling.  Danny was petting the dog, Titus, when the butler found them.  If he was surprised by the slightly glowing, white haired boy he didn’t show it.  “Master Richard, Master Damian, our glowing guest, dinner is ready.”  The man said.

“Thanks Alfred.  We’ll be there in a second.”  Dick said.

The butler nodded.  He walked off.  Danny watched him go.  “You have a butler?”   He asked.

“Yes.  That’s Alfred Pennyworth.”  Damian said, standing up from his place on the floor next to Titus.

They started walking to the dining room.  Danny floated alongside them, listening to the conversation about Alfred and how good at his job he was.  The dining room was fancier than Danny could ever imagine a single room being.  It was better decorated than Vlad’s manor.  Bruce was already there, talking with Alfred.  Danny flew over, ghostly tail returning to legs.  He landed on the ground, feet silent.  Alfred gave him a friendly smile before walking into the kitchen.  “Hello Phantom.  I see you have already met Damian.”  Bruce said, a smile on his face.

“He is nice.  I like the dog.”   Danny said.

Bruce chuckled.  “Damian, would you be ok with Phantom sitting next to you?”  Bruce asked the boy.

“Of course, Father.”  Damian said, nodding. 

Danny smiled and sat down in the chair.  He heard more people entering the room.  He heard them stop.  “Bruce, who is that?”  One asked.

Danny looked up at them, rubbing the back of his neck.  “I’ll introduce him once everyone is here.”  Bruce said, putting a gentle hand on the boy’s shoulder.

Damian and Dick pulled him into conversation again, helping ease his nerves.  Dick brought up aliens and Danny went straight into a rant about space and the stars.  He could feel his core buzz happily as he talked.  Damian and Dick both listened intently.  He didn’t realize the rest of the people had arrived.  One person broke his focus.  “Ok, is no one going to question the fucking glowing kid?”  

His head snapped to look at everyone.  Embarrassment colored his face, ears drooping.  “Jason…”  Dick said, a warning tone.

“What?  It’s a valid question.”  He said.  

Danny paused.  This Jason person had an ecto signature.  It had hints of rust and smoke.  Danny tilted his head, looking at the man.  He had a strip of white hair and ectoplasm green eyes.  He heard Bruce sigh.  “Everyone, this is Phantom.  He will be staying with us for as long as he likes.”  He said.

“New brother?”  The black haired girl asked.

Danny’s ears perked up, confusion on his face.  Someone chuckled.  “Brucie over here has an issue of adopting every stray he finds.”  Jason said.

Bruce grumbled, embarrassed.  Danny looked at him.  “You didn’t deny it.”   Danny said.

Bruce huffed.  Danny chuckled.  Alfred walked in with plates of food.  He set a plate in front of Danny and he noticed it was different from the other’s food.  That was good.  His stomach still couldn’t handle food that was too heavy.  Everyone fell into silence as they ate.  Danny took a bite.  It was delicious.  He didn’t think he had ever tasted food so good.  Someone laughed, spotting his reaction.  He looked at them.  “Yep, Alfred’s cooking will do that to you.  Once you try it you can never go back.”  The blond said.  

“I haven’t had actually edible food for a long time.  This is amazing.”   He said, nodding his head.

He realized what he said and paused.  He looked around the table, the people were looking at him with concern.  He quickly scrambled to save face.  “Don’t worry.  My parents just sucked at cooking.”   He said.

He could tell they didn’t entirely believe him.  A quick look from Bruce shut up any additional questions.  The silence was awkward now.  One person chose to break it.  “Why does your voice sound like that?”  

“Tim, that's rude.”  Dick said, elbowing him.

Danny laughed.  “It’s alright.  I sound like this because my native language is literally impossible for you guys to understand.”  He explained.

“Interesting…”  Tim said.

They continued to eat, Danny answering all the questions that he could.  

Chapter Text

Danny was very confused.  The batkids were arguing over who would get to spend more of the day with him, all of them having accepted him as their new, floaty brother.  Danny went intangible, floating away from the arms.  He went up to the top of the shelf, sitting criss crossed on it.  He chuckled, waving at them, the sleeve of the borrowed sweater he was wearing flapping slightly.  “No fair…”  Tim said.

Dick suddenly flipped his way up, landing on the balls of his feet up on the shelf.  Danny’s eyes widened.  “Are you an acrobat?!”   He asked.

“Yep I am.  One of the best.”  Dick said, proud.  

“That's so cool!  Were you part of a circus?”   Danny asked.

“Yep.  My parents and I did a trapeze act.”  Dick said, a slight faraway look on his face.  He shook it off.

“Wow.  That’s really cool!”  Danny said.

Dick lured him back to the ground.  Danny sat on the couch.  “Do you like the circus?”  Tim asked him.

“Not really.  I used to.  Then something happened and I’m not a huge fan anymore.”   Danny said, shrugging.

“What happened?”  Duke asked.

“I was mind controlled into participating and stealing money for the ringmaster.”   Danny said, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Oh damn…”  Jason said.

“Dude…are you ok?”  Duke asked.

“Oh yeah, I’m fine now.  That happened years ago.  My friends helped stop him.”   Danny explained.

Danny wondered how Sam and Tucker were doing.  Did they even know he managed to get out?

Sam, Tucker, and Jazz were a mess.  Vlad was trying to make sure the 3 of them still ate and slept, having taken up the role of parent for them.  Dani was helping look for Danny.  The group had raided the GIW facility, ready to save Danny, only to find destruction.  The ceiling was cracked and some of the walls were buckled.  The lights were shattered, vials of ectoplasm having broken open.  The restraints that had been holding the ghost boy were shattered.  But there was no sign of how he escaped.  It didn’t look like he had left really, just vanished.  They called out to him, but he wasn't there.  They had managed to hack into the GIW facility security cameras, seeing Danny fall through the portal.  The only problem was they had no idea where the portal spat him out.  They were exhausted, deep eye bags and bloodshot eyes.  Vlad had to actually hide the coffee maker.  

He had taken Jazz to live with him after Danny was captured, realizing it just wasn’t safe for her there.  Sam and Tucker came with her.  He was doing everything he could to help the teens, feeling his obsession shift.  Cujo followed the teens.  He was worried, clearly distressed by the lack of Danny.  Cujo.  Sam had an idea.  “Cujo, buddy.  Do you think you can sniff out Danny?  He went through a portal.  Do you think you can try and find him?”  Sam asked the dog.

Cujo barked, tail wagging.  The ground cracked and he jumped through it.  The ground closed up.  “Let’s keep looking.  Just in case.”  Tucker said.

Vlad and Dani went into ghost form.  “We’ll go talk to Clockwork and Frostbite.  They might have information.”  Vlad said.

The teens nodded.  The two ghosts went through the portal Vlad had.  The teens leaned against each other, exhausted and stressed.  They had to find him.

The Justice League had been running tests on the blood that Phantom lost, trying to figure out what type of meta or alien he was.  They weren’t having much luck.  None of the results were making sense.  Some results said the boy should be dead, others said the boy’s blood was combined with an unknown substance.  The more they looked into it, the more confused they got.  They contacted Batman.  “Batman, did you see the results I sent you?”  Superman asked.

“Yes, I saw them.  They are rather confusing.  But visually, I think I have an idea.”  Batman said, looking at the screen.

“What do you mean?”  Wonder Woman asked, pushing her way into the camera frame.

“That green liquid in Phantom’s blood reminds me of the Lazarus pits.  We don’t know what's on the other side of the pits, for all we know another world could be there.  If so, he might be from that world.”  Batman said, pulling up a picture of the pits, a slight static and distortion over the screen.  

“That is possible.  We’ll have to ask him, if he even wants to talk about it.”  Superman said.

“I’ll keep you all updated.”  Batman said.

The two nodded and ended the call.  Bruce sighed.  He got up and went into the main part of the manor.  He almost tripped over Tim, the boy riding his skateboard around the house.  “Tim.  No skateboards in the manor.”  Bruce said.

“Then that means you can't use mine either.  We have cameras, remember?”  Tim said, looking at Bruce.

Bruce flushed in embarrassment, remembering face planting after using Tim’s skateboard.  They heard an echoing giggle.  They looked up and saw Phantom make himself visible.  He was chuckling, looking at the two.  He floated down, the air around him colder.  Tim shuddered slightly.  “Are you supposed to be so cold?”  He asked.

“Yep.  It’s actually good that I’m getting colder.  It means my core is healing.”   Danny said, patting his chest.

“Is that what that glowing orb is?”  Bruce asked, Tim having a very confused expression on his face.

“Mhm.  A core is like a heart in a way.  I have an ice core, which means I have ice abilities and a much lower body temperature.”   Danny said, a thin layer of ice forming over his hand.

The ice melted and Danny winced slightly.  He rubbed at his chest.  “Guess it's still not strong enough to form ice for an extended period of time…”

Bruce gently put a hand on the boy’s shoulder.  Danny smiled, ears perking up.  Alfred walked into the hallway.  “Ah, there you all are.  Dinner will be ready shortly.”  He said.

“Thanks Alfred.”  Tim said.

“Thank you!”  Danny responded, waving his hand, a smile on his face.

They made their way to the dining room, the rest of the family filing in.  Jason and Steph were having an animated conversation, the two flailing their arms as they spoke.  Cass dodged the swinging arm of Steph, continuing to talk with Damian.  Duke and Dick were both talking with each other, occasionally butting into the other conversations.  Plates were put in front of everyone and they began eating, still talking.  

Danny occasionally jumped into the conversations,  adding interesting points.  He went to take a drink of his water when a puff blue mist escaped his mouth.  Everyone looked at him, raising a brow.  Danny quickly floated up, settling into a fighting position, looking around.  “Phantom, are you alright?”  Bruce asked, standing up.

“Someone is here…”   Danny said, a hiss to his voice.

The family snapped to attention, readying themselves.  The ground rumbled.  Danny’s ear twitched.  A crack formed in the ground.  The Waynes jumped back, surprised by the sudden appearance of a crack.  A green blur soared out of the crack, the ground sealing back up.  Large green paws landed on the ground, a large head dipped down.  It was a massive, glowing green dog.  It sniffed the ground before lifting its head, deep red eyes looking over the people in the room.  The Waynes tensed, unsure of what to expect.  Danny however relaxed.  He opened his arms.  The dog’s tail began to wag and it ran forward.  The dog jumped, slamming into Danny, sending the two of them to the floor.  “PHANTOM!”  Bruce yelped.  

Danny was laughing.  The family realized the dog was licking his face, the boy laughing and petting the dog.  “Cujo!  Hi buddy!  Oh my Ancients I’ve missed you so much!”  Danny said, sitting up, petting the massive dog.

The dog, Cujo, stepped back, pausing.  He sniffed Danny’s torso, a whine leaving him.  Danny smiled sadly, petting the dog on his head.  “I’m ok buddy.  I’m ok.  These nice people helped me.”   He said, motioning to the room.

Damian was staring with wide eyes at the glowing green dog.  Danny got up, petting the dog.  Cujo lifted off the ground, floating just like Phantom did.  It went over to Damian, sniffing his hand.  The boy put his hand out.  Cujo’s tail wagged as he put his head under the boy’s hand.  Damian smiled, petting the dog.  Bruce walked over to Phantom.  “Are you alright?  The fall didn’t jostle your stitches, right?”  Bruce asked, worried.

“I’m fine.  I knew he was going to tackle me.  That’s his favorite way of greeting me.”   He said with a chuckle, hands on his hips.

Danny watched the family pet Cujo, all in awe of his massive stature and glowing fur.  Cujo shifted to a smaller form, making it easier to move around.  Titus sniffed him.  The two dogs began to play, Danny and Damian both chuckling as the dogs played, Cujo floating in the air.  

Chapter Text

Cujo had to leave again, Danny accepted that fact and let him go.  Danny was floating around Gotham, following the bats as they patrolled the city.  None of them knew he was there.  He was invisible, staying out of sight.  He heard a noise, pointed ear twitching slightly.  He paused, looking around.  He spotted a man cornering an older woman.  He had a knife, threatening her.  Danny glared.  He gathered ecto energy in his hand, smiling when it worked.  He aimed and shot a ghost ray, blasting the man’s hand.  The man looked around, panicked.  Danny stayed invisible.  He shot another ghost ray.  The man yelped, running off.  The woman was still pressed against the wall.  

Danny dropped his invisibility, landing in front of her.  She looked at him, his glowing eyes, his flowing hair.  He waved to her.  “Hello ma’am.  Are you alright?  He didn’t hurt you, did he?”   He asked.

“I’m alright young man.  Thank you for your concern.  I assume you're the one who scared him off.”  She said.

“Yep.”   Danny said, rubbing the back of his neck, an embarrassed smile on his face. 

“Thank you.  Here, have a little treat, on me.”  The woman said, pulling a bag of candy from her grocery bag.  

She handed him 3 candies.  “Oh, thank you ma’am.”   Danny said, a smile on his face.

“Your welcome young man.  Keep those cute fangs of yours healthy.”  She said, waving him goodbye as she walked off.

Danny smiled, mild embarrassment on his face.  He put one of the candies in his mouth.  He didn’t have pockets on his outfit.  He made his hand intangible, slowly moving it towards his torso.  As soon as part of his hand entered his chest, it burned.  He quickly pulled his arm back out, wincing.  His torso was screaming in pain.  He gently rubbed his chest, taking off to the sky.  He went invisible, flying off.

He landed on a building, chest still aching.  He rubbed at it.  He shook his head.  He dropped his invisibility, popping another candy into his mouth.  His pointed ears drooped.  Normally he would just shove things into his torso if he didn’t have a place to hold them.  He was lucky he didn’t have anything in his chest cavity when he was vivisected.  That would have been awkward, well even more so than it originally was.  He sighed, swinging his legs slightly.  He didn’t hear someone behind him.  “Hello there.”  A woman’s voice said.

He whipped around, looking at the woman.  She had two cat-like ears on her head.  His ear flicked slightly.  The woman chuckled.  She walked over.  “I’m guessing you're with the Bat.”  She said.

Danny nodded, green eyes reflecting the light.  She smiled.  “I’m Catwoman.  What’s yours, my little glowing friend?”

“I go by Phantom.”   Danny said, a sharp tooth smile on his face. 

“Awww, you've got little fangs!”  she said, looking at his mouth.  

He flushed slightly, embarrassment on his face.  Danny and Catwoman both looked out over the city.  Danny looked up at the sky, a slight frown on his face.  “It’s sad that the stars can’t be seen.”   He said.

“Yeah it is.  But do you want to know what can be seen?”  She asked him.

He looked at her, tilting his head.  She pointed out.  He turned, following her arm.  His jaw dropped as he watched Nightwing, Dick, launch himself through the sky.  He did a flip.  Danny’s eyes widened.  He was enamored.  He began to float.  Catwoman was surprised but quickly adjusted, smiling.  Danny paused, waving goodbye to her.  She waved to him as well.  Danny took off, following Nightwing as he flipped through the air.  

Nightwing did another flip.  His hair was blowing in the wind, a smile on his face.  He saw a flash of white hair.  He righted himself, swinging with his grapple.  Phantom was flying there, mimicking his moves, a smile on his face.  Nightwing laughed, letting Phantom copy him.  They landed on a building, Nightwing putting his hands on his hips with a smile.  Phantom floated over, legs turning into a ghostly tail as he floated above the ground.  “Hi.”   He said.

“Hello Phantom.  I didn’t know you were out here.”  Nightwing said.

“I’m sneaky like that.”   Phantom said with a chuckle.

“Yes you are.”  Nightwing said with a laugh.

They heard the sound of someone land on the roof.  Red Hood was standing there.  Phantom waved.  “Hello dead man walking.”   Phantom said, floating over to him, knocking him on the helmet.

“What the fuck?!  How did you-”  Hood started.

“How did I know?  Because…I’m dead too.”  Phantom said, tail becoming legs as he sat criss crossed in the air.

“What…?  What do you mean by that?”  Nightwing asked.

“I'm dead.  Well, half dead.  I’m a halfa.  Half ghost, half alive.”   Phantom said, shrugging.

The two stared at him for a moment.  “I love how you just say the most concerning shit and act as if it's normal…”  Red Hood said, hands on his hips.

“Right…I have been told I do that…”   Phantom said, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Now, please explain what you mean.  We know how Hood came back…how did you?”  Nightwing asked.

“Well…How I came back is kinda the same way I died.  A portal.  It electrocuted me to death, but the ectoplasm from the portal brought me back at the same time.  If I stayed in the portal for longer I probably would have died fully…But I didn’t and here I am.”   Phantom said.

“What the fuck…?  How did a portal kill you?!  How did you even have access to a portal?!”  Hood asked.

“My parents…They were “genius inventors” and made a portal to the world where ghosts reside.”   He explained, doing air quotes.

“They didn’t have the best lab protocols and… it caused my death.  I don’t blame them!  I was being dumb with my friends.  But yeah…I couldn’t really tell them what happened because of their uh…unsavory opinions on ghosts…”   He added, looking away, sadness on his face.

“Kid, you realize you are like, perfect adoption material for B, right?”  Hood said after a moment.

“Huh?”   

“Most of us came from bad home lives.  You fit right in with our traumatized family.”  Hood said, motioning to Phantom.

The boy chuckled, pointed ears perking up.  Nightwing’s com sparked to life.  “Hey Oracle, what's up?”  He asked, tilting his head slightly.

“You haven't moved for a bit and I just wanted to make sure you're ok.”  Her voice said.

“I’m fine, just talking with Hood and Phantom.”  He assured her.

“I'm sorry, who?”  She asked.

“Phantom.  B brought him from the Watchtower.”  Nightwing explained.

“I’m coming over tomorrow to see this kid.”  she said.

Nightwing chuckled.  Phantom raised a brow, green eyes glowing.  Nightwing signed off the com, saying goodbye to the person.  He looked at Hood and Phantom.  “Oracle wants to meet you tomorrow.”  He said.

“Oh, ok!”   Phantom said.

The 3 continued patrol, Phantom invisible, but a spot of cold for the two vigilantes to keep track of.  He used his ghost ray to mess with the villains, helping give Nightwing and Red Hood openings when they needed them.  His chest was no longer hurting from his stupid idea earlier.  It was good it wasn’t hurting anymore when he needed to help Nightwing and Red Hood.  

They both had guns pressed to their heads, the underlings of a drug ring holding them down.  The leader was talking, rambling on and on about how he wouldn’t be stopped by some simple vigilantes.  Phantom could tell that Nightwing was only listening to what the man said to keep Red Hood from getting shot.  Danny launched a ghost ray, sending the leader’s weapon flying.  “The fuck was that?!”  He yelled, whipping around.

“Was that you two?!  You got a little trick up your sleeves?!”  The man was in their faces, teeth bared as he snarled at them.  

Danny rolled his eyes, wincing at what the man’s breath must smell like.  He went intangible, flying through the underling holding Nightwing, through Nightwing.  The two shuddered, feeling a frigid cold pass through them.  He was in front of the leader, the man yelling at Nightwing.  Danny pushed the man back, making his hand tangible.  The man staggered.  “You fucking pushed me, punk?!”  he yelled.

“His hands are literally pinned behind his back, dumbass!”  Red Hood sneered.  

Danny made his eyes visible, light reflecting off them, a flash of green.  It was like when light shined on cat’s eyes, glowing back at the person.  The man tensed, looking at the glowing eyes.  Danny opened his mouth, teeth sharp and dripping ectoplasm as he made himself visible.  His white hair was blowing in a wind that wasn't there, body cold.  “What the fuck…?”  The man asked, taking a step back.

Danny raised his hand, ecto energy gathering.  He shot the man.  The man was sent back.  Danny flew forward, landing a swinging kick to the man.  The man staggered.  Danny lifted his head slightly, glowing green eye visible beneath his stark white hair.  He shot forward and punched the man, using his momentum to land a kick.  The man went to punch him.  He went intangible, the man’s hand plunging through his torso.  It burned.  It burned horribly.  He let out an unholy screeching noise, sending the man flying back with a ghost shield.  The underlings shot at Danny with their guns.  Danny was still intangible, the bullets going through him.  His head snapped to look at them.  The men froze, feeling a deep chill settle over the alleyway.  They dropped their guns, putting their hands up.  

Nightwing quickly elbowed the man in the crotch, causing him to double over.  He quickly cuffed the man.  Red Hood did the same, cracking his head against the other underling's head, breaking his nose.  Nightwing passed him a set of cuffs as Hood swept a leg under the man, sending him to the ground.  He cuffed him.  Danny was staring at the leader again.  Nightwing tossed him a set of cuffs.  He caught them and shot forward, quickly cuffing the man.  

“Oracle, can you get the GPD to our location, we have the leader of that drug ring that popped up.”  Nightwing said into the com.

“They are en route.  Will arrive in 3 minutes.”  She said.

“Thanks.”  Nightwing responded.

Hood walked over to Phantom, the boy still floating there, completely still, feet a few inches above the ground.  “That was awesome.  You didn’t tell us you knew how to fight.”  Hood said, putting a hand on the boy’s shoulder.

Phantom flinched, hard.  Red Hood took his hand away, looking at the boy.  Phantom was shaking.  He wrapped his arms around his torso and doubled over, a pained scream escaping him.  Nightwing and Red Hood jolted, surprised by the echoing staticy nature of the sound.  Phantom was breathing heavily, tears leaking from his eyes.  He straightened up slightly, arms still wrapped around himself.  “Phantom, are you alright..?”  Nightwing asked, taking a step forward.

Phantom shook his head, clearly in pain.  His green eyes were slightly vacant.  “What’s wrong?”  Nightwing asked.

“Vivisection…hurts…”   Phantom said, voice echoing and trembling.

“Did you just say vivisection..?”  Hood asked.

“Mhm…It hurts…”   The halfa said, nodding.

Nightwing wanted to ask questions.  They heard the sirens of the police.  He frowned.  “We can talk about this more later, ok?  We should head back to the Cave.”  Nightwing said.

Phantom and Red Hood nodded.  They grappled off, Phantom flying alongside them.  Nightwing kept looking back at the glowing boy, creasing his brow in worry.

Phantom did not talk about it when they got back to the cave.  He simply went invisible and left the room.  They knew he left because the spot of cold was gone.  Nightwing turned to Batman.  “B, what did Phantom look like when you met him?”  He asked.

“What do you mean?”  Batman asked, taking off the cowl.

“Was he hurt?”  Red Hood asked, taking off his helmet, hair messy.

“Yes…He was.  Severely injured.”  Batman said, sounding mildly upset.

“I'm guessing his torso was hurt.”  Nightwing said.

Bruce nodded.  It was silent for a moment between the 3.  The tension was palpable.  “He said he was…vivisected…”  Jason said.

“Meta experimentation is illegal…”  Bruce said, teeth clenched.

“That's just it…He's not a meta.”  Dick said.

“What?”  Bruce asked.

“Bruce…He’s dead.  He was dead long before you met him…”  Jason said, looking at Bruce with green eyes.

Chapter Text

The Cave was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.  Bruce was processing what he just heard.  He looked at Dick and Jason.  “He’s a ghost B.  Half ghost, half alive.  He died from his parents' inventions.”  Dick said.

Bruce just sat there, lost.  Not only was this boy a ghost, but he had been taken apart.  Someone had seen the ghost of a child and decided they would cut it open.  The boy’s human-like organs made sense since he was half ghost half human.  Bruce took a deep breath.  “That doesn’t change anything.  He can stay as long as he wants.”  He said.

Jason and Dick nodded, smiling slightly.  Jason put a hand on Bruce’s shoulder.  Bruce looked at his son, looking at his green eyes and white strip of hair.  They would make sure Phantom was safe here.

Morning was quiet.  It was strange how quiet it was.  Danny was wearing a borrowed sweater and black jeans, the lack of white gloves making him a little uncomfortable.  He flew around, intangible.  He poked his head down into the Cave, finding the family there.  He tilted his head, confused as to why they were talking down in the Cave instead of being upstairs in the main part of the manor.  “Phantom.”  Cass said, turning to look at him.

He smiled, waving at her.  He flew down, legs a ghostly tail.  He flew around, landing with his hands on Jason’s shoulders.  The man tensed.  “Jeez, your hands are freezing.”  He said.

Phantom chuckled, tail swishing in the air.  “Good morning, spooky.”  Steph said, ruffling his white hair.

“Spooky?”   He asked, nervous.

“You are sneaky.  You can do ghost stuff.”  The girl said.

Phantom blinked at her, dead stare.  He could practically feel Jason roll his eyes.  “That was just bad.”  He said.

“No one asked you, walking corpse.”  Steph retorted.

Phantom lost it, laughing.  Jason gasped, mock offense.  Dick sighed, walking off.  Phantom laughed even harder.  Bruce pinched his brows, shaking his head.  “This is great.  I love this.”  The glowing boy said.

“Good, cuz this is our normal.”  Steph said.

“I don’t doubt that.”  Phantom said with a chuckle.

The bat kids were all sitting the the living room, Phantom lounging on the couch, telling them stories about his adventures in the Ghost Zone.  “So do you live in the Ghost Zone?”  Duke asked.

“Oh no.  I live in a world like this.  Or…I did…Can’t go back though…”   Phantom said, trailing off.

“Why not?”  Damian asked.

“It’s not safe…The government may or may not want me more dead than I already am.”   He said with a laugh, but it was humor to hide his pain.

“What?!”  Duke snapped.

“Eh, ecto entities aren’t really understood in my world.  I think the whole reason the GIW exists is because the government doesn’t realize ecto entities really exist.”   Phantom said, bringing a hand to his chin, thinking.

“You really just drop bombshells like it's your typical Tuesday…”  Jason said.

“Hey, my typical Tuesday is Skulker threatening to skin me, so this is pretty tame.”  Phantom defended.

Jason just flailed his arms because Phantom just proved his point.  Phantom realized and facepalmed.  Tim chuckled and Cass patted his head.  Phantom heard the sound of something squeak.  He assumed it was Oracle having shown up to meet him.  He went to turn his head and introduce himself but the words died in his throat.  All he saw was red hair.  It was pulled up, short looking.  It looked like hers .  Like his mothers hair.

He launched himself up and off the couch.  He stumbled, his body almost struggling to fly.  He tripped over his feet, scrambling back.  All he could see was his mother walking towards him, sharp tools in her hands.  “Mom please!  It’s me!”   He was babbling, panic running through him.

He let the white rings travel himself, ghost form receding.  He heard gasps.  He didn’t care, he was solely focused on the form in front of him.  He was trembling, pressed into the wall.  The red hair was lowered, becoming longer hair.  He paused, looking at it.  His mind was spinning, struggling with what he was seeing.  “Hey…Phantom, it’s ok.  I’m not going to hurt you.  I promise.”  The red haired woman said.  

He looked at her, narrowing his eyes slightly.  Someone had gone and gotten Bruce, the man staring at the now black haired blue eyed teen shaking in his living room.  The boy’s eyes seemed to focus on Barbara, realizing she wasn’t who he thought she was.  He relaxed slightly.  “Hey, are you alright?  I won’t come any closer if you don’t want me to.”  She assured him.

“I’m sorry…You looked like my mom when your hair was up…I-She doesn’t like me anymore…”  He said, voice lacking its echo the Waynes had grown accustomed to.

“Phantom, did your mother hurt you?”  Bruce asked, crouching down.

Phantom nodded slightly.  He was avoiding eye contact, blue eyes staring at the ground.  Bruce frowned, worried for the boy.  “Is it safe for you to return to your home if you wanted to?”  He asked the boy.

Phantom shook his head.  “Not with the government and my parents after me…”  He said.

“What about your friends in the Ghost Zone?”  Duke asked.

“I don’t want them to get hurt because of me.”  Phantom said.

The GIW was under attack.  The citizens of Amity Park were in a frenzy, furiously ripping open the building like it was as easy as opening a can of pineapple.  How the citizens of such a small town were able to take on a government agency, the GIW didn’t know.  Valerie knew. 

When she heard what happened, she was furious.  People had grown fond of Phantom, realizing he was just a teen trying to keep the town safe.  So what if he was a ghost?  Some of his worst fights combined were less destructive than the Fentons and the GIW.  People were used to him, expected him.  So when he didn’t show himself for a whole week, people began to wonder.  Red Huntress told them the GIW had captured and tortured him.  That caused people to snap.  They had been waiting for a reason to force them out of the town.  This was it.

The building was trashed, the agents hurt and traumatized.  As it turned out, the US government had stopped funding the GIW and they were barely keeping their organization together.  The raid on the facility was the final nail in the coffin for the ward.  The public forced them out of the town, pitchforks and tomatoes in hand.  Someone threw a molotov cocktail.  No one knew who threw it, and no one wanted to come forward after it burnt 5 of the agents.  

Bruce was in the Cave, typing an email.  Phantom was upstairs with the rest of the kids, playing a game, helping keep his mind off his injury, off what happened.  Bruce sighed, leaning against the chair.  The Batcomputer dinged.  He clicked on it.  A call from the Watchtower.  Superman and Wonderwoman stood there, Flash with them.  “Batman, we think we know what that green substance was.”  Superman said.

“I know.  Ectoplasm, Lazarus waters.”  Bruce said.

“How did you-?”  Flash asked.

“The kid told me…He is dead.  He has been dead for years.  He's a ghost human hybrid.”  Bruce said.

“What in the world?  How does that work?”  Wonder Woman asked.

“I don't know.  I wish I understood.  Even though some of my kids have come back, I still don’t understand how it works.”  Bruce said with a sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“He’s also not from this world based on the environmental factors in the ectoplasm.”  Flash said.

“I figured when he said the government was who did that to him.”  Bruce said.

“What?!  The government is supposed to protect people!  Not actively commit genocide!”  Superman yelled, incensed.

“I know you're upset, but if we try to do anything, I doubt they would listen.  We have no power in his world.”  Bruce said.

The heroes talked about what they could do to help Phantom.  They brought up the Ghost Zone, the possibility of working with the Zone’s monarchy to keep Phantom safe and provide asylum for him.  

In another world, the ground cracked open, a green puppy jumping through.

Chapter Text

Sam and Tucker were leaned against one another, almost falling asleep.  Jazz had passed out, exhausted.  Cujo had been gone for 3 days.  They didn’t know whether that meant he found Danny, was still looking, or couldn’t find him.  Sam felt Tucker slump against her, glasses sliding down on his nose.  The goth chuckled, carefully taking his glasses off.  She kissed his cheek, hugging him.  The hug wasn’t complete without their ghostly partner.  She let her eyes slide closed, pure exhaustion weighing her down.

Vlad and Dani returned from the Ghost Zone, spotting the sleeping teens.  Vlad frowned, brows creasing in worry.  He grabbed the blankets from the guest rooms, draping them over the teens.  Dani flew over to him.  “I miss him…”  She said, voice small and shaky.

“I know…I’m sure we will find him.  He isn’t easy to get rid of.”   Vlad said, holding the girl close, hugging her.

He sat down on the couch, Dani curled up against him.  He wrapped a blanket around her, sadness on his face.  Looking for Danny was taking a toll on all of them.  Dani was lost without him, without her cousin to look up to.  He heard as the girl began to snore lightly.  He sighed, running a hand through her hair.  He would find Danny.  They had to find him.

The sunlight peeking through the curtains woke the sleep deprived group.  Vlad and Dani returned to human form, stretching.  Vlad got up, his back cracking.  He walked into the kitchen.  Even if the teens didn’t want to eat, they still needed food.  Without energy, they wouldn’t be able to find Danny.  They all walked into the kitchen, looking like, for lack of a better word, zombies.  Deep dark eye bags had formed under their eyes, exhaustion pulling on their features.  As they ate, someone knocked on the door.  Vlad walked over, looking through the peephole.  It was Valerie.  He let the girl in.  “Hey…”  She greeted the teens.

“Hey…” They responded.

“The GIW is gone…The town forced them out, destroyed the facility.”  Valerie said.

That got the teens attention.  They all snapped to look at her.  She had a smile.  She had a few small scrapes and bruises, evidence of the lackluster fight the agents put up.  “Thank Ancients!”  Jazz cried, relief on her face.  

The teens talked about how they would work on finding Danny.  The ground rumbled.  They paused.  The tile floor cracked open, a green fur ball flew out of the crack.  Cujo landed on the ground, tail wagging rapidly.  “CUJO!  Cujo boy, did you find him?!”  Sam asked, flinging herself off the chair.

The dog barked, nodding his head.  The teens could feel tears in their eyes.  “Take us to him, bud.  Please.”  Tucker said.  

Cujo barked, nodding.  He became larger, his more hellhound form taking over.  Valerie backed up, giving the dog space.  “We’ll wait here, we don’t want to overwhelm him.”  Vlad said, holding Dani in his arms.

The teens nodded.  Cujo grabbed them, the ground cracking beneath him.  He jumped through the crack, a swirling green surrounding them.  

Danny was standing in the doorway of the barn on the Wayne property, human form.  He was staring at the cow that was staring back at him.  Damian was standing next to him, proud.  “Why…?  Why do you have a cow…?”  Danny asked, turning to look at the boy.

“You are a ghost with a ghost dog.”  Damian said, deadpan.

“Ok…that's fair.”  Danny responded.  

Danny heard a noise.  He looked further into the barn, spotting a mass of red fur.  “Uhh…Damian, what in Ancients name is that?”  He asked, pointing.

“That is Goliath.”  Damian responded as if that answered the question.

“What IS he though?”  Danny asked again, looking at the boy.

“My dragon bat.”  The boy said.

Danny blue screened for a moment.  “Wut…”  

He switched into ghost form, flying up to him.  The dragon bat looked surprised, sniffing at him.  Danny held out a hand, the dragon bat sniffing his hand.  Goliath’s ears perked up, licking the ghost's hand.  Danny smiled, petting the dragon bat.  He flew back down, standing next to Damian.  He returned to human form, talking with the boy as they began to walk.  They walked into the house, spotting Tim sitting at the table, talking to himself a bit loudly.  Danny tilted his head but ignored it.  Everyone had their quirks.  

The kids were gathered in the living room, watching a movie.  More like trying to watch a movie.  For one, no one could agree on what movie to watch.  Two, no one could agree on the seating arrangements.  Jason was yelling at Dick, demanding he get out of the chair Jason likes to sit in.  The elder just chuckled and said “We can share, little wing.”  Jason tackled him, trying to drag him out of the chair.  Damian and Tim were arguing over the movie, yelling back and forth.  Steph had sided with Tim, Duke with Damian.  Cass was sitting next to Danny, watching the chaos.  Bruce was sitting in another chair, head in his hands.  Danny chuckled.  

They heard a yelp as Jason managed to throw Dick.  Jason stood on the chair, like it was king of the hill.  “MY CHAIR!”  He yelled.  

Dick did a flip and tackled Jason right back.  Alfred stood in the doorway, watching the chaos with little to no readable expression.  He just watched.  Danny and Cass were just sitting there.  Danny rolled his eyes.  He cleared his throat slightly, Cass giving him a strange look.  Danny let out a weaker version of his ghostly wail, a harsh staticy shrieking noise escaping him.  The family winced, all going quiet and looking at him.  Danny smiled, sharper teeth peaking through.  “Why not just flip a coin to see what movie you watch?”  Danny suggested.

They all stared at him for a moment.  Tim facepalmed.  He chuckled.  Just then a puff of blue mist escaped him and he tensed, looking around.  “Why do you tense up when that happens?”  Duke asked.

“Because normally that would be followed with a kick in the face or a broken wall.”  He responded.

“Of course it would.  OF COURSE!”  Jason yelled, flailing his arms.  

They heard a rumble.  Danny looked over.  The ground cracked open, a large glowing green dog jumping through.  They recognized it as Cujo.  But the dog had people with him.  The people looked up, making eye contact with Danny.  The bats were silent.  Tears began to escape the red haired girl.  “Danny… DANNY!!”  She ran forward.  

Danny jumped over the couch, catching her in a hug.  She wrapped her arms around him, crying into his shoulder.  “Oh Danny!  I’m so sorry!  I’m so, so sorry!  I never should have left you alone with them!  I’m sorry!”  The girl was sobbing.  

“Jazz, I’m just glad you're ok.  I was worried they would have gone after you after I got away!”  Danny said, tears in his eyes.

The other two ran forward, wrapping their arms around Danny.  The boy burrowed his head in his sister’s shoulder, wrapping his arms around the other teens.  “Ancients…Danny…we’re so sorry.  We should have gotten there sooner…”  The goth said.

“Hey…I’m ok now.  I’m here.  I’m alive.  As alive as I can be.”  He said with a laugh.

The African American boy smacked him.  Danny laughed, leaning his head against him.  “I’m just glad you are all ok.”  Danny said.

The bats waited until the teens seemed to calm down.  Bruce cleared his throat.  The teens' heads snapped up.  The red head’s eyes locked onto him, fear, determination, and aggression in her gaze.  She jumped up, pushing Danny behind her.  “Who are you?!”  She snapped.

“My name is Bruce Wayne.  I own this house.  My family has been taking care of your brother, Phantom.”

That seemed to get the girls attention.  She changed her position instantly.  “Thank you.  Thank you so much.”  She said, almost bowing in a way.

“Wait, is your name Phantom, or Danny?”  Dick asked.

“My name is Danny, alias, Phantom.”  Danny said, rubbing the back of his neck.  

The two teens still holding him kissed his cheeks, wrapping their arms around him a little tighter.  He leaned against them, core humming happily, relaxed.  Cujo turned into his puppy form, curling up against Danny.  The boy smiled.  

“Well, you gonna introduce us?”  Jason asked.

Danny chuckled.  “Jazz, Sam, Tucker, meet the Wayne family.”  Danny said, a smile on his face.