Chapter Text
The musty night air of Gotham’s skyline was about the freshest air to be found in the city. It was still mildly rank, but that never really went away in this city. Jason breathed deeply, reveling in the strong breeze that whipped his hair wildly about. He was sitting off the edge of a building with Dick, who was leaning back with his hands on the hard, dirty concrete. Jason opted to lean forward, hands resting on his elbows as he looked out at the busy city—the lights, moving traffic, sirens that were near-perpetually going off somewhere. Dick didn’t visit as often as he used to, having moved to Blüdhaven several months prior. Things had more or less settled into a normal flow of crime in Gotham—currently, at least, there weren’t any super-villain level plots being hatched (that they knew of).
“You ever thought about getting a day job?” Dick asked idly. They had finished off their burgers already, wrappers discarded behind the roof top ledge to be thrown away later. Dick was swinging his legs playfully, head tilted back to look at the smog-covered sky. Sometimes, if you were watching, you could see the stars for a brief moment before they were swallowed up by grey.
Jason grunted at the question.
Dick snorted. “Careful, Jay, start talkin’ like B and you’ll start acting like ‘em, too.”
“As if,” Jason countered, shoving Dick’s shoulder. His brother just laughed at him.
“Seriously, though, why not?”
“Forget I’m legally dead, Dickybird?”
Dick rolled his eyes. They had both taken off their domino masks (and Jason his helmet too, of course), to enjoy the breeze for a bit.
“C’mon Jay, I know you have more resources than you let on. And you’re not stupid.”
“Technically I didn’t graduate high school,” Jason quipped.
“Stop beating around the bush, Jaybird. You could just admit you don’t want to.”
Jason shrugged. “B would have a fit, I bet.”
Dick’s faced scrunched at the words. “No he wouldn’t. Besides—who says you have to legally be Jason Todd-Wayne?”
Jason just shrugged again. “Nah, thanks, I’ll pass. That dual-life BS is for you guys. I hate being fake with people.”
Dick just hummed. Jason thought that was it.
“Well, what if it was an under-the-table kind of job?”
Jason turned to him, brow raised questioningly, propping a leg on the ledge to lean against. “How about you just tell me what you’re really getting at, and then I’ll give you an answer?”
Dick laughed. “Okay, okay, so get this—Tim found this coffee shop.”
Jason stared at him. That was not where he expected the conversation to go.
“Okay..?”
“And, supposedly, they take in misfits.” Dick elbowed him playfully.
Jason just sighed in exasperation. “Stop trying to pawn me off—”
“No, I’m serious! Look—so, supposedly—”
“Why do you keep saying ‘supposedly’? Haven’t you checked the place out?”
“Only a bit, but Tim swears by them. Look—the owner is supposedly a ghost.” Dick put a finger up so Jason wouldn’t interrupt him again, and continued. “Yes, B knows, but they haven’t done anything even slightly dangerous since they moved here. Just opened up a shop in the worst part of town, declared complete neutrality, and literally lets anyone come in.”
Jason was dubious. Every place in Gotham was controlled by different gangs or territories. He would know, he controlled a good number of them up ‘till recently.
“I know—weird right? Get this, Tim went to the coffee place at 9pm. They were still open.”
Jason shrugged. Night life was a big thing in Gotham.
“Jay, he went as Red Robin.”
Jason abruptly laughed. “That little shit broke patrol to go grab some caffeine? Oh I bet Bruce had a field day with that.”
“Well, it was framed as a stakeout, of course.”
Damn, that was bold of Tim. Maybe the kid had some spunk after all. “And?”
Dick laughed. “I told you, he swears by it. He’s a semi-regular now, but it’s kind of outside our normal patrols. Closer to your area, actually.”
Jason looked at him sharply. “What.” He hadn’t heard of any new fucking shops in his territory.
“Not in it, just near. Bruce gives you a wide berth you know, since you let so much of the bad gangs go. Anyways, so Tim goes in, all suited up. Boom, Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn just on a date.”
Jason blinked several times. “Bullshit.”
“No!” Dick cackled. “That’s the funny part! They were there, and didn’t give him any trouble. Civilians were there, Jay, there was homeless people there, just eating. Apparently the owner sets up a ‘pay it forward’ system and let’s a bunch of people eat for free. And—” Dick paused dramatically, holding his hands out like he was giving a master presentation, “All of the employees are legit ghosts. Now the League has a database of known ghosts, right? Tim searched and found notta-one.”
Okay. Yeah, Jason’ll bite, he’s intrigued.
“Huh.”
“Right? Tim’s a bit worried, cause of the sudden influx. Most ghosts aren’t likely to be dangerous, but we don’t know why so many moved in. But like I said, they haven’t done anything. It’s weird they’re visible to humans, but,” he shrugged, “so far no issues. They’re pretty friendly, actually.”
“And… you think I should work at a ghost coffee shop, why?”
Dick shrugged again. “You don’t have a social life, Little Wing.”
Jason punched him again. “Kinda busy, Dickybird.” Is this just because I died? That’d be fuckin’ weird. Yeah, Jason died, but he didn’t remember anything from that time. Just waking up, clawing his way out of his own grave .
It was Dick’s turn to laugh. “No you’re not. All you do is run your gang at night and sleep during the day.”
Jason scoffed. “I take care of the kids, thank you very much. Check in on the shelters. Keep the other assholes who really do mean bad in line. And I read, you fucking asshole, I have hobbies.”
Dick just snickered. “Okay, but hear me out, Jaybird. When was the last time you could read at a coffee shop?” Dick wiggled his eyebrows at Jason conspiratorially.
Jason paused. He wasn’t sure he’d ever gone to a coffee shop just to relax before. Which, given how Dick had suddenly decided to suggest such a mundane, seemingly innocent past time— he was now instantly suspicious.
His eyes narrowed. “Are you trying to con me into a stakeout or somethin’? Look, if you need someone in my area checked in on, just fucking ask.”
Dick groaned. “No, Jayce, I’m just, geez—” he sighed. “Can’t I just look out for my little brother?” Dick bumped his shoulder to his own, heavily armored one. The leather jacket he always wore was reinforced after all. “The place seems friendly. The people seem friendly.”
“Don’t sound like the Gotham types, then.”
“They’re not—which is why it might be good for ya.”
Jason rolled his eyes. “Well. With that bit of ridicule over, I gotta head out. How long you in town for?”
“Just the weekend,” Dick admitted, standing also. “Kori is off-world visiting family, so I figured I’d do the same.”
Jason grunted, re-applying his domino mask and then his helmet. It was very snug—designed so on purpose. The white lights on the helmet lit up as soon as it was in place.
“Alright, ya sap.” The voice modulator adjusted his voice to sound much deeper and gravelly to mask any possibility of someone recognizing him. And for major intimidation points, of course. “Well, have fun with all that. I got work to do.”
◇◆◇
Jason more or less forgot about the conversation for a while. He had a lot of other things to focus on, regardless of what his brothers thought. Jason normally patrolled his territory around Crime Alley from the rooftops, the bird’s eye view helping. Bat’s eye view. Whatever. He occasionally needed to punch the lights out of some idiot groping at his girls or scare off some thugs trying to creep into his territory. It made him seethe, how they thought they could just come in. These were his people. These streets were his.
It was only just nearing sundown, which meant his working girls would be starting their rounds soon. He liked to check on them at least once a week. They were some of the most honest people in this god forsaken city, and they kept him up to speed on some of the low-talk that didn’t always make it to his ears.
He slipped out of an alley, thrusting his hands into his pockets to walk causally down the litter-filled streets. The wind was cool, which was a relief considering how many layers he was wearing. He spotted a crowd of his usual girls coming up and began making his way toward them—only stopping when he heard a different voice, one he didn’t know, laughing among them. He eventually caught sight of a shorter man among them and stilled. It usually wasn’t good to interrupt a potential client, so he started to veer down a different path until a familiar voice called out to him.
“Hood! Hey, Hood!”
He paused, half-turning to acknowledge the group. One of them raised her arm to wave him down. He obliged, walking over carefully and taking count of who was there.
Three of his usual girls were there, and one new one, Vix. She was a bit young, but tough as nails. She had come to the streets after losing her apartment to a new round of gentrification in a nearby neighborhood. They were all laughing, which was a bit peculiar, but it wasn’t like he’d begrudge a bit of happiness for them. Everything else was shitty enough. He kept an eye on the new guy—just in case they had called him over for help.
“Hello, ladies,” he said casually, the modulator crackling his voice in a slightly pleased-sounding way. He knew they loved it.
The one who had called him over threw her arms around his neck in a hug. “Hood.”
“Janessa,” he greeted, keeping his hands to himself. He would never disrespect them by touching them without permission. “How have things been around here?”
He made the barest of nods towards the guy standing awkwardly nearby. He was smiling tensely, shifting on either foot as he looked up at Hood.
“No trouble,” Poppi said where she was hanging off the man’s elbow. Janessa moved to mimic the gesture, hanging off of his right arm leisurely.
He hummed, which only came out as a crackle. “Good.”
“You gotta meet our new boy—”
The man squawked with a blush, and Poppi next to him laughed.
“Our new friend, Danny.” She said with a grin, all teeth.
Hm, usually they all did their best to maintain a serious façade. Helped with the look of allure, or whatever. Friends were rare in these parts. He made a point to look over the guy thoroughly. Maintaining the menacing aura was half the job in these parts. The more scared people were, the less likely they’d be to try something.
The unassuming man tensed a bit under his gaze, and Janessa smacked him.
“Be nice, Hood, Danny was just walking us back.”
“Back from where?”
“The new café! Got free coffee.” Poppi nudged Danny again, and he chuckled nervously.
“Just to make sure no one bothered them,” Danny explained.
Jason shifted his gaze back to scrutinize Danny. He was average height, which put him considerably shorter than Jason himself, and even a bit shorter than most the girls, especially given their high heels. His hair was dark and his bangs were long and loose. Most of the people who lived around here were dirt poor—Danny at least, seemed marginally better off. He wore tattered jeans with holes up and down each leg, but they looked like a purposeful style. He had black combat boots and a clean NASA shirt. He wasn’t wearing a jacket despite the descending chill. Which made Jason the only one dressed for the weather, actually.
Hold up. Dick had mentioned a new coffee place—but that was outside his area. Why had they walked that far? The Red Hood’s protection was only guaranteed within his territory.
“And that’s what’s got you all in such a lovely mood?” he asked with faux calmness. Danny looked nervous still.
“Yup. Coffee.” Becca chimed in simply. She leaned over to hang off Hood’s other elbow, while his hands were still tucked away in either pocket. His gaze didn’t waver from Danny’s.
His silence must have been hilarious, they all burst into laughter at that. It sounded more genuine than he was used to hearing. Which meant it hurt when it also made him immediately suspicious. He took a hand out from his jacket pocket and removed the glove to hold to a hand Poppi’s forehead.
She looked confused until she recognized the action, and then swatted his hand away.
“It wasn’t spiked, Hood!” She stuck her tongue out at him.
“And you know that how?”
“Watched him make it myself,” Janessa added in.
Vix was nodding along. She was still shy around Hood.
Still, he carefully took Janessa’s hand in his, subtlety feeling for her pulse. It was a little fast, but strong. Not dulled in any way. Jason loved that his helmet concealed his specific eye movement—since he caught how Danny tracked his hand’s movement, even though Hood was facing towards Janessa as he did. Danny tucked his hands in his pockets in a mimic of Hood’s own show of respect. Hm.
“Hood,” Becca warned lowly, “you better not scare them away, we don’t get a lot of nice things around here, you know.” She lifted her chin up, “And, he’s an absolute sweetheart.”
“An angel,” Poppi agreed.
Danny blushed sheepishly.
“Guys,” he said plaintively, “erm—girls, dudes, whatever—”
Jason barked out a laugh. It was unexpected. Jason himself was shocked a little, and Danny cut off to stare at hood himself. In the dim light and through the night-vision of his helmet, Jason could clearly see how innocent the expression looked. No wonder his girls liked him.
“I think you’re taking this too far,” he continued, rubbing his hands on his pants at the attention. “Besides, Kitty was the one who insisted on the free drinks. Not that I disagreed, but it was her idea.”
“Who?”
“His girl who hooked us up!” Poppi popped in.
“Not my girl,” Danny corrected quickly, mumbling something underneath his breath. “My friend. She’s the barista for the night.”
Alright. Yeah. He’ll bite.
“So, Danny,” he started lightly, “you sticking around, or..?”
“Oh! No, I’m heading back now, actually—”
“Oi, Hood! We said not to scare him off!” Becca objected.
He shrugged. “Not hurting him, darling. Just figured he can show me around. I think I’d like to see this café.”
Danny blinked, staring at Hood for a second—Jason was about to celebrate the win of uncovering whatever he was lying about—when Danny suddenly grinned at him, beaming.
Jason’s heart stuttered. No, he’s not cute, he told himself firmly, I’m a big scary crime lord.
Jason angled his head downwards to look more intimidating.
“Sure thing!” Danny answered, still smiling, “I’d be happy to! Just, there’s a strict neutrality rule, so no fighting, okay? And yes I know you’re a big time vigilante or whatever, but we have rogues that visit too, so you have to play nice.” Danny had the gall to smirk at him.
Jason grunted. “If they don’t mess with me, I won’t mess with them.” Jason dropped his arms so both the girls at his sides let go.
“Good! Well in that case, I hope you ladies have a wonderful night. Feel free to come back if you need some more coffee.” Danny waved at the group, Poppi letting him go too but ruffling his hair affectionately.
Jason let Danny start to walk away before turning back to the group one more time. “Let me know if anything changes, and I’ll handle him.”
“Hood,” Janessa started with a sigh, “go get some damn coffee and stop worrying. Just cause’ it’s a good thing doesn’t mean it’s a bad thing.” She winked at him. “Plus, pretty sure our boy there is single—”
“None of that. Mind your business, ‘Nessa.”
She cackled, leaning in for a quick half-hug before turning to walk with the others back to their normal routes. Jason turned and walked in long strides to catch up with Danny.
◇◆◇
Danny made sure to walk casually, keeping his shoulders relaxed and his hands in his pockets while he made his way down the familiar path towards the alleyway café.
He knew Red Hood was behind him, watching closely for any sign Danny could be bluffing or lying about his intentions. Danny found it admirable how protective he was of his people, but he really didn’t want to get shot for the crime of opening a coffee shop in a bad part of town, so he made sure to look as non-threatening as possible.
“So,” Hood started, “you own the place or what?”
“Nah,” Danny lied, “a friend of mine does. I just help out.”
“You’re not from Gotham, are you?” The full-face anonymity Hood’s helmet gave him was a really cool idea, but it made it hard for Danny to read him. That was probably the point of it, though. Made Danny curious what Hood actually looked like.
“What gave it away?” Danny asked with a mischievous lilt, laughing. He knew he looked weird here. And by weird, he really looked too normal. Gotham was shady as shit. It was really funny how normal people thought he was, actually.
Hood just grumbled behind his mask, like he was muttering something, but he couldn’t catch it through the modulator.
Sure, opening the café in the most dangerous area of the most dangerous city in the US had been risky, but hey, Danny was already dead after all. Half-dead. Whatever. And Danny was slowly warming up to Gotham, anyways. The initial change from lil’ ol Amity Park had been startling, to put it mildly. The city kind of terrified him. But there were swaths of ambient ectoplasm that could sustain a ton of ghosts—and it did. The city was brimming with souls unable to find peace in the afterlife.
His goal had been a simple one: Find a non-destructive outlet for his ghost rogues to interact with the physical world and not scare the hell out of everyday people in the process. They had all been itching for a way to sate their obsessions since he quietly got rid of his parents’ portal. It hadn’t been that hard to break when he was the one who got it working in the first place. So, after deciding to leave Amity, the first thing he needed to do was find a productive way to channel that restless energy. So, gothic city on the brink of economic collapse it was.
And in the end, the café idea was really a win-win. It gave his ghost gang something to do, and it helped filter out all of the depressed ghosts that haunted Gotham by giving them somewhere pleasant to go. Plus, it let him have a bit of a social life, which had been damn-near impossible when he was in high school. He liked talking to Gothamites who were more or less undeterred by the weird shit that happened here, plus they were honestly good customers. It made him feel happy, like he could actually help in small ways. Even just giving someone a free latte on a bad day could make a difference. Honestly this job was more about satisfying the ghosts here than making a profit, so it didn’t matter.
It was only a couple of blocks before Danny turned down the alley towards his hold-in-the-wall café. It was intended to be unobtrusive. It needed to be out of the way so all of the ghost activity went unnoticed. So far, Red Hood has been the second vigilante to take notice. The first had been Red Robin. Danny had been a bit worried about whether the Bats would interfere with his operation or not, but so far it hadn’t been an issue.
Danny stopped when he noticed Hood hadn’t followed him into the alley. Hm, yeah that was fair. Did look a bit sketchy, he supposed.
He turned, trying again to help put the vigilante at ease. “Come on, it’s not that scary.”
“You’re fucking with me.” It wasn’t a question.
“Am not!” Danny objected, putting a hand to his chest. He probably shouldn’t be so…dramatic when messing with the Red Hood. Probably a bad idea. But it was so fun.
“You set up a coffee shop in an abandoned alley?”
“Yeah?” Danny cocked his head. “Trust me, there’s a good reason for it.”
Hood crossed his arms. He looked menacing while standing in the entrance to the alley, backlit by the smog-filtered moonlight and the yellowed, dim lighting from the street itself. “I’m not playing games, Danny.”
Damn. Damn. Danny felt his cheeks warm a bit. His voice modulator really shouldn’t sound that hot. Why was Danny so attracted to danger? Ancients damned, I don’t have time to be gay right now.
Danny held up his hands placatingly. “C’mon, big guy, what’s gonna be down here that you wouldn’t be able to handle anyways?” Danny knew all too well how his human form looked. He had gained a few inches in height since high school, but he was perpetually skinny. He thinks it had to do with how much energy his ghost half used up, but he wasn’t sure. He was thin, smaller than average for a guy, and pale as fuck. It wasn’t like he looked terribly threatening to anyone.
Hood seemed to be considering that, and honestly Danny wasn’t sure which way he was leaning, when Danny decided to offer an alternative. “Look, I won’t be offended if you wanna like, I don’t know, do a perimeter check or something. I’m gonna head back though,” he pointed a thumb back to the shadows behind him. “Left my friend at the counter by herself.”
Hood tilted his head at that, considering the words. Then he slowly began walking into the alley. Danny counted it as a win. He’d offer Hood a free drink for all the worry, but he’s pretty sure it’d get declined.
Danny made sure he was telegraphing his movements as he walked, not jerking suddenly or anything stupid. Around mid-way down the alley so it was near-totally dark, they approached the doorway Danny knew was there. When they got within 10 feet of it, a flame appeared to the left of the door in a hanging lantern. Danny made sure not to startle at it.
“What the fuck?”
Danny turned. “Ain’t it neat?”
The alleyway was now bathed in a warm, reddish light. Danny preferred green flame, but all the ghosts said it was too weird for human standards. But it helped with the “homey” and “not a murder house” type of vibe they were going for.
“How did you do that?”
“Magic,” he lied again. Actually he didn’t know whether ghost powers were considered magic or not, but it was an easier explanation. ‘Interdimensional superpowers’ was a mouthful.
Red Hood came up short, freezing.
“You have magic?” His tone was all skepticism.
“It’s close enough to magic,” he amended. Better not to give Hood any false leads to run with.
The plain-looking door was covered in overlapping signs and rules for customers, the largest being the shop name in bold letters:
Coffee Fiends Café
Welcome to all*
Exceptions include any clowns or clown-affiliated persons.
Anyone who enters wearing clown attire will be firmly escorted off the premises.
Danny was about to push the door open when he noticed Hood staring at the signs and stilled to let him examine them. The rest of the door was nearly covered in various rules and tidbits in different sized fonts and handwritings—most were extra “rules” about entering the building. Some were simple like “weapons allowed, no fighting” or “leave disagreements at the door.” One of his favorites was the ‘hours’ sign in messy scrawl that just said “if you’re here we’re open,” cause Danny liked some chaos in his life. He saw Hood look towards one at the bottom that said “billionaires not welcome appreciated” and grinned when Hood snorted at it.
Danny really wished he could see Hood’s expression right now—it would help a lot. What was he thinking? Judgey? Curious? Questioning his sanity?
“…You got a no clowns rule for your coffee shop?” he asked eventually.
“Uhhhh yeah.” Danny blinked. “Why?”
“That’s what I wanna know, why? Don’t know what Gotham is known for?”
Danny shrugged. “Other than Batman? Yeah I know about the Joker, but I don’t care. I hate clowns. C’mon, I’ll show you inside—"
He flashed one more quick smile at Hood before pushing the door open so he could step in first. Hood would never open it first, not with his paranoia at a level 10 at the moment. Maybe Danny needed to get better at not freaking people out. Usually he always blamed that on the other ghosts.
◇◆◇
Jason had no idea what to expect from this “café” he had been led to. The creepy ass flame burning on its own like a motion-sensor light was unnerving enough. Why had his girls come all the way down here for a place like this without letting him know? They were usually smart about these things. All of the weird signs on the door told their own story—it almost looked like more signs had been added on top of others over time, even though Jason knew this place had only been here maybe six months. He couldn’t get past the off-putting feeling he got around Danny. Guy seemed way too nice not to have some kind of ulterior motive.
Crossing the threshold felt…interesting. Kind of like the ground shifting underneath you, but it only lasted a fraction of a second. A flash of green temporarily passed through his vision before levelling out to a normal lighting. Jason’s jaw dropped at the entrance.
There was sunlight filtering in through a giant window off to one side, scattering over the tile floors and furniture. The entryway was a narrow with tables on either side absolutely covered in knick-knacks. There was a bright green welcome mat. Past the entrance was a clutter of tables, all horribly clashing as none of them looked the same. The interior design was atrocious, and Jason wasn’t even a snob when it came to décor.
Danny turned to spread his arms, showing off the place with a flourish.
“Tada~!”
Jason… didn’t know what to think. He slowly scanned the room, trying to take it all in, but it was too much. Like a maximalist psychedelic museum run by middle schoolers. Just extremely, visually busy. But there was sunlight (how???), live plants, the air smelled fresh. There was coffee brewing that smelled amazing. It was confusing as hell.
“…You good Hood?”
Jason shook his head, refocusing on the shorter man before him. In the improved lighting, it was easier to appreciate his features. He had pale skin, which contrasted to his very dark hair—it was so black it almost had that bluish sheen he’d expect from corvids. But his eyes were pale, pale blue.
“This is a café? It looks like…” Jason didn’t even know how to describe it.
“I know right?” Danny laughed wickedly. “Ain’t it weird?”
“Danny!” A woman shouted at him from across the room. He whipped around.
Jason was still struggling to get his bearings in the disorienting, multi-colored room. There were various pieces of art and random objects put up all over the walls. Jason pulled his eyes away from what looked like a shark jaw with a mirror inside of it, to look over at the barista.
He did a double take.
The woman was floating. As in, she was definitely not touching the ground. And her hair was bright, vividly bright green. And she was glowing. Okay.
“Kitty! What’s up!”
“Did they make it back okay?” She was leaning against the counter with her feet crossed behind her, kicking in the air like she was bored. She was sipping on some kind of green drink with a straw. What.
“Ya sure did!”
“Okay good. Also, it’s your turn to do the dishes.”
“I’m giving Red Hood a tour!” Like that was totally normal to do. “I’ll do them in a bit!”
Kitty nodded towards Jason. He nodded back.
Danny walked over to a couch to the right of the room, around a corner, separate from all the mis-matched tables. Jason followed him.
“So!” Danny plopped down in one of the large, cushioned seats next to the couch. “Any questions?”
“Several.”
Hood remained standing.
“I figured.”
Kitty brought him some kind of iced coffee. It looked like it had a lot of creamer in it. Danny thanked her, and she lingered to look over Red Hood. She had a bright red jacket and wore fishnet tights. No wonder the girls liked her. Huh. Ghost coffee shop indeed. How, exactly, had he not heard of all this sooner?
Danny sipped at the drink, watching as Jason processed everything. “I’d offer you something to drink, but you’re probably still not convinced it won’t be spiked.”
“Yeah. That shit” he gestured to the barista’s green drink, “looks radioactive.”
Danny chuckled. “It’s safe. More magic.”
Hood hummed.
“So first question.”
“Mm-hm?”
“I got a tip that Harley Quinn has been here a few times. She doesn’t count as clown-adjacent?”
“Was the tip from Red Robin?”
“…Possibly.”
Danny snorted. “Nah, she’s a harlequin, obviously. Literally in the name. Pun extremely intended. Plus, we bonded over hating clowns, so she def gets a pass. And, her girlfriend helps us keep plants here!” He pointed to where there were some potted plants hanging from the ceiling, long leaves trailing down. “Helps liven the place up.”
“Alright. Why do you hate clowns?”
“Pass?”
Fair. Jason could understand not wanting to talk about clowns.
“Why were you walking the girls back?”
Danny tilted his head like he was confused. It was kind of cute. “I thought I already told you? To make sure no one messed with them.”
“That’s my job,” he growled.
“They were outside your territory,” Danny countered, “plus, with jobs like theirs, I figured they could use an extra set of eyes on ‘em.”
“So you’re fine just taking a nightly stroll with a group of sex workers?”
“As one does,” Danny agreed. “They’re just people. Funny, too.” He smiled easily.
“Alright.” He can accept that. He’s just so used to people being awful about it.
“Are all your friends dead?”
“No.” Something in the playful smirk Danny had told him he found the line of questioning highly amusing. Jason was suddenly strongly reminded of old stories of the Fae, and began questioning if maybe the food was the trap. He decided he would let it slide for now.
“Okay. And, why are you running a coffee shop with a bunch of ghosts?”
Danny opened his mouth like he was about to answer quickly, but then closed it, thinking. “Well. Why not?” he said instead.
Jason tilted his head again downwards disapprovingly.
Danny sighed. “It’s a long story. Think of it a social experiment. Obviously none of us fit in.”
“You fit in.”
“Do I?” Danny countered, raising a brow, “You clocked me as an outsider as soon as you saw me.”
“Yeah, well,” Jason scoffed, his modulator dipping his voice low, “you’re way too friendly to be in Gotham.”
“I know. Hence, standing out.”
“You,” Jason jabbed a finger at the man, who still sat nonchalantly with a leg thrown over the arm of the chair, like he wasn’t debating his career choices with the Red fucking Hood, “are a very different caliber of not fitting in than she is,” Jason gestured back to the barista, who was watching the conversation with only mild interest. “No offense, Miss.”
“None taken, Hotshot.”
Danny shrugged. “Yeah well, like I said. Long story.”
“Alright. Well, still. Figured you would have kept it on the down-low in Gotham of all places. We have a bad reputation here, I’m sure you’ve heard. Outsiders aren’t welcome.”
Danny made a so-so gesture. “Kind of hard to blend in when all your friends stick out like the dead.” His smirk screamed mischief, his eyes were bright like this was the funniest thing to happen to him all week. “Trust me, my friend knows what he’s doing. This is the best place for us to be.”
“Hm.” Jason shifted his weight, trying to take all that in.
“So. Coffee? You can watch me make it.” Danny joked, hopping up lightly, walking past Jason and bumping his shoulder playfully, “Your friend said you needed to learn to chill, and I make a hella good brew.”
Jason shook his head in disbelief. This guy had no sense of self preservation.
“Fine, but I’m testing it for poison, too.” Yes, he kept poison kits on hand. No he wasn’t paranoid, half his network were people regularly at risk of getting drugged in their line of work.
“Sweet! Success!” Danny threw his fists in the area, whooping before running behind the counter.
Jason just kept shaking his head. Yeah. This was weird. Eccentric would be putting it mildly. But he begrudgingly had to agree with Janessa, nothing in these peoples’ body language suggested they had any malicious intent. He would need to keep an eye on them to make sure it wasn’t just a front, of course, but still. Plus, there was a bookshelf in the back he was curious about. Maybe he would end up staking this place out after all. Just out of an abundance of caution.
He watched while Danny made the drink.