Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

 Disclaimer: Don’t own Danny Phantom or any form of Batman and co.

Chapter 1

Danny rolled onto his side, watching the other teen as he slept. It was good to see him sleeping, he’d honestly been wondering if Tim ever slept with the bags permanently under his eyes. He drank more coffee than Danny did! Still, Tim had work in the morning and showing up in yesterday’s clothes would get attention. Tonight wasn’t meant to be a sleepover, they’d just planned on takeout and a movie in Danny’s tiny apartment, nothing else. There hadn’t been anything else yet…because of him. Even sleeping so close, sprawled on his bed, it was risky. That was why he’d never slept over before but it had just happened tonight, both of them more tired than they realised.

Tim had never said anything about the coolness of his hands and Danny always had long sleeves on nowadays, even in summer, due to the scars. So hugging was okay and even Tim leaning against him on the couch wasn’t too risky. Tim loved that in summer since he didn’t overheat. But when winter came?

Danny wasn’t a meta so technically Batman shouldn’t be mad about him being in Gotham, right? It…it was a medical condition. Or something more like Superboy, without cloning involved, a hybrid of two species. Except his second species was just technically illegal. Which meant that it was safer if he was mistaken for a meta since they were legally protected now. He hated it, hated lying to Tim even if only through omission, but how could he tell him the truth?

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to relax, but then Tim shifted, rolling closer. He couldn’t help it, carefully wrapping his arm around Tim’s waist, smiling slightly when Tim seemed to relax even more. He really didn’t want to wake him…but a glance at the clock said he had to. He was never going to be the reason Tim got in trouble at work, he did so much as co-CEO and he’d barely turned nineteen! Danny was barely managing part-time classes and his job at the coffee shop they’d met in. Tim had offered to get him an internship but Danny had turned him down, he wasn’t with Tim to get a foot in the door anywhere.

Danny gently squeezed Tim’s waist, pressing a quick kiss to the back of his shoulder. “Tim, you need to wake up.”

He didn’t want to wake up, he was comfortable and safe, cool too…because Danny was holding him, well he had an arm around his waist. Tim opened his eyes to find he was in Danny’s apartment, the one he wished he could convince him to move out of but Danny had refused. He wouldn’t let Tim just pay for things, which was good but also frustrating. Still, why was he in Danny’s bed…oh, date night when he’d literally gotten no sleep the night before thanks to a stakeout. He probably should have rescheduled but he did that too often already.

And he had a meeting this morning, one he couldn’t skip, Danny knew that which explained the gentle wake-up. He hated that Danny was so careful in waking him, but he’d snapped awake fighting twice before after nodding off on the couch, beyond thankful that he hadn’t hurt Danny who had managed to dodge both times. He might not be a vigilante but apparently, his mom had been into martial arts and had taught him to defend himself growing up. If he ever hurt Danny… he knew it was a risk, as long as he was dating a civilian it would always be a risk. He’d been so on edge when they’d first met, still dealing with everything that was the craziness of Bruce being lost, losing Robin, losing his spleen, Ra’s…

He shook his head and forced himself to sit up, stretching, catching Danny watching him with a soft smile, returning it. He leaned down and kissed Danny, ignoring their morning breath. “Thanks,” he murmured, he was lucky Danny had woken otherwise he’d be running to the office in yesterday’s clothes and that would start rumours.

So far, no one in the family seemed aware that he was dating. Not that that was surprising given everything. Once, it would have been all but impossible to keep Danny a secret but now? He barely even saw the others on patrol. B was the only one he saw much of and that was always at work. Danny was wary of meeting the extended Wayne brood and until he was ready, Tim would do what he could to keep them away. It wasn’t like Tim spent much time at the Manor anymore himself which made it easier. He’d done his own background checks into Danny when they’d started becoming friends, as bad as he felt about it. There’d been nothing dangerous, nothing to raise any kind of suspicion. Danny was just a civilian, a very smart one, and Tim sometimes wondered what his boyfriend could do if given access to Bat-level tech. And like Tim and so many others, he had no biological family left. However, there were some hints in the file, and Danny's words made it obvious to Tim why he would avoid anyone of a parental nature. Danny remembered his parents lovingly yes, but Tim could read between the lines too.

Danny was very independent, insisting on always paying his own way, and Tim had to respect that. He’d worked hard to get into college, and that’d been obvious from his school records. But at Wayne Enterprises, he could get closer to his childhood dream than he would anywhere else. He’d seen the records of Danny attending all those space camps as a kid, the love of space and science…until he was fourteen and everything had just gone wrong. There’d been hospital records, plummeting grades, and signs of a teen in trouble, but just before he hit sixteen things had settled and his grades had recovered, thankfully. If they hadn’t then he'd have probably never come to Gotham, and they never would have met.

He’d never asked about the injury since that would give away that he’d looked into Danny’s past and Danny never talked about it. Danny never brought up his family either unless it was a comment on something Tim said. Tim didn’t blame him, it had to have hurt to lose them like that, to know they’d been on the way to see him graduate high school and then… well, it was no wonder Danny was so independent. Even with what he suspected, Danny had loved his family, but so many victims did. He wished Danny would accept his help but he understood why he wouldn’t, he didn’t want anyone to think he was dating Tim for his money and influence. Tim knew he wasn’t and that was enough as far as he was concerned, but he had to respect Danny’s wishes too.

“Don’t forget to eat something, not just coffee,” Danny told him, yawning.

“I will. Go back to sleep,” he told him, leaning in for another kiss before forcing himself off the bed.

He envied Danny getting to sleep in, he only had an afternoon shift today and no class. He grabbed his things and left the apartment, making sure the door was locked behind him. That was one thing Danny had agreed to at least, letting Tim improve the locks on the apartment. Sure, it wasn’t Crime Alley or anything, but it was not the best part of Gotham either. And the landlord had no issue with it either, he could charge the next tenant even more for better security.

He headed for where he’d parked his bike since Danny’s building didn’t come with a garage, disengaging the security on it, and drove home to shower and change before heading into the office for the day. And yes, he managed to grab some food with his coffee on his way in, he’d promised after all and he was hungry. Despite what most thought, he didn’t just live on coffee, but he often wasn’t overly hungry in the morning despite ‘working’ most nights. He often grabbed a snack after patrol and before sleeping so breakfast was often too soon.

He offered Tam a wave as he passed her desk, not talking since he’d just taken a bite of his sandwich, which made her smile. He settled behind his desk and powered on his computer to check everything over before the meeting. Maybe he should sleep at Danny’s more often or invite him to sleep at his place since he felt better rested than he had in a while. Then again, while his apartment and bed were more spacious – they were far more likely to be interrupted there…or there was always the possibility of Danny finding something that would be hard to explain. Besides, Danny had never even hinted at them going to his place and Tim wanted Danny to be comfortable.

Not that the others tended to drop by, but his computers would set off notifications in the apartment and that would be harder to explain than a text message. He loved Danny, trusted him…maybe…maybe it was time to tell him the truth? He knew Danny had secrets too, had a pretty good idea what he was trying to hide, and maybe if he opened up first then Danny would follow. And once everything was out in the open, he could introduce Danny to his old team, let him be around others like him.

Danny dropped his keys and went to the bedroom to change out of his work clothes, exhausted. He checked his phone, smiling at the picture of a cat in space that Tim had sent him earlier before putting the phone aside. He went to his bedroom, digging through his closet for the locked box hidden at the back, slipping his hand through it to grab the phone hidden within. He then left the apartment via the fire escape, heading for the roof. He checked for any sign of vigilantes and then moved across the rooftops until he was a good distance from home. Hidden in the shadows, rings of light spread from his middle, transforming him. He went invisible and then took off, flying high into the sky above Gotham before turning the phone on.

He only checked once a month, never on the same date to be safer. He was his only contact to his old life, as far as the world was concerned Daniel Fenton died with his family. Danny Nightingale was just a kid from Chicago. They didn’t even have the same birthday, that had been the first thing that changed in his records. They had shifted his birthday to another very important date – the day he defeated Pariah Dark. Tucker and Technus had worked together, using the facts of Fenton’s life but changing names and locations to create Nightingale’s. The portal accident became a freak lightning strike during a storm, the lab accident that blew Fenton Works up was changed to a car accident, his parents’ names…Jazz…all changed to keep him safe.

Tucker was the only other one left and they’d had to split up thanks to the stupid GIW and Vlad. Sam…she never should have been there but she had and now… he took a deep breath and read over the messages from his only remaining friend, the only person who knew who he really was, though not where he was. They were careful, he didn’t know where Tucker was either. Though Tucker did keep an eye on Amity Park since he could hide his searches a lot better than Danny could, Val was doing a good job and without the Fenton Portal, the place had become a lot calmer. Vlad was forced to keep his head down as well. The two of them had worked together very briefly to remove all the remaining ghost tech from the wreckage to keep it out of the GIW’s hands, the agency was becoming too competent. It was why Danny had ended up in Gotham, even the agency was wary of pissing off Batman by encroaching on his city. As an added bonus, the city had enough excess ectoplasm in the air to keep Danny healthy and help hide him. It wasn’t the only choice, there were other cities that could hide him, and Technus had even made it look like he’d left the country to help hide him better. After all, only the US and Canada had the Acts. If he’d gone to Europe then they couldn’t touch him but he hadn’t been able to bring himself to leave America.

He hated lying to Tim, to be keeping half of himself from him, but he knew he wasn’t the only one with secrets. He’d never push Tim, he trusted him, loved him and knew whatever he was hiding it wasn’t something bad, he could sense that much. And Tucker had responded to last month's rambling message about telling Tim, not that Tucker knew his name, they never used names for safety reasons. If someone, somehow, managed to crack their security, the messages wouldn’t mean a thing to them. Tucker’s message was to trust himself, if he thought he could trust his boyfriend with the truth then go for it.

He sent his updates in return before turning the phone off and dropping from the sky, transforming back once he reached the roof. He then slipped back to his building only to duck back into the shadows, ceasing to breathe as one of the bats landed on the roof, looking around for a bit before moving on. Hmm…from the red in the costume he’d assume either Robin or Red Robin since the Red Hood tended to stick to Crime Alley…no sword though, didn’t the current Robin carry one? So probably Red Robin. Had he spotted Danny?

He listened to the others chat over the comm as he made his patrol, not bothering to speak up. He only ever spoke when someone spoke to him first or if he had something he needed to report. He missed the days of easy chatter over the comms but they were long gone, his hope that it’d go back to normal with Bruce’s return long faded. Sometimes, Tim wondered why he didn’t just cut the last ties, go fully independent…except there was that small part of him that clung to the idea of family. He went to the Cave still, to give mission reports or when he was called in, but the last time he’d been to the Manor itself had been Bruce’s birthday party, the public one. He bore the Wayne name after all; it would definitely make the papers in a bad way if he didn’t go. He was the one who went to the various galas, the others very rarely appearing anymore which made them very lonely events. Maybe…maybe he should invite Danny to the next one as his plus one? It's not like his sexuality hadn’t been questioned many times in the press over the years.

It had gotten better since meeting Danny, becoming friends and then more, but he couldn’t help clinging to the Wayne family even as part of him considered dropping the name from his own and going back to only being a Drake, not Drake-Wayne. Though maybe one day it would be Drake-Nightingale. He shook those thoughts off, focusing on his patrol as he neared Danny’s building. He tensed though, spotting a hint of movement, landing silently, ready to draw his bō, waiting for an attack. He looked around carefully but there was nothing and after a few moments he continued.

It’d be too late to join Danny once he finished, sadly. It was almost two in the morning already; he wasn’t due to finish for another hour.

She checked the logs and kept going only to pause and go back, frowning slightly. She read back further and further, heart sinking. Sure, she’d thought a few times that things were quieter, but she hadn’t realised…she pulled up the surveillance feeds for the Cave and Manor and felt a little sick. How had she missed this? How had they all missed this, unless…surely it wasn’t intentional? She went further and further back, as far back as when Bruce was missing, her hand covering her mouth as she watched and listened to the night Damian became Robin. Oh, Dick.

Two years…was this fixable? Would…would Tim even want to fix it? He had the resources, everything needed, did he even really consider himself one of the bats anymore? He came when called, would respond when spoken to over comms but other than that, he barely interacted with any of them. How did they not notice? How had she not?

Tim sat in the meeting, tired but functional at least. R&D meetings were the only ones he really got any enjoyment out of. If he wasn’t co-CEO then he would happily be working with them, sadly he just didn’t have the time. Lucius did from time to time; it helped hide some of the work for their other jobs. This time of year wasn’t usually one of their busy periods but they had a new phone launching soon and had found some bugs in it that needed dealing with which might push back the release date. It was keeping everyone busy; add in his night work and he was being run off his feet. It sucked, he didn’t used to mind but these days he had something, someone, else he needed time for.

The way things were going, the phone wouldn’t come out until Christmas, which was not good timing, they had other projects due to launch around then already.

Danny walked into work and smiled when he spotted the familiar figure already at a table, laptop open before him and a cap on his head to hide his features a bit. The staff knew they were friends and so kept that table at the right angle for the occupants to be a bit hidden, they were good about that. Plus, Tim probably spent the average person’s salary on coffee at the store so helping him stay incognito was the least they could do.

He nodded to Sandy who grinned and waved him away so he headed for their table. He wanted to lean down and kiss him but they were in public, no matter if mostly out of sight, so he didn’t. “Hey,” he murmured.

Tim looked up and smiled at him, something that always made Danny feel a flush of warmth which for him was something rare. “Hey, figured I’d come see you since we’ve both been busy.”

“Missed you too, phone calls aren’t the same.” But at least they could keep in contact that way. He shifted to let their hands brush, briefly tangling their fingers together, and Tim smiled again.

"Long shift today?"

"Till closing.” He grimaced, a matching frown appearing on Tim’s face. “Sorry.”

“Hey, it’s okay. I did just show up. Our schedules will match up soon, they always do.”

“Very true Polaris,” he teased, and Tim flushed slightly at the nickname, but Danny thought it suited him. He was Danny’s North Star now.

“Get to work, space cadet,” Tim mock groaned, and Danny laughed but headed to the back to grab his apron.

Tim crouched, blending in with the beams as he watched the men move about below, smirking slightly as he slipped a hand into one of his many pouches. With an easy flick of his wrist the smoke bombs were deployed, causing shouts of annoyance and dismay. He leapt down, landing in the middle of them, his cowl allowing him to see even in the smoke, bō in hand. He twisted, catching one of the thugs across the lower back before getting another in the back of the knees, both going down hard.

Soon, he had them all down and began restraining them for the cops, placing the call himself, and leaving behind the counterfeit money that they had been bringing into Gotham. It was time to head home for the night and try to get those reports done for WE before it was time to head into the office.

Thankfully his journey back to his Nest was uninterrupted. Once inside, he stripped out of his gear and headed upstairs to collapse on the bed, wanting to get a little sleep at least before working on the reports. Tim checked his phone and smiled sleepily at Danny’s last message. Sometimes his boyfriend was almost as much an insomniac as he was, though due to college papers and closing shifts rather than crime fighting.

Danny stared at the paper in shock, unable to believe the headline. Vlad…the Fruit Loop…was dead? Dead dead and not just a halfa? His crazy ‘uncle’ had retired as Mayor after Danny’s family died, moving back to Wisconsin and Danny honestly hadn’t kept track of him since then. What could have killed him? Or…was this the GIW covering up his disappearance? Had they worked out Plasmius was Vlad? Dead or captured, it would have to be published since he’d remained in visible control of VladCo and Axion Labs.

Part of him…was saddened by the news. He was now the last of his kind. Dani…Dani had destabilised at barely a year old and nothing they had tried had saved her. The Ecto-Dejecto had bought her time, they’d thought it had saved her, but in the end, it had only been a temporary fix, working less and less until it didn’t work at all. And now Vlad…there was a chance that he was still alive, but did Danny want to risk everything on such a slim chance?

He’d have to check the phone again soon, and message Tucker, he’d be able to get into the GIW’s servers thanks to his Technus improved tech, not that his friend had ever stopped tinkering himself with it. Danny sometimes wondered who was better, Tucker or the Oracle he’d heard whispered about sometimes. He or she apparently was part of the Bats, he didn’t think it was surprising they’d have an excellent hacker on their side to help keep their ids safe. Even if Oracle wasn’t real, it was safer for Tucker to look into Vlad, for all of them.

If they had Vlad… could he give up his life in Gotham, Tim, to go and save the halfa who had made his life hell? What did he owe him? Nothing.

Tim grinned as he flopped onto Danny’s couch, putting his feet up on the table only to get a playful slap to remove them. He reached up, curling his fingers in Danny’s hair, tugging gently, and Danny went with it, bracing one hand on the back of the couch, letting them kiss slowly. He let his fingers move through messy black locks only a little shorter than his own, feeling Dany shiver slightly in response. He didn’t try to pull Danny any closer, just enjoying the kiss, letting Danny choose how much contact he was comfortable with.

Soon they were sprawled on the couch, surrounded by the remains of dinner, controllers in hand as they battled it out on the TV. Sometimes, it was very nice to just be a teenager.

Danny sighed and pushed the books away, stretching to pop his back. The campus library was not his favourite place but he had needed some books that couldn’t be accessed online for the stupid history paper. At least it wasn’t English but it was still not one of his favourite subjects. Still, he had to take a certain number of subjects outside of his major and it was a time period he knew more about than others…because he’d seen it. Odd jobs for Clockwork were always interesting that way, not that he’d done any since settling in Gotham.

Sadly, he couldn’t just write what he knew, he had to be able to back it up with what was known to people now. And a lot of what he’d seen just wasn’t recorded which made it kind of useless for class.

He checked the time and sighed, grabbing his phone to text Tim. Sadly, he had to cancel their date or he’d never get the paper done on time. He couldn’t wait till the term was over and he’d have more free time.

Bruce paused as he heard something…something he couldn’t remember hearing in a long time. Tim was laughing, genuinely laughing, sounding happy. He swallowed, why had it been so long?

“Danny,” Tim was still laughing, but Bruce couldn’t hear anyone else so likely on the phone. Who was this Danny and what were they to his son? “That’s just…seriously. Okay, alright.” Then there was silence for a little. “Tonight, seven-thirty, I’ll be there. Love you.” And then his office went quiet.

Love you…did he mean that how it sounded? Was Tim…dating someone? Danny could be short for Danielle or something…or Daniel? Not that it mattered. Why hadn’t Tim told them, introduced this person to the family at…and it hit him, when was the last time Tim had come to the Manor, not the cave but the actual Manor? To Alfred’s Sunday family brunch? There’d been the party for his birthday and Tim had been there but Bruce had barely seen him after the obligatory family photo for the papers. He…he couldn’t remember Tim coming around other than that. Maybe soon after his return, but nothing in at least a year, maybe even more. How could he have missed that? Missed the fact his second youngest never laughed around them anymore… when was the last time he’d bantered over the comms? If he spoke on patrol, it was business only.

Tim’s report from that time was very basic, too basic. What had happened to him during his search that had changed him so much? Or was it something from before he left Gotham alone? So many deaths one after another, surely it wasn’t surprising that Tim had changed. But it felt like more than that, he just didn’t have enough data, not yet. And he knew that Ra’s had been involved in whatever Tim went through while Bruce was gone but he didn’t know why or to what extent. He’d read the report on how he tried to take control of WE, had target Bruce’s loved ones, and how Tim had confronted him leading to a rather bad fall. Thankfully, Dick had caught his barely conscious brother before he hit the ground. Such an action though, it suggested something…personal between Tim and Ra’s.

He raised his hand to knock on the door, hesitating, but then he slipped away. He didn’t want to upset Tim while he was happy. He would do his research first, then approach the boy. Boy…he was how old now? Nineteen or twenty? And he felt a flash of shame at the fact he wasn’t sure. He’d been trying to do better with his kids, and had thought he was succeeding, so how had he let Tim slip through the cracks?

Danny stared at the message…Vlad was really dead as far as Tucker could find. He’d have to head into the Realms and check with Clockwork to be positive then. Surely if the GIW had him, the ghost of time would have sent him a message because it could lead them to hunt Danny even more vigorously, despite not being sure if Phantom was even still around or had returned to the Infinite Realms.

He had to get himself together, Tim would be over in another…he glanced at the clock, hour. Right, he had food to order and collect and a movie to set up.

TBC…

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: still don’t own them.

Chapter 2

Tim knocked on Danny’s door, smiling at his boyfriend when he opened it. “Hey,” he offered, slipping inside.

“Hey you.” Danny grinned and leant in for a kiss.

Tim felt himself relaxing fully, leaning against Danny, forgetting all about the troubles of his day. It was amazing how just being with Danny could make him feel normal, safe. It was crazy since Danny was a civilian and yet he couldn’t help how being with him made him feel.

“We’ve got Chinese for dinner and that new Star Wars movie lined up,” Danny told him, and Tim laughed.

“Perfect date.” Take out and sci-fi without leaving the safety of the apartment. He hated that because of him most of their dates were like this but Danny didn’t seem to care at all.

Danny was completely content just staying in together which was nice and helped avoid the paparazzi. Granted, Tim could hide by ditching the suits he had become known for wearing since his return to Gotham but it wasn’t foolproof which made staying in most of the time safer. Not that Tim was ashamed or scared to be seen with Danny in public, there’d been rumours for years about most of the Wayne’s sexuality, especially Dick’s and then his since someone had posted about his ‘engagement’ to Tam being a cover for the fact he hadn’t dated since he was fifteen. He wouldn’t be the first cape to date their own gender either and Danny wasn’t the first guy he’d been interested in.

Lucius knew about them and they’d talked about contingencies for when Danny was eventually spotted with him in a way that couldn’t be explained platonically. The Board would not take it well and he couldn’t put the company at any risk but there was also no way he was going to break up with Danny. And he liked not having the public watching them, to be able to just be himself, without worrying about the press. He’d talked to Danny about it and Danny had agreed. If they were caught, then they were caught, but they wouldn’t do anything to get the attention. He didn’t blame Danny at all for not wanting the attention, he’d been in the press on and off since he’d been taken to his first gala at age three. Sadly, not enough for people to realise he’d been left home alone for months on end, then again, without a tie to Bruce who knew what would have happened to him if he’d been removed from his parents’ custody back then. The press had been like hungry wolves when his mother died and B took him in, then again when his dad woke and took him back. When Jack’d died and Bruce officially adopted him though, that had been the worse until the fake engagement. These days Vikki was more wary of publishing stories about him, but others weren’t.

Soon they were settled on the couch with their dinner and Tim shifted closer to Danny. They’d shared the bed, Danny had held him, so maybe he was ready for more physical closeness? Danny had been very touch shy from the start and coupled with a few things he’d said…it was a good thing that he hadn’t come to Gotham younger or they could have ended up siblings. He was glad that Danny had gotten away from whoever had hurt him, hated that he suspected his parents were the cause but that’s where the evidence seemed to point, despite Danny’s obvious love for them.

Their fingers brushed and Danny didn’t react so he left his hand there, not bothered by the coolness of Danny’s skin. They were heading into winter which was when Danny got the jumpiest about touch. The longer Tim knew him, the surer he got that Danny was a meta and he wished he’d say something…unless he was waiting for Tim to ask? The stories of Batman hating Meta’s probably didn’t help Danny open up about it. Even without knowing Tim was connected to the Bats, he’d likely be wary of saying anything since Oracle was said to have eyes everywhere. Tim was curious about what kind of ability Danny might have; from his body temperature it was probably something…similar to Mr Freeze which could be another reason for his hesitance.

As the movie continued, he gently tangled their fingers together, shifting slightly so their shoulders brushed. He felt Danny glance his way but kept his gaze on the screen, enjoying the space battle. Tim was pleased when Danny carefully squeezed his hand, returning the pressure. By the end of the movie, he was leaning against Danny who had an arm resting over his waist. He turned his head and kissed Danny softly, happy when Danny returned the kiss.

He shifted to turn his whole body, slowly moving one hand up to cup Danny’s face, feeling him tense slightly, but Tim kept up the gentle kiss and Danny relaxed again. “Love you,” he murmured when he pulled back to breath, smiling softly at him. “Danny…if we never go beyond this, then that’s okay. I love you for you, watching silly movies, eating takeout, playing video games… I would never pressure you for sex or anything else you don’t want.” Why was it that as Red Robin mentioning that was fine but as just Tim he had to fight not to stammer or blush? “If it’s something you’re not interested in, you can tell me.”

Danny stared at him, incredible blue eyes wider than normal, but Tim didn’t push, content to let him think and decide what he wanted to say. “I…I don’t not want that, one day,” Danny finally whispered. “It’s just…it’s complicated Tim. I love you; I do.”

A cool hand pressed to Tim’s face in return and he leant into the touch; he would never pull away because he trusted Danny. He’d always had so much trouble with trust between his parent’s absence and then becoming Robin…well, he hadn’t had many good examples of trust outside the family and, in the end, even they had failed him. But Danny…Danny was bright smiles and silly puns, quiet nights in and gentle care, so different to everyone else in his life.

“I promise Tim, one day,” he swore, leaning forward enough that their foreheads touched.

Tim kissed him again. “Only whatever you’re comfortable with,” he promised in return.

Was it just his body temperature to it, or was there something else? They hadn’t been dating last winter, he’d even been off planet for several weeks and then very busy with work, had he missed something? Or maybe…he was worried Tim would find him too cold in the freezing weather of a Gotham winter? Was he scared that he’d hurt Tim?

And if Danny never wanted more physically than they had, well, he could live with that. He was happier with Danny than he’d ever been before.

Tucker checked his research again. It was hard to believe that Vlad was really dead. The old creep had lived through far too much to just roll over and die. And even if he had, surely, he’d simply become a full ghost which in some ways would make him more dangerous since he no longer had a human id to protect.

He doubted Danny believed it either. He really missed his best friend, missed Sam and jazz too…even Val. His parents and sister didn’t even know where he was and he hated doing that to them, but they knew he was alive and safe. They understood that with his connection to the Fenton’s, it was too dangerous, that the GIW was far too interested in anyone exposed to high levels of ectoplasm.

He had a new life, working for a small tech company from home. It was safer that way. A new identity safely on the other side of the country to Amity Park. He wished he could have run with Danny but the two of them together would be too easy to track compared to splitting up. He was glad that Danny was moving on, he had a boyfriend! He was very happy for him; he just hoped the whole Vlad thing didn’t end up disrupting that. Danny deserved to be free and happy.

Danny slumped back on the couch after watching Tim’s bike drive out of sight. He had to tell him, but he was scared to. His parents…but Tim wasn’t like them, he wasn’t. Even if he broke up with him, he wouldn’t hurt him. But the thought of losing Tim hurt, a core deep pain he couldn’t ignore. He’d already lost so much because of what he was.

He could still remember the looks on his parents faces…the confusion, dawning understanding, grief, horror…rage and disgust. Jack hadn’t been as bad, but Maddie? She’d been terrifying, her words that day…he tried not to remember that time, the feel of the ghost proof cuffs, the feel of the scalpel…

If he hadn’t had been so stupid then Jazz and Sam at least would be alive. But they had gone in to save him, Tucker busy dismantling security, wiping files from them and the GIW so he’d been spared. Jazz’s last act had been throwing him into the portal, Danny too weak to protect her or anyone as the house went up because of their parents’ stupidity and lack of lab safety.

It was stupid, but despite it all, he still loved and missed them. Not as much as Jazz and even Sam but he still missed them. They hadn’t always been the best, their last actions horrendous, but they had been his parents. They had loved him, he knew that. He remembered Dad picking him up and holding him as he stuck the glow in the dark stars to the ceiling of his bedroom, Mom giving him his first self-defence lessons, both of them teaching him science. But over the years they just go so…wrapped up in ghosts. Maybe if he had told them when the accident happened, before they had fought other ghosts, maybe they could have seen the truth then. But he would never know because they hadn’t become ghosts so he would never see or speak with them again.

He forced himself off the couch and began getting ready for bed. He had work in the morning and classes in the afternoon.

Alfred hummed along to the radio as he worked on the care package. It saddened him that it was necessary but he understood. He missed dear Master Tim but he would never try to force the dear boy back to the Manor. He regretted so much from the time that Master Bruce was lost, his inaction in offering support was a big part of that. Even once Master Tim had returned from overseas, had moved temporarily into the Penthouse with them, things hadn’t been the same. There had been a distance between Tim and the rest of them that could not be breached, a result of their own actions and treatment of him.

And now, he had his own apartment and base of operations, his work at WE…only nineteen years old and so grown up. Granted, Master Richard had moved out around the same age as Timothy had, but the circumstances had been different and yet also similar. Both had been pushed from the nest too soon, the Robin identity taken from them. Why had Alfred not spoken up when he saw Dick making the same mistake there as his father had made? Then again, Alfred never would have thought that he would with how much Master Bruce’s actions had hurt him.

He could patch the children up when they were injured, listen when they talked, take Master Bruce to task in private, but there was so much he couldn’t do for them. It wasn’t his place. But ensuring Master Tim had healthy food available was something he could do. Every fortnight he cooked and froze meals for him, to ensure he ate well. He had noticed the shift in his diet, had seen the scar on his abdomen when examining him after he was kicked from the window…he knew what a scar there implied and he would do his best to ensure the dear boy remained as healthy as possible.

Tim landed lightly, moving across the roof, keeping an eye out for any trouble. With nothing in the area, he fired his grapple and leapt from the building, soaring through the air. Things had been quiet lately which was never a good sign, it usually meant someone was planning something. He’d touched base with a few informants but they hadn’t heard anything.

The quiet did mean he could just enjoy his time travelling across the roofs. He wasn’t Dick, he didn’t just jump and flip through the air, but he still loved the freedom. There was no traffic, no one watching him, just him and his trust in his skills and grapple. It’d taken a few weeks after Damian cut his line for him to get full trust back in the tech, despite the fact that it hadn’t failed him. He landed and then paused; head cocked as he focused. There! He slid the edge of the roof and looked down to see three men in an alley cornering a teenager. Time to get to work then.

The girl glanced up and her eyes widened, obviously spotting him, and he pressed a finger to his lips. Most people were good at pretending not to see them since they were there to save them. He drew some smoke pellets before leaping down to land between the girl and muggers. The first fell easily to a hit to the head, the other two coughing as they stumbled back out of the smoke.

“Run,” he called, and she didn’t need to be told twice.

He spun, blocking a knife with his bō easily. They were thugs, not trained fighters, so it was over very quickly and he called the cops to pick them up after tying the three up. He then headed back to the roof to continue his patrol.

Bruce opened the door silently and stepped inside, looking around the room that hadn’t been used in far too long. It looked more like one of the guestrooms that littered the mansion than the bedroom of one of the family, despite being in the family wing. He could remember a time when a skateboard and helmet had rested against a wall, the desk covered in papers and camera parts, posters and photos on the walls. Tim had never been the neatest of his brood but to look at the room now…

He sat on the edge of the neatly made bed, searching for any sign of his third youngest in the room. Bruce smiled when he spotted the handful of photos, picking up one that must have snapped not long before Damian had arrived. Tim was grinning, leaning against Dick even as he reached for the pastry Dick was holding above his head. When was the last time he’d seen his son so happy?

He headed down to the cave to get ready for patrol, glancing over at the workstations, Tim’s was empty. He had his own base now, only came to the cave when called or too injured to take care of it himself…how had he let Tim drift so far? Even Jason was closer to the rest of them now.

Damian soon appeared and headed into the locker room to change, Robin emerging. And then they were in the Batmobile, heading into the city. A single question was enough to get his son talking of his volunteer work at the shelter, something the boy enjoyed no matter how he tried to hide it.

It was frustrating that two days after their very nice date and talk, he got an Arkham breakout alert and had to cancel their next date night. Danny never questioned the cancellations like most civilians would which was nice but also curious. But he couldn’t really ask about it without risking raising questions that he couldn’t answer.

He changed into his uniform and took off across the rooftops to meet up with the others. He’d been in such a good mood earlier too. He landed silently and moved to join them, noticing Jason wasn’t there, not surprising really, and Jason would ensure none of the escapees hid in Crime Alley.

He ignored the way Damian scoffed at his presence, immune to it these days, though part of him would always be alert around the younger vigilante. Damian had grown from the angry boy he’d been, it was just hard to forget the murder attempts, especially when Damian had never even tried to apologise for them. Yes, Jason had almost killed him, but Jason had apologised and Tim knew a lot of why he’d tried to kill him had been the Pit Rage on top of whatever poison Talia had whispered in his ear, likely trying to remove Tim so that Damian could take his place. Even with the forgiveness and their improved working relationship, he still kept a safe distance if Jason looked to be struggling, Tim knew he was a trigger for it and likely always would be.

His eyes went to the shadows as Batman emerged to give them the plan for the night, looking them over. There was something…odd when his gaze met Tim’s but it was gone too fast for Tim to identify, though, it didn’t seem negative?

“Red Robin and Robin, Nightwing and Spoiler, Black Bat and Signal,” Batman called out the pairs for the night and then their areas.

Tim partially tuned him out; he’d prefer being paired with Cass or Duke but he kept quiet. He felt sorry for Duke being dragged out of bed but for a mass breakout they needed the numbers, he had to be tired from the dayshift though so it made sense to pair him with Cass. Noone had ever taken Tim’s side over Damian, even when the kid had tried to kill him and since it’d been a few years since then they definitely wouldn’t listen now.

Damian might not have tried to kill him lately, but working with him was always a trial. It could take a lot more than two years to undo the ten years of influence from the League of Shadows, he was just acting how he’d been raised during the first attempt. Then again, Tim had led the League if only for a shirt time and he’d seen no members who acted like Damian at all, so was it really their influence that had made him like that? But two years on and no apology or even acknowledgment that what he’d done was wrong? Damian knew better now. The only time they seemed to work well together was when the whole world was threatened which meant tonight was not going to be fun. And he just knew Dick was behind it, still trying to make them get along.

He missed his big brother Dick, the one who had taught him to train surf, who had listened to him talk about photography, had taken him places. That brother had begun slipping away after Jason reappeared but had fully vanished once Damian arrived. And he had never come back, too focused on Damian and helping him learn to be a real kid…and not with a lot of success. Why couldn’t he see that forcing Tim and Damian to interact was only making things worse?

So of course, the Brat managed to lose him halfway through patrol…and right in time for Tim to run into Freeze and what had to be every goon the man ever employed. Wonderful. He drew his bō, there was no choice but to fight, he couldn’t let them get to the civilians still rushing to evacuate. He’d had no chance to set anything up which meant a straight up fight. And they were all armed, though it looked like only Freeze himself had a freeze ray, which made things a tad bit easier.

He was really not happy with having to face them alone, not with Freeze happily firing into the dispersing civilians. With a partner it’d be a lot easier to keep him occupied without getting hit too. Still, he’d work with what he had, everyone else was too far away and when he tried to call Damian it was obvious that he was in a fight as well.

He ducked around an overturned car that had already been frozen, relieved it was empty, tossing some birdarangs at the various goons. He smirked when two of the men managed to take each other out while trying to avoid them. He lunged to the side as Freeze fired, feeling some of his cape stiffen from a too near miss. The quicker he could take out the goons the easier the fight would be. And then he stumbled as a bullet slammed into his side, gasping for air. It hadn’t penetrated the suit but he’d at least have bruised ribs, he didn’t think they’d broken. He half fell behind another car; a hand pressed to his side as he fought to breathe properly. He could fight through the pain; he’d had far worse.

Dick saw the look Bruce gave them all as they reconvened in the Cave, all battered and exhausted, but didn’t quite get that one and he thought he knew all Bruce’s looks. They’d caught most of the escapees at least, Killer Croc was somewhere in the sewers and could take weeks to find. Ivy was on the lose too but she’d mellowed over the years. And there didn’t seem to be any major injuries.

“Reports,” Bruce told them.

Dick got to work, the others slumping about the cave with various devices to do their own.  

The cave was quiet as they wrote them up before heading upstairs or to their own homes. Dick headed up with Damian since it was way too early to try and drive home.

Danny rolled out of bed to the sound of breaking glass, blinking in shock and very grateful he could see in the dark. Ancients! Was that…yep, that was a vigilante…and that was blood. He moved cautiously closer but the figure didn’t move so he knelt beside them, carefully rolling them away from the glass and onto their back. There was a low moan but that was the only reaction. The suit was cut up and the material did not feel warm…the guy’s lips were blue!

Danny pressed a hand to the material, carefully drawing the cold from it and into himself. The news had said Freeze was one of the escapees, looked like Red Robin had run into him. Well, he was like 97% sure this one was Red Robin. Had the guy missed with his grapple and crashed through the nearest window? Hypothermia and blood loss would make their method of travel almost impossible for a normal human. Surely with so many of their most dangerous rogues on the loose they’d be working in pairs at least? Was another vigilante out there in worse shape…or dead? Or had they actually split up to work alone?

He got up and grabbed the first aid kit, he couldn’t just let him keep bleeding out on the floor. The scissors wouldn’t cut through his uniform which made sense when they faced guys with blades and guns regularly so he needed another way and fast, that was way too much blood beginning to pool on the floor, thankfully he didn’t have carpet.

Alfred checked the children over even as they worked on their reports. There were scattered injuries but nothing needing more than a stitch or two, most needing only some cleaning up and band-aids. Miss Stephanie had rolled her ankle and that needed strapping and ice.

Sadly, Master Tim had not returned with them. He hoped the boy remembered to tend to his own injuries, though he seemed to have gotten better at that otherwise he would be ill far more often from infections. He would call and check in the morning.

Pain…hands…moving him…gentle… “Nggg….”

“Can you hear me?”

That voice…he knew it. He hurt, cold, tired…but… “D’ny?” He struggled to open his eyes, a blurry figure slowly forming.

“D’ny?”

Danny froze, confused, how did Red Robin know his name? Because that was definitely an attempt to say Danny. “It’s okay, you’re safe,” he murmured in reply.

Gotham’s bats protected the people like he used to protect his people. For now, he would ignore his name and keep working to stabilise the other.

“You’re badly hurt, can your top be removed without taking off the cowl?” he asked, hoping Red could understand him. If it came down to his life or identity, Danny would choose saving his life and live with whatever consequences came.

Red’s hand weakly moved to tug at something and Danny leant over to see hidden fasteners.

“Okay, I’m going to try and be careful but I need to be quick to get to your wounds,” he warned. More and more blood was pooling on his floor and he had the feeling some of the cold was from blood loss rather than Freeze.

He managed to get the various bits of utility equipment off before undoing the fasteners, peeling the blood-soaked unknown material from a very nice body. He assumed there was Kevlar or something in it but also something else since it was pretty flexible. Under it was a short sleeved, skin-tight, top of material he’d seen sports people wear, designed to keep sweat from clinging – wool or polyester or something. That was thankfully very easy to cut off of the limp body. He blinked as he stared at the scar on the vigilante’s left…he knew that scar…he’d seen it before but that would mean…he’d used Danny’s name. And it wasn’t just that scar that was familiar.

“Polaris?” he whispered, watching Red Robin shift, fingers twitching towards him.

Well…that explained a lot. Everyone knew the rumours that the bat clans face gear was booby trapped to keep it from being removed by strangers but that wouldn’t stop him phasing it off…but unless there was a sign of head injury then he should leave it on. And maybe he was wrong, was seeing something in Red’s reactions that wasn’t there, but it explained so much if it was true.

He sighed and pressed his hand to the worst wounds, ice forming over them. The most worrying was on his upper left arm, right over the artery and from the blood he’d lost… Considering how cold Tim was, ice was risky, but it was the best method he had to ensure that he didn’t finish losing what blood was left in his body. He couldn’t risk Tim’s identity by calling an ambulance and those wounds needed more than simple stitches. Once they were iced over to begin healing, he went to work on the rest, cleaning and stitching them, thankful that some only needed steri-strips to hold them together. His ribs were already turning a nice purple with a smallish impact mark that Danny had the feeling came from a bullet, good thing he wore armoured clothing. By the time he was done with those he melted the ice to find the wounds were smaller and shallower, so he cleaned and stitched them as well. He then felt around Tim’s waist, he felt horrible but his pants or whatever they were, were soaked even if he had drawn most of the coldness from them earlier. He had to search a bit but eventually figured out how to remove them and his boots, leaving him in skin-tight under garments which were also wet. He had to get him warm so privacy had to be ignored, which meant totally stripping Tim.

He ducked into the bathroom and grabbed a towel as well as a familiar pill bottle. He rubbed Tim down to dry him off and start warming him up, trying not to look since he’d never seen Tim naked before, then dressed him in some of his own clothes before settling him in the bed. He grabbed a glass of water and opened the bottle; glad Tim had agreed to leave a spare bottle of his antibiotics behind in case he forgot to bring them. He poured out a pill and carefully got Tim to swallow it.

“D’y.”

“I’m here Tim, you’re going to be okay.” He wanted to crawl in with him, hold him, but he would only make things worse.

He stroked a too cool cheek and Tim leant into his touch, Danny wishing he could see his eyes. When he went completely limp, breathing steadying out, Danny knew he’d fallen asleep or passed out. He couldn’t rest though, keeping vigil throughout the morning, watching him carefully. If he got worse there’d be no choice but to call for help.

Bruce frowned when Tim’s comm and phone went unanswered. There was nothing concerning in Damian’s report, except he made no mention of running into Freeze. The GCPD had picked him and quite a few of his men up in the area he’d assigned the two teens to at Dick’s suggestion. Damian had long since stopped his attempts to kill Tim, he had come to accept that they didn’t kill and that they were all Bruce’s children.

But the relationship between his two youngest had never grown, despite all efforts. They only worked together if pushed to or if the world was in danger.

“Batman?”

“Has Red Robin returned to his Nest, Oracle? He isn’t answering.”

“Last message on the system has him headed in after handling Freeze,” she answered after a moment.

“Hn.” He cut the connection, frowning slightly.

That was a few hours ago, Tim could simply already be asleep, exhausted from the night. Dealing with those numbers alone was always very tiring and Tim had likely taken at least some minor injuries, so it wasn’t surprising that he’d retreated home to rest and recover. His comm would be in his Nest and his phone was probably just on Do Not Disturb. When he woke, he’d see the missed call and respond. There was no reason to worry.

TBC…

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: Don’t own them

Chapter 3

Alfred ended the call after leaving a message. He wasn’t overly concerned, not yet but…it was unlike Master Tim to be unavailable for so long, not without some kind of warning given he was expected at work. He knew where Tim’s apartment was, he had seen the rebuilt theatre, thought that it was very well done. He assumed Tim was in the penthouse but he had never actually been inside, he delivered the care packages to WE. He did not blame the boy for being so protective of his home but it wasn’t entirely safe either. Perhaps he should call Tim’s friend and assistant, young Tamara Fox.

Waking was a slow process, his body screaming at him in pain but that wasn’t anything new. He blinked and realised he was still wearing his cowl but lying on a bed…not his own bed or the cot in his Nest or even the medical bay of the Cave. He kept his breathing steady even as he glanced around without moving his head, relieved to find he was unrestrained at least. He spotted his uniform and gear lying on the nearby table in a pile, his boots on the floor. A familiar picture of the Chicago skyline adorned the nearby wall and his eyes widened. He knew where he was, but how had he gotten to Danny’s apartment? He remembered fighting Freeze and his guys…the cops arriving…after that everything was hazy.

Noise cut off and he realised it was the shower, his heart racing, making him feel lightheaded. His cowl was in place and there was no sign anyone had tried to remove it. He knew Danny was kind, had a big heart, but to just patch up a vigilante who crashed into his apartment…literally, because he could now see the trash bag and broom across the room and yeah, that was a boarded-up window. He’d pay to get that replaced; Danny couldn’t spare the money.

And then Danny walked in, still pulling his shirt down, giving Tim a glance at very nice skin…and a scar. Was that why Danny always covered up? But he’d seen Tim’s scars, he’d half collapsed on Danny thanks to his stupid missing spleen and an infected cut. And Tim was dressed in casual clothing…Danny had stripped him…he’d have seen.

He turned his head slowly and Danny looked at him, relaxing.

“You’re awake,” he sounded relieved. “How do you feel?”

“Confused,” he managed to answer, tongue heavy in his dry mouth.

“Here.” Danny grabbed a water bottle and held it to his lips, Tim gratefully drinking slowly. “Well, you look a lot better than you did when you crashed through my window.”

“Sorry.”

“Don’t be, you needed help. Sorry about the clothes but yours were soaked and you were heading for hypothermia. You were losing a lot of blood too.”

Tim shifted, feeling the pull of stitches from multiple wounds, the weakness of his limbs. He looked at Danny who had perched on the edge of the bed, staring at him, looking for any sign he knew. “I’ll pay for the window,” he offered quietly.

“Hungry?” Danny asked instead of mentioning the window at all.

Tim considered it but then nodded, he should eat to help get his energy levels back up. “How long’ve I been here?” talking was exhausting. How much blood had he lost? He didn’t feel cold at least and he could feel his extremities. But it could explain the mental fog.

“It was about 3am when you arrived so,” Danny twisted to see the clock, “eight hours.”

His comm wasn’t active in his ear, did anyone realise? Did they think he’d just gone back to his Nest and crashed from exhaustion? If his trackers had been activated then surely someone would be there, he couldn’t tell without his wrist computer which was in his gauntlet and in the pile of clothes. Should he call O or at least turn the comm on and see if anyone had tried to call him?

“Food please,” he whispered, and Danny smiled before turning away.

He didn’t know what to say, how to ask if Danny knew without giving away his identity if Danny didn’t. Maybe…maybe he should tell him. He watched Danny empty a can into a bowl and then put it in the microwave in the small kitchen, hesitating. It would break all Bruce’s rules but he was about as much a Bat as Jason was anymore so why did he have to follow them? Before he could second guess himself, he reached up for the cowl, grimacing at the sharp pain in his arm, the pull of stitches, struggling a little but in the end, he got it off and let it fall to the bed.

“It’s pretty ba…” Danny trailed off as their eyes met. “Tim.”

He managed a shaky smile, heart in his throat. “Hey.”

Danny went to the kitchen to get some food. Red Robin hadn’t said anything about him stripping him, yet. Did he not realise that his scars would give his identity away? Or maybe the idea was they’d both ignore it and pretend he didn’t know? His kitchen wasn’t the best stocked but he managed a tin of meat and vegetable soup to help with the blood loss at least.

“It’s pretty ba…” Danny trailed off as their eyes met. “Tim,” he murmured. He’d taken the cowl off so it looked like they weren’t pretending. He looked terrible, too pale, the bags under his eyes three times worse than normal, hair lank.

Tim gave a shaky smile in return. “Hey.”

Danny crossed the room and set the bowl down, reaching out slowly to stroke his cheek. “You really scared me, Tim. I thought I was going to have to call an ambulance for a vigilante! And that was before I realised it was you.”

“My scars,” Tim grimaced, and Danny nodded.

“If not for the splenectomy scar it could be brushed off, but that one’s very distinctive.”

“How’d you even know how to get my gear off?” he looked confused.

“You don’t remember?” Danny asked, not really surprised given his condition at the time. He was glad Tim had warmed up and was coherent now, he was actually surprised Tim was managing to speak as well as he was considering how exhausted he looked, it would take longer for his blood to fully replenish.

Tim grimaced and shook his head. He was aware at least which was a good sign, though he seemed a bit sluggish and weak.

“Well, you crashed through the window, landed half on your side and on your stomach. I thought you were dead till you moaned. Rolled you over out of the glass to find your outfit the wrong shade of red with a bunch of cuts in it. Your lips were blue from cold and you were soaking wet, I’m guessing melted ice.”

Tim nodded, he remembered being clipped by more than one blast, which had not been fun, but thankfully never enough to actually freeze him...oh and at least one bullet that his suit had stopped. Imagining Danny seeing him like that made him feel sick. What a way to introduce him to the vigilante life. He listened as Danny explained Tim rousing enough to show him how to get out of the top half of his uniform…and how he’d said Danny’s name, if very slurred. Well, it seemed he’d outed himself before Danny had ever seen anything.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered, and Danny frowned.

“For what, the window?”

“For lying to you,” Tim clarified tiredly, all he wanted to do was sleep but he had to tell Danny. “One of the first rules is protecting our identities. I’ve been trying to figure out when and how to tell you, I swear it. Maybe others in the community would say it’s too soon, we’ve only known each other a bit over a year, but I trust you.” He needed him to know that and he could feel his energy waning, not surprising.

“It’s okay Polaris, just eat and get some more sleep. Do you need to call anyone first?”

He shook his head; he hadn’t planned to go into the office today so it’d be fine. Danny helped him sit up carefully so as to not tear any of his stitches and then held the bowl for him while he ate. By the time he was done he could barely keep his eyes open.

“Need the bathroom?” Danny asked, and Tim managed to shake his head, feeling Danny gently ease him back down before moving away.

Tim fumbled to grab his hand. “Stay…s’okay, know…you’re meta,” he slurred out. Stupid blood loss…

Bruce checked the system; Tim wasn’t expected in the office for the next few days and he wasn’t answering his phone. He was understandably…prickly about anything that could be considered an invasion of his privacy these days, but Tim would never let so many checks go unanswered, none of them would. It had only been eight hours but if Tim had been hurt…

He logged into the system and frowned, Tim’s trackers…weren’t listed. “Oracle,”

“B?” She answered after a few moments.

“I can’t access Red Robin’s trackers.”

“One moment,” she answered, yawning. He felt bad but it couldn’t wait. “Got it, they’re stationary…apartment block not too far from the University.” And where Freeze had been. “Might be a safehouse.”

“It isn’t listed?”

“Most of his places aren’t anymore,” she admitted.  There was silence for a few minutes. “At least three of the residents could pass as Tim so it looks like it is a safehouse. Want me to dig and find out exactly which one?”

“Not yet, if he was too exhausted to make it home then he could just be sleeping. Just keep an eye out.”

“Understood.”

Danny caught Tim’s hand as it dropped from his arm, gently placing it on the bed as Tim’s breathing evened out, dead asleep. Meta…Tim thought he was a Meta. It would be so easy to just roll with that but…Tim had told him the truth about him, had been trying to work out how even before he’d subconsciously come to him for help. How could he lie, even by omission, when Tim had trusted him with his life and secret?

It was one thing to be a vigilante and worried to tell your boyfriend, but Danny’s secret…so much of his life was a lie, even with how they’d tried to keep his records as close to the truth as possible. Added on that, what he was…would it all be too much? Would he lose Tim if he told him the truth? He had time, he wouldn’t tell Tim till he was healed and that would take some time. He’d have to watch carefully for any signs of infection too, make sure to give him his antibiotics on time. He wished he could give him back his spleen…maybe he should send a message to Frostbite, maybe there was a way. After all, Tim was being exposed to Ectoplasm just by being close to him, if he got to liminal levels maybe they could boost his immune system or something.

Danny reached out and gently brushed Tim’s hair back from his face, he needed a haircut but Danny liked the extra length and kind of hoped he didn’t cut it. Then again, it might get in the way of his vision which would be risky.

“I love you,” he whispered, pressing a soft kiss to his forehead. He felt warm to Danny, but no warmer than usual thankfully. He’d shown no sign of mental impairment either which was a very big relief, between the blood loss and hypothermia…brain damage had been a risk but he’d shown no obvious signs of that. Once he told Tim the truth, he’d find a way to get him to Frostbite for a full check-up, just to be safe.

Even before this near miss, Danny could sense that Tim had been touched by death before, he’d never truly crossed the line but had come very close, too close. Likely when he lost his spleen but there’d been other close calls too which was to be expected now that he knew Tim was Red Robin and therefore had once been Robin. That was what everyone assumed anyway, the old Robins moved on to new identities. The first had been obvious, Robin had become Nightwing and even taken on a city of his own. The second was more difficult and many thought he had died. The current Robin was young and used a sword but…Tim fit the age for the third Robin, who had vanished almost a year before Red Robin appeared in Gotham.

Knowing Tim’s identity…no, Danny pushed all the lines and dots that could be connected out of his mind. It would be so easy, obvious, but Danny would not think about it. He knew what it was like to have your identity exposed against your will. It was why Danny Fenton was legally dead, and another reason the idea of Vlad being dead didn’t bother him as much as it should, beyond making him the last.

Danny grabbed his laptop and settled in to work on his classwork while watching over Tim.

Barbara checked Tim’s trackers again, still in the suspected safehouse. It made sense for him to have one near the University, he often patrolled there and it was a fair way back to his place since it was on the border of Crime Alley. Hearing he had bought and renovated the Monarch Theatre had been a shock and she’d half expected a reaction from Bruce, but he seemed fine with it. And a few other buildings in the area had undergone renovations as well, offering safe and secure living space. Even Jason had left it alone which was a miracle given how territorial over the Alley he was.

She brought up Damian’s report, seeing no mention of Tim being injured during their takedown...and no mention of going up against Freeze. That didn’t make sense, Freeze and a lot of his goons had been picked up from their assigned area. Had they split up to handle the two Rogues quicker? Damian had taken Scarecrow down before he ever reached a supply of fear gas, thankfully. But from the police reports, Freeze had been freezing the city already, however the police hadn’t spotted any of the bats, just one or two of RR’s discs left behind.

So why hadn’t Tim gone home yet? A deeper dive found that one apartment had been given extra security work. What could have driven him that deep into hiding though? Was it only being too tired to make it home or something worse? Looking back through the data she found that his civilian tracker pinged there quite often, not that she monitored their civilian trackers unless they hit the panic button. All of that data was automatically recorded in case it was needed later but not monitored for privacy reasons. She had only checked now to see if he was likely in a safehouse and hadn’t managed to get himself kidnapped or something.

She couldn’t find a link back to any of the identities she knew Tim had, but figured he had several no one knew of. There were three definite options among the residents for a false id but several others could also fit given Tim’s gift with disguises. Still, the apartment rented by one Daniel Nightingale was the most likely given the extra security. Daniel Nightingale was Tim’s age, black hair and blue eyes…originally from Chicago.  

He wasn’t answering on comms, he had it deactivated, and his phone was going to voicemail plus registering at his home and not where he currently was. She didn’t want to invade his privacy, something he’d guarded fiercely the last few years. Not that she blamed him after finally digging into the events that had led to him leaving for Europe. If only Cass hadn’t flown out that morning, Tim was closest to her out of all the family anymore. Next best…would be Jason.

Barbara frowned and sat back from her monitors. Was this something she needed to have checked or was Tim just trying to get time alone on occasion? Bruce wanted someone to check on him but Tim had become such a loner since his return, still, not responding to any communication was concerning. As much as she hated it, she suspected Tim would soon be independent of the rest of the Bats, though she’d keep working with him if he wanted. Dick…Dick had been overwhelmed yes, but Tim had only been seventeen and hadn’t been searching for independence the way Dick had at the same age. Just taking Robin from him that way, not listening…everything Dick had done when it came to Tim had been the wrong move. Tim had never truly reconnected with the family after his and then Bruce’s return and it wasn’t from lack of trying but after a few months, he’d given up.

She’d give him today but if he didn’t answer or at least show up for work tomorrow then she’d call Jason to check on him.

Tim opened his eyes to find himself staring up at Danny’s ceiling. What…oh, yeah. He winced when he tried to move, body screaming in protest. It felt like his bruises had bruises but he didn’t feel so lightheaded this time. He turned his head to find Danny sitting beside the bed, laptop on his lap but watching him instead of the screen, concern and relief obvious in his expression.

“How do you feel?” he asked softly, reaching out.

Tim lifted an aching arm to take his hand. “Sore,” he admitted, and Danny snorted.

“Considering the number of stitches, not surprising.” He reached out his other hand and Tim sighed as cool fingers ran through his hair, brushing his forehead. “No fever which is good. Feel up to eating something? You shouldn’t take your meds on an empty stomach.”

“Yeah,” he agreed because he knew Danny was right, the last thing he needed was to get nauseas with so many stitches, throwing up would be agony and risk popping them. He watched as Danny heated up some more canned soup, grimacing, but he knew it would be safer than solids for a while. At least his head didn’t feel so fuzzy now, that was an improvement.

“Let’s get you sitting up,” Danny murmured after putting the bowl beside the bed, leaning over to take Tim’s weight as he sat up, pillows supporting him.

He couldn’t help the small hiss of pain and then Danny’s hand was pressed to his side, cool skin easing the pain, surprising him by the open acceptance of his differences. “Thanks.” Maybe knowing Tim’s secret was helping Danny be more open about his own? Had he…had he mentioned Danny being a meta as he fell asleep, it was hazy.

“Want some painkillers?”

“Not on top of the antibiotic and that’s more important.” He couldn’t afford to get an infection, not with his immune system.

“You’ll need to call Tam and let her know you’ll be working from home for a while or off totally,” Danny pointed out as he traded the bowl for a glass of water and pill bottle.

Tim shook his head. “I can go in.”

“Tim…” Danny grimaced, lingering fear in his eyes, and Tim froze, how badly had his sudden appearance scared him? “You nearly died, as in I was seconds away from having to do CPR. More of your blood was on your gear and my floor than in your body. I was genuinely worried about brain damage from the cold, still am honestly. Obviously not massive levels since you’re awake and able to hold a conversation but…”

Oh. He’d…it couldn’t have been that bad, could it? He would have been out longer. He looked down at the shirt he was in, one of Danny’s so it didn’t quit fit right. Danny was taller and a little broader through the shoulders than Tim was so it was baggy. Peeking out from the neck and arm holes were bandages, lots of bandages. “I need to see.”

Danny hesitated but then nodded. He carefully helped lean Tim forward a bit, tugging the shirt up and off. Tim slumped back against the pillows and then looked down again. His entire torso was wrapped in bandages and there were sections where the blood had come through. “Should change these any way.”

Danny cut through the bandages with scissors and Tim stared at the wounds revealed. Oh. Some weren’t all that deep, others held closed with steri-strips, but the majority had needed stitches. Danny’s work was surprisingly good, pretty straight and neat which meant he had a bit of experience but how? Tim had already had a good number of scars, now he would have even more. And one of them was right over the brachial artery. Looked like he’d have to stick with t-shirt, nothing sleeveless, not that he ever really did. And he never went swimming in public either so that wouldn’t have to change.

“Easy Tim, it’s okay, you’re going to be okay,” Danny’s voice called him back out of his head, and he looked up into worried blue. “Let’s get these rewrapped, okay?”

Tim nodded tiredly, finding he was breathing too fast, forcing himself to take slow deep breaths as it really hit just how close he’d come to dying. He did his best to shift his weight to help as Danny wrapped the wounds again and with the ache in his ribs it was probably good that they were wrapped. He didn’t think broken but definitely bruised, maybe cracked. He remembered fighting, but he didn’t remember taking this bad a beating…had he run into another fight after Freeze? He couldn’t even help get the shirt back on, Danny having to gently move his arms through the sleeves. What energy he’d had was all but gone, his body slumping in Danny’s hold.

“Get some more sleep,” Danny murmured, pressing a soft kiss to the corner of his mouth. He went to leave and Tim fumbled to grab his hand.

“Stay.” He tugged tiredly.

“You need to stay warm,” Danny denied, the closest he’d ever gotten to saying anything about it.

“Please.” he didn’t want to be alone.

“Okay.” Danny got on the bed, not under the covers with him but he lay beside him, holding him, and that was better.

Tim closed his eyes and let sleep pull him down, feeling safe.

Jason stared at the apartment, frowning under his helmet at the boarded-up window. It was definitely recent. Surely the Replacement hadn’t missed? Had the safehouse been attacked? According to Barbara, the kid had been in the apartment since the night of the breakout, so over a day. Odds were, he’d been hurt and was hiding it, but she was worried. As one of the few Bats he could stand and actually talked with regularly, not to mention a great resource, he didn’t want to alienate her.

The apartment had other windows that he could use as access or he could just use a microphone to listen in. He set it up very carefully, if Timmy caught him…well, the kid could be quite creative when it came to revenge.

“How’re you feeling?” An unfamiliar voice asked.

“Not lightheaded or sick anymore, and not as weak,” that was Tim, sounding tired and frustrated.

“Good,” the other sounded relieved. “Was really starting to think I’d have to call someone, get you a blood transfusion or something.”

“Hey, I’ll be okay,” Tim’s voice now was quiet, gentle. “And I’m still paying for a new window so we need to arrange that.”

“Once the bloodstains are gone and your gear very well hidden.”

“Sorry about the mess,” Tim sighed. “I must have been completely out of it to not even stop and knock on the window.”

“With the way you smashed through it I’m guessing you passed out in mid-air, I’m very grateful I didn’t find you dead in the alley,” the other voice was tight with fear.

“I’m here Danny, I’m alive thanks to you.”

Well, it seemed Tim knew whoever he was with, trusted them. And Tim was the reason the window was bordered up, did that mean…he’d crashed in as Red Robin? Tim had addressed his companion by name but this Danny hadn’t used Tim’s. Someone he knew as Red Robin then? They all had their own contacts, informants, and the like. Tim sounded clear enough, in pain, but not in an altered state so it was unlikely he was drugged or had a bad head injury. He listened for a while longer but the two sounded comfortable with each other so he slipped away after contacting Oracle.

Babs was surprised when Jason slipped into the Clocktower rather than just report in. “He’s alright?”

He held out the memory card from his remote microphone and she inserted it. “Injured but recovering,” he told her. “The main window was boarded up because he passed out and crashed through it.”

“What?” she asked in alarm.

“He’s with someone, they never used his name or call sign so I don’t know what they know but given he crashed in as Red.” Jason just shrugged.

She queued up the recording and played it, listening as the person who had to be Daniel Nightingale talked gently with Tim. How much blood had he lost?

“Don’t give B the address,” Jason warned.

“Why not?” she demanded. Tim obviously needed medical attention!

“He’s healing and safe Babs, if he wants anyone to know, he’ll call. Don’t break his trust.”

She sighed and slumped back but nodded. She would watch the building though.

Danny carefully took Tim’s weight as they stood next to the bed, seeing the pain Tim was trying to hide. “Yeah, no,” he muttered, bending to get an arm behind his knees.

“DanNY!” Tim yelped the last bit of his name as Danny stood, cradling Tim to his chest.

“You’re in too much pain to walk, so no walking,” he stated firmly, carrying Tim across the room to the bathroom.

Sometimes having a tiny one room apartment came in handy, like making him carrying Tim a lot more believable than in a bigger space. There wasn’t much difference in their sizes after all and Tim wasn’t light thanks to the amount of muscle he had from his nightlife. Then again, did it matter if Tim realised that he was stronger than he looked when Danny was going to tell him the truth once he was back on his own feet? He helped Tim use the facilities and then carefully used a damp cloth to wipe over his body, at least where he wasn’t covered in bandages. Tim had paled a bit from all the movement but he didn’t look like he was about to pass out or anything.

Danny knelt in front of him, hands skimming over the bandages, relieved to find he hadn’t bled through again. “Want some painkillers now?” Good thing he stocked normal stuff even though it didn’t work for him, he didn’t have a way to access the kind that did anymore. It was too risky to open a portal, that much power would be far too easy for the GIW to track which meant when his last supplies from Frostbite ran out, that had been it.

Tim shook his head. “I’m okay.”

Danny rolled his eyes but accepted the answer, figuring Tim had a reason to turn them down. He only had over the counter stuff; it probably wasn’t strong enough to do much given the amount of injuries Tim had. “Okay. Want me to try to wash your hair? If I drag a chair in it should be high enough for you to lean back into the sink.”

Tim touched his hair and grimaced. “Sounds good.”

Danny left him leaning against the wall while sitting on the closed toilet, grabbing the chair and setting it in place before helping Tim across. And yes, it was a good height once Tim leant back. Danny made sure the water was warm but not hot and soaked Tim’s hair to wash it. He smiled when he realised Tim had begun to dose off as he massaged his scalp. He carefully towelled his hair dry when done and then carried him back to bed, settling him as carefully as possible so as not to wake him.

He still looked pale, but nowhere near as bad as he had that first night and the bruises under his eyes looked a bit smaller too. Tim was recovering, but how long till someone came looking for him? Then again, Tim didn’t seem to have much to do with the family, was it the same in their night jobs? Surely, they worked more together then? But when Danny had looked up vigilante sightings online, Red Robin was mostly spotted alone.

If it wouldn’t lead the wrong sort to Gotham, it’d be interesting to see if Phantom could be his partner. But even with all the Ectoplasm in the city, it wasn’t worth the risk. Sure, the acts weren’t as all-encompassing as the GIW had led Amity Park to believe, but Phantom and therefore Danny Fenton was covered because he was a threat. Despite the fact all he’d ever done was try to protect people and then both people and ghosts. They’d labelled him a menace and a threat which meant the acts applied to him. And the bats might be vigilantes but they worked with the Justice League who followed the law. So, he could tell Tim he was a halfa…but if he told him he was Phantom then Tim was obligated to turn him over. Tell Tim everything and lose everything because he couldn’t accept it or turned him in. He couldn’t ask Tim to not do it, not when the League’s status could be shaky at times. If Tim could accept what he was, then turning him in…it’d break his heart. If he’d known Tim was a Bat, he’d have never spoken to him, never risked putting them both in this kind of situation.

It would be so easy to let Tim just think he was a meta, to keep his life and happiness, but it would all be a lie. He’d message Tucker before he told Tim, warn him and then ditch the phone completely so no one could use him to find his old friend, his brother. For now, he would enjoy the time he had with Tim as he healed.

“Any word on Master Tim?” Alfred asked as he carried in the cup of coffee to the study.

“Barbara has confirmed that he’s in a safehouse, injured but healing,” Master Bruce offered, and Alfred relaxed a little at the confirmation that he was alive.

Being in a safehouse meant no primary phone however he should have access to a burner or something, but why was his comm off? Who was tending his wounds? Perhaps he should contact Miss Barbara himself since Master Bruce was being rather reticent.

TBC…

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: don’t own them

Chapter 4

Bruce listened to the recording Jason had made, curious about this Daniel Nightingale who looked enough like his son that Barbara had thought he was another fake id of Tim’s. He began looking into the man…teenager, only a few months difference between them in age. A student at GothamU on scholarship…who worked in Tim’s favourite coffee shop. Did he know Tim as Tim or Red Robin? Had Tim’s identity been compromised?

Engineering and astrophysics with good grades, the kid was smart. Originally from Chicago, orphan…hit by lightning? He had Bat levels of luck apparently, both bad and good. And he better not let anyone see Nightingale’s file or else he’d be fending of adoption jokes for months. Still, there was nothing alarming in the file, nothing to suggest he’d be a threat, and Tim had gone to him injured which meant his son trusted him.

Danny…the name he had overheard Tim say on that phone call. It had to be him, which meant he knew Tim as himself. He had to trust his son’s judgement; Tim would never endanger their identities.

Tim very carefully sat up, trying not to pant, not wanting to wake Danny who was slumped over on the couch. He looked exhausted, even in his sleep, and Tim felt guilty. He could have called someone for a pickup but…he wanted to be with Danny. Danny who had called into work and classes to stay with him when he couldn’t afford to lose his job or risk his scholarship.

The sooner he could get up, the sooner someone could come fix the window. His being bed bound and wrapped in bandages would be too interesting, even if he wasn’t recognised. Then again, Danny knew the truth now, could come to his place…maybe, move in? Either way, the window would still need to be fixed since if it wasn’t the landlord would be asking questions. Not to mention he’d keep Danny’s security deposit to cover the damages.

So, Tim needed to get at least partially mobile and look less like a murder victim and more like someone recovering from illness or surgery or something. First step was sitting up on his own, so done. Next step was actually getting off the bed, which he was not looking forward to. He felt stronger, no longer lightheaded or anything from the blood loss, but that much movement was going to pull every stitch he had. He hated Danny seeing him in so much pain so it was better to do it while he was sleeping.

He carefully moved his legs till his feet were on the floor, taking deep breaths, well as deep as he could with bruised and wrapped ribs. Okay, he could do this. He pushed up, carful of his bad arm, wobbling dangerously. Cool hands caught him, steadying him, surprising him. Danny was always quiet but that couch was not! He blinked up into worried blue eyes and then looked away.

“Hey,” Danny murmured. “Why didn’t you ask for help?”

Tim shrugged slightly, not wanting to tell him why. He sighed softly, leaning into Danny as a hand moved to gently run through his hair. Danny’s hands then skimmed over his chest, looking for blood on the bandages and Tim let him.

“Nothing popped?” Danny asked.

“No,” Tim assured him.

“Okay, then lean on me and we’ll take it slow.”

Tim blinked in surprise but nodded, letting Danny support him as they moved away from the bed. And it was slow going, every step sending pain through his body but he grit his teeth and kept going. Being bedbound for too long would make his recovery longer and he couldn’t afford that, not unless he wanted the Bats butting into his life. He’d called Oracle yesterday to say he’d cracked a rib and was taking some time to let it heal, they took too many rib shots to risk a crack becoming a break so it was a believable excuse.

“Move in with me?” Tim found himself asking as Danny helped him onto the couch.

“Tim?” Danny was staring at him, startled, eyes wide. It made him look younger than nineteen, almost twenty.

“I’d like you to move in with me. I never offered before, never brought you around, because you didn’t know that I was Red Robin,” he admitted. He shifted into a more comfortable position, wincing as his arm twinged. “But you know now and my place is on a good transport line to the University. Plus, I have Bat level security, lots of space…” he trailed off at the odd expression on Danny’s face. “Danny?”

“I…” Danny swallowed. “I want to Polaris…I want that so much.”

That made Tim’s heart soar but there was something in Danny’s tone that had it racing and not in a good way. And for the first time in a long time, he heard the very faint whispers in the back of his mind, shoving them down. No, no way! Danny had been alone since the accident, was used to being totally independent, moving in together was a big step, that was all. Danny loved him, even knowing he was Red Robin…but there was still so much he didn’t know.

“Hey.” Cool lips pressed to his forehead, snapping Tim out of his own head and back into the present. “I love you,” Danny whispered, eyes sad. “But you’re a Bat, Tim…and the Bats are part of the Justice League…the League follows laws, including US ones for those operating here.”

“What?” Tim frowned in confusion.

Danny shifted back, crouching at Tim’s feet, and Tim hated seeing the fear in those incredible blue eyes. “You said…you know I’m a meta, but…I’m not Tim. I didn’t want to do this till you’ve recovered,” he muttered the last, running a hand through hair shorter than Tim’s own though just as wild.

Tim was confused, if Danny wasn’t a meta, then what… “Are you an alien?” But why would that matter, aliens were protected too.

But why would he think they’d turn him over to the government? Martian Manhunter was a very obvious alien and he was a member of the Justice League. Same with Superman. Was Danny’s species usually an enemy maybe? Did he think he’d be blamed for the crimes of his people? But if that was the case…was this what Danny really looked like?

And Danny was shaking his head, so not an alien. What did that leave? Way too many options really. Danny loved him, Tim trusted him, no matter what he was. Danny had never hurt anyone; his records were to thorough to be fake so he had grown up living a human life.

Tim reached out to cup Danny’s face between his hands. “I trust you,” he swore. Danny had become the one person he had to hold onto, if he lost that…

Danny shifted up out of his crouch and Tim met him, kissing desperately. “I love you…no matter what,” Danny whispered. He stood up and backed away, watching Tim nervously before taking a deep breath.

Tim froze as a ring of light appeared at Danny’s waist before splitting in two and moving separately over his body. Sweatpants and long-sleeved t-shirt turned into black skin-tight material, white boots and gloves…then it moved over his head and Tim swallowed at the bright green eyes and white hair. He trusted Danny, he trusted him…green…

“Tim?” Danny shifted nervously. There was no anger or rage or anything he was used to from eyes that shade.

Danny…Danny was literally glowing! His skin was paler, tinted ever so slightly bluish/green, but that was Danny’s face, his freckles though glowing brighter than the rest of his skin. Tim pushed himself to his feet, staggering forward, and Danny automatically caught him, the coldness of his skin radiating through both of their clothes now. He lifted his hand, feeling Danny tense, so he carefully telegraphed his movements, resting his palm on Danny’s face.

“Beautiful,” he murmured, seeing Danny’s face flush a darker greenish shade.

“Tiiim,” Danny whined, and Tim grinned.

He had so many questions, his mind spinning with possibilities, the part of him trained by the Bats demanding he push for more information…but he could also tell that Danny was on edge, scared even. He never wanted to make Danny scared.

He tugged at Danny to move back to the couch and Danny picked him up, making him yelp and cling on. Yeah, Danny definitely had some kind of super strength going on there. Tim ignored the cold to curl into him and Danny carefully wrapped his arms around him, trembling slightly.

He was almost dozing when he felt a blanket being wrapped around him for warmth but then Danny cautiously took his hand and moved it so Tim’s fingers were resting around his wrist…his pulse point? He frowned slightly, Danny’s heart rate was weirdly slow…not this slow…Tim held his breath as he waited, pressing harder.

His head jerked up to find Danny watching him, awake and aware…but without a pulse.

He frowned as he realised Danny’s records had been accessed several times. Hmm…not government types of access at least, but who? He should have known trouble would eventually find his friend. Well, he’d just have to see who was looking into his friend and make sure they didn’t hurt him. The GIW was mostly quiet these days, there were few hotspots strong enough for their attention. Without the Portal in the Fenton’s basement the Ectoplasm levels in Amity Park had dropped, they were still higher than normal but ghost activity had basically stopped so they’d lost interest.

He'd been sure they had to have gotten their hands on Vlad but there was no evidence anywhere for that happening. They still wanted Phantom but there’d been no sign of him since the explosion. He was glad Danny had managed to keep his head down, for now at least.

Danny waited, Tim’s fingers around his wrist. Tim’s reactions so far had been more than he ever could have dreamed, but when he realised Danny had no pulse? The pressure from Tim’s fingers increased, searching…and then Tim’s head snapped up, meeting his eyes. Tim moved his other hand to rest against his chest but he’d find nothing there either.

“Danny?” Tim was beginning to look very alarmed, but who could blame him? It wasn’t normal to not have a heartbeat. “You’re not breathing.” Tim could feel that with his hand on his chest, and Danny nodded.

“Tim…” he didn’t want to tell him, to lose this.

“Whatever it is, I’m on your side Danny. Though, please don’t be a villain?”

Danny snorted at that. “Well…I think there’s still a warrant out for theft,” he offered, and Tim’s eyes widened in shock. “But there was mind control involved.”

And Tim relaxed, relieved. Danny moved a hand to run through black hair, keeping an eye on Tim for any signs of pain from his injuries, but he was very good at hiding it which made sense now.

Good to know that he hadn’t misjudged Danny’s character that badly, though even if he hadn’t been under mind control there were reasons for theft that he could accept. If Danny had been on the streets and in need of food for example. Jason had stolen as a kid, had tried to take the Batmobiles’ tires even.

Though the idea of Danny being subjected to mind control scared him, he’d seen how that could mess people up, what it could make them do. That Danny had been made to steal wasn’t really very bad considering what he could have been made to do. But Danny also might not be telling everything, and that had to be okay. He couldn’t demand information from him.

Tim shifted to sit up, facing Danny, taking his hands before Danny could pull away. “What were you made to steal that you’d be worried about us following the law…well, the big ones, mostly? And mind control is a known defence, you won’t be prosecuted for that. And I…” oh boy, he had to tell Danny what he’d done but Danny was a civilian, would he understand?

“Tim?”

He took a deep breath. “Between my day and night jobs, there are a lot of people…well, it’s standard…” he didn’t want to say it.

“Background check?” Danny offered, and Tim nodded hesitantly. “I know you did; I know what records you saw thanks to a friend who keeps an eye on that. Of course, I figured it was because you were a Wayne and were worried about corporate espionage and kidnappings.”

Okay, Danny knew, that was good. But he had a friend who watched his records? To help keep his secret? “There were no arrest warrants or anything in your name Danny.”

And now it was Danny hesitating, even as light spread over his body, restoring his human appearance. Was it an illusion? Shape shifting? Magic? But it was more comfortable holding his hands once it was done, his skin warmer, his pulse present. Though his life signs were still very slow, his skin cool. The light had moved quickly and Tim hadn’t had time to let go, but it hadn’t hurt or done anything to him.

“My records…are fake,” he admitted softly, and Tim froze.

No, that wasn’t possible. He knew fake records, he had a lot of id’s ready to go, they all did. No matter how good, even there’s had a trace back to the original, it was just that Babs was the best at hiding those traces.

“There’s no sign of that,” he denied, fighting back the paranoia that came so easily to every Bat.

“Because technically I’m legally dead - killed along with my parents, older sister, and school friend when the house blew up. There wasn’t enough left in the rubble to prove I wasn’t there and it was best to be dead.”

Danny…a good portion of his brain was screaming to get up, back away, find a weapon…he’d never imagined being in this situation despite everything he’d been through. And those whispers had become a familiar laugh but he shoved it back again. He’d had a lot of practice with it over the years.

Danny squeezed his hands gently but Tim could feel them trembling. Or was he shaking? He felt a little lightheaded, thoughts spinning. “Tim? Breathe Tim,” Danny sounded worried, and then Tim found his hand pressed to Danny’s chest, feeling the very obvious deep breaths that he was taking. “Come on, breathe with me.”

Tim forced himself to breathe, to listen, even as his thoughts continued to race. But Danny had saved his life, had looked after him, so Tim would listen and hope that he was still the Danny he’d fallen in love with, that it wasn’t all a lie. His mind went back to the first time they met, unable to help it, to the thoughts he’d had then on clones and other ways to make doppelgangers. Because Danny looked like family, enough that Tim had been suspicious as first. But all of his siblings, baring Duke, looked alike to a sometimes scary degree. He’d dismissed those theories when Danny’s records had been so real…had he been wrong?

She knew Tim’s excuse of hurt ribs was false, or at least not the whole story because a cracked rib would never keep him down long…and the recording had mentioned blood stains. She’d been working on tracking his flight to Nightingale’s apartment and had found the footage of his fight with Freeze, horrified by the numbers he’d faced alone and the injuries he’d taken. Even worse, had been the idiot gang members he’d then run into on his way back to his place which had led to his retreat to the apartment.

Nightingale seemed to have some first aid training otherwise Tim should be dead. It was a miracle he’d made it to the apartment alive as it was. The blood trail…well, Jason had cleaned that up to make sure no one came across it, criminal or cop. The last thing they needed was the cops looking for Tim thinking he was an assault victim.

She put the footage and the audio file Jason had supplied into a file and locked it. Tim would never trust her again if she let the others see it all. But she made sure Tim would have access to it on his systems since he likely had some memory loss when it came to the night. Yes, he’d know Jason had been there, but it was only for a few minutes to confirm he was alright. Though she did add a note that Bruce had heard the recording to keep him from tearing the city apart to find Tim. She’d noticed the shift in Bruce’s attention even if Tim hadn’t, but she feared it was too little too late.

Alfred was relieved that Master Tim had made contact. Rib injuries were never pleasant but at least the dear boy was being smart and playing it safe, for once. He might be downplaying the injury to them though, and that might be why he was laying low. Still, at least they knew he was safe and healing.

He was not happy that the boys had split up but if they hadn’t, Crane and Freeze could have done a lot more damage. If Crane had gotten to his stash of fear gas or if Freeze had armed his men with freeze rays… but it had also been reckless, both boys had taken injuries that they may not have if they had been together.

Danny held Tim’s hands again, trying to keep him grounded. He loved Tim, loved that genius brain, but sometimes Tim got lost in it. His thoughts would spiral out of control and he often saw the worst possibilities, which was a lot more understandable now that Danny knew he was Red Robin. And this time it was his fault, because all the details of his life before Gotham were fake and Tim hadn’t seen it.

“Tim, will you let me explain?” he asked softly, heart in his throat. He’d been dreading this day ever since they’d become good friends, let alone started dating.

Tim stared at him, calmer, but with a hardness in his eyes that Danny had never seen. Was this what he was like as a vigilante? “Who are you?”

“Daniel James Fenton,” he answered quietly. “The new records kept as much true as possible, just…shifted events a bit, changed names and locations. I really was in hospital when I was fourteen, but it wasn’t a lightning strike, and my family didn’t die in a car crash but the house blew up. And I’m not from Chicago, though I have been there a few times, I’m from a small city called Amity Park.”

“Why let people think you’re dead?” There was suspicion in Tim’s eyes and he couldn’t really blame him. Danny didn’t doubt that the GIW had happily blamed him for the explosion, or at least Phantom.

“Because according to the US government I’m nothing more than a manifestation of ectoplasmic energy and post-human consciousness and have been since I was fourteen. And while the Acts may not have the power the GIW said they did, I’m still wanted under them. And once they get me it’s dissection and death.”

Danny hated using the terms they did, hated telling Tim what the government thought of him. What…what if Tim believed it? No, Tim was smart, he would believe the evidence right in front of him, not what biased scientists and agents said.

“But the meta protection acts,” Tim frowned, and Danny shook his head.

“Don’t apply. I may have gotten my powers in a lab accident, but no meta gene involved. I…I died Tim. And the same thing that killed me brought me back, but not properly, not all the way. They call me a halfa, half-human…half ghost.”

“Ghost?” The disbelief was clear, not that he could blame him. “Danny…I had a ghost on my team in Young Justice and you looked nothing like her. JL Dark has a ghost on the roster too; they have to use magic to see and speak with him.”

Oh, so it wasn’t a disbelief that ghosts existed but that Danny was one. How could they have ghosts on their teams and let the Acts pass in any form? Then again, they sounded more like Shades then true ghosts if they couldn’t be seen.

“That’s the general name,” Danny offered. “Ectoplasmic being might be more scientific,” he shrugged slightly, leaning back into the couch. He took a deep breath and began explaining his parents research and life’s work.

Tim didn’t pull his hands free even as his mind settled and he listened, examining every word, every expression. He forced himself to follow his training as Danny spoke, hearing the grief when he spoke of his dead family. Amity Park? He’d have to look it up once he could get to a computer, a secure one. Okay, other dimensions were something he knew about, same as gods of the dead like Hades and various afterlives. So the whole idea of a realm with beings made of some kind of energy could be possible, them being seen as ghosts on earth…but then what did that made Deadman and Secret? Then again, she was a living human again so maybe she hadn’t been a true ghost?  

“The portal didn’t work,” Danny murmured, staring at the floor now, eyes shadowed. Tim got the feeling he wasn’t going to like where this was going. “They left the house and I had my friends over. Tucker and Sam…we went down to the lab, they wanted to see the portal.”

Tim grimaced, he could see where it was going and couldn’t help squeezing Danny’s hands.

“I tripped,” he whispered. “Who puts the on switch inside a portal?”

“Danny…” His heart was racing, anticipation and fear.

“Got hit with enough electricity to black out six blocks,” the words were tense, Danny’s gaze distant, and Tim was going to be sick.

That much power… he hoped it’d been quick but he doubted it, not from the look in Danny’s eyes. And this, this, Tim believed. Danny had never spoken of his accident before, had avoided the topic when Tim asked about interesting events in high school…he’d been avoiding lying to Tim in person.

Tim tugged his hands free, seeing Danny flinch, but all he did was move closer. He wrapped his arms around Danny, drawing him up against his chest despite the pain from healing wounds. Danny was tense for a moment but then went limp against him. He couldn’t help moving his hand to rest over Danny’s pulse, how was he alive? His other arm was screaming in pain but he ignored it, the stitches were holding after all.

That much electricity should have fried his heart, his nervous system…his brain. Danny twisted to press his face into Tim’s shoulder, his own shoulders shaking slightly. And Tim…Tim was kind of glad the Fenton’s were dead because it would have been all too easy to arrange something with that kind of lax lab security…in the end it had killed Danny and then killed them plus two innocent kids, even if the daughter had been legally an adult.

“How did you survive?” he whispered after a while. It was a common story for those with powers, to gain them in a lab accident.

“The portal turned-on, right on top of me, ripped a hole through reality and into the Ghost Zone…the Infinite Realms. And Ectoplasm poured out…into me. Fused with my DNA and brought me back over and over as the electricity killed me again and again. Eventually the portal stabilised, the power cut, and the next thing I remember is waking up on the lab floor.”

Tim tightened his grip, eyes closed against tears. He’d heard and seen some horrible accidents and deaths over the years, even before becoming Robin but this… no wonder Danny wasn’t very fond of actually cooking meat, the smell…nope, not thinking about that or he might actually throw up. Danny hadn’t been lying to him for any nefarious reason; Danny was in hiding for his own safety (and they needed to talk about that later). Danny loved him and he needed comfort.

“I’m here.” Tim brushed his lips against Danny’s ear. “Breathe with me,” he coaxed, running a hand through Danny’s hair. “I love you,” he promised, feeling Danny wrap his arms around him in response.

Damian was pleased; Drake was staying away as normal. Yes, Father had spoken to him about their splitting up but given that Crane and Freeze had been in their patrol area and a legitimate threat to civilians, it was easy to say that they had done it for that reason. They didn’t need to know he had slipped away from Drake.

While it was disappointing that he had survived, perhaps he would have finally learnt his lesson.

Jason was worried about Tim. Finding that blood trail…but the kid was alive and healing with his, what? Friend? He was sticking to Gotham for a while, if a partner was needed on patrol, then he’d offer before anyone could volunteer Tim and Damian as a pair. He worked well with Tim these days.

He’d left him a message on comms and his phone, wanting to make sure he was okay. And offering help if he needed it.

Danny shivered as he clung to Tim, feeling warm lips against his ear. He wasn’t pushing him away! Despite knowing Danny was half-dead, he was still holding him, still offering his love. “I love you,” Danny told him.

He sat up and then drew Tim back with him so he was lying on the couch with Tim lying on top of him. He didn’t want to risk Tim hurting himself when he was still healing. Tim kissed him and Danny happily kissed back. He gently ran his hands up and down Tim’s back and Tim shivered but pressed into his touch. Danny touched his forehead, checking for fever but he was still normal temperature thankfully.

“I don’t mind,” Tim told him. “Summer or winter, Danny. Yes, you’re cooler but not that cold. I just want to be with you.”

Danny bit back a sob, kissing him again, tugging him down so Tim’s head was on his shoulder, tugging the throw down to cover them with. Even Jazz and his friends had sometimes found him too cold but Tim said he didn’t mind the cold.

Bruce frowned as he checked the patrol logs, worried about how bad Tim’s injuries really were to keep him from patrolling for so long. They may barely talk, and he knew that was on him, but he at least often caught a glimpse of red and black at the edges of his own route. And sure enough, no log from Red Robin since the Arkham breakout over a week ago. Barbara thought he was safe where he was, but Bruce hated not knowing. Sure, he’d looked into Nightingale, but he didn’t know the teen. No matter the distance between them, Tim was his son.

He hated the distance but didn’t know how to breach it, how to bring Tim back. Or if he should, for Tim’s sake. Looking at Damian’s report of the night, talking to him, …something didn’t feel right and that worried him. Damian taunted Tim, yes, but he’d gotten passed trying to actually harm him. Hadn’t he? Surely he knew if something happened to Tim while they were paired together there would be an investigation.

So, he was hiding in Gotham. Smart, the Ectoplasm would help mask his own signature. Clever. He would need to look closer to see what was going on.

TBC…

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: not mine

Chapter 5

Tim lounged on the couch with Danny’s laptop as Danny let the workmen in. Wearing a baggy sweatshirt and pants his bandages were well concealed and balancing the laptop on his thighs, avoiding his injuries. He looked like any stressed-out college kid, hopefully.

One of the men whistled as they took in the shattered window but they got to work measuring it up. The building was old enough that the windows weren’t the standard size or shape so they had to measure the window space before they could get one cut to size. Tim had bought a new heater online and it had arrived that morning, Danny might not be bothered by the cold but Tim was. And with only cardboard where the window should be, the apartment was not retaining heat well, they were lucky it wasn’t fully winter yet.

It didn’t take the men too long to get the work done and then they left. Tim set the laptop aside, relaxing, Danny joining him on the couch.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Damian headed for his room; hands balled into fists. It was not his fault Drake was so incompetent as to be injured and then not tell anyone. And yet he was the one being punished for it. Robin was benched for two weeks, minimum. It was not like he had tried to kill the elder and he had never been benched for those attempts. Why was Father angry over this?

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Jason slipped his comm in his ear, he’d started wearing one instead of only relying on the one built into his helmet. A bad knock to the helmet could short it out and it had happened before. He was surprised but relieved to find a recorded message waiting there, Tim. He sounded a bit tired but otherwise alright. Sure, he’d heard the kid talking to the apartment renter but it was better to have a message from him.

He finished gearing up and headed out.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

“Alfred Pennyworth,” Alfred answered his phone, not recognising the number.

“Hey Alfred,” the familiar voice answered.

“Master Tim,” he murmured, sitting down in relief. “Dear boy…you’ve given us quite the scare.”

“Sorry Alfie, I didn’t mean to worry you.”

“Indeed. Would I be correct in assuming that it was somewhat worse than your ribs?” he asked dryly, hearing Tim sigh softly.

“Never can fool you,” he murmured. “I’m safe and healing, promise. And I’m with someone I trust.”

“Very well, I shall take your word for it,” the ‘for now’ remained silent. “Is there anything you need?”

“I called Tam to let her know I can’t make it into the office and I have access to a laptop. Neither of us is a cook but I can pay for takeout.”

“Nonsense, I shall simply drop the latest care package with some extras wherever your companion prefers.”

He heard the sound of voices speaking away from the phone for a few moments. “Alright. Thanks Alfred.”

“No trouble at all Master Tim. You might wish to call your father to alleviate his worries as well.”

“Okay, talk you later Alfred.”

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Tim ran his fingers through Danny’s hair, watching him sleep. He’d learnt so much over the last few days, things he never could have imagined. At least he’d gotten the window replaced already and had even managed to be seated on a barstool at the kitchen counter when the workmen had come, rather than the couch like the first time they came. Even better, they hadn’t recognised him. But with little else to do, it left him continually going over what he’d learnt. He couldn’t do much work using Danny’s laptop, it was secure, surprisingly so for a student but more understandable now that he knew the truth. However, it wasn’t the kind of security compatible with WE systems. And it definitely wasn’t secure enough for the research he was itching to do.

The thought of Danny being hunted by the people he saved; his identity found out…it was every vigilante’s nightmare. But the GIW had no authority outside of America, if they stepped foot in Gotham then he’d have Danny on a private jet to Europe immediately. His id was good enough to get through immigration and even if it wasn’t, the Wayne name and money would get him through. And Tim would go with him, he could do casework and WE remotely, it wouldn’t be the first time. The business didn’t stop just because he was in California with the team after all or on a mission halfway around the world.

So how to deal with the Anti-Ecto Acts? Most wouldn’t see any issues with them, maybe come at it as a threat to the Meta Protections? Once he would have gone straight to Clark to start digging and bringing them to light but ever since Bruce…things between him and the League, especially Clark, had been very strained. Things had been strained with Clark ever since he’d befriended Kon but they had been getting better before Kon died.

All it had taken was Dick doubting his sanity for them all to follow along, to turn their backs on him despite everything Tim had done as Robin. It had hurt, it still hurt and…he didn’t trust Clark anymore, not like he used to. He didn’t trust most of the League anymore and that hurt. It was hard to work with them now, but he did it because they all wanted the same thing, Earth to be safe.

But…Diana, he could approach her. She was a Princess, respected by world governments, and she could get the story out to the press, she could give it to Lois maybe. Diana had been busy with something when it had all gone down, she’d even sought him out after Bruce was back and apologised for not being there, swore she would have listened.

He missed how things had been once, before Bruce was ‘killed’, before so many had died…before Damian. It wasn’t all the kids’ fault, other than the murder attempts, his arrival had just lined up with everything else going to hell. His Dad…Steph…Kon…Bart…then seeming to lose Bruce, having Robin taken without even being asked…it had been a really bad time. He’d lied when he told Dick he knew he’d catch him after Ra’s kicked him out the window, he hadn’t had a clue Dick was anywhere near him. He’d had a dislocated shoulder and hadn’t been able to reach his grapple, had accepted what that would mean.

He hadn’t been looking to die but if it happened, well, there were worse ways to go. He’d been too out of it, too used to him being dead, to call for Kon which he’d been yelled at for by his friend later since, as Kon had pointed out, he’d been in Gotham and would have easily made it. A fall from that height it would have been instant and they all knew it. At least it would have been far less painful than if the stab through the spleen had killed him. And that had gotten more yelling from Kon when he’d used his X-ray vision to check him over only to find a space that shouldn’t be there.

Finding out Danny could sense all those near deaths…that made him feel bad.  

Meeting Danny had changed his life for the better and he knew it. Before Danny he’d just been existing, filling his time with work either for WE or as Red Robin. It hadn’t been sustainable and he’d known that even then but he hadn’t been able to stop himself. After they met, he’d been afraid and he could admit it now. He’d been terrified that Danny would end up hurt or dead because of him. Relationships with civilians tended to end badly for said civilian. Clark and Lois’ relationship was a rarity in their community, then again, so were ones between heroes that truly worked out and lasted. Knowing that Danny had been a vigilante once, could protect himself from Tim’s enemies, that fear was far less. It wasn’t totally gone, it couldn’t be, but it was diminished. He’d have to arrange for a spar or something, see how good Danny was without powers since it was dangerous for him to use them much.

Danny stirred, blue eyes opening slowly and then he smiled at him, and Tim smiled back.

“Morning,” he greeted.

“Morning,” Danny yawned. “How long have you been awake?” He didn’t move from where he was curled against Tim, head against his shoulder.

“A while,” Tim admitted, leaning in for a kiss.

Danny kissed back, shifting to rest one hand at the back of Tim’s neck, something he would have never done before sharing the truth. Tim was getting used to the difference in their body temperatures and he knew he’d love it in summer.

“Should check your stitches,” Danny murmured after a while.

Tim sighed but began undoing the buttons of the shirt he’d been sleeping in. He’d had to order some clothing delivered since he hadn’t been able to get his arms up and into a shirt so had been relying fully on Danny’s help to dress. His arm was still very painful and weak so the button ups just made more sense. And then Danny gently pushed his hands aside, undoing the buttons for him.

Tim wasn’t body shy, hadn’t been since Bruce had sent him overseas for training, but he was also very aware of all his scars and now the newly forming ones. Danny didn’t seem to care at all about them, except for the pain they might give him. it had been what had made Tim hesitant about their relationship progressing, he just had too many scars for his lifestyle, even with the public shooting and his past as a skateboarder.

Danny got his shirt off and then peeled off the sterile coverings from each wound since the bandages were no longer needed. “The ice helped speed things up, looks like these can be removed already.”

“Really?” He was shocked. Ever since he’d lost his spleen, he’d healed a bit slower. But sure enough, when he looked down, there was no redness or swelling, the skin looked good. “Ice that heals,” he murmured. Probably not the weirdest thing he’d ever seen but it was up there.

Danny went to work carefully removing the stitches and Tim lay back, not flinching as each stitch was removed. He barely noticed the sting after so many years.

“So…”

“So?” Danny glanced up before going back to work.

“Would you consider moving in with me?”

“Even with the risk?”

“You said they can’t track you here and even if they did, well, the fact we’ve been dating for years completely disproves all of their theories on ghosts. Which I would very loudly yell to the press. I might not spend time with the others these days, but I was trained by Batman among a lot of other very smart and deadly teachers. Contingencies are what we do and I can think of three already if they did show up before I can get someone looking into the laws,” Tim assured him.

Having a more serious media persona than ‘Brucie’ meant that if Tim made noise, people would listen more carefully than if Bruce did. Thankfully, Bruce found it amusing and not upsetting that the press listened to Tim more seriously. So if Tim claimed that ecto-entities existed and were being targeted, they would listen and begin to dig into it. He would leave it up to them to make the connection to ghosts.

Danny carefully recovered the wounds since some had leaked a little blood once the stitches were pulled, but that was normal. But he didn’t look up.

“Danny?” Tim reached out to him, gently touching his cheek.

“Really?” Danny whispered, glancing up.

“Really. I won’t let them hurt you or any other peaceful ghost,” he swore.

He’d been able to hack the Pentagon since he was eight, if it came down to it, he could get into the government systems. But for now, he would give the press and Justice League a chance to do the right thing. He knew some of them still looked on him as a loose cannon, one wrong step and he’d be labelled a rogue. But to keep Danny and the others safe he’d take that risk. He could vanish if he had to, he’d had that set up since he’d gotten back from overseas. He’d been left with no allies and too few resources once, he hadn’t been willing to risk it happening again. He knew though, that Kon and Bart at least would have his back and he thought Jason might as well.

“I won’t push, just think about it?” Tim suggested, no matter how much he wanted to push. “My place has a lot of security, so even if someone did track you down it would be very difficult to breach the apartment and even if they did, there are escape routes…including into the Nest.”

“Nest?” Danny grinned. “Taking the bird theme all the way?” he teased.

“Well, Batman has the Batcave,” Tim shrugged, making Danny laugh.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Bruce saw the unknown number flash up and answered it anyway. Alfred had received a call a few days ago from Tim. So the odds were good it was him. Maybe someone should offer to collect some of his things from his apartment?

“Bruce Wayne,” he answered, just in case it wasn’t him.

“Hey B,” Tim’s voice came through clearly.

“Tim.” He closed his eyes in relief. “You had us worried, son.”

“Us?” Tim asked, voice holding a trace of bitterness that Bruce couldn’t blame him for.

“Damian has been benched for his actions,” Bruce clarified. “You’re safe?”

“Yeah, safe and healing. I’ve computer access so I can keep up with emails and Alfred sent some food. I’m getting a lot of sleep too.”

“You could come home and recover here.”

“No, I can’t. I’ll be heading back to my apartment soon anyway,” Tim answered, tension clear at the suggestion he return to the Manor.

Bruce closed his eyes but nodded, even though Tim couldn’t see. “Alright. Just…take as much time as you need. Lucius and I can cover at the office.”

“Thanks B.”

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Danny walked on Tim’s bad side, the wound was on the way to being fully healed but it would take a little longer to get full strength and mobility back in the arm. He was quite happy to ensure the limb wasn’t knocked as they walked through the city. It was daytime so as safe as Gotham got but Danny had never gotten his licence and didn’t have a car or bike. Even if Tim’s had been parked at his place, there was no way he was driving or riding with that arm, not for a few more weeks likely. With everything that had happened, he was considering learning to ride. Technically he could ride Johnny’s bike but it was as ghostly as its owner so probably didn’t really count. And he knew how to drive the GAV and pilot the Spectre Speeder, not that either existed anymore. None of that would get him a Gotham licence though.

He'd never been to Tim’s apartment and he was nervous, but also very excited. He understood the reasons and honestly, it’d never bothered him anyway. He knew some people just didn’t deal well with others in their home. He’d figured if they did move in together one day (in his dreams) then it’d be a new place to both of them to let Tim adjust and feel comfortable sharing the space. Knowing it had been because he was worried Danny would see or hear something that would give away his night job just made things easier.

The building was not in the area he would have expected. He had thought Tim would live in the heart of the city, close to WE, in one of those fancy modern buildings. But no, he was on the border of Crime Alley and the building was originally Art Deco by the look of it. However, it was clear it hadn’t originally been an apartment building, maybe a theatre of some kind?  It was a very nice building and a one-bedroom apartment inside probably cost more money than his family had ever seen.

An actual doorman greeted Tim formally, holding the door open for them. They headed inside and towards the elevator, Danny shifting the bag containing Tim’s uniform and the clothes he’d bought. And of course, they went all the way up to the penthouse, it made sense. There was the most privacy, good balcony if needed, and better security since the button apparently scanned Tim’s fingerprint. Maybe he or at least the Wayne’s owned the building? The elevator doors opened on a hallway with only one door that Tim soon had open.

Danny stepped inside, glancing around at the massive space but it felt…impersonal, more like a hotel then a home…though there were a few small touches, things that Danny had given him, mementoes of their days out together. The photos on the walls were obviously Tim’s handiwork and did help warm the place a little. Had Tim never tried to make the place his home before they met? Still, the place was bigger than his childhood home (not including the lab)! He shook it off and walked with Tim over to the couch, seeing him flagging.

“Bedroom’s upstairs?” he asked, and Tim nodded, settling on the couch with a tired sigh. Danny smiled and ran his fingers through Tim’s hair. “I’ll put your bag there then, you can put the gear away later. Hungry?”

“Probably all out of date,” Tim answered with a yawn. “Menus…” he waved at a drawer.

“Okay, I’ll order something. Get some rest.” He kissed Tim’s forehead before heading up the stairs.

The Master bedroom was at the end of the hall and it at least had a lot more personality. Danny grimaced at the smell of stale coffee, seeing the mugs. There was also clothing scattered about, not his business suits but his street clothes. Tim was a mess. He put the bag inside the closet and then moved to strip the bed and gather up the clothing. He dumped it all in the hamper and then went looking for clean sheets, remaking the bed. Once that was done, he collected the mugs and headed back downstairs to the kitchen, putting them in the sink before digging out the menus. He went with something easy to eat and comforting, not surprised the place knew Tim’s normal order and address.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Barbara smiled as she got the ping, Tim was back in his apartment so he must be feeling better. If only he’d give a report on his injuries…but he hadn’t done that in a long time. He’d pulled so far away, not that she didn’t understand why. At least this time he hadn’t been alone. She’d made sure the people who went to fix Nightingales’ window wouldn’t ask questions or talk about who was in the apartment, it was the least she could do.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Tim made his way downstairs to his Nest, his uniform still in the bag Danny had carried. He dropped it on a table and then moved to the computer. He was so far behind on everything… he sighed but sat and went to work. He’d catch up on casework for a day or two before heading out on patrol, just to be safe. Danny wouldn’t be pleased since his arm was still shaky but he’d go crazy if he didn’t go out soon. He knew how to cover for injuries though and he’d just be doing a quick patrol, nothing heavy. Maybe he would call Jason, take him up on the offer, or at least stick close to the border between their areas, just in case.

Surprisingly, there wasn’t as much work as he’d expected…ah, Oracle had shifted several of his cases to others. She must have realised he was hurt more than he’d reported or Alfred had told her. And then he found the encrypted file she had left for him, hesitating, before opening it. He watched the footage she’d cobbled together, grimacing as he watched his own near death. No way was he ever letting Danny see it. He grimaced at the short audio file, not exactly angry but not happy either. He could see the reasoning behind it, he’d been out of contact and possibly badly injured. He should have gotten Danny to give him his comm earlier but it hadn’t really crossed his mind. And apparently Jason hadn’t looked or anything, just gotten confirmation that he was alive and safe.

Not wanting to think about it, he got up and got out his uniform, looking it over. That was a lot of damage, too much to not compromise it. Good thing he always made sure he had at least two copies. This one was only good for the trash. The cape was salvageable but he didn’t bother, not feeling like doing the work to fix it. Instead, he went about ordering the necessary supplies to put together another copy to now serve as the backup while the current backup became the current uniform.

He glanced at his phone when it beeped and smiled at the picture, Danny was home from work and had been pounced by the neighbourhood strays again. They loved him. Would he be good or bad if he and Selina ever met? Huh…cats were connected to death in some mythology, was that why they liked Danny so much?

Tim got out the replacement uniform and began going over it, making sure it’d be ready when he could hit the streets again. But there was something else he could do till then as well. He went back to the computer and pulled up the right frequency, sending the call.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Diana looked up from the monitor in surprise but picked up her personal communicator. Someone was calling her, not the Watchtower. She checked the caller id and was further surprised by the RR displayed on the screen, but she smiled. They had only spoken a handful of times since he had given the League the needed data to bring Bruce back so every time he called, it felt good.

She was angry at many of the others, wished she had been there for Robin…Tim. They had abandoned a teenager, refused to listen because Dick had declared that he was simply overwhelmed by his grief, spiralling. How many of them had died and returned? How hard would it have been to listen to his evidence before deciding that he was going mad? And she had heard the whispers, even two years later and after being vindicated, there were still whispers. She could defend Tim when anyone spoke around her but there was little else she could do.

“Hello Red Robin,” she greeted gently. Surely a call for aid would have gone through the general channels…except Tim knew how they looked at him, would he call the Justice League for help?

“Hello Wonder Woman,” Tim’s voice sounded a little stressed but nothing that would indicate duress or imminent danger. “I was hoping we could talk in person.”

“Of course,” she agreed immediately.

She’d only seen Tim in person once since his return to Gotham and she missed him. He wasn’t the same wide-eyed child who had looked at them all with awe anymore, but he was still Tim, still one of the smartest mortals she had ever known. “I am on the Watchtower; you can come up.”

And that caused him to hesitate. She grimaced; he obviously knew how many still spoke of him then.

“I am on monitor duty; there is no one else here beside J'onn.” And he had never weighed in on Tim’s mental state since he had refused to speculate without seeing him.

“See you in ten,” Tim finally answered.

“I look forward to seeing you.”

It was just under ten minutes when the Zeta tube activated and announced the arrival of Red Robin. A few moments later he walked into the room and she turned to smile at him in greeting. And then she frowned.

“Are you injured?”

“I was,” he admitted, “not back on patrol yet.”

He moved to the seat next to her, not limping which was good but…yes, he was favouring one arm slightly though most would not realise it. He shifted, obviously not comfortable and that hurt but was also understandable.

She reached out and took his hand gently. “It is good to see you Tim,” she murmured.

He smiled slightly then glanced up at the cameras before touching his wrist computer, she knew he was disabling them, before he pulled off his cowl. She bit back a chuckle at his hair and he sighed, running a hand through it.

“Head protection vs cowl hair,” he grumbled. And then he met her eyes. “I need your help.”

“Tell me,” she offered.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Danny checked his phone, smiling at the message from Tim. He had seen him only once since he’d moved back to his own apartment. It was understandable, he had a lot of work to catch up on for two very different ‘jobs’. It was still frustrating though. And it wasn’t all on Tim, Danny was taking every shift he could to make up for his own time off. He hadn’t fallen too far behind in classes at least.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Tim landed easily on the roof and then paused, looking around. He spotted a darker patch of shadows on the roof across from him and then Batman was there. He stood still, not sure what to do. Part of him wanted to leap across and throw himself at Bruce and another wanted to run far and fast. They hadn’t talked since that call… His comm beeped and Tim reached up to activate it, realising it was set to a private channel. “B?” he asked softly.

“Robin is still benched,” was the reply, and Tim was shocked.

Damian had never even been told no when it came to his behaviour towards Tim, not even the active murder attempts. And now he was benched for this long for what, splitting up?

“You’ve healed?” Bruce asked.

“Yeah.” He didn’t need to know his arm still ached.

“Good.”

Tim hesitated but then moved, launching himself across the gap, not big enough to need the grapple. He rolled on landing, standing in front of Bruce, forcing his breathing to stay calm. They’d barely seen each other over the last two years, mostly during Arkham breakouts and then they were too busy to actually talk or anything. He moved closer and B stood still, letting him choose how close to get. They’d hugged that time, after Tim had freed Lynx, but…oh why not. He moved closer and then slumped against Bruce as the older man let him, feeling an arm wrap around his shoulders, holding him tight.

“No matter what you choose, you are my son,” Bruce murmured.

Of course, he knew what Tim had been considering, what he’d basically been the last few years. Independent, no longer one of the bats. “Thanks…Dad.”

TBC…

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: not mine

Chapter 6

Tam sighed in relief as she found the email from Tim, though the backlog of paperwork to be lodged was going to take a while. It was good to have confirmation that he was on the mend. No one had told her exactly what had happened but there had been no Red Robin sightings since the night of the breakout. He must have been injured and then Robin had vanished a few nights later though there’d been nothing about Damian Wayne missing school. So what had the brat done now?

Tim stared at his reflection in the mirror, grimacing. He’d lost a little weight and he still looked a bit pale, then again, it would help sell the story of a bad flu given his lack of spleen. He made sure his hair was neat and then left the bedroom, holding onto the handrail as he made his way downstairs. He slipped his shoes on and then grabbed his briefcase with his good arm, heading out. He’d called for a car, knowing Danny would worry if he found out he was riding so soon.

The stitches were all gone but his arm was suffering from lingering weakness. Given the blood he’d lost and the nastiness of the wound, it wasn’t all that surprising. Thankfully, he’d gone through enough recoveries that he was slowly working on it himself. No one needed to know just how close a call it had been.

Tim settled in the car and began checking over his schedule, it was light, only a half day. Still, it was good to be getting back to normal. Hopefully he could do a proper patrol in the next few days.

Danny lay on his back on the couch, Tim straddling him as he ran his hands gently over his bare chest. He’d never dared to imagine that this would be possible, that he could show Tim everything and be accepted. But Tim had cuddled with him even in ghost form, never pulled away from his cool body. And without his shirt his death scar was very obvious, it had faded but it would never disappear, the Lichtenberg figures flowing up his arm and across his chest to his heart. It was one of the few scars he had, before the accident the worst he’d had was skinned knees and the like, and after he healed fast enough that very few wounds were bad enough to scar, like the one just under his ribs. That had been a lucky shot from Skulker back in the early days when he was still getting a handle on his powers. He shivered when Tim leant in and pressed kisses along the trail of scars, his lips warm.

“Okay?” Tim asked, and Danny nodded.

“Feels good,” he assured him, and Tim grinned, lowering his head again.

Things had been so much better since their secrets had come out. And he was seriously considering accepting Tim’s offer to move in, he wasn’t sure about sharing a bedroom every night but the apartment had three bedrooms so more than enough space. Sharing a place with someone else again was a little scary but with Tim…he loved him.

And then Tim moved, claiming his lips in a kiss and Danny stopped thinking, wrapping his arms around Tim to hold him close. He whined when Tim pulled back, getting a chuckle, but then Tim’s shirt joined his on the floor. And then, oh, wow, yeah, that was really nice. Tim was so warm! Tim had more scars than him but it didn’t bother him, it just proved Tim would fight to survive, that he protected people.

They kept kissing, hands wandering over chests and backs but no lower. They weren’t ready for anything like that, not when being physically close was so new. Both of them had pretty bad dating history too, their relationship was really the best either had ever had and neither wanted to risk rushing anything. Plus, Tim had patrol soon and Danny had an evening shift at the coffee shop.

Bruce glanced into the office, smiling at the sight of Tim behind his desk. It was a relief to have him back. “Hey kiddo,” he called, and Tim looked up, smiling at him.

“Hi B.”

“Lunch?”

Tim checked something and then nodded. “Sure.” He closed down his computer and stood, grabbing his jacket. They headed out of the office together, ignoring the murmurs among the employees. It was good for them to be seen together but that wasn’t why he’d asked him to lunch. He’d only seen him that one night, knew Tim hadn’t really been patrolling which proved that it had been worse than his ribs. But if Tim had written a report, he hadn’t filed it to the Batcomputer.

He was moving easily enough now though as they walked out onto the street, heading for the restaurants down the street. His suit wasn’t fitting as well as usual, suggesting that Tim had lost a bit of weight since the breakout. Post-injury infection maybe?

Bruce pushed open the door to the Italian place and Tim walked inside. They were quickly seated and chatted over lunch about nothing.

Jason had been surprised to receive the message but he waited on the rooftop, relaxing when Red Robin soon joined him.

“Hood,” Tim greeted.

“Little Red,” he teased, knowing Tim was rolling his eyes behind his mask. “Anything up tonight?”

“No,” Tim denied. “Just…”

“Okay,” Jason agreed. It wasn’t surprising that Tim wasn’t ready to do a full patrol alone. “There’s some movement near Black Mask’s territory, wanna help look into it?”

Tim nodded and they took off. Jason moved slower than normal, just to make sure the kid didn’t push himself.

Tim made his way upstairs, smiling when he found a meal waiting and there was Danny, sprawled on the couch, asleep. He walked over and pressed a gentle kiss to his forehead before going to eat. He really hoped that Danny agreed to move in because he could get used to this.

He was tired from patrol but he also felt good, his arm was finally recovered. Even after the night out, it wasn’t aching. The scar was nasty but Tim knew that it could have been worse, Danny’s ice had helped it a lot.

Dick watched Damian storm off. He got it, no Robin liked being benched. And really, B was being a bit too severe. They’d gotten separated, it happened sometimes. Benching Damian for so long over it was an overreaction due to worry for Tim. But it wasn’t helping B’s relationship with the kid any.

Everything was fine, Tim was at work and on patrol as usual, so why was Damian still benched? Bruce refused to talk about it but what was new there?

Danny looked up as Suzie called his name.

“Come on Danny, spill. How do I get introduced to your ‘friend’?” she asked.

“He comes here to drink coffee in peace and not be oogled, Suzie.”

“Spoilsport.” She pouted at him but then turned to serve a new customer.

He couldn’t help smiling when half an hour later Tim slipped through the door and sat at their table. He made Tim’s order from memory and then took it over, his hand brushing the back of Tim’s neck, Tim giving him a smile. He handed over the cash for his order.

“Busy?”

“Not too bad,” Danny answered. “Made some good tips though.”

“I’m glad.”

“I’m off in forty.”

“I can wait,” Tim promised.

Forty minutes later, Danny clocked off and they headed out to grab some dinner.

Tim grabbed his bō and collapsed it, settling it into its spot at his back alongside his grapple. He double checked that he had everything and then pulled his cowl up, heading for his bike only to pause as an alert sounded. He turned to check it, grimacing - Arkham breakout. Another one so soon? That was unusual and worrying. He got on his bike, heading out and towards the Cave since Bruce had put out the call for them to meet there, also unusual.

Thanks to bad traffic, even using the shortcuts they’d made over the years, he was the last to arrive. Everyone was gathered around the Batcomputer, including Damian who stood stiffly beside Dick. Jason and Steph were on the other side, acting as a barrier and Tim appreciated it as he joined them, not liking the look on Bruce’s face at all.

“Traffic,” he murmured before anyone could ask.

“Understandable under the circumstances,” Bruce answered, voice mostly Batman’s growl.

“A second breakout so soon is unusual,” Dick commented warily.

Bruce looked them over, his gaze lingering on Jason…and Tim. That could not be good. There were few things they shared in common that would involve a breakout.

“Who is it?” Tim asked before Jason could say something about the lingering look. He really hoped it wasn’t who his mind immediately went to but they had no other real issues in common outside of the LoA and none of them were in Arkham.

“The Joker,” Bruce confirmed, and Tim closed his eyes briefly.

Wonderful. He’d actually been pretty quiet within Arkham for almost two years now. To breakout so soon after the others had… a plan? Opportunistic? Jason was snarling something but Tim was moving away from them, pulling out his phone and tapping the contact.

It took a few moments to be answered, but he knew he would since Tim would not call him at work outside an emergency. And Danny knew he was patrolling tonight.

“Tim?” Danny’s voice was tight with concern.

“You’re at work?” he asked for confirmation, keeping his voice quiet.

“Yeah, what’s going on?”

“The Joker’s broken out. Traffic’s already affected but the announcement isn’t officially out yet. Get to my apartment and turn the security on, head down to the Nest at the slightest sign of trouble. Please Danny.” He knew Danny could fight, that the Joker likely couldn’t touch him, but that didn’t help the terror he felt at the thought of the insane man getting anywhere near Danny. He’d shown Danny how to access his Nest just in case, had given him a key to the apartment.

“Tim…”

“Please Danny,” he whispered, glancing back to see Bruce watching, getting a slight nod.

“Alright, I’ll tell the other staff and then leave. Any way I can listen in to you at least?”

“From the Nest, I can hook my comm into the system. You’ll be able to hear me, we can talk.” If that was what it took to get him somewhere safe then that was fine, he could mute it if they ran into the Joker. “Thank you.” He took a deep breath. “I love you.”

“I love you too, I’ll see you later.”

They hung up and Tim moved back to the others, seeing and ignoring Dick and Steph’s curiosity.

“Red Robin, with me.” Bruce surprised everyone by choosing him as his partner for the night.

Robin was paired with Dick, leaving Spoiler and Red Hood together. Signal was being left to the dayshift since Joker didn’t only work at night, whoever was most awake would be on call to back him up. If they couldn’t find him then Black Bat would be called back from Hong Kong rather than risk giving him time to get some big plan underway. And Tim knew that if things went bad, Danny would help even if he did so invisibly. He had told Tim that he would, especially for some of the nastier plans like bombs around the city.

He got into the Batmobile and they were soon racing back into Gotham. Tim kept his eyes on his gauntlet and the computer there, searching for any sign of activity that could be the Joker. Word was spreading through the city, the streets gradually emptying as people made it home or chose to shelter in place for the night.

“Is he safe?” Bruce asked.

Tim looked over at him warily.

“Nightingale, you’re together, aren’t you?” Bruce asked.

Tim sucked in a breath, pushing down the panic, there was no reason for it. Tim should have known that with the voice recording, Bruce would look into who he had been with. But to realise just how close they were from that?

His gauntlet beeped, the codes he’d given Danny had just been used to access the Nest. “He just entered the Nest.”

“He knows?”

“Since I was hurt. I was unconscious when I crashed through his window and he patched me up. He left the cowl on but…he’d seen my scars before, recognised me through them and I didn’t deny it when I woke up.” He waited for the anger at revealing his id, but there wasn’t any.

“How long have you been together?” The question was a surprise, surely Bruce had already thoroughly researched Danny. Then again, since they weren’t publicly dating, maybe Bruce hadn’t been able to work it out from any footage.

“We met not long after the mess with…Captain Boomerang,” Tim admitted, almost able to feel B’s discomfort at that. “Our one-year anniversary is in a few months. I trust him, he has his own secrets and he told them to me. I love him Bruce,” he finished in a whisper. And then he heard the soft chirp of his comm activating. “Hey space cadet,” he murmured to let Danny know he was aware he was listening.

He could have called him Phantom but it would be dangerous for Danny to be linked to his old vigilante id.

“I’m here and safe Red,” Danny answered.

“He’s on your comm?” Bruce glanced at him.

“Private channel,” Tim shrugged slightly. “I’m with Batman in the Batmobile,” he told Danny, knowing he’d be worried he was either alone or partnered with Robin again.

Bruce fought the urge to focus on Tim’s murmured conversation to his partner. To have allowed the other into his Nest, he must trust him completely. More than he trusted the family since none of them had been inside. Once he would have barked at Tim to focus on the job, but he could tell he was, he’d always been the best at multitasking. The majority of Tim’s focus was on his computer, looking for any leads to the Joker even as he assured the other that he was safe.

He was glad that Tim had found a way to balance his life, that he had a partner who knew his identity and accepted it. That was the issue that destroyed many relationships in their family and in others among the community. He did wonder at the secrets mentioned but he would keep himself from prying, he would. Even civilians could have secrets that would endanger them without being a criminal. Nightingale could be a Meta, an abuse survivor, there were many options. He didn’t want to do anything to push Tim further away.

He wanted better for his children than to be alone. Just because none of his relationships worked didn’t mean no one in their family could manage. Others in the business did after all. Yes, it was a security risk, but he had to trust that Tim had contingencies.

“Got something,” Tim suddenly announced. “Chemical shipment came in two days ago at one of the Joker’s hideouts, some of the main ingredients needed for Joker Venom.”

The last thing he wanted was for Jason or Tim to end up fighting the Joker, especially when it was Stephanie with Jason. But he wanted either Tim or Jason with him for facing the Joker for his own sake of mind. And Jason did not work well with him, it was better than it had been but they still weren’t a good pairing. Tim and Jason worked the best together but that was too dangerous at the moment, against any other Rogue yes, but not the Joker. It had been years but both had been badly traumatised, Jason had died and Tim…he was good at hiding it and he had received therapy to help him recover from what he had gone through.

Tim had been very lucky, the physical changes made had been reversable, he might be a little paler than he would have been naturally but with how little sun he got there was no way to truly tell. And the ‘attacks’ had stopped after the first eight months, that or Tim had managed to completely hide them from everyone. He’d never forget the screams as Tim thrashed on the bed while the antidotes ran through his system, the hysterical laughter… he knew that they’d been given a miracle when it came to Tim recovering, just like Jason’s return to life. And if the Joker realised Red Robin was the Robin that he once tried to make his own…but there was no evidence he knew that.

“Nightwing and Robin are closest,” Tim informed him, so he sent the two to investigate and not engage.

Danny listened as Tim talked with Batman. Joker venom…he had yet to see its effects on someone in person and he didn’t really want to, it was bad enough with the warnings posted in the city and online. It made him sick. If any of Batman’s enemies deserved death, it was the Joker. Danny was tempted to hunt the man down himself and deal with the issue, but he’d promised Tim to stay. Then again, he’d be easy to deal with in a cell and no one would ever know it was him. Or he could get in contact with Fright Knight via Technus, have him deal with him.

At least Tim was with Batman, the best back up he could have if they found the madman. Though…Danny wasn’t sure he was actually crazy and not just sadistic or something. Jazz would have known the correct terms. And there’d been something in Tim’s voice on that call…something…more personal than just the reaction to any Rogue, even one as dangerous as the Joker. If that monster touched one hair on Tim’s head…

Tracking him was not easy but he was patient, he had to be. He was in a relationship with a mortal human, that was doomed to end in heartbreak. So obviously, something had to be done to ensure the young man would remain at Daniel’s side forever. It would take time to prepare everything but the best way would be through the same method. So much had been taken already, there would be no more grief.

Finding the chemicals escalated all too quickly to fighting the Joker and way too many of his goons. Dick dodged, slamming his eskrima into one’s stomach. They were scattered around the factory and he didn’t like it. He did his best to keep track of Damian, Joker liked targeting Robin way too much for him to feel safe letting his youngest brother out of sight.

He saw Damian getting cornered but then Spoiler was there, flipping the wanna be clown onto the ground with a rather satisfying thud. He caught sight of Batman, briefly, as he ploughed through them. Where were the two Reds? Then gun shots caught his attention. Below! He rushed to the edge just in time to see Joker plummet and there, slumped against the rail, was Red Robin. Timmy!

“Red!” he yelled before leaping.

Jason lowered his gun, staring at Tim who had crumpled against the rail, panting audibly even from where he was. Thankfully, the kid hadn’t gone over the rail too, with how out of it he seemed he wouldn’t have managed to land that kind of drop well.

“Red!” Dick yelled, dropping down to their level, reaching for Tim who jerked back, almost falling.

Jason holstered the weapon as the last goons fell to Steph and the Brat even as Bruce was checking on the Joker. He didn’t care if he’d killed the clown, he’d shot to keep Tim safe. He hadn’t heard what the psycho had said to Tim as he pinned the kid against the railing, but his reaction had been terrifying. He’d taken the shot as soon as he could without risking hitting Tim. Much longer and he would have risked a shot that could have grazed a limb, before Joker could inject Tim with something since that would have been his most likely next move.

“Nightwing, deal with the Joker,” Bruce growled as he moved up to where they were.

Dick hesitated but then leapt over the side even as Bruce slowly approached Tim. Jason had a very sick feeling in his stomach. He knew Tim had dealt with the Joker several times over the years, had even single handedly captured him once when he was pretty new to the cape. But the way that Bruce was moving…there was no way that sick bastard had done something…was there? He didn’t remember seeing any records of Tim being caught by the freak.

Bruce looked up and Jason really wished that stupid cowl was gone, to see his full expression. Had he killed the Joker or just wounded him? Even he didn’t know. Surely, he’d understand that Jason had pulled the trigger to protect Tim? “Go.”

“B?” he asked warily, heart sinking. Things had been going so much better…

“The police are on their way. We’ll destroy the bullet so it can’t be linked to Red Hood.”

Oh. Well, that was unexpected. He’d always made his thoughts on Jason shooting people very clear, was it because it was to save Tim? Jason looked at Tim, not liking the way the kid was practically hugging himself, staring at the ground.

“Sure,” he finally agreed, forcing himself to leave.

Bruce cautiously approached Tim, wanting to rip both their cowls off but he couldn’t take the risk with the Joker’s goons scattered about. He hadn’t been close enough to hear what the madman had said to his son, none of them had, unless Nightingale had heard over the comm? But he could make some educated assumptions. Tim was pale, trembling slightly, and Bruce knew that if he could see his eyes, they’d be wide.

“Red Robin, can you hear me?” he called as gently as he could.

Thankfully, Tim jerked his head in a shaky nod. Better he be heading towards shock than a few of the other reactions he could have had, ones that would have given away his secret. Not even Dick knew, he’d been off world for most of Tim’s recovery time and had been busy when Tim had gone missing. He’d helped search when he could but it had been Barbara with Bruce when they’d finally found Robin. She would never speak of it to anyone for Tim’s sake, she had promised as had Alfred.

“The rest of you clean up, I’m getting him out of here.” He glanced at Dick and tapped his comm, getting a nod from his eldest, he’d update him on the Joker later. “Come on,” he murmured, slowly reaching out his hand to Tim who thankfully didn’t flinch, letting him rest his hand on his shoulder, gently guiding him back to the Batmobile. He had to strap Tim in though, the teen slumping as soon as he hit the seat.

Bruce got in and started the engine setting the autopilot before removing his cowl and turning towards his son. “Tim?” he called gently, breaking protocol but there was no one who could see or hear inside.

Tim scrambled at his own, hands shaking, and Bruce reached out to help remove it. He was too pale, his eyes wide and unfocused as he panted for air. “He…he…”

“Shh, he won’t touch you,” he murmured, taking Tim’s hand. “Just breathe with me,” he coached him through old familiar techniques. “Let’s get you back to the Cave.”

“No,” Tim shook his head. “Home.” He brought his gauntlet up and a few seconds later a new route was programmed into the Batmobiles’ navigation, as well as access codes.

Bruce hesitated but then switched to the new data, letting the system guide the car through the city. He knew the Nest was under the apartment but he didn’t know how to access it with a vehicle, one access point was obviously through the apartment itself.

“Does he know?” he asked gently, and Tim flinched.

“He does now,” he whispered, staring blankly out the front of the car.

He stared at the results and swore softly, clever but very frustrating. He added a message to the next update. It looked like Vlad might not be dead after all. Or had he been messing with cloning again or something? Great. Just when he thought Danny was free of the Fruit Loop. And…there was updated paperwork. If Mads Masters died then one Daniel Nightingale was his heir, which meant that he’d found Danny, or at least some of his records. Enough to realise it was him anyway. All that would really take would be seeing a photo, Vlad had spent far too long obsessing about Danny to not recognise him. All photos of Danny Fenton had been erased, the GIW’s records wiped as well, when Tucker and Technus had made the new identity.

He'd hidden his tracks really well, it was going to take time to find him, time Danny might not have if Vlad went after him. He’d been so obsessed with Maddie and Danny…with her dead who knew how much crazier he might be now, or what he’d do to get to Danny.

Dick watched as the Joker was loaded into the ambulance, the paramedics assisted by cops with hands on their side arms. Not that he blamed them but…there were good odds the man wasn’t going to make it, not with that shot and then the fall. Not that he blamed Jason, not with Tim in danger. Hell, he’d beaten the Joker to death once, even if he had been resuscitated.

What had he said to Tim to freak him out so badly? Tim who could keep his cool bantering with Ra’s of all people!

He wasn’t looking forward to telling B that the Joker was likely going to die and even if he lived, it wouldn’t be much of a life. His days of breaking out and causing havoc were over, the most he’d be able to do was tell others what to do on his behalf. He really hoped that Bruce wouldn’t lash out at Jason for it, yeah, Jason wanted the Joker dead and they all knew it. It had been the whole source of conflict between them when Jay first came back after all. But he didn’t believe that was why he’d taken that shot, no, he’d taken the only one he could that wouldn’t risk hitting Tim. He didn’t want Bruce and Jason to go back to how things had been before.

Bruce pulled into the Nest, impressed by what he could see of the three levels from the vehicle bay. Tim’s bike was at the Cave but there was a spare and a car ready to go if needed. He turned the engine off and turned to see if Tim would undo his own belt or not, but he remained still other than the trembling, so Bruce undid the harness before going to get out.

He looked up at movement to see a young man appear at the railing before simply jumping over and landing well on the vehicle level. What digging he’d done into Nightingale in his spare time had his mother as a multiple black belt and it seemed she’d trained her son to some degree with the way he moved. Good. If he’d been completely untrained then Bruce would have insisted on him getting some. Being connected to Tim Wayne would put him in enough danger once people learned about it.

Bruce opened Tim’s door and then stepped aside, allowing Nightingale to approach. The young man did, crouching at the open door, and Bruce watched their interactions, ready to intervene.

“Hey Polaris,” the boy murmured. “You with me?”

“Danny,” Tim whispered, voice shaking slightly.

“Can I touch you?” he asked softly.

Tim didn’t answer that Bruce could hear but he must have indicated agreement and soon he was being helped from the Batmobile.

“Thanks for bringing him home,” Nightingale looked over at him. He really did look a lot like most of his children, when the others met him, Bruce would likely be subjected to lots of adoption jokes.

“You heard?” Bruce asked, and the boy nodded, eyes flashing with rage.

“Yeah. It doesn’t change anything,” he swore, looking at Tim who finally raised his head, hesitantly meeting the other teens eyes.

“Sure?” Tim asked, and Nightingale nodded.

“Whatever he did to you or made you do, it doesn’t change anything.” He slowly lifted a hand to gently brush sweaty hair back from Tim’s face.

Danny was enraged by the Joker’s words but he never wanted Tim to think he was angry at him. He’d gotten very good at controlling and hiding stronger emotions because it tended to make those around him nervous. Ghosts felt emotions so strongly and that affected him too. It was a big part of how they communicated, of their very existence. The longer he was a halfa the more his emotions could affect others…and his own form.

He mostly ignored Batman to focus on Tim, not liking his condition at all. “Are you hurt?” he asked gently, keeping his arm around Tim. He looked shocky, not surprising though.

Tim shook his head, leaning more heavily against him, Danny easily supporting his weight.

“Okay, let’s get you changed and upstairs. Thanks.” He glanced at Batman before leading Tim away to the changing area.

“Call if you need anything,” Batman told him, and then the Batmobile was driving off.

Danny got Tim sitting and then went to work peeling him out of his uniform, keeping every touch gentle. He began talking about his classes, trying to keep Tim from thinking too much about what the Joker had said to him.

“Master Bruce?”

“Tim is at home with someone he trusts,” Bruce answered as he changed out of his gear.

“What the hell was that?” Jason demanded; hands locked into fists.

“If Tim wants you to know, then that’s his choice.” He looked at all of them, he would not let them demand answers from Tim.

“This…this has to do with when Tim vanished, doesn’t it?” Dick asked softly.

“What?” Jason looked at Dick in confusion.

“About nine months after he got back to Gotham from training overseas. He disappeared, I helped with the search when I could but it was during a bad time with the Titans…and then I was off world. When I got back, Tim was here and things seemed fine.”

“Bruce?” Jason looked to him.

“It’s Tim’s choice to speak of it or not.” He had done far too much over the years that he would take back if he could, like that disaster on his birthday with the fake message, he would not add them all finding out about Junior to it. Tim had never wanted them to know before.

“Joker’s condition?” He asked, looking to the computer where Oracle’s symbol spun on the screen.

“In surgery still,” Barbara answered over the Cave’s comms. “I’m monitoring and the police are there in force. From the sound of things, he’ll probably survive but he’ll be a quadriplegic.”

Bruce nodded, feeling Jason watching him warily. He hated guns, always would. But Jason wasn’t the same as he had been when he’d first come back, he took a lot less lethal shots, often didn’t even have lethal ammunition in his weapons. And this time…he’d shot to protect his brother.

“You protected your brother Jason, good work.” He patted his son’s shoulder and then moved to go upstairs, exhausted.

He was very worried about Tim but for now he would have to trust Nigh…Danny to look after him. He seemed a very level-headed young man with enough trauma in his past to help Tim deal with everything. There was nothing more to be done for the night and they all needed sleep.

Tim knew he should be helping but he couldn’t make himself move. It was so stupid to let him get to him after so long. They’d interacted since then and it was always tense but…something had been different this time. There was something far more sinister in Joker’s words, his threats today. Things had shifted when he became Red Robin, the Joker not sure he was the third Robin or a brand-new vigilante, but somehow, he’d gotten confirmation. He knew and wanted Tim back or dead.

Had Danny worked out fully what Joker was talking about? Did he think he’d just been caught and tortured? The threats could be taken that way. How could he tell him the truth? How could he tell Danny that he’d broken, given in and become someone else? He’d told the Joker everything he’d wanted to know, no matter how sensitive the information. His left ear was still ringing from the shot that had hit Joker and as wrong as it was…he hoped Jason had killed him. Danny said it didn’t change anything, but how couldn’t it?

He blinked and realised he was on his bed; a mug of hot chocolate being pressed into his hands so he took it and sipped at it.

“Back with me?” Danny asked gently, kneeling in front of him, and Tim nodded. Slowly Danny reached out, gently brushing his damp hair back from his face. He’d showered? He didn’t remember that. “Drink that and then you should sleep.”

“Danny…”

“Shh,” Danny stroked his cheek and for once he didn’t really feel cold…which probably wasn’t a good thing for his own state. “There’s no danger, nothing that can’t wait. You’ll feel better when you wake up.”

Tim forced himself to drink, knowing the warmth and sugar would do him good. And then Danny was shifting him into bed, blankets piled on for warmth. He picked up the mug and went to leave and Tim lunged to grab his arm. “Stay,” he pleaded. Let him have one last night if Danny was going to leave him.

“I’ll be right back, promise. Just going to double check the security.” Danny leant in and kissed his forehead before slipping away.

Tim lay on his side, curled into a ball, waiting. He was almost asleep when the bed dipped and a cool hand settled over his own. He rolled over to face Danny, pressing close, but Danny was on top of the cover. He whined softly, barely able to keep his eyes open.

“You need to keep warm Tim. Sleep, I’ll be here,” Danny promised, tangling their hands together so that Tim could tell he was there.

Tim didn’t want to sleep, terrified of his dreams, but he couldn’t fight it any longer.

Danny held Tim through the blankets, soothing him every time it seemed like a nightmare was starting. He’d known the life of a vigilante was a hard one, that they saw and went through things that most could never imagine…but he’d never imagined Tim would have something that traumatic. He knew he’d lost his spleen thanks to getting caught between two groups of assassins while searching for Batman who’d been lost in time (and why hadn’t Clockwork done something about that or used him to fix it like he’d done before?).

But the Joker’s words…they had a past and finding out the whole story kind of scared him. What had that monster done to Tim? He could think of a lot of things…but he was trying not to, because if he did, he’d be leaving a duplicate to care for Tim while he went to the hospital and made the Joker’s end painful. One thing everyone knew was that the Bats didn’t kill, Red Hood was kind of an anomaly since he did work with them at times but his methods were also very different. But that was also holding him back from going after the Joker, would Tim want him to die?

Danny knew that people had died in Amity Park, caught in the crossfire despite how much he tried to keep them safe. Surprisingly, the ghosts had been the cause of the least while his parents and the GIW, even Valerie, had been responsible for the majority. He didn’t blame Val; she’d been a teen given too powerful weapons without the full understanding of the damage she could do when she missed him or any other ghost. But the others? They had known and hadn’t cared so long as they got what they wanted. The only human deaths Danny could be held accountable for were among the GIW, just after the house had blown. He hadn’t killed them but he could have saved them and he didn’t. Could he kill the Joker to keep Tim safe? Yes, he could. But would it be the start towards becoming someone like Dan?

TBC…

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: not mine

Chapter 7

Alfred focused on his cooking, pushing his fear and anger aside. Timothy… he would never forget that time. Robin had gone out on patrol, had signalled that he had seen something…and then there’d been nothing. After that had been months of terror and mounting grief, they’d all known the odds after the first seventy-two hours. And then one day, Master Bruce and Miss Barbara had rushed back to the Cave, calling for him and Dr Leslie. And in Master Bruce’s arms had been a small form, too limp. He had honestly thought the boy was dead.

And then he had entered the medical bay and gotten a good look at him, seen the too pale skin, the green dyed hair and stained lips, and the clothing. He’d been unrecognisable but Alfred had known it was him, Master Timothy, because they would not have rushed any other child home the same way. They had all hoped that having him home would be the end but it hadn’t. There had been months of rehabilitation, of Tim strapped to the bed, screaming and laughing. For a while, Alfred had found himself losing hope that his grandson was still in there. Master Bruce insisted though, because Tim had held a gun on him only to turn it on the Joker in the end. If only his shot had been true that day…but he would never wish the guilt of killing on a child.

It had been years, he had come so far, moved on from what had been done to him. And now…

Alfred checked on the casserole in the oven, taking it out since it was done. He began packaging things up. Master Timothy would need the food, all of it made for comfort and ease of eating. Nothing that would upset his stomach. He just prayed this did not cause any kind of relapse.

Diana looked over all of the information that Tim had forwarded to her. How? How had the Justice League missed this? It shouldn’t have been possible. Their systems plus Oracle’s… but now she knew and she would ensure the word got out. How had Tim come across this?

“Lois, it’s Diana Prince. I have a story for you.”

“Oh?”

“A law that potentially counteracts the Meta protection laws. Attempted genocide of an interdimensional species. Interested?”

“Definitely. Send me everything you have.”

“I will. And Lois? Be careful.”

“Always am.”

Dick sat on the couch, unable to stop his mind as it did what he’d been trained from childhood to do…put the clues together. Tim going missing for all that time…the protective of Bruce, Babs, and Alfred after…how much quieter he’d been for so long. And…he swallowed, feeling sick. He remembered Tim in the early days as Robin, before he disappeared and after he started opening up around them. The clear, childish laughter that would ring through the halls of Wayne Manor.

“Dick?” Jason called, he’d stayed the night at the Manor after what had happened.

“He never laughs,” he murmured.

“Who?” Jason asked in confusion.

“Tim.”

He watched Jason pale slightly. “You think…”

“He used to have such a light laugh but after he came back…he never laughs. He chuckles but not a real laugh. And he was quiet too the first few times I saw him but I never thought anything of it, being kidnapped and held so long would be traumatic no matter who was behind it.”

“You think Tim was taken by the Joker.” Jason sat on the couch, hands clenched.

“Who else would keep Robin alive so long?” Dick asked, realising his hands were shaking slightly. “Why else would Tim have reacted like that? What…what did he do to him?”

“We don’t know for sure,” Jason pointed out but it was clear that he was beginning to suspect the same thing.

She glanced at the photo, a pale, skinny Tim being held by Bruce, Alfred just behind them. Blue eyes too solemn, a hand half covering his mouth, green/black hair in need of a cut. He clung to Bruce, his head on B’s shoulder, looking so much younger than fourteen. He’d been healing when it was taken, finally able to recognise them consistently.

She’d spent as much time as possible at the Manor back then, sitting with him even when he was incoherent. She would read to him or just sit quietly; whatever was best for him in the moment. And as he got better, she’d even let him sit in her lap, rolling him about the Manor just to get the ghost of a smile. It had taken months for Tim to begin putting on the weight he’d lost. They were lucky that Dick had never realised, even when he had come back, Tim had still been quiet.

But eventually, Tim had fully recovered – no more laughing fits, his mind stable, genius intact. The three of them always worried about Tim when the Joker was loose but Tim never showed any trauma…till now. She would need to call and check on him, offer to visit. She hadn’t been in his apartment yet, she didn’t think any of the family had. Though she knew that Bruce had visited while the renovations were underway.

Tim woke slowly, feeling…fuzzy, heavy, and really warm. What…it was quiet…breathing behind him, the weight of an arm over his waist. He fought the urge to panic even as he forced his eyes open, taking a few seconds to realise he was seeing his own bedside table, his phone sitting beside a photo of him and Danny…Danny! That’s who’s arm was over him. He was safe and home. So why did he feel so…off?

“Tim?” Danny murmured.

Tim opened his mouth to answer but all he managed was a mumbled slur. Was he sick? He felt Danny move and then a hand was pressed to his forehead.

“No fever. You were pretty out of it when Batman brought you home last night though, guess it took a toll on you. I’ll get you some water,” Danny told him, voice soft. Lips pressed briefly to his cheek and he felt the mattress move as Danny got up.

Last night? He struggled to think, to remember. Had he been hurt on patrol? He never partnered with Batman, not in years… he didn’t feel like he was injured, but if he’d been given the good painkillers, it’d explain his fuzziness. Very careful he tried to move, he felt lethargic, heavy, but he could move. He slowly pushed himself up until he was slumped against the pillows and headboard, looking down to find himself in sleep clothes and no sign of bandages…a few new bruises so there’d been a fight. It was a rare night he came home without at least one or two bruises.

And then Danny was back, a glass of water in his hand, but he didn’t hand it over, he helped Tim hold it and he needed the help. He sipped the cool liquid, knowing better than to drink too quickly.

“How do you feel?” Danny asked once he’d put the empty glass aside.

“Wh’t happen’d?” he managed to get understandable words out at least, seeing the flash of worry in Danny’s eyes.

“What do you remember?” Danny asked, tone going very gentle, and that had Tim really worried.

He closed his eyes, trying to focus like he’d been taught to augment his already excellent memory. Things were hazy…he remembered being with Danny before patrol…making out a bit, a favourite activity now that they could. He heard Danny chuckle, must be obvious he remembered that then. But after? He’d…he was meant to be on patrol…and Danny at work.

“No one said you took a hit to the head and you weren’t showing signs of a concussion last night. Do you have a headache?” Danny’s voice brought him out of his thoughts, and he shook his head.

“Fuzzy,” he told him, reaching for his hand, and Danny let him, squeezing gently.

“I think you were in shock last night, you pretty much checked out for a while between the Nest and bed.

“Others?” If he was in shock then something bad had to have happened. Had someone…

“No one was hurt beyond bruises and a few cuts. Batman called to check in once they all made it back.”

So, what…and then he cringed, hand flying to his head as he heard it, high pitched giggling. No…no…

“Tim? Hey, come on, breathe with me. Come on, come back.”

Danny’s terrified voice had Tim’s eyes snapping open and he realised the laughter wasn’t just in his head.

“Tim, look at me,” Danny demanded, and he forced himself to meet glowing green eyes, feeling a sudden shock of cold through his body and he gasped, laughter cutting off. “That’s it, breathe Tim.”

He sucked in a breath and then another. “D…” he coughed, and then he was being held, head against Danny’s cool chest, listening to the slow steady beat of his heart.

“Shh, it’s okay Polaris, don’t try to talk, just breathe.” Danny pressed a kiss to the top of his head.

Tim let himself go limp against him, just soaking up the love and safety even as he shoved the laughter back where it belonged. He hadn’t had an attack in years…had come home in shock with Batman…he could think of only one reason for the two things to happen. “Jjj…Joker?”

“Yeah, you rang me once you knew, had me come back here and down to the Nest to listen on your comm.”

As Danny spoke the memories started becoming clearer. The Joker…he’d finally worked out who Tim was, that the Robin he had…changed…was now Red Robin. He’d threatened …promised…no…

“Shh, it’s okay. Red Hood shot him, as of last update from a lady named Oracle he’s still in surgery and it’s not looking too good. He will never hurt you again, I’ll kill him first,” Danny swore, a snarl in his voice, and Tim shuddered, pressing closer.

Even with Danny being more open about his powers and ghost half…it could be easy to forget he wasn’t entirely human. Till something happened than threatened Tim’s safety and then it was easier to see. Danny had explained that ghosts were possessive, protective, felt things more strongly. So, it didn’t scare Tim, it actually felt kind of nice. Threatening to kill someone who was a long-term threat to protect Tim? Danny wasn’t one of them, he wasn’t bound by Batman’s rules. Thanks to the Acts, he wasn’t really inside human laws anymore since they didn’t see him as human or even sentient. He was more bound by the rules of the Infinite Realms and they didn’t seem to see anything wrong with killing.

Tim had tried to kill the Joker, when he’d told him to kill Batman, he’d shot the Joker instead. His aim had been off thanks to all the torture and chemicals so the man had lived. He hadn’t even really known who Batman was when he’d done it, hadn’t even remembered his own name but just looking at him, he’d felt…safe. And that had been enough to have him shoot the man he had been forced to call Papa. Tim had arranged for Captain Boomerang to die and had only saved him at the last second. He could have stopped it at any time but had only stepped in enough to ensure no innocents were harmed. But when the man had begun to fall, instinct had taken over and he had saved him. There were days he regretted it but he would have regretted Bruce’s anger more if he had let him die. He’d blown Ra’s bases and yeah, there would have been some warning, but not enough for everyone to get out, especially in the larger bases. He likely had quite a bit of blood on his hands, not that anyone knew.

And he knew Jason killed, worked with him even when he had and hadn’t done anything to stop him, not really. Really, despite the no killing rule, most of them had either directly or indirectly. And even Batman dropped people off roofs to get them to talk, beat people badly…especially in the time after Jason died…who was to say all of them had lived? Tim could probably find out but he had no desire to.

So, Danny threatening to kill the Joker? Not as shocking as it might have once been. How many times had he broken out only to kill more and more people until they caught him again and sent him back? It just didn’t work; the Joker couldn’t be rehabilitated. And Arkham couldn’t hold him, but since he’d been declared insane no one would put him into a proper prison that might hold him or execute him.

Danny held Tim close, pressing his nose to his hair, inhaling his scent, assuring himself that he was alive and safe with him. He hadn’t pulled away when Danny threatened to kill the Joker, had pressed closer, and that just made Danny even more scared to find out what the monster had done to Tim.

He didn’t think he’d ever been so scared as when Tim had started giggling and then laughing. He’d heard recordings of the Joker, of people who’d been hit by the venom and Tim…but there’d been no crazy grin or anything, just unstoppable laughter. And Danny had bet on a sudden burst of cold shocking him into stopping, thankfully it’d worked. He wasn’t sure what he would have done if it hadn’t…called Batman he supposed to ask for help. Tim’s laughter was a rare thing and he was pretty sure he knew why now.

“I love you,” he whispered.

“No…matt’r what?” Tim asked shakily but at least he’d spoken again.

“No matter what you do or anyone does to you,” he promised. “You could become a villain and I’d still love you; I’d disagree with anything really bad and try to talk you around, but I’d still love you.”

Tim was shaking now and all Danny could do was hold him and whisper promises to always stay with him.

Jason paced the guestroom he used the few times he had to stay at the Manor. His childhood room was a shrine to the boy who died in Ethiopia and there was no way he would stay in it.

The Joker’s shooting couldn’t officially be linked to Red Hood, despite his presence being reported by the arrested goons, because there was no evidence that it was one of his guns thanks to Dick getting rid of the bullet. There’d been plenty of guns laying around and for all he knew Dick had added a few more before the cops got there just to further muddy the waters. Guns were always easy to find in Gotham after all. He didn’t care if Joker died, though he wanted to know if the monster managed to survive the shot and fall.

No, what he was worried about…was Tim. Bruce had apparently called Tim’s place at least once since dropping him off, he’d been sleeping at the time. Jason figured that if the guy from before knew Red Robin’s id, then it was probably him watching Tim, otherwise maybe his assistant that he’d met when Bruce was gone…Tam? So, Tim had someone with him which was good.

But even he didn’t react like that to the Joker, Bruce wouldn’t talk about it…and Tim had been missing for what, months? He should have asked Dick how long he’d been gone for but he’d bene too busy trying to deny what Dick was saying. Did it really matter how long Tim had been missing? The Joker had only had hours with him and he would never forget it, even if it hadn’t killed him, he would have been a mess. That Tim survived and seemed totally normal, vigilante levels of normal anyway… was this encounter the final straw?

He picked up his phone, hesitating, but then he called, waiting for someone to pick up.

“Tim Drake’s phone,” a male voice answered, the same one he’d recorded at the apartment.

He didn’t know how much the guy knew, but at the moment he didn’t really care. Who would believe him if he claimed a dead man called anyway? “This is Jason, Tim’s brother. Is he alright?”

“Uh, hold on a second.” Nightingale, that was the name, right? He had obviously muted the phone and then sound came back.

“Jason?” Tim’s voice was shaky and hoarse.

“Hey kid,” he greeted gently.  No way would he call him Replacement or something at the moment, he wasn’t cruel thank you. Well, not anymore, not to his brothers.

Lois looked at the information she’d been given and then gathered since her talk with Diana. It wasn’t easy, a lot of it was very well hidden, but she was tenacious and never gave up. And she got the feeling that she’d barely scratched the surface of what was going on, it could take weeks or months to find everything, but she had enough for a first, even second article. Perry was not going to be pleased with all of this either.

What she’d found…she had a strong stomach but some of the pictures had her nearly throwing up. Whatever they were - ghosts, ectoplasmic entities, whatever…some of them looked like kids and they were restrained to tables being cut open. Her digging into the GIW, the Acts, and then Amity Park had gotten attention, thankfully from a friendly hacker. He or she had sent even more information, especially on the vanished hero of Amity Park – Phantom. A ghost as well, but one that seemed to protect people and ghosts from each other.

And yet he was top of the GIW’s capture and dissect list. They blamed him for a lot, but the evidence was severely lacking and the testimony of anyone between the ages of six and twenty-two was that he was a hero. He’d done a lot to protect the schools which made sense to her, if he was a dead teenager then surely, it’d make sense that he’d be focused on others like him, so kids. The footage of him supposedly taking the mayor hostage had so many red flags in body language and the like, it was obvious the kid was terrified, if anything he was the hostage. And the footage of those robberies, in every other image Phantom had green eyes so why were they suddenly red? Someone pretending to be him to frame him? Mind control?

She did wonder what had brought it all to Diana’s attention, had she met Phantom somehow? An interview with him would go a long way to helping disprove the non-sentient or echo of emotion claims after all.

Danny grabbed Tim’s phone as it rang, hesitating but the caller id said it was one of his family. “Tim Drake’s phone,” he answered.

“This is Jason, Tim’s brother. Is he alright?” The caller asked immediately, concern clear in his voice, which meant he knew something about last night, but how much?

“Uh, hold on a second.” He muted the phone and looked down at Tim who blinked groggily at him. “Hey, you have a brother named Jason?”

Tim frowned but then nodded, looking at the phone, so Danny took it off mute and lowered it to Tim. “Jason?” Tim’s voice was shaky and hoarse, probably from the laughter.

Danny leant back, staring up at the ceiling, focusing on any noise elsewhere in the apartment, not wanting to eavesdrop. He felt Tim’s shaking get worse though and carefully tightened his grip, moving a hand to run through sleep messed hair, trying to calm him down.

“Come?” Tim asked, then waited. “’Kay.” He dropped the phone, and Danny caught it, seeing the caller had hung up so he set it back on the table.

“It’s okay Tim.”

“He’s coming,” Tim murmured, trying to sit up.

“Jason?” Danny asked, and Tim nodded, so Danny helped him sit up.

Tim tried to get up and stumbled, legs buckling. Danny caught him, easily picking him up. “Why?” Tim buried his face in Danny’s shoulder.

“Your body was under a lot of stress last night and then that…”

“Attack,” he mumbled.

“That attack would have been draining too. Laughing takes a lot of muscles and seriously affected the way you were breathing. And that bastard was trying to mentally torture you before he got shot which also doesn’t help,” Danny explained, normally Tim would know that but he wasn’t really with it, not fully.

Was this the best time to have someone visit? It’d depend on how close they were and how patient his brother was. Tim didn’t talk a lot about his brothers and Danny had been purposely ignored all press on the Wayne family since he’d met Tim. Even then, the press wasn’t likely to have an accurate picture of their relationship, just whatever the family showed them. But the name Jason…the only Jason he could think of related to the Wayne’s was Jason Todd…but hadn’t he died years ago? Then again, so had Danny. Was that why Tim seemed to take the anti-ecto acts so badly, because they affected his family as well as Danny?

Danny carried Tim downstairs and settled him on the couch, tucking a blanket around him. “No coffee, I don’t think you need the caffeine at the moment. Juice?” he offered, and Tim

nodded. “What about food?” That got a head shake. “Okay, for now.”

He grabbed the juice and then sat on the couch, figuring it’d take time for the man to arrive, and Tim curled against him. Thankfully, Tim was able to hold the glass himself now, even if he was shaking a little still, the sugar in the juice would hopefully help. He’d need to eat soon though; he was not letting Tim fall back into bad habits when it came to eating. It’d taken him months to get Tim to eat regular meals and not just forget about it, finding out he was a vigilante explained it a bit, he didn’t always have time to sit and eat. But he also needed the food with how active he was, how had Tim managed before?

“Does he have a key?” He asked after a while, and Tim frowned before looking for his phone. “I’ll get it,” he rushed upstairs and then handed it to Tim.

“Thanks.” Tim dialled a number. “Hi, this is Tim Drake, Penthouse, I need to authorise a visitor. Name is Jason Peters; he’ll be here soon. Thanks.” Tim hung up and Danny put the phone on the table.

Tim was definitely sounding better which was a relief, obviously the juice was helping, and maybe the cuddling too. Peters, a fake id? Another tick in the box for this Jason being a returned Jason Todd. He couldn’t be a halfa though, unless he’d somehow kept it from his family. Which meant he was likely the Red Hood, he was bat adjacent, had suddenly appeared….and had a vendetta against the Joker. Rumour had it the Joker had killed the second Robin around the same time that Jason Todd had died. He remembered the Red Hood has shown up before Amity Park was fully cut off, when Danny was fifteen, a year into his own vigilante career.

And with his brother coming, there’d be someone to stay with him if…no, not finishing that thought…Tim hadn’t objected when he threatened to kill the Joker if he hurt him…but doing it pre-emptively? Surely Tim couldn’t accept that, defence was different to just killing someone.

Eventually, a knock sounded on the door and Danny got up, permission would get him up in the elevator but not a key to the front door. Of course, he had to gently remove Tim first, he’d started to doze off and whined in complaint at being moved. Danny smiled and kissed him softly.

“Your brother’s here,” he murmured, and Tim opened his eyes, moving to sit up.

Danny went to the door and opened it, finding a guy almost half a foot taller than Tim at the door.

Jason nodded to the guy who opened the building door for him, heading for the reception desk and the woman seated at it. “Hi, I’m here to visit Tim Drake.”

“Name please,” she answered with a warm smile. It might seem surprising to have such cheerful workers on the border of Crime Alley but Jason could see the panic button beside her hand and…was that a shotgun under the desk?

“Jason Peters,” he answered calmly.

It was his main Id for civilian life since bringing him back legally would be very difficult and honestly, he didn’t want to be Jason Todd Wayne again. Red Hood being connected to the Bats could be hard enough at times, there was no way he was dealing with the press as a civilian.

“Yes, Mr Drake called down a few minutes ago. May I see some Id?” She asked, and he handed over the driver’s licence he had in the name.

He followed her directions for the elevator, heading to the top level. Tim had really done a great job with the place; it was respectful to the old theatre while having all the modern convenances. It was well decorated without looking like the kind of place a millionaire would live. And he knew from the talk around the area that the rents weren’t expensive either. Timmy was not raking in the profit from this place but he was providing secure and reasonably priced housing in an area that desperately needed it. And his work with that charity did a lot of good as well. To think he’d once sneered at the kid being born with a silver spoon…it was very clear Timbit only cared about money for how he could help people with it.

He’d never been to Tim’s apartment before, he’d been in the Nest twice but never upstairs. Though he doubted the others knew about those visits. Once had been because he’d been hurt and couldn’t patch himself up and the other because of important intel during a gang case. He’d been very impressed by the underground base, it fit what Tim needed very well, it had everything he could need to work independently which was what he did most of the time, but also to work as a team if he let anyone in. And Jason figured the kid snuck his old teammates in at least occasionally. All three of them could easily slip into Gotham without being noticed with their powers, or simply by doing the unexpected and coming in like civilians.

It was a smooth, fast ride up to the Penthouse and then Jason found himself in front of a door that he knew was reinforced beyond belief. And he didn’t have a key so he knocked. It took a few moments but then the door opened to reveal a black-haired teen, taller and broader than Tim, it had to be Nightingale.

“Hi, I’m Danny.” He offered his hand, and Jason shook it.

“Jason,” he offered, following him to see Tim sitting up on the couch, a blanket pooling around him. He walked over and crouched down in front of Tim, seeing how pale he looked, though he was always the palest out of the family. “Hey,” he murmured.

Tim managed a smile that was more of a grimace than anything, but then leant forward, wrapping his arms around Jason’s shoulders. “Thanks,” he whispered, even as Jason lifted his arms to hug him back.

He blinked, was Tim thanking him for what he thought he was? He remembered when he’d thought Tim was the perfect Robin, had hated him for it. But he wasn’t, no one was perfect.

“What did he do to you?” he whispered before he could stop himself, feeling Tim flinch slightly before the kid tightened the hug, clinging to him.

Tim pulled back and then held his hand out to Danny who quickly joined him on the couch, holding hands. Huh, so they really were dating. Well, from the little he’d seen, he seemed good for Tim. He’d looked after him when he was hurt and was now taking care of him again.

“Tim?” Danny asked softly.

“You…you should both hear it.”

Jason didn’t think he’d ever heard the kid hesitate like that before. He really wanted to go put a few extra bullets in the Joker now.

“It won’t change anything Polaris,” Danny promised softly. The way he looked at Tim made Jason want to look away and give them privacy.

Tim shrugged slightly, looking at the carpet, and Jason moved to the armchair to give him some space. “Batman…didn’t want another Robin, but he eventually took me on. He did some basic training with me and then sent me overseas where I studied under several different teachers. When I came back to Gotham I started going out as Robin, six months later Batman was letting me patrol alone.”

“He what?” Jason snarled, hands curling into fists. Tim had been what, thirteen, fourteen? Jason had only been allowed on solo patrols for a few months before he died! Hadn’t Bruce learnt anything?

Tim shrugged slightly, gaze distant, so Jason forced himself to keep quiet, even as Danny gently pulled Tim into his side, pulling the blanket up…Tim’s hands were shaking.

“I’d been back about nine months when I saw a lady being attacked so I stepped in, it was a trap. I woke up strapped to a table with the…with him leaning over me, an IV in my arm and electrodes on. He’d gotten me out of my suit somehow and into…other clothes. Apparently…Harley wanted a family so he decided to give her one…using me. I don’t remember a lot of what happened, between the chemicals and torture…but in the end I was telling him anything he asked just to make it stop.”

“Not even adults can hold out under torture indefinitely Tim, you were just a kid,” Jason told him firmly but gently. “Hell, I was screaming and begging within twenty minutes.” If Danny knew Tim was Red, then he could probably work out who the rest of them were, and Tim trusted him. “If he’d tried it with me, I would have given in to stop the pain.”

“Joker Junior…JJ…that’s who Batman and Batgirl found in the end. He…he bleached my skin, coloured my hair, stained my lips…I looked like a mini him. But they knew it was me, tried to talk to me, but I…if I listened then they’d make it hurt again,” Tim choked out, cringing back into Danny who tightened his grip.

“It’s okay, you’re safe with me and your brother. He’s not here Tim,” Danny murmured.

Jason was going to be sick…or shoot something. Tim was pale…but Jason remembered the Drake’s, they hadn’t been pale and…he could vaguely remember a little Tim, he hadn’t been as pale as he was now. He’d always put it down to being nocturnal and Gotham’s lack of sunny days. Knowing the Joker had bleached his skin, Tim was lucky he wasn’t white like that monster.

“I called them Mom and Dad,” Tim whispered, looking sick. “I’d do anything to make them happy…but…he…he told me to shoot Batman and Batman…he just…stood there. He said it was okay…that he wouldn’t hurt me…to come home…I didn’t recognise him!” Tim was shaking his head almost violently, and Jason moved, crouching in front of him again.

He reached out and took Tim’s hands before he could do something worse than shaking his head. “Hey, come on Timmy, look at me.”

Wild, glassy blue eyes looked at him, almost through him, but it was a start. Danny pressed closer, kissing Tim’s skin where he could reach, whispering too softly for Jason to hear. But ever so slowly, Tim came back to them.

“That’s it, we’re in your apartment Baby Bird. He’s not here and if he even tried it, I’d shoot him again, and there’s no way I’d miss.”

“See, between the two of us, he’d be dead long before he could ever get to you,” Danny promised, surprising Jason, but there was a real threat of violence there which was interesting.

“Big bad bat got through to you somehow, didn’t he?” Jason asked, surely if Tim had shot Bruce there’d be a mention of it somewhere.

Tim looked at him and shocked him by managing a shaky smile. “You did,” he whispered, and Jason blinked, what? “B felt safe somehow but it wasn’t enough…he told me to remember you, what Joker had done to you, why I’d become Robin. It hurt so much but it managed to break through just enough that I didn’t shoot him…I shot the Joker. Was too messed up for a good shot though, didn’t kill him, got his shoulder. I…I remember crying, collapsing, Batgirl catching me. Everything blurry after that, there was lots of pain and screaming. Detoxing and Joker venom antidotes I guess, never looked at the records. I didn’t really recognise them for ages, wouldn’t talk…Babs…she would sit me on her lap and just let me stay there while she moved about the Manor. They managed to fix my skin a bit, died my hair black till the colour could grow out…but…he’s still in here, JJ…even with counselling and years. I used to get…attacks, I’d laugh and laugh…hadn’t had one in years….”

“Till this morning,” Danny finished for him, and Tim nodded.

“Dick said you don’t laugh anymore,” he murmured.

“I’ve heard him laugh,” Danny argued, running his fingers through Tim’s hair. “It’s a nice laugh, nothing like that maniac.”

Timmy shook his head. “If I laugh, sometimes…I can’t stop.”

“Like this morning.” Danny frowned, and Tim nodded.

Jason grimaced, but it made sense, if anything was going to cause Tim to have issues, it’d be after what had happened last night. And hearing a shot so close probably hadn’t helped since Tim had shot the bastard last time. Drugged out of his mind and he’d still managed to hit the Joker, that was impressive. How good a shot would he be normally?

Tim blinked, staring at him, before sighing. “Dad took me shooting when I was eleven, male bonding or something. Better with a rifle, sport shooting.”

Huh, Timmy never stopped surprising him.

Danny held on tight to Tim, glad he was managing to talk with Jason about shooting. He was fighting not to let his more ghostly attributes show, to give into the rage at what that monster had done to Tim. He knew it was amazing that Tim was sane, that he’d recovered at all from what had been done to him. He didn’t care if something of JJ lingered in his mind so long as it wasn’t hurting Tim.

They could deal with crazy laughing if it happened again and Danny was strong enough to restrain Tim if he became violent or anything. Danny figured that if this was his first attack in years, then hopefully they should be past any danger within a few weeks, months at most, so long as the Joker remained in hospital…he really, really wanted him dead now, worries about Dan shoved aside. If given the chance, he seemed the type to come after Tim again, there was no way he could let him have that chance.

Tim slumped against Danny. They knew now, they knew and hadn’t left, hadn’t looked at him in disgust. Jason even said he couldn’t have held out as long! That helped quiet the voice in his head, it’d been louder than it had been in years but now it was becoming quieter again, not the silence he’d gotten used to, but better. It only used to appear softly when the Joker broke out of Arkham, hopefully it’d go back to that in a while.

“How about some more juice, then maybe something light to eat? You haven’t eaten since before patrol, Tim,” Danny cajoled, and Tim grimaced.

“I’ll sort something out, you just relax,” Jason told him, patting his knee before standing and moving to the kitchen.

Tim twisted around to see Danny, searching his face for any sign of disgust or distrust but he couldn’t see any. Danny smiled softly, sadly, and moved one hand to gently cup Tim’s face, Tim leaning into his touch. “You…you don’t…”

“What? Hate you? Think you’re disgusting or weak?” Danny asked, and Tim couldn’t help the small flinch. “No Tim, I think you’re incredible and so strong. So many people would never have recovered from all of that, but you have. You’re an amazing person and even if you gave up being a vigilante and WE tomorrow, I’d still think that. I love you.”

Tim swallowed, trying to believe it. How could anyone just be so accepting of what had happened, what he’d done? He leant forward, resting his head against Danny’s shoulder, feeling him run his fingers through his hair, and Tim closed his eyes, resting. Soon enough, Jason returned with a new glass of juice and some food for all three of them. He didn’t want to eat but he had to and he knew it. After being saved, eating had been difficult, he hadn’t had regular meals in captivity either. He knew he couldn’t afford to fall back into those patterns.

Jason just settled in with them, the tv on some wildlife documentary in the background, and Tim found himself drifting, not asleep but not really awake either.

“Can you stay with him for a while?” Danny’s voice brought him closer to awareness.

“Something wrong?” Jason asked.

“I want to stay here for a while, I need some things from my place to do it.”

“Yeah, I can stay. Better wake him up first though.”

“Leaving?” Tim mumbled, and then he felt Danny press a kiss to his cheek.

“Just for a while, then I’ll be back. I need clothes and stuff. I’m not leaving, Tim,” Danny promised, and Danny never broke his promises to him.

“Kay, Jay?”

“Staying right here till he gets back, longer if you want me to.”

“Patrol?”

“I can skip a night or two,” Jason’s voice was closer and then Tim felt himself being moved, the cool replaced by warmth. A larger hand petting his hair. “Go back to sleep,” Jason whispered.

Danny left the apartment building and slipped out of sight of any cameras, immediately transforming before going invisible, taking to the air. It was easy to get to the hospital and find the room the Joker was in.

TBC…

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: not mine

Chapter 8

Jason cradled Tim against his chest, his little brother asleep, or close enough. The kid could seem so much larger than life as Red Robin and so adult in the boardroom or at a gala but at the moment…he was small, so small. He was the shortest of them but it wasn’t just height, he was very lithe, Jason could almost wrap one hand around both of Tim’s wrists. Sure, he wasn’t exactly a small guy himself but it was kind of scary how much smaller Timbit was. One day, Tim would be the shortest of them, it was already obvious that Damian had inherited B’s height and build over Talia’s. See Tim in a crowd and he wasn’t tiny or anything, he was pretty average for height really. Maybe he just seemed too small at the moment because he was vulnerable at the moment.

Tim twitched, eyes moving rapidly beneath closed lids, and Jason realised that he was actually asleep, dreaming. He groaned, head rolling against Jason’s chest, and he moved a hand to run through Tim’s hair. This was why he’d stayed; no way was he leaving Tim to sleep alone after reliving those memories. He knew what Joker nightmares were like. He also didn’t blame Danny for leaving while he had the chance, he’d come straight from work so he had nothing but the clothes on his back and whatever might be in the apartment because surely, he occasionally stayed over since he was able to come and go from the apartment. With Jason watching over Tim, Danny could go grab more things without worrying too much.

Tim whimpered and Jason shifted, snagging the blanket off the back of the couch to wrap around him for more warmth. Even with one blanket he felt a little cool, still in shock?

“It’s okay Timmy, you’re safe,” he murmured. “I’ve got you; we’re in your apartment. Danny will be back in a while.”

Thankfully, Tim settled a bit. Considering the pain that he’d caused him over the years, it was amazing the kid could sleep in his arms, would be comforted by his voice. He’d come close to killing him in the Tower, he hadn’t made the decision to do it or at least that hadn’t been the plan when he’d gone there, but the rage had been too strong. No, he knew it had been wrong, Tim had done nothing to deserve his anger. And then after Bruce was gone, after the kid broke him out of jail to give him another chance…he’d been crazy and he could see it now. It wasn’t till after Tim had left to save Bruce that Jason had started getting things together, started getting a grip on the rage. He'd been stupid to ever blame Tim…but some of that could be laid at Talia’s feet.

And knowing what he did of Damian’s actions, he had to wonder what she’d told the boy about Tim. She’d aimed them both at Tim yet according to B, she had only ever met the kid once. How could she have come to hate him so much from one meeting? Was it because Ra’s was interested in him? Or to try and clear the way for Damian to get closer to Bruce? Jason wouldn’t put it past her at all to have arranged to have both of them target Tim. She obviously saw him as a threat, at least back then, but now? Tim had pissed Ra’s off, had beaten him, so she might not see him as the enemy anymore since it was known that her relationship with her father had deteriorated.

He'd thought the brat had been getting better about Tim, had seen the truth about him, but it seemed he’d been wrong. It had been better because Tim had simply been avoiding Damian, till Dick got B to partner them and Damian left Tim to deal with Freeze alone. He wasn’t the worst Rogue to handle solo but still very dangerous, especially when he had others with him. And there was no guilt, nothing, about the fact Tim could have died. He’d only been allowed back out as Robin for a few weeks before the Joker broke out and it was obvious, he still thought he’d done nothing wrong. The look he’d sent Tim when B had chosen to partner with him…though he had been a bit more subdued since Jason had shot the Joker so hopefully what had happened had made an impression. He still didn’t want the kid anywhere near Tim until he was mentally back on his feet.

Lois stared at the article she’d written, triple checking everything.

Government sponsored Genocide

It was definitely an attention-grabbing title but it fit. The GIW had tried to destroy the ‘Ghost Zone’ or Infinite Realms as it was apparently actually named. They had tried to fire a missile into it to destroy it, that was a declaration of war in any book. And if they had succeeded it would have been genocide. So she had no issue calling them out on it.

The laws clearly stated very specific ghosts that could be targeted, only ones that were causing serious issues. They counted Phantom among those but from everything she had found, he wasn’t a threat. If anything, he had been doing the Justice Leagues job for them. He didn’t deserve what had happened to him and she hoped he’d just retreated from Earth and nothing worse had happened.

Danny slipped through the hospital, unseen except for the shades who had yet to fade or move on. Finding the Joker’s room was easy, no one wanting to be close and the door well-guarded, not that they could stop Danny. He stood over the Joker, watching him breath, assisted by the machines. This man…how much pain had he caused? Tim…Jason…they’d been permanently marked by his actions. He was an irredeemable monster. it would be so easy to just end it all…

Tim had seemed comforted by him and Jason promising they’d kill the Joker before letting him near Tim ever again. But would he accept Danny killing the monster while he lay helpless in a hospital bed?

Danny checked the chart that had been left, he had no medical training but he was good at science and he could make sense of enough of the notes from seeing his parents and even the GIW’s records at times. Jason’s shot had done a lot of damage, good. But would it be enough to stop the Joker forever? Danny doubted it.

He looked at the chalk white face, the man drugged into unconsciousness. How many people had he killed? Driven insane? It wasn’t just for Tim but for all the people who had and would die because of him in the future. And the whispers of shades surrounding him, their agony whispering against Danny’s senses. He reached out and his hand slipped into the monster’s chest, fist wrapping around the organ, watching the heart monitor begin to sound an alarm. And then he found something else within him, not within the material world that humans were aware of. It was tiny, not truly forming yet, and so fragile. The slightest touch and it shattered.

He moved away from the bed as medical staff and guards rushed into the room, watching them work. Their reluctance was clear but even for the Joker, they would not break their oaths to help. But there was nothing they could do to save him; Danny had made sure of it. The shades flickered and he felt their gratitude before they passed on.

Damian sat on his bed, Alfred the cat in his lap, purring away. He felt…confused. It would seem that at some point in the past, Drake had gone missing, taken by the Joker. An event that just proved even further how inferior a Robin he had been. And yet, unlike Todd, he had survived the time as a captive and continued on as Robin until Damian was able to take the mantle. The Joker was a formidable foe, not for any martial prowess but for his mind. The kind of opponent Drake did well against normally. Perhaps the insanity impacted Drake’s ability to deal with said intelligence? Even Father struggled against the Joker at times after all.

How had the Joker captured him? By the sound of it, he had held him for some time. And yet Mother had not told him anything of it when preparing him to come to Father. It had been well concealed, which suggested that Drake had been severely injured, perhaps physically and mentally. Grudgingly, he had to admit he had mental strength to have recovered from whatever the Joker had done to him so well that no one knew.

Hopefully, this latest interaction would be the final push the interloper needed to stop trying to be part of the family. All of his attempts to get Drake removed from WE had failed but he had not done so since Father’s return. If Drake left the family fully then surely Father would remove him from the company and take his place until Damian was older. He’d withdrawn more and more since Father’s return but remained hovering on the edges, like Todd but closer than him.

It was a pity that Todd’s shot hadn’t killed the Joker, but there was still a chance he would succumb to his injuries. For the most part, he understood Father refusing to kill now, but not when it came to creatures like that.

Richard’s distress over it all was not pleasant but he had no way to relieve it. Perhaps he should suggest they return to Blüdhaven for the weekend, or would he refuse to leave until assured of Drake’s wellbeing?

He stared at the body on the slab and all he felt was relief. Maybe that made him a terrible person but after everything that monster had done to his family and the city, who could blame him? His men were gathering the security footage and interviewing the staff but no one really wanted to track down whoever had done it…besides, so far, it looked like natural causes. The doctors seemed to think that his heart simply hadn’t been able to handle all the stress and blood loss. His survival had not been guaranteed even once out of surgery.

For now, they’d keep quiet until they knew for sure what had happened. Though he would reach out to Batman, none of the Bats had been since the Joker was caught, which was concerning. Especially when added to the rambling mumbles a nurse had heard from the Joker in his one brief moment of semi-consciousness. He needed to ask Batman about Robin and Red Robin, if they were hurt or worse…he knew what Batman had been like the last time and Gotham did not need that again. Then again, there were other Bats too now, unlike back then.

Tim sipped at the water Jason had given him, feeling a little groggy still. He hated nightmares, they always left him feeling a bit off balance if he woke suddenly and he had. Jason had woken him, trying to help because apparently, he’d been thrashing in his sleep. Danny was gone and Tim couldn’t help the fear that he wasn’t coming back…laughter sounding in the back of his head. He closed his eyes, trying to force it back, he was not having another attack! He wouldn’t listen; he wouldn’t. There was a soft thud and his foot felt wet, but it was distant.

“Tim? Hey, come on…it’s okay. Look at me kid.”

He took a shaking breath, gasping, choking back laughter, not again. Warm, calloused hands, wrapped around his, squeezing, grounding, and Tim managed to force his eyes open. Jason, it was Jason with him.

“That’s it Timmy, I’ve got you. We’re safe in your apartment and Danny will be back soon.”

Tim groaned, leaning forward, and Jason carefully wrapped an arm over his shoulders. “S’rry.”

“None of this is your fault Tim. Anyone says it is, you send them to me, got it?” Jason asked, and Tim managed a small nod.

Tim slowly relaxed against his brother, feeling bad since Jason had to be uncomfortable crouching in front of him. But it made the laughter go quiet, so he didn’t move.

He tensed as the door opened, hands scrambling for a weapon, but Jason caught his wrists.

“Easy,” Jason murmured. “Look, it’s just Danny.”

Danny? He twisted around, eyes wide, and there he was in the doorway with a backpack and duffle bag.

“Hey.” Danny smiled softly, putting the bags down before walking towards them. He’d come back. He sat on the couch beside Tim and Tim stared at him. “Tim?”

“Had a pretty nasty nightmare,” Jason explained, “bit of a panic attack too by the look of it.” Jason shifted to stand and Tim heard a few joints pop, feeling guilty. Jason moved back to the armchair and Tim looked back to Danny.

Danny lifted his arm in offering and Tim moved into his side, relishing the coolness of his body against his own. “Sorry, I was hoping to be back before you woke up,” Danny murmured, kissing his temple. “But now I’ve got everything I need to stay until I can break my lease.”

Tim blinked and then looked up at him. “Really?” he asked, not wanting to hope but he couldn’t help it.

“Yeah, if you still want me to?” Danny asked, and Tim yanked him down into a kiss.

“Yes,” he gasped when they parted. Yes, he still wanted Danny to move in.

“Guessing I missed something?” Jason asked, sounding amused.

“Danny’s moving in,” Tim grinned, feeling utterly relieved and happy, but not giddy which was good. Giddy was a bad sign. He hated that he was back to trying to track his moods but after the attack earlier it was safer.

Jason looked between them and then nodded. “Congratulations.”

“Thanks,” Danny nodded at him.

After a while, Danny took his stuff upstairs and then Jason said his goodbyes. He needed some sleep before patrol.

Jim fought the urge to jump as a familiar shadow appeared behind him. “Batman.” He nodded in greeting.

“Commissioner,” was the answering growl.

“Are Red Robin and Robin alright? The Joker roused slightly and was muttering those names.”

Batman nodded. “Robin is uninjured. Red Robin suffered a mild injury and will be taking some time to heal. Is the Joker conscious?”

Jim felt a rush of relief at the news. He hated the role of Robin, but he’d seen what happened if Batman didn’t have a partner and he never wanted to see it again. He hated it when Robin was hurt, when any of the birds were but especially the younger ones.

“The Joker is dead. His heart gave out post-op.”

And he got the extra joy of seeing Batman shocked into silence.

Bruce stared at the surveillance footage but there was nothing, just the medical staff and guards. There was too much time between the last nurse going in and the alarms sounding for the nurse to have done it. The Joker was dead, it felt almost impossible. Dying in the hospital post-op, even after being shot by someone, was one of the better options, there was nothing overly dramatic to inspire anyone with.

He honestly didn’t know what he felt and was glad for the cowl. He nodded to Jim and then slipped away, heading for a particular apartment building. He deserved to know, to be assured that he was truly safe.

Bruce landed on the balcony that had been altered to suit someone who flew over the rooftops. Seconds later, the door slid open and Nightingale was there, body tense, but he relaxed at seeing Bruce, stepping back to allow him inside.

“B?” Tim called, and he looked over to see him on the couch among blankets, his hair very messy. But his eyes were clearer than they had been the other night.

He ignored the young man by the door to walk over, carefully kneeling beside the couch. “Are you alright?” he asked in his normal voice, dropping Batman’s growl. Knowing Tim’s id made guessing the rest of them easy so he wasn’t going to bother trying to deny it.

Tim hesitated but then reached out and Bruce enveloped his son in a hug, careful of the hard lines of his suit against Tim’s unarmoured form. “Bad day,” he mumbled. “I…I told Danny and Jason.”

Bruce was surprised to hear that; Tim had never wanted anyone to know before. Then again, he’d never been in a serious relationship or faced the Joker with Jason present before. He glanced over at Tim’s…boyfriend? Partner? Serious blue eyes met his cowl, the teen unmoved by a sight that could send hardened criminals running. He was impressed by what he’d seen of him so far. He freed one hand from Tim and reached up to remove the cowl, sure enough there was no surprise from Nightingale.

“Bruce?” Tim blinked at him in surprise.

“I was just at the hospital with Jim, Commissioner Gordon,” he clarified the name for Nightingale.

Tim tensed and the other teen was quickly back on the couch with him, an arm around him, Tim leaning into him automatically. “Joker?” Tim asked, voice barely shaking.

“He’s dead, Tim. He’ll never hurt you or anyone else ever again,” Bruce swore, and Tim just stared at him, eyes wide.

“You’re sure?” he asked after a while, and Bruce nodded.

“I saw the body myself. Jim called me in despite the media blackout because the Joker was rambling about Robin and Red Robin the one time that he was semi-conscious. Jim was worried he’d gotten one of you. I told him that you had sustained a minor injure to explain your absence.”

Tim nodded in understanding. Better to fake an injury than have anyone find out what had really happened, what had happened years ago. Bruce would never forget it, he couldn’t. How could he forget seeing his son aiming a gun at him, the boy basically unrecognisable under the changes the Joker had made to him. If Tim had killed the Joker that day rather than just wounding him, could Bruce have blamed him? No court would have found Tim culpable given the torture he had undergone.

“So, it’s being kept quiet?” Nightingale asked, and Bruce nodded.

“They want to confirm cause of death first, run a full investigation to make sure no one killed him.”

Danny held Tim close under the covers, feeling him tremble as he took in the news that his torturer was dead. It hadn’t fully hit Tim until after Batman…Bruce Wayne had left.

Danny had been purposely not thinking about the possible links since finding out about Tim but now he knew two other ids. He hadn’t wanted to know, it was dangerous. But it also felt good to be so trusted, even if only because he was dating Tim.

At least he’d gotten Tim to eat something, scrambled eggs and toast wasn’t a lot but it was better than nothing, and he had eaten when Jason was there. He was hoping that if Tim could get a good night’s sleep, then he’d improve by morning. He knew it’d take time for him to fully recover but he hated seeing him so shaken. Hopefully knowing the monster was dead would help.

“Danny?” Tim asked after a while, sounding sleepy but no longer so shocky.

“Yeah Polaris?” He asked gently.

“Did…did you?”

“Did I kill him?” He asked softly, and Tim nodded even as he moved his hand to link their fingers together. “Does it matter?”

“Did you kill him to protect me?” Tim rolled over to face him. “Please Danny.”

“He could have hired someone, talked them into it…you’d never be safe as long as he was alive,” he admitted softly. “And he’s killed so many…he was haunted by shades who couldn’t move on as long as he lived. I could keep you safe, keep Gotham safer, and free them, so I did.”

Tim stared at him and then he nodded, leaning in to kiss him. “Thank you,” he whispered. “I…I couldn’t do it…couldn’t even kill the man that killed my Dad. But…I think I have killed,” Tim whispered.

“You shouldn’t have to kill,” Danny whispered.

“Don’t know for sure but…there’s no way they all got out,” he admitted.

“Who?” Danny asked gently.

If Tim didn’t want to tell him then he wouldn’t push but he was there for him if he did want to. So, he listened as Tim explained how Bruce had gone missing in time and no one had believed Tim that he wasn’t dead, so he’d been forced to accept help from the League of Assassins…and what it had led to.

When Tim finished, Danny kissed him gently. “You did what you had to, Tim. If you want to never kill again then I’ll stand by you, if you want to move to Hood’s methods, same thing. Maybe being a halfa screws with your thoughts on death, but…” He shrugged, not able to put it into words.

The others hadn’t gotten it, had done their best to just see it as him having superpowers rather than facing the fact he’d died. And dying changed you, even if you didn’t come back half ghost. But he had, he had lived with one foot in each world without truly belonging to either.

“Wait…” and now Tim looked alarmed. “The Joker, he won’t, come back, will he?”

“No,” Danny promised. “He was close enough to death that a proto-core was forming already. I made sure it couldn’t form. He’s gone forever Tim.”

Jason sat on his couch, staring at the tv but not watching it. He couldn’t believe it, after all these years…the bastard was dead. He knew what B was avoiding confronting, Jason had technically killed him, after all if he hadn’t shot him, he wouldn’t have gone over rail either. They wouldn’t know exactly what killed him until the autopsy was done, though the theory was heart failure. Still, it was his shot that had led to all of Joker’s injuries, to the surgery, and then his death.

Tim and his boyfriend had accepted his actions, Tim had even thanked him, and he’d seen death in Danny’s eyes if the Joker ever got near Tim again. So, he figured he’d be okay with them. But Bruce? Dick? The others? That he wasn’t so sure about.

The timing was kind of eerie though, right when Danny had left to get his things. But that was impossible, right? Too many cops on the room and the security tapes would have shown him. Except, well…he was pretty sure Danny was a meta of some sort which meant powers, so maybe… he wouldn’t say anything. If the kid had done it, then good on him. Either way Jason knew he’d be taking the blame.

Dick watched the news report on the Joker’s death; heart failure had been ruled as cause of death. He knew Jason wouldn’t be losing any sleep over taking the shot and honestly…he was glad it was over. The bastard had killed his brother and hurt another so badly he never laughed anymore. Tim was strong to have continually faced the Joker after that without cracking. So, whatever he’d said to him this time… all that mattered was that his brothers, his family, and all of Gotham were now safe.

He'd go visit Jason soon, make sure he was dealing with everything. He wanted to see Tim too…but he realised he’d never been to his apartment. How was that possible? Surely for a birthday or something?

Agent Alpha glared at the article. How? How had that woman gained access to so much classified data? They had ensured no one would be able to spread the information about Amity Park and their operations there. Genocide? War crimes? Hmph, they had been doing their duty to eradicate all ghosts when they tried to launch that missile. Phantom had to be involved somehow. He didn’t believe for a second that the ghost was gone, despite the lack of sightings since Fenton Works and the portal blew up.

Any other reporter and such apparent nonsense would be ignored. But Lois Lane? No, she would need to be silenced and fast.

Tim forced himself to eat the food that Danny had put together. He knew he had to; he couldn’t afford to fall back into old bad habits. Danny was hovering but not in a way that bothered Tim, he wasn’t forcing him to talk or anything. He was just letting Tim exist, to try and get things sorted out in his head.

Danny sat beside and Tim leant against him as he drank some juice. A cool hand began to run through his hair and Tim slowly relaxed against him. “Want me to put a movie on?” Danny offered softly.

“Hmmm.” Talking was too hard today, the laughter hovering too close. He didn’t complain when Danny simply picked him up and got them settled on the couch, an old detective movie on the tv. It was one of Bruce’s favourites so Tim had seen it several times which was good, he didn’t really need to pay attention.

He dozed on and off, only really moving to see to the needs that couldn’t be ignored. Letting Danny pamper him felt nice and Danny liked doing it. By the time they headed up to bed hours later, he was able to talk a bit.

The got into bed together and Tim settled against Danny, kissing him. They spent time just kissing softly until Tim fell asleep.

Tucker smirked as he saw the online forums, people discussing Ms Lane’s article. Good, the more questions asked, the harder it would be for those bastards to hide. Danny’s last check-in had been shorter than normal but he was probably in shock over the article. Tucker had sent the woman a lot of his own data once he’d realised just who was looking into things.

He really hoped this could bring the needed changes to the laws but he was also wary. The GIW would not like what she was doing.

Barbara sat back from her computer, running a hand through her hair to try and relieve the growing tension headache. It was odd…but there were times that Danny Nightingale seemed to vanish, he’d be between cameras and never reappear where he should be. She wasn’t truly actively tracking him, doing so would risk Tim’s wrath, but she was watching him more closely because he was dating Tim. Sadly, their relationship made Nightingale a target. Even if no one realised they were dating and only thought they were friends, he would still be at risk.

The first time he’d vanished, she had nearly called the Bats, fearing he had been taken. But then he’d reappeared and been perfectly normal. But one of those times…was when the Joker died and she couldn’t help but wonder. It had become obvious that it was more than friendship between Tim and this Danny, if he was a meta then surely Tim would know.

She was worried about him, there was no sign that he’d left his apartment since Bruce had dropped him off at the Nest, though both Danny and Jason had come and gone, even Batman had paid a visit the night Joker had died.

She was glad that he was dead, after what he’d done to her, to Jason, to Tim…so many people. She wished he’d been gunned down years ago by the police since Bruce refused to kill him. The court system had ensured that he couldn’t be legally executed but death by cop had always been an option given his actions. The Joker never just gave up after all, but most were too scared to stand their ground against him thanks to the Joker venom and his love of explosives.

Maybe all of them could move past the nightmares now.

Lois Lane’s latest article was certainly attention grabbing, concerning and…maybe indicated Danny Nightingale was something other than a Meta. What were the odds of an article like that coming out not long after they learnt about him and his link to Tim? Then again, Tim had known him for over a year, if this related to him then shouldn’t it have come out sooner? Though, it would take time for him to trust Tim enough to tell him a secret like that. But surely, he couldn’t be a ghost himself.

Tim stared at himself in the mirror, straightening his tie as he took a deep breath. He could do this, he could. Hands settled on his hips under his jacket, Danny gently kissing his throat.

“You look great,” he murmured, and Tim couldn’t help smiling.

It had been a week since the Joker’s death was announced, well passed time he got back to work. Thankfully, it was known he was missing his spleen so his cover had been an infection they were worried would get worse if he didn’t rest and medicate.

He felt steadier now, the nightmares not as bad. Danny had been at his side the whole time, skipping class and calling into work so that he could stay. Tim felt bad about it but had to admit that he’d needed the support.

“You need me at all today, just call. I can always ghost into your office to keep you company,” Danny offered.

Tim shook his head. “I have to get back to the normal pattern.” He couldn’t use Danny as a crutch. He turned around and let his arms slip around Danny’s waist. “I’ll be okay.” He would.

And he knew Bruce was going to be in the office today as well, he’d called and offered. Things were kind of weird between them, especially with the secrets he was now keeping from him, but their relationship was improving. Bruce really did seem to want him as his family, no matter how confusing Tim found that idea now. He’d wanted it so much when he’d first become Robin even as he accepted it wouldn’t happen since he had living parents and Bruce was grieving so badly. He’d been so happy when Bruce had adopted him, even as he’d grieved the Dad, he never truly knew thanks to how much his parents had travelled. But then things had changed and he’d been pushed aside for Damian, no matter how many times the brat tried to kill him, he was told to let it go, that he was older and shouldn’t fight back against a ten-year-old. Bruce had been trying but then he’d been ‘killed’ and Dick just didn’t want to see it. He’d given up on trying by the time they got Bruce back but now…Bruce was reaching out and Tim was stupidly letting him. How many times could he let them hurt him before he learned?

“Love you.” Danny smiled and Tim leant in for a kiss. He needed to get going or he’d be late.

“I love you too. See you tonight.” He made himself leave the bedroom and then the apartment.

No one knew, no one had ever noticed before and there was no reason to now…no one but a few would know it wasn’t just his scars that had him wearing such covering clothing. He knew he’d gotten out of his captivity and transformation all those years ago lucky, as much as he hated thinking on it, he remembered how much like the Joker he’d been made to look like. If it hadn’t been at all reversable he would have ended up living pretty isolated.

He made it to WE and was relieved to make it to his office, seeing the concerned look on Tam’s face as he passed her. She probably suspected he’d been injured facing the Joker and so off work recovering from it.

He sat at his desk and closed his eyes, relaxing. And then he turned on his computer and got to work. It was scary how quickly the work piled up, even when he’d done a little from home and Lucius had covered more. It was time to move on with his life and leave the Joker in the past where he belonged.

Very impressive little badger. There may be no mortal evidence, but he knew, the boy had killed the Joker. Sudden heart failure like that? Right when the dread of a powerful ghost forming had suddenly been snuffed out? it seemed the boy was finally learning that not all should be allowed to ‘live’. Getting the equipment, he needed without anyone noticing was taking longer than expected, but he was getting there. A few more months and everything would be ready.

TBC….

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: not mine

Chapter 9

He stared at the headline, still having trouble believing it was true after so many years. It was still headline news despite it being well over a week now since the news had broken and honestly, it was a shock that it had been kept quiet for as long as it had. Then again, nothing had really happened in the city since the news had first broken, the city frozen in shock and then slowly spreading jubilation.

The Joker is dead!

No one knew exactly what had happened, somehow Jim had kept his people quiet on the Joker’s injuries when taken in. Would that last? Maybe. But he doubted it should enough money be offered for the information. Still, no one had seen what had happened and Joker’s goons had all been carrying guns. A misfire in the heat of battle was not unheard of and it was known to the police that the Joker had been grappling with Red Robin, a goon aiming at him could easily have hit his boss instead.

Barbara would monitor things to ensure no one connected the Red Hood to his death. Jason was beginning to be accepted somewhat outside of Crime Alley and he didn’t want that to be reversed, then again, killing the Joker might actually increase his acceptance. But technically his son hadn’t killed his killer, the man had died from heart failure in the hospital. It made it…easier to think of it that way. He knew Jason had shot to protect Tim and that helped as well. If any of them were to kill then let it be in defence.

He'd talked to Tim nearly every day since, making sure his son was alright. He either called or saw him in the office and seeing him was better. Tim was finally looking better, closer to normal. He’d seen him smile when on the phone, obviously to Night…Danny. To see Tim happy was a relief and he would make sure that Tim had the time to be happy. He wouldn’t sit back and let Tim destroy a relationship the same way that he had all of his own over the years. If he saw Tim falling into those patterns then he would talk to him but for now at least, Tim was managing to balance everything.

Moving was easy with his powers, not that he had a lot to take anyway. The furniture had come with the place so all he had was his personal belongings. All of which fit in two duffle bags and a large backpack. The artwork was rolled up into a poster tube that he stuck through the handles of the lighter duffle. The other, he simply shoved into his body for easy storage, the bag vanishing. He put his backpack on and slung the duffle bag over his shoulder before heading downstairs, leaving his keys in the mailbox. It was a long walk to Tim’s but he didn’t mind. Tim had offered a car but he preferred to walk, it drew less attention than a fancy car would in either of their neighbourhoods. Which was probably why Tim rode a motorcycle. Didn’t most of the birds? Maybe he didn’t know how to drive a car?

He'd been reluctant to accept the money needed to break his lease early, but Tim’s argument had made sense. Why pay for a place he wasn’t using, especially when another student could use the cheap accommodation? So, he’d given in and let Tim pay, seeing the glimmer of happiness in his eyes had just made Danny feel better about it. Tim hadn’t been that happy since the Joker confrontation.

Since the Joker’s death had been announced Gotham was…lighter. Crime had dropped a bit even which was nice. It made the streets a little safer for the everyday citizen, which was good, but sooner or later one of the other Rogues would make a move to take his place. Vacuums never lasted very long, hopefully whoever took his place wouldn’t be as bad.

Danny made it back to Tim’s without issue, nodding to the lady at the desk before heading up. Tim had made sure he was added to the apartment and given him his own keys a few days ago so Danny pressed the Penthouse button in the elevator, letting it scan his fingerprint, and it headed up.

It felt a bit strange to think the place was now his home too, but Tim was right, he’d be a lot safer there if anyone tracked him to Gotham. And he needed to stay with Tim, he’d been through so much lately…having support so close was helping, Danny could see it. He would never leave Tim to try and deal with all of that on his own. He’d just have to adjust to living the luxury lifestyle.

Tim had already made space for his things in the bedroom and given him an area to use as an office so unpacking was pretty easy. He didn’t have a lot beyond clothes and supplies for school after all. He hadn’t seen the point after having to make a new identity, always worried he’d have to run and leave it all behind.

Tucker’s latest update was concerning. While the idea that he wasn’t the last halfa was a little comforting, the idea that Vlad had faked his death and made himself his own heir was worrying. What was the Froot Loop up to? And making Danny his heir, again? Ugh. Though he hadn’t come after him, which was nice, unless of course he was planning something? Or leaving him alone because of where he was? Gotham was a very strange city; it accepted him but would it accept Vlad?

Tim tucked his feet under the throw pillow, resting his head on Danny’s shoulder, smiling when the rug was tugged down over him telekinetically. It was amazing how…easy it was to live with Danny, how smoothly their routines had settled now that they were under the one roof. He felt better now, the laughter all but gone from the back of his head, and he was sleeping properly too. Food sometimes was a little iffy at times but Danny always seemed to know and make something easy like a light soup.

They shared a bed every night now and it was amazing; the bedroom was warm enough that Danny’s chill didn’t bother him. They’d turned one of the spare bedrooms into a study for Danny so they each had some private space. Dating or not, everyone needed some time alone or they’d drive each other nuts.

He smiled as he felt the soft vibration from Danny’s chest. He was purring in contentment and Tim was happy that just being together could cause that. It had been a shock the first time he’d done it and it didn’t happen all the time, but Tim really liked hearing the purring. It wasn’t a purr like a cats’; it came from what Danny called his Ghost Core and not any larynx or anything.

The movie continued to play and Tim shifted a little to get more comfortable, smiling when he felt Danny turn his head to drop a soft kiss on his forehead. And when he fell asleep, Danny simply carried him up to bed.

Clark checked over their security, ensuring it was all active. Lois’ latest big article had come with a warning to be careful and he could see why. A ‘new’ species and one being persecuted by the US government. That would definitely ruffle a lot of powerful feathers. How had the JL not heard of this? They should have known as soon as the laws were proposed, even if they only passed in a lesser manner to that originally given. How many heroes fell under them because they had died? Did he? Kon? Jason surely did. The explanation of ectoplasm sounded a lot like Lazarus Water to him.

He couldn’t be with his wife and son all of the time to keep them safe from the so-called agents (anyone who would gleefully follow those laws was nothing but a bigoted madman as far as he was concerned, and not a true agent). Kon was sticking closer which was good. Between them, it should be fine.

And Jon would be fine so long as they didn’t have Kryptonite, he was really coming into his powers. He was Superboy now after all, but he was still young, still a kid. He’d only just turned ten, younger than all the Robins except Dick. He’d seen what Bruce’s kids had gone through…what Kon had even though he may have been physically older. He wanted to protect Jon from as much of it as possible…even knowing that he couldn’t. Once his hearing had kicked in, Jon had been exposed to a lot more horrors than other children his age. He’d worked hard to teach him how to block it out.

And teaching Jon hammered in how much he’d messed up with Kon. He’d never really been there for him; he’d been so angry…reminded him of Lex in his anger but now Clark saw the truth. Conner had been scared and confused, always compared to him, unsure of his powers. he should have stepped up and trained him properly. Things were better between them now but they’d never be what they could have if he had acted like an adult and blamed only Lex and Cadmus rather than take it out on an innocent kid.

The building was impressive; done in a style to honour the theatre that it had once been. He’d never talked to B about it and he wondered, how had he taken it? He looked up, spotting the signs no one but a Bat would, markers for vigilante access to the top floor. He headed inside, seeing the reception desk. Fancy. But Tim needed security given his name and position.

Dick smiled at the man at the desk. He’d considered approaching Tim at WE but didn’t want to corner him somewhere they had to watch everything they said, better to approach him somewhere Tim would feel safe which meant home. “Hi, I’m Dick Grayson, I’m here to visit my brother, Tim Drake.”

“One moment…you aren’t on the visitors list Mr Grayson. I’ll have to call up and see if Mr Drake is home.”

Dick just nodded, knowing that he wouldn’t get up there without Tim’s permission. He could have come tonight as Nightwing, it was obvious Tim had the Penthouse and it was designed for nighttime landings, but it didn’t feel right. He stepped away from the desk so as not to eavesdrop, scared that Tim would turn him away. He knew Tim was back at work but he wasn’t back on patrol, though he seemed to be doing casework from home since they’d all received information from him.

“Good afternoon, Mr Nightingale,” the doorman greeted someone.

Dick glanced back, blinking in surprise as he took in strangely similar features but no, that wasn’t Tim. Too tall and broader than his little brother, and once you got passed the hair and eyes there were more differences, and yet…there was something about him.

“Thanks Nick,” the guy answered.

“Oh, Mr Nightingale!” The receptionist called and the younger man approached, a grocery bag in hand. “Is Mr Drake home? I called up but there’s no answer.”

What? How would this guy know if Tim was home or not? He was sure Tim’s place was the only one on that floor.

“He should be.” And now the guy was frowning in concern, eyes flicking to Dick.

“This is Dick Grayson, he wanted to visit.”

“Ah, I’ll head up and see if Tim wants that. Thanks Mary.” And he was in the elevator before Dick could say anything.

“If you’d like to take a seat?” She offered, and Dick moved to the couch in the foyer, mind filled with questions.

Danny almost went through the roof of the elevator to get upstairs faster, worried that Tim hadn’t answered. He quickly opened the door and stepped inside, putting the bag down. “Tim?” He called. “I’m home.” And it still felt weird saying that, but a good weird. “Tim?”

He quickly checked the lower level before flying up the stairs, relaxing as he heard the water running, opening the master ensuite door to see Tim’s silhouette behind the glass. “Hey,” he called, and Tim startled slightly before he opened the door, hair dripping water in his face.

“Hey, you’re home early?”

“Nope. Mary called up, your brother Dick is downstairs, wants to visit,” he explained, hiding his worry. Tim was still losing track of time more than he’d like, spacing out at odd moments. It was why he wasn’t allowed on patrols yet, too dangerous.

“Oh. Um…” Tim hesitated.

Danny took a wet hand in his. “Your choice Polaris, she can send him away if you don’t want to see him.”

“I…he doesn’t know but he helped look for me. But there was a lot going on with the Titans and after I never said anything.”

“You’re worried he’s going to push?”

Tim shrugged, absently rubbing at a scar on his arm and Danny took that hand as well.

“Even if he does, you don’t have to tell him anything,” Danny promised. “And I can always throw him off the patio if he gets too pushy.”

That got a startled laugh but then Tim nodded. “Yeah, you’re right. Tell her to let him up. I’ll be out in a few minutes.”

Danny nodded and then leant in for a quick kiss, going intangible right after to let the water drop off, making Tim chuckle. He made the call and then went to wait for their visitor. He wasn’t sure what he thought of Dick Grayson, Nightwing, the first Robin. He’d been one of the first sidekicks, had paved the way for others, had helped save the world and all that stuff. But…he’d also abandoned Tim when he needed him, had caused the other heroes to turn their back son him and Tim had nearly died. He’d ripped away what little Tim had left after so many people had died and given it to some brat that had tried to kill him. And from what he’d heard, Dick still favoured Damian despite the fact he’d abandoned Tim on the night that Tim would have died if he hadn’t crashed through Danny’s window. He really didn’t want to meet Damian Wayne, ever, it’d be hard not to do something in payback for all the harm he’d caused. Harm he’d never apologised or shown remorse for.

A knock sounded and Danny opened the door, seeing Dick’s surprise at his presence. “Tim was in the shower; he’s just getting dressed.”

“Right, thanks. Who are you?” Dick asked as he stepped inside.

“Danny Nightingale.”

“He’s my boyfriend and he lives here too Dick. He knows all about the nightlife, he found out the night Damian ditched me since I crashed through his window as Red Robin, almost dead,” Tim answered as he walked down the stairs, hair damp but fully dressed in casual clothes for a night in.

“Boyfriend?” Dick blinked, looking between them. “I, uh, didn’t know you were dating. Congratulations.”

How could he have not known that Timmy had a boyfriend? And a serious one if they were living together. He didn’t say anything about the jibe at Damian, he knew it had to have been an accident. The kid didn’t mean the things he said, he just didn’t know how to talk to people and he felt threatened by Tim. He wouldn’t have left Tim alone to face any of the Rogues though.

“Thanks,” Tim’s tone had gone a bit flat. “Want something to drink?”

“Anything’s fine.” He shrugged, and Tim waved at the couches so he headed over and sat.

Tim went into the kitchen, grabbing a pitcher from the fridge while Danny grabbed glasses. They moved so easily together in the kitchen; it looked so natural. Danny leant in to say something too softly for Dick to hear and Tim shook his head but then moved and pressed a kiss to the other’s cheek. Adorable. If he knew Danny had once again offered to chuck him off the balcony, he probably wouldn’t think that.

Tim sat opposite his brother, Danny lounging beside him. He could almost literally feel Danny’s unhappiness with Dick’s presence and wondered if Danny was picking up anything empathically from Dick. That was one ability that had to suck in a city but Danny had it pretty much under control thankfully.

He reached for Danny’s hand, twining their fingers together, no point hiding since he’d told Dick immediately about their relationship. He’d known Dick wouldn’t say anything since he’d dated both male and female teammates in the past. He wasn’t worried about any of the family being against his relationship, well, other than Damian but he didn’t care what the brat thought.

He knew Danny didn’t like that Dick had ignored Tim’s words about how he’d found out Tim was Red Robin but he’d expected it. Dick had massive blinders on when it came to Damian but at least Bruce was seeing more these days.

“You could have just called Dick, I’m fine. Back at WE after all.”

“But not patrol,” Dick pointed out, looking him over.

“I’ve been focused on case work, aren’t you always telling me to take a break?” He shot back.

“Tim…”

“You’ve barely shown any interest in me outside of forcing me and Damian to interact, which never ends well. So why the sudden attention now?” He asked calmly, keeping his voice flat.

“That’s not true,” Dick denied.

“Isn’t it? Seriously, when was the last time we did anything together, just the two of us?” He waited a moment but Dick didn’t answer. “Three days before Damian was dropped off at the manor. You ditched me on my birthday for him, no warning or explanation, nothing. Face it, you’re always going to choose him over me. You haven’t been my brother in years Dick, it’s too late to fix that. We can work together but other than that… just go,” Tim sighed tiredly, energy draining along with his anger.

He hadn’t meant to confront him like that, more proof he wasn’t back to normal yet.

“Timmy…” Dick whispered.

“He asked you to leave,” Danny stated firmly, sitting up, ready to intervene if Dick pushed.

Dick hesitated, staring at him, before slowly standing to leave the apartment. As soon as the door shut, Tim slumped back.

“I’ve got you,” Danny promised, holding him gently.

“I didn’t mean to say all that,” Tim whispered.

“But did you mean the words?”

He had to nod, because he had meant them. Dick had hurt him so much over the last few years and he never saw what he was doing. “Dick seems to think that ignoring issues will make them go away, but it doesn’t work like that. He can’t just suddenly try and act like my big brother and expect…”

“No, he can’t. What if he apologised and honestly tried to do better?” Danny asked, curious but not judging.

“Then it’d be different,” Tim admitted. But would Dick ever do that?

Sure, Dick apologised for stuff but they weren’t real apologies. They were given to make himself feel better, not because he truly understood what he’d done wrong and felt bad about it. He felt bad that people were mad at him. They were excuses and not true apologies.

Tucker read Danny’s messages, smiling at the news he’d moved in with someone. Good. He deserved to be happy. And Lois Lane’s article had really stirred things up, maybe soon he’d be safe from the GIW and they could meet up. He really wanted to meet this person; Danny didn’t dare name them while the stupid government was a threat.

Sadly, he’d tracked several purchases that could only mean one thing…Vlad was building a new portal. It could be for a harmless reason, like the guy needed access to ectoplasm because wherever he was living didn’t have enough, but Tucker seriously doubted it. If he wanted access to the Infinite Realms then it couldn’t mean anything good.

Jason listened to Dick for all of five minutes before growling at him to shut up. “Just because Tim told you the hard truth and you don’t like it, doesn’t make it any less true. You may have never physically hurt him like I did, but emotionally and psychologically you’ve done just as much if not more damage to the kid. You’re lucky he’s a lot calmer than me, I’d have cut you off, shot you, years ago if you’d treated me like you do him.”

“What?” Dick stared at him in shock.

“And he’s right, ever since the brat came, he’s all you care about. All you want to see is perfect Damian. Well, newsflash Dickie, he’s not perfect. He’s actually cruel, intentionally so, especially when it comes to Tim. And since he was never punished for his words or actions, he’s had no reason to stop, he’s just gotten sneakier cause he knows better than to let me or Cass catch him at it. Why do you think Cass never moved back to the manor either? She could take Damian in her sleep, but she shouldn’t have to, not in her own home. Tim’s good but he’s not Cass’ level, he was in genuine danger there but no one cared. Bruce at least seems to finally be seeing the truth since he benched the demon after that mess with Freeze, but more needs to be done.”

“Did you know Tim’s dating?” Nice way to change the subject.

“Oh yeah, I like Danny. He’s fiercely protective of Tim without smothering him. I want to get him on the mats see what he can do because he has to have had training of some kind. Dating a Wayne, there’ll be a kidnapping attempt eventually after all. Don’t you dare tell anyone, it’s Tim’s news to share with who he decides. B knows, Babs probably does too. Don’t you breathe a word to Damian,” he warned.

Dick absently stirred his soup, listening to Damian as he described something Titus had gotten up to on his walk. He was still reeling from his visits to Tim and Jason. Tim had kicked him out and Jason had practically yelled at him before throwing him out in the end. Why couldn’t they see that Damian didn’t mean the things he said, that he’d grown so much since his arrival, especially since becoming Robin?

He glanced up to see Bruce frowning. What had he missed?

“No, Damian,” Bruce’s voice was calm but firm, and Damian’s eyes widened ever so slightly in surprise. “Tim will return to patrol when he wants to. He’s taking time to catch up on case work since he has a business trip coming up.”

He did? Dick didn’t know that, then again…he usually found out through his absence on patrol. Had he really fallen that out of touch with him?

“But Father-”

“No Damian. Besides, I have no right to tell Tim what he can or can’t do as Red Robin. Just like I don’t interfere with Jason’s work as Hood.”

Dick swallowed, that was as good as declaring Tim was an independent vigilante with only a vague link them. Which…anyone outside the family would probably assume anyway since he wore nothing on his uniform to declare he was a bat; he didn’t even use their weapons anymore. He had his bō and the discs he used instead of the birdarangs. At least Hood had a bat on his uniform.

“Tim is a member of this family and he will always be my son. It’s past time that you accepted that. I found the attempts that you’ve made over the years to have him removed from his position with the company as well. You are a minor and will be for years yet, you have no right to try and interfere like that.”

He remembered, after Ra’s had kicked Tim out of the window and Dick had brought him to the Cave to recover. When Damian had said he was filing to have Tim removed, he’d thought the kid was joking. Damian was far too young to take over and there’d been no one else in the family able to do it till they got Bruce back. Tim had been born into Gotham society, had grown up being groomed to run Drake Industries, he was the obvious choice among them to take over WE.

That day, Tim had said he’d known Dick would catch him because they were brothers. Had…had he lied? Tim was too good at lying, he could even get away with lying to Bruce. It was kind of scary.

Was it possible…was Jason, right?

Jason motioned for Tim and Danny to come in, the two looking around the empty gym. Jason owned it, not that his name was anywhere on it. The Red Hood protected it and so it had become a safe place for teens and adults to go. There were even classes on everything from yoga, to kickboxing, to how to make a budget or where to find a job. But it was after closing now which made it perfect for the idea he’d had the other day when Dick was over. He also wanted to check Tim would be okay when he went back on patrol and sparring would help him get back into the right place mentally.

“Nice place,” Danny offered as he put his bag down.

“It’s very impressive,” Timmy agreed.

“Hey, you’ve got your Neon Knights places but this one is the Alleys.” Jason thought the Neon Knights did good work, they had really helped the youth gangs and had even made cautious inroads into the Alley, with Red Hoods permission.

He stretched and the boys joined him, Danny knowing what to do too which was good.

“Jason don’t break my boyfriend,” Tim warned as he flopped on the bench.

Jason smirked, surprised by the grin on Danny’s face and for a second, he could have sworn he saw fangs?

Tim watched Danny and Jason go on the mats, both holding back or at least he assumed that Danny was holding back. He’d worked as a vigilante for several years and his mother had trained him as a child. To have lasted so long, he had to have the skills, didn’t he? Or was ghost fighting that different? At least he wasn’t showing any powers in the fight.

He laughed when Jason hit the mat on his back, hard.

Jason watched the two leave before moving to close the place up. He’d been pleasantly surprised to find that Danny was good, not vigilante good, but very good for a civilian. Watching Tim and Danny spar had been very amusing, the two-half serious and half flirting. And he thought that had helped Tim so he hadn’t done anything but some light teasing. He’d been careful when he faced Tim, not wanting to trigger him in any way but it had gone well.

He liked Danny, he was good for Tim. His little brother looked healthier than he had in years with Danny ensuring he ate more and slept properly. Hopefully, the kid would soon be back on patrol, unless…was he considering taking on a role more like Barbies? Jason wouldn’t blame him.

He headed home to get some rest before patrol.

“Wish I could go with you,” Danny murmured, pressing a soft kiss to Tim’s lips.

He was packed and waiting for the car to the airport. London for a week and then he’d be home again.

“Sucks that you have that practical.”

“I’ve missed enough class and work,” Danny admitted. He wasn’t as worried about the job given that he no longer had to worry about work. But he had to keep his grades up for his scholarship.

“Next trip,” Tim offered. “You should be on break by the next time I have to leave. We can just be two teenagers exploring Europe or Asia, not sure where it’ll be.”

“Sounds great,” Danny agreed with a smile. “I’ll miss you.”

“I’ll call once I’ve landed,” Tim promised.

Danny insisted on carrying his bags down to the car for him, not like the weight bothered him. He stayed down there till the car was out of sight, tempted to follow invisibly just to make sure he made it safely to the airport but instead he went back inside and up to the apartment.  

Tim pushed and Danny lay back on the bed, watching him curiously. He knew Danny was a lot stronger than him, even in human form, could easily stop him if he did something he didn’t like or want and it helped sooth the lingering anxiety. Even if somehow, he slipped and JJ came back, Danny would be able to restrain him. But the time away from Gotham had helped even more, his mind quiet again.

He leant over his boyfriend and gently touched his skin, tracing scars and just exploring. They still had their pants on, Tim wasn’t anywhere near ready for sex or anything, not after his sort of breakdown after the Joker. But he felt safe with Danny. If he didn’t, Danny never would have been able to get him from the Nest to the apartment with a shower in between without Tim snapping out of his shock to struggle. They’d showered together since, it felt really nice to have Danny wash his hair and give a scalp massage. They’d seen each other’s scars, there was no reason to be body shy. Besides, Danny had stripped and redressed him when he was injured, he’d already seen it all. But the pants were there as a reminder in case they got carried away.

They kissed, soft and slow, just enjoying the peaceful time together.

Danny stood on a rooftop with Red Robin, dressed in black and with a simple domino on, feeling a bit silly. The clothing was armoured for safety even! “Why did I agree to this?” he sighed, and Tim grinned at him, something Danny was happy to see. And probably why he had said yes.

“It’s not like a fall will kill you,” Tim pointed out.

“True,” he agreed, wrapping his arms around Tim securely. If anything went wrong, he could easily fly or go intangible to keep them both safe.

Tim had admitted to being nervous about going back on patrol alone. But with Jason on a mission off world and Cass still in Hong Kong, he’d only really feel safe with Bruce who had been working hard with Robin lately. It had shocked Tim to see the man finally trying to curb his blood son’s behaviour, but he was also happy about it. Danny had commented offhandedly that if not for the GIW, he could go with him as Phantom. The next thing he knew, Tim was giving him clothing and dragging him onto a rooftop to learn how to fly like a bat or bird.

It wasn’t like Danny had an issue with heights or anything, but trusting a thin wire to hold them up? “Okay, let’s go,” he said, and Tim grinned, firing the grapple gun and then they were airborne.

They were going together to let Danny get a feel for what it was like before Tim would let him try. Apparently, training usually started indoors with lots of crash mats but since Danny wouldn’t fall if anything went wrong, they were skipping that step.

She looked at the footage and then followed the two figures from camera to camera. That was interesting. Red Robin was back on the rooftops but didn’t seem to be actually patrolling, no, he was coaching the black clad figure beside him. Black hair, basic domino…it had to be Danny Nightingale. Watching the way he moved, he’d obviously kept up the martial arts training his mother had started.

And Tim might not be thinking of them working as partners. He might have simply wanted to get back out but not felt ready to go alone. And learning to use a grapple gun could be a very useful skill for someone dating and living with one of them. If anything ever happened at the apartment, it’d give him another exit at least.

Bruce paused to listen to the two cops below. One of them was claiming to have seen Red Robin out with someone new, someone dressed in basic black clothing rather than a normal uniform, but with a domino mask and grapple gun. That was interesting. And there was only one person it could be. Was Danny interested in joining Tim as a vigilante or was it something else? Red Robin hadn’t been patrolling, training a partner could explain that beyond simply catching up on case work. That excuse had worn thin once he was back from the week in London.

He’d gone alone which had surprised Bruce, but Danny was a student and he now had two big absences due to Tim. Asking him to go probably would have made Tim feel guilty, after all, Danny was on scholarship. At least the semester was almost over, he could go with Tim on the Venice trip if he wanted. Personally, he thought it would be good for them if he did go. Let them just be two teenagers in love in a foreign city where Tim was less likely to be recognised. Almost two months after the Joker’s death, Tim was doing a lot better, but there were still occasions when he would spot Tim and he could tell it was still haunting him.

He'd see if Tim wanted to patrol with him in a few days, let Dick handle Damian for the night. He’d ask Jason but he’d like his youngest back in one piece and Jason would not put up with any of Damian’s behaviour…just like he should have done more to correct it earlier. And if Danny did want to be a vigilante, he’d offer to help train him. He’d be starting older than the rest, but he had previous martial arts training and was obviously fit, it wouldn’t be too hard to get him up to their standards if he was already learning to fly.

TBC…