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Danny thinks it’s kinda funny that he ended up at Arkham before his sister. Jazz used to talk endlessly in high school about her plans for an internship at the famous asylum. Of course, that was before everything went down with the portal, and then Vlad, and then the Fentons, and finally the whole mess with the Guys in White. So when he heard he was being transferred after his latest little stint at the Illinois Correctional Facility (the other prisoner was in there for hurting kids, Danny’s fists just… naturally found his face), he honestly laughed. It would be just his luck to end up in the same city as his sister and daughter. The pros, of course, are that they could visit him more, but the rather large con is that his sister no longer being able to work at Arkham because of the conflict of interest.
So, yeah, it’s a little funny, but also he feels really guilty for taking away such a great opportunity from his sister. Danny knows it's irrational and Jazz will probably smack some sense into him once she and Ellie visit, but until then, he’s been moppy and quiet. The guards escorting him off the plane and onto the Gotham tarmac dont seem to mind his demeanor, however. If anything, they seem rather glad that Danny isn’t giving them trouble. He’s sure they weren't excited to hear that they’d be taking the scariest prisoner to the most frightening city.
After they leave the plane and walk onto the pavement, an older man is waiting for them with a few officers. His hair is a dusty ginger with streaks of white, and he’s got a rather impressive moustache. As Danny eventually notices the Gotham PD badge, he realizes this must be the head officer in charge of escorting him to Arkham. The man looks him up and down, and Danny knows he's probably not very intimidating, but the guy could at least try to hide his skeptical stare!
The man eventually clears himself of disbelief and grabs the chain attached to his power-dampening cuffs. As he steps forward, he gestures vaguely at Danny’s mouth.
“You speak?”
A guard behind him cuts in before Danny can raise his hands to sign.
“The muzzle is for everyone's safety. Phantom’s sonic wail could crumble buildings.”
The officer's eyebrows raise, and he locks eyes with Phantom.
“Well, isn’t that flattering. You’re going to give me a complex, officer.”
Based on the ginger officer’s eyes rolling, Danny can only assume he understands his hand movements. That seems like a good sign; not many people at Danny’s old prison understood sign language. The head officer passes the chain over to another cop, and they begin leading him to a heavy bus. Danny can vaguely hear the ginger thanking the guards that passed him over and sending them on their way. He focuses more on the thick miasma of ambient ecto he can feel clinging to the air. Danny’s sure not many would notice, but he’s the goddamn crown prince of the infinite realms, he can recognize rank ecto like a cartoon character sniffing out pie. He can feel a slight buzz in his chest, letting him know his core has kicked into high gear to filter and purify the ectoplasim. The guard holding his chain gives a harsh tug since Danny has slowed down to a stop by accident.
“Keep up, kid. Arkham’s gonna eat you alive if you space out like that any more.”
Danny would like to see the place try.
“Not a kid.”
Danny knows he's shorter than most and has a baby face, but he’s 24, goddamit! The officer either doesn't understand or chooses to ignore his signs, and instead leads him onto the bus. There are three other prisoners on the bus, each spaced out far enough to avoid fights. Danny is led to a seat at the back, and the chain connecting his cuffs is latched onto a metal bar on the bus floor. As Danny walks past the other prisoners, they all give him long looks, most likely not used ot his unfamiliar face. Danny, for his part, recognizes each of the. Closest to him is a grinning and curious Captain Boomerang. Near the middle of the bus is someone he doesn’t recognize imediatly, at least until he walks past and gets that specific whif of death unique to vampires, identifying the woman as Nocturna (Danny reigns in his own aura as much as he can, making him appear as someone who is just very liminal rather than a half ghost eldritch god). And finally, the closest to the front is the famous Bloodsport, who looks the most uninterested in Danny’s presence.
Once Danny is secured to the bus, the guard leaves, and the bus fills with an uncomfortable silence. Captain Boomerang’s eager voice quickly breaks the silence.
“Never seen you around here, kid. Where you coming from?”
“Not a kid.”
The Australian man furrows his brows before recognizing that Danny is using sign and turning to Bloodsport at the front of the bus.
“Oye! Dubois! You know sign language, right?”
“Piss off, Harkness.”
Nocturna chuckles silently behind a pale hand.
“Come on, mate! I wanna know what the kids got to say.”
“Not a kid.” Danny signs more aggressively.
“Can’t understand what you’re saying, mate. Can you talk at all with that mask?”
Nocturna sighs, “Ghost boy over there clearly can’t speak, imbecile! Stop asking him questions if you can’t understand his answers.”
“Ghost boy?”
“Yes, Captain Obvious , the kid is more dead than alive, reminds me of Hood in a way.”
“Not a kid.” Danny signs as harshly as he can, trying to get his point across.
“He another perv vampire like you ‘turna?” Bloodsport finally chimes in, turning around to face the other three prisoners.
Ok, first off, Danny is not a vampire. Vampires are weirdos and freaks, and Danny is a proud ghost.
“I am not a vampire! And I’m not a kid! Ancients, is everyone at Arkham this irritating?”
Bloodsport snorts, “Pfft, sorry, mate, but you might want to get used to everyone prying into your life. Arkham’s full of gossips.”
Danny huffs and rolls his eyes, slumping further in the seat.
“What the kid say?”
“He said to stop calling him a kid, Harkness.”
Captain Boomerang throws his arms as high as he can with them in cuffs and gestures vaguely at Danny.
“Look at the twig! He’s the size of three apples stacked on top of each other!”
Why are criminals so judgmental? 5’8 is a perfectly standard height.
“Yeah, and he also looks like he wants to rip you limb from limb if it weren't for his cuffs and muzzle.” Nocturna sasses.
Captain Boomerang takes it in stride and begins arguing with the woman about why he could totally take Danny in a fight. The argument eventually evolves into whether he could beat Nocturna, and soon enough, the two are yelling at each other.
A harsh smack to the side of the bus with a baton shuts up the two as an officer yells at them to quiet down.
“Hopefully Arkham is bigger than Belle Reve and I won’t have to see either of your annoying mugs in the halls,” Bloodsport mutters.
Nocturna scoffs, and Captain Boomerang growls under his breath. The bus rumbles to a start, and they begin their trek across the city to Arkham Asylum.
“What’re you called, mate?”
Danny turns from the window to see Bloodsport looking at him expectantly.
=
“Daniel James Fenton. AKA Phantom. Born female, transitioned to male at 10. 24 years of age, 5 feet and 8 inches tall, 162 pounds. Incarcerated for the murder of his parents, Drs. Jack and Madeline Fenton and his godfather, Vladimur Masters, along with several counts of terrorism and destruction of property. Transferred to Arkham Asylum from the Illinois Correctional Facility due to continued disturbances, fights, and lack of resources to handle meta abilities.”
“And these meta abilities are what exactly?” Red Hood interrupts.
Tim pauses and gives Jason a light-hearted glare. “And what have we said about interrupting my presentations exactly?” He responds mockingly.
“Oh come on, Timbers! You paused! Everyone heard him pause!”
The rest of the family gives groans with different levels of intensity.
“Red Hood, please allow Red Robin to continue with his debrief,” Bruce responds in full Batman voice despite the fact that only half of them are in uniform and they’re all in the safety of the cave.
Tim clears his voice overtop Jason’s put-out sigh. “ As I was saying. Daniel is a surprising powerhouse. His reported powers are flight, intangibility, invisibility, cryokenisis, super strength, enhanced healing, energy constructs, telekinisis, duplication, and sonic-based powers.”
“Jesus! And this guy was just in a random prison in Illinois?” Nightwing comments while the rest of the Bat clan’s eyes widen at the long list.
“So far, he’s been contained with meta suppression devices, but his last prison wanted to send him somewhere with better tech in case their devices fail.” Tim continues.
“So now he’s our problem?” Steph concludes.
“Now he’s our problem,” Bruce confirms.
“Plan?” Cass signs.
“Phantom hasn’t actually been much of a nuisance to guards. He mainly got into fights with other prisoners. Though he usually behaves if his visitation hours are threatened.”
That gets the bats and birds to tune in a little more.
“Who visits him?” Duke asks.
Tim clicks his little power point button (a gift from Dick last Christmas after Tim’s constant complaining about the bat-computer’s mouse), going to the next slide to show an image of a very tall ginger woman standing next to a shorter teen with messy black hair and piercing blue eyes (Prime wayne adoption bait in Jason’s eyes.). The black haired teenager is holding a tiny baby in his arms, and everyone in the photo is smiling widely.
“This photo was taken a week before the death of the Drs. Fenton and the subsequent arrest of Daniel. It’s also taken a week before Daniel's 18th birthday.”
Tim uses his red laser pointer to circle the taller teen's face.
“This is Jasmine Nightingale, formerly Fenton, before she changed her name at 19, currently 28 years old, and Daniel’s older sister. She acquired her master’s in psychology a couple of years back and was interested in working for Arkham before her brother was admitted.”
Jason mentally catalogs her as a potential accomplice in a prison break while ideally noting that Danny looks very happy for a supposed terrorist—though looks can be deceiving. Tim circles the baby's face.
“And this is Eleanor Nightingale, currently 7, and Daniel’s daughter. Both Nightingales live in Gotham on the Upper West Side.”
“Teen parent, huh? Who’s the other father?” Jason asks.
Bruce grimaces in his classic sign of ‘I dont know what's happening and I'm not happy about it.’ “There’s no father listed on the birth certificate, and neither Jasmine, Daniel, nor the late Fentons have ever commented on it.”
Tim clicks his button once again, and the photo changes to one time-stamped just a week ago. Based on the name slate the man in the photo is holding, this is Daniel Fenton, but he looks quite different from the last picture. His hair has grown out longer, and there's a white streak through it similar to Jason’s. His eyes look tired and disinterested, and some kind of flat metallic mask completely covers his lower face. Jason guesses it's to protect others from the previously mentioned “sonic-based powers.”
“This photo was taken just last week when Daniel was admitted to Arkham Asylum. So far, he hasn’t caused any trouble.” Tim finally concludes.
“Do we plan to pay Fenton a visit, then?” Damian asks.
Bruce shakes his head, “As of right now, we’ll just be keeping a closer watch on him, but be prepared should things go wrong.”
“When are we not?” Jason grumbles.
=
Waylon Jones doesn’t know what to think about the newest prisoner.
When he first arrived, everyone was a little put off. Seeing a kid (and he was a kid, no matter what Bloodsport would later insist he preferred) so scrawny and pale in such a big prison is always unsettling. Most villains–at least any villain worth their salt in Waylon's eyes– didn’t get involved with kids. That was the shit real low lifes did. That was the shit that led to a bullet between your eyes courtesy of Red Hood. So when someone so young was in a place like Arkham, people felt uneasy. But there was something about Phantom that was uniquely uncomfortable. He had an… air to him. Something that made people’s hair stand up, and sent a chill down even Waylon’s spine. Something about the unnatural angles to his face, and the way light reflected off his eyes let people know he wasn’t human. That was made evident by his cuffs and muzzle.
No one knew Phantom’s exact powerset, but it was clear that the guards were willing to do whatever they could to stop him from making any noise. All his meals were delivered to him as liquids fed through a specific tube in his muzzle. And as far as anyone could tell, it never came off.
Nocturna insisted that Phantom was an actual ghost, but not many people listened to the creepy vampiress; when they did entertain her, her reasoning seemed to stop at “I can just sense it.” Waylon found the muzzle nauseating; he knew what it was like to be treated like a freak, and the Arkham guards took unique pleasure in belittling Phantom. Many people talked about the mute man as if he weren't there, ignoring that he could still hear despite being unable to speak. Phantom always rolled his eyes at the mocking comments and signed some insult that most couldn’t understand. The man stuck to the sidelines, never engaging with his fellow prisoners beyond answering their initial questions with sign language dripping in sarcasm. Phantom seemed like he’d just be another background prisoner until visitor day rolled around.
The day started as average as possible at Arkham; some low-level goons got into a brawl, and Waylon couldn’t leave his cell for an extra hour until it was settled. So suffice to say, most were not in a good mood that morning. Phantom, however, had a certain pep in his step as he walked into the prison yard. Waylon didn’t do much more than raise an eyebrow at the cheerful demeanor, assuming he simply slept well. But the mood continued throughout the morning and into lunch. Phantom didn’t even roll his eyes when the guards pulled out his liquidated meal. Waylon and many others eyed him skeptically, unsure of the cause of his sudden chipperness. That was until prisoners were being lined up for visitation, and Phantom was practically vibrating with nerves. Waylon usually didn’t get any visitors, but Roy had wanted to stop by and chat with him. Waylon sat about three people away from Phantom, the only other notable rogue on this lineup was Ivy, while the rest were typical goons. Ivy gave him a quick look before turning to the glass when Harley burst into the room. (It was no secret that Ivy wouldn’t be here long. While Harley had mostly given up her life of crime, Ivy had most certainly not, and the former scientist didn’t like being away from her wife). Waylon continued to glance at the jittery young man until Roy arrived a few minutes late, followed by two other figures. The first one he noticed wasn’t actually Roy, but rather a towering red-headed woman dressed like a CEO. Behind both Roy and the woman’s legs was a small black-haired little girl. Waylon had the brief thought that Roy was an idiot for bringing Lian to Arkham of all places, before he realized that it was a different young girl. The child was jumping up and down in excitement, holding the hand of the tall woman and dragging her forward. Both the inmates and visitors cast sideways glances at whoever was crazy enough to bring a kid here. Suddenly, a thud made Waylon glance at Phantom, who was now pressed against the glass like an overeager puppy.
“DADDY!”
The young girl tries to run forward, but is held back by the ginger woman.
“Slow down, Ellie.” The woman lightly reprimands despite the gentle smile on her face.
“But I haven’t seen Daddy in almost a month, Aunty Jazz!”
They finally reach the glass, and the girl pulls down the phone, forgetting about her previous ire for her aunt. Ellie starts talking a mile a minute, updating her father on the past weeks by the sound of it. Waylon is snapped out of his staring by Roy suddenly chuckling in front of him.
“Reminds me of Lian, huh?”
“Who the hell brings a kid to a maximum security prison?”
Ray shrugs, “I think the redhead caught me staring before we got in here and told me she was perfectly fine at protecting herself and her niece.”
Waylon takes one more peek to the side, noticing the matching glimmer in the father and daughter's eyes. He focuses back on Roy and tries not to eavesdrop on the young family.
“How ‘ya been, Roy?”
They chat amicably for about ten minutes, doing a quick check-in on Roy’s sobriety before moving on to lighter topics. Lian is doing well in school, hero work is going average, he’s meeting up with a friend soon, etc. The conversation reaches a natural lull, and Waylon is about to throw in an awkward ‘sooo’ when the harsh cracking of a radio cuts into the room.
Everyone’s heads snap to the source of the sound. Waylon’s eyes land on the young girl across the wall from Phantom. Her mouth is only slightly open, and she’s got a big grin on her face, eyes bright and full of wonder. The strange thing is that while Waylon knows the sound is coming from her mouth, the noise seems to emanate from the kid’s chest. Another sound fills the room, this time that of a short-circuiting device. The room's occupants stare in unabashed confusion, curious about how a (supposedly) human can do this.
The bewilderment only grows when Phantom leans forward eagerly and somehow speaks. Well, he doesn’t make words , but a similar note fills the room; his voice is more like the cracking of glaciers. The father and daughter seem to have set each other off because once they've started, there’s no stopping them. Phantom will speak in howling winds and the crunch of fresh snow, and his daughter will respond with thunder and buzzes. The older’s words are muffled, most likely due to the muzzle, but it’s almost unnoticeable, similar to taking through a door. It’s… strange. This is the same mask that every inmate has heard guards bragging about for not allowing even a single sound to pass through. And suddenly Phantom can produce these eerie grating sounds with little effort? Strange.
The pressure in the room increases, and if Waylon were a lesser man, he would have covered his ears. The sounds settle deep in his bones, rattling around in his skull and filling him with dread. Just when Waylon feels like he’s about to pop, the redheaded aunt urgently taps on the young girl's shoulder, getting her attention. The tension snaps instantly, and Waylon releases a breath he didn’t know he was holding. In the ensuing silence, it’s easy to hear the words spoken softly between the family.
“Calm down, you two. You’re hurting everyone’s ears. Go back to English and ASL.”
“Sorry, Jazzy.” The young girl mutters sheepishly.
The room slowly but surely resumes its previous conversations, but not without a heavy layer of tension and unease.
Something is off about Phantom, and everyone at Arkham Asylum can tell.
=
The theories about what the hell Phantom is started up almost immediately. Most guessed meta based on the heavy-duty cuffs. Nocturna still insisted the boy was dead, with growing frustration at the lack of attention paid to her conclusion. The current leading theory was Alien, based on his behaviour at the first visitor day about a month ago. But Ivy didn’t buy it. Ivy knew about Phantom. Well, mostly.
People often forget that she was an acclaimed scientist before her transformation. Because of this, she had connections in the scientific field. Ivy had heard about Dr. Madeline and Dr. Jack Fenton, but only in passing. She mainly heard horror stories about the chaotic scientists who had no regard for OSHA or really any regulations. She barely even knew about their field of study–something about radiation and mutation, as far as she last heard. At one point, it was a running joke with her team about how soon it would take them to become supervillains. So, even though Ivy was no longer a respected scientist herself, she still heard the big news. And the Fentons' dying was big news. She remembers being cuddled up with her now wife and opening her phone to check the news. The news of their murder spread fast, especially with the violent nature of their deaths. Their brains leaking out of their ears as if reduced to mush, hands and feet broken to stop them from moving, claw marks all over their faces as a sign that whoever had killed them was fighting back. It was horrific to say the least. It didn’t take long for the killer to be identified as their son. Daniel Fenton was a violent meta who rebelled constantly and terrorised their small town; it was easy for the media to paint him as a ruthless murderer. Ivy herself only barely questioned it at the time, assuming the Fentons had gone too far in their studies and neglected their son to the point of the already troubled teen lashing out. It was easy to ignore the signs.
But the pieces fell more into place when Phantom was transferred to Arkham. Ivy recognized him but chose not to mention it to the other gossips. She wouldn’t be here long and would prefer not to invoke the unstable meta’s wraith. But the more she paid attention, the more it became clear. Daniel was kind in a subtle way. He never messed with anyone and always answered questions (despite his answers being snarky and often misleading). He stuck to himself and seemed like an okay guy. When visitor day arrived, she was shocked to see he had a kid, and even more shocked when he made noise. A lot of prisoners had kids, but not many had kids who were willing to visit; even fewer had kids they got along with that well. Ivy began making a theory that painted a picture of a terrorized boy pushed to his limit by mad scientist parents, but she still had no concrete proof. That was until she overheard a goon talking about scars he had seen in passing—a deep Y down the center of his chest. The goon had murmured about the origin, but Ivy knew. Ivy was not only a doctor but also a pseudo-aunt to Red Hood; she knew what an autopsy scar looked like. It all clicked into place that day. The Fenton parents had been scientists exploring mutation, and they made it obvious they didn’t care about the safety of anyone but themselves. It only made sense that they would experiment on their own son. It broke Ivy’s poisoned heart to see someone so young live such a hard life.
Harley had asked her over the phone what was taking her so long to break out, and Ivy had a hard time admitting it was because she wanted to take Phantom with her. She had started getting closer to the young man as she was one of the very few who could understand sign language. Danny was a funny guy and a real charmer. He was eager to tell stories about his daughter and sister but was careful never to mention his parents, and Ivy never brought them up. The kid was growing on her. But Ivy was getting sick of Arkham. She missed her wife, her plants, and her comfortable bed. So she was done waiting.
Many people described Arkham as a revolving door; no one stayed there permanently. So it wasn’t a big surprise when a quiet Sunday at the prison turned into a complete riot after Poison Ivy pheromone bombed the building. The guards were frantic, doing everything in their power to keep the heavy-hitters contained. Rogues and goons alike were fighting their way through to freedom. Ivy was on a mission. She matched through the halls, incapacitating anyone who got in her way, all in the pursuit of Danny Phantom. When she eventually got to his cell, she ripped the door off its hinges with her vines. Danny sat slightly startled, dropping whatever book he had been reading.
“Come on, Danny.”
“What?”
Ivy snorted. “Let’s get out of here, kid. We don’t have too much time before the bats get here.”
“I’m not leaving.”
“Danny, I don’t know what's going on in your head, but we really need to leave. Don’t you want to see Ellie?” She asked him out of genuine curiosity.
“I see Ellie every other week.”
“You know what I mean. You’ve missed enough of her life. Harls and I can protect you if you’re worried about the bats.”
Danny’s eyes filled with a knowing shine. “I’m not worried about the bats, believe me.”
“Well then, what are you waiting for? We need to get a move on. Ellie needs you.”
A dark look flashed across Danny’s face; though she couldn't hear, she knew he was sighing.
“It’s safer for everyone if I stay here.”
“Danny, you're talking nonsense,” Far-off shouts got louder, and Ivy was getting desperate. “We have to go now.”
“Ivy, go see your wife. I’ll be fine.”
Ivy wanted to argue more, but she could hear a distant quip from Nightwing; she was out of time. With one final huff, she pointed a finger at the boy's chest and began retreating.
“I’ll find a way to visit you, kid. Mark my words.”
And with that, she was propelling herself forward with plants to the giant hole in the wall.
=
Jazz was reviewing session notes from one of her clients when the doorbell rang. She wasn’t expecting visitors, so she walked to Ellie's room with silent steps to double-check the girl was still sleeping. Quiet snores and murmurs met her ears, and she allowed a soft smile to grace her features. The smile fell quickly as it always did. Danny should be the one getting to see his daughter like this, rather than an hour every two weeks full of rushed info dumps. Remembering someone was at the door, Jazz moved through the house, picking up the Creep Stick 2.0 along the way. When she reached the door, she took note of the fidgeting shadow peeking through, and hid the Creep Stick behind her back while opening the door slowly.
Peering into the hallway past the still chain-locked door, she was greeted with the sight of none other than Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy. The former's face lit up when she met eyes with Jazz.
“Hiya, sweetie!”
“D-Dr. Quinzel, Dr. Isley! Can I help you two?”
“Aww listen to that, hun. She’s so formal.”
Ivy stepped in front of her wife with a polite smile. “Hello, Dr. Nightingale. We were hoping to talk about Danny?”
Jazz’s hackles immediately raised, and she pushed past being star-struck to furrow her brows at the two women.
“What do you want with my brother?”
As if in sync, the two raised their arms placatingly.
“Relax, sugar! Ives was in Arkham with him, and we’re just a little worried.”
She willed herself to relax and closed the door so she could undo the chain lock.
“Come in. But please keep your voice down, Ellie’s sleeping.”
=
Daniel Fenton was weird, Tim decided. They knew that when they first learned about the overpowered meta from bum-fuck Illinois. But the weirdness seemed to grow each day. First, it was the gruesome death of his parents and godfather, then the reveal that he spoke an unknown language, and most recently, his reluctance to leave prison.
The bats and birds were instantly on edge when Oracle told them about the Arkham breakout. Prison breaks were a dime a dozen in Gotham, but they currently had a powerful meta with unknown weaknesses who would soon be roaming the streets. So they grappled over as quickly as they could. It was quite the shock when Nightwing and Robin rounded the corner only to see Fenton lounging on his cot reading a romance novel. Daniel gave a simple wave at their baffled expressions and returned to his book. Red Hood had cackled over coms when Damian was forced to stand guard since they couldn't just leave the meta with his cell wide open. Damian had gone full detective mode and began interrogating him. The information they gathered was strange, to say the least.
- Daniel had every intention to live out his two life sentences in prison.
- Daniel preferred Danny and corrected Damian at every turn.
- When Damian goaded Danny into talking about his daughter, the man said she was “safer” without him (which Tim found sad.)
- Further goading made Danny spill that he “would see Ellie when this was all over.” (which Tim found even sadder).
- The man held no regret for the people he had killed.
Danny Fenton was an enigma, driving Tim up the wall. They didn’t even fully know what he was! Was it a Superman situation, and the man was an alien who had crash-landed on Earth as a baby? Or was he really just that strong of a meta who also spoke an unknown and ear-bleeding language?
Whatever he was, his placid nature was driving Tim crazy. At the very least, the suppressors contained him.
=
Harley never expected her life to turn out the way it had. At first, the plan was gymnastics, then psychology, then supervillain, and nowadays, Harley just went with the flow. But hey! She was happy. So when Ivy told her the kid she thought had been experimented on was willingly keeping himself imprisoned? Well, what was another twist in the grand scheme of things? They had visited his sister, and she was an absolute peach—a sweet girl who definitely looked up to Harley (and wasn’t that a kick). So they started visiting more, Harley would bring over new baked goods she tried, and Ivy often brought plants and sustainably made stuffed animals for little Ellie. The young woman seemed so stressed, and Harley and Ivy were happy to help in any way they could.
But Harley and her wife each had their fair share of enemies that were more than willing to exploit any weakness they found. And as much as Jazz insisted that she could protect Ellie and herself, she was still just a civilian. It was only a matter of time until something happened.
=
The Nightingales had made their way to Harley and Ivy’s apartment for dinner and “family game night,” as Ellie had dubbed it. The meal was delicious, and they had only just sat on the couch when a gas canister was thrown through the window with a crash.
Jazz grabbed Ellie in her arms, ducked, and rolled while the two other women reached for weapons (or plants). Jazz began crawling to the door, but whatever was in the canister was making her weak and her movements sluggish. Before she could get past the armchair, the door was thrown open. Jazz glanced up as quickly as she could to find none other than Two-Face and his goons wearing gas masks walking into the room.
“Well, ain't this sweet. The whole family's here.”
Harley rushed forward with a bat, but she wasn't fast enough because of the gas. One of the two goons elbowed her in her sternum and easily took the bat. Whatever was filling the air seemed to be hitting Ivy extra hard as she gasped ragedly from her spot on the ground. Harvey Dent’s eyes eventually moved to Jazz’s protective position. He smirked and snapped his fingers, signalling for the goons to follow him.
“Sorry ma’am, but these two been getting too close to my business, figured we’d teach ‘em a lesson by roughing up their precious nieces.”
One of the goons starts walking forward, and Jazz couldn’t do more than gasp a frantic no before they were reaching for Ellie.
“OW!”
Two-Face turned his good eye to the goon in confusion.
“The little tyke bit me!”
“Well, man up and grab her!”
Jazz felt her arms empty, but the goon hadn't grabbed Ellie yet. It was then that the redhead was harshly reminded that Halfa’s didn't need to breathe.
“Wha-! Where’d she go?!”
A loud thud made Jazz move her head to see Ellie standing over one of the goons with the Creep Stick 2.0 and an angry pout. The goon still standing made to grab her, but Ellie flashed forward in a blur of yellow and hit him in the stomach. The man collapsed (thank god for Halfa strength) and Two-Face stared, baffled. Ellie wasted no time using her speed to climb the man and roughly rip the gas mask off his face before hitting him right in the groin. Dent folded in on himself and clawed at his chest, fighting to get air. He whipped his arm in Ellie’s direction in an attempt to reclaim the gas mask. Ellie nearly teleported across the room, rushing to put the gas mask on Ivy. As quick as light, the little girl grabbed the remaining gas masks and put them on her Aunts’ faces.
The women took in desperate breaths, heaving in the clean air. As Harvey Dent finally joined his goons in passing out, Ellie stood with a big grin. When the three women were finally able to breathe, Jazz rushes over and scoops Ellie into her arms.
“Never do that again!”
“But I stopped them! I was a hero, like Daddy!”
Ivy and Harley slowly approached.
“So she’s a speedster?” Ivy cautiously questioned.
Ellie hmphed and crossed her arms, looking at Ivy like she had spit in her cereal.
“I’m not a speedster. I’m the speedster!”
Harley looked at the girl curiously.
“We should probably explain some things.” Jazz sighed.
=
Jazz had been trying to convince Danny to leave ever since he was first arrested at 18.
Just about every time she’d visited him, she either hinted at or outright stated that he should break out. It’s not like Danny hadn’t considered it; he’d actually put ample time into thinking about it. But Danny firmly believed that everyone was safer with him behind bars. He was a beacon for trouble and danger, and he never wanted to put his family in harm's way. That’s not to say Danny liked prison, quite the opposite. He can’t count the number of days he’s lost sleep thinking about all the things he’s missing. Ellie’s first day of school, her first partner, her graduation. And where would they even go? It’s not like they could live in the bat’s city with Danny as a fugitive. Besides, Ellie was too young to live in the Infinite Realms full time. Her young and developing Halfa core couldn’t handle that much pure ectoplasm for long. Besides, it’s not like he’d be in prison forever. Danny would live out his life sentences, fake a death by old age, and finally retreat to his kingdom with his sister and daughter. Danny always had to remind himself that this was the safest path. It was usually able to reassure him.
Until today.
Danny slammed his hands down on the table in front of him as Jazz closed her mouth. She didn’t seem disturbed by his reaction and just sighed from the other side of the glass.
“Back down, Phantom!” A guard hisses with his hand itching for his baton.
He hesitantly sits back down but doesn’t stop the rapid-fire movement of his hands. He repeats one desperate sign, not sure his brain can process another.
“Explain. Explain. Explain. Expla-“
“Danny, calm down! Everything is fine, just give me a second.” Jazz takes a deep breath. “We were at Aunt Harley and Ivy’s. Two-Face wanted revenge on them and tried to take it out on me and El. Things could've gone a lot worse if it weren’t for her not needing to breathe and her… quick wit.”
Danny buries his head in his hands but continues to listen.
“I had to explain everything to them.”
Danny lifts his head, giving Jazz a specific questioning look.
“Everything.” She confirms.
He shoves his face back in his palms.
“They understand, but Danny look at me when I say this.”
He peeks past his fingers, trying to calm his racing heart. The thought that the two most important people to him were attacked while he did nothing is terror-inducing.
“Your way isn’t working.” She points a finger at him through the glass. “I tried to listen to you about this being the 'safest' option, but I can't stand by anymore. Two-Face knows about us, and we’re not safe.”
Danny wants to say something, but they’ve been through this argument a million times, and Danny’s points have been getting weaker for a while.
“Ellie needs you, Danny. I need you.”
He sighs. The whole reason he’s missed his daughter’s life is because he thought they were safe out there. But to hear that something horrible could’ve happened and he would’ve been powerless to stop it? His mind was changing. At his continued silence, Jazz speaks up again with a huff.
“You’ve got a month, Danny. Otherwise, I’m sending Ivy and Harley to get you.”
She places the phone down and struts out of the room.
Welp, guess his mind is made up.
=
To the surprise of no one, Bruce is a very paranoid man.
Daniel Fenton was an unknown and thus, in his opinion, a valid sense of paranoia. The man had yet to do anything, and Bruce was at his wits' end. The man was planning something he was certain. No one with that powerset should be wholly trusted, let alone someone in Arkham . Typically, a new prisoner in Arkham didn’t consume him and his kids' lives like this. But Daniel Fenton’s weaknesses were unknown, and his abilities were staggering. The whole family was waiting for the man to break. Something would happen, and it was only a matter of time.
The shoe dropped on a Saturday five months into Phantom’s stay.
=
Tim stifled a yawn behind his fist and sat down in a heap. He had just gotten back from patrol, and after pouring himself a cup of coffee, he set about reviewing the case files before bed. The batcomputer’s bright screen glares down at him. Pulling up the night’s activities, he glances at the time—1:26 AM. Tim probably wouldn’t be sleeping tonight, but what else was new? Just as he takes a sip of coffee, the screen begins flashing red and displaying the bolded text “ARKHAM BREAKOUT”
Tim groans and hits his head on the desk a few times before reaching to turn on his com.
“Look alive, people; we’ve got another Arkham breakout.”
Several groans sound out.
“Again? It’s been like less than two months!” Steph says.
“Someone, erase the ‘days since’ counter.” Jason drawls, but Tim can hear the revving of his bike signalling he’s on his way.
“Yeah, yeah, I will,” Tim says, fingers flying across the keyboard. “Just let me figure out who’s leading the charge and I’ll meet you guys th-”
Tim’s jaw drops as he pulls up the security footage.
“Red Robin?” Batman asks with well-hidden concern.
Another moment of silence.
“Red? You good?” Nightwing asks over howling wings as he grapples across the city.
Tim shakes his head to relieve himself of shock and starts running around the cave to gather his stuff.
“Fuck! Shit- uh ok. FUCK!”
“Language.” Dick lightly chids.
“Phantom’s leading the breakout.”
A hush settles over the com line.
“Well, shit.” Hood curses.
=
Danny thinks this prison break is very reminiscent of his teen years. Honestly, with the number of times he busted out of Walker’s, he’s practically an expert at this. Danny supposes he should have been a little more subtle with his escape, but he’s been locked up and away from his powers for 6 years: he’s allowed to have some fun. The first step was causing a commotion; to do that, he needed the other prisoners to get riled up, and for that to happen, his wrist inhibitors had to come off. He debated on whether there was a way to finesse it, but in the end, smashing his cuffs against a wall worked pretty well. Once the cold metal was off, Danny felt a pleasant chill run up his spine and a tingle light up his nerves. Ancients, that felt right.
The second his cuffs broke, the alarm started blaring, so Danny knew he didn’t have much time to incite a riot. He easily froze the heavy metal door of his cell and sent it flying with one powerful kick. He marched through the halls, freezing doors to the point of shattering as he went. Eventually, he makes it to the cell he knows belongs to Waylon and yanks it from its hinges.
The large man looks quite surprised at Danny’s small form in the doorway.
“You the reason for that, kid?” he says with a gesture to the alarms.
“Not a k-”
Danny cuts off his own hands when he realizes he doesn't require the sign anymore. A large grin splits his face, and he phases off his muzzle with a happy laugh. He throws the thing to the ground as hard as he can, watching it practically shatter.. Waylon looks even more shocked while Danny massages his jaw and cracks his neck.
“What? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” Danny cackles.
Waylon snaps his mouth shut and huffs out a breath of air.
“Damn, could you have done this the whole time Kid?”
“Not a kid,” Danny’s smile is swiftly wiped away by the sound of distant shouts. “Come on, we should get out of here. I need to see my daughter.”
“Don’t gotta tell me twice.”
The two men leave the cell and start heading for the wall Ivy blew a hole in during the last breakout, since it’s the weakest in the prison. This is unfortunately quite predictable, and when they get there, most of the bats are lying in wait.
Some look mildly surprised at his bare face, but they’re all good at hiding their emotions.
“Phantom.” The Batman’s gruff voice might have intimidated him if he were anyone else, but as it stands, Danny is just giddy that he actually gets to respond.
“Batman.” Danny’s smile damn near makes his cheeks hurt. “Damn! It feels good to be able to actually talk! Did you know I used to be quite the blabbermouth? Yeah, nothing could get me to shut up! Well, until my parents invented the Fenton Muzzle. Thank the ancients I destroyed that thing. Isn’t muzzle a funny word? Mu-zule. Muuuuu-zzzzulllleee. It’s so weird being able to speak again! I mean not like I didn’t like signing, but-”
“Jesus Christ, man!” Red Hood huffs.
Danny’s attention is turned to him, and he pulls a disgusted face.
“Wow, dude! Your ecto is rank as hell! I mean, I know you guys are all liminal as hell, but you reek .”
Red Hood looks very offended while Spoiler snorts at the comment. Red Robin looks calculating, however.
“What do you mean by liminal?”
“Do ya’ll not know what that means? Whatever, I don’t have time for the ghost crash course. Just means you’re all extremely death touched, Hood’s the worst, quickly followed by the tiny angry Robin.”
“Who are you calling tiny?” Robin growls.
Danny snorts but also recognizes that he should probably get out of here.
“You’re a ghost?” Red Robin questions.
“Yeah? What did you think I was?”
“I was on team Alien, personally.” Waylon finally speaks up. “A bunch of people owe Nocturna money now, though.”
“Oh, I’m definitely a ghost!” Danny grins, “I’ll show you.”
Going ghost for the first time in so long feels like scratching an itch that’s constantly been there. It’s like coming home. Flying has always come easier than walking when in ghost form, so it’s no surprise when he starts to float. He stretches out his arms and tail in one long movement while releasing a contented sigh.
“Ancients, that feels good!” Danny straightens out and faces the furry brigade with a lazy smirk. “Now if you don’t mind, I’d like to get out of here.”
The family squares their shoulders and drops into fighting stances.
“We will not let you pass,” Black Bat signs.
Danny spares a glance at Waylon. He wanted to get out of here together, and he doesn’t want to risk hurting the man in a fight.
Waylon snorts, “I can handle myself, kid. Go see your daughter.”
Danny smiles back and turns to the bats. They seem to be expecting him to make a run (or fly) for it, so Danny just smirks and rips a portal into reality. Without so much as a glance back, he’s gone, laughing all the way.
=
Ellie rubs her eyes while clutching her stuffed wolf. She slowly drags herself out of bed with a big yawn. It’s Sunday, which means Aunty Jazz has made waffles. Ever since they moved after Ellie took down the bad men, Jazzy has been making more of their food rather than ordering.
Ellie opens the door and stomps down the hallway. She’s been grumpy these past few days since they haven't been able to visit Daddy. Something about “seeing him soon,” Ellie thinks it's dumb, for the record. She’s so moppy that she doesn’t notice the extra voice coming from the kitchen (even if she did, it’s unlikely she’d recognize it).
When she turns the corner, she drops her wolf and gasps.
“Daddy?”
The man in the kitchen spins around with a sparkling smile (that Ellie can actually see!).
“Hey there princess,” it looks like tears are gathering in his eyes. “I hope you don’t mind I stopped by for Sunday waffl- OOF”
Ellie jumps and slams her body into him at full force with a wail of “DADDY!”
The father and daughter crumple to the floor in a heap of happy tears.
“I’m here, sweetheart.” He pets her hair, “And I’m not going anywhere.”