Ch.30: Wish
Batman glared, sighing irritably. Danny stood in front of him, smiling and chuckling nervously.
The Dark Knight was not happy in the slightest.
There had been a mission that night for the Team. Batman had ordered Danny to stay behind because of injuries he had received when the Joker blew an empty warehouse. One of those bombs had a mutant-ectoranium compound in it, just for Danny-Boy. The serum Batman normally used didn't work because of the mutation. They had wrapped the wound the best they could. Batman was still working on another serum that would work on the mutated ectoranium when he sent the Team of a mission. Danny, being Danny, went with his Team and left a clone behind which dissolved once they were halfway to their destination. There was no time to bring him back to the Cave, as this was a time-limited mission, and no one could stop a ghost that could phase through them.
The Team hadn't been mad at Danny. More like… Worried for his life and a little disappointed in him. But no one said anything against the teen and were actually happy he went, though putting his life on the line with Batman.
And it wasn't just that Danny was disobedient because, in the end, a ghost had been there and the only one equipped, besides Danny, to fight ghosts was Robin.
No, no… What ticked him off the most was that Danny injured himself even more while bring reckless. The burns were all around his body and were easily torn open.
Danny, while fighting, had torn these burns open more than once. He was bleeding all over the place on the mission and, near the end, passed out from fatigue and blood loss. If Robin hadn't been equipped to fight the specters, the Team would have been screwed. Royally.
"So… I'm guessing I'm grounded…" Danny commented, still smiling nervously. Batman continued glaring, not saying a word. Danny's nervous smile dropped.
"This is the millionth time, Danny." Batman said, voice sharp. Danny shifted his foot nervously. "Doing so has saved lives…"
"True. But this time we were going to take care of it right after I gave the mission assignment. So, not only did you disobey me, you also deceived me and you were considerably reckless during the mission." Batman growled. Danny shifted his foot. "When you put that way…"
Batman rolled his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. Danny took a look at him while his eyes were closed and quickly looked away again. "I'm sorry…"
"Not the first time…" Batman mumbled, eyes still closed. Danny flinched, as his mentor continued to seethe.
"Sometimes I wish I hadn't met you…"
Danny's head snapped up, eyes wide and glassy. His mouth opened to say something and then closed again. His throat choked up and he tried to swallow the lump in his throat. He couldn't. The teen turned on his heel and began sprinting down the hall.
Click, clack, click, clack, click, clack, click, clack…
Batman looked up startled and then he realized what he said. He sighed irritably again and rubbed his face. Batman closed his eyes, planning to give Danny a little space.
"So you have wished it, so it shall be…"
Bruce opened his eyes and found himself staring at the ceiling. He looked around confused.
How did he get in his bed? In his bedroom? He had just been talking (yelling) to Danny a minute ago in the Bat-Cave.
Bruce got up and put on some of his casual clothes. He went down to the kitchen and saw Dick eating breakfast while Alfred cleaned some pots and pans.
"Where's Danny?" He asked.
Dick looked at him confused. "Who?"
Bruce gave him a blank look that said he was not amused. "Danny. Your brother."
Dick continued looking at him confused. "I don't have a brother and the only Danny I know is the one in my math class. You know, Danny Ramirez? You met him at the last charity ball. Blonde hair, green eyes? Ring a bell?"
"This isn't funny, Dick." Bruce said seriously.
The raven-haired dropped his fork and put his hands up in surrender. The fork made a clatter against his plate.
"Bruce, I'm serious! You liked Danny cause he was polite! I don't know another Danny!" Dick defended.
Alfred paused in his cleaning. "Master Bruce, there really is no Danny living in or around Wayne Manor. Are you feeling alright?"
Bruce nodded. "Yeah, fine…" He mumbled and sat down his chair. He absently picked up the newspaper and began scanning it. None of the things he read registered in his mind because he was focused on what happened to his Danny.
As Dick put more pancakes on his plate, an ad for Circus Gothica played on the TV. "Hey Bruce, any new leads on the Circus Gothica thing you had going?"
Bruce looked up. "The what?"
Dick used his fork to point to the TV. "The Circus Gothica lead. Every stop they make, the local bank gets robbed. I kinda yelled at you when your first blamed them cause of the Haly's Circus event but I kinda agreed with you after seeing their commercials." He said sheepishly.
"I remember that mission. Who went with you again?" Bruce asked absently, staring at the face of the ringmaster Freakshow, Danny's enemy.
"Red Arrow, Superboy, Megan, and Artemis went with me, remember?" Dick asked. Bruce nodded.
Danny went too…
"Master Richard, it is time you and I left for school if we are going to get there on time." Alfred announced, placing the newly cleaned pots down. Dick nodded, got up, and put his plate in the sink. He and Alfred left the kitchen and began their walk to the garage.
"Alfred, you think Bruce is ok?"
"I'll talk to him when we get back. No worries, Master Richard."
Bruce continued to flip through the newspaper though the words meant nothing to him. As he flipped again, there was another ad for Circus Gothica on the page. The ringmaster took up most of the space with his sinister grin and staff. There was a woman behind him wearing a red cloak with pupil-less, red eyes. On one bottom corner of the page, there was a midget man wearing a Speedo looking thing, gauntlets, boots, and a collar, all black. On the other bottom-corner, there was a black-haired girl. She had a red, one-sleeved shirt on, black tights, black choker, and black makeup. On the top-corner, there was a big brute. He wore the same thing as the midget.
And in the last corner stood his Danny in Phantom form.
The first thing the Dark Knight noticed was that his eyes weren't directed at the camera like the others were. They were downcast, staring at the white rose with a black stem in his hands. His cloak was billowing in non-existent wind. Instead of his normal hazemat suit, he wore a black, long-sleeved tunic, white gloves, white boots, and black pants. A white belt was hanging loosely around his skinny waist. There was also black makeup around his eyes.
But what really troubled Bruce… His eyes weren't red like the others.
They were green.
Danny gripped his black hair. He was curled on the window seat in the train. His eyes were shut tightly, breathing heavy. He flinched at every sound he heard.
The other three ghosts were behind him, all lying in beds. They weren't sleeping. They didn't need to. They just didn't have orders to fulfill.
Feeling his stomach churn, Danny pushed the tray with food on it away even further with his foot. The smell continued to reach his nose and made his stomach feel worse. He had to eat but if he did he was going to be sick. Again.
Danny let his hands fall from his hair and in front of him. He screamed when he saw how bloody they were. He rushed into the bathroom and flipped the sink on. Hot water rushed over his hands and turned his skin red but Danny didn't care as he tried scrubbing the blood off.
It wouldn't. In fact, the amount of blood increased.
Danny screamed again when the water streaming from the faucet turned to blood. It was splattered all over the white porcelain. Looking around, blood was seeping from the ceiling and down the walls.
The teen's head spun as tears ran down his face. He used the wall as a support and when he drew back, a bloody handprint stayed. He whined in desperation. Gripping his head again, he fell to his knees.
The room around him warped. It was like looking into a hypo screen. Danny swayed back and forth and crashed into the wall, groaning and gripping his head. Everything continued to turn and spin and twirl and spiral and rotate and reel…
Danny dug into his pocket and brought out his syringe. He plunged it into his arm without a second thought.
Unlike with most people, MDMA did not get him high. If anything, it did the opposite.
Yes, it gave him hallucinations. But he had those anyways.
Yes, it took away his appetite. But he hadn't had one since he started this job.
Yes, it made him depressed. He would be depressed anyways. The only thing it didn't do was make him feel happy. No, he got tired instantly and became incoherent.
Through half-lidded eyes, Danny watched the walls bleed and the sink overflow with crimson blood and the world turn and spin and twirl and spiral and rotate and reel.
Someone grabbed his shoulder. Or at least, Danny thought someone did. There was a pressure there but his arm was gone, leaving a bloody nub with the bone sticking out. One of his legs was the same way.
But the only thing Danny saw was the bleeding walls, the blood overflowing, and world turn and spin and twirl and spiral and rotate and reel…
Freakshow growled from the doorway. Lydia was on the ground by Danny, shaking his shoulder but he was staring blankly ahead of him through half-lidded eyes. His mouth was slightly parted and he was mumbling something.
(Turn and spin and twirl and spiral and rotate and reel and turn and spin and twirl and spiral and rotate and reel…)
The syringe was still sticking out of his arm.
Freakshow had, on multiple occasions, tried taking Danny off the drug, even though it was him that introduced Danny to it. He just hadn't realized the side effects it would have on the teen, especially dealing with PTSD at the same time.
Lydia gave up on shaking Danny 'awake' and gave her master a worried look.
(Turn and spin and twirl and spiral and rotate and reel and turn and spin and twirl and spiral and rotate and reel…)
Every time Freakshow stopped Danny's supply of MDMA, there was a meltdown. Which included sobbing and screaming and tears and pleads and lash outs and getting a bad image for the circus to the press…
But every time Freakshow let him have more, his doses became bigger and/or they became more frequent.
Danny hadn't eaten anything in nineteen days. He hadn't had anything to drink in three. He hadn't slept in twenty-four. He hadn't talked in five.
(Turn and spin and twirl and spiral and rotate and reel and turn and spin and twirl and spiral and rotate and reel…)
Danny had hallucinations every hour and a half. He used MDMA every hallucination. He screamed every other hallucination. He cut on the days he didn't burn. He burned on the days he didn't cut. He used the syringe on days he cut and burned. He got ulcers from all three.
Basically, he was destroying himself.
(Turn and spin and twirl and spiral and rotate and reel and turn and spin and twirl and spiral and rotate and reel…)
Lydia gave Freakshow a 'what-are-you-going-to-do?' look. She had been giving him that look a lot, ever since she grew a soft-spot for the teen.
If the GIW were involved, it didn't matter which ghost you were. You were going to help your fellow kind from the only people sick enough to destroy a ghost's mind, no matter their age or morality.
And this was a halfa who had been brutally tortured to the brink of death.
Lydia had instantly forgiven his past offenses and became a friend of sorts.
Freakshow sighed. "What do you want me to do? If I cut off his supply, he has a meltdown. The last time he even went as far as screwing up the mission!"
Lydia glared, obviously saying 'cut-it-off-anyways-moron-he's-killing-himself'.
Freakshow growled. "And do what after that? Lock him up? What would be the point of taking him in if he can't do what I want him to?"
Lydia rolled her eyes. She slipped her arms under Danny's and practically dragged him into her lap. His half-lidded eyes moved around the room absently.
(Turn and spin and twirl and spiral and rotate and reel and turn and spin and twirl and spiral and rotate and reel…)
Lydia stroked his hair and hugged him from behind. Danny didn't even seem to notice the woman, as his eyes rolled in his head.
(Turn and spin and twirl and spiral and rotate and reel and turn and spin and twirl and spiral and rotate and reel…)
Freakshow frowned at the display of affection to the drug-addict of a teen before leaving. Lydia didn't even glance up as he left, still too focused on Danny to bother to notice his absence. She was thinking about taking the drugs from the teen herself. Then Danny could get better
(And turn and spin and twirl and spiral and rotate and reel and turn and spin and twirl and spiral and rotate and reel…)
and they could finally deal with the problem concerning his PTSD.
Batman continued typing on his computer rapidly. Theories and other such things he was just too impatient to type down on Word were scribbled down on pieces of paper next him. He would be lying if he said they were being used to take down Circus Gothica. In reality, they were only going to be used to get his kid back. Taking down Circus Gothica was the last thing on his mind.
Alfred walked into Bat-Cave with a worried frown on his face. "Master Bruce, I have not seen you work this hard since Dick went missing. What is troubling you?"
"You would call me crazy and then demand I rest when I am perfectly fine." Batman said, not even pausing in his typing or his work in general.
Alfred rolled his eyes. "It really all depends on how crazy the story is."
Batman sighed, agitated, before turning to the butler. "Dick is not the only adopted kid in the Wayne family. There's another; Danny. He's a half-ghost, half-human hybrid. I found him when he was dying of serious injuries after being captured and experimented on for a year. I took him in, Dick and Danny are really close, and the only reason he's not here now is because I accidently wished I had never met him."
Alfred raised an eyebrow. "It seems you were right. You should go get some rest."
The Dark Knight glared. "I am fine. Danny, however, is not. He's the white-haired teen traveling with Circus Gothica." Batman said, bringing out the flyer to show his butler. "Danny's eyes are green, indicating he's not being controlled by this orb which controls ghosts. What's going on in Danny's mind, we don't know, especially since the ringmaster Freakshow is his enemy."
Alfred sighed, as he began to walk away, probably to go get sleep-aid induced tea or coffee. "Whatever you say, Master Bruce, whatever you say…"
Danny stumbled from the train car, holding his head and groaning. The sunlight made him hiss and squint his eyes. His head pounded in pain, telling him to go back inside, fall asleep, dream sweet dreams…
Except he didn't dream sweet dreams. He had nightmares: living hells. What was the point of sleeping if he couldn't get a break from reality?
The teen slowly walked through the circus camp, the hood of his sweatshirt up to shade his eyes from the sun. It was humid and, with his sweatshirt on, made Danny want to hurl. He didn't take the clothing off though.
Lydia had been with the teen after he started to become more aware of his surroundings and the drugs wore off. She had fretted over him silently for a few minutes before he had told her he needed fresh air and left.
Looking back, she had given him a look. He knew what she had been silently telling him then but now he couldn't remember what she had meant. Frankly, he could hardly remember what he did for the show last night.
…
Now that he thought about it, had there been a show last night?
He couldn't remember.
Danny shrugged it off as he stumbled again. He shook it off and continued walking. Many people were giving him strange or worried looks, as he kept swaying, stumbling, and failed to walk in a straight line. Danny's tired eyes drooped but didn't close.
The teen walked right out of the circus camp and into the streets of Gotham. He still swayed in his step and stumbled. Some of the people on the streets sneered at him and told him to go home and be drunk there. It went in one ear and out the other as Danny was lost in la-la world.
Another person who wasn't watching where they were going either ran into Danny. Both grunted and drew back. The other person mumbled a 'sorry'. Danny stared at them.
Danny bumped into one of the agents on accident as he traveled through the facility. The agent, in retaliation, slapped him. Danny would've stumbled back but two other agents were holding his forearms, bruising them. The agent (oh hey! It was Agent Z! Whoops.) kneed him in the stomach, making Danny lurch forward in pain. He coughed, blood spilling from his parted lips.
And turn and spin and twirl and spiral and rotate and reel and turn and spin and twirl and spiral and rotate and reel and turn and spin and twirl and spiral and rotate and reel
"Hey, you ok?" Dick asked the frozen, older teen in front of him. His eyes were wide, black circles under his eyes. His hoodie was up and his skin was paper-white. His sweatshirt was baggy but you could just tell he was skinny with the way his cheeks were sunken in. He was mumbling.
"And turn and spin and twirl and spiral and rotate and reel…"
Dick tapped him. "Hey, are you ok? I'm sorry for bumping into you."
The teen's blank stare came back to reality, if only barely. He was still distant but at least he looked a bit coherent now.
"Hm? Oh… I'm fine…" He mumbled, voice strained and hoarse from misuse.
"Are you sure…? You don't look fine…" Dick mumbled. The other teen nodded, seeming to start distancing himself again.
"Uh… What's your name?" Dick asked, hoping to start a conversation and get that far away look out of the older boy's eyes. It was scary to look at.
The boy closed his eyes in thought, grasping for something. "My name is… Uh… It's um…"
"Get over here, Weapon! We got things to do!"
"Come on, Boy. The show is starting."
"Phantom." "Whelp." "Scumbag." "Danny-Boy." "Dipstick." "Kid." "Little shit." "Weapon." "Boy." "Worthless piece of crap." "Dude." "Great One." "Druggie."
"Hey Danny! Come on! What are you waiting for? Tucker's waiting for us at school!"
"Coming Sam!"
"My name's Danny." The teen finally answered. Dick nodded slowly, recognizing the name from that morning's conversation with his mentor. "Cool. I'm Richard, but just call me Dick."
Danny nodded slowly back. Dick expected the other raven-haired teen to say something in return but he was spacing out again. It was creeping Dick out.
"So… That's cool… Well, I gotta go. My guardian's waiting for me at home. See ya around?" Dick said, faking a smile.
Danny tilted his head to the side, looking at the sky. A woman ran up to the spaced-out teen and grabbed his face. She had raven hair and blue eyes, wearing a one-sleeved red shirt, jeans, and sandals.
"Danny, what are you doing out here? You were supposed to stay in the area!" The woman scolded.
The teen looked at her confused for a second before a spark of recognition fell into his eyes. "Oh… Sorry… I, uh, forgot…"
Dick looked between the two. "Uh… Well I'll be going now. Bye Danny." He said and began his trek again back to his home.
"Bye Dick." Danny mumbled. It was the most coherent thing he had said that entire time. Dick smiled and waved before rushing off.
The woman took Danny's shoulders, turned him around, and gently guided him back. Danny let himself be led without any struggle.
As the two entered the circus camp, the woman's eyes turned red and her skin green. Black tights replaced her jeans and boots replaced her sandals.
The woman, Elastica, led Danny back to their car, brought him inside, and moved away as Lydia hugged the teen, who continued to stare blankly ahead.
Freakshow wore a furious expression on his face at Danny's disobedience.
"Where were you?" Freakshow questioned, getting in the teen's face. The teen flinched, some form of recognition entering his eyes. "I-I don't know…"
Freakshow raised his hand to slap the boy but stopped when he saw the fear. Lydia stepped in front of her master with a furious expression on her face, a look that clearly said 'you-know-he's-like-this-after-the-drugs-wear-off-you-idiot'.
Danny backed up into a wall and began whining, holding his head. He slid down the wall and landed with a thump on the ground. He began digging in his pocket.
Freakshow bolted forward and grabbed his hand, stopping the teen from injecting anymore of the drugs into his system. Danny's terrified eyes looked up at his 'master'.
His eyes were coherent but, at the same time, not. He was present with them but in another time with different people.
"Oh no, not again! You have a show and a mission tonight!" Freakshow snapped at him. Danny quivered from his spot on the ground, unshed tears in his eyes.
Lydia smacked Freakshow's head with a scolding expression. Freakshow, taking the syringe from Danny's hands, put the needle in his pocket. "Don't give me that look, Lydia. You want him to stop taking the drug and I'm stopping him!"
Lydia gave a look that said 'without-scaring-him-you-idiot!'
Freakshow rubbed his face in exaggeration. "Enough. We'll deal with this later. Minions!"
Goliath (the brute), Elastica (the woman), and Ivan (the midget dude) all stood at attention in front of their master while Lydia stood beside him, anger still coming off her in waves.
"Get the show ready. Once your acts are over, you will regroup and rob Gotham Central Bank, understood?" The ringmaster ordered. The three nodded. Freakshow turned to Danny and pointed at him, Lydia giving him a look in warning. "You have five minutes to pull yourself together, understood?"
Danny's shaking and trembling figure looked at Freakshow in confusion for a moment before he nodded, not wanting to get yelled at.
The ringmaster smirked and began turning to his other minions with looks of displeasure. "What are you still doing here? Go! Go!"
The three flew off to do as told. Freakshow began walking towards the door, Lydia hesitating. The ringmaster gave her a look. "Let's go, Lydia!"
The ghost woman nodded and left the room with her master, giving Danny one last look in sympathy.
The teen continued to tremble in his spot. Tears spilled from his eyes and he choked on sob. He hated it when Agent Z yelled at him.
Oh no, wait. That was Freakshow.
He did it again. He called Freakshow Agent Z again. That was bad that was bad. Freakshow cared about him, not Agent Z. Agent Z used him as a guinea pig, Freakshow didn't. No, no, no, Freakshow was not Agent Z.
…
But… Then why did Danny mix the two up so much?
Batman and Robin waited in the rafters of Gotham Central Bank for the robbers to show up. The Dark Knight had insisted they were going to do it tonight, while the show was going on. That's why the culprits were so hard to pin because the show was going on and people doubted a few acrobats or whatever could break in, steal a ton of money and priceless artifacts, and then make it back in time for the ending of the show. But Batman did not believe in coincidences.
He also knew what his poor baby was capable of and this was something he was absolutely capable of.
Both made Batman proud, because of what one his kids could do, and extremely sad, because his talents were being abused by someone who didn't appreciate him and was only using him…
But Batman painfully reminded himself he got his kid into this mess by saying something that sounded (more than sounded actually) like he didn't appreciate Danny too so…
"Oh, hey Bats." Robin said, not even looking up from his screen as he watched live security footage, just in case the thieves came in without using powers or devices and did it the old-fashioned way by breaking in.
"What, Robin?" Batman asked, watching what was happening below from their high perch.
Robin didn't even seem to notice how antsy the Dark Knight was. "Remember our conversation this morning? The one about some kid named 'Danny'…"
"How could I forget?" Batman mumbled uneasily. He had really screwed up this time.
Robin chuckled, finding humor in a situation with no humor at all. "It's funny because I met someone while walking home today. His name was, ironically enough, Danny."
Batman tensed. "Cool. What'd he look like?"
"Uh… Had black hair, blue eyes; like me, if a bit older. Seemed really tired. He didn't look like he had eaten in awhile. He spaced out really easily, which was extremely creepy…" Robin said, mumbling the last part.
Batman continued tensing, his chest restricting.
What had he done to his kid?
Danny re-absorbed the ice as the crowd cheered, fingering the white rose with the black stem in his hand. His heart was still beating fast in his chest with nervousness. He was only barely keeping the tears and sobs at bay. The big crowd was scaring him and the only thing keeping his hallucinations at bay was his desire to try and win Freakshow's good side.
No matter what he did, nothing seemed to work though…
Danny turned and walked backstage. Avoiding touching as many people as possible, he made his way to the little room where he and Freakshow's other minions supposedly got ready to perform.
In reality, it was a janitor's closet.
Danny closed the door behind him and stared at the other ghosts. Lydia gestured for them to go and everyone lifted in the air. They phased through the walls and flew into the air. They turned in the direction of Gotham Central Bank and began the trek.
Danny stayed in the back, biting his lip, still playing with the rose. When the bank came into view, he wrapped the rose around his neck and froze the ends together to keep it around his throat.
The five ghosts phased into the bank and, using her telepathy, Lydia opened the vault door easily. Goliath, Elastica, and Ivan began gathering the money and placing it in the various bags Danny held, using his own telepathy. He fingered the rose around his neck in the shadows of his hood.
Lydia gave her ward-of-sorts a worried look from the corner of her eye but did not make any outward gesture of asking him what's wrong.
A bat-a-rang flew out from the rafters and embedded itself in the ground where Lydia had been, scaring Danny and breaking his concentration on his telepathy, the bags dropping to the floor.
Batman and Robin jumped down from the rafters, full intent on hurting them. Or at least, that's how Danny saw the situation. It was a very bad view of the situation, as it freaked him out even more.
Goliath, Elastica, and Ivan instantly began engaging with the Dark Knight and the Boy Wonder, giving time for the boss's 'favorites' to retreat with the money.
Lydia pulled Danny towards the exit by his wrist and, just as she was about to jump in the air with Danny, Batman jumped in the way, his suit adorning a green shine. The two ghosts could feel their opposite energies lining the Kevlar.
Meaning; ghost shield.
Lydia narrowed her eyes protectively as Danny shook behind her. His green eyes were wide and afraid. He was seemed to be slinking in out of the past and present, not truly entering one but not exiting the other at the same time.
Danny was slinking in and out of the past. It was just a lot more serious than Lydia thought it was.
Batman readied a bat-a-rang in his hand while Agent Z pointed the gun at Danny, snarling. "You worthless piece of shit, I'm sick and tired of you trying to escape over and over again." The Dark Knight snarled at Lydia. "Give me the boy."
Danny ripped his hand from Lydia's grip, grasping his head instead. The tears were on the verge of falling. Batman and Agent Z continued to fall into each other and merge and separate and Danny was just left confused.
"Oh, stop that worthless crying. Hey Danny… It's pathetic, what you're doing. You don't have to listen to me. You have to listen to me, you worthless piece of shit, or I'll take you somewhere safe. Can you lie on the floor so I can kick you! If you're lucky I'll just get you some help."
Danny whined as the tears spilled out of his eyes. The over-lapping visions were confusing him more and more and he couldn't think straight (not that he did when he wasn't confused…). Lydia was reaching out to him but he flinched back, taking steps away from her and from Batman Agent Z.
The teen bumped into someone behind him, screamed, and twirled around. Robin was behind him, just as startled as he was. Originally, he had been fighting Goliath, Elastica, and Ivan, with his back turned to Danny, Lydia, and his mentor. Once Robin turned his back towards the three mindless minions, the three looked at Danny, so everyone in the room was looking at him.
Batman Agent Z put his hands up in surrender raised his whip, as did Robin Agent O.
Lydia, seeing how Batman instantly tried consoling the teen, took her chance and threw an ecto-blast at him. The Dark Knight jumped away. Lydia hooked her arms around Danny's waist, tightening her grasp when he screamed, and teleported the two away. The minions quickly turned intangible and left.
Batman growled and rubbed his face. He really wanted to know what he just threw one of his children into.
Lydia and Danny collapsed onto the floor of the car. The teen immediately tried escaping her grasp, making loud, panicked noises. Lydia held fast and used one hand to stroke his white hair. The teen sobbed on the ground and gave up on escaping the woman's grasp. It was a quick defeat.
The cloaked ghost continued hugging Danny from behind, still running her fingers through his hair. His chest heaved with sobs and his body shook with the strain of the stress put on him.
That's what Freakshow walked in on.
"What is going on in here?!" He yelled.
Lydia immediately glared at the ringmaster as Danny flinched at the loud noise. His body had relaxed though, unintentionally. The strain being put on his mind from mental and physical exhaustion was finally catching up with him. His eyes drooped and finally closed. His breathes evened out and became deeper. He was peaceful.
For now.
Lydia used her telekinesis to put the boy to bed, tucking him in as she did. The halo appeared around his waist, leaving him in his human form.
Freakshow grabbed Lydia's arm, knowing she would never allow him to yell while Danny was sleeping, and exited the car and into his. Lydia didn't fight him but she did glare and rip her arm from his grasp once they were in the car next door.
The one-sided yelling match began. Lydia only had to give her master looks to say what she wanted.
The Team stood in the Bat-Cave, completely in awe. Robin was cackling at their expressions, completely amused by their show of amazement.
"Team," Batman called, flanked by Black Canary, Superman, and Flash. The Team walked up to stand in front of the two adults.
"Batman, why have we been called to Gotham? Much less, your cave?" Aqualad asked curiously.
Batman reached his hands out and began pressing the keys on the keyboard. The flyer for Circus Gothica appeared on the screen. The teens gave disapproving frowns at how creepy it looked and wondered why anyone would join that kind of circus, much less go to see it.
"This is Circus Gothica. I'm sure you all are aware of it, as the circus has been on its national tour. But every stop it makes, a bank, a museum, or a high-class jewelry store is robbed. Many police investigators believe someone is framing the circus, like Parasite did with Haly's Circus, and are tracking down a non-existent thief. The real robbers are these five ghosts. Robin and I ran into them tonight, confirming my theory." Batman informed, and circles appeared each of the ghosts in the corners, including Danny, and of Lydia.
"Wait, wait, wait, ghosts don't exist." Kid Flash immediately objected.
Batman glared. "Now is not the time to defend your beliefs. Whatever you think, the simple fact remains that they are ghosts. However, these three," Goliath, Ivan, and Elastica were singled out. "are being controlled with the ringmaster's staff. These two," Danny and Lydia replaced the other three. "are doing this of their own free will."
"Are you sure about him?" Robin asked, pointing at the picture of Danny.
Batman nodded. "Yes. The other three have red eyes and seemed to be completely mindless. Though this one," Batman gestured to Lydia. "has red eyes, her movements were fluid. She knows exactly what she's doing and seems to be in charge of the others, especially the teenager. But when we confront these people, I want no harm to come to the teen."
"Why?" Megan asked confused. "I thought he was one of the ones with free will and stealing because he can?"
Batman shook his head as a negative. "Yes, he has free will. But he's not mentally stable. He suffers from PTSD. He was, around two years ago, captured by the Guys In White; a government funded ghost hunting branch. The GIW experimented and tortured him for a year before the boat bringing him back to the US after transferring him over to a more high-tech facility in Europe exploded." Many of the teens gasped in shock. "He was stranded in the ocean for days before being washed onto land. That's how I think Freakshow got a hold of him and under his control. This teen is going to think he has a debt to owe, which he doesn't. The reason I don't want you to attack him, or even give him any attention, is because he succumbs to hallucinations easily, a side effect from PTSD. I will take care of the teen. You take care of Freakshow. Understood?"
The Team shook their heads affirmative, grave expressions on their faces. Batman nodded back and looked at the other Leaguers with the same grim expression.
Danny screamed as his eyes flew open, wide and terrified. He cut his own scream short and began breathing heavily. He looked around the room wildly, expecting to see white walls, white washed tiles, and more white, white, white, white…
The teen continued panted, still scared half out of his mind. He carefully pushed himself up and continuing to look around the room. He briefly closed his eyes but they snapped open again when a vision of Agent Z standing over him, scalpel in hand and smirk on his face, appeared in his mindscape.
Danny rested his back against the wall, eyes drooping but not closing; not after last time. He was getting exhausted of living.
BANG!
The teen jerked forward, eyes wide. He got up and began to slowly walk towards the car door. As he was walking past the window, there was another loud sound and the window shattered, raining glass shards around him. Danny held up his arms to, instinctively, protect his face. He honestly could care less if he got hurt or not.
Once the shower of glass stopped, Danny picked up a shard, just in case. He walked, a little faster, towards the door and opened it. Hearing sounds of battle, he kept to the shadows as he pressed himself to the side of the car and peaked around the corner.
Goliath, Ivan, Elastica, and Lydia were all fighting a team of teens with powers and what looked like their supervisors; a blonde haired woman, a red-clad man with a lightning bolt on his chest, and a blue-clad man with an S Shield.
Freakshow, who was standing off to the side, being protected by his minions, spotted him. "Phantom, get over here and protect me!"
Danny just about did so but the fight was intense and he shook in fear, tears bursting to his eyes again.
Danny circled the ghost tiger. The big cat was snarling at him, red eyes gleaming. It lunged.
"Phantom, GET OVER HERE!" Freakshow yelled, efficiently scaring the teen even more.
"You don't have to listen to him, Danny."
The teen whirled around and stared in fear at the Dark Knight. The older male was calm; his expression was gentle. Danny grabbed his hair, eyes wide and terrified. His breathing picked up.
Batman lowered himself to the ground so he was smaller and seemed to be less of a threat to the teen. "Hey now, it's ok… It's ok…"
"Phantom, get your lazy butt over here!" Freakshow yelled again, ticked off more than usual.
"You don't have to listen to him. You don't owe him anything." Batman whispered.
"Protect me, you stupid boy!"
"Don't listen. Everything is alright."
"Listen to me, you pathetic child!"
"It's ok… Don't listen to him."
Danny covered his ears. He didn't know which person to listen to. He was so confused as they talked over each other. Their voices mixed and became one; one he hated.
"You're mine, you little worthless shit, all mine. And I'm going to play with you as much as I want, hear me?"
Danny screamed, stumbling from his place in the shadows. Before anyone could approach him in any way, he began sprinting for the forest the circus had set camp up next to. He ran right into the trees and the other plants of sorts. His sobbing started as he ran away from the two groups of people.
He wasn't sure how long he sprinted but, as he looked behind him to see if anyone was following, he tripped over a loose root and tumbled down a large hill. Thorns and plants scratched his face and ripped his clothes, thick roots and bumps bruised him, and he only stopped when he ran into a tree.
The teen groaned, lying on his stomach, tears of pain streaming from his eyes. Blood was dripping from a gash on his forehead. Other minuscule scratches made thin, red lines on his face and hands. Danny could feel bruises forming under his clothes, painfully so.
The teen pushed himself up and wrapped his arms around his middle, head in his knees, and began sobbing.
He hated life. He hated it like nothing he's ever hated before. His hatred for life surpassed his hatred for the GIW, for Freakshow, and even for Agent Z.
His hands clenched and he unrolled himself with a small yelp. Blood dripped from his left hand as he unclenched it.
Resting in his palm was the glass shard.
Batman made a move to go after the teen but Lydia flew in his way with a glare. The Dark Knight growled. "Why do you serve that monster? You care about Danny just as much as I do and he just tried to get the child to fight a battle he knew Danny wouldn't be able to fight. And you still work for him willingly?"
Lydia paused. Batman glared. The woman turned around and flew to her former master angrily because Batman was right. Why did she fight for this idiot?
Freakshow yelped in surprise when Lydia snatched the staff from his hands and smashed it against his head, efficiently knocking him out and breaking the orb, all in one fluid motion.
The response was immediate. Goliath, Elastica, and Ivan stopped fighting, eyes becoming their normal color. They looked around confused at where they were.
"You're free now. You can go." Batman said, casting his voice over to the three ghosts. They nodded at him, then at Lydia thankfully, and phased into the ground, retreating.
Lydia gave Batman a look, one that clearly said 'take-care-of-Danny-for-me'. The Dark Knight nodded in return. She disappeared as well.
Batman turned to the panting Team. "We're not done here yet. The mentally unstable teen ran off and I'm not keen on keeping him alone for long. Let's go."
The Team and the Leaguers rushed into the forest, Flash only sticking behind to handcuff Freakshow to the train and easily catching up with the others.
They found the teen, his name being Danny as Batman had told the rest of his comrades, bundled up against a tree. He had his head resting against his knees, arms pulled around his chest. Batman moved forward but his step wavered for a second.
Danny was surrounded by blood.
The Dark Knight kneeled in front of the teen and shook him. "Danny? Wake up. Come on, wake up. Danny, please wake up." He said desperately, feeling how cold he was under his fingers.
The teen fell onto his side and the Team and the few Leaguers jerked back in horror, the girl's hands flying to their mouths. There was a full minute where no one did anything, not even breathe.
Danny had not only slit his wrists… But he slit his throat too. His eyes were open, staring ahead, dead and unseeing.
Batman's body shook. He had failed. He had failed. His kid was dead. He slit his throat because he was so desperate.
Slowly, the Dark Knight got up and turned around. He began stalking towards the circus site.
Superman stepped in front of him. "Batman, where are you going?"
"To fix this."
"How are you going to fix this? The kid is dead." Superman questioned. Megan and Artemis flinched from their spots. Canary was hugging the two of them from behind.
Batman glared up at him. "I can see he's dead! And I said I'm going to fix it! Don't ever question me like that again, Clark." He hissed. He shoved the Man of Steel out of his way and began his trek again, leaving everyone else behind.
"You can crash at my place." Kid Flash whispered to his best friend, who looked like he was on the verge of tears at what had transpired. Robin nodded to his friend.
Batman waited for the natural ghost portal to open, ready to drive the Bat-Wing into it. He scrubbed his face again, getting rid of the hot tears running down his face.
His kid was dead. Dead, dead, dead, dead, dead, dead.
The portal opened and Batman floored the jet. He jerked back as he did but he didn't care. He stopped once he was inside and looked around. He had no idea where he was going to find what he was looking for but he had to find it.
Because his kid was dead. His kid.
Flooring the jet, Batman took off again. He was biting the inside of his lip. His failure continued to replay in his head and he wondered what he could've done that wouldn't end up with Danny slitting his throat.
He had been flying for hours when he finally found what he was looking for. He put the jet on hover before opening the top, putting on the Ghost Gauntlets. He got out and jumped all the way towards the genie ghost, grabbing her tail as he did.
The genie ghost, Desiree, gasped at him in both shock and anger. "You dare touch me?!"
"Take my wish back!" Batman yelled, completely ignoring her anger in favor of his.
Desiree smirked. "Ah, you mean the one where you wished never to meet your pesky sidekick? Never."
Batman growled. "You're gonna do it or, so help me, I will make your afterlife a living hell." He hissed.
Desiree's smirk became a glare, as she tugged at her tail. "Why should I take your wish back?! There have been many others who wished for things they didn't mean!"
The Dark Knight, barely holding back tears, growled again. "Because of saying something so stupid, my kid is dead now! Danny is dead!"
Desiree stopped tugging, eyes wide. Batman was breathing heavily, barely, just barely, keeping his tears from falling. The genie ghost shrunk her size to that of the Dark Knight's. He released her tail.
Desiree placed her hand to her mouth, tears shining in her own eyes. "I am so sorry. I am obliged to grant any wish I hear but I don't have the power to undo them if one of the persons directly tied to the wish is dead… I am so sorry."
Batman continued panting but desperation showed on his face as he shook his head. "You can't bring my baby back?"
The genie ghost shook her head, the tears just barely being stopped from falling.
The Caped Crusader growled again. "But it wasn't his fault! It was mine! He shouldn't have to pay for my mistakes!"
"I can't undo it." Desiree repeated, choking on a sob. She hated it when her wishes ended in death, especially of someone so good and kind.
The energy drained out of Batman's form and he slumped. He turned on his heel and, using his grapple gun, flew back into his plane. The top closed and he choked on a sob.
Danny was gone. His kid was gone. One of his babies was gone. Oh gosh, he would just die if this happened to Dick. He closed his eyes.
"Time out."
When Batman opened his eyes again, he was back in the Cave. He looked around startled and his eyes instantly found Danny's retreating figure in the hall, cloak billowing behind him, mid-stride.
"I hope you appreciate this."
Batman spun around and came face-to-face with Clockwork, Master of Time. The violet-robed middle-aged man (for now) was smiling at him.
"What happened? Where am I?" The Dark Knight asked.
"I stopped time and turned back the clock to when said you wished you never met Danny. When I start time again, your little adventure with Danny's death will have never happened, except for in another dimension." Clockwork explained, turning into an elderly man and then a toddler.
"So he's alive?" Batman asked, eyes wide. He barely restrained himself from running to his frozen teen.
"Yes, he's alive. I just thought I'd let you have a taste of what could've happened." Clockwork said, looking down the hall after the teen.
"What?" Batman asked, impatient for time to start again.
Clockwork frowned. "Every dimension where you never took Danny in, he always died in some way. Whether it be dying from his injuries on a beach, being killed by another person while he was weak, taken advantage of by another person till he worked till death… But more often than not, he committed suicide. That dimension you just played out, he slit his throat. In another, he hung himself. In another, he drank liquid ectoranium without a second thought… But every dimension he is saved by you, he lives and prospers."
"Why?" Batman asked, choking up. Danny did so many horrible things to himself in so many dimensions.
"You were his saving grace. Same with your other child. Dick's alternate dimensions without you are almost the same. There are a lot of suicides but some of them he lived, only to be a hollow shell his entire life." Clockwork commented.
Batman rubbed his face. "I screwed up."
Clockwork smiled faintly. "You did. But doesn't everybody from time to time?"
Batman nodded, still looking at the back of his frozen kid. His muscles were tense, ready to run to him.
Clockwork chuckled. "Well, I'll leave you to say hello to Daniel. Don't make the same mistake again."
"Never." Batman promised.
Clockwork nodded and pressed the top of his staff. "Time in."
Click, clack, click, clack, click, clack, click, clack…
Batman sprinted after his teen. "Danny, come back!"
The teen kept running. Batman picked up his pace, which was already faster than usual, and passed Danny. He stopped in the teen's running path and the Ghost Boy slammed into him. Batman instantly had his arms wrapped around him.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it. I would never mean that. Please forgive me. Please. I can't lose you or Dick. I know I never say it but I love you guys. You're my kids. I'm sorry. I'm sorry." Batman hurried to say before Danny phased through his grip.
The teen looked up at him with his tear-stained face, gripping the Kevlar on his arms. "Y-You mean that?"
Batman continued hugging the teen. "More than you know, Danny, more than you know." He mumbled and kissed the top of his very alive kid's head.
Danny broke down into sobs, hugging the Dark Knight tightly, crying into his mentor's suit. Batman was more than happy to hug him back and rock him, not caring if anyone saw.
His baby was alive and he'd never take him for granted again.
...
Kadzait: -.- You don't feel any remorse for killing Danny, do you?
*shakes head*
Kadzait: -.- Go sit in the corner. *points to corner*
*goes and sits in the corner*
Kadzait: She would like to say sorry for the mix-up with Ch.28: The Abused and, if you haven't read the new updated version which is now correct and not the same chapter from The Abused, go read it. She'd also like to say sorry FOR KILLING DANNY.
*shakes head* No I'm not.
Thanks to these people for favoriting and/or following the story and WELCOME TO THE FAMILY: Nyan-Nyan-San, ShadowSlayerFrenzy, Dracula-Key, Ku66Rice, Medeamoviesmusicgoddess, Ladnik, Freerunner4427, and ExienFrost290.
Thanks to Ladnik for favoriting and following me!
Reviews:
Skymuse: Oh dude, I am so sorry for the mixup! That chapter should be a lot more easily understood now!
Rachel: There's the Stopwatch for ya! XD
KuriMaster13: O.O You must have sucky internet connection dude... And ya! Now you know what happened!
Bibbledoo: Let's do this. *devours cookie and brings out various weapons*
Anonymous Sorry for the confusion...! That was alllllllll my fault. Heh heh... *big not-so-innocent smile*
Lee: Hahahaha! So glad you enjoyed the last chapter so much! I had fun writing it sooooo! Win win for everyone! XD
Sina Xiel: (Kadzait: *rolls eyes* Enough with the dramatics. Me: No, NO! Continue the dramatics! THEY WERE FANTASTIC! Shut up, Nancy. Kadzait: *face-palms*) Before I wrote this chapter and saw you wrote down 'I'm so worried for him now' at the end of your review, I was like 'oh, he'll be fine' but now I see what you meant...*walks away ashamed*
Hitmoi-tama: SORRY FOR THE MIX-UP! I REALLY AM!
Supaherolena02: Oh, your idea works too! That would have been interesting! XD
Breyannia: That. Would be an interesting trial. XD
YinYangWriter: I AM SO SORRY FOR THE MIXUP! I REALLY DID SCREW UP! *walks away ashamed*
BringbackDannyPhantom: ...I'm just gonna run now. *begins screaming and running for life*
SomeItalian: I'm AWARE I screwed up! *begins crying* And yes, she does bake all my virtual cookies. XD
Sakurastar: Hahahaha! Yeah! Already got The Abused/Young Justice x-over up! Ch.28! XD
2 Lazy For You: Well, I would've done that if I wasn't trying to make the chapter angst-y as possible. Joker would have made it funny. XD