Disclaimer: not mine

Chapter 14

Danny woke slowly, feeling completely relaxed. He could tell he was buried under furs, another body curled with him. He opened his eyes, blinking, recognising the room in the Far Frozen that he'd been given years ago for when he stayed. And it was Tim curled with him, still asleep, looking utterly relaxed, peaceful. He shifted and winced, body aching fiercely. With how fast he healed, especially in the Realms…he pulled back the furs to see a lot of bruises on both of them. What?

He shifted, pushing himself to sit up, cradling Tim close. Tim was deeply asleep or unconscious, limp against him. Had his hair gotten longer? It was still blond streaked and Danny wasn't sure that would grow out since there was no sign on black in the roots. And his scars…they were gone. He remembered taking Tim to the arena to deal with the Pit Madness, were their bruises from a fight? But why wouldn't he remember that, head injury?

And then he flushed as he remembered Tim pinning him down, rocking against him and kissing him. Oh…his hand drifted to his throat, remembering feeling Tim bite him and then…everything had gone weird. So, the bruises were from, he felt his face heat again. What was going on?

A knock sounded and Danny made sure they were covered properly.

"Enter," he called, and Frostbite entered the room.

"It is good to see you awake Great One."

"Frostbite…what's happening to Tim?" he asked in fear.

The yeti sat carefully on a stool near the door. "We took some further scans before settling you both in here. Your consort…is no longer human due to the interaction of the magic and corruption."

Danny swallowed, tightening his hold on Tim. "Is he alright?"

"He is stable," Frostbite assured him. "We do not know what his mental state will be when he wakes. He might be aware of the changes, he might not," he warned, and Danny nodded, a hand moving to stroke Tim's hair.

"He doesn't know about any of this Frostbite. He heard my admitting my parentage but he was dying at the time so he might not remember."

"I will have food brought for your discussion."

"Thanks Frostbite, for everything."

"Of course, Great One."

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Kon leant against Bart even as Cassie was wrapped around him. Tim…Tim was gone. It wasn't fair! They'd just come back; Tim hadn't even gotten to see Bart yet. He wasn't meant to die. He was the only human on the team but he'd always seemed so…so untouchable. Sure, he got hurt, hurt badly at times, but he always got back up.

There was already talk about a memorial to the Third Robin since Tim hadn't had the chance to make a reputation under a new name. That would make it even more real and it felt too soon. Thankfully, the idiot Dick actually agreed and said they should wait for Batman to return. That everyone agreed with, he deserved to be told in private before any memorial went up. Who knew what the shock of seeing a memorial to his son could do to the poor man if he saw it before being told.

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Dick stared at the man in the isolation room, it was Bruce…it was really him. Tim had been right all along. It made him feel sick. Tim had died thinking Dick believed him insane. He had died thinking his own family… he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He didn't want to do it, but he had to be the one to do it. How was he meant to tell Bruce that Timmy was dead?

The door opened and the doctor nodded to him before walking away. Dick took a deep breath and went inside, glad that Bruce had been cleared for visitors. "Hey B," he murmured, and Bruce turned his head to see him.

"Dick," he croaked.

Dick surged forward, leaning down to cling to his dad, feeling shaky arms rise to hold as well. "You're really here."

Bruce chuckled. "Yeah chum, I'm here."

Dick eventually let go and took the seat beside the bed, wiping his eyes dry, seeing tears in Bruce's eyes.

"Where are your siblings?" he asked.

He was really not looking forward to this. "Jason's on a massive stakeout at the moment, but he knows you're here. Steph is down the hall since you have a one-person visitor limit, Damian and Alfred are with her. Cass…left after the funeral and we're not sure where she is," he admitted. Now came the worst news and from the look on his face, Bruce could tell something bad was coming. "Tim…B…I'm so sorry."

"No…" Bruce shook his head in denial.

"He went looking for you in Europe but…Ra's was hunting him. He was injured and the League took him. Jason tracked him down with some help but…Tim was dying so Ra's had him thrown in the Pit."

"Pit Madness?" Bruce asked, and Dick wished it was that, they could deal with that.

"Bruce…he never surfaced. Jason's help was a young man who had been working with Tim, he dove in after Tim and didn't come up either."

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Bruce closed his eyes, picturing Tim in his mind. The bright boy who had shown up, the quieter young man he'd become… Tim was so much like him, had become such a wonderful vigilante and detective. And now…now he was gone… Why had Ra's targeted him?

"Who was the companion?" he asked shakily, one of his old team?

Dick hesitated, obviously uncomfortable.

"Dick?"

"Jay only found out just before Tim went into the Pit and he doesn't think Tim knew. He knew the guy was ex-League but that was it, he'd been out for a decade."

People getting out of the League alive was very rare, he'd never really heard of someone cutting ties without consequences. To have made it a decade and then to resurface to help Tim…that was incredibly brave.

"B, his name…was Danyal al Ghul."

Bruce blinked, staring at him. He'd never heard that name before, had Ra's had another child.

"As soon as he called Ra's grandfather…Jason says the resemblance was obvious but then again most of us look a bit like you."

Bruce froze. No…no way, she couldn't have done that to him, could she? "How…how old?"

"Seventeen. Kon met him, they got along. He admitted the signs were there, Danyal…Danny had said his mother was League and his dad American. He wore a half mask most of the time so he never saw his whole face. But…Tim and Danny were together, which is probably why Danny dove after him."

Seven years older than Damian and he'd left a decade ago. That was not a timeline he liked at all. But seventeen did line up with the child Talia told him she lost. Why? Why had she lied?

"I haven't talked to Damian about him, I don't think he knows. And things with him are a bit complicated at the moment."

"What?" Bruce asked, pushing himself to sit up so Dick helped.

"B…"

"Tell me," he demanded.

"Remember Tim's accident in the Cave?"

He nodded, he could never forget seeing Tim sprawled on the stone, blood pooling around him. He'd honestly feared he was dead… no, please no.

"It wasn't an accident. Damian attacked him and knocked him from the top of the dinosaur, left him for dead. He'd tried to kill Tim several times and…and I kept telling Tim he was older, to be the responsible one. I drove Tim away by taking Damian's side every time."

Bruce closed his eyes. Oh Dick. Poor Tim…

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Tim gradually became aware of his body, feeling heavy and warm, safe. Slowly, heavy eyelids lifted and Tim felt confused. Where…he struggled to remember what had happened. A cave? It wasn't the Batcave…and then he remembered. Ra's! He'd already opened his eyes; they'd know he was awake.

"Easy Tim," a familiar voice called, and Tim shifted his gaze to see Danny in the entry with a tray in his hands. Danny smiled at him, looking relieved. "You're awake." He walked over and put the tray down before sitting on the edge of the bed. "How do you feel?" Danny took his hand.

"D'nny?" he blinked at him.

"I'm here," Danny murmured, squeezing his hand. His other hand brushed through Tim's hair. "You're going to be okay."

He wanted Danny to get in the bed with him, wanted him to hold him, kiss…he blinked, what? He shook his head, lifting a hand to his head.

The last thing he remembered…Ra's…feeling weaker and weaker…Danny and…Jason? Fighting to reach him…burning… his eyes widened, no, please no…

"Hey!" Danny's voice sounded far away. "Tim calm down, you're okay. You're safe."

"Ppp…Pit…" he forced out, and then he felt himself being lifted, the warmth of a body under him.

"It's okay Tim, you're alright," Danny whispered, rocking him, and Tim felt a kiss press to his head. "You woke up before, the Pit Madness has passed, you didn't hurt anyone. It didn't last very long and you responded to me."

Tim got his breathing under control. He looked up at Danny, feeling tired and kind of weird. He'd never wanted to go into a Pit, never wanted to risk the kind of effects Jason had to deal with. It honestly scared him to death. He'd rather die than give Ra's any power over him. "Eyes?" he asked.

Danny picked up a small mirror and held it up to his face. Tim took a deep breath and looked into the mirror, almost sobbing in relief at the sight of familiar blue. Maybe a tiny hint of green, but that was it. Danny was gently rubbing his back and Tim melted into the touch, feeling a bit fuzzy. He turned his head, nuzzling into Danny.

He felt…hungry. He pulled himself up to kiss the side of Danny's jaw, clutching at his shirt, whining. He could hear himself but couldn't stop it.

"Tim," Danny murmured and then his lips were on his.

Good, so good. They kissed hungrily, Tim pressing himself as close as he could.

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He leant back in his seat, his body healed from the Lazarus Water. It seemed he had underestimated his eldest grandson, had given up on him too soon. He had been willing to kill to get to the Detective after all. The pair of them would make a wonderful set as his heirs. Timothy's mind and Danyal's new willingness to kill.

He had originally believed that Damian would be the better heir but the boy was a disappointment. Far too arrogant and sure of himself when he was so young. He should have waited longer before agreeing to his creation. Obviously Danyal had grown into his potential, after all, he had managed to hide his survival from him for a decade.

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"Tim wait," Danny moaned. He pulled away and Tim whimpered, head spinning. "Shh, it's okay Tim." He stroked Tim's hair and Tim sighed. "Here, sip this." Danny pressed a glass to his lips and Tim obediently sipped the liquid, blinking as energy flooded him.

He blinked and sat up slowly, the fuzziness gone. "Danny? What's going on?" he asked, confused, and not liking it. "Where are we?"

Danny put the tray between them, revealing a selection of finger foods. "What's the last thing you remember?" he asked, and…fair, he guessed since it would save going over the same things twice.

"Ra's…fighting. I think…Jason was there?" he looked at Danny who nodded. "I think you were fighting Ra's…something burning."

Danny shifted, drawing a knee up and wrapping an arm around it. That was when Tim realised that they were both dressed the same, loose pants and shirts in white. Medical clothes? Had Danny been hurt?

Wait… "They said you were dead."

"Pru shot me," Danny admitted. "Jason found me; he didn't miss the fight by much. At least she shot the Widower first," he shrugged slightly.

"She shot you?!" Tim reached for him, looking for wounds.

Danny stared at him and then pulled his shirt up to reveal a brand-new scar…right over his heart. Tim was going to be sick, reaching out shakily to touch it, feeling the raised edges from a bullet wound but…

"How long have I been out?" he asked in confusion. He'd realised Danny healed faster than normal, but fast enough for a bullet to be scarred over already?

"It's been about five days since the fight and it took Jason and I about two and a half days to reach the Cradle where the League was holding you. They did try to save you with surgery but it failed, you were bleeding out when we got there," Danny explained the timeline a bit shakily.

A week? He'd healed a bullet wound to a scar in a week? That was even faster than he'd thought Danny could heal.

"Why was I out so long? Where are we?" It didn't look like the same place he vaguely remembered.

"This is a private room, I end up a patient here enough to have one," Danny admitted, leaning back against the bedhead, body language open and going for defenceless in a way he hadn't done since they first met.

"Danny?" Tim stared at him, why was he doing that? What wasn't he remembering…

"What's the matter Grandfather, don't recognise me?"

Tim froze, staring hard at Danny, taking in his features. He'd thought at the start there was a resemblance but… "Al Ghul?" he whispered, and Danny nodded sadly.

"I was going to tell you after we left the dig, the League was getting too close. I didn't want it to come out this way," Danny explained softly. "My mother is Talia al Ghul, my dad was never named. He's American, that's all I've ever known as fact but…I once overheard mentions of the Bat."

"Batman's your dad," Tim swallowed. "Makes sense, Damian…"

"Damian?" Danny frowned in confusion.

"I'm guessing your little brother. He's ten, showed up a while back, Talia claims she sent him to B for training."

"Damian, huh?" Danny whispered. "Age fits for the baby that was being made when I left."

Danny must take more after Bruce than Damian did, the same black hair and blue eyes, skin tone…even his eye shape. Though the slighter build was probably from Talia. He'd had the thought at first that there was a resemblance but had pushed it aside cause what were the odds? So technically…he'd been sleeping with his adopted brother. But they weren't genetically related and hadn't been raised together, they also hadn't known of any relation when they got together. Would Bruce be okay with that? He…he really liked Danny.

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Danny watched Tim and then put his hand on the bed, hoping, and Tim took it. He smiled softly and Tim smiled back. He rubbed the back of his hand with his thumb, enjoying the warmth of Tim's skin, proof he was alive. "I nearly lost you," he whispered. "You were so still, I thought…" he took a deep breath. "I brought you here for treatment, to keep the Lazarus Water from getting a grip on you."

"Where are we?"

"The Far Frozen," Danny answered. "It's part of the Infinite Realms…some people call it the Ghost Zone which is not accurate."

Tim stared at him, confused and wary again. He didn't blame him, Tim had reasons for being paranoid. And he would listen, not jump to conclusions. Thankfully, the concoction Frostbite had made was keeping his hunger under control so they could talk. It had been so hard to stop from going further when Tim had started kissing him, but now wasn't the time, not till Tim knew what had happened to him.

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Bruce lay in his own bed, happy to finally be home. But it didn't feel right, not with two of his children gone. No one had heard from Cass, if anyone likely had, it would have been…Tim. He didn't want to believe it, not with everything he'd survived. Finding out that Dick had put Damian into therapy had been surprising but Dick had admitted that he didn't know what else to do. Hearing what he'd done…that he had wanted Ra's to kill Tim…it made Bruce feel sick.

He was still struggling with the idea that he had a nearly adult son…or had had one. Danyal…Danny. Did he prefer that or had he used it to sound American. Jason and Kon had told him everything they knew about the teen and he sounded like a good person. If only he knew his last name to reach out to his adoptive parents and give them an explanation for why their son wasn't coming back. Would Danny have wanted a relationship with him? Jason said he didn't think Danny knew who his father was, Kon had admitted he'd told Tim that he didn't know who his dad was, just that he was American.

Thankfully, he now had photos of his son and even ones of him and Tim together. Jason had brought their luggage home and the two had taken the occasional photo during their travels. Plus, Jason had recorded Danny on his helmet, so he'd gotten to hear his sons' voice for the first time. He had a mid-western accent, slightly off likely due to his native accent. He'd insisted on watching the footage of the fight, had seen Shade and Hood fight together…even kill. But two against the League of Assassins…could they have made it if they hadn't made kill shots? Seeing the interest in Ra's face when Danny revealed himself was concerning, then again, it could go nowhere now.

Jason wanted to tell Damian about his older brother, to try and give him the reality check to his ego. Dick wasn't as sure about it but Bruce had decided they should ask his therapist. How would Damian handle the knowledge he had been born to replace his brother?

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Tim stared at the scans the…Yeti had taken. Real life Yeti. He was struggling with everything he'd been told. Danny…Danny hadn't survived the lab accident when he was fourteen, not fully. Seeing him with white hair and bright green eyes had been a shock but there was no rage in that green, it wasn't the poisonous shade of the Pits. He was still the Danny he had gotten to know over the last few months. The Danny…he was falling in love with or maybe already was in love with.

But this?! He couldn't believe they were scans of his body but Frostbite had run them again to prove it. He pressed a hand to his abdomen; he didn't feel any different inside. But in the screen was the image of a fully functional reproductive system he definitely hadn't had before. Sure, he'd known that there was a chance he could become pregnant, but that had been magic based…it hadn't changed him internally! He really, really hated the Lazarus Pits! Could he still father children or only carry them now? He should get that checked too…and he was hungry…could feel the growing sharpness of his canine teeth.

He…he wasn't human anymore…he'd never thought about incubus or succubus existing, despite all the beings Constantine hunted. Though Frostbite insisted he wasn't a sex demon which was nice, he didn't want to be a demon. The drink he'd been given earlier had been to help with his hunger since apparently it would be very strong for the first while as his body adjusted.

"It's okay Tim, we'll work this out," Danny promised, carefully wrapping his arms around him, and Tim slumped against him.

"I'm not human," he whispered.

How would the others react? Kon and the rest of the team would be fine, he'd been the token powerless human but they'd always joked about finding a way to get him powers of some kind, always worried he'd be hurt or killed. And by now they'd think he was dead.

Everyone would think he was dead. He didn't want that, but until he could figure out his new self, he might be dangerous. He might not be a demon but he could still attack someone for sex if hungry enough, could kill them if he didn't stop feeding on their energy in time.

"Of course, being mated will help with your control."

"MATED?!" they both yelled in shock.

TBC…