Disclaimer: not mine

Chapter 15

Tim stared at his reflection in the mirror, this was him now but…it didn't feel real. The blond streaks were easy enough to explain even if they weren't actually highlights or anything. Good thing he'd coloured his hair a natural colour and not something like blue or purple. But the golden eyes with vertical slits for pupils would never pass for anything remotely human, neither would the small fangs and he was pretty sure his nails were becoming more claw like every time he…changed. All his old scars had faded gradually since he'd woken, the only one left was the one that killed him and even that had faded to look years old, thankfully no longer raised. But it wasn't just his scars, he just…looked different but it wasn't really anything he could put his finger one, and Danny had agreed.

His balance felt a bit different when he walked and with the years of training he'd had, it felt very obvious…huh. He ran his hands down his sides all the way to the tops of his thighs. He swallowed, he should have realised…he had the right organs and everything so it made sense. His pelvic structure had changed, his hips had widened a bit. Probably not enough to notice if he was clothed but enough to shift the way he walked. His waist was a little more defined too thanks to that. Well, it would make female disguises even more convincing… but he wasn't a girl, he'd studied the scans that Frostbite had taken carefully but had missed the shift in his hips and pelvis since he'd been a bit too focused on the new organs and corresponding new external part. But his chest was still flat, his rib cage longer than a females', his bones still at the same density as the last time he'd been tested because Leslie was very thorough and a change in bone density would be dangerous given how often he broke them. His Adam's Apple was still visible, though his was not as obvious as say…Jason or Bruce's, but his voice wasn't as deep as theirs. There was a chance it would deepen more, he could still be in puberty, but he doubted it, especially now. And he still felt like himself, like Tim Drake Wayne, teenage male.

And then warm arms wrapped around him and he slumped back into Danny, feeling his hunger surge, fangs aching. Danny pressed his lips to Tim's hair, hand stroking his side soothingly. He felt completely safe in Danny's arms, something inside him saying it was right, his…his Mate's arms. It had been a shock when Frostbite said it but now…it felt right if still a little strange to say.

He turned in Danny's hold, pulling him in for a kiss.

"Hungry?" Danny asked, hands running up and down his back, and Tim arched into his touch.

"Please," he whined, unable to help himself. Control was definitely still a work in progress, things getting fuzzy.

Warm hands cupped his face and then he was being kissed ever so gently, making him blink, fighting to focus beyond the growing hunger. Danny was staring at him, eyes soft, thumbs stroking his skin ever so softly. "I love you Tim," Danny murmured, and that jolted Tim to full awareness.

"Danny?" was that just them being mates now? He'd…he'd tied them together forever and he hadn't asked first or anything.

Danny licked his lips, nervous, but Tim forced himself to not focus on the motion, or his lips. "I love you Tim, have for…a while."

Danny…loved him. He pressed himself close, wrapping his arms tight around him, glad he didn't have to watch his new strength with Danny. Danny Fenton, Danyal al Ghul, Danny Phantom…he loved Tim. And Tim knew it was true, despite his usual doubt about such things, he knew it, he could…he could feel it was true.

Emotions had never been easy for him, logic and puzzles sure, but not emotions and he knew some of that was his parents fault. But being with Danny…it was so easy, even easier than his friendship with Kon and the others.

He nuzzled at Danny's throat, licking, and nipping at the skin without biting. He could say it, he could, it was just three easy words. He whined in distress, clinging tight, and Danny turned to kiss him softly. He broke the kiss to meet Danny's eyes. "I love you," he whispered, part of him terrified by saying those words. Everyone he lived left him but Danny…he was already half dead, had come back from being shot through the heart…Kon and Bart had come back to, even if he'd only seen Kon. And B, Bruce was out there somewhere, might even be back by now.

Danny's smile was blinding and showed a few more teeth than might be considered normal. And then Tim laughed as Danny lifted him off the ground, carrying him to the bed so he could 'eat'.

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Bruce gently set up the suit on the stand, checking every piece, wanting to learn who his son had been becoming as his own vigilante. It wasn't the suit he'd left Gotham in, there were similarities, but it wasn't the same one. Kon had apparently been with them when they'd been designing it, when Tim had convinced Danny that he needed one too, but even he didn't know what name Tim had chosen. He had been Red Robin when he left Gotham but apparently had ended up as just Red while working things out.

He closed the case and looked at the plaque. 'Robin/Red beloved son and brother' was etched into the metal. He glanced at the altered memorial beside it, no more good soldier on it. He knew now it had been the wrong thing to have there, anyone who got into the cave either knew their identities or understood the Robins were Batman's kids. He still wouldn't risk putting their real names on them though.

And then he moved to the third case and carefully placed what he had since Danny had been in his suit when he died. He had the half mask his son had worn when he first met Tim and the sword he had used in the fight with Ra's since he had dropped in his rush to reach Tim. He recognised the signs on the sheath and blade, all things to mark him as an al Ghul, no wonder he had kept it hidden. A photo of Danny probably taken by Tim, face mask in place, was put into the case as well.

His plaque gave the name of Shade and he wondered why he had chosen that. Kon had said Danny was pretty much Tim's shadow, had that been why? He hadn't really known what else to put, he hadn't known his son. In the end, he had gone for 'loyal companion gone too soon'. He hoped Danny would have liked it, would have understood.

Having the sword in the case was going to be interesting when Damian eventually came down, he would surely recognise what such a weapon meant. No one knew how he would take the news of his elder brother, a naturally conceived child at that. Bruce honestly didn't know how to deal with his youngest, he was so arrogant and angry. Dick had thought he was getting through to him until they had seen the footage of Damian destroying Tim's room over and over, found the message he had sent to his grandfather about Tim once he'd learnt the League was hunting for the older teen. He honestly didn't think therapy or even medication was going to change much. He wasn't sure what else could be done.

There was no way he could or would send Damian back, even if Talia hadn't hinted it would be dangerous. Knowing about Danny, that Damian had been born around the time he ran…well it didn't look good at all. Jason was wary of Damian, the boy little threat to him. Dick was emotionally compromised when it came to Damian and Dick knew it so he was keeping his distance, but if Damian attacked him, Bruce knew that Dick would meet the level of force he was attacked with and knock him out. Alfred might appear the weak link but he could definitely protect himself. So could Barbara and with the security on the Clocktower she would know if he came near. Cass was out of the country and therefore safe from him. Stephanie was now Batgirl which felt a little strange and he wasn't sure how she would fair in a true fight so he was ensuring the two stayed far apart.

So much had changed while he was gone, had gone so wrong…he wanted his children back, to get to know his son, to see Tim happy with a partner when he'd had no real luck before, had trouble making those emotional connections. He knew some of that was his fault for the way he had treated Tim to begin with, more could be laid at Jack and Janet's feet, but some of that was all Tim too. From the photos, he could see the softness in Danny's eyes when he looked at Tim, see the hesitant hope in Tim's. They should have had the chance to let that connection grow, to live together, grow old together if that was what they wanted. But Ra's had stolen that from them, if not for him, the dig site would not have been attacked and Tim wounded.

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Jason pulled off his gear and collapsed on the couch before forcing himself to sit up and tend the burned scrape across his side. It didn't hurt too much but he knew better than to not look after it, no point risking complications.

Gotham felt different since his return, or maybe he was different? Despite the darker colour and lack of red, the residents definitely knew it was him, the various idiots yelling Red Hood when he appeared but at least it was usually in fear. He still hadn't chosen a new moniker; he didn't want to be Red Hood anymore. But till he picked one and made it known, people would keep calling him that.

He knew what was missing, what would never return…a too smart, sassy teen who'd been bright enough to add pants to their uniform. To think he'd hated Timmy at first and now…now he missed him, grieved…hated himself for being too slow to save him either from the Pit or the injury that necessitated the dip in those poisoned waters. While he hated the idea of Tim suffering the effects of the Pit, he could have helped him. And there was no guarantee he would have been permanently affected; most weren't especially from only one dip. He could have handled Tim under the temporary madness, so could Danny, then they could have come back to Gotham and introduced Danny to the family.

He'd forced himself to visit the a few times, to make sure B was okay. He was grieving his sons even though he'd never known one of them. He'd seen the new plaque on the memorial, the two new ones, but it hurt too much to look closely. He figured the demon brat hadn't seen them yet since there hadn't been an explosion over the sword. He knew Damian would not take the knowledge of being a replacement, second choice, well at all. Frankly, he didn't get it, Danny was far more level-headed and a great fighter so why replace him at all? He said he didn't like killing but he could kill as he'd proved in that fight, had that not been enough for Ra's? Probably not.

Dick was…Dick might be doing worse than B and honestly that wasn't surprising given how things had ended between him and Tim. Add to that, finding out all the work he'd been putting in with Damian had been useless… Jason didn't know how they were going to handle the brat, he knew Kon had said something to him, probably taunted that even Ra's had wanted Tim rather than the kid…but nothing seemed to get through his thick skull.

He hated the idea of permanent measures when it was a kid but…Damian was too dangerous to just let loose in a civilian population. Blackgate, Arkham, neither would be able to hold him, any bat unless they were kept drugged out of their head the whole time. Maroon him on an island with the necessities to survive? Even that likely wouldn't hold him forever. But therapy was obviously not working, even before B returned, Dick had admitted that the kid wasn't even trying to participate, had cussed at Dinah, had even attempted to attack her. Dumb move given her abilities. If it came down to having to take drastic measures, he'd do it. It would destroy Bruce or Dick to do it, he had no good links to the brat at all and he would make it quick and painless for their sake. But he hoped it didn't come to that. He may hate the brat, but he was still just a kid.

Raised by Talia and Ra's…but Danny had been too and he was nothing like his brother. He'd been out a lot longer but it seemed more than that. Sure, they'd likely trained them using very different methods if Danny had been considered a failure. He got the feeling that even with the exact same training, Danny would still be similar to how he was, maybe harder but nothing like the arrogant rage demon his baby brother was. Danny had been a natural born child, Damian wasn't…was that what the difference was? Had something gone wrong in the process to make Damian? Had they tried to make a designer baby and screwed him up?

He would have loved to see Damian's face when introduced to his big brother and he had the feeling Danny could have put the brat in his place easily. He'd spent two days with the kid and he missed him, he would have been a good little brother/brother-in-law and wasn't that complicated. Timmy's life had turned into a soap opera.

He sighed and got up to get something to eat before sleeping.

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Danny sat on the bed with Tim's back to his chest, one hand tangled together, his other gently stroking Tim's skin. They were naked which made the position very distracting but it was a control exercise for Tim. They couldn't go back to till Tim had enough control to not jump a stranger or flash fangs when emotional. Sure, people would assume he was a meta, but Tim Drake was one of Gotham's high society which meant well known to not be a meta. Sure, meta abilities could be gained in accidents, but Tim didn't need that level of scrutiny.

Honestly, until the Ghosts had started appearing, Danny had thought his own abilities were meta ones. His life would have been so much easier if that had been the case and there'd be no GIW after him, no being hunted by his 'parents'. Tim's outrage had been so refreshing. He'd been terrified that Tim knew about them but he hadn't. he'd gone on an almost hour-long rant about such laws being a breach of the meta protections and how he was going to bring them down…no one had reacted like that. Sure, Jazz, Sam, and Tucker were mad but it hadn't been the same level? And Tim had the kind of connections, money, and family power that could help. Tim swore the Justice League would be just as angry but…they had turned on Tim so what if he was wrong?

He shook those thoughts off, running his nose along Tim's neck, inhaling his scent. It had changed since the Pit but at the core, it was still Tim. And now Tim could smell him too, in a way humans couldn't. All his senses were enhanced now which would be fun to deal with once back in a city. At least Tim had been around others with enhanced senses so knew what to do when they went haywire or just got too much. He kissed the side of Tim's throat, feeling him shudder, hands clenching over Danny's thighs but then he forced himself to relax and let go.

"You're doing great Tim," he praised softly.

"Danny," his voice was shaky and he reached to take his hand again. "Too much," he finally whimpered and Danny's touch went from teasing to soothing.

"So proud of you," Danny promised. That was fifteen minutes longer than last test.

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Jazz frowned as she listened to her parents, not liking it at all. She hadn't heard from Danny, no one had, but he should be safer outside of Amity Park, right? They were even more obsessed now than they had been when the Portal first opened and she hated it. They'd never been the best parents but when they were little, they'd been a lot better than they were now. She wanted those parents back.

She knew Danny thought the continued exposure to higher levels of ectoplasm due to the portal had affected them, worsened their obsessions as if they were ghosts and…it made a sick kind of sense. The GIW agents were probably as infected but they were all blind to it, only seeing high levels in others.

Jazz loved her brother but maybe it was safer if he never came home…but he better get in contact!

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"I'm sorry Kon."

Kon lowered the bale of hay and turned to face Clark. "Your apologies won't bring Tim or Danny back, won't fix the damage you and Dick did. Even now, there are whispers that it was best for Tim to die before he became a threat since he'd lost it. It won't undo the hurt that Tim felt when everyone abandoned him because of the two of you." He glared at the man he had started seeing as a big brother/father figure before he died.

Clark had been doing so much better especially with Jon bonding with Kon but this was not something that Kon could forgive. He knew Clark and Tim had never been close, that Tim had given him a hard time over his treatment of Kon and Clark had found Tim a bit creepy in the early years. But that was no reason to ignore Tim's claims without looking at his evidence.

"Kon…"

"No Clark. We're done." He turned his back on him, biting his lip to fight tears. He didn't even know if they were angry or sad tears. He took off before Clark could say anything more, he'd finish his chores later. He headed for Metropolis to talk to Lois and see Jon. He was angry at Clark, not them, Tim had reached out to Lois for help dealing with his attacker after all.

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Frostbite finished the exam, nodding happily. "You seem to have finished the transformation, there may be some further changes when you reach the next stage of maturity but given the incubus lifespan plus your mating to the Great One, that will likely not be for several decades. But that will not stop you becoming pregnant so continue to use the injector once a month to ensure you do not conceive."

"Thanks." The young incubus shifted on the exam bed.

Frostbite sat down, "is there something else young one?"

"Will the ghosts be mad at Danny for being my mate when I'm not a ghost?"

Frostbite chuckled. "No, in fact they will likely be quite pleased. After all, you can provide an heir."

"Oh," his cheeks went red.

"A mated King will be seen as a very good thing for the Realms, far more stable than one who rules alone," he promised.

"Are you concerned about returning to the living world?" Frostbite asked, and the young prince nodded. The Great One was Crown Prince which meant his mate was also a prince. "Your control has increased incredibly since your transformation. So long as you and the Great One remain together his iron control will help you."

Prince Timothy nodded. "I was never examined after the spell so I should be able to pass those changes off as a consequence since the purpose was procreation. So long as I can keep control of everything else, no one will know."

"Your family would not accept you as an incubus?" Frostbite asked in concern, he had seen how damaging the Fenton's attitudes were to Danny.

"My family is dead," was the answer. "My adoptive dad is Danny's biological one, and no we didn't know that before. By now, they'll know Danny is his son and we were together. B…is complicated. He wouldn't turn me away, his best friend is Superman after all but despite championing meta rights, he…I don't if it's that he doesn't fully trust people with powers or what. I want to believe he'd be fine with it but I don't know. He wouldn't hurt me or Danny though."

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That, Tim was sure of. B wouldn't hurt them even if he had trouble accepting what they were. He wanted to believe he'd accept them no matter what but…things had changed so much since Damian appeared. Sure, Danny was older but would Bruce prefer the fully human child even if his creation had been via science? He didn't want to believe it but after everything he'd been through in the last few years…he just didn't know.

He left Frostbite's office to head back to their rooms, finding Danny doing some paperwork. Apparently, the Court had been happy he would be in the Realms for a while since it meant they could make him do some work. His mate looked up at him and smiled. "How'd it go?"

"He cleared me."

"Then we need to work out how we want to handle it."

TBC…