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dragonofthestone · 10 months

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One thing to know about Tim is he is and always will be a hopeless romantic at heart.

Does he believe he himself will ever get to experience such things, not really and he's pretty much resigned to living vicariously through even the trashiest of romance books.

Chimera or not the idea that he'd ever get such a relationship just feels so beyond his reach, not matter how much he wants and wishes for it.

And this still applies even lab born and raised,

Now at first the whole idea of love - or even just as simple as being liked and cared for rather eludes the naive Chimera. Let alone trying to figure out and understand that there are different kinds of it

For example to them Friendship = Family not much is going to change their mind on that fact, as one who as experienced neither until Kain and to an extent Kumo technically but Kain being the first to really introduce the idea of being called a friend / family so to this Chimera all friends are family (mostly)

But one way or another be it from Kain's stories, other people talking, observations or any other means he's bound to eventually learn about romance.

Which admittedly they still struggle a bit to understand how it could differ from Platonic love / friendship but that's part of what makes them so curious about it as well as kind works along side of just figuring out his general feelings towards those around on the Comodeen over all. In part wondering does any of their feelings match what their being told about this type of love.

(Answer: No, most likely probably not)

What about it makes it so special/different? How does one know?

Are they capable of feeling such things and could someone feel such to them?

If asked they really wouldn't be able to fully explain what draws them to it or why they want to feel / experience it.

The feelings, the love he feels towards those viewed as friends/family are extremely important to this Chimera and at the end of the day are quite happy and appreciative to have them.

So it's quite unlikely they'd view Romance/romantic love as being more important then platonic but in their fumbling attempt to understand may misinterpret it as it somehow a bigger feeling then friends/family - also highly dependent on who's doing the explaining and how it gets explained (and or starts getting multiple different explanations)

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At the end of the day explaining can only get one so far so can only hope they may feel such one day to.

But could anyone really love someone like them, as other then just a friend?

#lab!life tim #lab report || about tim #[am i saying he needs romance/romantic relatioship]#[no of course not and at the moment quite enjoying simply watching him grow and just learn to have friends/be loved anyway]#[That said if chemistry is there and something gets to happen I am not opposed to wonderland/lab!life Tim discovering those feeling and -]#[exploring what comes of it and potential romantic relationship]#[I admit it's been a hot minute since I've written hopeless romantic in love tim and a part of me misses it]#[even open to unrequited one sided idk]#[also just could be fun thing to use for Chaos/anyone to be cruel and get at his anxieties-#convince the lad that of course he'd never feel such he's just a weapon/monster/thing ect]#[basically this whole post is jsut to say he'll still become a hopeless romantic and still very much part of his character]

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firebirdsdaughter · 2 years

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You know…

… The more I think about it, it’s cool on multiple levels that Nate threatens Moreau w/ Hardison.

There’s the fact that he considers Hardison an impressive, powerful asset, enough to be on par w/ Moreau’s influence over a country. Additionally, Hardison’s skills were instrumental in overthrowing Moreau—Hardison, who Moreau wrote off and had kicked into a pool

But I also kinda find it interesting how he doesn’t mention Eliot at all. The Moreau plot is the only time we see Nate doubt Eliot, something they ultimately power through stronger than ever, but Eliot’s previous service to Moreau is a source of tension. Meanwhile, while he’s not exactly getting personal w/ it bc he has no clue who the rest of the team is initially, Moreau’s attitude towards Eliot does read (to me, at least) as looking down on him, and sorta like he’s still treating him like an underling. Like he thinks of Eliot as a weapon that’s lost its edge since leaving his service, and even just from his indirect comment about ‘white hats,’ I can see him wanting to sort of. Clash w/ Nate over Eliot’s loyalty—esp bc what comes out in these eps is that Eliot is way more loyal to Nate than he ever was to Moreau, that he chooses Nate when he didn’t choose Moreau, and effectively chooses Nate over all old ties or opinions about Moreau. And I can see Moreau, as arrogant as he is, taking issue w/ that almost? Or even just trying to flex his knowledge/power of/over Eliot to imply Nate isn’t ‘using’ him properly or something. It’d be very easy to make that moment about Eliot, treat Eliot as a weapon that they lord over each other or something.

But Nate never gives him the chance. Nate never mentions Eliot, doesn’t threaten Moreau w/ Eliot, doesn’t treat Eliot like some commodity he’s ‘stolen’ from Moreau/Moreau’s influence. Instead, he talks about Hardison, who Moreau has never met before, who Moreau hasn’t exactly been taking seriously. It’s probably not intended in that way, but I just love the implications of that. Bc for one thing Nate’s over that, he and Eliot already reconciled, there’s no reason to bring it up, and it’s a very understated power move, to defy the way it’s implied Moreau saw Eliot, as a super special cool weapon he had to wave around. Bc it’s not about that.

It’s such a… Well, specifically a Crime Dad moment where he’s coming in clutch for both his boys; credit where it’s due to Hardison, and personal respect to Eliot w/ the added bonus of not giving Moreau the satisfaction.

#Leverage #listen I am very tired #but I love that #yes Eliot features majorly in the plot #but it's Hardison who is at the core of Moreau's downfall #and Nate wants him to know that #like I said shows how highly Nate thinks of Hardison #but is also an unspoken rejection of the idea of Eliot just being a weapon #Nate's not going to get into a measuring match w/ this guy #understated ways of showing Nate's a better man say what!#like Nate's not a 'nice' person but he's nowhere near like Moreau #and he genuinely loves his family #they're some of the ONLY things he loves and that's another problem but he loves them #he's giving Hardison the honour he deserves #and denying Moreau the chance to be any kind of shit about Eliot or his past #bc this isn't about that or about power it's about Moreau being a horrible person who needs to go down #but also damn how's that #goes from being kicked into a pool to being instrumental in your downfall like a boss #I do kinda love the idea of Moreau coming back somehow and pitching a fit about Eliot's loyalty to Nate bc he seems like that kinda peacock #Literal Crime Family

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space-ninja-fashion-show · 2 years

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i was really REALLY hoping they'd start Resurgence with wukong and i am Living

fuck you butthurt AFKers, time for me to achieve MONKE

#also tipedo prime i do v much want that #said to be the best staff and i miss using staffs #mk1-bo is forever in my heart yknow?#kata's chatter #wukong is so fun when you actually play him but i only have his regular and potato free #i am grabby hands at monke prime #my other hope if this didnt happen was something i dont care about so that i can stockpile aya #but eh one frame and one weapon is not the worst thing #since i already have equinox and dont care about the rest #warframe #let us celebrate the arrival of resurgence

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valentinesparda · 2 years

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back in my elden ring hyperfixation bc i haven't finished the game yet but I'm still having fun at 93 hours 🤌✨

#val.txt #i am. suffering trying to fight the draconic tree sentinel he fucking sucks dude. im having the same problem w him that i had w rennala #THAT SAID ive been going around to dungeons to get more weapons and runes and such to level up more n get more fighting experiences #THAT ALSO SAID once i finish elden ring (whenever that may be) im gonna try to go back n play the dark souls games #and hopefully actually be able to play bloodborne and finish it lol #i get it now soulsborne shills i get it. i get the power.

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jackals-ships · 7 months

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it's also very. like my brain is mush on a good day. and rn im sick so im spinning in my spinny chair and anyways i just like him <3 and the red flags are part of the appeal like yes im color blind but ALSO im aware and im attaching like a leech. "he won't let you leave" LET me leave? first off he's gonna need a crowbar for that,

#jackals barks #its very. it's very. a combo of the brainworms and other junk but ascended astarion slots into a Role and slots tav/durge into a Role #like very owner/pet lord/consort wielder/weapon Y'know. You Know #also i just like the way he feeds into all ur worst impulses like yes we SHOULD do massive amounts of violence YES we should take over the #world you're so right bestie im sitting here wagging my tail btw #its also. listen. listen. im being vulnerable you can't use this against me or ill cry #but having him go 'i love you. thats what you wanted to hear right?' like yes. that is what I wanted to hear even if you're lying #bc like it doesn't Matter if you're lying bc im happy and youre indulging me <3 #<- once again words said by someone who is gonna give their therapist a FIELD DAY #again inb4 thats not healthy like trust me i am. HORRIFICALLY aware of that fact but its. theres a word for it i learned recently #distancin urself from the thing via 2 to untangle all the badwrong thoughts an i was like OH COOL ITS NOT JUS ME AN THE MENTAL EEL BROS

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i-am-terrowin · 1 year

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it’s so fucking frustrating having a dm who DOESNT KNOW HOW FUCKING DASH ACTIONS WORK

#he also refuses to read our character sheets bc ‘we should know our own character’#but there’s a person in the campaign who didn’t even know that they were supposed to add spells to what they have from their subclass and i #had to coach them on how to add spells and how to wildshape and i had to tell THE FUCKING DM THAT HE SHOULDNT NERF #FUCKING CUNNING ACTIONS FOR ROGUES BECAUSE THEYRE NOT THAT FUCKING OP YOU JUST DONT KNOW WHAT YOUR PLAYERS CAN DO #AND HE SAID THAT A PLAYER COUPDNT USE THEIR DIG SPEED TO TAKE A DASH ACTION BECAUSE THEYD JUST RUN INTO THE WALL #THATS NOT HOW FUCKING DASH ACTIONS WORK IT JUST ADDS TO YOUR MOVEMENT #he also didn’t let that player wildshape until they actually read how to do it but like bruh at a certain point you just don’t want people #to be able to use their cool abilities from their class that they’re prob excited for #he’s cool though #just kinda a dumbass #he also does some weird fuckshit with advantage and disadvantage where if you roll a nat 1 with advantage the nat 1 overrides it #don’t really like that but also like whatever it also works the other way around #he’s also really inconsistent on whether he uses the meets it beats it rule #the games fun overall but sometimes i am remind of how annoying it is that he doesn’t know the rules or our abilities #but it’s his table so he gets to fuck with it however he want but holy shit #HE ALSO LETS ANOTHER CHARACTER DO 2WEAPON FIGHTIN WITH A TWO HANDED WEAPON BUT HE WONT LET ME DO IT #IT MAKES ME WANT TO TEAR MY FUCKING EYES OUT #i don’t wanna be a rules lawyer but some of his rules are annoying and he doesn’t even know most of the rules so i feel like i have to #correct him or explain them sometimes

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suzannahnatters · 1 year

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So here's one of the coolest things that has happened to me as a Tolkien nut and an amateur medievalist. It's also impacted my view of the way Tolkien writes women. Here's Carl Stephenson in MEDIEVAL FEUDALISM, explaining the roots of the ceremony of knighthood: "In the second century after Christ the Roman historian Tacitus wrote an essay which he called Germania, and which has remained justly famous. He declares that the Germans, though divided into numerous tribes, constitute a single people characterised by common traits and a common mode of life. The typical German is a warrior. [...] Except when armed, they perform no business, either private or public. But it is not their custom that any one should assume arms without the formal approval of the tribe. Before the assembly the youth receives a shield and spear from his father, some other relative, or one of the chief men, and this gift corresponds to the toga virilis among the Romans--making him a citizen rather than a member of a household" (pp 2-3). Got it?

Remember how Tolkien was a medievalist who based his Rohirrim on Anglo-Saxon England, which came from those Germanic tribes Tacitus was talking about? Stephenson argues that the customs described by Tacitus continued into the early middle ages eventually giving rise to the medieval feudal system. One of these customs was the gift of arms, which transformed into the ceremony of knighthood: "Tacitus, it will be remembered, describes the ancient German custom by which a youth was presented with a shield and a spear to mark his attainment of man's estate. What seems to the be same ceremony reappears under the Carolingians. In 791, we are told, Charlemagne caused Prince Louis to be girded with a sword in celebration of his adolescence; and forty-seven years later Louis in turn decorated his fifteen-year-old son Charles "with the arms of manhood, i.e., a sword." Here, obviously, we may see the origin of the later adoubement, which long remained a formal investiture with arms, or with some one of them as a symbol. Thus the Bayeux Tapestry represents the knighting of Earl Harold by William of Normandy under the legend: Hic Willelmus dedit Haroldo arma (Here William gave arms to Harold). [...] Scores of other examples are to be found in the French chronicles and chansons de geste, which, despite much variation of detail, agree on the essentials. And whatever the derivation of the words, the English expression "dubbing to knighthood" must have been closely related to the French adoubement" (pp 47-48.)

In its simplest form, according to Stephenson, the ceremony of knighthood included "at most the presentation of a sword, a few words of admonition, and the accolade." OK. So what does this have to do with Tolkien and his women? AHAHAHAHA I AM SO GLAD YOU ASKED. First of all, let's agree that Tolkien, a medievalist, undoubtedly was aware of all the above. Second, turn with me in your copy of The Lord of the Rings to chapter 6 of The Two Towers, "The King of the Golden Hall", when Theoden and his councillors agree that Eowyn should lead the people while the men are away at war. (This, of course, was something that medieval noblewomen regularly did: one small example is an 1178 letter from a Hospitaller knight serving in the Latin kingdom of Jerusalem which records that before marching out to the battle of Montgisard, "We put the defence of the Tower of David and the whole city in the hands of our women".) But in The Lord of the Rings, there's a little ceremony.

"'Let her be as lord to the Eorlingas, while we are gone.' 'It shall be so,' said Theoden. 'Let the heralds announce to the folk that the Lady Eowyn will lead them!' Then the king sat upon a seat before his doors and Eowyn knelt before him and received from him a sword and a fair corselet."

I YELLED when I realised what I was reading right there. You see, the king doesn't just have the heralds announce that Eowyn is in charge. He gives her weapons.

Theoden makes Eowyn a knight of the Riddermark.

Not only that, but I think this is a huge deal for several reasons. That is, Tolkien knew what he was doing here.

From my reading in medieval history, I'm aware of women choosing to fight and bear arms, as well as becoming military leaders while the men are away at some war or as prisoners. What I haven't seen is women actually receiving knighthood. Anyone could fight as a knight if they could afford the (very pricy) horse and armour, and anyone could lead a nation as long as they were accepted by the leaders. But you just don't see women getting knighted like this.

Tolkien therefore chose to write a medieval-coded society, Rohan, where women arguably had greater equality with men than they did in actual medieval societies.

I think that should tell us something about who Tolkien was as a person and how he viewed women - perhaps he didn't write them with equal parity to men (there are undeniably more prominent male characters in The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, at least, than female) but compared to the medieval societies that were his life's work, and arguably even compared to the society he lived in, he was remarkably egalitarian.

I think it should also tell us something about the craft of writing fantasy.

No, you don't have to include gut wrenching misogyny and violence against women in order to write "realistic" medieval-inspired fantasy.

Tolkien's fantasy worlds are DEEPLY informed by medieval history to an extent most laypeople will never fully appreciate. The attitudes, the language, the ABSOLUTELY FLAWLESS use of medieval military tactics...heck, even just the way that people travel long distances on foot...all of it is brilliantly medieval.

The fact that Theoden bestows arms on Eowyn is just one tiny detail that is deeply rooted in medieval history. Even though he's giving those arms to a woman in a fantasy land full of elves and hobbits and wizards, it's still a wonderfully historically accurate detail.

Of course, I've ranted before about how misogyny and sexism wasn't actually as bad in medieval times as a lot of people today think. But from the way SOME fantasy authors talk, you'd think that historical accuracy will disappear in a puff of smoke if every woman in the dragon-infested fantasy land isn't being traumatised on the regular.

Tolkien did better. Be like Tolkien.

#tolkien #middle earth #jrr tolkien #lord of the rings #lotr #the lord of the rings #eowyn #writing fantasy #fantasy #female characters #writing #historical fiction #medieval women #medieval history #medieval #history #womens history

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letoasai · 3 months

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Will work for food ~ part 2

Part 1 - Master list

Tim was anxious which wasn’t an emotion he often put into use. Even on a bad day he was calculating, overly prepared, and usually ran on caffeine. He was a young genius and a hell of a detective, but nerves probably didn’t care about his resume or personality quirks.

He rubbed his thumb against the folded piece of paper kept hidden in his pocket. He’d examined it in the batcave but it held no clues of note. It was just a normal sheet of paper, and the ink could have been a pen from any local corner store. No DNA. No fingerprints. All the same, he kept it out of sight in public.

Tim had been antsy about summoning Phantom, mostly because he felt like he was disrespectfully late. When he’d first laid eyes on the living form of the Ghost King, he’d felt a familiar ache. Neglect. He didn’t know if the king had neglected himself, or if the blame lay at someone else's feet, but he just couldn’t stand it.

He’d offered food and company in an instant, the words popping out of his mouth before he could think them through. Despite that, he didn’t regret the offer. He could have done without the teasing from his siblings and teammates, but he didn’t regret the offer once.

His only remorse was with the clean up efforts. The Infinite creature, Vortex, had left quite the destruction in his wake. Even with many extended members of the League assisting with clean up, it took ages. Search and rescues were active and humanitarian groups had arrived to offer aid but some things couldn’t be done in a weekend.

The bats returning to Gotham didn’t offer much in the way of a break either. A Scarecrow outbreak with his fear toxin. Three different gangs in the middle of a turf war. A weapons smuggling ring being uncovered… It was one thing after another for a minute.

When all was said and done it had been nearly two months before Tim had the opportunity to keep his promise. He was in his civvies, standing at the mouth of an alleyway across from a little italian place that looked cheap but was actually the best tasting, most authentic italian place in all of Gotham. Little hole in the wall places often were the best.

The problem now was his ability to overthink things. Would he summon the king in a glow of green that would light up the street like a beacon? Would he arrive in his ghostly form, crown hovering above his hooded head?

Phantom looked human enough but was he? Did he come from Earth originally? There were plenty of aliens that looked human. It would be rude to assume…

What name did he use? Did he need to go full title? Why didn’t he ask more questions when he had the chance?

“King Phantom.” Tim muttered, deciding to just go for it. He still clutched the paper sigil out of sight. “Uh, Ghost King Phantom. King of the Infinite Realm. Um… Or was it High King…”

“Just Phantom is fine.”

Tim tensed, all of his hair standing on end at the voice directly behind him in the alley. He hadn’t made a sound but he needed to actively work to exhale and turn around to face his guest. There had been zero indication of his arrival, and he was thankfully, in his living form.

He was in jeans and an over sized hoodie. Tim could just barely make out a faded NASA written in the front. That was a point in the direction of him possibly being a human from Earth. He wore shoes this time, beat up looking kicks that had seen better days. His hood was also drawn over his head, likely to hide his bony appearance. Tim did spy the tail of his braid over his shoulder though, his hair black to further prove he was in his living form.

“You…scared the hell out of me.” Tim said, smiling after another hard exhale. “I am sorry it took so long, your Highness.”

“Phantom.” He corrected, looking around the street and taking it all in. Tim could clock him making note of the turns down the street and the buildings with fire escapes even with his hood up. People just had certain body language when casing an area. “I figured it would be a while, if you summoned me at all. I was not going to hold you to a whim, Red Robin.”

“I said i would…” Tim muttered. “Uh, it’s Tim, out of uniform. If you don’t mind.”

“Tim.” He repeated. That softness to his voice remained, and honestly, Tim liked the cadence of it. He liked it as much as he was sure he never wanted to hear Phantom raise his voice. “I understand.” He hesitated only a beat. “You can call me Danny. Phantom is probably a silly thing to call someone in a city like this.”

“Not if it’s your name.”

“Danny is okay.” He said, and for whatever reason, Tim noticed now how he kept his hands in his pockets, likely to hide them too. Frail, skeletal looking hands would just frighten some people. “Food? For a favor?”

“No favor involved. I invited you out.” Tim said. “I mean, maybe we can chat about stuff but you aren’t obligated to answer or anything.”

Phantom…Danny nodded, shuffling for a moment and looking around again. The height of the buildings seemed to be a mild interest of his. “Where are we eating?”

“Well, if you like Italian, we’re walking across the street.” He thought pasta and breads would be both filling and flavorful. It would also be something easily packed up for Danny to take with him.

“I’ll eat anything.” Danny informed him. “I have no preferences after all this time.” He hesitated. “Or maybe i need to rediscover them, but anything will be fine.”

“Let’s… let’s go then.” Tim said, walking with Danny at his side. He’d made a reservation which wasn’t strictly necessary at such a small place but it gave him the option of reserving a corner table to offer them a little more privacy.

They walked in, the hostess greeting them with a smile before leading them to their table and leaving them with bread, water, and menus. There were a few other full tables but it wasn’t packed the way it would be in the evening.

Danny kept his hood up, but it was Gotham and no one questioned the decision. They just left him in peace to not start a conflict with someone who wasn’t causing any trouble. He also kept his hands out of sight until the hostess had left. He sipped the water once and broke off only a little piece of the bread. He buttered it and ate on it while flipping open the menu.

Tim didn’t know if he was reading the English or Italian parts of the menu but it didn’t matter. Being fluent in reading an Earth language was another check mark for this being his place of origin.

“Can i…” Tim hummed, keeping in mind that he was speaking with royalty and act a little less like Bruce interrogating a suspect. “Can i ask a couple questions?”

Danny looked up at him, Tim only barely able to make out some of his features passed the unnatural shadows his hood provided. “Sure.”

Tim smiled, not even bothering with the menu since he knew what he was getting. “You’re the King of a realm, but was Earth your place of origin?”

“Yes, but not this Earth.”

Dimensions! Tim filed that away for later. “You can travel to any of them?”

“Within reason. Yes. I’m old, but not that old yet. Only eight or nine decades.” He tore another small piece of bread to eat. Tim assumed he was pacing himself. “They call me a baby Ancient still.”

“That’s cool…” Tim muttered. “Are there many other Earths?”

“The answer to that would never satisfy you.” Danny said softly. “Trust me. I am the Ancient of Space and i’m hardly satisfied with it.”

There was a new fact for Tim to latch on. “What’s the-” He stopped when the waitress appeared. Both of them ordered, and Tim was certain he’d end up ordering more halfway through the meal so Danny could take more home with him.

When the menus were taken and the waitress left again, Tim continued. “What’s the difference between being an Ancient of Space and being the Ghost King.”

“When i died, or half died, it was my fate to one day become the Ancient of Space. I am that regardless. I won the title of Ghost King.”

Tim dragged a hand down his face. “That’s…. Endlessly fascinating. I have so many questions.” He didn’t even know how to touch ‘half died’ yet.

Danny hummed once and fiddled with the end of his braid. “Do i get to ask questions too?”

“Of course.”

Danny leaned forward, sipping at his water again. “This Earth has super heroes. That’s interesting. Mine didn’t. How long have you been a hero?”

Tim nodded, figuring that would be the direction the questions would have wandered towards. They were far enough away from everyone in the restaurant that he didn’t worry about being heard. The music playing in the background also helped a great deal.

“Hero might be a debate depending on who you ask. In Gotham we’re considered vigilanties. I first suited up at thirteen but it was really more like fourteen after a great deal of training.”

Danny was quiet for a moment. “And how old are you now? I have trouble telling ages these days…”

“Eighteen.” Tim said.

“Young.” Danny muttered. “I was young too. Fourteen when i became the bridge. Sixteen before i really understood what it meant.”

“The bridge?”

“Balance. The living and the dead.”

Tim huffed softly. “You wear a lot of hats, don’t you?”

Danny made a quiet noise, and it took Tim a beat longer than normal to realize he was laughing. “I do, i wish i didn’t most of the time. It’s fine though.”

“Just fine?” Tim asked after a beat. He knew a little about expectations and high standards that could weigh you down–both his own standards and other peoples.

Danny nodded, one of his hands resting on the other. “I’ve seen things. Good things. Bad things. Things that will never happen. Things that have. It’s better i have certain powers because i have no desire to use them.”

Aah. Tim understood that. “People who want too much power are dangerous.”

“Exactly.”

“The power of ruling an entire realm…”

“Exactly.”

Tim heaved a sigh. “Damn.” Maybe he should ask something less intense. “Did you enjoy the food we gave you last time? It was just some fast food but there was some worry it wasn’t good enough.”

“It was great.” Danny said and he sounded sincere. “Nostalgic. It took me a few days to eat all of it. I know the Infinite Realm’s reputation, and it is a warranted reputation, but i’m… hard to offend. Little things are just little things.”

“I’ll put them at ease then.”

Danny was quiet for a moment, the silence not an oppressive one. “What is the difference between a hero and a vigilante?”

“How people perceive us, i guess. Superman will always be seen as a hero. Wholesome and valiant and all that. Things in Gotham are altogether… shadier. Being a vigilante isn’t exactly legal and while we have our boundaries, we break the law all the time.” Tim said. They covered their own tracks well but it was fortunate that no one looked too closely at their activities.

It didn’t bother Tim when he knew his reasons were still good.

Danny made a thoughtful kind of noise. “I’m willing to bet Superman’s business isn’t purely legal either. This seems like a nice Earth though, despite whatever troubles you have.”

“Some hero work is sanctioned by the government so it’s a fine line. Any of it could be argued.” Tim explained, and that was something Danny seemed to find fascinating.

They paused their conversation again when the waitress appeared with their food, and Tim put in a second order for them to take when they left. The eyes Tim could feel on him told him that Danny already knew what they were for.

He could hear Danny softly inhale and exhale as he looked at the plate in front of him that came accompanied with salad. He likely wouldn’t be able to eat even a fraction of it but the way he looked at it…. made Tim realize that he could see Danny’s face more clearly. The shadows that obscured his face from his hood had receded. He was still gaunt, but he eyed the food with so much joy.

The first bite of –non fast food– food nearly seemed to overwhelm him in a good way.

“You know,” Tim swung hard to change subjects. “We can do a bit of a food tour every time i summon you for lunch. Pizza. Chinese. Barbeque. There’s a great taco truck. We could get something homemade.”

“You cook?”

“Haa. No.” Tim said seriously. “But Al… my grandpa is an amazing cook and he seemed to think trading food for world saving services was very sensible but he was appalled that we offered you cheap fries and burgers. He’d honestly love to cook for you.”

Danny smiled, this shy little look that shouldn’t have fit someone with the title of Ghost King but it sure fit Danny. “That could be nice. Decent home cooked meals are kind of mythological to me.”

Tim nodded once, and knew better than to ask directly. “I didn’t have a very cuddly upbringing either. There was a lot of take-out involved.”

“Your food ever come back to life and try to eat you instead?” Danny asked and Tim just stared.

“I can’t…tell if that’s a real question or if you’re messing with me.”

Danny smiled and was that a hint of fangs? “Dead serious.”

Time groaned. “No, no you are a king. You are not making puns.”

“Thinking i’m too mature for puns is a grave mistake.” Danny said without hesitation.

“Noo.” Tim groaned, lips upturned into a smile. His brothers could never know about this. Dick would start a pun off and Jason’s morbid sense of humor about his own death…. Ugh, it would be bad.

It did bring up the interesting question of Danny’s age. He said he’d been alive for decades but how did he mature. Was he still a teenager? Did he age slowly? Asking not only sounded like a bad idea, but Raven and Zatanna had both made sure he knew it was a question to not ask.

They chatted, they ate, or well, Tim ate. Danny ate a bite every few minutes and looked thrilled about it but he was slowing down. Tim was looking forward to Danny being able to eat more with every visit.

He flagged down the waitress, gesturing for a box and got a thumbs up in return.

“You can take it with you.” Tim said when Danny was giving him a look. “It might be a couple days before i can call you again and this way you’ll have enough to eat every day.”

“I can’t deny that.” Danny said. “You don’t have to keep summoning me.”

“I promised you lunches.” Tim said firmly. “And you said it yourself, you should eat more and spend more time in a living realm. You may as well take advantage of being summoned for food.”

“Hm…” Danny played with the end of his braid again. “You do make a compelling argument. It’s nice to talk to someone without it being preceded by a brawl.”

Tim stared, “What?”

Danny just looked amused. “I’ll explain to you etiquette in the Infinite Realm sometime.”

“Yeah?”

The waitress returned with boxes for Danny to pack up his meal and the empty dishes were whisked away to make more room on the table while they waited for their to-go orders.

They were almost startled when a second waitress reappeared with a few little dishes before they could begin speaking again. Everything was set in the middle of the table, presumably for them to share. There was a piece of white peach tart, a bowl of strawberry gelato, and a slice of frozen chocolate chip meringata.

“Um…” Tim blinked. “We didn’t-”

The waitress chuckled. “It was ordered for you by another patron. Please enjoy.” She set down another set of utensils for them and walked away.

Danny made a small sound in his throat. “Well i was full but how could i say no to a couple more bites…”

“Wait.” Tim said, gaze subtly shifting around the room. Maybe he was trained to be paranoid, but it usually served him well. What he found almost instantly had his eye twitching.

Not even halfway across the room sat a poorly disgusted Dick wearing large sunglasses, a fedora, and the world's least convincing mustache. When he saw Tim looking and grinned and raised his own wine glass.

“I gotta kill my brother…”

Danny sputtered out a laugh, so genuinely amused that Tim could definitely see his fangs as he laughed.

“That would make him my problem.” Danny pointed out, reaching for a spoon to try the gelato first.

“I’m not seeing your point.” Tim said, delighted by Danny’s teasing. It was a rookie mistake to think one of his siblings wouldn’t find out about this. An absolute blunder that he hadn’t noticed Dick walking in after them at all. He’d never live it down.

“Guess i’ll have to be more careful next time.” He added.

Danny hummed again and seemed to have a fondness for the cold dessert. “I could always invite you to my realm sometime.”

“Cool.” Tim said instantly. Ha, let them try to follow him then…

#dp x dc #dc x dp crossover #danny phantom #tim drake #dead tired #cameo appearance by Dick Grayson #This is a date

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