Chapter Text
Dani was smarter since she’d run into Red Hood (whoever that was). She stayed invisible even as she stood at the door of the… mansion that Danny was inside of.
Of all places, really.
It was nicer than Vlad’s. More classy. More old money.
More.
She stuck her head through the front door, looking from one side to the other before stepping all the way through.
Even the entryway was nice. Marble floors, carpet running up an impressive staircase twenty or so feet away. She couldn’t imagine why someone would need that much space by their front door, but she pushed the thought aside and followed her tether.
She hovered through the halls, trying not to think of how the eyes on the portraits seemed to follow her. The halls stretched on, though maybe that was more due to how they appeared shrouded in darkness.
Someone’s footsteps caused her to jump, landing back on the ground more solid than she had been moments before, and it only took glancing down at her arm to see her skin once again visible. She tried not to curse, instead focusing on going invisible again, hoping no one had heard her land.
“Danny?”
Shoot. Dani stayed visible.
Double shoot.
“I thought you might be up,” A deep voice said from around the corner. “How about hot chocolate? I’ve been craving it since pat-” The figure turned the corner and promptly froze, eyes widening and head tilting to the side before he stepped closer, shoulders tense with a misleading smile on his face. “Hi, there. I’m sure there’s a good explanation for this,” He said calmly, flicking a light on. “Let’s head to a sitting room to figure this out, alright?”
Dani stood frozen, hands clenching and unclenching at her side inside the sleeves of Danny’s hoodie.
“You know Danny?” Her voice was almost frail, and she cleared her throat to try again, but the man only looked at her, eyes calculating. “Danny Fenton.” She repeated. “You said his name, you know him?”
The man nodded slowly. “Can I ask how you know him, Miss…?” He trailed off, and Dani took a moment to realize he was waiting for her name.
“Elle. Danielle.” She finally said. “And who are you?” She ignored his question, now gripping the cuffs of her sweatshirt tightly with each hand.
He blinked at her, taking a breath in. “Dick Greyson.” He answered. “And Danny’s my little brother. He hasn’t mentioned an ‘Elle.’”
“I, um, I usually go by Dani.” She shifted on her feet uncertainly, holding her hands together behind her back. “Your little brother?”
“My little brother.” Dick confirmed, nodding slightly.
This was… well it was definitely odd.
The girl was shrinking in on herself more and more as they spoke, her shoes scoffed and undoubtedly tracking mud into the house, but when he glanced behind her, there were no footprints. Her hoodie (NASA) was no longer white, though it didn’t appear to be badly stained, just in need of a good wash. That went for the rest of the girl too. Danielle. Dani. Elle.
“Danny hasn’t mentioned you either.” Danielle suddenly said before looking as though she wished she hadn’t.
A soft, confused huff left his mouth, and he really couldn’t figure this out. He was sure if he was rested and more awake then he might have more of a handle on the situation. But he didn’t. He was stumped by this little girl showing up in his house in the middle of the night claiming to know his brother.
“You know he’s my brother,” Dick began, “Can I know how you know him?”
She opened her mouth but said nothing, closing it. She appeared to be just as taken off guard as Dick himself was, and she really didn’t look like a threat. She might have to make her some hot chocolate anyways.
“He’s my brother too.”
...
“What?” He blinked and spoke again before the girl could respond. “Okay, how about we go get some hot chocolate. This feels like a hot chocolate conversation.”
He turned on his heels and started walking, waiting until he could hear the tell-tale pitter-patter of the girl's feet before leading her to the kitchen.
He’d usually make the fancy hot chocolate Alfred had spoiled him with growing up, but he figured he'd be forgiven for using the powder packets this once, considering the circumstances.
Her brother?
He couldn't have a sister- well, he could, but why would Thalia have another kid when she'd already had the twins?
Dick knew about Jazz, of course, he’d sent a few cards over Danny’s stay to keep her updated, but he hadn't heard anything about a second sister.
He absentmindedly pulled two mugs from the cupboard, setting them on the marble counter gently.
Danielle was hovering at the entrance, and Dick shot a confused smile her way, nodding to the stools at the other end of the counter.
“Take a seat, Danielle-”
“Dani.” The girl cut in before twisting a bit of the hair that had fallen from her lopsided ponytail. “Or Elle, I guess. But no one calls me Danielle.”
Dick nodded. “...Alright Elle.” He made the hot chocolate quickly and set the mug down in front of the girl, leaning on the counter on the opposite side. “So, you said something about Danny being your brother?”
She hesitantly opened her mouth, but something clattered just outside the kitchen door.
“What?” It was muffled, but Tim walked in a moment later, checking his phone (presumably what had made the noise) for cracks. “Sorry,” Tim paused. “Actually, no. What?” He glanced at the girl, his shoulders falling a bit, voice softening when he took in her startled expression. “Oh, hello.” He tried for a smile.
“That’s Tim.” Dick introduced. “And this is Elle.” Dick shot him a frazzled look when Elle was focused on Tim.
“Right.” Tim nodded, and when Elle glanced back at Dick, Tim gave his own confused look, reaching up to scratch at his chin. “So, you said you’re Danny’s sister?”
She nodded after a moment, looking at him closely.
Tim reached for Dick’s mug, ignoring his grieved sigh. His face scrunched up at the weak flavor.
Powder packets? Really?
Dick looked at him as if he could hear Tim’s judging thoughts, reaching out and taking his mug back. Tim gave it easily, clearly unimpressed.
“Well,” Tim tried to put his thoughts in order, but he’d come down for a midnight snack, not… whatever this was. Instead of continuing, Tim walked past both of them for the bag of almonds that only he and Bruce ate.
After a moment of thought, he opened the fridge and took out two of his energy drinks (orange flavored, because he had taste). Making his way back to the girl, he offered one awkwardly.
As she was reaching for it, just as awkwardly, Dick snatched it, causing the girl to flinch.
Tim shot a look at him.
“She’s like eight, Tim. You can't give energy drinks to eight-year-olds.”
Tim opened his mouth.
“I’m ten, actually.”
“See, it’s fine.”
Dick slapped Tim’s hand holding the drink away gently, taking the offered drink and sliding it on the counter behind them.
Elle, the ten year old strange girl in their kitchen, was looking between them, but she also sent a disappointed look at the can.
She was huddled in on herself, shoulders curled and hands clenching and unclenching. She saw Tim looking and shoved them into the front pocket of the NASA hoodie that looked a couple of sizes too big on her.
“So.” Tim tried. “You like space?”
“Are we just ignoring the elephant in the room-”
“Not really, but Danny’s been obsessed with it for, like, ever.”
“So you took his hoodie?” He guessed.
He couldn’t really blame her, if Danny really was her brother. He’s stolen enough shit from his own siblings that it would be massively hypocritical.
She glared at him. “No!” It was a bit defensive, and Tim held himself back from raising his eyebrows. “He gave it to me for my go- birthday.” Even with the slip-up, it was said definitively.
It was, admittedly, entirely possible that Elle was, by all intents and purposes, Danny’s sister. He could see the similarities. Or rather, she looked almost exactly like the twins.
But wasn’t it odd that she’d only mentioned Danny?
“What did Damian get you?”
Her face scrunched up, twisting in a manor that suggested she believed Tim was playing a joke on her.
“Damian-?”
The door to the kitchen opened one more time, Danny nearly tumbling over his feet, a wide grin on his face.
“Dani!”
Elle… Dani… Danielle? She hopped off her stool and between one blink and the next, the girl was flinging her arms around Danny’s shoulders, and he was spinning her in a small circle. The two were laughing, and when Danny set her back on her feet he brushed off her shoulders.
“I’ve missed you, short-stack.”
Dani tried to look upset at the name, but the grin fought its way onto her mouth after hardly a second. She slugged him in the arm.
The pop of a can opening behind him.
“I’m, like, five inches shorter than you.”
He rolled his eyes. “You hanging with these two more than your beloved older brothers? Damian and I have been waiting, you know.”
And anyone else might not have noticed, but Dani’s smile faltered, and the two made eye contact before she almost dazedly nodded.
“Too boring without me?”
He huffed out a short laugh. “Something like that- ugh.” He had been elbowed.
“Sorry,” Dick cut in, appearing to have managed to get out of his shock, the energy drink now back in his hand undoubtedly half empty. “We were expecting her?”
The two near identical siblings turned to him in sync.
“Duh.”
“Of course.”
Both answered at the same time before facing each other again, talking lowly, but still audibly, about her travels to get there. A flight, a bus, an iffy walk.
“Wait.” Dick interrupted again, and Tim ate a handful of the almonds in the bag he was holding. “Sorry, it’s great to meet you, Elle, really, I just-”
“I put it in the family calendar in the basement, you read it, didn’t you?” Danny said.
Tim almost choked on his almonds.
“You did?”
Dick’s voice was fragile, and when Tim looked over, he was blinking rapidly, eyes darting around as if he was recalling their family calendar in the… basement. Clearly Tim wasn’t the only one who didn’t remember any announcement of a third Al-Ghoul showing up.
Not that Tim regularly checked it.
Danny frowned, and it was like the happy, excited boy that had emerged for a few moments was shut behind a locked door once again. “You don’t remember?”
Dick was quick to assure. “No, no, I mean- I guess I did, but-” Tim would have enjoyed Dick’s fumbling, except Danny had looked so happy to see this girl, and now every ounce of personality was being locked away again.
“It’s probably the concussion.” Tim covered.
“Right. Yes. The concussion that I have.”
Danny didn’t look convinced.
“Oh, wow. Are you okay?” Elle asked, leaning back on the balls of her feet. “Cuncussions suck.” She paused. “Not that I’ve ever had one, but I’ve heard they really suck. You don’t have, like, double vision or anything, do you?”
She’d definitely been concussed before.
The flat line of Danny’s mouth wobbled slightly as he glanced at Elle fondly.
“Dick is okay, Dani. He’s a gymnastics teacher, there was probably an accident in one of his classes.”
“You do gymnastics?”
Tim shoved another fistful of almonds into his mouth.
“Yeah… I was, um, raised in a circus?”
Elle’s eyes widened. “A circus? Were you a clown?”
Tim spat half chewed almonds back into his hand, frantically trying not to laugh, but the smile Dick was wearing looked painful, and Elle looked almost satisfied by her comment, looking up and Danny, who was laughing into his hand, barely making an effort to hide the sound.
“Right.” Danny coughed, a persistent smile on his face. “Well, Dani’s staying in my room tonight so we can catch up, so goodnight.”
Elle (Dani? That was so confusing… but exactly something Danny would find funny.) marched out of the kitchen, Danny on her heels, shooting both of them one last, half- amused, half-disappointed look over his shoulder at them.
“Try to check the calendar sometimes, okay?”
Dick nodded, too wide smile still on his face. He gave a thumbs up.
Tim nodded. “Sleep well, squirt.”
Danny didn’t bother responding, but the last thing Tim saw before the door swung shut behind him was him rolling his eyes, still crinkled at the edges.
Tim threw out the half eaten almonds and made to leave the kitchen.
“Where are you going? Don’t just leave me here.”
Tim couldn’t help the smirk that grew on his face. “I’m going to check the calendar, Joey Grimwald.”
The groan Dick let out would fuel Tim for days. It almost made up for how he’d drunk one of Tim’s energy drinks. Almost.
Opening the clock, he nearly bumped into Damian, who had been on the other side.
Huh.
A receipt drifted from a man’s pocket in Park Row.
He was walking quickly, the only way people walked in Crime Alley. Walking, not quite jogging, but nearly. Nearly, nearly, nearly.
Park Row seemed like a place of Nearly’s.
The man kept his eyes frozen in front of him, and so did not notice the heat stained paper falling, fluttering to the ground like a leaf in autumn.
Just before it landed, it was swept up in a draft, one that took it only a few more feet before it fell in a gutter filled with run-off.
The same draft blew the man’s coat open, and he grumbled as he pulled it shut with one hand and pulled a loose cigarette out of his pocket with the other.
He gave up on the coat to fumble with a lighter, taking the cig in his mouth and cupping his hand to save the light from the draft, but it fought between his fingers and killed the flame. He tried again to the same result.
And just one more before he cursed under his breath, glancing around once before snapping, the cig lighting itself.
A deep pull. Hold. Out.
Bad enough the damned kind of the Infinite Hells sent a knight into Gotham, now something else was making the cursed city its home.
Shit, the Bat was going to fucking kill him.
There was a new breeze drifting into Gotham, and John finished his cig in record time, smothering the butt beneath his heel.
Maybe the King’s Knight would kill him first.
He would be so lucky.