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Danny followed Jason down the winding manor corridors, trying not to gape at all the lavish decor and the gothic architecture. He heard voices up ahead and he steeled himself. Jason paused before opening the door and looked back at him. He smiled gently.
“It’s going to be ok, Danny. I… I trust them. You can too. I promise.” he opened the door and stepped inside, waiting for Danny to follow.
“Hey, Jason what’s… Oh. who’s this?” said a black haired boy.
“Danny, this is Tim.” Jason said. “The blonde over there is Steph, she’s not actually adopted but she might as well be with how often she’s here.”
“Hey!”
“Over there,” Jason pointed toward one of the couches, “is Duke and Cass.”
They both waved.
“And the last one with the cat is Damian.”
The boy scowled at Danny.
“Everyone, this is Danny. He’s the kid I told you about.”
They all paused, and Danny looked toward Jason.
“I asked Tim and Dick to help me look for you when you disappeared on me.”
“Ah.” Danny said, shuffling awkwardly in place. “Do they know about…” Danny trailed off, biting his lip and glancing at Jason again.
“I said you had powers.” Jason said simply, and Danny nodded.
“Ok. Now what?” he asked, shuffling closer to Jason. The rest of the siblings had gone back to what they were doing before, but Danny could tell they were paying attention.
“Let’s wait till Dick and Bruce get here, and then we can try and explain. Ok?” Jason said quietly, and Danny could feel that he was honest and only wanted to help.
Danny had to try and trust him. He nodded.
He sat with Jason on a couch and tried to ignore the siblings sending him subtle glances. They had been watching a movie which they had paused when he’d come in, but now they pressed play. Danny tried to concentrate on it, but his thoughts kept swirling.
Finally, after what felt like forever Dick and Bruce both came up. Dick grinned at him before flopping down over Steph’s lap. Bruce stared for a moment, gaze moving between Danny and Jason before he sat down in an armchair.
Alfred followed them in, handing out mugs of hot chocolate and plates of cookies.
“Thanks, Alfred.” Danny whispered when the old butler passed him a mug and plate.
He had smiled gently at him before taking a seat on another armchair.
“So,” Jason started, clapping his hands together. “I’m still kind of dead. Surprise!”
Spluttering and noises of protest filled the room. Dick rolled his eyes, and Alfred raised an eyebrow.
“Explain.” Bruce’s stern voice, cut through the others, and everyone fell silent.
Jason glanced at Danny before turning once again toward the others. “I’m still connected with death. Sure, I came back, but it looks like a bit of death energy still stayed with me.” Jason said, and Danny could tell he was trying to be strong for him. Jason might not be afraid his family would turn on him, but he still wasn’t sure exactly how they would react.
Danny could do this. For Jason.
“It’s called being liminal.” Danny said. “Or death touched. It’s not harmful.” Danny fought the urge to glare at them all. “It just makes… us… a bit different. It also,” he glanced at Jason agin, “leaves us vulnerable to the Ghost Investigation Ward who has permission to hunt down, capture, and kill any creature that registers as even slightly ectoplasmically contaminated.”
“Ghosts?” he heard Steph say.
“Yes.” he glared.
“Woah,” she raised her hands. “Not doubting you, little man, just asking for clarification.”
Danny took a deep breath and tried to calm down. “Sorry, I’m just used to people dismissing this as a load of sci-fi junk or ghost stories.”
Steph snorted, and Danny grinned.
He took another deep breath, looked at Jason one more time, and then explained what he had told Jason and Dick.
Ghosts were real. Liminals were a thing. The GIW were a threat. He was more than just a little liminal. He didn’t show them his other form, but he told them about it.
And they listened. They didn’t judge or doubt.
They listened.