Chapter Text
"A new case?" Selina asked as the recognizable ding of Danny's phone echoed from another room in the apartment. She was sitting next to Ivy on the couch, both of their attention focused on the screen as they battled each other in a new video game that included animated versions of members of the Justice League and the Legion of Doom.
Harley was bouncing in anticipation on the far side of the chair as she called out advice to both women, and Danny was seated on the carpet below them, his back resting against the space left between Ivy and Selina's legs. He was slated to play Harley next, but for now was enjoying the spectacle that the other two were giving. He was sure the new message could wait a minute more.
Ivy had chosen to play this round as Cheetah, and Danny knew Selina held a massive grudge against the cat-like woman. It was clear that she was enjoying every successful combo move that she landed against Ivy… even if she was playing as a hero. (They had to level up before being able to pit two villains or heroes against each other, as they quickly found out to their annoyance).
Ivy let out a cry of frustration as the screen flashed brightly displaying her defeat. "How did you manage to beat me as Mera? She's not even officially in the League!"
Selina smiled as she leaned backwards in triumph. "It's all in the flick of the wrist. Hm… a trident's a bit flashy, but how do you think I'd look with a staff?"
"A bit like a copycat," Ivy sighed as she handed her controller over to Harley. "Although, a collapsible one would work if you can get it in black."
Harley poked Ivy in response. "What d'ya think about my giant hammer?"
"It suits your style: bold and unapologetic."
Harley squealed happily and blew her a kiss in thanks. "Just for that, I'ma play this round as you and win!"
Selina pouted. "That's not fair." She tried to give her controller to Danny, but he shook his head as he reluctantly stood.
"I need to check my phone first, see if it's a case or something else. You go ahead and play." She nodded in understanding at his words as he walked over to where his phone was charging in the kitchen. He used his fingerprint and pass code to unlock it and open the awaiting message.
Pierce Greyson, age 11, pediatric soft tissue sarcoma, wants to ask his favorite actor Clayface for acting tips.
"Uh… is this a prank?" He closed his eyes and counted to three before looking back at what was written on the screen. Nope, the same words were still there. Lovely.
"Is what a prank? Did someone contact you for an interview?" Ivy called back.
"Or a modeling offer?" Selina's laughter cut off with a hiss, and Danny could tell without looking that Ivy had likely pinched her in the side in retribution for her sass.
Danny rolled his eyes, even though he knew they couldn't see him from the other room. "This latest wisher asks for Clayface because he wants to be an actor and learn from one of his all-time favorites."
"Ooh, that sounds like a fun time! Do you think Clayface would let me sit in on the lesson?"
Danny dashed out of the kitchen to see if she was joking, phone still in hand. "Wait… you're telling me that Clayface was actually an actor?"
Harley shrugged nonchalantly as she leaned backward over the arm of the couch so she could look at him upside down, somehow managing to still play decently against Selina as she did. "Technically speaking, he is an actor. But now he changes his whole body to fit each new role!"
Ivy stared at her with raised eyebrows. "That was perceptive of you."
The blonde grinned widely as she sat back up to look back at the television screen. "It happens on occasion."
Danny peered at her through narrowed eyes. "How exactly do you know all this?"
"When he's not filming under his new identity, Hagen's working at a bar downtown."
Selina's voice was now tinged with suspicion as well. "What do you mean, 'new identity?' I haven't heard any of the Bats mention anything about that."
"Really? I know something they don't!" Harley let out a loud cheer as she jumped to her feet and raised her arms in victory, before seeing the unimpressed stares her three flatmates were sending her and sighing dramatically. "You all take the fun out of everything. Clayface's real name is Matt Hagen, of course, but his identity he now uses for acting is Basil Karlo," she explained with a bored wave of her hand.
"What?!"
"We have a signed photo of Clayface in our kitchen?!"
Harley would've been sulking when she led the way into the bar that night if he and Ivy hadn't let her bring along her hammer. Seeing as it was in hand, she was all smiles as she waved enthusiastically towards the bartender. "Hey, Matt!"
"Harley, a pleasure as always!" A smooth southern drawl came from the man as they approached. The blonde's back was turned to them as he washed out a glass, but Danny could tell that Matt Hagen was a few inches taller than himself. The height difference only grew as he, Harley and Ivy took a seat at the bar. "The usual?" He turned around with a grin that grew stiff as his eyes landed on Danny. "Ah, Ivy!"
"Thanks! Ivy'll have–"
"A tall 'Poison Ivy's Kiss,' if I recall? Yes, that is one of the most popular– thank you for the recipe, by the way," the bartender said, bowing with a flourish of his arms. "And of course, the man of the hour! What'll it be, Wrangler?"
Danny fought the urge to sigh as he crossed his arms and leaned forward on the bar. "A rum and coke is fine." His request was met with dead silence from the other three as they all turned to stare at him. "...What'd I do?"
"He'll have the 'Secret of Atlantis,'" Harley and Ivy ordered simultaneously in the same long-suffering tone.
"Excellent!" Matt Hagen exclaimed as he grabbed three glasses from behind the counter and began to gather and pour the ingredients. "Although," he said, his faux accent now glaringly absent, "that isn't exactly what I was asking." He set the finished drinks down in front of the Sirens first, before placing Danny's down with a heavy thud. There was a dangerous glint in his eyes as he met Danny's gaze, the features of his face shifting and remodeling just enough to remind Danny who he was dealing with. "So, Danny Johnson. What'll it be?"
Danny reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a folder set of papers that he had printed only a short while ago. "I'll trade you– case file for the drink?" He held out the papers for Clayface to take, finally taking a sip of the cocktail once the bartender began to read the file. He had to admit: Harley and Ivy had chosen his drink well.
"Danny told us about it," Harley gushed as she leaned over to point at certain sections she wanted Clayface to read first. "The kid wants to have you teach him about acting! And see, there's even a picture of him dressed like your character from that action flick The Chase Is On! He's got the sunglasses and everything!"
"This Pierce is a dedicated fan!" Clayface hummed thoughtfully. "I will speak to my agent at once. I can take a day off from shooting to visit this child."
Danny smiled triumphantly at the news. "Awesome. Do you think you can visit in the next week? He's got a surgery scheduled for Thursday afternoon."
Clayface nodded agreeably. "I'm sure that can be arranged."
It turned out that it was much harder for a rising star to take a day off in the middle of filming an anticipated blockbuster (especially when he couldn't reveal exactly what he was leaving to do, what with a secret identity and all). Consequently, the World of Wishes meeting with Clayface had been scheduled for early Thursday morning, before Pierce was set to prepare for his operation.
It was one of the most entertaining visits that Danny had observed. They'd been shown to an outdoor courtyard to meet Pierce, seeing as the hospital didn't want any chance of stray clay contaminating a patient's room.
The courtyard meant, however, that their meeting wouldn't be private. Some children were seated outside with family members, a few were walking with the aid of physical therapists and nurses as they took their first steps outdoors in days. The sight of the large, hulking figure of Clayface next to a small boy nearly bouncing in excitement had understandably drawn lots of attention. It took only minutes for a brave child to approach the two and ask if they could join.
"The more the merrier!" Clayface said after glancing at Pierce to ensure he was alright with this turn of events.
Pierce had grinned happily at the inclusion of his friends, and before Danny knew it, Clayface was leading a small gaggle of children in theater improvisation games. They stood in a circle and introduced themselves with an alliterative adjective to match their name by tossing a small ball of Clayface to each other (Was it technically a body part? A finger, maybe? Danny didn't know and didn't want to find out).
This had led into a game where each of them added a word to build a story, something that could quickly derail with the addition of an absolutely random word. Danny couldn't hold in his laugh when a little girl did just that by saying "mermaid," and thus throwing into chaos the previous story about a dog running through a field.
Danny was impressed with how well Clayface handled his impromptu class over the rest of the hour. It was always interesting to see the differences in every villain's interaction with kids.
When the hour was up and the nurses came to collect Pierce so he could be brought in to prepare for surgery, Clayface revealed one more surprise left in him– quite literally. His large fist drew a small object out of his chest which he held gently for a moment before holding it out for Pierce to take. It was a small, golden trophy, and Pierce held it reverently.
"One day, you'll have a larger one of a golden man to put on the shelf next to this one," he said softly.
It was clear from the look in Pierce's eyes that he believed every word Clayface had said. And honestly, Danny had, too.
Life wasn't that kind though.
It was around ten o'clock that night when Danny got the call. He'd been up having a late snack as he finished up some paperwork, seeing as all three of his roommates were out for the night and had left him a quiet workspace.
The caller ID read as Gotham Children's, and Danny's stomach immediately sank. Regardless, he answered as usual.
"Hello, Mr. Johnson. This is Mandy Greyson, Pierce's mother. The nurses are letting me call from their station…" There was a pause and a shaky inhale. "There was a complication during Pierce's operation– he had a reaction to the anesthesia."
Danny shut his eyes tightly and tried his best not to let grief overwhelm him. Not yet, at least. "Mrs. Greyson, I'm so sorry–"
"No! That's the reason I called," she said firmly. "You're the only reason Pierce was able to meet his hero. He was so happy today…" A sob finally broke through. "I was hoping you would pass our thanks along to Clayface. He made my baby's final day one of his best."
"Of course I will, Mrs. Greyson. I'll let him know."
Danny reciprocated a polite goodbye and finally let out an exhausted sigh as the other line hung up. He forcefully shut his bright computer screen and just sat there at the kitchen counter for several minutes, his head in his hands as he tried to shut out the rest of the world.
He wouldn't change his job for anything, but sometimes, it really sucked.
Once he finally felt stable enough to continue, Danny dried his eyes and picked up his phone to text Clayface. Gotham's illegal underworld was already busy by this time, so he had a habit of never calling without warning, in case the recipients were in the middle of something. He didn't want to be the one to accidentally distract them.
It seemed that Matt Hagen was working the bar again, according to his quick response, so Danny steeled himself for the difficult conversation he was about to have and pressed the dial button.
"Hagen. What's up, Wrangler?"
"Just… just Danny right now," he corrected tiredly. "I have bad news, Hagen."
"I'm listening."
"Pierce didn't make it through his surgery," Danny explained wearily as he leaned back in his chair to stare blankly at the ceiling. "His mother called me so I could pass on her gratitude to you for visiting him today. She… she said it was one of his best days."
Clayface was silent for so long that Danny pulled the phone away from his ear to check that he hadn't hung up. "Will he have a funeral?"
The question brought a ghost of a smile to his face. "I'll let you know the details when I find out."
"Right, thanks." And with that, the call ended.
Danny set his phone on the counter and finally let his welling tears spill free down his face as he mourned the loss of a little boy, taken too soon from this life.
Danny showed up to Pierce Greyson's funeral the following week with a somber group in tow. Ivy had insisted on coming with him and Hagen, seeing as she knew what both of them were going through. Harley had wanted to support all three of her friends, so she had tagged along. Danny thought it was nice of her to put her hair in a bun to hide the dyed tips (and thus keep attention off of her), but it was strange to see her out without her hair in her trademark pigtails.
The final member of their group, surprisingly, was the Weather Wizard, Mark Mardon.
Danny hadn't contacted Mardon since he visited a little girl named Cammie a few months ago. There hadn't been anything else for either of them to do in regards to that case, and the Weather Wizard frequented Central City, not Gotham. Danny hadn't even known the villain community was so casually interconnected that Mardon would even be in contact with Clayface or Poison Ivy. But apparently, word had quietly spread about the passing of Clayface's wisher, and Mardon was here to give his support as well.
The five of them made sure to stay at the back of the gathered crowd of friends and family, not wanting to draw gazes or cause a panic if they were recognized. They watched silently as the priest prayed over the casket before stepping back and allowing the mourners to line up and lay roses on the casket.
By the time they made their way to the front, much of the crowd had drifted back to their cars and begun to leave the cemetery. With less of an audience to recognize and react to her presence, Ivy pulled down the hood of her trench coat and removed her sunglasses as they approached the basket of roses and Pierce's parents.
Harley and Mardon went up first, nodding to the Greysons before taking a rose and placing it gently on the pile of flowers. Danny followed them with Ivy just a few paces behind him. He figured her presence would be more understood after he had been seen first.
"Thank you for inviting us, Mr. and Mrs. Greyson," he said with a sad smile. "Pierce left his mark on us all. He was a kind and talented boy." He slightly angled his body to gesture at Ivy. "I hope you don't mind, but a few others wanted to pay their respects as well."
Mrs. Greyson nodded shakily as she wiped at her eyes with a handkerchief, while her husband reassuringly took her hand. "Thank you, Mr. Johnson, for everything you did for Pierce."
Danny waited for Ivy to come alongside him and say a few polite words so they could both take a flower and move to place them on the casket with the rest. Clayface had asked to approach Pierce's parents alone, and the rest of them gathered together at the edge of the plot as they waited for him to finish.
"Ivy and I are taking Hagen out to eat after this," Mardon informed him Harley pulled Ivy into a hug. "We wanted to be there in case he needs to talk."
It sounded like a good idea to Danny. "Make sure you go somewhere with vegetarian options," he advised.
"Will do."
They paused to watch as Mr. Greyson warmly shook Clayface's hand and Mrs. Greyson tearfully pulled him in for a hug. When she released him, he slowly moved over to Pierce's casket. Hagen set a small medal on top of all of the flowers and stood with his head bowed for several moments before his shoulders drooped and he headed to join their little group.
"Thanks, Danny," Hagen said in a low voice once he reached them.
Danny waved off any further thanks. "Don't worry about it, Hagen. I'm glad we could all come. Harley and I will leave you three to it for now, though," Danny said, and then gestured for Harley to join him. She reached up to ruffle his hair as they began to walk back to Danny's car.
"Feel up for a movie-and-blanket fort afternoon?" Harley lightly suggested.
Danny stumbled slightly at her offer. It was her way of letting him know that she knew he wasn't alright. Just like the other three were going off to support each other, Harley was doing the same for him. "Sounds like a plan," he agreed. "But only if I get to choose the movie this time. And… thanks, Harls."
She nudged him in the side with her elbow. "Just don't mention it around Gotham, yeah? Can't let them know I'm a softie like Daddy Bats!"