Danielle Baptiste
| Danielle Baptiste | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Danielle Baptiste, featured in the cover art for Witchblade #104. Art by Adriana Melo and Stjepan Sejic. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Image Comics/Top Cow |
| First appearance | Witchblade |
| In-story information | |
| Team affiliations | Sara Pezzini |
| Abilities | The Witchblade can act like armor, produce energy blasts and form itself into weapons and extra appendages. It also possesses healing properties and the ability of flight. |
Danielle Baptiste is a fictional comic book superheroine in the series Witchblade, published by Top Cow. She was introduced shortly after the one hundredth issue, becoming the series' main character. An athletic young dancer, Dani is one of the current wielders of the Witchblade, a mystical gauntlet which grants its bearer an assortment of powers.
Character history
Dani, an impulsive but good-hearted young woman, was born in New Orleans. She moved to New York to pursue a dance career, a dream she had since she was nine years old. After graduating, she became increasingly frustrated about the lack of direction in her life.
After having a strange dream about a mysterious gauntlet, Dani, while out shopping was drawn to an antiques shop. It was there that she encountered Sara Pezzini, the then-current bearer of the Witchblade. The two had also encountered each other previously on the steps of Sara's police department when Dani had bumped into Sara in issue #101. Dani instantly recognised the Witchblade as the gauntlet in her dreams and impulsively decided to accept it from Sara, as Sara was expecting a baby, and didn't want to deal with the adventures the Witchblade invariably drew. At first Sara was dubious about handing the Witchblade over to Dani, but the Witchblade responded strongly to Dani and so Sara relinquished the blade to her.[1]
Dani was drawn back home after her father was taken into hospital. While she waited for her father to recover, the nurse on duty told her to go out and relax. Dani complied, enjoying an evening out in New Orleans. However, she was harassed by three young men and punished them by drawing them into a dark alley and unleashing the Witchblade, almost choking one of them to death. It was then she realized that the Witchblade had a mind of its own and that she would have to exert more control over it.[2]
Dani was confronted by a mysterious stranger who urged her to go to a nearby graveyard if she wanted to get rid of the nightmares that had been recently haunting her. She did so and was confronted by rotting and deformed ghosts. They begged Dani to help set them free and explained that the ancient and mystical Madeline Desormeaux, who lived in a large mansion on the edge of the graveyard, had tortured them in life and had bound them to the land in death. Dani agreed and promised to bring Madeline to them.
Dani went into the house, and after a brief fight, emerged triumphant. The ghosts then had their revenge on Desormeaux, and were able to move on. The graveyard and the house disappeared.
Dani was left feeling increasingly unsure whether or not she could control the Witchblade. She returned to her father's bedside and was delighted to find him conscious. She promised to stay by his side for a few weeks to help his recover and then return to New York, resolving to get rid of the Witchlade after her ghostly encounter. However, she would end up changing her mind later.
After Sara's life was threatened by giving birth, Danielle returned half the Witchblade in order to save her.
She briefly lost her Witchblade after being wooed by the son of Kenneth Irons, Gerard Irons, who was under the alias David Worthy. She eventually gained it back, though, after he was thrown off a church roof by Sara, leaving him wounded. Though Gerard was supposedly immortal, just like his father, it would take time to heal (with the exception of the healing properties of the Witchblade). It is implied that Sara took him into custody.
After this, Madame Kostigian, Dani's dance teacher asked her to take over introductory classes while she returns to Poland to be with her sister, who has cancer. In the first class she teaches Dani meets a girl named Finch. While teaching another class with Finch Dani senses soething wrong and asks Finch to explain why she is so sad lately.Over coffee Finch reveals that her boyfriend Rock is trying to turn her into a whore. When Dani offers that she may be able to help Finch excitedly kisses her, surprising Dani. However Finch immediatley apoligizes and leaves before Dani can ask any more questions.