on the thread of Al Ghul family dynamics and the various ways i can have Jason be a part of it, i do find the concept of Ra's and Jason getting along incredibly funny. like. can we not give them a weird age-gap friendship that baffles everybody around them to no end?
considering the fact that Jason could be the only person 'in the family' with adverse and lingering affects from being in the Lazarus Pit, and Jason is an incredibly good asset for the League of Assassins to have on-side with his All-Blades and bat-training and new Lazarus strength/size, i think it's fair to say that regardless of how annoying and bitchy Jason is as a person, Ra's could still be smart enough to want Jason to stick around.
I really like the concept of Jason being a singularity within the league. the rest of Ra's family respects him as their leader and treats him professionally, because although he is their father/grandfather, he is still, to them, the Demon's Head. same with everybody else at the league—he's feared and worshipped, or he’s abhorred and viewed as an enemy. there’s no in-between.
Jason is a special case. i think it's important to keep in mind that the only other person that Ra's has ever really respected as an equal of some kind is literally Bruce Wayne. the Batman. as his father's son, there's no way Jason didn't pick up on that Wayne stubbornness, and there’s no way he didn’t give Ra’s a run for his money when he showed up at the league. Ra’s sees that genius and sense of strategy in Jason; the only difference is that Jason actually embraces and accepts the concept of being an Al Ghul, doesn’t give a fuck about murder, and manages to expertly carry out all his work/missions while being a complete and utter little shit. with all of that, and the prospect of them bonding over the mental effects of being pit-dipped, i think it’s very easy to imagine the two of them having a weirdly decent grandfather-adopted grandson relationship.
i want them to argue constantly, but also Jason is the only person who Ra’s wouldn’t actually stab for climbing on his throne. or for mocking the fact that he even has a throne. Talia is endlessly frustrated and baffled as to why the fuck those two actually seem to get along sometimes—Jason’s allowed to burst into any confidential meeting he wants, ranting about whatever’s pissed him off lately, and Ra’s will just sneer and tell him to fuck off. anybody else would be shot on sight.
Damian’s torn between relieved and pissed off, because on the one hand Jason constantly fucking with Ra’s and actually getting away with it at least takes the heat off Damian; but on the other hand what the fuck did Jason do to deserve this favouritism? how comes Ra’s lets Jason braid his hair when he can’t sit still during a meeting? how come when Jason breaks into Ra’s bed chambers to demand a larger expense account so he can take the outlaws to vegas for his 18th birthday Ra’s doesn’t toss him in the cells for a weekend—just throws a cushion and lets him take whatever money he wants? it’s clear favouritism, and it’s bullshit.
i don’t just want it to be Ra’s letting Jason get away with stuff though. i think it would be interesting to see the more equal parts of their relationship. I would like to see a Ra’s Al Ghul who actually accepts Jason as one of his heirs, and as somebody who recognises the negative effects of the pit will give half-decent advice on how Jason can deal with it. i want them sharing ways to deal with pit-influenced episodes and hanging out on their off days. Ra’s teaching Jason how to play chess and Jason forcing Ra’s to read with him. Talia walks in on them together in the league library, Ra’s with slices of cucumber over his eyes, head laid back, and Jason with his legs thrown into Ra’s lap while he reads out loud, and she has to just. stop. take a deep breath, and slowly walk out while counting to ten.
there’s something just so endlessly fascinating about the concept of weird morally-grey murder-grandpa Ra’s and his odd, feral, lazarus-dipped grandson Jason.
i also just think it would be funny if after Jason’s reintegration into the batfamily there was an incident including the league in Gotham and the bats actually got to witness Jason and Ra’s getting along and they have to watch completely blindsided, slightly angry, while Damian and Talia look over with thin eyes and say ‘yeah we know, we fucking hate it too.’
