★ Summary: The school day ends, and Jason waits in the library for Clark to show up ★
★ Tags: See chapter one for exhaustive list on Characters and other Tags ★
★ Authors Note: I hate writing on paper, I really thought this was gonna be a lot longer ★
˗ˏˋ ★ ˎˊ˗
Jason let the day pass him in a blur, keeping his head down for the duration of the school day. Eventually, however, Jason gets the time to study and prepare some materials for this Clark kid. Jason is still wondering exactly who he is. He just hopes he isn't a total douche. If he just doesn't give a fuck about learning anything Jason is trying to teach him, then the next couple of months could be hell on earth. Maybe Jason will get lucky, and this Clark will actually care. Jason can only hope he's not a football player or some shit like that. That would make this experience a million times worse.
Lunch, where Jason has chosen to get a bit of studying in for himself, is relaxing enough for him. Sure, it's loud and crowded and just generally a shit place to be, but it works well enough for him, sitting at the raised counters by himself. It's the quietest and least disturbed area Jason can get in the lunch room, so it suits him just fine. Bruce may have said that Jason should be making friends, but he just can't be bothered, frankly. It's just too much energy he simply doesn't have. Or at least doesn't want to waste on these people at school.
Well, beyond all the basic issues with school, Jason is incredibly disadvantaged in that he is fairly unfamiliar with a lot of the technology that is being used. He had missed some crucial years in terms of technological advancements and implementations for schoolwork. The past year, he had scraped by without having to deal with the vast majority of the new tech, the teacher making certain allowances for him. But that was changing this year.
Now, he is being forced to use all of the newest stuff out there. Bruce had tried to help, hell, they had even gone as far as to call in Dick to help explain some things.
"No, Jay, there is no home button, just like there is no need for a password anymore. They've done away with all that," Dick tried to explain everything to Jason, and he understood it well enough after a while. He could use the phone, slowly for a bit there at the beginning, but he could use it now.
"Why?" That just feels stupid. And what if it gets the face scan wrong and gives access to my phone to some random stranger? What then?" Jason didn't understand why it couldn't just stay the same. Why make things infinitely more complex than they have to be? Though, to be fair, Jason was always more of a function-over-fashion type of person.
"That hasn't happened yet, and I don't think it's very likely to ever happen, Littlewing."
Jason sighed, "This is dumb."
"It's the wonders of modern technology!" Dick smiled widely, then continued on, "They even got rid of the headphone jack!"
Dick glee had been short-lived, as Jason screamed in frustration, causing Dick to cover his ears and hunch over. Perfect.
That had been a fun day, and a nice break from the actual teacher Bruce had hired to teach Jason about the newest tech and help him acclimate to it. This was just Dick coming over again for a nice afternoon. He had even insisted on staying for dinner and watching a movie before going back to Blüdhaven. Sadly, Dick had gotten the remote and forced Jason to sit through some awful Disney movie, which Jason is confident they could show to prisoners in Guantanamo Bay as a genuine torture method. Jason had blocked out most of the movie that night, but it was still painful to watch, especially when Dick began singing along.
All that to say, Jason still much prefers doing things on paper if it's possible. He really misses his flip phone, too. Yet, Jason must adopt or die(heh), as they say. Maybe he's just bad at adapting, it's how he ended up in this predicament in the first place. Ah, no, Jason shouldn't think like that, he knows full well it wasn't his fault, what happened that day. Even Bruce and Alfred say so.
He pushes back that little voice in his head that tries to whisper to the contrary. Bruce loves and cares about him, even if the Joker is still running around, essentially free with no consequence. Jason shakes his head to dislodge the thought with an almost silent sound of discomfort. He should have stopped that train of thought earlier. There's nothing he can really do about it now, so it's best to move along.
"You could kill him. That's what could be done about it." Jason sighs. Intrusive thoughts. It's probably normal, then again, what is really normal for a boy who has died and come crawling back to life?
Jason gets up and dumps his tray, still semi-full, and walks back to his seat to wait for the lunch period to end and be dismissed. When the bell rings, Jason goes through the rest of his school day easily, answering questions when called upon, and doing the assignments in class.
When the final bell rings, Jason almost walks to the front of the school to be picked up by Alfred before he remembers. "Right. I'm a tutor now." Jason sighs and turns around to walk to the library.
Jason takes a seat at one of the tables under the skylight and waits for Clark to show up. Glancing around, Jason looks at all of the bookcases. It's not as nice as the library in the manor, but it's pretty good, all things considered. Especially nice for a public school in Gotham, even with Bruce Wayne's funding.
Tapping his foot, Jason looks around, trying to see if he can spot this Clark kid before he sees Jason. Searching the crowds of other students walking by the library to leave the school, Jason doesn't notice the person who is slowly approaching from behind him. However, Jason does feel the tap on his shoulder.
He almost breaks his neck whipping his head around quickly to see whoever touched his shoulder. Jason looks up at the person standing over him. His hair looks like he had been running, all windswept. Great, this kid is probably never anywhere on time if he has to run to his classes. He's also wearing some nerdy glasses, boring, black rims, and all, but they don't look terrible on him. Jason lets his gaze slip lower, pausing over the "S" brightly standing out on his chest. Wearing a Superman t-shirt is certainly an… interesting choice in Gotham, but to each their own, or whatever. Jason notices the light-wash jeans and red sneakers, but decides they're not worthy of further note as he looks back up at the blinding smile that the kid—Clark, this must be Clark—is joyfully wearing.
"Jason?" Clark intones the question as he extends his hand for a shake. Jason stares at it for a moment. It's so much larger in comparison to Jason's. Clark must have had a balanced diet in his childhood. Genetics also plays a role, but Jason is pretty sure he is supposed to be tall as well. Malnutrition is a bitch. What else can Jason say?
"Then you must be Clark," Jason says, partly to distract himself from his own thoughts and also to confirm that this is the kid he is supposed to be tutoring. When Clark nods, Jason gestures at the three other seats at the table, "Sit wherever."
Clark sits at the seat directly across from Jason. Jason narrows his eyes as he looks at Clark for a moment. There's something in his eyes. They're blue, but there's something else about them, like an odd hue in the center. With the glasses in the way, Jason can't really make out exactly what is causing it. Or maybe it's just his own eyes playing tricks on him.
Jason breaks out of his pondering when Clark clears his throat, loud on purpose. Jason quickly tears his eyes away from Clark's as he looks to the side in the same moment. Jason looks down at the papers and books sitting in front of him on the table for a moment. He hadn't realized he had apparently been staring at Clark for long, or that he had started staring at all. Jason takes a breath and berates himself for how embarrassing that was for both parties.
Moving on, Jason starts talking again. "So, where should we start?" Jason asks as he looks up from the books, making eye contact with Clark again.
Made these because it pisses me off that Elon Musk appropriated the name of someone who was basically his antithesis, and would not want his name associated with any of this.
all the batkids are nepo babies not in the civilian/monetary sense but rather because as batman’s babies they are allowed to do whatever the fuck they want in gotham meanwhile any time any other member of the hero world steps out of line batman comes down on them like a steel hammer on a walnut.
batman will provide a list of rules for the JLA any time they need to work in gotham and the JL will just look between the rules and the group of kids hanging out behind batman like. hold on now.
flash: no metas?
batman: yup.
flash: who’s that then?
batman: that’s signal, he can glow and he’s lovely, now take his fucking name out your mouth.
flash: …
~
superman: and you said no guns?
batman: yeah absolutely no guns allowed.
dick: *from upstairs* dAAAAAAD I’M GONNA BE LATE FOR WORK HAVE YOU SEEN MY BADGE AND GUN?
batman: *yelling back* I THINK YOU LEFT THEM IN THE OFFICE.
dick: OH YEAH, THANKS.
batman: NO PROBLEM SWEETIE HAVE A GOOD DAY AT WORK!
superman: hm.
batman: he’s different.
superman: how?
batman: i love him.
~
wonder woman: you are against taking human life, are you not?
batman: absolutely and that is non-negotiable. we are not judge jury and executioner.
wonder woman: i see. turn around.
*jason and tim two rooftops over, arguing how best to dispose of the loa assassin corpses they just took down*
batman:
batman: i dont see a problem here. those are my sweet boys.
jason, distantly heard from behind: yeah fuck you we’re his sweet boys.
wonder woman: *sighs*
~
batman: honestly the most important thing is that we serve justice and keep morality intact even when dealing with the toughest cases.
green lantern: damian has a secret prison under the titans tower where he’s been torturing their villains rather than trying to reform them.
everyone saying ‘jAsOn wOuLdNt sWeAr aT WoNdER wOmAn’ you are not on my level. that’s his cool auntie diana. i want their relationship to be so fucking fun. when jason was first taken in by bruce and was terrified that acting anything other than perfect would get him kicked out, diana was the one that upon first meeting him gave him a high-five and said ‘fuck yeah, new robin!’. since diana is clearly jasons favourite, shes the one that takes care of him whenever batman is too busy to keep an eye on him at the watchtower. they’re close. they’re casual-close.
diana is the only one allowed to tease jason about his relationship with roy and how even partner-wise he cant stop following in dick’s footsteps. jason just grins and points out that as a thousand+ year old immortal amazon any human SHE dates would be a victim of grooming. diana puts him in a headlock and calls him a little shit THAT’S HIS FUN AUNTIE DIANA, IF HE CASUALLY SAYS ‘man fuck you’ TO HER ALL SHE’S GOING TO DO IS FLIP HIM OFF BEHIND BRUCES BACK. JASON CAN TOTALLY SWEAR AT WONDER WOMAN GET ON MY LEVEL.
It’s Superman #36 of the current run, and most recently released. As for a good reading list, I would probably recommend this one on LOCG: https://leagueofcomicgeeks.com/profile/dieletdown/lists/115595/superboy-prime-reading-order
You wanna get into Superman's most insane variant and his crazy misadventures? This is the list for you!
Clark Kent of Earth Prime was a si
every time someone says utrh jason should have got a redemption arc to lead into rhato and that he should be less selfish and that he should learn the value of human life i get more bitter and more petty. jason should be more of a mass murderer actually.
★ Summary: Jason Todd died, but when he crawled his way out of that grave, he wondered back to the manor. Now that he’s recovered almost completely, he’s back in school and being forced to tutor some kid named Clark. Jason can only hope he isn’t too annoying.
Or
Jason has to tutor Clark and then they’re gonna kiss at some point or something ★
★ Characters: Superboy Prime, Jason Todd, Bruce Wayne, Alfred Pennyworth ★
★ Other tags: Jason Todd is Not Red Hood, Jason Todd is Not Robin, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - No Powers, kinda but not really, Good Parent Willis Todd, Good Parent Bruce Wayne, Jason Todd Need a Hug, Slow Burn ★
★ Authors Note: Go follow @zephrysdotcom on here! They came up with the idea of this amazing AU, and they’re really fun to talk to! ★
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Alfred sets the plate down in front of Jason, who frowns at it for a moment before unhappily picking up his silverware. It's an omelette, lovingly prepared by Alfred for Jason before he has to leave for school. Jason really isn't all that hungry, but ever since the incident, both Bruce and Alfred have been on his ass about eating. It's not like enough protein is going to fix everything. No matter how much Bruce wishes that wasn't the case.
Jason pushes past the vague pressure in his head to listen to Bruce speak when he walks into the dining room. "Good morning, Jason." Bruce greets as he walks towards his seat at the table, pausing to press a kiss to Jason's hairline right against the white sprouting up there.
Jason's frown deepens, poorly attempting to hide his little smile at the show of affection. Sure, Bruce had been a bit overbearing at first, and he still is sometimes, but he's gotten better recently. "Good morning, Dad," Jason says back as he takes another bite of his omelet.
"So," Bruce starts, and Jason has to hold in his sigh, it's too early for this, but Bruce has been wanting to talk so much recently. "The school wants you to tutor someone."
Jason can't hold back his groan. "I've barely been back for a year, and now they want me to tutor some poor kid? In the last year of high school?"
"Yes, Jason," Bruce smiles. "You're a smart boy, and you've accomplished so much. You were top of your class last year. That's an amazing accomplishment."
Jason shakes his head lightly in disagreement. Bruce keeps saying that. Unfortunately, even just that slight shake makes the dull throb in his head worse, and he has to resist the urge to put his head in his hands.
Ever since Jason had come back, Bruce has been disgustingly supportive, even forcing him to remain home from school when he's having a bad day, which is why Jason is hiding that he has a headache. Bruce was even supportive when Jason gave up Robin, though, to be fair, it probably wasn't likely that Bruce was going to let him be Robin again anyway. Anyway, the only issue Jason sees with having to tutor someone is that he himself had missed two years of school, and, sure, he had been top of the class the moment he came back, but that doesn't mean he should be teaching someone else! Though if he were being completely honest, Jason just doesn't want to. He'll admit it. He kinda doesn't want to. He doesn't want to spend two hours after school tutoring a kid who really doesn't care.
Jason sighs, "Sure, you're always saying I should get involved in stuff, and I can't exactly play sports or anything." Maybe this'll get Bruce off his back about some things. I would mean he's out of the manor for longer. That would be a nice little break.
"I'm glad to see you're keeping an open mind, if nothing else," Bruce chuckles.
"Yeah, maybe the person I'm tutoring will be cool." Jason wants to roll his eyes. There's no way this kid he's helping will be cool. Either one of those annoying jock types who only want to befriend Jason so they can get closer to his dad, or he'll be some random kid who just doesn't care about anything Jason has to say, or his own education and future. Either way, it's gonna be brutal.
Bruce laughs, and that makes Jason smile, "Don't sound too excited, chum." Bruce shakes his head, smiling still.
Sometimes it's amazing that Jason can still make Bruce laugh, and that Bruce is even still capable of it. The first time Jason had made Bruce laugh while Dick was there, he had gotten the oddest look from him before he looked away to turn the look on Bruce. He had blinked a few times before moving on as if nothing had happened.
They finish the rest of their meal in relative silence, basking in the early morning. The omelet is delicious, but that's to be expected from Alfred. Jason pushes his plate away, having eaten his fill, and Alfred walks over with a small cup of pills and a glass of water.
This is the one part of his daily routine he is consistently bothered by. he knows he needs to take them, or the headaches will get out of control, and his joint pain will get worse, but Jason is tired of it, in all honesty. And downing a fistful of pills isn't fun, and evokes the image of Catharine. But this is all carefully portioned and dosed for him. He won't overdose.
Pushing those thoughts out of his mind, he swallows them down, pushing the bowl and glass away when he's finished as well. "Go put on your shoes and grab your school bag, Master Jason," Alfred instructs as he walks off with Jason's dishes.
Jason rises from his seat, making sure to push the chair back into place once he's standing, and turns to make his way to the foyer.
This house, if it can even be called that, is way too damn big in Jason's opinion. It was like hell on earth when he was just starting to walk again after recovering. Having to walk down long, winding hallways with minimal rest using a walker is no fun, let Jason tell you. Then again, in a way, it was a good way for him to make sure he was getting all his steps in. Probably helped accelerate his journey and lower his time in physical therapy. Jason can't help but feel lucky that it didn't end up causing moreproblems, and it helped him instead. Still, Jason couldn't help but reminisce about his old apartment for those months when he was painstakingly moving through the manor inch by inch.
Jason misses how small it was. It was so cozy, even more so around the holidays. Though Bruce and Alfred can decorate the manor as much as they want and put lights through the whole house, it still doesn't get close to what Willis used to set up for Christmas. He would bring home a little tree. It wasn't anything like the huge, barely-fit-in-your-house trees that decorate the manor during the winter months, but it was still something. Willis would put it up in the living room, right next to the TV. At night and even early in the morning, Jason would just sit and stare. Mom would come in and turn on the TV, Saturday cartoons or something of the sort, but Jason just wouldn't look away from the twinkling lights strung through the green pines of the tree and the way the light reflected off the sparse but lovingly made and placed ornaments. He would have sat in front of that little tree for hours every night and every morning if Dad hadn't eventually picked him up and set him on his lap. He always said he wanted to watch the cartoon with Jason, not just near, but maybe he thought they would be good for Jason, or at the very least better than just staring at a lit-up tree for hours on end.
When Dad ended up in jail, Jason still found a way to get a tree for him and Mom. He had seen how sad Catharine looked, staring at the spot where the tree used to sit next to the TV, and Jason couldn't let that stand. He had gone out and, well, lightened the load of some of Gotham's more affluent citizens—Lord knows they could stand to lose it—and used it to bring home a tiny little tree for that Christmas. Jason decorated it in the middle of the night when Mom was sleeping, his tiny hands strung the lights through the branches and hung the ornaments. When Jason had stepped away from the now glowing tree, he had known Mom would love it. And she did. The next day, they spent hours just sitting there in front of it, arms wrapped around each other, watching the lights glimmer.
Jason didn't look at the Christmas trees in the manor for too long.
Jason finishes tying his shoes, standing up from where he had sat down on a little bench to put them on, and grabs his school bag from the hook. Alfred had taken it from his room and brought it down here earlier. Going up flights of stairs still really sucks, and Jason likes avoiding it if he can. Thankfully, Alfred is more than happy to make it easier for him.
Jason only has to stand there for a moment longer before he hears Alfred announce where Bruce is. "Master Bruce is waiting in the car, dear boy. You may join him at your leisure as long as it's before 6:15."
Turning to start walking outside and to the front, Alfred continues, "Perhaps the young master would like someone to walk with him to the car?"
Right, "No thank you, Alf, I think I'll be okay!" Jason grins over his shoulder. They've been on his ass about this as well. Someone always wants to walk with him. A slight limp doesn't make someone unable to walk to the car. And it's not like Jason is on suicide watch, he didn't inflict this upon himself like that kid from Mazerunner. The point is, he can walk to the car.
Alfred lets him walk freely, presumably going back to his duties. Jason doesn't understand how that man does it sometimes. This house is frankly too big for just one man to take care of everything. Maybe he should talk to Btuce about getting someone else to work alongside Alfred. Hopefully, Alf will swallow his pride and let it happen.
The car Bruce has chosen to drive to school today is sleek, black, and inconspicuous. Sometimes that only makes it stand out more, like the Batmobile in Crime Alley. Jason has to back his laugh at his own little joke as he opens the passenger door and sets his backpack between his feet once he sits so he can buckle up.
Bruce turns to him, "Ready to go, Jay?"
Jason nods, and Bruce turns back to the road. The landscape shifts quickly, Alfred thankfully having already opened the gate, so they don't need to stop before merging onto the road. Jason looks out the window to take in some of the scenery around him. Bristol is an okay place. A lot of empty land and perfectly trimmed lawns. It's hell for the biodiversity. Jason keeps observing the landscape until they get closer to the actual city, and anything that was pretty or really worth noting begins fading away to make room for the buildings. Now, don't get Jason wrong, he loves the city, it's where he grew up, it's his first home. He loves it there, but the city has drastically changed since the last time he was here. With how long he was dead, and how long it took him to recover, much of the city is not exactly how he remembers it.
All the corner stores Jason used to love going to with his Mom are gone, replaced by something else Jason can't be bothered to learn the name of or even what its purpose is. The few buildings that have remained under the same ownership have changed branding, or they've put a fresh coat of paint over the whole building. Nothing is how he remembers it, and sometimes Jason feels like an outsider in the very city he was born and raised in.
Jason lets the city fly by him in a blur, ignoring the subtle looks Bruce is sending him. Jason is tempted to pipe up and tell him to keep his eyes on the road, but then that might initiate dialogue. Jason just wants a moment to collect himself before going to school. He's been going the last few weeks this year, keeping his head down and just doing the school work. Thankfully, people don't really bother him, leaving him to his own devices most of the time, but everyone is so nice to him when they do talk. Jason has chalked it up to his father's influence rather than anyone genuinely wanting to befriend him. Just like last year
Thankfully, most of the time, the scars he has on his face keep people from wanting to talk to him, allowing him an extra little buffer between people. They're gnarly, on one cheek, they cross, one going from his temple to the top of his lip, the other from his jawline to the other side of his nose, caused by the crowbar splitting his skin. On his other cheek, there is a line reaching from above his brow straight down his cheek, going over his eye. Jason is lucky he still even has his sight.
The car stops in front of the school, pulling Jason out of his thoughts. Unbuckling and grabbing his backpack, Jason opens the door, slinging it over his shoulder. "Are you gonna pick me up, or will Alfred?" Jason asks.
"Alfred will," Bruce asserts, "and remember, it'll be an hour after school, you still have to tutor that student."
Jason raises a brow, "You don't know their name?" How is he supposed to find this kid if he doesn't even know their name?
"His name is Clark. Didn't I already tell you that?" No. No, he had not. "Just go to the library after. He'll find you there," Bruce assures him. "Now have a good day, son."
Jason sighs. At least he now has a name to work with, but unfortunately, he'll just have to wait until after school to properly learn anything about him. "Bye, Dad."
Jason turns and limps to the front doors of the school, listening to Bruce pull away from the curb and take off.
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