Part Two: Think of Something.
(Batfamily x reader x JJBA, platonic)
JoJo was a good kid. Her childhood had few notable facts but nothing too traumatic. At least from what Bruce knows. Truth be told, in the past few months, he has begun doubting what he knew about her.
He knew JoJo to be a cheerful kid, who grew up to have a strong sense for justice but also be the least troublesome of all the members in the family. She didn't hang from chandeliers, didn't chase rogues. She hardly even bothered him.
That could be his fault. He might have made her feel like a burden? He honestly didn't know anymore. He thought he had a good relationship with her. He had learned how to put her hair in pigtails when she was a toddler. That counted for something, no?
He was trying. It clearly wasn't hard enough, but he did with all his might. Between his nightly activities and his mess of a life, he tried to be the best father he could to this little girl who was growing up into a beautiful little human with an honest soul. She was an angel and his main goal was to protect that.
The problems first started when the illusion of the perfect little girl began breaking. He would never imagine he'd turn out to be a stereotypical father. However, the first time he heard her cuss was when they first started arguing. She must've been twelve at the time. There hasn't been a single month from then up to her disappearance that they didn't fight.
It was always so much drama over the smallest things. With her, he cared for things he wouldn't give less of a crap about with his other kids. He cared about her friends being good influences, he cared about appearances, he cared about her grades. Sometimes, it would just be too much for her.
She would yell. A lot. She would have a bag ready to go and stay the night at Kate's and one time tried to go to Dick by taking the last bus out of Gotham. It mysteriously had three flat tires out of nowhere.
She would call him controlling and other ugly names. On days like that he felt like the worst father on the planet. It hurt him but he tried not to hurt her back. He thought silence was better.
That led to their other kind of arguments. The silent treatments for days. It didn't matter who started nor who escalated it, but they'd walk away and just never talk it out. That, they found out quickly, wasn't a good strategy. It always failed.
Alfred would make them talk to each other again after a few days, but they'd never actually talk their issues through. They'd just engage in small talk, ignore each other, and eventually fight again.
However, there were some rare moments of peace between father and daughter. Like when he'd return from patrol and find her asleep in the library so he'd carry her to her bed, just as if she were still a baby. Like when she'd make a sweet treat (she'd do that a lot when she was stressed) and would go down to the cave to leave a little something for him. Like when Bruce would space out during dinner as she's eating broccoli because there was a time when she'd cry over broccoli. Yet she grew up and eats it.
It was the growing up part that screwed everything. They used to be so happy together.
She used to come down to the cave before patrol and kiss his forehead bye-bye. She used to look for him everywhere. She always wanted to spend more and more time with him. She demanded stories from his patrols, even if they were more kid friendly versions. She used to love him so, so much.
Sometimes, he wonders if she still loved him at all. Because he loves her. Perhaps even more now that she's gone. He hates himself for loving her more strongly now that she's not here. He should've loved her so much from the start and should've shown it to her.
Today was one of the bad days. He couldn't stop thinking about JoJo. There were some days during which he'd just bury himself and work and distract himself for a while. But today, that didn't work. Maybe he needs sleep, like Alfred has been insisting for the past week.
He knew it probably wouldn't help, but he left Wayne enterprises earlier than usual, went home, and planned to spend the afternoon in bed.
Bruce Wayne was met with a visitor in the manor. "Oh," he let out when he found Jason and Alfred casually enjoying home herbal tea in the kitchen. The dinner was in the oven, some potatoes were boiling on the stove, and there was a murderer sitting on the counter, enjoying his tea. But that murderer was his son.
"Aren't you supposed to be out till at least five?"
"A... change of plans." Bruce responded, the exhaustion clear in his voice. He is surprised to see Jason at the moment, but he has been suspecting that Alfred has been smuggling him in the house when Bruce was away. Since JoJo left, pressure has been building up between Jason and Bruce. There are a lot of emotions that haven't been dealt with.
Those emotions were just about to overflow. It was clear in how Jason refused to look at his father and how he, in return, hurried to excuse himself. But there was no time left and not a single cell in Jason's body that could show any patience at that moment. That's because Batman, in a rare moment of human emotion, looked worn out.
He wasn't planning to sound so aggressive and didn't want his voice to feel like an attack. But it did. "Any news from JoJo?"
That made the bat freeze. He stood on the exit of the kitchen for a solid moment before answering. "No."
"Don't you think that it would be a good idea to... I don't know, start looking for your missing kid?" Jason had many talks with Alfred. Everyone knows this conversation had to happen. He was told that he should be patient and calm. But he was just angry. Angry that his little sister was gone, angry that his father was responsible and, most of all, angry because said dad didn't do shit.
"JoJo is a smart girl. If she does not want to be found, then we should respect her wishes." Bullshit, bullshit and bullshit all around. It was all excuses. He didn't want to tell the truth. Because he is actually actively looking for her. All the time, everywhere. He looks in police files, reports, in airports, in camera footage from wherever he can think of... But he has had no luck so far. That makes him panic internally. He's the greatest detective in the world and has no real leads or any idea where his own daughter is. Admitting that would only make everything worse. It would stress everyone out. At least this way, it looks like he has everything under control. "I didn't kick her out. She knows she's free to show herself whenever she feels like it."
Jason couldn't stop himself, "Or maybe she stormed off in the heat of the moment, got attacked and is now dead in some ditch or alley." His words were venomous and he was aiming to kill. He was done playing into this act. Everyone is pretending nothing is wrong. But he just can't stand it. "But that's not a problem, right? Just replace that kid too."
"No, Alf." He jumps down from the counter, where he was sitting. "You, at the very least, should've made him look for her!"
"Since you're so worried, why don't you look for her yourself?" Bruce asks with no second thought. He looks at his son from over his shoulder.
"You think I haven't?" Jason glares back at him. "But she has left nothing. She's nowhere. People don't just vanish like that. What if the Joker has her? Has had her for all this time and is just-"
"He doesn't." His voice stops having his human tone, instead it's like the dark knight has taken over, stating data from a case. He walks back in and faces him. "I have confirmed the actions of every rogue in Gotham that night and nobody has had anything to do with this. She just left. She was walking down Murphy Avenue. Then she took a sharp left turn and that's it. No sign of her after that, Jason."
"Then it's a meta ability. Or magic. Get the League or Zatanna on it-"
"The League has been on the lookout for the past months with no results. Zatanna didn't locate anything suspicious from there either." Anything Jason, or any other human in fact, could think of, the Batman has thought of months ago.
However, Jason is bolder with his solutions. "What about Constantine? That blonde fucker could be helpful for one time. He could find her whether shes on earth or not."
"Constantine could, but would he? His never helpful. He will find a way to just get what he wants and cover his-"
"Then find someone!" His son yells, "For fuck's shake, do something! Don't just stay there and say there's nothing to be done! You can't be this fucking calm, you just can't!" He shoves his father back. He wasn't trying to start a fight. Just wake him up from this moody state he's always in. "It's JoJo we're talking about! No idea if she's dead or alive and you just go on with your fucking life!"
"Jason, I-" He doesn't know what to say. In this state, he says the first thing he thought of. "I will find her. I promise." Even though realistically he cannot guarantee that.
"You better." With that Jason leaves the kitchen, but not the manor.
JoJo's room was the second largest in the house. If he didn't know better, he'd think it's because she's the favorite. Maybe she once was. But now she must be all the way on the bottom of the list, just like Jason himself is.
Her room is beautiful, like she is. Light comes in from the balcony doors, the bed is made with fluffy pillows and silk sheets and she has more unique personal items than most people get in a lifetime. It's the room of a princess. But instead of fairytale objects she has some drums on the side, a guitar, violin and a small keyboard. Then there's her new ballet shoes on the desk. She had shown one of them herself. The other was finished by Alfred a few days after she left.
The bedroom was a lot more organised than usual. Alfred made sure of that. The papers were organised by subject, her make up was in the drawers under the mirror for once, her books weren't on the floor. Her books... Some of them were his books once.
One of Jason's favorite perks about being an older brother was knowing more than her. He was always smarter and cooler and every kid likes that. Especially an orphan who just was adopted.
So a beloved pastime of his was to just tell her what she should and shouldn't read. He wanted to seem sophisticated so he'd give her books that were too hard for both of them and say he finished it in a day. Yeah, of course he read Anna Karenina in a single patrol. Isn't he the most awesome big brother?
It was nice to know that she had taken all of his books and kept them safe in a box under her bed. That box was sacred. It held her favorite things. Her stuffed toy, Ziggy, action figures of the entire family and among them was his copy of Emma.
But then there were also things he didn't like about her room. Like her closet where her diet chart was hung up, surrounded by paparazzi photos. JoJo was the second most photographed Wayne after Bruce. From infancy to teen years, a camera always followed her. Jason knew how much it bothered her and wished he could help in some way. He has done his fair share of blackmailing to people who'd criticize her every move, but that was never enough.
Because at the end of the day he knew it got to her head. He knew how insecure she'd become. He knew how she felt like she was the least notable, the worst of the family. She wasn't a vigilante and she wasn't a detective and she wasn't a martial artist. She'd open up to him about those things, but he didn't know how to help so he'd just tell her not to worry so much.
If only he could, now he’d tell her how she’s the best one in the family. The most fun, most interesting, most kind and beautiful one of them all. He’d tell her how he cherished the orange cakes she’d make him and how he enjoyed having deep conversations with her on the roof of the manor. He’d tell her that she made him happy and grateful to be back from the dead.
The headline of an article would stare back at him as his thoughts replayed her self-loathing moments. 'Miss Joestar: Officially the most boring Wayne'. He tore up the entire mural in a single move. "Dammit, JoJo..."
He wasn't an awesome brother after all.
Author's Note: Hi!! So... A shift from Bruce to Jason. The JJBA part of it all will come soon, I swear. I am just getting started over here. Also, we do have to give JoJo a name because when the other JoJo's come it will get confusing. I have a few name ideas like Jocelyn or Joanne. I'm leaning to Joanne and I have a small story about how she got her name too.
The next characters I will be diving into will probably be Dick or Cass. I am still thinking about it. But yeah, this is still the first chapter for now, and when we finish with the batfamily, the chapter will end.
I don't know what else to add, I'll see you on the next author's note, byee!<3
prguitarman
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