More recs, huzzah! And there is much rejoicing! Mostly Jason Todd this time around with a sprinkling of Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson! Primarily Jason & Bruce relationship. Mostly Jason Robin as well.
Be sure to leave nice comments on these!
a ripple in the wound and wake by countrycoleslaw
Batman dies saving Red Hood.
Jason Todd doesn't agree with this outcome and wishes for more time.
He wakes up, thirteen and earnest, in his childhood bedroom in Wayne Manor. Bruce is knocking at his door in an attempt to rouse him. Jason remembers this day. They're going to a Gotham Knights game later in the afternoon. Bruce's blood is still warm and criminal on his hands.
ââHave you ever thought about that?â Jason murmurs. âBeing rich in time?â
He feels Bruceâs fingers carding through his hair again. âItâs the most precious commodity of all. Itâs priceless. Itâs the one thing that I wish I had more of. You donât have to worry about that, Jay. Youâre fifteen. You have your whole life ahead of you.ââ
Or, the one where being Robin never gave Jason magicâhe was a little magic all along. Jason decides to do things a little differently the second time around. Wherein time casts a spell on them, and Bruce discovers the drag path Jason left in his wake.
A brilliantly characterized Jason & Bruce (and Jason & Dick and Jason & Tim) time travel story that kept me up past 2 in the morning on MULTIPLE NIGHTS. It's strange and absurd in the best ways, has a brilliant use of repetition, uses a lot of comic references in creative ways (including a lot of my beloved 80s comics!!), waxes philosophic, waxes literary, gives Jason his distinctive dialogue style, puts in the legwork on Jason's relationships with Tim and Dick, plays heart-wrenchingly with grief, teaches you about chop injuries twice-over, weaves Bruce's good parenting with his destructive grief that makes him so destroy Jason's memory, and gives a happy ending.
Also RHONDA IS THERE. MY BELOVED RHONDA FROM TEC 570!!!!
Let it go (and absolutely lose it) by Desconhecida
What starts as a furious rooftop chase through BlĂźdhaven turns catastrophic when three Justice League members decide to "help" Nightwing apprehend the "dangerous criminal" Red Hood.
One blast of golden energy.
One sickening crunch.
Jason hits the wall and doesn't get up.
And Dick Graysonâthe smiling, charming, well-adjusted oneâstops smiling.
(Featuring: pudding-related property damage, Jason's concussed Disney princess revelations, three Justice League members who made a terrible mistake, and the rage Dick Grayson has spent years learning to hide.)
This fic has some of the greatest fight scenes, shows anger issues in a really wonderful way, and has fantastic characterization all around. It is a master of obscuring and revealing information using multiple POVs, and, while Dick is front and center, has an excellent display of Jason & Bruce's relationship and synchronicity.
rip up the floorboards by orphan_account
When Jason was young and starved, he hid something like a corpse in his own body.
After Jason takes a slow, generous sip, Bruce finally speaks. âSo,â he says, tilting his own mug back.Â
âSo,â Jason echoes, raising his eyebrow.Â
âSo,â Bruce repeats, taking another drink.Â
Jason snorts. âSoâŚâ he says, drawing out the o .Â
The corner of Bruceâs mouth twitches. âSoâŚâÂ
Jason goes to take in a deep breath, in order to draw the word out as long as possible, but Bruce holds up his pointer finger, takes one last drink of his cocoa, and sets the mug down with finality. âWe need to talk about what happened.â
Great Jason and Bruce - both the relationship and characterization. Great to see a Bruce with a sense of humor and who embodies his thought in the comics not to let Jason grow up feeling like he did; this fic shows him fulfilling that promise. And Jason is so extremely well-characterized here. His caring and heroism and anger but not in the Angry Robin (TM) way. I love him. I love both of them.
Mermaid Tears by minnow_doodle_doo
Jason had always been the one to find the sea glass, the cloudy shimmer in the sand drew his eye much more than the promise of shells and sand dollars. And after he was done studying them, holding them up to see how they looked at every angle, he would hand them off to Bruce for him to carry, which he would as he always had.
About half the time Jason wouldnât ask for the sea glass in his pocket after they got home so Bruce got to keep it he supposed, they never really talked about it. But many shards over many visits were nestled in a small jewelry box on his dresser.Â
A short, wonderful treat of Jason & Bruce. That! Is his baby. Fun fact. True story. You know in bat 385 when Jason jumps on Bruce's shoulders, and Bruce definitely tore his stitches running him up the stairs because maturity doesn't rule out jubilance? This fic is for you.
White Christmas by LemonadeGarden
Jason's been in the manor for a few months now. Bruce is a pretty cool guy, sure, but he's not exactly sure what to expect from him.
And then they go to Siberia in the winter on a case. It goes horribly wrong, and then pretty well.
A fic set in the early days of Jason living with Bruce and very early days of him being Robin post-crisis. I am, you know if you follow me, a fan of the 80s comics. I tend to be very persnickety in terms of characterization. This Jason & Bruce are not the Jason & Bruce directly plucked from the 80s comics, but they are the inhabitants of a close world in the multiverse, and a very good one at that. They are very strongly (and uniquely!) characterized, and I really love their relationship. This fic also has a great grasp on the feeling of living in the extreme cold and the experience of sharing a family bed. This Jason and Bruce can have a bit of mutual mutchering, and I love them dearly.
Bruce isn't new to the challenges of adoption, but when it comes to Jason, he's not prepared for just how much he still has to learn.
Or; five things Bruce taught Jason when he took him in, and one thing Jason taught Bruce.
The stars are just starting to twinkle into sight for Bruce, when Jason grabs his arm, breathes in sharply.
Bruce is on his feet in an instant âWhat is it?â He asks, immediately on the alert.
Jasonâs mouth is hanging open, his eyes wide, locked on the sky above. âI see them!â He says breathlessly, âThere are so many!â He stands up too, lets go of Bruce and tilts his head right back. He turns in a circle slowly. âThere are so many, Bruce!â He looks at the older man, eyes bright with wonder, cheeks flush with excitement.
Bruce raises his eyes to the sky slowly. There are no shooting stars. Not yet. They wouldnât last long anyway, but Jason seems convinced heâs watching hundreds of them fall. Bruce opens his mouth to respond when realisation dawns. It pools in his stomach, a mixture of sadness and shame, when he realises Jasonâs mistake.
This kid has never seen the night sky before. Not properly.
A really wonderful in-depth exploration of post-crisis Jason that I can picture being drawn by Alan Davis & Paul Neary.
Quick note on the chapter structure here -- Each chapter is a vignette, and they're all thematically linked. Chapters 1-5 are fluffy hurt/comfort. Chapter 6 is a post-ADITF grief chapter. Chapter 7 is a major time skip. I personally put my rec behind chapters 1-6 the most just because I'm not a time skip to when the kid has his own kids person. But you may enjoy that kind of thing! But if you're just looking for Robin!Jason, it's in chapters 1-6.
I Just Wanna Save You (While There's Still Something Left To Save) by WakingNightmares
Bruce can see it in the boy's eyes; he's going to try and run.
And sure, Bruce could track him down. It probably wouldn't even be that difficult. But he's had a long night, and apparently he still needs to put his damn tires back on.
So before the boy can run off, Bruce reaches out, and grabs his wrist. "Wait."
Set during Bat 408-9, this has a really strong display of 1980s Batman characterization, especially in his communication style.
Holy Origin Story, Batman!: A tragicomedy by Luvo
Dick Grayson meets Jason Todd at a show in New York and wants to adopt him. Years later, Bruce Wayne meets Jason Todd on a street in Gotham and wants to adopt him.
It's a long journey home. Along the way, you'll encounter joy, grief, heartbreak, healing, hope, and family, family, family. There is no one who can hurt you more. There is no one who can love you more. You will find them, sooner or later. You will lose them, sooner or later. But always, always, there is love.
(Aka: the unholy mashup of Jason's pre and post crisis origin stories featuring: Dick Grayson's first trauma, Catherine Todd's successes and failures, Bruce Wayne as a disaster who loves his kids, and Jason Todd.)
FLYING TODD CATHERINE TODD FLYING CATHERINE TODD DO YOU HEAR ME SPORTS FANS? FLYING TODD CATHERINE TODD!!!!
Huge fan of this "unholy mashup" of pre and post crisis for Jason. Mind the tags.
Stowaway Son by forestgreen
The idea came to Jason the next day. Mr Wayne lived in his Gotham Manor with only his butler for company. If Jason managed to sneak in, they wouldn't even notice him. The place was huge, and Jason was small and sneaky. He knew to avoid security cameras at shopping centers and how to blend in and disappear. Surely hiding in a big manor house with only two people living in it would be easy.
Absolutely fantastic Jason. He is bright and clever and wonderful and sneaky.
Diplomatic immunity by BearlyWriting
For the DC Kinkmeme prompt:
an alternate ending to the story in Batman #424. what if when Jason goes to confront Felipe on his own, things go differently? Felipe rapes Robin, and what happens after that is up to you.
âDespite himself, Jason sobs, a pathetic, wet little sound. This is happening. This is really fucking happening. To Robin. To Jason. Batman isnât going to come in time.â
An AU of The Diplomat's Son where Garzonas rapes Jason. I find this one interesting from a Bruce characterization stand point because when it's his child, he can react similarly to the way Jason can when it is a stranger.
A Light in the Dark by Crayon
By the time he was twelve, Jason Peter Todd knew deep down that he was meant to be alone. Knowing that he was meant to be alone, however, did not mean that there werenât nights where he really wished that he had someone (anyone) to rely on.
As Jason clung to the brick wall clutching at the stab wound on his abdomen, he reflected that tonight was one of those nights.
Or, Street kid Jason suffers a stab wound. Luckily, bat themed vigilantes arrive to help.
A lovely Jason joins the Bats early fic.
"Wish You Were Here" by Twisted_Magic
He's pretty sure the low laugh sounded familiar. It speaks of comfort and safety, of warm protective arms around him, and of guiding hands when he's wandering lost in unfamiliar halls. He just can't name who it belongs to.
After coming back from the grave, waking from a coma, and surviving on the streets, Jason celebrates his birthday now that he's finally back with his family.
Well, mostly back.
Really, really compelling exploration of post-resurrection but no lazarus pit Jason getting into his brain damage and still having his family be so happy to have him back. And that not precluding pain being present too.
Jasonâs immune system has always been damn near bulletproof. He used to tell Bruce that there was Crime Alley grime running in his veins, and it ate anything else that got in there for breakfast.
But not this time.
This time, he wakes up in that blurry, dry-mouthed disorientation that only crops up when your brainâs doing its level-best to boil itself inside your skull.
Really great Jason (Red Hood) whump and Jason & Bruce relationship.
A Snowy Day by TheAngelofAngst
On a quiet snowy day in Gotham, Jason tries to bring back something small and warm from his childhoodâand finds that Bruce is willing to meet him there.
THAT'S HIS BABY. A scene from Robin!Jason and a scene from Red Hood!Jason on two snowy days
Stop All the Clocks, Cut Off the Telephone by GamblinWastes
The manor feels lifeless, here.
The halls have the exact same portraits theirs do, paintings of aunts, uncles, great aunts, great uncles, a crack through two of them, one vertical and one horizontal. Bruce says he needs them restored and promptly forgets by the end of breakfast.
Then there are the photos, one of Dick in a private school uniform he had worn for a week in a case, principal and art teacher locked into a scheme together. There's a photo of Dick and Bruce at a fair, one more 40s than 70s.
A photo of a young boy, young but older than Jason, and Dick. He's got spiky hair that represents the turn of a century, and two shirts on, with one ripped with little care to sew the threads back into formation. It frays, frays, frays.
The only thing that is missing from the wall is Jason, with his baseball or acrobatics learnt from a geek he tolerates (read: looks up to) or anything.
Jason doesn't like how this shapes up. Bruce doesn't, tries, not to look at it all, and Jason simply squeezes his hand with all his might. Bruce squeezes back.
THAT'S HIS BABY!!! Love to see explorations of the weirdness of timelines in this world, and the unnerving feeling past!Jason and past!Bruce get looking at this Gotham and this Manor with all its different and missing pieces is really well done.
'Cause Heaven Only Knows by loosingletters, papered_king
Jason Todd was raised on the streets, in Gothamâs filth, but the blood that was running through his veins was everything but. Jason was the last of a line of gruesome, death stained mages, necromancers who dealt in souls and flickering images of immortality.
Jason was a fifteen-year-old boy who crawled out of his grave, weeks after he died, reanimated by powers he couldnât understand or control, and struggled to feel alive even when his father was holding onto him.
Fantastic story of necromancy, disconnection from one's body, Bruce & Jason, second chances, and more.
It's alright, it's okay by lostletters (loosingletters)
âItâll be fine, Jason. Iâve known Zatanna basically all my life and Jason Blood and John Constantine are experts on all things occult. Theyâve⌠interacted with many necromancers over the years. I wouldnât trust them with your training otherwise.â
Jason Todd's ancestors were necromancers. When he died, he didn't stay dead.
The lovely ficlet that inspired the preceding fic on this list. Robin!Jason, necromancy, Jason & Bruce.
Jason was so gentle, so compassionate. There was a fire in him that ached to do good, to be just, even at his own expense. Bruce only wished that fire wouldnât swallow him whole.
Five times Bruce comforts Jason, and one time Jason comforts Bruce.
âYou holding up alright, chum?â Bruce whispered, when theyâd finally had a moment to themselves.
Jason nodded wordlessly. A waiter had offered him a creampuff earlier, and the boy had been too flustered to reject him. He looked down at the doughy treat in his hands, then tore it in half.
âHere,â he said, offering a piece to Bruce. The bigger piece. Oh, that gentle heart.
Absolutely wonderful Jason Robin and 1980s Bruce characterization. Jason is. So good. So compassionate and wonderful.
The Steep And Thorny Way To Heaven by Nightwang
âJason bites his lip. âYou mean likeâŚboyfriends?â He does like Roy. Heâs handsome and nice and he doesnât treat Jason like a little kid the way Bruce and Dick sometimes do. He likes hanging out with Roy. He thinks that he wouldnât mind being his boyfriend.â
Roy takes advantage of his best friendâs little brother.
A really compelling exploration of a grooming abusive relationship between Robin!Jason and dark!Roy Harper.
[not for lack of love, nor lack of blood] by many_faced_many_figured
Reconciliation is a very small word for something unattainably nebulous and large.
Bruce and Jason try to talk.
"âwe would have made up. Wouldn't we?" The question is tacked on in a small voice, like he never thought to question it. And Bruceâ
Bruce has never quite let himself think about that before. It seems silly, nowâan oversight of an avenue of self-recrimination. Because.
"Of course we would have, Jay, lad," and he knows he sounds stricken, can feel a small surge of moisture to his waterline. It's a surprise and it's true and it's horrible. They would have made up. Bruce could haveâthey would have⌠Bruce's children are always more forgiving than he has ever earned, and he and Jason would have made up and they were never able to because Bruce drove his son away in the first place, and Jason still would have forgiven him for it but then Jason died.
"Yeah," Jason sniffs, more assured, squeezing Bruce's wrist. "Yeah, because kids and parents fight like that all the time, but it doesn't meanâit just seems extra horrible because I. Because we couldn't make up."
BRILLIANTLY characterized Bruce & Jason (Red Hood). Read this one. That's all I have to say about it. Deeply compelling, and I couldn't put it down. Read everything by many_faced_many_figured actually. I will wait.
this way (a piece of meat) by jasontoddslawyer
Jason did not know the day he had died. He knew the monthâApril, which Gotham made easy to hate anyway, with its unpredictable weather and warmth beginning to heat up the garbage lining the streets.
Jason and Bruce talk, pre-identity reveal.
Really compelling and quiet moment between Batman and Red Hood. One knows who the other is.
Jason Todd has spent three weeks planning the perfect operation.
One uninvited Dark Knight later, the plan is on fire â literally â and Jason finds himself behind the wheel of a runaway truck with no brakes, a bomb in the hold, and Batman sitting calmly in the passenger seat.
What Batman does next is either the most infuriating or the most Bruce Wayne thing he has ever done. Possibly both.He was going to die in a box truck in Gotham City traffic learning to drive stick from a man in a bat costume and it was going to be Bruce's fault and Bruce would feel terrible about it for the rest of his life, and that was almost satisfying except for the part where Jason was dead. Again. Second time.
This fic. Delights me. Thrills me even. World's most intense driving lesson. All these people are bananas. I adore them. A really clever and good-at-planning Jason as well.
2087
yousharknotpass
blakekathryn
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