Fic idea where Jason takes the notion of a secret identity to the extreme—because the Bats can’t know who he is now, what he’s become—so the reveal doesn’t happen how it’s supposed to. All the Bats see is the Red Hood, going around killing people and gaining a higher body count than the Joker (I’d imagine Jason’s fuelled by rage still, and he’s taking out large operations all at once). So they decide they need to stop this guy and send him to Arkham so he can stop hurting all these people.
And when Jason finally gets caught, in a moment of distraction or just shock from seeing one of the Batfamily so up close, they threaten to take him to Arkham. To which Jason panics because he can’t go there, that’s where the Joker is—
But he can’t get out of the situation, and there’s no way he’s spilling his identity to the Bats when this is what he’s like now, and he can’t stop it. And when they try to take of the mask, Jason warns them that it’s rigged to blow, so he’s simply shipped off to Arkham, the Bats ridding themselves of him before they even bother to figure out who the Red Hood really is.
And then Jason’s in Arkham, and he hears the Joker’s laughter everywhere he goes, and he’s stuck in these walls, surrounded by the enemies that used to haunt his patrols when he was younger, sometimes even his nightmares—and he’s realises that he’s never getting out. The Bats don’t care about him, and he knows he’s going to be stuck here forever.
(And, just, think about the angst? Imagine if the Joker finds out about Jason—even if not completely, but he sees how scared Jason is of him. And then the taunts start, and Jason tries everything to get out, but he’s literally secured in a hellscape made just for him.)
Okay but even worse: Bruce stops by a few weeks later to ask the Red Hood some questions: about his operations, about where he learned to fight like that, etc.
He walks into the Red Hood’s cell, stoic as ever, only to find the son he thought was dead, staring back at him with the world’s most haunted look in his eyes and anger practically vibrating off him in waves.
(Someone write this for me PLEASE—)
