If someone here dares to report me bcs of those massive tits of Dan?- I would take it as a compliment, those tits are for censoring, grr LKAJSDJAS
Btw, this is the visual concept of how the fenton/phantoms look in the fic "Every bat has a cat" by @windyengel and @takemetomyfragiledreams!! Pls, idk when they're gonna post it, but i super super recommend y'all to read it!!!
Im sorry if im being really a ghost rn, im having some issues involving my personal-familiar life rn, thank y'all for the support wawas <3
All the warning Jason got before Jazz lunged forward, aiming her fist at Jason’s throat, was a small widening of her smile. He dodged easily, but missed seeing her hooking her leg around his and pulling it up, turning so she landed on both her feet and Jason was left in a heap in the dirt. Jazz’s eyes were twinkling with flecks of golden light in the teal of her irises as she looked down at him.
Right, Amazonian training. He jumped to his feet and took a defensive stance again. Jazz ran forward again, aiming her elbow toward the edge of his armor near his shoulder. He ducked and lunged forward, fist aimed at her upper thigh where her armor became pants. Jazz took a knee, but spun to kick Jason in the knee. He himself had to take a knee from the force of the hit.
They made eye contact, a ring of gold glowing from Jazz’s pupils and Jason’s a faint green. Jazz had a stoically determined look on her face. She looked like a warrior queen like this and it made Jason’s hair stand on end to know he was currently magically tied to this woman. He got a sharp smile on his face.
“Swords?” He asked. She thought for a moment before nodding once, shaking out her leg as she stood. She chugged some water before strapping her shield to her arm and lifting her sword. Jason did the same before manifesting the All-Blades. Though they were covered by her helm, Jazz looked as though she had raised an impressed eyebrow at the sight of them.
She swung her sword in a circle a few times as she made her way back to the center of the ring. Jason went to join her and took his first stance. Jazz herself took an opening stance as well and if she looked like a warrior queen before, it was nothing to now. Jason did not expect to win this one, maybe a draw, but definitely not a clean win.
He lunged forward, slashing down with one sword and flowing smoothly to the next, one meeting shield and the other sword as he was batted away. She aimed a hit with her shield to his side as he spun away. He managed to dodge, and stepped out of her reach as she brought her sword down. She immediately swung back up, catching his leading hand coming towards her and twisting it so she could press against him. He brought up his other sword for some extra leverage as she pressed him further back until he was almost against the fence.
He finally managed to brace himself and was able to see her eyes much more clearly this close up. Her pupils were now a solid golden light with it webbing through her irises. He pushes to the side and dodges her shield arm as it comes for him. He dances away a few steps, back to the center of the ring.
This time, as she ran to him, she brought her shield up to bat his arms away. Her sword swiftly followed, aiming for his back. Jason dropped to the ground and rolled back up to his knees and swung at her legs. She jumped away and he took the opportunity to stand again, getting back into a defensive stance.
Glowing green and yellow caught each other in the space between them and they both grinned. They both shouted a battle cry and ran at each other, and the next few minutes were a dance of parrying and dodging and laughter.
The match ended with Jazz holding a sword to the neck of a kneeling Jason. Both panted heavily from the exertion before Jazz lowered her sword. She tossed her shield away and sheathed her sword. Jason sighed briefly looking down with a smile on his face and dismissed the All Blades before Jazz held out a hand for him. He looked up and grasped it before his smile turned to a smirk and he pulled her to the ground with him and pinned her.
“Gotcha your highness.” He said looking at her shocked face. Her eyes had mostly returned to normal by now, back to flecks of light through the teal. He almost missed the brief flicker of her eyes to his lips before she turned bright red.
“Yup, you sure got me!” She nervously said along with some forced laughter as she pushed him off. He went easily, standing and holding out a hand for her. “So, want to work through some forms to cool down? Let’s take a quick water break and then we can do that.” She didn’t quite run to the edge of the ring, but it was a near thing.
Jason walked slowly to the edge, letting her have a moment to herself. Her shoulders were near her ears and it looked like she was whispering at herself. She smacked her forehead with her hand and then her shoulders sagged with a sigh as she looked up at the sky with her eyes closed. He chuckled to himself before picking up his water bottle and taking a large swig. They both sat on a bench just outside the ring.
She cleared her throat to get his attention. “So, I’m meeting with the scholars today. I’ve been getting little updates here and there so I have a vague idea of what they’re bringing me, they're just going to go into further detail. It’s mostly going to be about the ritual.” She took a long sip from her water. “The meeting should only take about an hour, and then I’m going to be looking over all the notes they give me the rest of the afternoon. You’re more than welcome to join me in my office until dinner if you would like? We can maybe talk about what info I get?”
“I’d be more than happy to join you. I’ll get my notebook and whatever books I find for research and come by.”
“If you want, I can have a small table brought in for you to work at? That way you don’t have to juggle a book in one hand, write with the other and prop your notebook up on your knee all at the same time.”
Jason laughed. “I grew up with a professional circus performer for an older brother, I got pretty good at juggling.”
Jazz laughed a little. “As long as he’s not a ring-leader or a clown, then we’re fine.”
Jason looked at her at that. “What do you mean?”
Jazz sighed. “It’s another one of those ‘I wasn’t there and it happened to Danny’ things. There was this ring leader in our home dimension, Freak Show is what Danny called him. He was the first human enemy he had and technically they fought twice before the worm was no longer an issue.”
“Technically?”
Jazz sighed in exasperation. “So from what I know of what happened the first time, Freak Show had a scepter that could control ghosts and he was using them in his circus as performers and then to steal jewelry and money at night. Danny doesn’t like to talk about what happened then, but I remember seeing Phantom in the papers for stealing.
“The second time however, he managed to acquire this artifact called the Reality Gauntlet. It was powered by gemstones that could channel aspects of reality. Danny’s identity got revealed on international television. Almost immediately after that, myself, my parents, and Sam and Tucker’s parents all were kidnapped by Freak Show and his assistant, Lydia. I’m a bit hazy on the details of what happened on the trio’s end of things, but on our end, the parents were all coming to terms with the fact Danny was Phantom, and I started psycho-analyzing our captor. After a few days, I figured out that he had a massive case of ghost envy” She snickered.
“Ghost envy?”
“ Yeah, he wanted so badly to be a ghost that he controlled them for years and then hated Danny when he found out he was everything he wanted to be. Once Danny showed up, I was able to yell to him to use psychology and so in true little brother fashion he taunted the man until he turned himself into a ghost.” Jazz snickered again. “Then Danny pulled an Aladdin and sucked him up into a thermos.”
“So I’m missing the technically here I think?” Jason asked.
She sighed. “Yeah, so Danny was able to get the Gauntlet and turn everything back to normal. However, he made the decision to rewrite everything that happened. The only people who remember what happened are myself and the trio.”
“Wait, so he made it so your parents would forget too? Didn’t they come with his identity?”
She rolled her eyes. “Yes, that was apparently the second time that has happened. There were four times total when they found out his identity and only one of them stuck.” She started ticking them off her fingers. “The first time was an alternate timeline that got rewritten after Dante got first created because Danny has favor with the aspect of Time, the second time was the Reality Gauntlet, a third time was yet another iteration of the aspect of Time rewriting things, but mostly because Danny accidentally messed things up by going back in time, it was a whole thing. The last time was when the raids had started and he needed to start hiding.” Her shoulders tensed briefly at the last tick and she lowered her hands to her lap.
After a moment, Jason stood and stretched out his back with a pop. “So, cool down time?” He looked down at her, hand held out.
She glanced at it before smiling at him and grasped his hand. “Yeah, cool down sounds good.” He pulled her to her feet and now she was looking down at him. “I want to work on my sets today, but next time maybe you can show me some of your training?” She quirked an eyebrow at him and now his eye was quickly drawn to her lips before he turned red. He let go of her hand and turned to the ring, trying to look casual as he walked to the center. He could feel her gaze on his back and momentarily felt like a prey animal.
“Sounds good to me. Did you want to do the assassin training or the hero training?” He asked as he turned to face her.
“That sounds like a story in and of itself.” She looked at him appraisingly with her arms crossed in front of her. “But for later, I need to focus while doing my forms, do you mind?”
“No problem, I get kinda meditative myself while working through them. I’ll follow your lead on these as I’m a bit rusty.” She nodded and got into the starting stance of the first form, he mirrored her.
What followed were a very tense and awkward few minutes. Both would steal glances at each other and their eyes met accidentally a few times. Eventually though, Jazz closed her eyes and breathed deeply, running her forms slowly as though they were stretches. She was able to lose herself in the careful movements. Once Jason’s memory was jogged enough, he too closed his eyes and began slowly moving through the forms.
They both were essentially doing active meditation, and at one point Jazz snuck a glance at Jason. Her mouth opened in shock. “Um, Jason? Why are you glowing?”
“Hmm?” He hummed, coming out of his trance. Immediately the glow faded away.
“Just now, while you were focused, you were glowing like Danny does, but similar to how your swords glow.” She put a hand to her chin in thought. “What magic does it take to use those again?”
“Uh, soul magic I think?”
“Interesting. I wonder if that will affect what kind of core you’re going to have once healed.” Her eye caught something behind him so he turned. A yeti was coming down the stairs to the training ground. Jazz sighed. “Looks like it’s meeting time. I’ll see you in an hour? You know how to get to the library from here right?”
“Yeah, I’ll see you in a bit.” He waved her off. She jogged to the fence line where she had tossed her shield earlier and she snapped her fingers. A skeleton appeared and she handed it her weapons before turning to the yeti and starting to talk.
Jason watched her leave and then looked down at his hands as if inspecting them. “So I guess I glow now.” He huffed to himself then headed to the library.
Jazz knew she was tall. It wasn't like it affected her life or anything (sarcasm). It wasn't like she didn't end dates early because the dude asked her if it was really necessary for her to wear heels. Yes, she was tall. And strong. On top of that, she had duties as Ghost Princess, so finding a partner was not easy for her.
Or so she thought until a guy just her type bumps into her and completely bluescreens.
[Read on AO3][Read on FF]
----
Jazz knew she was tall.
Even when she was in the waiting line of, let’s say, the bank and an old lady commented “wow you are tall!”; even when a date ended early because the guy kept asking why she had to wear heels if she was already tall; even when Danny threatened to kick her shins complaining about her inheriting their dad’s genes.
Yes. She was well aware she was very tall.
Thank you very much for pointing it out.
She was happy with her height, now — she had accepted that kids would look at her in awe and comment on her height, and that some would ask if she was an Amazon. And you know what? She embraced it now. Yes, she was tall, and big, and her biceps were noticeable — but that wasn’t because she was an Amazon, but because of all the training and the fighting that being the older sister of the King of the Ghosts entailed.
Not that she could say that out loud.
The thing is she was used to people stopping and staring at her, craning their necks and lifting an eyebrow, looking back down to check if suddenly the flat shoes she was wearing had magically turned into impossible high heels that explained her height.
What she wasn’t used to, though, was making a man completely bluescreen.
“Oops, sorry.” She quickly rushed to grab the dude’s arm when he stumbled after colliding with her.
“Uh…”
“I should have seen where I was going, sorry.”
He just kept looking up at her, eyes wide, body frozen in place. There wasn’t a single coherent thought behind those blue eyes. She would know, she was a psychologist.
“Are you alright?”
“Huh?”
She bit her lip, wondering what to do. This had never happened to her before.
“I… uh, I’m fine.” He finally blinked and came back to his body. She didn’t miss his eyes roaming towards her naked arms, and the bracelets on her wrists, official Wonder Woman merchandise.
“Ok. Then I should just—”
“Do you like coffee?”
She blinked. He blinked, slowly realizing what he said. His cheeks tinted a bit red in embarrassment.
“I’m more of a tea gal.” Jazz giggled, enjoying this maybe way too much. He was cute all flustered. It was a nice change from all the bullshit she got from men all the time.
“Do you want to— uh, I mean.” He breathed in, breathed out, gathering his thoughts. “What I want to say is, do you want to go for coffee — or tea! — with me?”
“Like, right now?”
She looked around. They were right in front of a coffee shop. He had been on his way in when she accidentally body slammed him.
“No! No. Not right now.” He looked away back at one of the tables set up on the street. Jazz turned to look as well, trying to see what he was looking at. “Maybe some other time?”
It felt nice being hit on like this. Refreshing.
Also, it helped that he was cute, and handsome in a bad boy way, with a leather jacket and combat boots. She wasn’t scared to admit to herself that she had a type and he checked a lot of boxes in her list.
“I would love to!”
She quickly searched in her purse for some paper — an old restaurant ticket — and a pen and wrote her number and her name, with a little smiley face.
“Here,” she grabbed his hand and put the paper with her number in it, closing his fingers around the ticket, just in case. Her hands were usually cold, a side effect of her liminality, but she hoped he assumed it was because of the weather. “I have to go, but text me soon!”
He smiled back at her, and Jazz knew she was a goner. He had this boyish crooked smile with a hint of a dimple.
She hoped he texted her back, once the awe of her height had passed.
***
“So…”
“Shut up.”
“I mean—”
“I said shut up, Dickhead.”
“She’s cute.”
Jason growled, his hands fiddling with the piece of paper with a phone number in it. He had to text her. Soon. If he waited then she would get the wrong idea that he wasn’t interested and he was very interested—
“She’s tall, huh?” His brother kept going, unprompted. “Did you see those muscles? I bet she could snap me in half. Hell, she could snap you in half.”
Yes. He had seen those arms. He had imagined them around him already.
“What are you waiting for? Text her!”
“We have a case to look over, though.” He tried to put the paper with the phone number in his jacket, but Dick was quicker and stole it from his hands.
“Jasmine. It’s a pretty name.” He hummed, considering. “Jasmine and Jason. It has a nice ring to it. Also both names start with J, funny coincidence, don’t you— Jay? What’s wrong?”
Jason had stopped listening, his mind going back to the conversation with her. He had been ridiculous and messed up everything; but did he really mess up something so simple?
“I forgot to tell her my name.”
Dick’s eyebrows went to his hairline, his lips stretching in a big smile. “That bad, huh?”
“Shut your mouth, Grayson.”
His reaction only made his brother’s smile get bigger, if that was physically possible. He placed his elbows on the table and rested his head on his open palms.
“Could this be love at first sight?”
“You know that doesn’t exist—”
“You are now living in a Hallmark movie, Jay.” Dick sighed dramatically. “So romantic.”
Jason breathed slowly, controlling his thoughts. If he got riled up by the teasing, he would only get even more teased and then the conversation would go nowhere useful. They had to compare notes for a case, it was kind of the whole point of meeting up with his brother, and both had things to do after this.
Jason thought the whole thing could have been an email; but again, if Dick hadn’t insisted on meeting at the coffee place because it was nice outside, he wouldn’t have gotten the phone number of the prettiest girl he had the pleasure of stumbling into.
“I’m living vicariously through you, just so you know.”
“Fuck off, Dickhead,” Jason snatched back the paper with the number and checked that it was still in one piece and the numbers hadn’t been smudged by his brother. It was fine. Even the cute smiley face drawing next to “Jasmine” was intact. “Let’s get to work.”
“I would, but someone forgot to get me my coffee~”
Oh shit.
Really?
Did he really forget to order their drinks? The one thing he had walked away from the table for?
Jason let his head fall onto the table, ignoring the laughs and giggles coming from his brother.
***
>>Hey.
>>Um
>>I'm Jason, the guy from the coffee shop?
>>Sorry for taking so long to text, I had stuff to do
>>Anyway, what do you think about next friday around 5?
>>You name the place
Jazz couldn’t help but smile down at her phone, reading back on the conversation with Jason.
She appreciated that he let her choose the meeting place, which was a good sign. After suggesting a nice coffee place that worked as a library as well, he commented he loved that place too and asked her if she had taken a book from there.
Turns out he loved books too, and didn’t shy away from any genre of literature — from classics to modern trashy romance.
His favorite author was Jane Austen. He tried not to geek too much, but after sending her a photo of his first edition Pride & Prejudice, that had a lot of sticky notes and his own annotations, she knew he was a big Austen nerd.
The contrast was more shocking when he turned up with a biker leather jacket, a white shirt, jeans and the same combat boots. He was combing back his flattened curls, complaining about parking in Gotham and that he hoped he didn’t make her wait too long.
She had to wait, but only because she arrived fifteen minutes earlier than the meeting time.
Not that she would tell him.
Jazz felt her mind become fuzzy as she watched him smile that crooked smile again, complimenting her carefully put together outfit — shut up Danny, she wasn’t trying to impress anybody — and the braid she spent so long trying to get right, undoing and redoing it.
“I have a sister that likes braiding her hair, and a friend of the family that usually comes over as well. They always complain when I don’t do it right.”
“Did they teach you how to braid?”
He chuckled, taking a sip of his latte. “Actually, funny enough, my little brother taught all of us. His mother let him do her hair and made him practice until he got it right.”
Jazz had a pinch in her chest like every time loving mothers were mentioned. “That’s nice,” her voice betrayed nothing as she looked down at her hands cupping her tea. “I tried to teach my little brother, but he didn’t have much interest.”
“Too girly for him?” He lifted an eyebrow, leaning in with a tiny smile so she knew he was joking.
She appreciated the change in topic, and she liked the opportunity to talk about Danny. “Nah. I mean, he had a ‘ugh, girls suck’ phase and stuff, but fortunately it didn’t last long.” Because then he had to become a superhero, but she couldn’t exactly say that.
Both laughed a little before a comfortable silence settled in their table. A few times their eyes met over the lids of their cups, making Jazz blush and look away.
“So… have you read anything interesting lately?”
From then on the conversation barely stopped. Jazz had never talked that much before, at least not about her favorite books and why she liked them. Jason listened, actually listened to what she said and added his own comments and corrections, no matter what she threw at him, showing he was also interested in the same things.
He talked as well, mentioning his own first edition collection and how his father let him have a private library with all the books he wanted. He talked around some topics, like his childhood or stuff about his father, but she didn’t want to pry. It didn’t feel shady, more like… it felt familiar, not wanting to bring up painful memories. She could understand that.
They asked for more coffee and more tea, and those chocolate chip cookies that looked delicious, talking and debating about the pros and cons of reading on a kindle or paperback.
The sun was low by the time they finished their drinks and the cookies, and neither really wanted to go home just yet. Jazz’s stomach grumbled. She was so hungry and the cookies only helped to awaken her stomach.
“Wanna… go have dinner?”
She looked up at him, blushing a little. “A coffee and a dinner date? You really are the full package.”
His cheeks tinted a bit red, but he didn’t look away. “Would hate to cut the night short when I’m enjoying my conversation with a beautiful lady.”
Jazz felt her cheeks catch fire. Jason had been cute and kind the whole time, but this was the first actual “move” he pulled on her.
And it was working.
She wanted to continue.
At her approval, they paid the bill — split in half, and he didn’t make a fuss about it. Good — and walked back out to the cold night in Gotham.
Jazz shivered a little. Maybe a flowery summer dress wasn’t the best for the night, but she didn’t expect being out so late. Time really flies when you are having fun, huh?
“Not used to Gotham's micro climate?” He commented.
She looked back at him, stopping her hands rubbing her naked arms. She had noticed he liked her arms so maybe the dress didn’t have sleeves. So what.
“How did you know I’m not from around here?”
“It’s obvious you’ve been in the city for a while, but your midwestern accent still stands out.” So he was observant, and had been analyzing her as much as she did him. “Do you want my jacket?”
It was so cliché that she just giggled. “Sure, if you don’t mind.”
Jason took off his jacket and extended it to her. It fit her frankly well! He was a bit shorter than her but he was more built and had wider shoulders, so the jacket sat comfortably on her body and gave her enough room around her arms and, thank the Ancients, around her chest. Maybe she should look around the men's section of the clothing store instead of getting frustrated with women’s clothing that never fit correctly.
“Thank you,” she said with a smile, which he acknowledged with a nod.
Now that he didn’t have the jacket, she could admire how the white shirt he wore left little to the imagination. It wasn’t too tight, but it creased in the right places and it let his muscular arms really shine.
He hit the gym regularly, that was obvious, but he wasn’t obsessed about it. He carried himself with the confidence of someone that knew what they had and didn’t need to make a show to get attention. Still, he carried himself with certain deliberateness — relaxed shoulders, quiet steps, head slightly down.
Jazz was used to Danny employing the same techniques to separate himself from his Phantom persona, to not be noticed just in case someone looked too close.
She was willing to set aside the thought. After all, Jason had been a delight the whole time and she had noticed many green flags in the time they talked. If he wanted to hurt her or if he was involved in shady stuff, she would have known already.
Also, it wasn’t like he could overpower her. She was strong. Stronger than a human, even with his size and probable training.
And Danny always said she needed to live a little. Maybe that meant dating around a bit, get to know new people, sleep with a cute guy—
Wow. That came out of nowhere.
She blushed, realizing she did like this guy. Enough to consider letting her hair loose a little. They were consenting adults, right? If he was interested and she was interested, then why not?
“Where do you want to eat dinner?” He asked as they arrived at his parked bike. And what a bike! She wasn’t an expert in these things, but it looked expensive and well maintained — well loved.
“I chose the coffee place, you choose the dinner place?” She shrugged, and the movement sent a puff of his scent to her nose. He smelled like gunpowder and engine oil.
Jason nodded and opened a side trunk to withdraw the helmets, giving her one. It was crimson red, matching the bike. “Alright, I know a place.”
***
Jazz was beautiful.
From the moment he arrived — finding her sitting at the table, looking at her phone — he understood why so many writers and poets could go on about the beauty of their partners. It would sound cliché, but his mind started comparing her soft looking skin to flower petals, and the pink of her lips—
Stop, Jason.
He knew she was smart and shared some interests with him, but he got the impression she was the shy kind over text and preferred meeting in person. He’d hoped that this date gave him a better insight into her character.
So they talked. For hours.
Honestly he didn’t have ulterior motives for this meeting. If it went well, he was interested in knowing her more, that’s for sure. It had been a while since he just hung out with someone for non-work related issues, and dating wasn’t really one of his priorities; but if this Amazon goddess liked his company as much as he had liked hers so far, he was willing to try.
The restaurant he took her to was cozy and not that well known, but the food was great. When they got there he couldn’t help but notice how she attracted everyone’s gaze, how her height and her beauty were such a beacon of light for the people around her.
She didn’t seem to care, though — her eyes were either fixed on her hands fiddling with the hem of the sleeves of his jacket or on him as she talked about the latest movie she had seen.
They sat down in a relatively secluded corner of the restaurant, the soft light hanging on the wall giving it all a romantic touch that was just perfect for the occasion.
Jazz took off his jacket now that they were indoors, and he lamented not taking a picture of her flowery dress and biker jacket combo. Maybe she would want to wear it again. He hoped so.
Silver lining, now she had her arms uncovered again, letting him — subtly — admire her biceps and her bracelets. She confirmed it was a Wonder Woman official jewelry line, and that she bought it to be funny but now was too committed to the bit.
Dinner was nice as well. After warming up at the café and talking about anything and everything, dinner felt a bit more personal, a bit of a deep insight of themselves.
She talked about her brother a lot. About her passion to become a great psychologist and the steps she had been taking towards her dream. About her parents — albeit she tried not to “be a bummer” and “get all depressed on such a nice date”.
She had a past she wasn’t ready to share, and he respected that, so he only kept his questions about her passion, her work and more stories with her brother.
It was around dessert that the conversation ramped down into more and more silence — not because they didn’t have things to say, but because, at least for him, the way the fairy lights illuminated her face was very distracting.
They shared a chocolate cake slice for dessert. She had a bit of chocolate on the corner of her lips, but she didn’t notice.
He didn’t think about his next move, he just leaned in over the tiny table and kissed the chocolate away. It helped that they had unconsciously gotten closer as they talked.
Her face was flushed when he sat back down on his chair, licking his lips. The cake was good, but her red cheeks looked tastier.
He wanted more.
“Um—”
Maybe she didn’t want more?
Jazz looked a bit lost for a second, her mouth open as she thought of what to say.
“Yeah?” He lifted an eyebrow.
She scrunched her nose, apparently having decided, and this time she leaned over the table, grabbing him by the shirt and pulling him into a proper kiss.
Her kiss was timid, like she didn’t want to scare him away or expected him to push her away any moment. When seconds passed and instead of rejecting her, he placed his hand on the base of her head to angle her better, she got braver and bolder, pressing her lips against his with a little more intensity than before.
She wanted him.
“Ahem!” A throat was cleared next to them, breaking the moment.
Jazz jumped back to her seat, her face completely red, looking down at the table like she had done something wrong.
Jason smiled up at the waiter, who was smiling politely but completely insincere. He knew this waiter, they weren’t friends, but Jason knew he had a little brother and that he was a student at Gotham University.
“Is the food to your liking?”
“Very.” He wasn’t talking about the food. The waiter’s eyebrow twitched, but his smile stayed in place. “Can we please get the check?”
“Right away, sir.”
Jason didn’t even look at how much everything was, his eyes glancing back at Jazz’s face and her lips — the way she was biting them, the way her eyes were eating him whole.
The walk back to the bike was quieter, with many stops to kiss and many burning side glances and handholding. He couldn’t get enough of her giggles every time he pulled her down for a quick kiss, or the feel of her hands on his shoulders, her strong arms around him.
Finally they reached the bike, safely parked on a quiet alley. It was late and no one was around, so he pulled her into the shadows for a more proper kiss, letting himself get lost in the taste of chocolate on her tongue.
Jazz was biting her lip when they parted for air, mischief in her eyes, which should have warned him of what she would do next. The world spun for a second as she grabbed him by the shoulders, switching their positions and slamming him against the wall with maybe a bit more strength than was necessary.
A traitorous moan escaped his throat.
“Oh?” She smiled. Of course she heard him.
“Don’t say a word.”
Her smile got wider. “Okay.”
In the heat of the moment she got bolder. She kissed him without any ounce of the shyness she had during their date — she was ravenous, eating him completely, holding him firmly against the brick wall.
He was warm, too warm, and the cold wind was starting to get uncomfortable.
“Do you… wanna continue?”
Jazz nodded, panting. “Your place or mine?”
***
The sun was shining right on her face, and since she was an early riser, no matter her activities last night, she was now wide awake.
That didn’t mean she had to get up from bed just yet. Because she didn’t want to.
Jason was also awake in her arms as they enjoyed the quiet lazy morning, hearing each other breathe, feeling each other’s warmth.
It was quiet in the apartment, a big contrast to the night they spent together. Jazz blushed and nuzzled her face against Jason’s curls in an attempt to hide from the world. She really got carried away, but there was something about him that made it impossible to resist — they only had one date, for Ancients’ sake.
He was so sweet and caring and cute and handsome and very irresistible. She just couldn’t stop, didn’t want to stop, and more than once she had to catch herself before she hurt him or did anything that was obviously inhuman. If she slipped, she hoped he forgot about it, too buried under the pleasure and the distracting activities from last night.
Jazz was positive that she had left some scratches and bites on him, and a quick look confirmed that his back and shoulders were—
Wait.
These looked at least a day old, almost completely healed. She knew wounds, she knew how long it took for a human to heal from what she did to him, and this was closer to what she expected from Danny’s partners’ healing factor.
She tried to not freak out, but he noticed her tense up.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
He turned around, eyes searching to see what was wrong, clearly not buying her shaky voice.
She saw the moment he noticed something was wrong about her, his eyes going down her face and staying on her neck, one hand reaching to touch the skin on her left shoulder. She could still feel the ghost of the bite in that area, a bite that probably had already healed by the morning.
By the way Jason’s eyes went wide, she knew he noticed the inconsistency.
Uh oh.
“What—?”
“I can explain.” He should, too, since he wasn’t normal either. Maybe he wasn’t human?
Not that it would make her less interested, but she was curious.
“Are you a metahuman?”
Jazz made a face. “Technically, no.”
He narrowed his eyes and shuffled away from her, his body tense. “What are you?”
“Something else.” She didn’t want to keep it vague, but she didn’t know who he was or who he could be working for. “And you?”
Jason’s eyes narrowed further at the accusatory tone. Jazz didn’t like how the quiet morning had turned to this, but if her security — and Danny’s — had been compromised, she had to push her feelings for Jason to the side. Danny was more important.
“You targeted me?” He now had a knife. Where did that come from? “Was the whole ‘date’ thing a set up?”
“What the hell are you talking about?”
His eyes flashed green for a second. If she blinked, she would have missed it. “Don’t lie—”
“Wait.”
“What?”
Jazz lunged in, ignoring the very real and very sharp knife Jason had in his hands. If he stabbed her it would heal in a minute.
She placed her hands on his face, focusing, trying to see in the blue if the green would manifest again. She ignored him as he started to protest — vaguely registering that he put the knife away — humming in thought. Just to test, she let her core send a ping, a small wave of energy, only meant to say ‘hello’ to nearby ectoentities.
Jason somehow answered back, his eyes becoming green for a second.
“— the actual fuck is going on?”
Jazz blinked and came back to the situation, finally noticing she was almost straddling the man, her hands gently but firmly cradling his head. And she was still naked.
“You died.”
Jason’s cheeks had been slightly tinted pink, but now he was white as a sheet.
“How—”
“We’re the same,” Jazz made a face, “technically. I haven’t died, yet, but I do have one foot in the grave so to speak.”
“And you think we’re the same because…” He wasn’t believing her fully, but just enough to not pick up the knife again.
“Your eyes, they do this.”
She let her power flow freely, not needing to hide her inhumanity anymore. She saw the moment he understood, because his tense body relaxed and basked in her presence, her emotions projecting the calm and slight joy at finding someone like her.
His eyes swirled green in response to hers.
“I… I don’t—” he tried to speak through the stupor, “I’ve never—”
“You didn’t know?” About liminality, about ghosts, about people like her.
He licked his lips, blinking to refocus. “What are you?”
He really didn’t know. Someone would pay for letting him wander alone without guidance.
“I am Jasmine Nightingale, a liminal human.” His eyebrows went to his hairline. “I was born human but events led to me becoming deeply acquainted with the dead and everything in between. Like you.”
Maybe it was the influence of her aura still filling the room, or her serene voice, but he believed her.
“So you approached me—”
She hated that he looked hurt at the thought.
“I didn’t target you. I didn’t know you were like me until just now — I usually seal my liminality when I’m in the living world.” One of her hands moved to grab the white streak that now looked so obviously inhuman. “I should have known,” she chuckled, “the only good guy I manage to have a decent date with is not completely human.”
He frowned at her comment, making her freeze. Jazz quickly recoiled and withdrew her power, watching as he noticed the change.
There were a few moments of silence where she let go of him and waited as Jason pondered the new information.
His eyes were blue when he looked back up. “You’re not quite human,” she nodded. One of his hands lifted to touch her face, as if he was trying to make sure she was still the same person. “And I’m like you.”
“Kinda.”
He hummed. Birds chirped outside, reminding her that this was supposed to be a quiet morning in bed with the cute date she somehow scored. Nothing can be simple with her, huh. Figures.
“You really didn’t know about me?”
It was something in his eyes when he said it — a guarded sadness. She had seen that look a few times on their date, usually when he obviously changed the topic of conversation. He had been hurt before, and he lived life waiting for the moment someone else would hurt him again.
“I swear on my life, Jason. I only said yes to the date because I thought you were cute. Nothing else.”
His mouth twisted. “I’m not cute.”
“Yes you are.”
He rolled his eyes, letting go of her face and slumping back to rest on the pillow. “Am not.”
She leaned in, her long hair sliding over her shoulder and making a barrier that shielded them from the sunlight coming from the window. She felt his eyes roam through her face and down her body, reminding her that she was as naked. And so was he.
When he looked back up, his gaze was burning with reignited desire.
“Should I spend this fine morning convincing you?”
His breath hitched, the muscles of his stomach tensing in anticipation. “Nothing you can do will change my mind.”
Jazz’s smile widened when she caught the playful tone in his voice. He wanted this. He wanted to continue. And maybe a repeat of last night.
Alright then.
This time she didn’t need to hold back.
She let her hands rest on his shoulders, pinning him down to the mattress. She used a bit more strength than what was necessary, but not enough to hurt; just enough to make the point that if she wanted, she could do so much more.
By his sudden blush going all the way up to his ears, he got the message.
Jazz licked her lips, ready to devour that cute smile and every sound she could force out of it.
***
“Are you sure about this?”
“Positive.”
Jazz looked down at their entwined hands, squeezing Jason’s fingers, trying to ground herself.
It was silly being this nervous — it wasn’t like they were teenagers. If her boyfriend’s family didn’t approve of her they couldn’t actually do anything. Not that they would disapprove. Jason was sure they would love her, he told her so too many times on different occasions.
But it was… an experience. Knowing that your boyfriend of a few months was part of the Waynes. She usually forgot because Jason didn’t frequent the Manor and had a life outside of the glitz and glamor, so it had never affected their relationship.
That was until they learned about her existence — Jason didn’t hide her, but he wasn’t going to share every bit of his personal life — and asked if she wanted to come over to dinner one day.
Jazz didn’t mind, so she said yes. After all, Jason already knew Danny and had “passed the vibe check”, Danny’s words, so she took it as a sign that it was fine if they became official-official.
Still, she was very nervous. This relationship had been the longest she ever had and she knew how important family approval was and it didn’t matter that Jason was a bit estranged from the family, it did matter for her anyway and—
“I can hear you panic from here.”
“No, you don’t.”
“Yes, I do.”
“No. You don’t.” She rolled her eyes. “Are we doing this or not?”
Jason narrowed his eyes at her, not believing her at all, but let it slide. There was no point in arguing at the door.
“It will be fine.” He leaned so he could whisper. “They can be a lot but they’re harmless. Also I’ll protect you.”
She looked at him funny. Both knew she was the stronger one between them, a fact he very much enjoyed, so he didn’t mean it as in physical protection.
Jazz breathed slowly, taking in the offering of support. Jason would be there, he wouldn’t let them be mean to her.
Why the hell would they be mean to her? Silly Jasmine. They were just a family. Stupid rich, famous celebrities and very public faces in Gotham — but Jason’s family nonetheless.
She got this.
At her nod, Jason rang the bell and immediately it was opened by the butler. Alfred, if she remembered correctly. Was he on the side of the door, waiting?
“Welcome home, master Jason,” he nodded at them, “and Miss Jasmine.”
“Jazz is fine.”
The butler smiled, clearly not having any intention of using the nickname. Jason had warned her that Alfred could be a “petty motherfucker”, but that it was to the people he liked. She took it as a good sign.
“Please, come in.”
Jazz took another deep breath and walked into the gigantic Manor and straight into the fray. Maybe literally.
Inside there were so many people just looking at her, analyzing her, with various curious expressions.
“Told you she was real.” She heard what was supposed to be a quiet whisper, and a blonde girl elbowed a black haired guy next to her. Stephanie and Tim, going by Jason’s descriptions; which while colorful and varied in expletives depending on how mad he was at them, were actually very accurate. “Pay up, bitch.”
The guy grumbled but placed a few bills in her awaiting hand.
Jazz had to chuckle. That was weird, but funny. It made her relax a little.
“Ah, Jasmine, right?”
The voice made her look away from the people watching her like she was some kind of exotic animal (truly, what the hell was so interesting about her?) to find—
No.
It couldn’t be.
Could it?
Her liminal boyfriend’s adoptive father couldn’t be the actual Batman.
But the aura was the same, the same height and build, the same slight touch of death. Her eyes were sharp enough to catch the almost invisible and well healed scars on the man’s chin and the ones peeking from the black turtleneck.
He carried himself differently too, more relaxed, and if she wasn’t already onto him she would have been fooled.
Jazz smiled and shook the hand he offered, making a conscious effort to not squeeze his hand and reveal herself too quickly just to be petty. That was Danny’s thing. For now she would observe and behave like the perfect girlfriend.
They did make it hard, though. The whole Wayne clan was not what you’d expect from Gotham’s high society and acted more like a bunch of misbehaving kids in an unsupervised classroom.
It made sense now how Jason was so… so different than what you’d expect from the son of a socialite. At first he acted a bit guarded and checked that she didn’t take all the prodding and roughing between siblings and family friends badly; but once she laughed at the insanity he relaxed and let himself be part of the bickering like he belonged there.
She watched them interact, noticing the details that made it obvious now that the whole flock was a bat or bird — the question is who was who.
As she tried to play Guess Who with the Gotham heroes, it slowly dawned on her that Jason was another hero too. All the canceled dates and dodged questions about what he did in his free time. All his secrets and poorly disguised attempts at being subtle fit together in a single picture.
The Red Hood.
Danny was going to flip. If Jason hadn’t “passed the vibe check” already he definitely would have now.
Which she was more than fine with, if Jason was Red Hood. It actually made it easier for her to introduce him to the remaining secrets she was keeping from him until Danny gave the okay. After that night’s dinner, something told her that he would be fine with revealing herself to Jason.
Maybe Batman would stop being so difficult in the League meetings. The man had a thousand questions and didn’t trust anything they said, always asking for a second and third opinion. It didn’t become an open animosity because it was obvious it came from a place of caution and not hatred, but made the meetings drag for hours and Jazz’s royal armor was very uncomfortable to wear for so long.
Bruce didn’t seem to make the connection yet. If he did he was a great liar, because he did a one eighty from the dark vigilante and League member that drilled her and her brother with questions. He was more like… a hopeful puppy. Glancing between Jason and her, watching every touch and casual caress like a hawk.
Jason had mentioned that his relationship with his father had been very bad for a long time, but that they were working on it. Maybe he hoped that being nice to her got him cookie points in his son’s mind.
Whatever the case, she was going to have fun with this. As a treat.
***
Jasmine was… very tall.
Bruce’s mind was still repeating the moment she entered the Manor.Even at his six foot two he had to look up to smile at the guest. Not that he disliked tall women or thought that it was a bad thing, it was just an observation — maybe she was secretly an Amazon? Jason said he had looked into her enough to know that wasn’t the case; and had threatened with blowing up the Batcave if he dared investigate his girlfriend, so Bruce just observed. For now.
But she was too soft to be an Amazon, Bruce decided as the evening progressed. She smiled easily and didn’t have that constant battle-ready stance the Amazons he knew had. So he relaxed with the idea that Jason genuinely liked this civilian woman, she honestly liked him back, and she could be a good thing for his son.
If only he could shake the nagging thought that she felt familiar. Had they met before? He would remember meeting such a woman with striking red hair. She was definitely not a hero or Jason would have introduced her as such; nor she was a person that frequented the social circles Brucie Wayne did, given her humble origins and honest, hardworking job as a therapist.
It was something in her eyes, he considered by the time dinner was served. They were a shade of blue he had never seen before, and with the right light he could almost glimpse green highlights, but from this distance he couldn’t be sure.
In any case, Bruce decided she was good. Family oriented, unafraid to say what she was thinking, and with a dark sense of humor that Jason was completely smitten with. Bruce knew that look, his son was a goner whether he knew it or not.
She fit perfectly in their family, he decided as well, watching her bicker with Stephanie about some celebrity drama that Bruce didn’t know about, taking the knife Jason was waving in Tim’s direction without even looking at her hands. She flowed with ease in the chaos and had an answer for any question without revealing anything about herself she wasn’t willing to say. Among a family of detectives, that took some skill.
Bruce was curious about her, about where she came from, but for his son’s sake he was ready to set his paranoia aside and trust that she wasn’t secretly a villain.
He did such a good job once he made the decision, up until they were saying their goodbyes. Bruce was pleasantly surprised when Jasmine– when Jazz hugged him instead of doing a handshake. Her arms were firm around him and her height let her comfortably rest her head against his, a soft gesture far removed from Diana’s strong hugs against her muscled chest.
Jazz took a breath and said: “See you on Monday, B.”
This puzzled him. Monday? Why would he see her on Monday? Bruce was not needed anywhere on that day; in fact, Batman was supposed to be in Watchtower duty on Monday. And the follow up meeting with the King of the Ghosts.
When they parted, surrounded by the noise of the others messing around and bickering with Jason, it dawned on him as he saw her eyes from this close.
Green.
They glowed slightly green, unnaturally green, if you saw them this close. Her skin was pale, with freckles that reflected stars under the house’s lights.
He knew someone else that fit all of these characteristics, someone in his life as Batman.
Jasmine smiled widely, watching him put it together with mischievous glee. She patted his shoulder a little bit too hard for what was considered normal, and walked away to join her boyfriend out of the Manor.
Paralyzed, Bruce watched them go.
***
Jazz giggled against her hand, trying not to be too obvious.
“What’s so funny?”
“You’ll find out soon.”
Jason looked at her weird but still continued walking to the bike, slightly swinging their joined hands, an extra spring to his step. This visit had been important, she knew, but hadn’t realized exactly how important it was for him. For all the trash talk and exasperation, Jason was a family man and valued the opinion and approval of the others.
And she had passed the test, if she had read their reactions well.
Well, let’s hope that the thing with Batman goes well too, since she needed his approval as well as Bruce Wayne’s. Funny enough Jazz was way calmer than before going to meet the family — Batman was just a man, and it simply wasn’t the same as meeting your boyfriend’s father. She didn’t have any reservations about fighting Batman if it came to it, he had been rude to her and her brother, and had lost all respect she had before they started the process of establishing a relationship between the Realms and the Living World.
But before she even considered what she would do the next Monday, Jazz knew she needed to have a conversation with Jason. If her suspicions were true and he was the Red Hood, whatever was going to go down with Batman was of his interest. Also, if they were going serious, he deserved to know about the Princess thing as well.
She waited until they were at his apartment to open her mouth about it. She let them both settle in, Jason shedding the jacket before going to the kitchen to get a glass of water. Jazz watched him, quietly standing at the door.
“Jason.”
He looked at her over the rim of the glass, eyebrows raised in question.
“We need to talk.”
He choked on the water.
***
“I don’t think we can mansplain, manipulate, manwhore our way out of this one, Little Wing.”
At his side, Jason sighed and took off his helmet so he could comb back his hair as he gathered his thoughts.
They were trapped, and even if they could probably get out of the gang base in one piece, then they would lose this chance to finally bust the drug operation Jason had been working on for the last few months. The gang would be out of Gotham by sunrise and the drug would be distributed elsewhere anyway.
Dick didn’t blame his brother for jumping into the gang base like this — it had been a last minute decision and he didn’t expect this much resistance. At first he had been annoyed that he had to coordinate with Nightwing since it was supposed to be a simple thing; but as they finally infiltrated the base they realized it had been a trap. Jason’s informant had sold them out and they were waiting for the vigilantes.
Calling for backup from the other bats was not an option. They were either busy with their civilian lives and couldn’t help until it was too late, or were away on a superhero mission.
Jason was thinking something along those lines, because he was growling and grabbing on his hair, cursing under his breath.
They were hiding in an empty room in the abandoned office building the gang was using as a base. It was small and only had one window, and the door couldn’t be locked but they pushed a heavy desk in front of it just in case.
It was safe, but they couldn’t move. Inside the building there were too many armed gang members looking for them, and some of them had night vision gear. Outside, there were snipers posted on the roof and hidden in nearby buildings, and they didn’t know where exactly they were.
They needed help. But nobody could arrive in time. If only—
An idea!
“But we could malewife.”
“What the fuck are you talking about?”
Dick turned to fully face his brother, the light pollution of the city coming from the window enough to illuminate Jason’s confused frown.
“Call Jazz.”
“What?”
“Yeah! She’s free right now, right?”
“Yeah because I stood her up!” He growled. “We were supposed to be on a movie date two hours ago!”
“So she’s free.”
“I don’t think you are focusing on the important part here.”
“She won’t be mad at you, she knows about the vigilante thing.”
Jason huffed. “That she knows doesn’t mean she won’t be mad.”
“You won’t know until you call~” Dick hoped his smile was reassuring. “I bet this is not the first time something is canceled because of your night activities.”
“It... It isn’t.”
“Was she mad, then?”
His brother looked at his feet, thinking for a moment. Finally, he said with a small voice. “No.” After another moment, he added: “She was very supportive, actually.”
Dick contained the instinct to squeal in joy. They were just so cute, the most adorable couple, and they fit so well with each other. Jason was the happiest he had ever seen him, ever; and when they were together his laughs were easy and his smiles were constant.
It didn’t hurt to know she accepted his brother in all aspects, guns and vigilantism included. Or that she herself was a protector of sorts.
The Princess of the Infinite Realms.
Not an Amazon as they suspected, but she sure was something else.
(It didn’t save Jason from being teased for dating a Princess, though.)
So it meant she was a hero too, or could potentially help them out of the situation.
“Good!” Jason looked at him, confused. “So call her and ask her if she can come and get us out of here.”
“I won’t force this life on her—”
“You kinda did the moment you guys came clean about secrets and went steady, Jaybird.” He patted his brother’s shoulder. “If she wasn’t willing to be a part of your life, all of it, she wouldn’t have said yes.”
Jason processed his words for a few seconds. With a defeated sigh, he put on the helmet again and connected the call.
“Hey.” Dick couldn’t hear Jazz’s voice clear enough to understand the words, but the tone was loud. “I know… I’m sorry.” Jason sighed. “Got caught up at work.”
Dick snorted as more loud words came from the helmet.
“I’m sorry, I thought it wouldn’t take this long— yeah, he’s here… really? Ugh.” He looked up at him. “Jazz says hi.”
“Hello~!”
“Dick says hi back. Hm… yeah. Yes. Can you? If you can’t— What, really?” Jazz was calmer as she spoke now. Jason’s body relaxed, so Dick took it as a good sign. “We are in a meeting room at the southwest corner of the empty office building close to the Elliot Memorial. The one with an antenna— Ok? Ok.”
“Tell her about the snipers.”
“Yes. There are snipers everywhere. Please, darling, be careful— Shut up.” He grumbled. “That’s not funny. No, I won’t say it— Okay,” he grumbled again and groaned loudly, one hand sliding down the face of his helmet, “you are right. Happy?” He hummed, ignoring Dick’s snickering. “See ya. Love you. Bye.”
With a sigh, he took the helmet off again.
“You guys are so cute.”
It was a testament of how long they’ve been dating, because Jason didn’t even blush at the comment, he just glared at him.
“She said she’ll be here in five minutes.”
Dick hummed. “Excited to see her in action?”
Now he blushed. “No.”
“Yes, you are.” And before his brother could continue bullshitting, he added: “I get you completely, though. There is something about strong women kicking ass— I’m not a coward, I’m man enough to admit that watching Starfire fight was a major turn on back when we dated.”
Jason scoffed and ignored him, not wanting to continue the conversation.
“There is nothing wrong with wanting to get railed by a strong, tall woman, Jay.”
“Is this really the time and place for such conversation?”
No. It really wasn’t, since they were hiding in a shitty meeting room as hundreds of people were searching for them to kill them. But Jason’s face was getting more and more red and it was totally worth it.
“I just don’t want you to deny yourself—”
“My sex life is none of your business, Dickhead.”
There was a brief pause as Jason glared at him, the effect lost in his red cheeks.
“But do you?”
“Do I what.”
“Wish for her to pick you up and manhandle you as she wishes?”
Bingo. He looked away. “None of your business.” He repeated a bit more weakly. Dick bit back a smile, waiting for his brother to crack. It wasn’t long before he sighed and said: “She’s very into trying anything and has the strength to back it up. We had… talked. About things.”
“She has a strap, then?”
“That’s it. Conversation over.” Jason crossed his arms, huffing.
Dick raised his hands in defeat, still smiling. “Okay, I’m sorry. I won’t pry.”
His brother didn’t quite believe him, but let him be, turning to glare at the window as if he could make Jazz suddenly materialize with the power of his mind.
Fool.
As if they hadn’t already seen the bites and hickeys she left on him. Was he even trying to hide them? Tim’s theory is that he wanted everyone to know who he belonged to like some kind of kink going on. Not that anybody was judging! Everyone has their kinks and gods know that each of them has seen and knows too much about the others’ sexual lives — word traveled fast down the hero grapevine and the walls in the Manor weren’t as thick as you would think.
So far Jason had managed to stay safe from it since he was very private and the thing with Roy had been very lowkey — Dick still couldn’t forgive that he found out a year into their relationship, and neither had told him — but Jazz was now a regular at the Manor, between the whole Infinite Realms talk and Alfred taking it upon himself to teach her how to cook edible food, so the couple was around the family plenty of time.
“‘I wouldn’t mind dying if it’s between those thighs’, right?”
“What?”
“You. That thought must have crossed your mind, yes?” He shrugged. “It surely did cross mine more than one back when Kori—”
The window was slammed open, the long body of Jason’s girlfriend swiftly sliding inside in one smooth movement. She was tall, but she knew how to move.
“Hello, boys.” She breathed once she was inside, one hand pushing back stray locks that escaped her braid. “Sorry for the wait.”
She was not an Amazon, but Dick could almost believe she was at that moment. The casual stance she usually had, as if she weren’t sure where to put her long limbs, was now gone. In its place, Jasmine was secure in her skin, strong, wearing a teal bodysuit that shimmered under the light coming from the window, betraying it was not simple spandex. Over the suit she had pieces of black armor on vulnerable places — kinda like how Diana suited up, but without the signature colors of Wonder Woman and with pulsing, glowing runes engraved in the edges instead.
They knew she was a warrior, that the title of Princess of the Infinite Realms didn’t only mean ballgowns and pretty jewelry; but seeing was very different from knowing.
“Hello, darling.”
She zeroed on Jason as he stood up from the floor, dusting his pants. Jazz got to his position with a few long steps and picked him up, narrowing her eyes as if she were trying to decipher something difficult.
“Not hurt?”
“Uh-huh.” His brother shook his head. “Have a little more faith in me.”
Still, she quickly checked him for non-visible injuries, smirking when Jason winced as she squeezed his shoulder. Instead of chastising him for lying, she leaned in to kiss his helmet on the cheek, patting the other cheek twice.
“Not a word.”
“Uh-huh.” She said in the same tone Jason had used to dismiss her worries.
They were adorable.
“Not that I don’t enjoy watching you two, but we need to make a plan.” Dick had to say, even if he liked seeing his brother relax just by the presence of his girlfriend.
“Right,” Jazz stood back up to her whole height, back straight, looking out of the window. “I took care of the snipers on this roof and the ones I detected around here, but I didn’t stay to check if there were more.”
Dick would have done a full sweep before jumping in, but Jazz was not a Bat. He wouldn’t judge her as such. Also, they had time to thoroughly train her.
“They took our gear.” Jason sighed, probably missing his guns. And his jacket. “So we’ll need to parkour down the old school way.”
“Or I could carry you.”
The smile that stretched Dick’s lips was like the one he had when Jason face planted right after trying to do a dramatic exit.
“I’m in!” He quickly approached her, completely ready to be carried like when Superman or Wally did it. He jumped into her arms without waiting for her to say anything, chuckling when she caught him anyway.
“Jay?”
Resigned, Jason sighed and walked to the pair. “I’ll wait here-”
Jazz could move fast, it turns out. Dick felt weightless as he was moved under one of her arms, watching with glee as she circled the now free arm around her boyfriend’s waist to lift him up with ease.
“This is exciting.”
“Shut up, Dickhead.”
“I feel like a little kid.”
“You behave like one.”
Jazz chuckled at their banter, walking towards the window. “Keep your arms in at all times during the ride and remember to have fun.”
She didn’t hesitate when she jumped out, the powerful leap rippling through her body, muscles tensing as they soared through the air towards the closest rooftop. Even if she said the thing about not moving, Dick decided to stretch his arms with a soft “wiii~” as he watched the street pass by far below them.
The landing was rougher than what the Bats were used to, but Jazz took the impact without flinching. Right. Inhuman durability. Undead Princesses didn’t have to worry about fucking up their knees.
She let them go, eyes already sweeping their surroundings even if she landed on a relatively secluded part behind some water tanks.
“We need to get back in.”
She turned towards Jason, expression unreadable. Dick saw her eyes run over his brother’s body, worry shining in her eyes, one eyebrow twitching slightly as the only sign of her actual emotions. She was trying hard to not show her thoughts, which was weird since she was usually very forthcoming as a civilian.
Princess. Jasmine was really a Princess. Dick understood the need to show a strong front when in a position of responsibility, he knew he also changed when he was acting as his team’s lead; but as everything about her other life, seeing was different from knowing.
Was this how people felt when they learned about them? When Brucie Wayne turned out to be The Dark Knight? Dick’s head was struggling to merge the picture of the warm presence of Jason’s cute girlfriend and this warrior princess.
“What do you need me to do?”
It was subtle, but Jason’s shoulders dropped with relief. He expected her to fight his decision.
His face was soft as he took off the helmet to look her in the eyes. “First we need our gear and they’ll probably have it still in the room they took us to.”
Jazz nodded. “Want me to get in and fetch it for you?” She said as if she were asking him what he wanted from the grocery store. He nodded, one hand extended to brush stray hairs behind her left ear. “Give me five minutes then.”
The air was charged when their eyes met, and Dick couldn’t look away. It was magical, in a way, how her blue eyes started to glow like some kind of bioluminescence, the shine low enough to barely illuminate Jason’s face as he got closer to her.
“Meet you here in eight minutes. We’ll do a sweep in the meantime,” Jason’s voice got low to match the sudden moment they were having.
“Ok.”
Their lips met and Nightwing finally looked away. He couldn’t even find the energy to make a comment or coo at them. It was soft, it was real, and, most of all, it was private.
He wouldn't be surprised if those two announced they were getting married within the year.
He looked back just as Jason’s boots were again on the roof, Jazz’s arms retracting from where she had circled them around his waist to lift him closer to her lips.
Cute.
But they had to get moving.
Dick cleared his throat, making them jump.
“Right. Um, I’ll get to it. See you guys in a bit!”
Without further comment, she jumped over the roof and landed without making a sound on the base’s brick wall, quickly crawling towards the same window they had jumped out from. Her movements looked weightless, like she was strong enough to move her body with fine precision. Or maybe it was a ghost thing, since Jazz’s brother apparently could fly.
The rooftop was quiet until they lost sight of her.
“I want to be the Best Man.” He turned to look at his younger brother. “I already have ideas for my speech.”
Jason narrowed his eyes. “What the fuck are you talking about.”
In response, Nightwing started humming the Wedding March as he flipped away, just in time to hear gunshots and destruction happening inside the building, probably following the spitfire of a girlfriend that literally crashed into Jason’s life.
So recently I’ve been on a dating app. Dating sucks but one of my goals this year was to step out of my comfort zone and try to put myself out there. Haven’t had a ton (or really any) great dating experiences so I’m trying to change that. Or give up altogether. We’ll see what happens.
I get random notifications on my watch from said dating app and I got one while reading a Jazz/Jason fic that said “Hey (my name), Jason really really likes you.”
And I bluescreened. It honestly took me way too long to realize it was the dating app and not Jason Todd. I’m still grinning like an idiot even though it’s FAKE. Anyways, carry on.
Day 6 of the inktober with @windyengel!!!
I was so excited for this one scene!! LAKJSDLKJA IT'S SO FUNNY WAWAS I PROMISE Y'ALL
Go see the new chapter and this scene on Deadline: October 31st
Jazz is turned into a cat (maybe a ghost attack? got involved in a rogue attack? magic? clockwork? up to you) and now with a body she doesn't know how to navigate in, and without being able to speak (which is her forte), she finds herself desperate, starving and hiding from the rain in a dirty alley.
Jason was walking back home when the skrungliest and saddest mew mew ginger cat looked at him from under wet cardboard boxes.
(don't feel pressured i might write it myself but also might not but i had to throw the idea to you)
Fam.
You got it.
[Read on AO3]
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Jason never actually cared about his soulmark. Really. Why bother? He was poor, his parents' relationship was shitty (he later learned they weren't soulmates and Catherine sold him a pretty lie), and his life was complicated enough to add romance.
Once he became a vigilante at the tender age of thirteen, he understood that love was a luxury, and that having a soulmate at this point was a liability more than a blessing. A curse, even. He envied Dick, who didn't have a soulmate mark, and who loved freely and without hesitation; he envied Bruce, who loved intensely and burned just as bright.
He just. He couldn't do it.
So he chose to ignore it. Sometimes he hated it, sometimes it felt like a shackle to a complete stranger, someone he was supposed to tie himself to-
(Someone that didn't belong in his world. Crimefighters and civilians were not a good idea.)
- so he just scrubbed at the damn ink on his skin when he got pissed at it, and covered with long sleeved clothes when he wanted to ignore it.
And then he died.
He was surprised to discover his mark was still there after coming back to himself post-bathing in the Lazarus Pits. He lowkey had hoped his soulmate was free from the connection the moment his heart stopped beating. But it was still there.
It was a bird. Ironic.
A freaking bluejay.
It was still colorful, it has all the details, no matter what he did about the mark. His soulmate was still there on the other side, waiting, biding their time. He wondered if their mark became a black silhouette like it did when partners died. He wondered if that stranger was holding hope or gave up on him already.
(He hoped they did. Giving up on him was the best option.)
When years passed and he didn't find anybody with a matching tattoo, blacked out or not, he tried to forget about it again. Holding hope was useless, and he had more important things to do. Dick eventually stopped asking about it, when they were back on speaking terms. Bruce still gave it pained looks when he visited the Cave.
That's why when a woman sat down on his table and hid her face behind a binder, he didn't notice the picture on it at first glance.
"Hello?" He put down the cup of coffee and sat straighter. It was never a bad idea to be wary.
"Um." The woman lowered the binder enough to look around the quaint café. She turned and checked the window, but if there was someone there she wouldn't be seen. That's why Jason liked this table, it was the best strategic point. "Sorry, I..."
"Hiding from an ex?"
The woman rolled her eyes, setting the binder back on the table. "Try a creepy coworker."
She tried to downplay it, but by her body language she was more affected than what she let on. He was interested in her story immediately. No woman was going to be stalked on his watch.
"Did you try the police?"
She looked at him like he was crazy. "Police doesn't do shit in Gotham."
Her sharp tone and eyes made him smile immediately. "Have you tried kicking him in the nuts?"
The unknown woman arched an eyebrow and untied her tight bun, massaging her scalp for a second, revealing long natural red hair. Jason noticed her white shirt, so she may be coming back from work. An office? He wondered where she worked. He could try and find out and then identify this creepy coworker-
"Hard to do that when she doesn't have a pair of those." The woman snorted. "My stalker is a woman."
"My mistake. Have you tried kicking her anyway?"
She made a face as if she didn't know what to do with him, but laughed at his comment. He smiled back, glad to see her relax after the scare.
"Thanks. I really needed the laugh, stranger." She made a move to stand up. "I'll leave you alone now."
He nodded, making a note to follow her and find as much information as he could about this stalker.
His eyes wandered to the picture taped to the front of her binder.
A bluejay.
"Wait." He extended a hand, catching her-
It was like an electric current coursed through him, from the palm of the hand that touched her forearms to the tip of his toes. He knew she felt it too, because she froze where she stood, her eyes glued to his hand on her person.
He had to let her go, he knew, but he couldn't. He really couldn't. He knew what this meant, and yet he didn't want to believe.
"Where did you get that?"
It took a moment to come back to reality and process her words. She was looking at his arm, her free hand hovering over the hem of the jacket her had rolled up to be comfortable. The shape of the tail of the bird was in plain sight.
He could lie and say it was a tattoo. That he thought bluejays were cool. He could say so many things.
He didn't need to say any of those lies.
The woman put the binder back on the table and rolled up the sleeve of her sensible white shirt, on the same arm he had his mark. He knew what he would see, what he could see, but it didn't prepare him to the sight of the same bluejay shape blacked out.
"I cried for you. I felt you die."
Her eyes were haunted with memories. What could he say? What could he explain?
"I should have looked harder for you." She narrowed her eyes. "I knew I could still sense you, but I didn't want to hope..." She trailed off, biting her lip.
"It's okay. People shouldn't be running around chasing ghosts." He understood her. Really. Holding hope for the impossible could be dangerous.
The woman smiled at his words, truly smiled, amusement morphing her expression like the turning of a page. She sat back down and extended her hand.
"Jasmine Fenton. Professional ghost hunter. Or was." She rolled her eyes. "I was taking a break now, actually."
Jason tried to gauge if she was joking. But she was completely serious.
Huh.
"Jason Todd." He shook her hand anyway, barely stopping when the electric current made an appearance again.
"Like the dead socialite?"
She did her homework.
"Yeah." It was his time to be amused. "Just like him."
He smiled back at her, and it felt right. Like coming back for air after being underwater for too long. Like feeling the sun warming your skin for the first time after a long winter.
He always found the soulmate talk boring, and in his darkest hours, pathetic. He would never experience that, and romance was for those that could afford it, so why care?
But now, touching her, seeing her smile and her teal eyes that hid many secrets, Jason decided that those people were very off about their descriptions - and very right at the same time.
So he just ignored everything he thought he knew about soulmates and tried to remember if he had the rest of his day free, since he apparently had a soulmate to get to know.
---
Hate the ending, might rewrite it.
Bone apple teeth.
Also I hc Jason as aspec if it wasn't obvious here.
