I've read some fics about future/older Jason coming to the past or another timeline where he saves his younger self. But I think it will be really interesting if it's the opposite.
Past/younger Jason (let's call him Jay) is the one who comes to the future or another timeline to save his future/older self. Jason who has already been hurt again and again by people around him, by people of his so called family. Jason who is hurt or suicidal or just blaming himself or doesn't care at all because he starts to lose hope and losing himself especially by the treatment of Bruce and the Bats even after he apologised and be nice and plays by their rules. Then, little Jay come and sees what happened to Jason and just can't believe it. He may be scared at first, in disbelief and sceptical but he will understand, because that is him, and he knows himself well enough to know that something is seriously wrong. And it can be explored in different kind of settings too.
If it's homeless Jay then he will be totally sceptical because he doesn't really understand these difference kind of timelines. But when he do understand, he will brings his not trusting authorities and rich people feelings and just drag Jason to bail on the Bats. He will point out about how Jason has so many skills and is big enough that he can survive better than his past self. That he already survive all even dying, so he can do so much better for himself.
If it's Jaybin then it's totally gonna be a shocker because Jaybin is light and magic and he can't believe he is now a killer/criminal. But he will understand after a while and he will convince Jason to live better. To live for himself because there may not be people around who cares for Jason but he cares. He will get angry on Jason's behalf but try to reel it in because he knows Jason also did some terrible things. But he will ask the Bats, about their relationship. About how they really sees Jason and when the answer is the usual shit that the Bats try to make themselves believe then Jaybin will tell them firmly that they don't deserves Jason. Then he will go to Jason and takes care of him while trying to reel in the hurt, grief and anger for both of them.
If it's Jaybin after he had go to search for his mom, I like to imagine he was displace when he was only started to get beaten up by Joker, meaning that his injuries is not too bad. When this Jaybin finds out about what would happened to himself after that, he would be devastated. He died, he freaking died and his killer is still alive and nothing change. He become a cautionary tale, his self as Robin was practically erased. Then he came back, traumatized and when it comes to decision, his dad chose Joker over him, cut his throat and left him the same way he died. Then it's all become a cycle of hurt again and again and again. He made some friends but they're dead or gone and he is alone again. He is alone and hurting but his so called family doesn't care at all. In their eyes, he deserves it because all the bad things he had done, he's crazy, he is like a ticking time bomb to them. Jaybin is freaking devastated, why isn't anybody helping him. They told him that they tried but Jason didn't want any help and Jaybin is mad. What kind of help did they offer him ? Putting him in arkham, beating him half to dead, putting fucking fear in his head. Ofc he doesn't want their help, their so called help only hurt Jason. Jaybin would help Jason to cut off that toxic relationship. He would make sure Jason has a safety net and in helping Jason he would be helping himself too.
So yeah it's many kind of settings to be explored. There's also a question whether the past/younger jay would want to be back in their own timeline or not. Maybe they could stay and there's no consequences or they really have no choice but to go back and I really like if they could keep their memories because maybe it already become an alternate timeline or whatsoever. But if they have to go back then they would totally make sure Jason is taken care off first and remember all that happened and be more firm of themselves and took it all as lessons. They would always put themselves first because from what they see, they are never anyone first priority so they would be the one to prioritise themselves first.
Btw, if you have any fics recommendations for this type of settings, I would really like it if you could share some with me, thank youu
Little Jay curling up beside Cathy one last time, sobbing quietly and sniffling as he listens for the sirens because he knows if the paramedics find him they’ll take him away, and he never wants to leave the home he shared with his mom 💔❤️🩹
Bruce woke with a start when his bedroom door creaked open. He blinked blearily into the darkness, at the tiny figure hesitating at the threshold.
“Jason?” he asked, sitting up and rubbing at an eye, trying to clear his vision more, “What’s wrong?” Jason had never come into his room.
Well… he had. During his first week with Bruce. When he was still convinced Bruce would…
Bruce shook his head once, to dislodged that awful memory from his brain. Jason was far beyond believing Bruce wanted him for harm. Jason coming to him in the middle of the night meant something was wrong.
“I—“ Jason started, his voice a harsh whisper. He stiffened, and shuffled further into the room. The closer he got, the easier Bruce could see actual fear on Jason’s face, reflecting off the light his bedside clock emitted. “I think someone’s in the manor.”
Adrenaline rushed through Bruce in a familiar boost at hearing that.
He was certainly awake, now.
Throwing his blanket off himself, he grabbed his tablet off the side table. “The security system didn’t react,” he said, as he jumped up. There would have been alarms going off. His watch would have woken him with its insistent buzzing.
But there had been no alarm.
Nothing had tripped the system.
In fact… the system didn’t detect anything out of the ordinary at all.
Jason stared at him with wide, tear stained eyes, so Bruce motioned with his head for Jason to follow.
“Come on. Let’s get you to the cave to figure this out.”
With an absent nod, Jason quickly followed after Bruce, his right hand reaching out to grip at the hem of Bruce’s t-shirt, like it was his anchor in the dark.
Bruce stuck his head out the hallway, before entering it, but was met with an empty hall way.
And an empty stairwell.
And an empty downstairs hallway.
Nothing was looking out of the ordinary, except for the scared 13-year-old at his side.
“What did you hear?” Bruce asked, as he led Jason to the cave’s entrance in the study. His security system only detected three life forms in the manor, the two of them walking down the hall, and one, up in Alfred’s quarters. Fast asleep, right where Alfred’s bed was.
“I heard stomping,” Jason said, his voice shaking, “And a door slam.”
“Where at?” Bruce hadn’t heard anything until Jason opened his door.
Although he had had a bit of a rough patrol, and had been so exhausted upon getting home, he barely remembered pulling his own blanket over himself before he was out. It was very easy he had slept through whatever it was.
Jason paused, and admitted, “I don’t know. Down the hall?”
Bruce nodded. “Okay,” he whispered back, as they reached the study and he quickly crossed over to the clock, “We’ll figure it out.” He made quick work of opening the hidden door, and ushered Jason through first, before closing the door behind them.
A quick survey of the cave from the stairs above showed Bruce it was exactly as he’d left it, an hour previous. Undisturbed and unoccupied.
“You stay in here,” he told Jason, “I’ll go check everything out, okay?”
“And check on Alfred?” Jason asked, unsteadily.
“Yes, of course. I’m going to lock the cave down so no one but me or Alfred can come in or out until that is disabled. You remember where everything is, right?”
Alfred had given Jason a grand tour, not too long ago. When Jason had trouble sleeping one night and wanted to stay up with someone, rather than his normal habit of hiding away in his room by himself.
Jason had actually been getting clingier as the weeks had gone on, and while it was, in a way, a welcomed change from Jason’s refusal of any and all attention, sometimes it worried Bruce. Was there something wrong?
Was there something Bruce could do to help?
“Yeah,” Jason said, looking down the stairs at the well-lit cave below. Despite knowing it was safe, he still looked extremely nervous, so Bruce reached out and set a hand on top of his head.
Jason flinched, but quickly relaxed, leaning in toward Bruce’s side a bit more.
“It’ll be okay,” he promised, “I’ll be back before you know it.”
“Okay.”
And with that, Bruce went back out of the cave and officially hit the lockdown button.
The very first thing he did was grab a batarang from one of the false books on his shelves and pocket it, before making his way quickly up to Alfred’s quarters. He checked all the open rooms on his way, but not a single thing was seeming out of place.
Alfred, of course, startled awake the second Bruce opened his door, just as he’d always done for as long as Bruce could remember.
Though, it had been well over a decade since the last time Bruce had woken him like this.
“Master Bruce, what is the matter?” Alfred asked immediately, as Bruce scanned the large quarters with his eyes.
“Jason thought he heard someone break in,” he explained quickly, as he crossed the room and stuck his head into the sitting room.
It, too, was empty.
“Oh dear,” Alfred said, grabbing his robe off the hook near his bed and wrapping it around himself.
“I’m not seeing ay signs of one, though,” he admitted. There wasn’t any sign anywhere.
Alfred blinked, then asked, “Is Jason all right?”
“I sent him to the cave and put it into lockdown so I could check over everything, just in case. Thought I’d check on you first.”
“I didn’t hear anything, sir,” Alfred said firmly, “it has been a quiet night.”
Bruce sighed. “That’s what I figured.”
“Is the poor lad having nightmares,” Alfred asked, echoing Bruce’s own thoughts.
“Perhaps,” he said. He knew Jason had nightmares, and based on some very uncomfortable questions he’d asked Bruce in the past, Bruce would completely buy that Jason had a hard time distinguishing between nightmares and reality, but he’d never once come to Bruce with his fears before.
And what if he was right?
“I’ll do a sweep of the house, just in case, if you want to go down with him. He was pretty shaken up when I left him.”
“Of course,” Alfred said easily, slipping his feet into his slippers, “you be careful, sir.”
Bruce took an hour sweeping the entire house from top to bottom. He checked every room and every closet, but found no sign of anyone having been in the manor.
By the time he was done, it was nearing 5am, and quite frankly he was exhausted. The adrenaline rush had long since abandoned him, leaving behind just a tired shell of a man who got less than an hour of sleep in the previous 24 hours.
Regardless, he made his way back down to the cave to check on the occupants there, and to hopefully reassure his kid there was no reason to be scared.
Downstairs, Bruce found Jason curled up in the Batcomputer chair, a blanket wrapped tightly around his shoulders. Alfred was busy cleaning the batarangs Bruce had used out on patrol, and Bruce wasn’t even going to ask why he’d found busy work rather than sitting with Jason.
It’d been an hour.
Jason looked over at Bruce once he hit the bottom of the stairs, and Bruce could see the tears swell up fast in his eyes.
“I’m sorry,” he rushed out, a slight whine in his voice warning Bruce of the full on crying that was about to hit, “I thought it was real. I swear. I thought I really heard it.”
“Oh, Jason,” Bruce sighed. His heart ached for his kid sometimes. For how scared his kid could get. He closed the distance between them, then knelt down in front of the chair, so he was looking up at Jason. Gently, he took Jason’s hands into his own and said, “It’s all right, lad. It’s okay.”
“It’s not,” Jason cried, “It’s— I—“ but his face absolutely crumpled, and whatever he’d been trying to say got drowned out by the sobs that took over his whole body.
Bruce ached all the more.
“Shhh,” he said, running his thumbs across the back of Jason’s hands, “Can I hug you?”
Jason had been allowing physical contact more and more lately. He’d actually given a snappish ‘stop asking’ the last time Bruce had asked permission to touch his face.
It’d been hard, finding the balance between making sure Jason was consenting to any form of physical touch, and not annoying Jason with asking permission to comfort him.
But Jason nodded stoutly, and slipped off the chair straight into Bruce’s arms the second he opened them in offering. Like Jason belonged there, Bruce wrapped his arms around him tightly and rested his cheek down on top of Jason’s head.
“I’m sorry,” Jason said again, even as he melted into Bruce’s hold.
“It’s okay, Jason,” he promised, “I’m not mad about this.
Jason made a noise of disagreement, then said, “You should be,” between his sniffles.
“No, I shouldn’t,” he reiterated, pressing a kiss into Jason’s crown. “Buddy, if you woke me up every single night for the next year, I still would not be mad.”
Bruce would be weary, sure. Maybe annoyed, on the surface.
But deep down, he’d be touched.
He was touched, now. That Jason came to him.
Jason had a fear, and came to him. So he could fix it.
“I would take you just as seriously every single time,” he promised.
“That’s dumb,” Jason grumbled, but he’d mostly quit crying, so Bruce was counting it as a win. He readjusted his hold, as Jason had started to slip, and rested his chin back down in Jason’s hair.
He hummed, then said, “It’s not dumb. I just want you to feel safe, Jason. I’ll do anything to make that happen.”
Jason hesitated for a long minute, but he reached up with one of his hands and fisted Bruce’s shirt in his hand as he pressed his head into Bruce’s chest further. “I do feel safe,” he finally mumbled, “I’ve got Batman protecting me.”
Tears threatened to fill Bruce’s eyes as he tightened his hold on Jason, so he spent a minute blinking them back, trying to keep control of his own emotions.
He could be emotional about that later. Not right now, when he was trying to comfort his boy.
“Come on,” Bruce finally said, long after Jason had stilled and his sniffles had ceased. He gently pulled Jason back, and helped him stand to his feet. “Let’s go back up stairs. Maybe we can watch a movie?”
Jason gave him a quizzical look, and asked, “At five in the morning?”
It was a Sunday morning, so Bruce saw absolutely no harm in that.
Except maybe the crick in his neck he’d wake up with, when he inevitably fell asleep sitting up.
“Are you going to get any more sleep tonight, alone in your room,” Bruce asked, a hint of challenge in his voice.
He knew for a fact Jason would likely be jumpy and scared for the next day or two. And Bruce wasn’t keen on making him deal with that on his own.
Jason hesitated, but did shake his head.
“That’s what I thought. Yes, at five in the morning,” Bruce said, finally pushing himself back up to his feet. He motioned with his hand for Jason to follow, and set it on Jason’s back once he scrambled to Bruce’s side so they could climb the stairs.
Looking around the cave revealed Alfred had likely already gone back upstairs. Perhaps to get started on his day, perhaps to get some more sleep himself.
Bruce really hoped he went and got more sleep.
“I apologize now if I doze off,” Bruce said, with a soft chuckle as they climbed the steps, “You can wake me back up if you want.”
Jason didn’t reply, but he did smile, so hopefully he’d take Bruce up on the offer, should he need it.
Bruce had a feeling simply being in the room with him would be enough, though. If Jason truly did feel safe with Batman protecting him.
He couldn’t think about that.
Emotions.
In the living room, Bruce picked the end of the couch with the large ottoman in front of it, just so he could kick his feet up.
Ordinarily Bruce chose an armchair, so Jason could stretch out on the couch and not feel crowded by Bruce, but he’d picked the large living room, so there was a large sectional and several armchairs for Jason to choose from.
To Bruce’s absolute surprise, Jason fished a blanket out of the storage basket, then made his way right to Bruce’s side, where he flopped down and curled up under the blanket. He looked up at Bruce for half a second, before he looked away and just… fell sideways.
Right into Bruce’s side.
The pesky tears were back in Bruce’s eyes as he gently wrapped his arm around Jason and fidgeted until they were both comfortable.
“Anything in particular you want to watch?” Bruce asked, as he flipped the TV on and navigated to one of the streaming apps.
Jason shrugged, but mumbled, “Something funny.”
So Bruce started up a comedy, and gladly settled down to nap with Jason at his side.
He absolutely hated that Jason had to get so scared for this development, but he was so damn proud Jason felt as comfortable as he did.
Bruce would gladly give up sleep for the rest of his life, if this was the outcome.
Kidding Around With the Bats by bewaretheboojum, njw, Silver_Snow_77, vellaphoria for salazarastark (niewanyin)
G - 11k
Summary: The only thing that stops Nightwing from launching himself into the warehouse with a cry of grief and rage is the realization that those kids look awfully familiar.
All three of the boys have black hair. The biggest one, maybe twelve years old, is wearing most of Batman’s uniform, which is sagging and bunching around his small body. The middle sized boy, who doesn’t look any more than five but is probably older if Nightwing’s growing suspicions are correct, is holding his hand and glaring around them defensively. He’s wearing Red Hood’s leather jacket. The largest boy is holding a toddler protectively against his chest.
The toddler’s wrapped in Red Robin’s cape.
Oh, damn.
Reader’s Comments: Just another de-aging story that is absolutely hilarious and will make your heart melt.
A few hours after the fight club had closed for the night, the 10-year-old Jason Todd was slammed into one of the lockers backstage and pinned to it, a big brute's hand around his neck lifted him off the ground as he leaned in, “You try something like that again, kid, I will kill you.”
“You owe me.” The boy grunted, struggling to get out of his grasp. “That's my money too.”
Corvy leaned in smiling. “I don't owe you nothing. I've been feeding and clothing you this whole time you been working for me. I was gonna give you your share when you were a little older, but after catching you stealing from me I think I'm gonna subtract your salary and extend our agreement a couple more years.”
“I don't want to work for you anymore.” He said as tears started streaming down his cheeks.
“You signed that paper, kid. I own your ass for the next three years. And I can do whatever I want with you until then.”
“You can't do this! I've done all the work for that money!” He said as his tears turned to rage. “It's mine! You've done nothing for it!”
“I kept the creeps off your back, haven't I? You don't know how many offers I had on you these last several months, boy. I turned every last one of them down to let you keep your dignity, I even let you go back home to mommy and daddy whenever you felt like it. But now I'm beginning to see you've turned into nothing but a spoiled rotten brat. Maybe it is time you see what having it bad really looks like. Jerry!” He yelled at the person in the hallway.
A bodyguard opened the door and looked in.
“Send McCallins back here. I might just accept the offer he made on the boy tonight.”
“Yes, Sir.”
Corvy looked back at the boy and leaned in towards him. “Congratulations, scamp. You're getting out of your contract just like you wanted.” He grabbed him by the back of the neck and lead him to the sofa in the room and pushed him down onto it. “Stay there.” He said walking a few feet away from him and facing the door. There was a knock and the door opened to a man in a business suit. “You still interested in the boy?”
A few men came in discussing the price and arrangments for the boy when another man walks in. “Im looking for Corvy.” He said, interrupting the proceedings between Corvy and his guest.
Corvy stepped forward, “Im him. What is this?” He questioned the man in the suit jacket.
He stood tall with a suitcase in hand. “My mistress was interested in purchasing from you this young fighter.”
“Why does your woman want him?”
“She saw great potential to make him into a strong warrior to join her league.”
“A league? As in League of Assassins? That league?”
The man considered what he said. “Yes. Is seventy-five-thousand dollars a reasonable offer?” The man dropped the suitcase of money onto his desk and opened the lid.
Corvy stares at it dumbfounded then looks over where the boy is sitting quietly, and the other men who also seek to take the kid. “Shit.” He muttered, realizing he already has the bulldogs salivating over the boy, but this new offer is far better. He wonders if its a good idea to say no to those who came first.
The familiar face of the woman who was on the stage directing Jason in combat, and ultimately saving his life was outside by her limo waiting for her men to return with her purchase when suddenly the back door opens and a group of a dozen or so men come out leading a crying boy with them to the car, the very same boy she was attempting to purchase for herself.
She hurried towards them, her bodyguards followed close behind her. “Wait!”
They shoved the boy into the back seat and then turned to look at Talia.
“Where are you going with that boy?” She demanded to know.
“What's it to you?” One of the men in a suit said.
“I've sent my men in there to purchase this child.” She said glancing into the car where the beaten and distraught boy with tears on his face sat and listened. He wasn't missing a thing.
“We beat you to it. My boss has been pining for this one for almost a year now.”
“Where are you taking him?”
“That's our business.”
“What is your price for him?”
The man steps closer to her to intimidate her. “He's not for sale. So beat it.”
“How much did you pay for him?” She insisted again.
“fifteen-thousand dollars.” He said opening the driver's car door. She looked shocked at the price then glances inside the back seat at the boy again, his pleading eyes cause her stomach to turn with anxiety for him. “What if I gave you seventy-five-thousand?” She blurted out.
The man pauses almost as if to consider it, “We'll make more than that on him given a few months. So get lost.”
She lowered her chin as a cruel look comes over her face. “What will you do with him?”
The man gets out of the car again and looks down at her then grabbing her by the throat and getting an inch or two from her face, but one of her bodyguards quickly responded by throwing a dagger at him, stabbing him in the back of his shoulder. “AH!”
One of the other thugs pulled out his gun and fired at the group of foreigners as another bodyguard grabbed his mistress and ran with her to safety as the battle broke out. They hid behind the limousine. “You might hit the child!” She hollered to all the battle-hungry men, seeing bullets pierce the car doors and windows of the car the boy was in.
The firing didn't seize though, and neither side willing to run the risk of laying down arms.
“Talia!” Her bodyguard said, “I need to get you out of here!”
“We can't leave the boy with those men. God only knows what they'll do to him.”
Her bodyguard hollered to another. “Get that boy.” He said to him, “I'm getting her out of here.” He grabbed her arm and protectively raced her to the car, using his own body as a shield, and then putting her in the limo and telling her to deck down as he got into the driver's seat and drove away from the battle scene.
When finally the last of the men who had bought Jason was dead, Talia's driver returned to the scene with her. One of her warriors walked to the back of the car and opened the door then helped Talia out of the limo and walked her to the car that the boy was in.
“The backseat was empty by the time we got close enough to rescue him,” He said to her as she examines the scene of the bullet-riddled car and the few dead bodies lying around, the door on the far side was left open and the child wasn't anywhere in sight. “He was gone.”
“Have you been looking for him?”
“Yes, we scoured a two-mile radius, but we haven't picked up his trail. He vanished... Do you want us to keep looking?”
She looked down the street as she thinks about it, “No. We won't find him, there are too many places to hide in this city... I just hope he is safe... and free now.”
“The Flash kissed me,” Leonard Snart said casually. When Mick Rory’s face turned red he added quickly, “On the cheek.”
“Why?”
Lisa Snart and Jason Rory wisely stayed silent as they continued eating their meal. Jason in particular shoved a large floret of broccoli in his mouth just in case he was asked a question.
“He was having a hard time; it was back when he killed the meta thing.” Leonard shrugged before taking a bite of his dinner.
Mick set down his silverware and started to rise.
“Hey!” Jason called before Mick could storm off. “You haven’t finished your broccoli.”
“I’m an adult. I don’t have to. I’ve already grown!” Mick shouted as he left the kitchen and headed straight for their bedroom.
“That’s bullshit!” Leonard and his son snapped at the exact same time.
His pup ducked his head when Leonard turned and scowled.
“Sorry, Daddy,” Jason said with a sheepish smile. Another second of glaring had the boy rolling his eyes and then reciting with a huff: “Only grownups can talk like that.”
Lisa grinned at Leonard from the table. “I got it, Lenny. Go see if you can console your ornery mate.”
Len took his sister’s suggestion and found his mate more than ready for him. The moment the door was shut again, Mick shouted, “That fucking alpha speedster is dead, Len! Dead! I don’t care how pretty you think he is! I don’t care if he’s Jason’s favorite! He’s dead! I ain’t afraid of him!”
Len hid a smile behind his hand as he watched Mick pace and posture. Especially as his lover kept puffing out his chest.
When it wasn’t in public, Leonard could admit he found it somewhat adorable: seeing an alpha spin himself out of control and work himself up with thoughts of anger and revenge. Well, to be honest, he didn’t like seeing any alpha do that except Mick. It was what drew Leonard to his mate in the first place. The man’s anger and rage on his behalf anytime Len showed up with a black eye or a busted lip…
It touched his ice-cold heart in a way few things ever did.
“Mick.”
The alpha turned and stared as Leonard approached and offered a hand, the inside of his right wrist.
“Look at me, Mick.”
Mick turned his face into the offered wrist, still angry, but settling down as he nuzzled him. “I can’t… I can’t share you with another alpha, I don’t care if he is funny or we like flirting with him. You know me. I’m too much, even for the softest alphas.”
Leonard grinned as he stepped forward and into his alpha’s personal bubble. He enjoyed the scent Mick gave off when angry. It was like fire wood and always warmed him. “I would never betray you, Mick. You know that.”
“That kid is younger, more powerful, he’s…” Mick growled.
“He’s not the one that sat with me in the hospital,” Leonard whispered.
He hated talking about that night. Hated thinking about it. But he would, for his mate, Len would endure awful memories.
“Barry wasn’t there to hold my hand,” he continued, and tried to hide the emotion sneaking into his voice. “Barry didn’t hear what the doctors said to me, Mick. You did.”
Mick’s rumbling voice cracked, causing Len’s own heart to flutter with worry at the sound. “No, Lenny, you don’t have to go back there. Not for me, Babe.”
Leonard closed his eyes. More than anything, he wanted to turn back the clock. He wanted to do something, anything, to prevent his sire from laying that beating down. From nearly killing him. From taking away any chance Len would ever have to provide his alpha with pups.
He held tight to Mick, letting the alpha provide him with strength, security, and safety. If Mick had been older, if he’d been given the opportunity, Leonard knew that Lewis Snart would have died then. As it was, Lewis still didn’t have the courage to show his face anywhere near himself or his sister.
“We have a pup, Omega. You found him. You.” Mick didn’t let him go as he continued to speak. “If it had been me, I probably woulda left him behind.”
Leonard looked up into his eyes. “Maybe, but Jason would have followed after you like a lost puppy.”
Mick chuckled and the sound filled him with an emotion much stronger than admiration. “We should get back on topic while you’ve still got me in a good mood.”
He couldn’t help but laugh at his alpha’s words. “Right.” Leonard took a deep breath. “Barry Allen isn’t a threat to you, alpha.”
“Oh?”
“Our little Flash has been keeping a big secret.” Leonard nuzzled into Mick’s neck, nipping and kissing as he wrapped his arms around Mick’s waist.
“Kid can’t keep secrets; he sucks at them,” Mick chuckled.
Leonard grinned as he looked Mick in his hazel green eyes. “I know, which is why I figured out that our Scarlet isn’t an alpha.”
“No way! I’ve smelled the speedster. You’ve smelled him!”
It was impossible not to keep his smile as Leonard continued to stare into his mate’s eyes. “When he kissed me, I noticed an artificial scent. You know the one,”
Mick’s eyes widened in shock. “The one you used to wear to hide your status from Lewis!”
He nodded. “I recognized that scent and knew it at once. Did a little casing and found out the kid’s an omega.”
Leonard bit his lip to keep from making some silly omega noise at the sight of his alpha’s pupils blowing wide. He didn’t resist devouring Mick’s mouth as they kissed long and hard. Nothing turned Mick on more than seeing Leonard working over another omega, but after a few tries, they’d always struggled to find the right one.
Either Mick wasn’t attracted to the other omega, or Leonard got jealous. There was still a lot to do. To test, to plan and to enact, but Leonard was a professional thief. Planning was usually just as fun as the doing in his line of work, and getting to know and courting Barry Allen could be just as fun as making a score.
What they really needed to know before they pursued the speedster was whether or not Barry was any good with Jason…
Barry’s heart raced as he searched his entire lab. Why the hell had Len and Mick dropped little Jason Rory off with him? Well, he knew what they said the reason was, but he didn’t trust the shifty look in Leonard’s eyes. It felt like he was being tested, like he was being watched. And normally, Barry didn’t mind.
Except that right then? He was failing!
Failing with McKenzie Rory and Leonard Snart’s pup!
He ran down the steps. “Anyone seen a kid? He’s ten years old, this tall” — he held out his hand to a little above his hip — “black curly hair, bright bluish or greenish eyes? Anyone?”
A couple of uniforms smirked, but no one had an answer. Oh, man. He was so dead. If people found out that Jason was Mick and Len’s pup, he’d be fired. Even if they didn’t have proof or enough evidence to arrest the thieves, they could still cut Barry loose.
Barry couldn’t believe his morning!
But then, Mick had honestly scared the hell out of him. The big pyromaniac had just shown up, handed the little boy over and said, “Here, Scarlet, since you seem so hell-bent on joining my pack, you get to watch the pup for the day.”
And then he left!
Barry rounded a corner, hunting desperately for Jason, and ran straight into Joe. Oh no. This was not good. He didn’t want to run into Joe. It was Saturday! Shouldn’t he be at home? Was he working this weekend? Crap! Why hadn’t he just told Mick no!
Oh wait, he remembered. Because Mick had said “joining my pack” and it had actually sounded kind of… Whoa! Now was not the time!
“He-hey, Joe, what’s, what up?” He asked, swallowing down all the stress and fear of the day.
Joe stared as if Barry had grown a second head. Did he know? Of course Joe knew, right? He was a detective. Thankfully, Joe appeared to shake it off.
“Hey, Barry, do you know why there’s a kid in the holding cells?”
Barry’s eyes widened in terror. “He’s where?”
Nearly slamming into several officers, Barry and Joe ran down to the cells. What would Barry do if Jason was hurt? It wasn’t like Captain Cold and Heatwave didn’t have competitors out there? What would they do for a chance at hurting the kid? Barry’s stomach rolled at the thought, but he had to keep it together.
As soon as he made it down the steps, Barry stared in horror. Somehow, Jason had managed to get himself inside the cell with four other criminals, a gang of thieves who failed to rob a bank earlier that morning. But that wasn’t the strange part.
Jason was laughing on one side while the thieves were all on the opposite side.
“Wanna see something funny, Uncle Barry?”
“Uncle?” Joe glared. “Who is this pup?”
Jason waited until Barry’s eyes were on him before he ran to where the thieves were all seated. Immediately, the four grown men jumped or scooted to the other side of the cell, with Jason giggling at his incredible power over them.
“Hey, whoa, now.” Joe stepped up after calling for a uniform to bring the keys over. “Why are you guys ducking this kid like that?”
“Are you crazy? That’s Captain Cold and Heatwave’s pup,” the supposed leader scoffed. “We don’t want our scents on that kid when they get him back!”
Jason laughed even more hysterically, but all Barry could focus on was Joe’s wide, dark brown eyes and the “you are so dead” glare on his adoptive father’s face.
“Did they just say this kid belongs to Snart and Rory?”
Barry grimaced at Joe as Jason came out of the cell at the behest of the uniform. As soon as he was out, the little boy stood by Barry’s side and tugged on his hand.
“When my Daddy looks at me like that I usually just go to my room and get it over with,” Jason informed him.
Summary: Tim Drake can’t help it, he’s a sucker for mystery and there isn’t a mystery like Batman and Robin. There’s something taboo, forbidden and thrilling to hiding on rooftops for hours just to catch pictures of them in action -- pictures no one else has ever taken. These misadventures lead him to an odd acquaintance with a tire thief named Jay, who becomes an unexpected constant during Tim’s nighttime escapades.
When Jay disappears and no one will tell him where he’s gone, Tim figures it’s up to him to rescue his friend. But for some reason, amongst his investigations into the strange uprise of human disappearances around Gotham, Robin is there, preventing Tim from getting into too much trouble -- and trying to keep him away from his search for Jay.
The network of kidnappings only seems to keep getting bigger and bigger, until Tim finally turns his sights to the one percenters of the city, because Bruce Wayne is acting suspicious and Tim will find a connection to these human disappearances if it’s the last thing he does. After all, rarely are people ever what they seem, and in Gotham, rich money is always dirty.
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Excerpt From Chapter 2:
“I ripped him off.”
They’re sitting on a low rooftop sandwiched between two taller buildings. Beneath them, Tim can feel the pulsing of a nightclub, the beat thump-thumping through his thighs and into his chest. The sun is low in the sky but not yet fallen, though it’s well into the evening anyway due to the summer time hours.
“You ripped your broker off?” Tim asks. Their conversation is oddly quiet despite the loud music. Slow and almost emotionless. That’s fine by him. They’re both still digesting the day’s events. “I thought it’s supposed to be the other way around.”
“It is,” Jay says. “That’s why he’s pissed.”
“Oh.” Silence.
“Y’know, I wouldn’t of done it if he’d give them their fair cut,” Jay frowns. “What he’s doin’ isn’t right. The other kids’ll pick pockets and steal and bribe to get a handful of shiny things or whatever he’s callin’ for and he sends them off with barely half of what it’s worth and they can’t do nothing about it ‘cause he’s the only one in town. Only broker. So I lied ‘bout the tire. Carved in new tread, made it too thin on purpose so it wouldn’t last. Polished over the name, lied about the type. Ripped him off by a couple hundred bucks. He barely gives out hundreds to start, but he thought it was real nice.”
Tim nods.
“And then I threw a bottle bomb in his office. His favourite couch has a hole in it,” Jay finally smirks.
Tim doesn’t even mind. “And of course, I pepper-sprayed him and his buddy.”
“Of course.”
“Twice.”
Jay huffs a laugh. Another moment passes before Tim joins him with a small smile of his own.“Y’know,” he says, finally turning to Tim. “We make a pretty good team.”
“Yeah,” Tim admits shyly, looking down at the muddy toes of his sneakers dangling off the edge of the roof. “I guess we do.”
Tim ultimately decides that the day has been given enough thought and turns his attention to attempting to judge what song is playing based on the beat reverberating through his limbs. He thinks it might be a remix of Mama by David Guetta, not like that song doesn’t have enough remixes, when Jay speaks. Tim almost doesn’t hear him.
“You’re still lookin’ for Bat and brat, right?” he asks innocently. Tim turns to him in surprise.
“I--uh,” he stammers, embarrassed. “Yeah.”
“Cool. Lemme know if you catch ‘em.”
The comment is so absurd that Tim can’t help but hang his head and laugh at it. “I’m not trying to catch them. They’re not Pokemon.”
“They probably were in another life,” Jay shrugs. He’s trying to hide his mirth but Tim can see it in the quirk of his lips. “What are you tryin’ to do, then?”
Tim has to think about that for a moment. “Not sure,” he finally says. “I think I just want to know that I did it. That I figured out who they are. The biggest mystery in modern-day Gotham, solved by the little kid nobody thought anything of. Plus, they’re...kind of my role models. Robin is, anyway.”
A smirk. “You wanna find out who bird brains is so you can ask ‘im out?”
Tim elbows him. Jay winces for a split second, his ribs must be bruised, but he recovers before Tim can apologise. “No. I don’t know. Knowledge is power, I guess.”
Jay nods in understanding. “I get it.”
“You do?” Tim asks. “The people I know don’t. They’re all thinking about...other things. Social status and stuff. What people are posting on Instagram.” He pauses, not sure if Jay wants to hear more, but the boy doesn’t say anything, just looks at him blankly and Tim finds himself talking before he can think about monitoring what comes out. “Like, no one pays attention in my science class, but my teacher loves to talk and he’ll go on about anything, and last week he started talking about what Gotham was like when he was little. He’s really old. And no one was listening, but then he started talking about the abandoned Subway tunnels. So I looked it up, and you wouldn’t believe how big it is. It connects anything and everything and no one remembers it exists. But there’s these pictures on the Newtown construction page. It’s at the very bottom of this 90-something page paper about politics and rules and stuff, but it’s there, and I found it and printed it out and put it in the box under my bed.
“I like to learn more about anything I hear, no matter how useless people think it is, because you never know when you’re going to want it. Sometimes I’ll hear something and my first thought is, ‘That’s useful’, but I don’t know why it’s useful and I don’t know what I’d use it for,” Tim finishes. “But I keep a note of it anyway, just in case.”
Jay doesn’t say anything for another moment, just kicks his legs. “It’s not like that here,” he says finally. “I mean, yeah, what’s useful is a bit different, but… If you know these streets, you control these streets.” He looks at Tim, trying to see if Tim understands, and must see that Tim doesn’t because he tries elaborating. “Like Tommy. My broker you pepper-sprayed? He knows the street kids in these parts, and he’s all buddy-buddy with the gangs. He knows where to walk and where to not. He knows who to rip off and who to stay away from, so he can get money in all the right places and no one can stop him because then he puts a stop to them. Gangs don’t bother him because he knows enough secrets that he can hold it over them, make sure they don’t mess with him because he has something in his head they’re afraid of.
“It’s all about the secrets. A street looks like any other street, it’s what’s goin’ on behind the walls that you gotta worry about, that you gotta know, because if you have nothing to take from someone else, someone else is gonna take from you.” Jay nods to himself. “Yeah. Knowing too much is better than knowing nothin’ at all.”
It’s...comforting, hearing Jay say all of that. “There’s a lot I don’t know, though,” Tim says cautiously. “Like how the streets work. You’re the one with the street smarts. I’m just book smart.”
Jay cocks his head curiously. “Yeah? Don’t expect you to. You’re not from ‘round here.”
“Doesn’t mean I should be stupid about it.”
“What’s your point?”
“If I hang around long enough, you’ll teach me, right?” Tim asks. He knows he’s asking for a lot, but he doesn’t know whether or not it’s too much.
Jay frowns. “Teach you?”
“Yeah. Show me what it’s like here. Or at least, how to live here.”
That earns him an eyebrow raise. “You’re gonna have to actually live here for that. But…,” Jay continues before Tim can feel disheartened. “Sure. Hang around me. Shouldn’t be too bad. But I got rules.”
“Like?” Tim prods.
“Like, you gotta listen to what I say. If I say do something, you do it. Even if it seems weird. Also, I do all the talkin’. I can make you look like a rat, but anyone hear the way you talk and they’ll throw you to the wolves. You gotta learn how to not paint a target on your back.”
Tim nods slowly. “I have a rule, too.”
Jay’s eyes narrow. “Yeah?”
“No throwing either of us to the wolves,” he smiles. “You have my back, I have yours.”
Jay looks surprised, like that’s the last thing he expected to come out of Tim’s mouth. Oddly enough, that fills Tim with a sense of pride. He sticks his hand out. Jay looks at it like he can’t figure out what a hand is, and Tim feels a bit comical, but he’s nothing if not determined. He leans forward to whisper conspiratorially: “You’re supposed to shake it.”
Jay scowls and grabs his hand. Tim gives it a single, firm shake. “Then it’s official.”
“What is?”
“Our friendship.”
A sense of victory floods Tim when Jay’s mouth breaks out into a grin. “Whatever, Sherlock.”
They sit in companionable silence before a thought occurs to Tim. “If I’m Sherlock, are you Watson?”
