Knock knock knock.
Jason groaned, pulling a pillow over his head.
Knock knock knock.
He wanted to ignore it so badly, wanted to get a little sleep and just believe that it was only the summer rain that was pounding down upon his window. Though if there was one thing that always got the best of Jason Todd, it was paranoia.
Knock knock knock.
He struggled to get up off the well-worn couch, knocking over a couple of empty beer cans in an attempt to find his gun. Not finding it, he decided that whoever was enough of an idiot to come knocking at his window at three in the morning during a rainstorm could simply take the blunt side of the dust pan he had just tripped over, and be done with it. Satisfied with his ingenious means of weaponization, Jason sluggishly moved across the creaking hardwood, stumbling to the window. He fumbled for a second before pushing it open, and peered out.
A boy about thirteen stared back at him through opaque white lenses. He was kneeling, half on the window ledge, half in the small flowerbox that had been precariously attached to the building's brick some time before. His cape was the only thing distinguishing him from the gloomy ether, a bright yellow flash across the fog.
Not to mention that he had somehow reached a window that was five stories off the ground, which was an impressive feat in itself.
If Jason was the type to be impressed, of course.
"Moonlighting as a janitor Jay?" Jason chucked the dustpan at the boy, which he dodged by a wide margin. Somewhere in the alleyway below, there was a shattering of plastic as it hit the ground.
"Don't answer that then. Let me come in?" Robin squinted against the rain, hand gripping at the peeling paint of the sill.
"No." Jason responded mildly, slamming window down hard enough to take off a finger or two. He could see Robin wince at the scrape of the rusty lock as it fit into place, and his mouth quirked up in an odd sort of smile.
He returned to his place back in the folds of the sagging brown sofa. He was about to get comfortable when Little Red himself stormed into the room, full of righteous, prissy fury.
"What the hell was that noise?" Roy grumbled, running his fingers though his hair. " Sounded like you were herding a pack of hyenas in here or something."
Grunting in response, Jason sank deeper into the couch, letting the roaming hands of sleep take hold. He was just so damn tired. Gotham could turn the most mild mannered person into a paranoid lunatic of the night, and if anything Jason Todd- former Robin, former dead guy, former worthwhile human being- was not the most mild mannered to begin with.
Long story short, all Jason wanted from anyone right now was some peace and fucking quiet and a deadbolt or two on his door.
Not like that was going to happen, with Pippy Longstocking over there shouting in his ear.
"Hold on." Roy staggered to the window. "Cut the crap for a second." He screwed up his eyes, trying to see through the heavy mist. "There's someone outside. A kid, I think."
" Don't strain your brain there, Harper." Jason muttered under his breath, feeling across the sofa for a blanket. Hand making contact with something vaguely scratchy and purple, he drew it over himself and promptly attempted to make like a coma patient.
"Why is there a kid squatting in your flowerbox, Todd? Todd! Jay!" Roy growled, fidgeting with the ancient window lock.
Jason snorted into the couch cushion. "For the last time, that's Kori's garden. Remember when she said she would bust a cap in the unlucky ass of whoever touched her hydrangeas?"
"She never- look, that's not what I'm really caring about right now." Fine gritty dust was starting to kick across the window sill, staining Roy's hands and forearms a murky red. He didn't seem to notice it.
"What else is there to care about?"
"What else is there to care about?" Roy spluttered in disbelief. " How about the kid. Sitting. In the flowerbox. Outside. Our window!
"What?" Jason cracked an eye open, within it the light of mock recognition. The strange smile from before had returned to his face. "Pssh. That's the Bat's new little baby bird. He probably sent him to spy us or some shit. Learn our secrets. Don't let him in."
Finally, the lock gave way, breaking in Roy's hand. "We don't have any se- wait, what? You left Robin out there? Damn it!" He threw the window open wide, fuming as he was greeted by the sight of a drenched sidekick in black and red spandex. Robin smiled weakly back, giving a little wave.
"Get your ass in here." Roy hissed. "Now!"
Robin scampered inside, flinging himself neatly on the threadbare rug. Though he desperately tried to hide it, Jason could tell he was shivering violently. "Dude, why are you yelling at me?" Robin shook the water from his hair, spraying it across the floor. "I'm the one that's nesting in the rain out there."
"Ha ha. Bird joke. Funny." Jason called from somewhere deep within the sofa. Roy had, not even for the first time that day, the incredible urge to smack him.
"And you! How could you just lock your friend… acquaintance… brother person outside like that? What do you have to say for yourself!" Roy strode over to Jason, ripping his beautiful blanket-esque … thing from him. He threw it at Robin, who reluctantly wound it around his thin frame.
"Alright Harper," Jason announced with the finality usually reserved for doctors and theme park attendants. "You have awakened the sleeping giant. The big, scary, hairy, sleeping giant."
"Of Doom and Dairy." Both Roy and Jason gave a curious glance in Robin's direction, to which he could only shrug. " Hey, it rhymes."
Jason gave out a bark of a laugh. " There may be hope for you yet, Tweety."
"Sometimes I wonder why I even joined this team." Roy mumbled, putting his head in his hands.
"Get off your high horse Harper, before someone pushes you off."
"Screw you man. You know why I-"
"Why is there a child in my towel? And why are his boots suspiciously covered in the petals of hydrangeas?" Craning his neck, Jason peered over the edge of the couch to spy a very tall, very pissed off girl come thundering into the room. The edges of her hair crackled and popped as flame overtook the strands, and beams of energy snapped around her hands.
Robin shrank back, mask lens widening. "Oh, uh, this is your towel? Jason was, uh, using it as a blanket and… Sorry!" He thrust the offensive towel towards the girl, who snatched it from his grasp.
"Hey Kori? Sweetie Butter Dumpling Princess? Mind turning off the laser light show? Some people are trying to sleep here." Jason said, shielding his eyes.
"Oh. My apologies." Kori said rather unapologetically. Her flaming hair faded into a slightly more normal flaming red, and the sparks from her hands died. She regarded the small boy in front of her with mild interest for a moment, before gently draping the towel back around his shoulders. "And here. You may have this for the time being. It is of no use to me as of right now, and you look like you could use it more than I anyway."
Roy murmured after a certain tense silence. "We'll buy you some new flowers Kori. I guess."
"With what money?" Jason coughed out his odd barking laugh. "As I recall, between the three of us we have a used gum wrapper, half a chilidog, and an assload of people who want us dead." He sat up, leaning against the worn armrest. "And I guess we got this sinkhole of a two-bedroom, if that counts for anything. Which it really doesn't, I might add."
"And me too." Robin piped up, overly cheerful.
The other three turn slowly to stare at him. "What?" The word came out of Roy's mouth short and flat.
" That's kind of why I came to find you guys. I was hoping that I could maybe… stay a few nights?" The grin Robin cracked was pearly white and showed all his teeth.
"No. Way." Roy spit out. "You are not staying here."
"Why not?"
"Why not? Because this isn't just some little sleepover party house Robin; we're doing actual work here and-"
"Now hold on for one quick second." Leaning forward, Jason put his elbows on his knees and cradled his face in his hands with mock interest. " This is Red Hood and the Outlaws, not Red Head and the Outlaws. My team, my decision whether or not we kick baby bird here out of our little abode."
"But you were ready to leave him to rot five minutes ago!"
"Hush Roy." Kori chided. His mouth settled into a frown, but he said no more. She nodded at Jason to continue.
"What I want to know though," He said, a gleam in his eye. "Is why you want to be here at all? You're the Bat's little golden boy. He's probably out there right now, up in his comfy Batmobile, mowing down pedestrians and scouring the streets-"
"He kicked me out." Robin interrupted, eyes not leaving Jason's. " Put one of the cars on autopilot to drive me to the summer house in Bludhaven. He said he was going to come later to deal with me. I hacked the system and escaped."
"What? No fucking way!" Roy shouted, clenching his fists. "That's… That's…"
"Why?" Kori's eyebrows creased together.
Holding up his hands for silence, Jason leaned back. Looks like Mr. Sandman would have to wait after all. "Well then, Tweety. Welcome to the home for wayward Robins."
A/N: I know that Dick comes before Jason in the Robin line. I know that. I just felt like screwing with continuity becuase... this is my party and I'll do what I want to. (Terrible reason I know, but there have been worse)(No there haven't).
Not to mention that YJ plus Red Hood and his Outlaws equals sparkle rainbows of amazing.
So, a comic canon note for those not famililar with Jay: Red Hood aka Jason Todd was Batman's second Robin. He was almost universally hated by comic fans though, so they had Joker kill him with a crowbar. Batman considered his death one of his greatest failings, and basically sat around his house for a month, swilling brandy and crying manly Bat tears in the dark. Then, to make a weird story short, Superboy Prime punched time itself in the face, bringing Jason back to life. After being a zombie for a while, he was thrown into the Lazarus Pit, which brings people back from the dead, but makes them crazy. Once fully restored, Jason was- understandbly- pissed that Batman hadn't avenged his death, or even seemed to care anymore really, which was only because Jason had the misfortune of missing Batman's Blue Period. So then Jason dons the mask of Red Hood, to fight crime via killing a lot of dudes and shooting a lot of firearms. Also, he too occasionally has manly cries about how Bruce doesn't love him, and generally carries a huge chip on his shoulder at all times.
Launched back in September, Red Hood and the Outlaws stars Jaybird, Roy, and Kori aka Starfire of the Teen Titans. Because I don't really like how she is potrayed in that book, I'm basically taking bits and pieces of cartoon, old canon, and new canon Kory/ Kori to make up this one.
Review please.