Part 3 for my series: Hopes for a Bastard!
Part 1 for Hopes for a Bastard: Give Me Back My Mind!
Part 2 for Hopes for a Bastard: Rock Meet Bottom
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I Do Not Own DC Comics, Movies/TV, or Animation
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A Cat and a Bird in a Tree…
It caught her eye because she was walking with Jason and Tim out of Rose's safe house and she paused seeing it.
Her Human Picture! ON THE FRONT PAGE!?
The headline also had her attention as she swiftly puled away from Jason as she jogged across te street, a horn blared with a furious shout but Raven was focused as she stopped before the tender and snatched up the paper.
Prodigal Son's Lover! -by Vicki Vale
Raven growled a bit as she furiously tore through the pages and found the article; 'Miss Roth', was the only name provided.
"Yo, little bird, what the hell!?" Jason said as jogged to join her.
"Did you know about this!?" she snapped shoving it at him, he blinked dumbly.
"Uh… No, and WHAT THE FUCK!?" Jason roared as he snatched it from her. "How the fuck…? Bruce."
"I'm going to kill him!" Raven snarled as she started towards the car. A hand caught her wrist and yanked her into a spin as she crashed into Jason's chest. There was a blarring horn with swearing roaring by and Raven frowned. "Ow," she muttered.
"Fucksake Queen, Watch Where The Hell You're Going!" Jason roared as he pulled her back. "Fuck, are you alright?" he demanded as he looked her over and she scowled.
"I'm human, not fragile," she stated coldly.
"Could have fooled me," Jason sighed, Raven frowned. Her mother, her teachers, the monks, and Azar had said that when she'd been human the first time.
"I just… I forget, I'm breakable right now," she admitted.
"Look, that's fine, what's not fine is you walking into traffic, now let's go before you manage to get stabbed by an icesickle," he snapped as he pulled her close and Raven sighed. This was not helping as they jogged across street to the car. Once they were hooked up Tim looked up the article and read it aloud to her and Jason. The drive to the Manor was not pleasant with the slew of swearing from Jason before he groaned and his head dropped to the wheel.
"Fuck Me!" he growled. "Fine! Fucking Fine! I QUIT!" Jason shouted as they pulled to the gates. He was out as he slammed the door with enough force to rock the car. Raven sighed as she looked over at Tim.
"Where's your father, right now?" she grounded out. It didn't take being an empath to know Jason was upset as he stalked off, clearly furious.
"Um… the cave?" Tim squeaked. Raven stalked out of the car as she strode through Manor. She used Jason's codes to the cave as she stalked into the darkness. She found the Bat at the computer, a napping baby in his arm as she slammed the tattered, wet paper down before him on the keyboard. Bruce looked at her with a look of mild annoyance then.
"You Had No Right," Raven grounded out coldly as she leaned over him. "None."
"He's my son," Bruce started.
"I'm not here about that, that's between you and Jason, but you had no right to put me in the middle of this," she snapped. "'Miss Roth, the elusive lover of the young, Jason Todd, was not avalible for a comment, and all that is known about her is her surname. It is believed they met on their travels.' You had no right to drag me into this!" she spat as she growled lowly.
"Raven, it was not…"
"No, I don't have a civilian identity for a reason, and you had no right to use my mother's surname without my permission to leak it to the press; especially a reporter who made me out to be Jason's illustrious lover," she coldly said.
The older man blinked, almost as if he were dumbfounded by this but Raven wasn't backing off this. She had never set up a civilian identity, and now someone would be digging for her. Raven shuddered to think what that could turn up since her mother had said she was in a cult. That meant Vicki Vale might upturn some Satanists Raven would rather not meet; ever.
"You do not have a civilian identity?" Bruce said as if this was just sinking in.
"None, and I didn't want one. Now thanks to you, there's a reporter who's going to go digging into your fictitious Miss Roth who might uncover a Satanist cult!" Raven snapped. "Which might lead this cult to me, and that isn't something I want, and I don't think you'd want it either."
"Raven, I did not mean to over step," Bruce started awkwardly.
"You over stepped!" Raven snapped. "I'm not your kid, I'm not a member of your family, and I'm a guest here by choice. You had no right to do this, not to me," Raven growled lowly. "But as you have, you might as well make me an identity and it'd better not be linked to that cult."
"I see," Bruce said. Raven just groaned as she rubbed her brow; she hated being human.
"What would you like your first name to be?" Bruce asked then.
Raven blinked at this question and her mind raced really fast. "What?"
"If you're having me build a civilian identity then you need a name, Miss Roth," Bruce said.
"Rachel," Raven blurted out. "Rachel Roth, my mother's name was Arella, and I'll call Victor and ask if he'd like to be my official adopted brother," Raven grounded out the last part and saw Bruce look slightly sheepish as she stood up. Good, maybe he'd think before acting next time.
Pulling out her phone she walked away a bit as she dialed Victor's number.
It rang twice.
"Hola! Rae!" Victor bellowed gleefully in her ear which had Raven wincing and softening.
"Hey Vic," she sighed hearing her brother's happy, loud voice. It was soothing to her.
"What's up?" he asked clearly happy to hear from her.
"I was wondering how you'd like to officially be my brother?" she said uncertainly. Yeah, she and Victor always claimed to be family; it was hard not to when Victor had loudly declared; after beating up Gar, that she was his little sister and not a piece of property. Yeah, fourteen wasn't a great age to try to date a hormone raging Beast Boy, who had more often times than not been a beast rather than a boy.
"Rae?"
"Kay, please don't come shoot anyone, but, Vicki Vale published an article, and a certain, obstinate, tunnel-visioned father, let my name leak; as Miss Roth, and now he's making me an identity." Raven explained. Enunciating her thoughts on Bruce pointedly enough she knew the elder Bat was hearing her.
"Oh shit," Vic sighed.
"Yeah, so… want it official?" she asked uncertainly.
"Of course, it was official already, Rae," Victor sounded amused.
"Once it's done you can't back out," she pointed out; desperately hoping he understood he'd be tied to her and her insanity for forever if they did this. It wasn't marriage or something, it was family.
"Rae, you've been my sis for nearly as long as I've known you, just get the damn papers and I'll make my records match," Victor declared.
"Okay," she said shakily. She never knew just quiet what to make of Victor's acceptance of her, it far exceeded what her friends and the people gave her; mostly because his was given in joy all the time. Even when he introduced her.
"So what's the name of my baby sis?" he asked.
"Rachel Roth," she answered.
"Well Rae, nice to officially have you, I always wanted a baby sis," he laughed, and she smiled.
"Really?" she asked skeptically.
"Definitely, I'll swing up there for the Wayne Gala; Dick invited me, and say hi to my sis then," Victor decided.
"Thanks."
"Hey, Rae," his tone was serious now.
"Hm?" she hummed.
"I love you girl," Victor stated. Raven didn't know why her eyes burned then, or why her heart felt tight but she felt the smile on her lips all the same.
"I love you too Vic," Raven replied softly.
"Talk to ya soon," he decided and she hummed in agreement as the call ended. She wasn't surprised when Bruce was making papers signing her and Victor up as siblings.
"Next time Bruce, ask," Raven snapped as he worked.
"Mmm," he hummed unhelpfully and Raven sighed as she stood up and walked away. Raven walked back up to the house and took a steadying breath as she focused on not losing her temper at the article.
"Lovers huh?" an amused voice spoke which had Raven's head whipping around to see Selina lounging on the window sill. For a woman who had just given birth she was dropping the weight remarkably quickly, Raven blinked though at the warmth on Selina's face.
"No, no, and no! Why does everyone think this!? He's a friend! And I don't date!" Raven stated firmly.
"No need to get angry, little bird," Selina chuckled. "And I know, Jay and I had this chat."
"You did?" Raven blinked.
"Of course, I wanted to talk with my favorite Robin about his girl," Selina chuckled. "And relax, I get what you two have and why it's so special. Though he is a good looking young man and one couldn't blame a girl for wanting him."
"Yeah, he is good looking," Raven conceded in amusement. But then all the Bats were good looking men, even Damian held promise to be as handsome as his father; clearly favoring his mother's coloring though.
"Good to know you're not blind," Selina mused.
"I do have four eyes," Raven pointed out and the Cat let out a throaty laugh.
"Oh, I see why he likes you so much now," the older woman mused.
"What exactly do you want?" Raven sighed tiredly.
"I just want to know the bird my Robin's befriended," Selina said.
"Why?"
Selina paused as she tilted her head a bit. "Why would I want to know you?"
"Yes, I'm not special or new, so why is this important?" Raven asked bluntly.
"Well, he didn't have friends before, and I don't think he's had many since," Selina said softly. "Growing up in Crime Alley, or the Bowery, it's not easy, to be a child, on your own on the streets, it makes you grow up fast, and it's lonely. I know he did not fit with his peers as a teen, though he tried. He worked hard to fit with his peers. He was a very studious boy, very serious about his education, and he loved to be alive. But beneath it all, he was alone, Dick was not a bg brother, and Bruce was trying, Alfred befriended him, and he had me, but he did not have friends. I don't believe he has many, if any now; outside of Constantine's group.
"But he has you now, and you two are very close for only knowing one another for a short while, I would like to know more about you. He is precious to me, he's family," Selina said calmly.
Raven bit her lip then and folded her arms as she thought this over.
"I like tea, want some and we'll talk?" she offered hesitantly. Few people ever actually wanted to just get to know her; Victor and Jason along with Tim, Dick and Kori were of the few. Selina softened then and smiled a bit.
"Tea is lovely," the Cat agreed as they walked for the kitchen. "Relax little bird, I'm not going to pounce you."
Raven pursed her lips. "I feel like I'm about to be interrogated."
"Nonsense," Selina dismissed. "I'm getting to know my Robin's friend."
"Why is he your Robin?" Raven asked as she reached up and pulled down the teapot.
"They're all mine," Selina said carefully. "But Jason, he was special, we're from the same part of Gotham."
"Really?" Raven asked.
"Yeah, I grew up two alleys down from where he set his box up," Selina nodded.
Diana, Donna, Cassie, Cass, Babs, Steph, and Kori were out soon after Tim, Raven and Jay had left, shopping again, which meant Dick had time to do his papers now. He had recently bought Haly's Circus to help them out, it was his family and home once, and in a way, it still was. Looking down at the numbers he scowled at the recent buying of this mess; he'd seen mob books cleaner and better kept than this. He looked up when his door was shoved open, there was a clicking of nails over the old wooden floors of the Manor. Damian stalked into the room with a determined look on his face which warned Dick he wouldn't be getting any more work done now. Sighing he put the papers aside.
"I was informed by Drake that you need to join our ranks," Damian stated.
"Damian?" Dick blinked; there were two reason Tim and Damian would team up together and both options made Dick shudder at the mere thought.
"This Rose Wilson must be eliminated," Damian stated clambering up onto the bed.
"Uh…" Dick blinked.
"We cannot permit her to continue her… relations with Jason! He is too stupid to stop!" Damian snapped. Dick sighed then, this again.
"Damian, we cannot control Jason, and messing with his life right now might drive him further away," Dick said patiently.
"He is being an idiot! He cannot be trusted with matters this important!" Damian stated.
"Dami," Dick sighed. "What are you trying to do?"
"Drake said we would require assistance, your assistance, in this matter," Damian explained this as if Dick were an invalid. Dick sighed, he should probably join whatever this was so Jason wasn't completely driven away from the family.
"What are you trying to do, exactly Damian, I'm not disposing of her body," Dick clarified. Knowing Damian and Tim teaming up that was a possibility, bodies might drop. He didn't want them to end up in a war.
"Drake said the same thing," Damian pouted a bit as he folded his arms and looked a bit cross at this. However, Dick didn't want there to be confusion with Damian on this matter. Also, he didn't know what Rose was to Jason, there was complications there that they didn't know about.
"We're not going to kill her Damian, and besides, what if she's someone to Jason? And you kill her? How do you think Jason would like that?" Dick asked to clarify the situation with Damian. He didn't want Damian to lose sight of what this could be. They didn't know anything about Jason, nothing, and Dick was coming to know this in the little amount of time Jason would allow them to spend with him. What Dick did know was that there were three important women to Jason at this moment, and one he tolerated. One, Raven, it was obvious, they were friends with how familiar they were. Two, Selina, not as obvious, but Jason seemed to look to Selina for something; he clearly respected her and as he did not respect many, if any. And three, Zed, an obvious pick, but it was very clear that Zed was someone Jason allowed to be close to him. Then there was Rose, and as far as Dick could decipher Rose was someone Jason tolerated; at most, but there might be something else there if they weren't careful.
"She is no more fit to being his than a snake," Damian muttered.
"Not the point," Dick countered. "So, Dami, what exactly is your plan here?"
"It should be obvious," Damian stated so matter-of-factly that Dick sighed. Yup, it was this again.
"Did you ever think that Jason and Raven don't want to date, or even be a couple?" Dick offered. He had some experience with that because of Barbara. When he'd been young, and stupid, he had tried to force something there, that wasn't there after the Joker. Or was it after her crush on Bruce was ousted? He didn't know, but he did know that forcing something that wasn't ready could kill things before it was ready.
"They are ridiculous," Damian dismissed.
Dick internally apologized a thousand times over to Jason and Raven for what he was about to do, mostly. "Fine, what are you doing?"
"Drake said I'd have to do more than a mistletoe," Damian muttered. Dick sighed; at least Damian wasn't actually making real plans with these two. It wouldn't do if there were real plans here.
"The mistletoe?" Dick sighed.
"It works in all the books," Damian said seriously.
"What books?"
"Kara's Harliquins," Damian answered. Dick felt like breathing a sigh of relief and facepalming all at once.
"First of all, this is nothing like the books, or movies," Dick sighed. Romance wasn't anything like in the books or movies, it wasn't some switch flipped. Yeah, he felt a lot when Kori had kissed him the first time, but he also hadn't felt something for her until they were older, a lot older. And sorting those feelings out had not been easy.
"Why not? Books never lie," Damian stated so innocently and seriously that he sighed.
"Little D, it's complicated," Dick said carefully. "But I'll help."
Internally he was apologizing profoundly to Jason and Raven for when and if they ever found out. It was more like when, because if he was honest Raven would find out. Raven always found out. Raven wasn't a fool, and she was rather good at ousting him and Tim in their antics. As for Jason, Jason had been a Robin and he wasn't stupid by any means.
"Good, so what more than a mistletoe do I need to do?" Damian asked earnestly.
"First we need to get them to notice the other," Dick sighed. He could not believe that he was in on this, now that he was agreeing. The damn things he did for his brothers. He'd have to figure out how to keep Jason and Raven from being ambushed, and he did not want them to find out this is what is going on.
Selina had never been particularly good at sharing the people she would come to consider hers. It had started with Bruce, when they were kids. That awkward, dorky, naïve kid, he was the first person she loved, truly loved, who wasn't her family. He was also the most awkward sucker ever, if some pedophile van pulled up to him on the street, and a pedophile offered him candy to get into the van, the kid just might take it without thought. Of course that was when Bruce was a sweet, innocent dork.
Bruce brought Alfred Pennyworth, and for a long while she and Alfred did not like one another, they had different points of view.
Then there'd been Dick, and then Jason, then there was Tim, Cass, Stephanie, well, one got the idea. Now there was Damian, Terry, and Helena with Bruce. There was Jason again, and with Jason had seemingly come this little bird with him, one that Dick, Tim, and Damian were all attached to. However, as Jason was both her favorite Robin, and the one she understood the most, she wanted to know just what about this little bird was so important. And appealing.
This little bird was interesting though. Raven sat across from her with her dark hair pulled back and dark eyes watching her with this look. Her features were arranged in this indifference, but those dark eyes of hers were watching everything with this sharp calculation.
"So, what do you wish to discuss first?" Raven asked setting a tea before Selina. Selina's lips curled upwards then. This little bird was not one for beating around the bush.
"Not going to do the small talk, are we kid?" Selina chuckled.
"I don't like small talk." The moment Raven said that Selina chuckled, oh, this could be fun.
"Alright, I've heard you're a demon, is that true?" Selina asked. Yes, she'd seen the news, knew all about Trigon the terrible, but she was curious if it was actually true.
Raven blinked and there were four glowing red eyes on her face now. "You tell me."
"You look human enough."
"I know," Raven blinked and she had two eyes again. "My lack of powers does not change my physiology, I am a demon."
"Neat," Selina mused leaning back in her seat.
"So how'd you and Bruce meet?" Raven asked.
"I saw his parents get killed, then Gordon thought I would be safe hidden here," Selina shrugged. "He was a dork, the biggest dork, ever," Selina smirked.
"Really?" Raven blinked in disbelief.
"Oh yes, he was the biggest dork," Selina snickered.
"Now that is interesting to know," Raven looked devious then.
"Oh, I got all the dirt on Bruce, and Dick, and Jason, and Tim, and I'm getting the dirt on Damian," Selina purred.
"Oh, dirt, I love dirt, I got dirt on all the boys too," Raven mused with a grin which made her worthy of her demon heritage.
"I like you, little bird," Selina chuckled. "Did Jason really steal you mind?"
"Yes he did, the ass stole my mind, and my book, pretty sure he did Red X because of you," Raven sighed.
"Possibly," Selina admitted. She would admit to discussing the thrill of being a thief, of deceiving people as they ran. As a kid from Crime Alley, that was her ultimate thrill, Jason had possessed the same thrill at one point, and it was what had attracted him to the Batmobile.
"Alright, makes sense," Raven conceded. "So, did Jason really steal the Batmobile's wheels?"
"He got three of them, he only got caught because he went back for four," Selina chuckled.
"Impressive," Raven nodded as she sipped her tea.
"How'd you meet Dick?" Selina asked. She had never really heard the real story about how Dick had met Raven, just that he had found an adorable little twelve year old demon.
"I unintentionally dream walked him, and then tracked him down," Raven shrugged. Selina mulled this over as she sipped her tea. The world had kind of gone to shit when the Waynes had died, and weird things happened because of that death. People with powers, aliens, and all that had started in Gotham before it had gotten worldwide.
"Alright, that was a new one," Selina conceded. "Impressive and interesting though."
"Now, dirt on Bruce, what was the nuttiest thing you caught him doing?" Raven asked.
"He was about to be murdered by a religious cult," Selina said. Raven blinked.
"And here I thought I was the only one screwy religious cults went after," Raven admitted. Selina chuckled at that.
"No, far from it," Selina admitted.
"Interesting," Raven mused.
"So, where are you really from?"
"A dimension between the multiverse, called Azarath, and before you ask what happened to it, I unintentionally destroyed it when I was nine years old and I felt every life I took as they died," the woman said sadly.
"Taking life is never easy, the first man I killed was to protect Bruce, at night, I see his face," Selina admitted.
"I feel them, all of them, their dying hopes, their pain, the suffering," Raven murmured.
"It's not easy," Selina said softly.
"So, what was the best thing you ever stole?" Raven asked.
"Ooo, very personal," Selina chuckled. "My first diamond from Gotham Natural History Museum, damn Bats got it though."
"That sucks," the little bird said with a hint of laughter.
"So typical Bruce though, why I didn't notice it before I don't know," Selina chuckled.
"It's the ones we love the most we're blind to," Raven shrugged.
"That's oddly cryptic," Selina observed.
The girl just shrugged as she sipped her tea. "Azar and my mother said it, a lot, I never understood it's meaning."
"You understand it now?" Selina asked.
"Nope." Raven shook her head. "Honestly it still makes zero sense."
"Yet you say it?"
"I hope it'll make sense, eventually," Raven shrugged.
Jason had hidden out after returning from Rose's, he didn't want to deal with Bruce. Which was why he wince waking up when there was a glare in his eye. Opening his eye, he peeked out the east library window, the sunrise. Jason winced as he rubbed his eyes, fan-fucking-tastic, another morning. He didn't even remember falling asleep. Stretching out he winced at how sore his legs and back were, his shoulders were tense too as finally stood up from his hide hole. Rolling his shoulders, he looked around as he walked out of the room, shoving his hands into the sweats he remembered changing into because he felt stiff and confined.
Grumbling a bit, he walked down the stairs as he ran his fingers through his hair.
Alright, his first order of business was to see if Rose's intel was legit or not. Then maybe he should talk to Bruce about this being alive shit; he didn't want to deal with Bruce, or Dick or this false cheer they'd have about him being alive and here. Goddamn it! When had his life gotten so fucking complicated!? Admittedly, that might have started when he had clawed his way out of his grave.
He paused at the door when there was a knock. Instinct had him pulling the door open, before thoughts and actions could connect to what he was doing he found himself tensing as his world froze.
Everything in him screamed, and tensed as he found himself staring at those eyes. The very eyes that haunted many of his nightmares.
That sapphire blue, and that gold curly hair. Her high, sharp cheekbones, that full bottom lip, her brows, and that dented chin.
"Jason!" she smiled.
"B!" the cry tore out of his throat as he pulled away from the door, she stepped forward, and he curled in on himself. He felt like a kid again, scared, confused, and everything was shaking in him.
"Jason, I," the woman reached for him.
"B!" he shouted as he scrambled away from them as he tripped over something, there was a scream but Jason scrambled back from her.
"Jason, I," she started. She bent over, he snatched up the kid he had tripped over she was reaching for as he scooted away from her.
"B!" he screamed as he curled in on himself pulling the kid into his chest as he tried to hide from her.
"What is the meaning of this?" a smoky monotone snapped through the chaos, a set of legs were between him and the nightmare. He grabbed the material on her leg as he scooted behind her.
"Raven, Jason," Bruce's voice cut through terror he felt and Jason tightened his hold on the material in his hand.
"Bruce… I," the woman started. There was a cry in his arm.
"Come on," steady hands touched his arm and Jason grabbed them, the terror he felt at this moment as he stared at the gold hair and blue eyes was paralyzing him.
Bruce glanced over at Jason who's own obvious terror was something he had never witnessed, even when Jason had been Robin Jason was fearless. Now though, the young man was curled up in terror.
"Get him out," Bruce said to Raven. Raven was helping Jason, but the young man was obviously terrified for reasons he didn't know. He watched until Jason, Terry, and Raven were out, Alfred and Selina appeared. Alfred helping Raven with Jason as Selina walked in.
"What is going on?" Selina demanded.
"That's what I'd like to know," Bruce growled as he turned back to the only person he ever regretted saving. Shelia Haywood. He had found her, Jason's dead body clinging to her, protecting her, because that's what Jason did best. He saved people, protected, even in his death it was fitting. Jason had died saving Shelia, and that was the only reason Bruce hadn't left the biological mother of his son die where she lay in the rubble and ruin.
"Bruce, I," the woman started.
"I told you to never come here again, or near my children," he snarled.
"I came here to see my son!" she snapped harshly.
"Your Son?" Selina growled. Bruce saw the Cat bristling in her, there was that glint of fury in her green eyes which had him grabbing her arm before she lunged for Shelia. "HE WAS TERRIFIED TO SEE YOU! WHAT SORT OF MOTHER TERRIFIES HER OWN CHILD!?"
"Selina," he murmured to keep her from lunging.
"I'm cool, I'm cool," Selina said pulling away from him.
"I doubt I terrify him, more like this lunatic who turned him into Robin," Shelia shouted. now Bruce's eye twitched. Of all his children Jason had actually wanted Robin, believed in Robin, and not like Tim, Dick, or even Damian. Jason had believed in what Robin could be or do, Robin was his magic as a child.
"ENOUGH!" Bruce roared. As he glared down at Shelia, Selina looked livid right now. "I told you, I never wanted to see you."
"I didn't get my son killed," Shelia growled.
"He's Not Your—!" Selina started, Bruce caught her waist when she was stalking forward about to commit murder apparently. He'd seen that look in her eye before and it never ended well for the person on the other end of that look. He remembered when Selina had been a girl she had looks like that before she did terrifying things; though then they were terrifying at the time he saw she was just protective now. What was hers was hers.
"Selina go check Helena," Bruce ordered as he swung her around and pointed her in the direction to their nursery. "And you're coming with me," he grabbed Shelia and dragged her with him as he pulled her towards the study.
Shelia gasped. "I AM HERE TO SEE MY SON!"
"You're not going near MY Son until he wants to see you!" Bruce snarled. "Before That We're Going To Talk."
Hello!
Yeah, I'm not dead. I moved again, and I got a new puppy, plus work, and a lot of other shit was going on. However, I'm alive! I hope to be regularly writing again, in all my other works.
Until then, next update should be sometime next week.
That's all for now folks.
Enjoy Holiday Express Shipping! =)