To the New Status Quo
Learn (Sapphire Roz)
Timeline: After 'Titans' and before 'Unison'
"Watch and learn, Roy," Jason said. He reached out and took Starfire's hand.
"'Yet in these thoughts my self almost despising,
Haply I think on thee, and then my state,
Like to the lark at break of day arising
From sullen earth, sings hymns at heaven's gate;
For thy sweet love remembered such wealth brings
That then I scorn to change my state with kings.'"
"You make that up yourself?" Roy commented, rolling his eyes as Starfire giggled.
"That's Shakespeare, Sonnet 29," Jason said, mostly to Roy. To Starfire he said, "I think it fits quite well with a beautiful, loving woman such as yourself. You're like the sun and I, a bird."
Starfire giggled.
"I must say, it is lovely to see you again," she said as Jason smiled earnestly back. "Although I wish it was under better circumstances." The smile vanished.
"Don't ruin the mood like that," he sighed, letting her go. "I wanted to show Roy how to whoo a girl, not talk about... what happened with Dick."
"I'm not going to quote Shakespeare, Jaybird," Roy pointed out. He didn't think anyone would be able to do that without sounding like a dork, except Jason. The teenager had a gift for quoting 'fine literature' like it was the most natural thing in the world.
"It is not good for you to hide your feelings like this," Starfire said, running a warm hand through Jason's hair. "We all miss him but the best way to remember him is to acknowledge what he has left. To not 'sweep it under the rug'... that is the correct use of that phrase?"
Roy nodded that it was. Jason frowned and crossed his arms.
"He's not dead and I'm tired of acting like he is," he declared. "I believe Nightwing is alive."
Starfire smiled and looked between Jason and Roy.
"Then," she said, her teeth almost blinding white with cheekiness, "should we not get started in locating him?"
Love (Sapphire Roz)
Jason was always a fool when he was in love. It didn't happen often but when it did, he made everyone around him want to groan with his antics.
There was the girl in high school and, thankfully, only Bruce and Alfred had been tortured by his mushiness.
There was the girl after high school and this time, Jason made Tim want to bust his eardrums so he couldn't hear him gush.
Then there was the girl he had to break up with. Her name was Isabelle. She was blond and, even though it had only been a few dates, Jason was extremely fond of her.
"I'm sorry," he said, holding her hands and holding back tears. "But, with my family the way it is... there's no time for us." He felt bad because he could see that she was trying to hold back tears. "I cannot lead you into a relationship where you'll never get to see me."
"So you're going to end it?" she questioned in a soft voice.
"I want you to be free to love the next lucky guy to come along," Jason said with a sad smile.
Isabelle left and Jason sighed, pouting a little with his head resting on his arms as he sat at the table alone. He had really liked her. She had reminded him of the woman who raised him, during some of her more lucid and loving moments.
"Don't worry, I'm sure you'll find someone better!" Jason glared at Dick, who had slipped into the chair across from him.
"And I'm sure it's not you. Go away," he grumbled at Dick.
"You're always grumpy after breaking up with a girl," Tim commented as he pulled up the chair from the table he had been sitting at.
In almost a mirror of Tim's motion, Damian also pulled up a chair.
"-tt- You shouldn't have broken up with her because of us."
"It's not just that," Jason defended.
"I hope not," Dick said with a frown.
"Well, at least we don't have to hear you spouting poetry or whatever you called those noises you would make while on the phone with her," Damian commented again.
Dick and Tim glared at the kid. Jason, who had been feeling down moments before, suppressed a laugh. He supposed Damian was a kid in some ways.
"Still in the 'all girls have cooties' stage? You'll change your mind later."
"Doubtful," Damian responded with a small frown.
Mamma Cat (Ki-Chan Riker)
It was a pitiful noise and Damian almost ignored it. Almost.
Instead, he trudged down the alleyway. He was alert, just in case it was a trap.
The noise sounded again and Damian noticed that it wasn't one big noise but a lot of little ones. He crept towards them.
A round, fluffy, dark cat was curled around three small balls of fur that were kittens. Damian crouched, watching as the mother cat licked the kittens clean. He thought the mother cat must love the babies, to provide them with warmth and attention.
Little kittens didn't have to do anything to be loved. He held out a hand, expecting the mother cat to deem him a threat and claw at him. The mamma cat looked at the hand and then to him with large dark eyes. Then she looked back at the hand and bumped her head against it.
Damian's eyes widened as he felt the soft texture of the cat. He moved his hand so he was petting it. He ignored the sprouting happiness in his chest, unwilling to acknowledge the feeling and ruin the moment.
Then his comm. crackled to life, ruining the moment.
Avoidance (CaraLee)
Dick didn't want to talk about it. He didn't want to hear it. So he used every trick in the book. He changed the subject and brushed the comments aside with weak acknowledgements, but never promises. When he was desperate, he would even make the person talking to him angry.
"Fine! Be that way, you...!" Jason bellowed as he stormed up the stairs. "I just thought you should pull your head out of the clouds and maybe, just maybe, let everyone know you're okay!"
"Why would I want to do that?" Dick questioned back. "I don't even know who 'everyone' is! And, you know what, I don't care!"
Damian flinched at the sound of slamming doors. Jason's door slammed shut moments before the front door slammed. He wandered out to see an empty hall.
"Ignore them," Alfred advised. "After all, you're not the only person in this house who lets his temper get the best of him."
"-tt-, like I care. If they kill each other, then my path to my father's legacy will be clear."
Cereal (Jaytodd2012)
Dick decided he didn't like being cornered by Alfred. The butler had grabbed him after coming back from patrol, when he was tired and less willing to fight.
"You need to watch how you act around Damian," Alfred scolded. "While I will not force you to meet with people you don't wish too, you need to stop dismissing others' feelings."
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Dick responded honestly.
"You need to understand, Master Dick, you were a very well-liked person. Wherever you went, you made friends. Now, those same friends missed you terribly when you vanished. They all but mourned you. Some did mourn you." Dick opened his mouth to ask what this had to do with his previous comment and Alfred silenced him with a single look. "They care about you. They're not going to stop just because you claim to not to. Which I will request you cease saying. Children pick up things when they're young and they can't always tell when people are lying, especially when they're trying to lie to themselves.
"He might not realise it, but Young Master Damian does look up to you. If you say you don't care, then he will grow to not care."
It took a while for the butler's talk to click. Dick didn't realise what he meant until he saw Damian grab a box of cereal and reach in to grab some of the flakes with his hand. He munched on those while he filled with bowl with more flakes and then added milk.
It was a routine Dick had performed minutes earlier.
Books (Sapphire Roz)
Jason's main apartment had a room with three (filled!) bookcases, a desk, chair and wooden chess table with matching chairs. His brothers called it the 'library'. Jason insisted that it was all cover for the secret door hidden behind one of the bookshelves but the rest of the family didn't agree.
Of course, Tim had denied building his new apartment above an abandoned movie theatre because of his love of movies. So Jason denied having a room filled with books because he liked books.
"Look, it's not just filled with books," Jason pointed out, explaining that it was a 'study' and not a library. "There's a desk there," it looked like an antique too, probably a gift from Alfred, "and I've got a corkboard over there." Jason pointed at the object in question which was filled with photos from Jason's teenage years. There was one of him and Dick, from when they went skiing. A photo of him and Bruce, taken the night he went to prom. There was a photo taken secretly by Alfred one of the times Roy and Kori came around and Jason decided to cook for them. Roy had sauce smeared over his face and Kori was laughing while Jason was pointing the spoon at Roy's face and scolding him.
There was a photo Jason had taken with a few of his old high school friends, two of them worked for Wayne Enterprises and the other had moved to Central. The photo had been taken before the third had left and Jason was smirking into the camera with his friends gathered around him.
There were photos of him and Tim and even one of him and Damian, although that was another secretly-taken-by-Alfred shot.
Photos collaged the board.
"See? Not just a library," Jason proudly declared.
Happy (Sapphire Roz)
Stephanie woke up in a large warm bed. Again, after a late patrol, she had crashed at the manor.
Jason should never had shown her up here. She was never going to want to leave. It was so warm and she could smell breakfast.
Her eyes snapped opened.
"Mornin' Fatgirl," Damian sneered around a piece of toast. She jolted up.
"I didn't fall asleep in your room, did I?" she asked in horror.
Damian sneered at her like she was stupid.
"-tt- No. This is the guest room. Pennyworth told me to wake you up for breakfast."
"Breakfast?" Steph questioned, perking up at the mention of food.
Damian nodded.
"You should go for the salad, Fatgirl," he said. She didn't care about the name. Her stomach was growling so she jumped out of bed and dashed down the hall.
"Whoa!" Dick said, looking up from his computer tablet and jumping back as she ran past.
"Sorry, Dick!" she said as he shook his head. Smirking, she slid down the stairs and dashing into the kitchen to see the spread of food the boys were probably only going to pick at.
"Ah, Miss Stephanie. I see Damian did as requested."
"Yep," Steph responded with a nod. "You cook all this?"
"Feel free to have as much as you like," Alfred told her. "I'm afraid Richard doesn't eat much these days."
"His loss," Steph responded, sitting down. "It's great Alfred! Thanks!"
