Disclaimer – I own nothing.
AN – Hello everyone! I am still alive and have returned with an AU of season 3! Sorry for the really long wait. I have been very busy with finishing my Christmas job, finishing my online schooling, getting two new jobs, moving and starting another year at college (in person this time). I did want to wait until I finished this story before I started posting, but I felt bad about not posting anything new in so long! So, I thought I would at least post the first chapter, and maybe that will help motivate me to get this one done faster. I make no promises though.
Now, I actually didn't mind a lot of what happened in season 3. I thought it was one of the better seasons, or at least, way better than season 2. So this story is going to be a bit different than the other AUs I have written. There will be parts that I will not be going over because they are going to stay the same as they were in the TV show. I will let you guys know in the notes in each chapter what is staying the same as we reach those parts. I hope you all like the story!
Enjoy!
Dick watched in the shadows as Kory finished talking with the reporters. It was a bit weird, having the Titans being in the public eye like this. When he was Robin, working alongside Batman, they were always in the shadow. Even the Gotham police were lucky to see them, aside from Commissioner Gordon that is. Bruce believed it was better to fight unseen however, that came with a lot of rumors about them. It made people skeptical about what kind of people they were, whether or not they were actually doing any good. It also made some innocent civilians scared of them.
The Titans were supposed to be different. By being out in public, most of the fear and skepticism in the city was gone. The people of San Francisco not only knew their 'hero' names, they got to see their personalities, got to see who they truly were. And the people and press loved it. But Dick still wasn't a big fan of being in the press personally. He had had enough of dealing with reporters and media back when he was kid after his parents' death and his adoption by Bruce.
Seeing the reporters leaving now, he took a step in Kory's direction, but stopped when he heard her voice. She must be talking to someone on her comm-link. Whenever they go on patrol, they have their phones linked to their comms so they won't miss any calls. So Dick turned his attention over to Gar and Conner, wanting to see how they were doing.
It worried the Titans' leader a little, the teenagers receiving so much attention. Unlike him, they didn't wear masks. It wouldn't be hard for someone to recognize them outside of the suit. Not that they wore suits either. They were still working on one that would let Gar shapeshift without wrecking his clothes, and Conner didn't want a suit at all. He was perfectly content with his black and red Superman shirt. And while Kory also didn't wear a mask, she had a suit for patrol, and it seemed enough to keep people from recognizing her as Kory Anders. It was the same way with Donna actually.
Immediately pushing down the stab of grief at the memory of one of his best friends, he slid through the shadows towards Kory, having noticed that she was done with her phone call. Coming up behind her, grinning, he said, "Nice work back there. The reporters loved you."
"Yeah, especially when you love them back," the redhead retorted with a pointed look that made Dick's smile a little wider.
"Batman and I never waited around for the whole press back in Gotham," he explained.
"Maybe that's why all the press was so bad," she responded.
Even though she was somewhat chastising him, Dick chuckled and nodded. "Maybe."
Before he could say anything more though, there was a quiet ring on his commlink. He was getting a call. He brought up his hand to answered it, a sudden uneasy feeling slipping into his body. Everyone who normally used the comm-links to contact him was here. He barely had time to greet the person when he recognized the elderly British voice on the other end. He knew right then that something was indeed very wrong, but he never could've predicted the words that Alfred then said.
Kory watched in silence as Dick answered the call. They hadn't ever gotten calls on their commlinks on patrol that weren't from their teammates before. This was the first time, for both of them. But while Justin was just calling to basically say 'hi' and confirm it was her that he had just seen on TV, the person calling Dick obviously had something important to tell him. As Dick listened to the person speaking on his comm, his expression, happy and lighthearted only seconds ago, turned serious. Then, he turned white and his face became filled with horror.
"I'll be there as soon as I can," Dick told the person, then turned his comm off and turned to leave, not even glancing at Kory.
Before he could actually move though, she grabbed his arm and said, "Hey, stop for a minute. What's going on?"
Dick looked around, making sure that they were completely alone before he spoke. "That was Alfred. Robin apparently, went on patrol alone. Went to try and capture the Joker, and um…"
He didn't finish the sentence. He didn't need to. She could read the grief in his eyes. Hear what he was trying to say, but struggling to process.
"Oh my G*d," Kory mumbled, struggling to comprehend the news herself.
"I have to go to Gotham," Dick then added and Kory let go of his arm.
"Go. I'll deal with the boys," she replied.
"Thank you. I'll call when I can."
Between one blink and the next, he was gone. Kory was alone, with Gar and Conner somewhere in the building. She needed to get them home. Then, she would have to tell them that their friend and former teammate, Jason Todd, was dead.
2018TITANS2018
The drive to Gotham was long. It was almost noon by the time the Welcome to Gotham sign appeared on the side of the road. Dick barely acknowledged it though. His mind and body were on autopilot. He hadn't stopped at all since he got the news. He had rushed to the Tower, changed, packed a small bag, hopped into a car and drove off. He didn't even need to stop for gas, having filled the tank just yesterday. Still, it felt too long and too short of a trip all at the same time.
As he made his way into the city, Dick saw that they news was everywhere. All the newspaper headlines, the captions on every news screens all read 'Robin is Dead. Joker in Arkham'. There was no mention of Jason Todd's death though. Did Bruce even announce that yet? Maybe he was waiting a little so no one will connect Jason to Robin. There had been a few people over the years who had suspected Bruce Wayne was Batman. Bruce would want to avoid the possibility of someone putting it together at all costs. Especially now that Jason had been killed while out as Robin. Still, Dick felt a surge of fury rise up inside of him. All of these people caring about Robin, but no one thinking about Jason. About the person actually wearing the mask and suit. Why wasn't anyone caring about him?
Dick's vision started to blur a little as his eyes became filled with tears. He cared, but did Jason know that? Had he at all made it clear to him that Dick did love him? Had thought of him like a brother?
During those few months when Jason was with the Titans, Dick was still trying to figure out his footing. Trying to train and teach these kids while not being overbearing. Trying to figure out who he was now that he wasn't Robin. He had gotten to know his successor better in that time, but there had still been some tension between them that only got worse when Deathstroke came back. After that whole situation, Jason went back to Gotham. At the time, Dick thought it was for the best. They all needed time to process and heal from everything that happened, and if Jason needed to be in Gotham to do that, then okay. He had tried to stay in touch, but it was obvious that Jason needed space, so Dick gave it. Dick hadn't spoken to him in three months. Now, he never would again.
Blinking the tears away, Dick took a deep breath and made the turn towards Wayne Manor. Towards his old home, and the two men he knew were indeed grieving Jason Peter Todd, just like he was.
2018TITANS2018
Gar knew something was going on. After taking down the thieves trying to steal the strain of Ebola, they continued to patrol for another hour, but without Dick. When he and Conner questioned it, Kory just said he had gotten a call and had to go deal with something. When he tried to get more info out of her, all she said was that she'd tell them later. Gar didn't push any further at the time because one, Kory has never lied to them before and two, he could tell she was getting angry. No one wanted to get an angry Kory if they valued their lives.
However, when they got home, Dick was gone. Kory still wasn't forthcoming with answers or explanations. She just repeated that she'd tell them later, then told them to get to bed.
Well, now it was morning. Or, early afternoon depending on how you looked at it. Kory was still in her bedroom, which wasn't a surprise but still a frustration to the green-haired teenager. She usually slept in while Dick made breakfast. Since he wasn't here, Gar and Conner helped themselves to whatever they wanted. Then, they started playing video games. If Dick wasn't here to push more training and Kory was going to sleep in, then they didn't see why they couldn't have some downtime.
Finally, Kory emerged, looking a bit calmer than she was last night.
"Can you boys come down here please?" The redhead called from the dining area.
"What's going on?" Conner asked as he and Gar put down their controllers and moved to sit down on the small stairs that led from the living room down to the dining area.
"Last night, when we were on a patrol, Dick got a call from Alfred," Kory started to explain, doing her best to not scream in rage or cry in grief. "Apparently, Jason went out as Robin alone, against orders, to capture the Joker. He… he didn't make it. Jason's… Jason's gone."
For a moment, Gar felt like everything just froze. Jason was dead? He died last night? But… how? The thought just wasn't really computing. For so long, Gar believed that the superheroes trying to protect the would were invincible. He now knew that they weren't. Donna's death four months ago more than proved that but it was still hard to understand. Jason, the confident and sarcastic boy that he had befriended, the boy that was his teammate, was dead.
"So the Joker just killed him?" Conner tried to understand. Gar was too shocked to speak.
"Mmm-hmm. Sounds like Jason went after him the same way he went after Deathstroke. Alone and unprepared. I am so angry," Kory admitted, lifting her head up to glare at the ceiling.
"At the Joker?" Conner wondered, a little taken a back at the news, but not feeling as much emotion as the others. He hardly knew Jason at all.
"No, at Jason." Her words confused and shocked the boys even more.
"Jason? Why?" Gar wondered.
"Because he never learned," Kory nearly yelled, then took a second to calm herself down. "When Jason left the Titans to go to Gotham, he was alone and angry and I get that but… Dick was hoping that he'd figure things out with Bruce but he never did. He clearly just kept making the same mistakes over and over, and it finally got him killed. Jason never evolved. He never grew past his own worst instincts. Don't let that happen to you. Keep learning, keep growing."
With that said, she strode out of the room, mumbling, "First Donna, now Jason. I'm sick of losing people."
Conner watched her leave, then looked over at Gar. He didn't look too good. The shapeshifter was kind of pale, and his eyes seemed distant, like he wasn't focusing on anything. Leaning towards him, Conner asked, "Are you okay?"
"Um… I don't know. Jason, he had his faults sure, but he wasn't a bad guy, or an idiot. He just, didn't think sometimes. It just, kinda felt like Kory was acting like he deserved it," Gar replied.
"I'm sure she didn't mean it like that," Conner said, putting a hand on Gar's shoulder. That's what people did when they were trying to comfort someone, right? Or should he go straight for a hug? But, giving Gar a hug right now felt like it would be awkward, much more than a hand on the shoulder.
"I know she didn't," Gar agreed. "Anger is one of the steps of grieving after all. She's just… upset. That's all. I'm upset too. Jason… he was my friend."
The clone nearly jerked back when Gar suddenly burst into sobs. The smaller boy curled up into a tight ball and seemed to forget that Conner was there. Meanwhile, Conner moved his hand from Gar's shoulder to his back. He had seen people do this when another person was upset. It didn't feel like it was enough though. Would a hug now be more appropriate?
Before he could decide, Gar turned his body towards Conner and leaned into him. Instinctively, the black-haired teen wrapped his arms around his friend, holding him tightly. The action felt right, but Gar crying his heart out into Conner's chest didn't. However, he didn't know what else to do. So he simply held him while he cried.
AN – It kinda bugs me that we didn't see much of people grieving Jason, specifically Dick. Like, it makes sense considering how fast everything happens, and that Dick deals with grief and sadness by keeping busy (which is what he did), but I would've like to see more of a reaction to it. Especially from Gar. Also, although Kory, Gar, Conner, and Rachel haven't met Alfred, they do know who he is. Hope you guys liked this chapter! See you all next time!
