Predictably, like any friendship between a Bat and a Kryptonian, Jason Todd and Conner Kent start off on the wrong foot.

Conner already has a best friend, Jason's little brother Tim Drake. And like any good best friend, Conner has not forgotten how Jason tried to murder Tim. Multiple times. So, obviously, he does not like Jason when they meet under friendlier circumstances.

Jason just sighs and shrugs when another friend of one of his brothers gives him the cold shoulder. It's nothing new.

He'll just steer clear of this one, like he has with all the others.


Years pass. Lex Luthor comes for Conner again and again, and he finally succeeds. Tim plays the game to get Conner back.

Tim succeeds, but dies in the process.

The fact that Lex died too is hardly a comfort to anyone.

Conner blames himself, of course. If it hadn't been for him, Tim wouldn't have died at all.

Jason, now Batman and all the horrendous glory that comes with it, sets him straight. For all their problems, Tim was little brother, his favorite brother, and Jason knew that Tim wouldn't have gone through with it if he didn't think Conner was worth it. All Conner can do now is prove Tim right.

That is enough. Conner gets out of his funk, resolves himself. He doesn't thank Jason, but the appreciation in his eyes is evident.

It isn't friendship. Not yet. But it's a start.


They occasionally work together, because everyone works with Batman (no matter how much the original Batman insisted otherwise), and Jason is Batman now. But it isn't until Clark dies that they really begin to bond. Metropolis, no, the world needs Superman, and Jon isn't ready, not yet. So it falls to him instead.

It's so much responsibility, and Conner fears floundering. He can't, not when Clark is gone and not coming back. But Diana, she helps, and so does Jason. Jason understands the position Conner is in more than anyone else.

Jason, after all, was never supposed to be Batman.

No matter what their relationship was before, they are the World's Finest now, and that means being partners. That's when their tentative acquaintance flourishes into a genuine friendship, because Jason, for all his issues, is infinitely easier to get along with than his mentor (not Dick though, nobody was as likable as Dick).

Tim's ghost, which haunts them both, eases away, still there but no longer so stifling. When Conner finally accepts an invitation to go to the Manor, for the first time in almost eight years, the memories of Tim are fleeting thoughts instead of lead weights. It isn't until he meets Helena Wayne that the pain comes rushing back in.

Because Helena might be Bruce's daughter, Jason's little girl, but everything about her screams Tim. She is empathetic and kind, but also brilliant and sassy and unapologetically manipulative, with just the right amount of cynical idealism (the same kind Tim had before…well). She even has Tim's old room, and that's when Conner knows Jason sees it too.

Conner loves her.

She is unquestionably his favorite of Jason's children.


When Diana retires two years later, neither of them are surprised.

Diana may be as young and beautiful as the day she first stepped foot into Man's World, but her soul is old and tired. The loss of so many friends and loved ones, of Clark and Bruce, have taken their toll, and deep down, both Jason and Conner always feared that it would be Death that would come to collect when the time came for her to leave.

Death does come, but not for Diana. No, Hippolyta is taken instead, leaving behind a throne only Diana can inherit. Diana has never been one to shirk duty, and her duty is now to her people. She cannot run from it now.

But Man's World still needs Wonder Woman. Jason and Conner need Wonder Woman, because the world was always stronger when the three of them were together. Diana knows this, and so holds a tournament after the mourning period is over. Neither of them attend, they cannot afford to waste time on that kind of frivolity, no matter its own importance. Instead, they hope and pray that whichever Amazon wins, it is one with at least a fraction of Diana's kindness and grace.

(Another life, it might've been Cassie. But Cassie's gone, like Tim, like Bart, and Conner tries not to feel so hideously alone.)

When the new Wonder Woman appears, and everyone realizes it's a returning Donna Troy, a collective sigh of happiness and relief can be heard throughout the entire superhero community. Donna is perfect, more than perfect in fact; she's as skilled and strong as Diana, as compassionate and kind and good. Everyone already knows her, or at least has heard stories about her. With this Wonder Woman, it's simply a matter of catching her up with the times.

For Donna Troy left Man's World after the death of Dick Grayson, her closest friend. Her heart had already been on the mend after the death of her other best friend Lilith, and before her another in Wally West, and before even that, her first love Roy Harper, to say nothing the lingering hole that remained since the death of her son. The loss of Dick on top of so many other friends throughout the years was simply too much, and she abandoned the world of superheroics for the shores of her paradise home. Now she is back, and finds that the world hasn't forgotten her at all.

Donna slots into place within days, and while there are some quirks to work out, it's almost like Diana never left. The same applies to Jason and Conner, who never realized they were missing something in their friendship until Donna dragged them to a photography exhibit while they had a day out in their civvies. They make snarky commentary at the 'art' and Donna punches them both in the arms and scolds them, and yeah, she'll fit just right in with them.

More years pass. Conner gets married. Jason is his best man, with Tim dead and Bart with the Speed Force. He has a son, names him Vance (not Clark, it's too soon, the wound still a little raw) and Van-El, and Jason and Donna are the godparents, because who else would it be? They're not friends anymore, they're family, and Conner can't imagine anyone else that would watch over his boy better.

And because…well, he's not the only one in love.


("She's looking good today, isn't she?"

"Yeah, she is."

"…Jay—"

"No, Kon. No. I can't. Not with her."

"Not even when she wants you too?"

"…Yes. Not even then."

"You goddamn Bats.")


They're some of the happiest years of their lives.

But just like everything else in this world, it doesn't last. That blasted fake Superboy cames for them again, and through his shrieking and whining rage of how he should be Superman, Conner prepares himself for the fight of his life. He is stronger now, more powerful than even Clark thanks to his mastery of tactile telekinesis, but Superboy-Prime is one of the most powerful beings in the entire multiverse. Conner is under no illusions of his fate. He will die, just like the first time they fought.

The only difference is that this time, he'll win.

When the time comes, Conner kisses his wife and son goodbye, and stands with his two closest friends, one last time. Donna is the first of them to leave; she is to lead the charge against the invading forces. She hugs them both, gives Conner a kiss on the cheek, before she departs.

Now it's just him and Jason. Jason will have to leave soon too. Another Batman is pulling the strings (the how, they'll figure out later), and Jason will face him down. He won't do it alone, of course; Cass and Connor Hawke are both prepping the ship right now. Lian Harper is going as well, even though both Jason and Conner know that Roy will be waiting for them with a rusty knife in the afterlife for daring to bring his daughter on this mission. A slew of other vigilantes, all trained for situations like this, will be joining them. Jason even went in as far as to call in Zinda Blake, the legendary Lady Blackhawk, out of retirement to act as the pilot.

As he looks at this man, this war-torn man who has perhaps lost more than any of them, Conner muses on the irony of fate. He had loved Tim like a brother, and had mourned him as such. And yet, he found in a new brother in Tim's own, one who has stood beside him for every moment he's spent treading the path Clark left him to lead. The same brother who tried to kill Tim all those years ago and nearly succeeded more than once.

When he sees Tim again, he's sure they'll have a good laugh about it.

They don't say anything. They don't need to say anything. Just one look is enough.

Jason hugs him goodbye, and together, they part to face their destinies — one last time.


The battle is over. The day is won. Another Batman is dead (a false one, one that should've died with Bane and still somehow survived), this time of their own making.

Jason wants to go home and rest.

But not yet. It almost feels as if the entire world has stopped, as he sees Conner descend from the skies above. Beside him, Donna gasps, and Jason is tempted to join her.

Conner is bloody, beaten, and ready to keel over. He's not long for this world.

The same cannot be said for his opponent, who has already gone. Clark Kent of Earth-Prime is in his arms, bridal-style and without a rise and fall of his chest. He's dead and, God willing, he'll stay that way.

With more gentleness and dignity than Superboy-Prime deserves (because he's not Superman, and he never ever will be), Conner sets his body to the ground. He stands, tall and strong, and the image is forever embedded in the minds of everyone present.

There is only one Superman, and his name is Kon-El — Conner Kent.

He doesn't stay that way for long. He begins to tip backwards, and suddenly Jason and Donna are both there to catch him, gently lowering him to the ground. Jon arrives as well, taking hold of his brother's head, softly pleading with him to stay with them. Kyle tries to utilize the hope in his ring, but it's not working because Conner…Conner is too far gone. Conner smiles at him, at all of them, with a bittersweet tilt. He knew from the very beginning how this was going to end for him.

"I did it," he says instead, choking a bit on the blood welling in his throat.

Jason reaches over to grasp his hand as that achingly familiar feeling of loss washes over him, and smiles back sadly.

"Of course you did. You're Superman. And everyone knows that Superman always saves the day."

Conner gives the slightest of nods, then closes his eyes as his body goes limp.

One sob, and then another, and it feels as if every hero here, in the world, is crying.

Jason cries with them.


Another statue is erected in Metropolis. The second Superman stands side-by-side with his mentor in perpetuity, never to be forgotten. Together, they hold up the world.

At his funeral (the public one, not the private one where the body will actually be buried), the entire Justice League is present, as is other notable figures — from world leaders to common folk alike. The Superman Legacy is the greatest superhero legacy in the world, and there is not a single life on Earth not touched by it.

As the service nears its end, there is one final eulogy to be made.

Except, it's not really a eulogy. More like…a ceremony. Nightwing, who had been absent for most of the funeral's duration, descends from the sky. The crowd of heroes part for him like the Red Sea, and every eye in the world watches as he walks to the casket and pays his last respects to his brother and mentor.

Then, with his face away from the camera, he rips off his domino mask, letting it fall to the concrete as he ascends again. A swirl of blue and black surrounds him, slowly morphing into a familiar scarlet color. And once it ends, the world breathes as one.

A new Superman has risen above to take the mantle. Jonathan Samuel Lane-Kent has finally accepted his birthright, and the world finds hope again, knowing that there is another Man of Steel to protect them.

And as Jason looks up, he knows that somewhere out there, Conner is smiling down at him.


I hoped you enjoyed this interlude. A small glimpse of Jason and Conner's relationship over the years.

Oh, and in other news, this story now has a TV Tropes page. The link is in the first chapter under the top notes. Quick warning: the character page redirects to the page for one day at a time, so you have to put any tropes for this story on there as well.

Next chapter: a visit to Wayne Manor.