Chapter 2: You have bewitched me body and soul
"For the last fucking time, I don't know her!"
Bruce- No, Batman pursed his lips in a way that made him look more annoying. At his side, a maskless Robin was shaking his head at him.
"You let anybody wield your weapons now, Todd?"
"She just took it," he lifted his hands. "And then gave it back. I don't see what's the problem."
Why were they antagonizing him? He made a split second decision to trust a stranger that proved could be trusted in a fight, and they were acting as if he had sold family secrets to the FBI.
"Still, you should have apprehended her for interrogation."
"Why? She helped."
"So you needed help." Damian was really stepping up to the 'annoying brat' role today, huh.
"She's not a criminal. Didn't see the reason to 'apprehend' anybody." He ignored the demon's taunting, not really in the mood of a fight.
"We'll see about that." Bruce let go of the issue, turning to look at the screens of the computer running the photos of her face they picked from Jason's suit footage, and the partial fingerprints from his guns, through the system. If she was a criminal, they'd know pretty soon.
"At least she's pretty." Dick rolled on his chair, also looking at the screens, chewing on his sandwich. He had arrived at the Manor a bit earlier, while they were still dealing with the mall incident, and was waiting for them in the cave when they came back. "She good?"
She was good, whoever she was. She clearly had training and was comfortable with a gun in her hand, knowing when to shoot, where to shoot. She was fast and didn't waste energy in her movements, too, in a way that didn't really fit with your usual basic self defense training.
Jason shrugged, ignoring the slight tug in his chest. Ever since they left the mall he had been feeling this weird pain in his chest, but he was sure that once he had a chance to decompress and take a warm shower, he'd be good as new.
"She was okay," he finally said, looking at the screens showing the bits of footage that showed her fighting. "She'd make a good vigilante with a bit of training."
His eyes went at one specific screen that was looping their brief conversation behind the potted plants. Fortunately there wasn't any sound, because he really didn't want his family to know he called her pet names, even if it had been ironically.
"Do you think she could already be a vigilante and we don't know about it yet?" Dick glanced at Bruce, who didn't look very happy about it.
"Doubt so. She didn't seem enthusiastic about fighting." Something that Jason could understand, even if she was this good.
"Then why stay behind?"
"The unknown freed the hostages, not only the ones tied up in the main area, but also the people that were scattered around and couldn't get out safely." Batman grumbled, accepting that the behavior was strange, taping on the keyboard and changing the videos on the screen.
Now it showed the security cameras of the mall, at the time the gang was rounding up the civilians in the main floor, but focused on the lone figure of a redheaded young woman with a black long sleeved shirt and jeans, armed with a bat and quick reflexes. She knocked out the thugs walking around and helped the innocent people out of their hiding spots, one by one, before making her way back to the stairs. Then, she waited for the bats to fly in and then freed the remaining hostages with a knife she pulled from her boot, not moving until they all were safely on their way to the exit.
And then Jason was thrown in her direction and both rolled on the floor for a bit.
"That must have hurt," Dick winced, "I'm sorry Jaybird but you weigh a lot."
He rolled his eyes, as if the comments about his weight bothered him. Dick was just jealous because he grew to be taller than him. "So she has a hero streak, but doesn't want the spotlight." He shrugged, grabbing the knife they recovered from the shoulder of a gang member. It was the one she had used to free the hostages. It needed to be sharpened, it was a miracle she could cut the ropes in time. "It doesn't scream 'criminal' to me."
Turned out that she wasn't a criminal at all. Her ID wasn't in any list, not even for a speeding ticket. Gotham U student, model citizen, born in a small city in Illinois, daughter of scientists parents, had one little brother.
Jason let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding. What would he do if she wasn't a good person? If she was involved in something shady? He actually liked the time with her, although brief.
His chest was starting to hurt.
Maybe, since she was cleared as not a threat, he could finally peel the suit and have that damn shower.
The shower didn't help. Or the amazing lunch Alfred prepared for everyone. Or the brief nap he took in one of his hiding spots in the library. In fact, his whole body was hurting when he woke up.
Gritting his teeth, he made his way to where he heard noises, not that happy about accepting defeat and scared that something was really wrong.
"Bruce?"
"Holy shit." Someone said, but everything hurt so much he didn't realize he had closed his eyes.
"Jaylad?" His father's voice sounded like he was getting closer. "What's wrong?"
"I don't know." His breathing was labored.
He was guided to a chair and given a glass of cold water. Temperature checked (he was burning) and eye reflex checked (he was responsive) heartbeat checked (a bit fast but not dangerously fast).
Someone's cold hands were on his temple, and his mind provided pictures of a woman with long red hair and teal eyes caressing his hair away from his face. He thought he heard her voice calling for him, too. A fever-induced hallucination?
She was calling for him, calling for his soul, she was -
Jason opened his eyes, jumping upright in his seat.
"Cursed."
"What?"
He looked at Dick, who was the one that was actually combing back his hair. "She. The woman. I'm cursed."
Bruce frowned. "How do you know?"
"I just- I can hear her voice, her voice calling me." Both frowned at his words. "She calls my name, something she shouldn't know."
This pulled them into action. The three descended to the Cave and pulled up the information about the woman, this time searching for clues about any magical or occult ties, or how or why she could have met Jason before in her life. If she targeted him, then their meeting had been highly staged and that meant a high amount of hatred and resources. Not the kind of villain they wanted loose in Gotham.
Her record was squeaky clean. There was nothing on her.
Her family, though… 'Ectoscientist' was the on-paper name, but they knew that things were not what they seem and sometimes the worst of the occult will hide in plain sight.
"Should I contact Mr. Constantine, Master Bruce?" Alfred, bless his soul, brought a cold compress for Jason. It gave some relief, but he was really burning up.
"No," Bruce frowned. "We confront her first and see what she has to say."
"I'm coming."
"No."
"B, I need to."
"What if she makes it worse?"
"Then we'll deal with it."
He just wanted to look her in the eye and ask why she did this to him. He thought... She did fight well, she was so beautiful as she beat the shit out of those goons, she was ruthless and dangerous and -
Yeah he was developing somewhat of a crush, not gonna lie. This hurt so much more than if she had just fucked him over without making such an impression on him.
Maybe that was her plan all along.
With great difficulty he got back into his suit, the facemask one since he still needed to make a few adjustments to his helmets (yes, Bruce, he was going to get rid of the explosives soon).
Since he wasn't in any shape to swing over the rooftops, they took the Batmobile as close as they dared to her address. The moment he walked out of the car he breathed in the refreshing cold air of Gotham at dusk and felt so much better.
Bruce let a small smile show even though he was in his Batman suit, genuinely happy with how much better he looked. It felt nice, not being aggressive with the man. They stopped the feud a little while ago and while the family bonding was still too much, Jason found he liked this arrangement a lot more than full on animosity or tense truce.
Once at her apartment, they found her firescape window opened - rookie mistake in Gotham - and entered without making a sound.
There she was, alone, drinking something from a mug, reading a book on the sofa. Her back was to the window, giving them plenty of chance to-
"I was expecting you."
She closed the book and turned to look and them over her shoulder. Her eyes shined with something dangerous, and a shiver went down his spine.
Bruce tensed. "So you did."
She tilted her head. "I was expecting only Batman, though. The familiar face is a nice addition." Her smile was small, but sincere.
Huh? So her target wasn't Jason?
"We have questions."
"If this is about the mall thing, I really wanted to leave-"
"No," she closed her mouth, confused but listening. "This is about the curse."
She blinked a few times. "Curse?"
"The curse you put on me." Jason couldn't stop walking closer to her, as if his body needed to be in her vicinity. She watched him walk around her coffee table in confused silence. "I need you to get rid of it."
"Curse?" Her voice pitched higher. "I can't lift any curse."
Batman stepped closer too, but unlike when Jason did it, this time she reached for the bat, the same one she had at the mall, watching him with that dangerous glint in her eye.
"Before you get your spandex in a twist, I can't lift any curse because I'm not a witch." Her grip on the wood loosened, but she kept in her hands. "Sorry, I'm a bit jumpy. Is it not you guys' fault, I just had a horrible day."
She breathed in, breathed out, and stood up, leaving the bat on the couch. She winced as she did it, clearly favoring her left side.
"You okay?" Jason had to ask. Did she get hurt in the fight?
"A giant and heavy man crashed onto my side this morning," she glared at him, "I think I have bruised my ribs."
He cringed. Dick was right, she had been hurt in the fall. "Sorry."
"I heal fast, don't worry," she shrugged and made a dismissive gesture. "What can I offer you? I have some water already in the kettle, if you want tea." Jasmine's smile was neutral, but kind. Controlled. "And maybe we can take this to the table to talk about this supposed curse."
"I thought you weren't a witch?" Jason asked, half teasing and half confused.
"I am not, but I do have knowledge about certain topics and maybe I can help you discard some options already." She nodded. "So, tea?"
Neither trusted her enough to drink anything she offered so they shook their heads. She accepted it with a shrug, picked up her steaming mug and went to sit on one of the four chairs at the kitchen table. She sipped her tea.
At least she didn't bring the bat, as an act of faith.
Jason was the first one that sat down, feeling ridiculous in such a tiny table in her tiny apartment while wearing the whole armor and weapons. Bruce followed suit, as uncomfortable and uncertain as he felt.
"Alright, tell me about it." She put down her cup and turned to look at Jason.
Jasmine's eyes were a bit bluer than he remembered, but he guessed that they changed color depending on the light. It was mesmerizing.
"Mr. Hood?"
He straightened his back, trying to act normal. "Hood is fine."
Jasmine lifted an eyebrow but let it slide. "The curse?"
"Yeah. So, after the fight I started to feel this pain in my chest? I thought it would go away, but even after resting and eating something it became worse." She nodded along, eyes unfocused, probably trying to find information she knew that fit his description. He thought it was cute.
Wait-
"And then?" She prompted when he didn't continue.
Something was wrong with him. "Then I started getting feverish and everything felt like burning and then hallucinations-"
This picked her interest. "What kind of hallucinations?"
Oh no. "Voices. Calling me."
She nodded, recognition in her eyes. "Do you know who those voices belong to? A loved one, perhaps?"
Jason looked down at the table. She was probably not a witch and she seemed eager to help for some reason, and was alarmingly calm about having two vigilantes sitting on her kitchen table; but his admission would sound stupid if he said it out loud.
"Hood? You can tell me," Jasmine extended one hand towards him over the table. Bruce didn't like it, but he very much wanted her touch.
Something is definitely wrong with him.
"We thought you put a curse on me because the hallucinations were- It was your voice."
She froze, eyes widening.
"Could you repeat that?"
"I saw you, and heard you, calling me."
He waited for her to laugh, to make a quip about it, to call him a sap and tease him or something. But she wasn't laughing.
In fact, she looked pissed as fuck.
"Alright," she was everything but in an 'alright' frame of mind. "Last question. That burning and the pressure and all that stuff - do you still feel it? Here? Now?"
He didn't. In fact, he felt better than ever. His silence said more than what he could articulate with words.
Jasmine put her head between her hands and screamed. In rage, in frustration, in desperation.
"You okay?"
"What is it?" Batman, who had watched in silence until now, leaned in to put a hand on her shoulder.
"I'm going to kill someone," she groaned, face still in her hands. It didn't sound like a real threat and more like a complaint.
She reached for her pocket, making them jump and go for their weapons. She stopped, watching them with raised eyebrows.
"Relax, I just need my phone."
"Who are you going to call?"
She bit her lip. "I need to call my brother."
Brother. Daniel Fenton. College dropout and currently not in anything's or anyone's radar. Almost as if he had vanished from the face of Earth.
Batman narrowed his eyes.
She sighed dramatically. "Would it make you feel better if I did the call right here? I'll put him on speaker and everything," she shrugged, "it concerns you as well. So." She did the 'what can you do' gesture.
Jason was interested in this call.
"Sure, go ahead."
It rang five times before someone answered on the other side. It was a young voice, male, and a bit winded, like he was running somewhere, with wind rushing in the background.
"Jazzy! What's up!? I was just thinking about calling you."
"Yeah sure you did," she rolled her eyes. "Look, Danny, you are on speaker."
"Oh? Who listenin'?"
"Batman." Danny got quiet, the wind rushing got quiet. "And the Red Hood."
"..." There was a dramatic intake of breath. "Jazz."
"Danny."
"Jasmine Fenton."
"Daniel James Fenton."
"Oh fuck you, don't fullname me ever again." He sighed. "What have you done and what does Batman need you for? Hello, by the way."
"Hi." Jason said, already liking this Daniel character.
"Holy shit, it's true."
"You think I would make up something as crazy as freaking Batman in my kitchen, Danny?"
"Ugh, yeah. You wouldn't." Danny grumbled. "Alright, assuming that this isn't a social call, what do you need?"
"I may have a lead for the case you were working on."
"Oh, really?" He didn't sound convinced.
"I even got you a victim willing to talk." Her eyes were fixed on the white lenses of Hood's mask, implying he was this 'victim willing to talk'. He didn't like the sound of that.
"No shit! You are a lifesaver, well, death-saver." Danny snickered at his own joke. "I'll be there in fifteen."
"Danny."
"Hm?"
"Please use the front door this time."
She hung up and put her phone facedown on the table before putting her head between her hands. Her long hair acted as a curtain between the world and her.
"Victim?" Batman wasn't liking the sound of that either, but it implied that she knew something had been done to Jason. "Elaborate."
"Of course," she leaned back on her chair, defeat written all over her. "A ghost did this."
One second. Two.
"A ghost," Batman parroted, leaning in and entangling his hands. "Elaborate."
She made a face, dreading the explanation. Her hands grabbed the cup and she grasped it like it was going to save her from this. "I said I had knowledge about certain topics. That topic is ghosts. Death and what happens after that." She sipped her cup. "Resurrection."
Jason regarded her with new eyes. She didn't look like your typical necromancer.
"I'm not a warlock or a necromancer," she cleared, as if she had read his mind. "I can't do magic. But I know things."
Okay, they could work with this.
"You say a ghost did this. Who and why?"
Jasmine nodded, sipping her tea again. "I don't know his name, but it's a ghost that has been randomly targeting people and-" her cheeks were red, she tried to hide her face behind the cup, "- and marrying them."
"Excuse me?" Jason didn't know if he heard well.
"The victims found they were married to someone else, usually someone they don't know."
"That's it? Marry people?"
"Yeah. Marrying strangers. One day they find out all the paperwork done and legally, they are married. Poof, like magic."
"Is not that bad," he crossed his arms, "that's easy to fix."
She smiled, but it wasn't nice. "Ghost magic is not easy to break, Hood. We have tried everything to help the victims, but the marriage papers always come back intact."
"O.. kay?"
"The worst part?" She eyed him, analyzing him. "The worst part is that the married couple can't be physically far. Ghost magic is also soul magic, messing up with the part of humans that have the potential to become a ghost in the afterlife."
He knew where this was going. It didn't paint a pretty picture.
"What does that mean?"
"It means that if the individuals are too far, they experience chest pains, at first. Then, high fever, palpitations. If a certain threshold is crossed, hallucinations. After that is a nosedive until the body gives up, we think. We hadn't let anybody go that far, of course."
He understood her frustration now.
"He's married to you." Batman wasn't asking, but she nodded nonetheless.
"I should have known, I felt a ghostly presence back at the mall. But I didn't see anything out of place." Her shoulders were tense. "I'm sorry."
"Hey," Jason put a gloved hand on hers, feeling that electrical current they felt back at the mall, "it's not your fault."
She smiled softly, but didn't seem convinced.
"Why are you unaffected?"
Both jumped. Jason honest to God forgot that Bruce was there, watching.
"I am very in touch with my core, my soul, if you want to call it. Part of our training is learning to fight any magic that aims to control it in any way."
"So, like mind control?"
She was shaking her head. "No. One thing is the mind and another is the core. The core is what makes a ghost, a ghost; is where they start and end, is the one part of a spirit that you could actually manipulate or even harm."
Jasmine was being very forthcoming. Not everyone was ready to talk about how to hurt them this easily.
"But you are not a ghost." Bruce's expression was unreadable. "How can you have a 'core'?"
She wilted a little. "Circumstances about my childhood and adolescence made me… different." This was clearly not a topic she wanted to discuss. "It's called liminality."
Bruce nodded, but he would pursue this in a later moment.
"Then why would it affect Red Hood?" The faint light in the kitchen cast shadows on Batman's face as he leaned in a little. "He is human."
"I have… no idea?" She frowned. "I do have guesses, but it doesn't make sense, unless…"
"Unless?" Jason was glad that the modulator could hide the slight tremble in his voice. He was this affected because he was a zombie, right?
"Can I get closer to you?" She watched him with calculating eyes. "I'm not going to do anything weird, just wanted to check something."
He quickly nodded, despite not being that sure. He found she could ask him to disarm and he would do it, like an obedient puppy.
Oh yes, something was very very wrong.
She stood up quietly and approached slowly, very slowly, as if she were dealing with an injured wild animal.
"I don't bite, much," he said before he could stop himself. "I mean…" Stop talking, stop talking, stop talking.
This made her laugh, so at least it was worth it. Also, she was less cautious as she leaned in and-
She smelled him.
Like, full on get in his personal space and take a sniff.
"Hmmm." Her face was close, too close. It was a small mercy that she wasn't looking at him. "This would be easier if I could see your eyes-"
"No." They jumped again at Batman's growl.
"I know, I know, just saying." She lifted her hands to show she had no evil intentions.
She walked around Jason to his other side, closer to Batman, and under the unmoving eyes of the man. Honestly Jason wasn't sure what was going on, but she was close and that was better and it made him feel-
Stop. Stop.
She leaned in to sniff again, one of her hands innocently placed on his shoulder. Could she hear his heartbeat? Maybe she could. Who knew what this 'liminality' entailed? Maybe she was like a super and she was just messing with him.
Her breath hitched. When he looked at her, she found her face was very red, so she wasn't unaffected by this whole deal. She just could hide it better.
That… helped, actually.
"Okay." She finally said, running away to search for something in a kitchen cabinet. Whatever she was looking for, she didn't show them, since she kept it in her firmly closed hand. "You have died, yes?"
What was the point in hiding it? "Yeah. A long time ago."
She nodded at the confirmation. "Your resurrection was violent, too."
How could she-
"How is this relevant?"
Jasmine breathed in, breathed out. She opened her hand, and in it was a small vial with a toxic green liquid in it. "Does this seem familiar?"
Lazarus waters. In a vial. In a kitchen cabinet of a random Gotham University student.
Batman jumped to his feet.
"How and why do you have that."
She nodded at their recognition and sat back down on her seat, hands fiddling with the vial.
"This is what ghosts are made of. Their essence, their blood, if you want to call it that. Ectoplasm." She turned to look at Red Hood. "I can smell it in you."
There was a knock on the door. Danny was here.
