Jason Todd x OC

Word Count: 1,569

Summary: A fateful night in Gotham City sends a young girl spiraling as she discovers a part of herself that could spell disaster for those around her.

A/N: Bit of a flashback for this one, filling in some blanks.

/

It had been a considerably normal day at Wayne Manor, and even after Bruce, Dick and the other boys had left for the evening, things had been relatively peaceful. Alfread sat at the Bat Computer, assisting the team whenever they needed him to, Barbara on the other line keeping them company as well. The original plan for the night was to split off in groups and do a quick patrol of Gotham before reconvening at the Sionis Steel Mill. Black Mask had been arranging a massive drug smuggling deal over the past few months and according to the conversation they overheard from the bug planted in Sionis's office, the hand off was tonight. Things had gone smoothly at first, until Jason took it upon himself to shoot Black Mask. Against orders. Again.

Jason had been responsible for ruining most of Black Mask's operations, however the major disaster that led up to the current one had involved a huge weapons cache being shipped over from Blüdhaven that the younger male had not only intercepted and destroyed, but he also got a shot off on the crime lord. The bullet had ripped through Sionis's shoulder, it wasn't enough to kill the man, but it was enough for him to put Red Hood at the top of his kill list. So, this time around Black Mask took off down an alleyway in hopes that the vigilante assassin would take the bait, which Jason stupidly did, leaving the others to deal with the crime lord's cronies. By the time Bruce had gotten away from the fight, Jason had the masked man pinned to the ground, one of his pistols pressed under the older man's chin.

"Red Hood. Don't."

"Stay out of this Batman!"

"Go on. Run off like a coward, the big bad Bat is calling."

That singular comment from Sionis was all it took for Jason to pull the trigger, blood spattering across the front of his uniform and pooling onto the ground beneath the criminal's lifeless body. The younger male stood up silently, holstering his pistol and walking back towards Bruce and the others who had gathered behind him, half their faces plastered with shock. Any remaining cronies had run off, most likely going to spread the word about their boss's death, and those who had been knocked unconscious were left in a pile for the GCPD to collect. Bruce stood there for a moment longer before turning to leave, pausing to utter a single word before he did.

"Batcave."

Damien, Dick and Tim followed in a stunned silence, all piling into the Batmobile as Bruce revved the car's engine. Tearing out of the factory yard, his stoic face hiding every ounce of anger he had bubbling in his gut. This wasn't the first incident, but it didn't make things any better, and Bruce couldn't understand why the younger male insisted on defying him. Jason himself however, had taken his motorcycle to avoid what they all knew would be an awkward ride home. He was most definitely in for an argument once they returned to the Manor.

Having arrived back at the Batcave first, Bruce took Alfreds spot at the Bat computer, waiting for the rumble of the other motorbike. Without so much of a nod, Alfred turned on his heel and led the younger boys upstairs towards the Manor's secret entrance. The longer Bruce sat there waiting, the clearer it became that Jason was taking the long way home. He should have arrived mere moments after them with the speed his bike could reach, however, Jason's avoidance of their impending conversation only served to annoy Bruce further. If the younger man would have hashed it out with him right then and there they could have moved forward and been better off by the end of the night. Hanging his head with a sigh, Bruce stood and went upstairs to get changed. It had been an early evening for them, only being around eight fifteen, meaning they would be able to have some sort of a late dinner with Alfred. Something that almost never happened with their line of work.

"Fine. He wants to drag it out, then I can play this game too."

Having showered and changed into more comfortable clothes, Bruce ended up making his way down to the kitchen, the faint smell of curry spices in the air. He stood in the doorway watching Alfred make his way around the kitchen for a few moments, enjoying the calm atmosphere. That was, until he could hear a commotion coming from the dining room. Part of him hoped it was just Tim and Damien getting into another mild debate, the other half bracing for it to be Jason. Turning the doorknob, sure enough, Tim and Damien were squabbling over some video they had been watching on one of their phones, however his attention was dragged to the movement behind them. The two boys glanced up at Bruce settling down at the aggravated expression on his face, turning around to watch what their fathers eyes were glued to.

Jason had casually strolled into the room still in his cargo pants but donning a red shirt instead of his vest, sweatshirt and jacket combo. He must have arrived while Bruce had been in the shower, seeing as he had only half changed out of his uniform. Bruce watched as the younger male sat down at the table, not even glancing up from his phone despite the burning gaze locked onto him. Dick Damien and Tim were glancing between the two men before Dick had the sense to kick his brother from under the table, subtly nodding at the glowering man in the doorway.

"I guess dinner is out of the question right now."

Jason held Bruce's gaze without any emotion in his blue eyes before standing from his seat and walking out of the room. Bruce followed the younger male, making his way around the dining table to the other door. Jason was most likely going to cut through the living room to reach the library where he would lock the door and hide for however long he thought was necessary. However Bruce slammed the door behind him catching the others' attention before he had made it halfway past the fireplace. Bruce wasn't one to slam doors in the Manor, he usually chewed into the others for doing it. The younger man turned around, arms crossed over his chest as he steeled himself for the oncoming lecture.

"What the hell were you thinking Jason?!"

"Bruce, he deserved to die! He murdered all those people and when he eventually gets back out of Arkham, he will gladly do it again cause he knows he can get away with it!"

"That is not how we do things Jason… Don't stoop to their level Jason."

"Stooping to their level would be slaughtering an innocent man, not a scum sucking criminal that murders for fun!"

"We have rules Jason. A line that we do not cross, no matter who it is we face."

"WE don't have rules Bruce! YOU have rules! And GOD FORBID you go one FUCKING NIGHT without quoting them at me!"

"Yes, they are my rules. My rules are there to keep us alive, and if you want to stay in this house and on this team, you WILL abide by them!"

"You don't-"

"What are you trying to prove Jason?"

"…"

"This selfish need to dish out justice has to stop. It's going to get you killed."

"Selfish… Me? …I stood by you. I ALWAYS stood by you! I'm STILL standing by you! I GAVE UP EVERYTHING FOR YOU! And I'M the one who's selfish!? …Is it really me that's in the wrong; or is it actually you?"

"Jason…"

Bruce stood in a stunned silence as his son glared at him, tears building in his eyes. A moment passed before Jason stormed past, his shoulder bumping into the older man, his face red in frustration and hurt. He wanted to stop him, grab his wrist and pull him into a hug, apologize for what was said, but he knew that would only push Jason farther away. He would need his space to calm down and clear his head before Bruce would be able to make any attempt at an apology. The door slammed behind him as Jason made his way through the dining room, and the older male could hear Dick, his concerned tone clear as day. It wasn't the first argument they had on this topic; however, Bruce had always tried to keep it between them instead of in front of the other boys, however he had even fucked that up. Walking back into the dining room, he was greeted by a heavy silence as Tim, Damien, Alfred stared at him. He turned his gaze away and walked back towards the kitchen, thinking his study would be the best place to hunker down for a while.

"Master Bruce-"

"I'm not hungry Alfred. Feel free to wrap mine in the fridge."

"Very well."

Bruce nodded and left the room, not even daring another glance at the butler behind him, knowing far too well the look of disappointment that would be strewn across his face. He was far too disappointed in himself already to add his closest friends on top of it.

"Master Bruce… "

"Sir…"

"Wake up Master Bruce…"

"Master Jason is coming to."