Author's Notes:

For Zry.

Request:

How about one time maybe Bruce is hosting some kind of fancy party for capes only and everyone is dressed up nicely. And Jay and Art break off from everyone cause they are loners.

And Artemis asks to see the room where he was raised and he shows her to his room which is a first for him cause it's never been opened since he died. And they both just go through his stuff and just make fun of his childhood things.

One thing Art finds is THE notebook Jason scribbled Rena's name onto everywhere and where he wrote his daydreams about her and Art just relentlessly teases him about his first crush. Jay tries to snatch the book from her but she runs around the room and jumps on the bed reading it out loud while laughing.

But unknown to them Damian was following them to see if they were up to something, you know trust issues and he sees them go into the room and hears laughing and thinks hmmmm that's weird and tattles on them to Bruce but he tells him there are random kids in the room not Jason which makes Bruce angry/irrational cause he can't think straight with things that involve Jason and Damian knew this would be the reaction cause he knows how to manipulate his father.

But Bruce opens the door without knocking (rude) to find Art and Jason just staring up at him and pictures and notebooks surrounding them, and Bruce just awkwardly closes the door shut.

Hey! I'm having exams right about now, so my breaks and free time have been used to write this wonderful request made on the Jaytemis Discord server by Zry.

I had a lot of fun writing this, so I hope you enjoy!

WARNING: Includes really cringy pick up lines and phrases that gave author-chan enough second hand embarrassment to physically recoil.


"I imagined parties were supposed to be enjoyable."

"They managed to put Roy, Dick, Wally and Bart on a leash for this, not a single interesting thing is gonna happen."

Artemis rests her elbows on the round table and places her chin in her hand. "So then we should make it interesting, should we not?" she asks.

"Considering a good portion of the hero community here aren't too fond of us-and I got blackmailed into this, probably not the best idea," Jason laments. "Plus Donna has been keeping an eye on us all night."

Artemis turns her head up to the balcony to send a raised eyebrow to the woman in question, which is returned by a warning nod of the head. She gives a short glare and clicks her tongue, twirls her drink, then finishes by taking a sip.

Jason rests an elbow on the table and gives her a once over, noting her drooping eyelids and scowl. He sighs. "Told you that it would be boring."

"That is not much of a reason to refute accompanying you." She returns.

Jason licks his lips, "you could be doing better things with your evening."

"I feel like that applies more to you than it does me."

"Hn."

The two stand in silence, sipping champagne till Artemis picks up the conversation again. There's a mischievous smirk on her lips that usually means that Jason's about to be humiliated, or he's going to end up doing something he'll regret.

(Not that there's much difference.)

"Well, since it has already been an hour in, and this entire thing has been dreadfully boring-"

Artemis puts a finger to her chin, and bites her lip in an attempt to contain the smirk while painting herself as innocent.

It's honestly pretty adorable, and he almost falls for it until she says, "I wish to see the room in which you were raised."

Jason spits up his drink a bit.

He throws Artemis an incredulous look, while she attempts to stifle her chuckles with her free hand. Jason ducks his head back down with a scowl and wipes the drink off his chin. He tilts his head back to look at her and freezes.

There are red wisp of hair waving in her face.

Her eyes are sparkling.

She's smiling, in a way which shows off a bit of teeth.

But more than that she looks excited.

It must be the lighting. The lighting is making her look way too-

She places a hand on his and that's all it takes for him to crack.

"Ah-well I mean it's not like it's off limits of anything so- sure," He stammers, while tugging on his collar.

"Then by all means, lead the way," She says. Her tone is a cross between smug and amused, but it's laced with something light he hasn't heard in the past few weeks.

And so Jason obliges, leading her towards the stairwell.


They reach the door and Jason hesitates. His hand trembles above the nob, and he hears Artemis stop behind him.

"Jason, is something wrong?" She questions, her hands reaching out so as to comfort him, but they stop short when his shoulders sag with a sigh.

"It's just- I haven't exactly- been here .. since."

The 'since I died' remains unspoken.

He doesn't have to turn around to know that she's squeezing her upper arms, and inwardly chastising herself for her request.

"Ah, I see," She murmurs. "If it makes you uncomfortable you have no need to-"

"No, no. It's fine. I want to show you."

Jason takes a steadying breath and opens the door.


The room is fairly large, as expected from this Manor, a bed seated beneath the window in the centere of the room, greeting them on arrival. Artemis is surprised to see that the room looks as though it had been recently cleaned, but it still holds stale air. It is in a neat orderly fashion, the only remnants of a teenage boy's space being in the few washed out posters on the walls.

The only visible remnant of Jason however, was the bookshelf that was filled to the brim with literature. Jason makes a beeline for it, and begins skimming through the contents with nostalgic care, and something akin to childlike excitement. Artemis smiles at the sight, then turns her attention onto the closets and drawers that were yet to be explored. She did not wish to overstep her boundaries, but her curiosity was getting the better of her.

She gives a crooked grin while rubbing her hands together, and begins to dig through the drawers. There are a few school notes, which she asks Jason about, and he happily tells her about his time during school and favorite subjects. Also to brag about the fact that out of all the Robins he was the most liked by his teachers. The two continue to go back and forth between notes and other items, followed by some rather interesting stories.

Artemis notices a few oddly placed books on one of the shelves and pushes them apart. Behind them, there is an outline of a book. She slides it towards her, picks it up, and tilts it about inspecting it.

The book is marked with the title Journal, and has a few paper bookmarks sticking out of it. What was more interesting were the small doodles on the back cover which looked… oddly like a girl, who was surrounded by a plethora of hearts. Artemis couldn't help the smirk.

Well, well.

"Jason?"

Jason turns around from a pile of papers to meet her. She holds up the notebook and waves it.

"What is this?" She asks smugly.

The look of mortification on his face should not have been so satisfying, but it was.

"I-it's just a notebook," he says defensively. "Nothing worth noting there."

Jason shifts his feet over and leans towards her, bracing his hands on the floor as if he was going to get up.

"Hmm...that look on your face says otherwise, no?"

He recoils, his neck flushing a bit and he curls in his shoulders. Artemis looms forward, puts her hands on her hips, and leans over him.

She smirks and flips the book open to the back. "Hey! Wait just a sec-"

"Rena! What a lovely name, is it not?"

"Artemis.." He grumbles in warning

"What's that? I can't hear you over, Your eyes...as green as pickled mangoes ."

"Really little one?"

Jason lunges for her, and she doges him, still reading the poem aloud in a sing-song voice.

"Your hair, as dark as our class' blackboard,"

"I wish you were mine,"

"You're absolutely divine."

"Aww," she jeers. "How sweet!"

Jason spins to make a grab at the notebook, and she simply forces his hand away, snickering as he almost stumbles into the wall.

"Love is like...chilli dogs. They sustain you!"

She has to laugh at that one, though Jason does not seem to appreciate that it comes out as more of a cackle.

"Ohh, what's this?"

"Red, come on-" Jason whines.

"Possible pick up lines, note to self, ignore some of Dick's"

Jason puts his head against the wall in mourning. Really the only thing you could call such a state.

Artemis skims through the page and scoffs. "Well thank the gods you never used any of these disgraceful things on me."

Jason just reddens even further and groans. She gives a sharp grin, and continues reading.

"Do you have a map? Cause I just got lost in your eyes." she says, attempting to imitate his voice. His offended sigh simply motivates her more. She spins around the room, patting Jason on the head as she twirls by, then jumps onto the bed, puffs out her chest, and dramatically snaps the book open. She sticks her legs together and bounces in place while reading.

"Can I borrow your library card? Cause I'm totally checking you out."

She snickers, "Of course you would."

"I was thirteen," he argues.

Artemis scrunches her nose as she reads the next one. "Not an excuse."

"I'm no photographer, but I can picture the two of us together." "Are you French? Because Eiffel for you-"

"Ugghh, just give it here!" Jason launches an attack from behind, jumping up to meet her, wrapping his arms around her waist and dragging her down to the mattress.

Artemis laughs and attempts to pull him off, but his grip is too tight. He goes for the notebook. And well, we can't have that.

Artemis flips him over and simply flops down onto his chest, props her elbows on his collarbone and keeps reading.

"Operation: Become Rena's boyfriend, step one!"

"You're a wicked woman," he wheezes, but he makes no attempt to get up.

"Stand behind her during P.E, and catch the dodgeballs to make sure she doesn't get hit."

"Well, what a little gentleman," she giggles.

She gives a small gasp as she skims the scribble in the corner. Jason lifts his chin in an attempt to see what is happening, and she uses a finger to push him back down by the forehead.

He huffs, "what is it?"

"If I could be anything I'd be a tear: Born in your eye, live on your cheek, and die at your lips."

She removes her elbows from digging into his collarbone and folds her arms on his chest and tucks her head into her arms.

"Thirteen year old you was quite the poet," she says.

"Heh, that's probably the only good thing in there."

"I would not say so," Artemis' lips twitch mecheviously.

"There's also, You know, if a fat man with a beard happens to stuff you in a bag one night, don't be afraid – I told Santa that I wanted you for Christmas this year."

Jason cringes and Artemis laughs.


Damian had finally managed to get away from Richard, and his inane attempts to swindle him into some ridiculous activity, to 'make things more lively.' While he agrees that anything resembling a gala was not favourable, at least with this they have company who they need not hide from. (Also, no old ladies pinching cheeks, definite plus.)

He was making his way around the ballroom in an attempt to find Jon or Lian, when he caught Todd and his Amazon teammate sneaking up the stairs that led to the main house. It really was none of his concern.. but then again, it wouldn't hurt so see what they were up to, you never knew.

Damian made his way up the stairs, remaining a good distance away from them, but still close enough so that he could hear where they were going. He first assumed that they would be heading to the kitchen, seeing as this was Todd. Yet to his surprise and mortification, they took the turn that led to the family's private bedrooms.

He did not like the suggestions his mind gave to everything that could entail.

The Amazon glanced back, and Damian shifted more towards the shadows, until she turned around and allowed Todd to grasp her hand and lead her along.

Damian squinted at the gesture and pinched his nose.

He really should turn back now, but when it came to certain things, Todd had little self-control.

The memory of Gordon once saying that Todd was an 'absolute dork when it came to romance' wasn't helping.

He had witnessed some of his brother's more nerdy, idiotic moments, and while it was embarassing, it was almost charming in a way. Probably because it was more of a rare occurrence for him.

Then there was also the time when Drake and Richard had coerced him into talking about his supposed romantic interest in someone. He had caught only the tail end of the conversation, but Todd had walked out completely red and the most embarrassed he'd ever seen him; Richard and Drake cackling and wheezing behind him. The next few weeks were spent listening to Drake boast about how Todd blushes so easily, and Cassandra joining in on the fun. She unfortunately decided on cooing obnoxiously whenever Todd walked into the room, no matter how inappropriate the situation.

Between his siblings, it was heavily implied that Todd had some form of feelings for this.. Artemis woman, and seeing where they were going…

Damian shook his head. It would be better to follow them. He will not have his brother disgraced by doing something scandalous with this woman, especially while almost every Justice League hero is downstairs.

He just hoped he wouldn't need eye bleach after this.

Damian nestled into the curtains, in the wings first hallway. He watched as Todd and the woman passed Father's room, Richard's room, Cassandra's, Drake's, his (Thank God,) and Todd's..

Wait.

They continue down till they reach the abandoned room at the end of the hall. Jason's old room.

Damian attempts to slip in closer, but a cloud moves, allowing more light through the window.

Drat.

He'll have to resort to body language then.

They stop in front of the door and Todd hesitates. His hand trembles above the nob, and he raises his shoulders and tucks in his chin. A sign that he is uncomfortable.

The woman notices and questions him, her hands reach out so as to touch him, but they stop when his shoulders sag.

Todd mumbles something which causes the woman to squeeze her upper arms, in a guilty gesture.

She murmurs something as well, which strengthens Todd's resolve, if only a little, and they both tentatively step into the room, closing the door behind them.

Damian waited outside for a few minutes before slinking towards the door and pressing an ear against it.

There's laughing ?

Not the cynical or strained type of laugher, but genuinely joyful laughter.

Damian pondered opening the door, but decided against it. He still wasn't entirely sure what was going on inside and he had no desire to open the door and find out.

On the other hand…. Father may be interested in why someone was in Todd's old room.


"Father?"

Bruce excuses himself from his conversation and walks towards his youngest. There is something off about him. His suspicions are confirmed by the fact that Damian's non-verbal tells are more prominent. Unusual; especially for him.

There's something of thinly veiled concern in his son's shoulders, hesitation in his hands and.. disgust on his face. Particularly the type that makes itself known whenever he's dealing with his siblings' antics.

What did they do now?

Bruce stops in front of Damian and gives a tentative smile, and it's returned by an annoyed stiff upper lip.

He wonders if Dick had done something. The talk he had with him earlier should have dissuaded him from trying anything stupid and dragging someone else into it as well.

Damian is still standing there, a bit of impatience creeping into his posture. "Yes Damian," Bruce questions "is everything alright?"

Damian straightens up as if preparing for a report, and Bruce's concern grows by the second.

"I witnessed someone earlier behaving strangely, so I decided to follow them. They went upstairs and were moving towards the private bedrooms. I believe they entered Todd's childhood one."

Everything froze.

What.

Bruce blinks a few times in an attempt to focus, while Damian throws him an expectant look. He rubs his thumb against his index finger and takes a few breaths. He needs to calm down. If something was happening in that room it needs to be handled immediately.

He clears his throat. "Right, I'll go check then," he replies tightly.

"Very well." And with that, Damian takes off.

Bruce skirts past the guest and rushes up the stairs, his mind racing.

He needs to get whoever is in there out.

The predicament is bringing forth an onslaught of memories and worries he'd rather not deal with.

Jason running away, and- breathe, calm down.

His room being the only thing left of him. Not a single thing was moved out of place.

After his death Alfred was the only one who would occasionally enter, either dust or to mourn.

The last time Bruce went in. After the funeral. Everything was the same, the books on the desk, the haphazardly hidden duffel bag under the bed, yet he could only see and remember it in monotone. No noise, no colour, just empty-numb grey. It was suffocating.

He had never gone in since.

But it is still a precious thing, and even if he's now walking among them his son's childhood memory will not be trodden on by some idiot who thought it was alright to be a guest in someone's home and go through their private-

Bruce plants his foot to stop himself from walking into the door. He shakes himself out of his frenzy and hears laughter and the sound of rustling papers.

Bruce growls and throws open the door to find... Jason and Artemis lying on the bed, pictures, notebooks and papers surrounding them. They are leaning against each other and their hands are intertwined. Artemis is pointing at some notes. The two immediately look up at his presence and stare at him.

Bruce clears his throat. "Mph, apologies," he says dumbly. He turns on his heel and walks out, closing the door behind him, and he can hear them both laughing hysterically at his exit.

Bruce holds his head down and ambles back down the stairs. He mills around for a bit, attempting to squelch his embarrassment, (and subsequent dread knowing that Jason would definitely tease him about this later,) when Diana eventually catches a glimpse of his poor state and begins to stalk towards him, the crowd parting for her.

And of course it is exactly at that moment when Bruce realises.

They were leaning against each other, holding hands.


Author's Notes:

My thoughts while writing this:

Hey! This would be cute.

Aww blushing Jay-Jay.

Damian's part was surprisingly smooth to write.

*Wakes up, opens discord to see the pickup lines. Me: 0.0

These pick up lines are soo awfully cringy. Like, I don't even wanna write them anymore.. I'm too embarrassed on behalf of the character.

I don't know how to write Bruce. AWW WELL… IT WON'T BE THAT BAD!

And because I'm so nice, I'll leave some of the suggestions here that I didn't use:

-If I could rearrange the alphabet, I would put U and I together.

-When God made you, he was showing off.

-I must be a snowflake, 'cause I've fallen for you!

-Do you know karate? 'Cause your body is really kicking.

-Honey, are your parents terrorists? 'Cause you are the bomb!

-Did it hurt when you fell from heaven?

-Somebody better call God, because he's missing an angel.

-Something's wrong with my eyes because I can't take them off you.

-You must be tired because you've been running through my mind all night.

-Do you have a BandAid? I just scraped my knee falling for you.

-Feel my shirt. Know what it's made of? Boyfriend/Girlfriend material.

-Is your name Google? Because you have everything I've been searching for.

-I wonder If you're an artist, cause you were so good at drawing me in.

-Are you a magician? Because when I'm looking at you, you make everyone else disappear!

-You're so beautiful, you made me forget my pickup line.

Did ya cringe? And thanks for reading!