Disclaimer: not mine

Ch2 took a while as I've been deciding on two different ways this could go post Jason's death

This chapter got hijacked by the characters meant to be brief mentions.

Chapter 2

Jason landed by the gargoyle and once again there was an envelope waiting for him. He couldn't help smiling as he retrieved it, finding some photos, evidence, and a small, typed message. Despite his telling Alvin to stay home, the kid kept shadowing them or at least him. He'd gotten harder to spot, but occasional he'd catch sight of a shadow in the distance.

He read the note and smiled again. It felt amazing that someone looked up to him so much. He always felt like he was trying to compete with Dick's Robin but this kid…he thought that Jason was the best Robin. It was nice to have a fan.

He slipped his own note into the envelope and put it back, slipping the things from Alvin away safely. He hoped the kid would be okay but B had finally agreed to him working with the Titans. He was really nervous about it since Dick was one of the founders and things with the eldest were…still a bit tense though they'd gotten a lot better over the last six months. So, Jason figured it was perfectly normal to be nervous about how the team he founded would react to the newer Robin.

He forced himself to focus back on his patrol, leaping and firing his grapple.

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A small form slipped from the shadows and opened the envelope, pulling the note out before vanishing again.

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Bruce watched as Jason lay on the couch, book in hand and totally absorbed in it. Something…something had shifted in his son the last few months but he couldn't work it out. But it seemed to be a good thing, Jason seemed happier, maybe he'd made a friend? He'd really struggled with fitting in at school so it would be good if he'd made a friend or friends. But why not tell them? Tell him? Did he need to investigate Jason's classmates?

No, that would be overstepping, right? He wanted to be a better dad to Jason, not as restrictive, but it was hard.

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Tim checked over his photos carefully, compiling the ones for Gordon along with the printed off notes. He always did the printing at school so it couldn't be tracked back to him, the school systems were so easy to crack and use however he wanted to. Handy for ensuring no one noticed when he missed a day here or there. He sealed it all and then prepared the packet for Jason, the last one for a while since he was leaving for the Titans.

He'd miss their game on the rooftops, Jason always trying to spot him while he stayed out of sight. Batman alone wasn't as fun but he did blend into things more, making him a bit more difficult to get great shots of. They hadn't talked again since that night but they passed messages at Jason's gargoyle. It was safer that way, less chance that Jason would recognise him.

Maybe it was good that Jason was leaving, his parents were due back after all. He could still sneak out when they were home, their bedroom was across the house from his, but there was still risk, especially of his dad checking on him in the night. It used to feel nice when he did that but it hadn't in a few years, not when he was always looking for something to criticise or punish him for.

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Janet sat at her makeup table, Tim sitting so patiently beside her, watching carefully. Sometimes, she wished she had a daughter as well. Another child would have been company for Timothy and someone to teach everything to. But…despite Jack wanting a son like himself, Tim was far more like her. And so, she taught him the things normally taught to the daughter of their family as well. He was always an eager yet patient student and she wished she could be home more often for him.

She picked his hand up, studying his nails, a little short and cracked but not bad for a young boy. She went to work neatening them up, showing him how before beginning with a base coat to protect them. "What colour do you think would go with the dress I wore to the last gala?" she asked.

He frowned slightly, studying the bottles intently, before pointing to a deep burgundy. "That one," he stated, and she smiled.

"Very good," her praise had him beaming a smile he would never dare around Jack.

She hated her parents for forcing the marriage on her, keeping her from leaving Jack. But she wouldn't give her dear Timothy up to change it. She knew he knew that he was the reason she remained with Jack. Janet had no doubt that she could rebuild her finances, find a more advantageous marriage, but she wouldn't, not until Timothy was of age.

Once his nails were painted, they moved on to makeup and discussing his 'studies'. She was well aware of his school grades and that many days he chose not to attend. No, the studies she was interested in was his learning about the other families, how they interacted, their secrets.

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"What is a little seedling like you doing out here?" She asked, leaning over to see the child who jumped, clutching something to their chest.

Their nails were painted a pretty burgundy, though it had begun to chip, a hood pulled up to hide their face. The clothing was dirty and worn but very well made too. Interesting. And the object…was a camera?

The child looked up at her, the hood falling back to reveal short black hair, pale skin and big icy blue eyes. There was nervousness but not real far which was interesting. "Hello Dr Ivy," the child spoke softly.

"Are you lost?" she asked. She didn't target children, even male ones, children still had the chance to learn to be better.

"No ma'am," he answered, holding something out to her, a photo?

She took it and stared at the beautiful flowers, definitely not native to America. In fact, she was pretty sure it was meant to be extinct. "Where?"

"Cambodia," he answered. "My family was there, I thought you'd like to see them."

"Thank you, little seedling," she actually smiled at the boy, who smiled back shyly.

"Alvin," he told her and then he was darting away.

She looked at the photo again, perhaps she should go on a trip.

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Jason slipped onto the rooftop and then stopped as he saw the shadow clinging to the gargoyle. He hesitated but then slowly moved closer. "Alvin?" he whispered, and the shadow moved. "Hey kid," he kept his voice in victim mode, not liking how huddled the kid was.

Finally, he was close enough to get a look and he bit back the words he wanted to snarl. "It's okay, you're safe, I'm here, I'll protect you," he promised, reaching out a hand to the younger boy. And then arms were clinging tightly to him, Alvin's head resting on his chest. Jason wrapped his arms around the kid, being careful not to hold on too tightly just in case there were more injuries hidden by his clothing.

"Robin," the boy whimpered. Jason carefully picked him up and got them to a flatter section of the roof, sitting down with Alvin resting in his lap.

He pulled out the small first aid kit he carried and began cleaning the split lip and already forming black eye. "It's okay, any other injuries? Do you need to go to the clinic?" he asked, very worried about the kid…his friend.

Thankfully Alvin shook his head.

"Al…did your family do this to you?"

"What?" large blue eyes stared at him and then he was shaking his head rapidly. "No! They'd never…" he took a deep breath. "School," he muttered, and Jason winced.

"Oh, bullies huh?" he asked, and the kid nodded. "That sucks." He was lucky, the Wayne name had ensured that no one dared bully him even if no one wanted to be his friend. Pity they didn't go to the same school, he'd be Alvin's friend and protect him. Though with their age gap, the kid was probably in middle school still.

"Guessing the school won't step in?" he asked, and the look on Al's face was clear enough even in the dark. "Yeah, dumb question."

"Did you have fun with the Titans?"

"It was…different." Not quite what he'd been expecting but also not as bad as it could have been. He thought Roy at least was being genuinely friendly.

"Oh," Alvin whispered.

"It was just getting to know each other really, nothing excited happened, not even team training." That should be safe enough to say, it was standard team stuff even for non-heroes. He offered a few small stories that wouldn't give too much away, Alvin smiling at some of them. But eventually he had to get back to patrol and Al slipped away.

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"Something on your mind Little Wing?" Dick asked as he drove them into the city.

He finally had a day free and he was doing his best to be a better big brother. He knew he'd messed up at the beginning, taken his anger at Bruce out on an innocent kid. He regretted it and was going to do everything he could to make it up to him.

"Nothing big," Jason denied, watching the city pass by.

"Jay?" and now Dick was getting concerned.

Jason groaned, rolling his eyes. "Just a kid I ran into, school bullies roughed him up a bit."

"Ah. He okay?" Bullies were something normal at least. He'd been worried it had to do with Jason joining the Titans.

"Split lip and black eye but otherwise okay. Don't even know what school he goes to or anything, pretty sure he gave me a fake name. Not that I blame him, it is Gotham after all."

Dick winced but nodded, turning towards the shopping centre. Even a helpful stranger in Gotham could be dangerous so many wouldn't use their real name. Even Batman and co were usually given fake names by people they saved. It was safer that way no matter how annoying having to hack records or wait for facial recognition software to run could be.

He parked and they got out, heading into the mall and towards the cinema, chatting about more causal things. The movie was one Jason had been wanting to see for a while so Dick hoped he'd have a good time.

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Janet made sure the transfer went through, sending along a message. They had missed too many of his birthdays and would likely miss many more to come. It was hard to believe her darling boy was twelve now. Six more years and they could be free of Jack.

She was thankful her parents hadn't completely lost their minds; Tim's inheritance was safely locked in a trust that Jack couldn't trust and he didn't have full control of the company. And there was one out clause in their marriage that would leave her with everything and him nothing…but he had never laid a hand on either of them in anger. Jack had a temper, especially when alcohol was added but he was also aware of what it would cost him. Sometimes, she wished he would hit her just so they could be free. She could then run the company from home and be there for her son as well.

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"Hey there kiddo!"

Tim spun and froze at the sight of Harley Quinn herself, taking a half step back in fear.

"Easy! Don't fall, that's a long way down," she warned. "Not gonna hurt you kid. You're Alvin, right? You gave Ivy that flower picture." She rocked on her heels, and Tim stopped backing away as he realised, she was right, he was too close to the edge and unlike the Bats he didn't carry a grapple.

"I'm Alvin," he answered, no point in denying it.

"Well it's nice ta meet ya, Alvin," she grinned at him. "You should get home or to a shelter, Mista J's on the prowl," she warned, and Tim stiffened. "You've gotta safe place?"

He nodded, grabbing his backpack, quickly putting his camera away and moving for the fire escape. He squeaked when she lifted him up and down onto the landing.

"Run home kiddo."

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Harley watched the kid vanish from her sigh, impressed. He was as good as Robin or even the Bat at vanishing. She hadn't been looking for the kid or anything, but she'd been curious after seeing the picture Ivy'd been given. The kid was way too at ease on rooftops and fire escapes for a normal kid. But he definitely wasn't Robin. The accent and attitude were all wrong for the second Robin. A kid like that out on the streets… well, her good deed for the year would be keeping an eye and ear out. Ivy liked him after all and that was very rare.

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Jason really hoped Alvin was home safe as he threw a birdarangs at a creepy clown goon. Dealing with the Joker and his idiots had done nothing to improve his dislike of clowns. The circus overall was okay, but not clowns. Dick had taken him last year and it'd been neat enough, it explained a lot about his brother. But not even Dick could see anything positive about the Joker.

If there was one Rogue that had him chafing at the no killing rule, it was the Joker. But B refused to break it or let them break it. It wasn't like he wanted to be a killer but Arkham couldn't hold the monster and somehow, no cop had yet to get a lucky fatal shot on him. Most cops were so scared they ran instead of just standing their ground and opening fire, even when they had him outnumbered, it was crazy. Nice to see Harley wasn't there, maybe she'd left him for good this time? It'd explain his mood.

He grimaced as a hard blow landed, thankfully not breaking bone but that was going to be a nasty bruise.

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Alfred watched, relieved, as they both arrived safe and sound. Injured surely, but mobile and with not much visible blood. Always a blessing when dealing with that monster. If only Master Dick was home too, then all of the family would be under the one roof, well, all but one.

Young Jason was good at hiding things but not perfect, Alfred was well aware of his friendship behind the mask with a boy named Alvin. He had glimpsed the photo of Jason and the boy but it wasn't enough for facial recognition, not with the child's face shadowed the way it was. And black-haired blue-eyed children were all too common in Gotham. If the child was on the streets, then Wayne Manor had more than enough rooms to spare. It would be nice to have a younger child there but it might take some time.

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After two run ins, Tim wasn't really all that surprised to turn and see one of Batman's Rogues…or his girlfriend?

"Hello kitten," she purred.

"Hello Catwoman," he offered in return. "I don't have any jewels."

She laughed, prowling towards him, surprising him when she reached out to ruffle his hair. "Silly kitten," she murmured.

Tim just blinked at her in confusion.

"I'm a curious cat and you're a little kitten wandering far from home."

"Harley and Ivy mentioned me, didn't they?" he asked, sighing softly.

"Maybe," she smirked. "A little kitten who wanders Gotham at night with a camera. A very nice camera, Timothy."

He froze, not good! "I'm Alvin."

"It's alright Tim, I won't tell anyone. I won't even ask for easy access to your home," she smirked at the last bit. "Took a while to work out who you are, you're good kid, but you could be better."

"Better, Ms Kyle?" he asked, she'd brought in real names first.

She blinked and then laughed. "Such a clever kitten." She crouched in front of him, gently cupping his cheek, careful of her claws. "Gotham is dangerous when alone. Will you let us teach you to survive it?"

"Us?" he asked hesitantly.

"The three of us. I get the feeling you'll enjoy our spa nights," she tapped his painted fingernail, this time a nice purple to match mother's last gala dress. "No crime," she promised. "Girl talk, training, good food…"

"Do they know my name?"

"No," she shook her head. "You looked familiar so I checked."

"The Elliot's gala, you were there," he murmured, and she nodded. "Okay, as long as I get to be Alvin."

Catwoman was not a killer, most of her crimes were non-violent too. She'd fight sure, but there was always a reason for it. Ivy and Harley didn't tend to target kids either, well, at least when Harley wasn't with the Joker.

"Let's take the fun way, Alvin," she smirked and then they were running across the roofs, Ms Kyle carrying her when she used her whip, Tim holding on securely.

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Harley grinned when Selina showed up with Al at her side, his blue eyes wide. They were going to have so much fun! They'd need to be a bit careful; they didn't want to hurt the kid or anything and accidents were too easy. They soon had the kid settled at the table for a card game, laughing her head off when he won. And then he kept winning, the mini card shark.

There was plenty of junk food, no meat or anything for Ivy's sake and the kid loosened up, smiling happily as they talked. He even sat there and let them give him a makeover, happily talking colours and the like. And then she dragged out the gaming system and he lit up, bouncing slightly.

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Jason headed back to Gotham, feeling good. He wasn't fully settled into the team but it was getting better. Roy had really taken him under his wing, despite being older than him and Dick's friend. But Dick was doing better so hopefully it wouldn't cause issues.

"Little Wing!" Dick called as Jason stepped into the Cave.

"Hey Dick. You're in Gotham?"

"Well, it's the summer holidays. I was wondering if you'd like to come stay with me for a few days?"

"Really?" he asked, and Dick nodded. "Okay, I'll need to pack a fresh bag." He couldn't help looking forward to it.

"Your birthday's coming up, the big one-five. Got any plans?" Dick asked once they were on the road.

"No?"

He didn't have any friends at school or anything to have a party with. And it wasn't like the Titans knew who he was beyond being Robin. To him, it'd just been another day for years, ever since Catherine's addiction got really bad. Last year with Bruce and Alfred had been strange but nice, Dick hadn't come around for it though. Bruce had gone way overboard on the gifts but not as bad as Christmas so Jason hadn't freaked like he had then.

"Is there anything you'd like to do for it? Seriously Jay, anything at all?"

He hesitated, it was dumb, he was turning fifteen not ten. But… "Disney," he mumbled.

"Come on Little Wing, speak up."

"Disney," he answered, loud enough for Dick to hear.

Dick glanced at him and then grinned. "Disney it is then."

"What?! Dick, no, that's…"

"What you want so what you'll get. We can do Disneyland for this year and Disneyworld next. And if you like them, we can even do the overseas parks at some point."

"You're gonna talk B into going to Disney?" he smirked, and then saw the grin on Dick's face.

He felt bad for their Dad…almost.

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Bruce stared at the castle and all the mouse ears in dread. The happiest place on earth? What had he done to deserve this? But then he looked at his children, seeing Dick's energy and excitement and the effort Jason was putting into not smiling. Okay, so maybe it wasn't that bad.

TBC…