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Chapter Text

Dick had called and asked Roy and Jason if they wanted to participate in a mission to intercept a shipment he believed was going to The League of Assassins. Since Lian was spending the night at a friend’s, they gladly accepted the offer. They arrived at the Bat Cave a little after eight for the briefing. Everyone was swarming around, organizing into various groups and grabbing gear for the plethora of missions that were taking place tonight. Kate, Tim, and Bette were going on patrol. Luke, Duke, and Jean-Paul were planning on taking out some arms dealers who were selling alien tech. Bruce was going out on his own and not saying a word as to where. There was no sign of Barbara which meant she was running the Birds of Prey tonight. That left Jason and Roy with Dick, Steph, Cass, Harper, Helena, and Damian.

As they all sat around the conference table, Dick explained that the shipment was currently sitting in a warehouse waiting to be moved onto a ship that was due in promptly at eleven. The plan was to have two teams infiltrate the warehouse from different access points while the remaining people searched the docks and ship. It was a good plan but that did not mean execution would run smoothly.

After arriving at their post, Jason picked the lock on a door that schematics showed would take them to where they needed to be. It had been too easy to get inside. Therefore, it came as no surprise to either of them when they came face to face with several assassins. What they weren’t prepared for was being knocked unconscious and handcuffed to each other around a support beam. They woke up to Dick calling out to them over the comms.

“These are giving me ideas,” Jason said as he began to fiddle with a lockpick and the handcuffs.

Roy blushed, knowing the others could hear their discussion. Nonetheless, he couldn’t resist flirtatiously asking his partner, “Is that so?”

“Red Hood. Arsenal. Focus,” Dick said sternly. He grunted as he hit someone.

“Aw, it was just getting good,” Stephanie jokingly whined. Harper and Cass were both snickering in response.

Everyone on the mission could practically hear Dick’s eyeroll as he said, “Spoiler, it was not.”

“Batgirl and I have a visual on the shipment,” Damian interrupted.

“And we’ve got company,” Helena added, sounding ready for a fight.

The cuffs fell off of them. Roy caught Jason putting a couple pairs into his coat pocket. Jason winked. “We’re free. Where to?” Roy asked as he smiled at his partner.

“Rendezvous with Batgirl and Robin,” Dick ordered as he and Cass entered. The first Robin’s hair was already a mess. The four of them took off running towards the doors in the back of the room. They heard sounds of a fight on the other side of it. “It’s jammed.” He threw his weight against the door and nothing happened. Roy joined Dick in another futile attempt.

Jason shook his head. “We need explosives,” he said watching the two of them ram the door again. From his utility belt, he took out a couple of small but potent bombs that would stick to the door. The two who were trying to break the door down, moved away for him to place them. They dove for cover as Jason activated the countdown sequence. With a thunderous boom, debris flew everywhere as a way in was established. “After you,” he said as he reloaded his guns.

Dick ran in to help the kids who had been swarmed. The remaining three followed suit as Steph and Harper appeared from the other entrance to help. Roy shot a net arrow that pinned down three of the assholes who were going after Helena. Jason stood on two of their chests as he fired shots to take down, and regrettably not kill, their opponents.

“How rich is this?” a sultry voice said as Jason felt his veins burn and his feet lift off the floor. He was being pulled towards a man with long, raven hair that was clad mainly in black leather and who was facing a long, wooden crate at the end of the room. “Talia’s play thing.” Those three words instantly struck a nerve that started to spark something inside Jason.

“Do I want to know what he means by that?” Damian asked between groans of pain. Jason saw the young Robin floating in the air towards the same man.

“And her son,” the man said as he moved the two of them up and down in the air, still not bothering to even glance at his victims.

The voice was a blast from the past that Jason would recognize anywhere. “Graystone,” he spat. His veins felt like they were going to burst from the combination of blood magic and anger that was coursing through them.

When he heard his last name, the man turned around making sure to jerk Jason around in the air a bit more. Roy fired an arrow towards the blood mage. It grazed December Graystone’s wrist causing him to almost drop the two he was using as living marionettes. “Aren’t you cute?” the mage said, lifting Roy up as well. “Who might you be?” He stalked around the three of them as the rest of their team was distracted by the other assassins.

The sound of Roy wincing made Jason’s heart break and his rage even stronger. “Let him…go.” It was tough to let out any noise, let alone a sentence, as he was being magically flipped upside down.

Graystone switched his focus to the Red Hood. “What are you going to do about it? You’re not exactly in a position to be negotiating.” He wrenched Jason’s arms behind his back and went into the pocket he had put the handcuffs in. He must have seen their outline.

“I wouldn’t do that,” Jason warned, he could feel himself approaching dangerous levels of anger as his former acquaintance went behind him, jingling the damn cuffs the entire time.

The assassin snapped the wretched things on Jason’s wrists. “Why is that?”

A green tint filled Jason’s vision. He felt the darkness taking over and channeled it into taking control back of his body. He broke the cuffs apart like they were twigs and decked Graystone in the face. Jason shot the mage’s shin, a wicked smirk dancing upon his lips as he watched him fall over. “That’s why.”

“You fucker,” Graystone sneered, directing all his power at Jason.

Jason was too far gone to notice that Roy and Damian had fallen to the ground and had begun to incapacitate the assassins who had not managed to retreat. When Graystone realized his magic was not effective against Jason in this state, he began to limp towards the crate he had been staring at earlier. Jason shot at his heels, but another assassin got in his way by trying to tackle him to the ground. He ended up flipping the new challenger onto his back before making another attempt at Graystone. Cassandra and Helena popped into his line of fire as they raced to intercept the mage. Jason refocused his shot at the goon that was going after his sisters, hitting him in the back of his thigh.

Helena threw a knife at Graystone that struck him in the abdomen. Jason watched as the mage doubled over, far enough away from the crate that he would not be able to reach inside of it. But barely. He kept an eye on Graystone as he fought his way toward the two young women standing guard of the crate; Helena was armed with her various knives and Cass with her fists. They were taking down anyone who came near them with ease.

“Start talking,” Jason said, picking up Graystone and shoving him into a wall. He twisted the knife that for some reason the mage had decided not to remove.

Graystone spat. “You haven’t lost your talent for pain.” He applied more pressure to the knife. “You’re a smart boy, Jason. Always have been.” Graystone winced. “With that said, that begs the question, why are you letting me bleed?” The question seemed to be a rallying cry for the mage as he broke free from Jason’s grasp. He yanked the knife out of him, the bleeding stopping as he cast a healing spell. He charged towards Jason, knocking him to the ground.

The green Jason was seeing flickered a bit as he hit the floor. Graystone was on top of him looking to stab him. He grabbed the mage’s hands and held them together to keep the blade away from his body. Roy fired an arrow that knocked the knife out of reaching distance giving Jason the chance to headbutt the guy and free himself. As he managed to stand once more, Graystone pulled him back down.

From then onwards, he was not conscious of what happened until a blinding light came from where Cass stood. She was holding a spear that seemed to be the source of the brightness. In a flash, the room returned to normal lighting and the green tint faded from Jason’s vision. Graystone was staring at Cass, looking beyond terrified. “You children have no idea what you’re messing with,” the mage said as he took a knife from his belt and inflicted a wound on his wrist. In an instant, he vanished.

Jason struggled to sit up. His head and back were throbbing. To make matters even worse, there were black dots dancing across his vision. Roy knelt over him. “I’ve got you Jaybird,” his boyfriend said. He sounded so far away as those damn dots began to merge together to the point that there was nothing.

***

Roy felt odd being in a room that Jason had briefly called home during his teenage years. Though it could have been the fanciness that was putting him off. It wasn’t Jason’s style and whatever personalized touches that had been there were long gone. Granted, the space still contained an exorbitant number of books no matter where he looked. At some point, the man was going to need to build a library for himself because he was always obtaining new books. The funniest, and most endearing, part of all of it was that Jason owned multiple copies of some that he stashed at the manor, the apartment, and various safehouses.

He turned on to his side to check on his partner. By some miracle, Alfred had found nothing wrong with Jason upon examining him when they returned to the cave. All the tests and scans came back with the best possible results, but Roy was still worried. He’d seen Jason take a beating in every state imaginable and there had always been something wrong with him after words. Usually there was at least bruising, or a couple of stitches needed. He supposed he should be grateful that the man he loved was unharmed, yet the situation wasn’t sitting right with him. Roy hoped it was paranoia and not intuition. Just in case it was the latter, he had suggested they spend the night.

Jason’s eyes opened ever so slightly. “Why do you always wake me up like that?” His East End Gotham accent was out in full force due to exhaustion.

“All I do is look at you,” Roy countered as Jason turned on his side to look at him, a glint in his eyes and a smirk on his face.

“Your point?” his partner asked.

Roy shook his head. “I still maintain you have a sixth sense.”

The smirk on Jason’s face widened. “And I still maintain you have a remarkably loud stare.”

“Which you logically shouldn’t know a-” Roy began but started chuckling when Jason decided to pin him to the bed. “You’re terrible.”

“So are you,” Jason muttered as he moved his lips against Roy’s neck causing a small moan to escape from the ginger. Roy’s hands were on his hips, thumbs rubbing circles on the bones.

Roy flipped Jason onto his back. “We shouldn’t get carried away,” he said at the same moment Jason reached towards the nightstand drawer he had stashed the one remaining set of handcuffs in. “You have a death wish, don’t you?”

“Maybe,” Jason said nonchalantly. “Hmmm?” He dangled the cuffs.

“Ah, fuck it,” Roy said grabbing them from his lover’s grasp. He slid Jason’s shirt off and tossed it to the ground. Their passions began to run higher as he trailed his lips down Jason’s torso. Jason buckled a bit and Roy could feel both their pulses quicken. He tugged on the grey sweatpants Jason used as pajamas whenever he stayed at the manor. Roy paused to glance at his partner’s face for just a moment. Jason’s cheeks were flushed, and his eyes were two crescents; a sight that caused Roy to smile as he pulled off the sweatpants. It wouldn’t take much to get Jason going, never did. A shiver ran through Jason causing Roy to laugh a bit before properly starting things off; he’d have his Jaybird in those cuffs shortly.

***

He and Roy were a tangled mess of limbs within the sheets as the sun peaked through the curtain at just the right angle to blind them both. They kissed each other good morning and slowly readied themselves for the day. The agenda was to have brunch, try not to provoke anyone (that was mostly for Jason), make small talk and leave by one so they could pick up Lian from her friend’s at half passed three. It would be easier said than done to leave on time given that there was always a series of shenanigans that snowballed into some sort of dramatic display unique to the Bat Family. Their main worry for the day was that someone, despite them managing to keep quiet, had heard them last night and would say something. Given that no one had yelled at them while they were occupied and there were no text messages about it on either of their phones, they were thinking they could be safe.

After making themselves look presentable and tidying up the room, Jason and Roy were the last two to enter the dining room for the customary Sunday morning brunch. Everyone, even Jean-Paul, Kate, and Luke, had shown up. That was either a happy coincidence or a terrible sign. There was never any in between. The two of them took their seats towards the end of the table. Mar’i was sitting on her mother’s lap next to Jason and playing peek-a-boo across the table with Stephanie.

Kori was bouncing her daughter on her lap. “Jason, Roy! How are my boys?” the First Lady of the Outlaws asked, practically cooing. She was beyond thrilled to see her old teammates.

“Wonderful,” Roy answered, smiling brightly.

Jason tickled Mar’i, temporarily distracting the little one from the game she was playing. “I second that. How are my favorite space princesses?”

Kori was all cheeriness and smiles. “We are most splendid. How is the rest of your family; Lian, Rose, Joey, and Eddie?”

“Sassy,” Jason answered as he served himself some of Alfred’s signature pancakes. There was a sharp pain running down his back that he hadn’t noticed until that moment. It hurt the most between his shoulder blades.

“I expected nothing less Jason,” Kori responded, reigning her daughter in from almost knocking over her glass of juice. “Mar’i, sweetheart, let’s practice being mindful of our surroundings, alright?” The little girl nodded. “Good listening ears, thank you.”

“Helenaaaa, who are you texting that is making you smile so much?” Stephanie asked as she poured an excessive amount of maple syrup on her Belgian waffle.

The newest Batgirl rolled her eyes. “A friend.”

Stephanie cut into her waffle. “Which one?” Helena muttered something under her breath. “Didn’t catch that.”

“I said to please go-” Helena began. She swiftly changed the direction of her sentence when she received a Bat Stare from her father. “Please gladly pass the tatter tot casserole.”

“But of course,” Stephanie said, obliging. “You’re not going to tell me, are you?”

Helena shook your head. “It’s none of your business.”

“Someone’s cranky,” Duke teased.

“I didn’t sleep well,” Helena mumbled, glaring at Jason and Roy. The archer turned as red as his hair from the subtle call out. She then shot the same look to Tim who shrank back in his chair, signaling that he had snuck Kon in. Again.

Damian touched the tips of his fingers together, examining everyone’s faces. “Drake, Harper, Todd, what did you three do to my sister?”

Jason stabbed part of his pancake. “Absolutely nothing.”

“Let’s just say, the next time we play Truth or Dare, vengeance shall be mine,” Helena said, a twinkle in her sky blue eyes.

“I have successfully avoided participating in that game since I was sixteen and I don’t plan on changing that anytime soon,” Jason said, prompting Dick, Kori, and Roy to all snicker.

“Oh, this is something I need to hear about,” Harper said. Steph, Cass, and her all instinctively leaned in to listen at the same time.

Jason shook his head. “Sorry ladies.”

“What happens at Titans Tower…” Dick began.

“Stays at Titans Tower,” Roy finished.

Judging from her face, Harper was feeling bold. “I’ll just dig up old security camera footage.”
“Can’t. The tower didn’t have interior cameras at the time,” Roy said before biting into a chocolate chip muffin.

Jason was wearing one of his signature smirks. “Which works to your advantage because you’d be down at least one niece.” Kori, Dick, and Roy all blushed when they caught sight of an exasperated Bruce shaking his head as he flipped through the newspaper.

“Okay, Jason, there are small ears here,” Barbara warned.

“Future Mr. Harper, may I have the fruit salad?” Helena asked.

Jason ignored her. Marriage was not something he and Roy had gotten around to discussing…yet. Even if they had, it wasn’t any of the Bats’ business. There was also the fact that he really did not appreciate the relationship jokes everyone seemed to crack each time they came around. Normally he would give Helena some slack because she was one of his favorites, but that particular comment had managed to strike something curious deep inside of him that he was not prepared to deal with.

Roy laced their fingers together under the table and squeezed a bit. The sweet, simple gesture jolted Jason out of his mind. He glanced at his love, their eyes met for a moment before they continued eating.

“Helena, have I ever told you about the time I singlehandedly took down a spaceship and the entire squadron of soldiers inside it?” Kori asked, reaching for the fruit salad that was clearly closer to Jason. Both Jason and Roy made mental notes to thank their former teammate later.

“I don’t believe so,” Helena said, following the bowl as it was passed from person to person.

Kori nodded. “It was, as some among us would say, epic. Perhaps, we could discuss it after brunch?”

Helena smiled as she reached for the fruit salad. “Sounds cool.”

From there, the conversation somehow evolved, well, technically devolved into discussions about pop culture, knives, how Mar’i was officially enrolled in dance classes, and the forever hot button topic about who would be dropping by the manor this week. Somewhere in there both Damian and Helena threatened to stab Stephanie and Tim respectively. Both of them had threatened to do the same to each other at least twice. Cass made a casual reference to Shakespeare that made Kate and Jason proud. And there were several brief arguments between various parties about rather pointless shit. All in all, an ordinary brunch for an anything but conventional family.

Chapter Text

Roy and Jason both had taken the day off to recuperate from the mission. Jason’s back was still killing him. When he sat up to get out of bed a searing pain shot down the entire length of his spine. If it kept up, he was going to have Alfred run some more tests and consider seeing an actual doctor. Roy was worried and made Jason promise to take it easy. He wasn’t allowed to lift heavy objects or be on his feet for long periods of time until further notice. Basically, the way Roy put it, he was a step before bed rest. He agreed only because he wanted to finish reading the complete works of Pablo Neruda before Rose, Eddie, and Joey stopped by later. Since they were expecting company, Roy went on quite the cleaning spree complete with music and a, secretly recorded, dance with the vacuum cleaner.

Jason managed to sneak off to the kitchen to make himself a sandwich while Roy was down in the apartment building’s basement doing laundry. He heard the door open and close as Rose called out, “Good afternoon Harper Household!” She poked her head into the kitchen and added, “And Jason.”

“Real original,” Jason remarked as he rinsed off some iceberg lettuce in the sink.

The mercenary turned nanny ruffled up his hair and kissed his cheek. “I don’t see a ring.” She was teasing but after Helena’s comment yesterday, those words hit hard.

“You don’t have one either and I still refer to Eddie as a Wilson,” Jason shot back.

Rose snorted. “I’m going to have to remember that.” She leaned against the wall and crossed her arms for the sake of comfort. “Does Li know we’re going to be here when she comes home?”

Jason slapped a piece of lettuce down on to a slice of bread. “Nope but she is going to be thrilled since she loves the three of you almost as much as she does her dad.”

“And you,” Rose corrected. It sounded like she was chewing gum.

He couldn’t help but smirk at those words. Jason loved the little one. Spending time with her and helping her with school work were always some of the best parts of his week. “Touché but I’m not her dad.”

Rose rolled her eyes. “Not biologically but at this point you are a dad to her.” Those were even more words he was not prepared to hear. His silence prompted her to add, “I’m just saying. Need I remind you of what she wrote regarding you for her story about her family?”

All he could hear play in his head were the words Lian had scrawled out in crayon, “I hope he stays.” A pit formed in his stomach as he realized there was a lot he needed to sort through regarding his relationship with Roy and where it was heading. “You always did know how to cut through all of my bullshit and make me think.”

“As your ex-whatever and best friend, it is the least I can do,” Rose half joked. He could feel her eyes studying his movements.

“Eddie is my best friend,” Jason countered playfully, placing the top slice of bread onto his ham and swiss sandwich.

Rose snickered. “But I’m better.”

“That’s a lie,” Eddie stated as Rose and Jason entered the living room.

“Not really,” Joey signed, a playful expression on his face.

Jason sat down on the couch, leaving a cushion between he and Eddie; that way Rose could take a seat if she wanted. He placed his feet on the coffee table. “Just remember, Joey’s my favorite.”

Roy faked being offended as he pushed open the door, laundry basket in hand. “Excuse me, but I beg to differ.”

“Darling, you know you’re in a category all your own,” Jason responded before taking a bite out of his sandwich.

“I know, I just like when you say it in front of everyone else,” Roy said, placing the laundry basket next to Jason’s feet. “Would you be so kind to fold the clothes when you’re done eating?”

“Yeah, I’ll do it,” Jason answered. He made a face when he realized he had put too much mustard on his food. “By the way, I found a recipe on Pinterest I want to try when you allow me to be on my feet again. How do you feel about gorgonzola?”

“It’s alright but anything you make is delicious so do what you want,” Roy answered, squeezing in between Eddie and Jason. He put his arm around Jason’s shoulders. Jason instinctively moved closer to him.

The other lovebirds in the room were both laughing. “Congratulations Roy. You’ve done the impossible,” Eddie said, wiping a tear from his eye.

Roy blinked. “What’s that?”

“You’ve domesticated Jason Todd,” Rose answered.

Jason rolled his eyes. “To be fair, I volunteered to be the designated cook.”

Rose sat down on Eddie’s lap. “Rightfully so. That garlic parmesan mac-n-cheese of yours is divine.”

“Yeah, but it’s not as good as his lasagna,” Roy stated, his expression was distant as he thought about his favorite dish.

Jason kissed his cheek. “You’re cute,” he muttered causing Roy to blush. He put his plate on the end table. “Pass me clothes and I’ll fold.”

“Okay,” Roy said, reaching for the basket. “Hey Rose, we’re going to be going to Gotham again on Friday. Would you be able to bring Lian to the tower after you pick her up from school? I think it would be nice for her to see Jay’s family. It’s been awhile.”

Rose was playing with Eddie’s long locks. “Of course. When is the that boring old PTA or whatever it’s called meeting, again?”

“There’s another one of those?” Jason groaned as he folded one of Roy’s t-shirts.

“Yeah, it’s tomorrow night at seven,” Roy answered.

Jason stifled a groan. “If Karen and Susan start on their bullshit again I might actually publicly green eye.”

Roy rubbed his shoulder. “You say that every time.”

“I mean it this time. No one cares about whether the kids should have blue composition notebooks or black ones. Not to mention, Karen deserves a reckoning for her constant subtle homophobia.” Jason ranted. He flicked a t-shirt in the air to untangle it before he folded it. A sound of disgust escaped his lips.

Rose chuckled. “Are they all stereotypical middle aged, suburban white moms?”

“Some of them are cool,” Roy answered.

“Correction, only Lorraine is cool,” Jason said.

Joey was smiling. “That’s a yes.”

“If I ever did hear one,” Rose agreed.

Roy was smirking. “Keep in mind Jaybird doesn’t like as many people as I do.”

Jason tried to glare at him but failed when he saw the cute expression on Roy’s face as he combed his hair with his free hand. It was getting long again and as a result, driving the archer up the wall. Roy kept saying he was going to cut it soon, but the universe seemed to have other plans. Each time he had said he intended to schedule an appointment he was called off on a mission or there was a more pressing domestic matter to deal with.

Truthfully, Jason liked Roy’s hair on the shorter side but didn’t care how he wore it as long as he was comfortable and happy. Sometimes Jason missed tucking the long hair behind his ear. When they had first started The Outlaws and long before either of them realized they had feelings for each other, it had been something he did every time he helped Roy up off the ground. He had no idea why he did that at the time but in retrospect, given their current arrangement, it was kind of obvious.

“True but I’m happy with the ones I do like,” Jason stated as he paired two polka dotted socks belonging to Lian together.

Rose had started a small braid in Eddie’s hair. “Wow, you used the h-word.”

Joey pointed to the book Jason had been reading. “May I borrow this?” he signed.

“It’s in Spanish but I’d be happy to lend you the English version,” Jason said. Joey nodded. “I will go grab it.” He stood up slowly in order to minimize the risk of experiencing more back pain. He walked over to the bookcase across the room and skimmed the shelves. “There it is,” he said, sliding it out of its designated spot with ease. He handed it to Joey. “Let me know what you think.”

“Absolutely.” Joey’s eyes read through the index, a smile on his face. “By the way, I have been wanting to teach Lian more sign language but between missions, work, and everyday life, I have neglected my promise to her. Do you think she is still interested?”

Roy nodded. “Most likely. She has been practicing the alphabet and numbers almost every night before she goes to bed.”

“I caught her looking up ASL videos of children’s songs on YouTube the other day. She definitely enjoys it,” Jason said.

Joey was gleaming. “Fantastic! I shall ask her.”

“Speaking of the little angel, we should leave to pick her up soon,” Roy said to Jason.

Jason arched an eyebrow. “I ate lunch that late?”

Roy nodded. “You were really into that book.”

“I guess so,” Jason said, walking over to the coat closet. He pulled out his signature leather brown jacket and Roy’s black coat.

“We’ll be back in about half an hour,” Roy said as he stood.

***

The crisp November air clung to their faces as they stood on the sidewalk with the other adults waiting for their children. The people around them all seemed to be freezing which both men found slightly comical. Jason more so than Roy because he had grown up on the unforgiving streets of Gotham. As a result, he found California weather to be quite tame. Roy was basically a living space heater and never seemed to be bothered by the cold much less, temperatures in the fifty-degree range like today was. Jason was actually surprised he was presently wearing a jacket. He figured he was trying to be a good example for Lian and her friends.

Jason was surveying the crowd of children being escorted out of the building by the school’s staff. There was a woman with blonde hair who caught Jason’s attention by staring directly at him. She gave a beaming smile. That’s when he did a double take, swearing he had just seen the woman who had raised him, Catherine Todd. When he blinked, there was no trace of her anywhere. He assumed it was his mind playing tricks on him and continued to look for Lian.

Shortly afterwards, they both simultaneously spotted Miss Holt counting her students and walked over towards them with a couple of other parents. “Mr. Harper and Mr. Todd, what a pleasant surprise,” the teacher said, a small but kind smile on her face.

“Daddy! Jay!” Lian screamed as she ran out of the line to hug them both. “We were learning about Native Americans today and I got to teach my friends some Navajo.”

Roy picked up his daughter. “That’s awesome!”

Lian was clinging to him with one hand and offering Jason a high five with the other. “Miss Holt is great like that.”

“Thank you,” Roy said to the teacher.

“You’re very welcome but truly, thank you both. We all enjoyed the impromptu lesson,” Miss Holt said, “Have a wonderful night!”

They said their goodbyes and returned to the car. Lian rambled on about how great her school day was. Apparently, it was her turn to be line leader this week and it had been someone’s birthday which meant she got to eat a frosted cookie with sprinkles after lunch. Roy and Jason both loved hearing about her day, often asking her questions about everything they could think to. She was always so happy to share when it was a good day. More often than not it that was the case.

Lian lit up when she spotted Rose’s car parked outside their building in the apartment complex. She couldn’t contain her excitement and took off running once the car was stopped. Jason caught up with her as Roy locked up the car. “Easy there, Li,” Jason said, falling into sync with her.

“I didn’t think I’d get to see Rose today!” Lian said so fast she could have passed as a speedster.

Roy smiled as he finally reached them. “I’m glad you’re so happy Little Squeaker.”

It was the quickest walk up to their second story apartment they ever had. When they opened the door and Lian saw her two other favorite men she gave an excited scream as she ran to them. “This is such a great day!” She laughed loudly as Eddie picked her up and shook her in the air.

“I take it you missed us?” Eddie asked as he tossed her in the air a bit.

Lian nodded her head quickly. “Only if you missed me too.”

“Of course we did,” Rose translated for Joey.

Eddie put Lian down, so she could give Rose’s brother a hug. “Joey!! Have you met Lord Dagger and Prince Arrowhead’s daughter Princess Battle Axe yet?” Joey shook his head. “Oh no! Be right back!” She bolted to her room and returned with a small, stuffed, lavender penguin. “It’s nice to meet you!” she said, doing a high-pitched voice for the toy.

Joey smiled. “It’s nice to meet you too.” He then proceeded to have Rose continue to interpret as he asked Lian if she wanted to resume sign language lessons.

Lian’s response was to spell out yes using sign language. “But first, who wants their nails painted?” Everyone raised their hand or vocalized their desire. Rose chose a pale pink, Eddie black, Joey went for a violet, Roy predictably wanted red, and Jason settled for green. Lian gladly fulfilled all of their requests before it was time for Roy to make dinner.

***

The afternoon with their friends had been wonderful and much needed but it was now time to get Lian ready for bed. It had taken a lot, but she was finally clad in her pale blue pajamas, polka dotted socks, and fuzzy pink bunny slippers. She was on the couch snuggled in between Roy and Jason holding her three favorite stuffed animals. Jason was reading Lian a bedtime “story.” In actuality, it was a big thick science book about the rainforest Lian had picked out last time they had gone to the book store. He had been reading it to her every night until she started to doze off. With all the excitement of today, it wouldn’t take very long for her to wind down. She was already yawning.

Fifteen minutes later and she actually asked for Roy to tuck her in. Jason bookmarked the page and kissed the top of her head. “Good night kiddo,” he said as Roy scooped her into his arms.

“Good night Jay,” she said as she let out a big yawn. Roy carried her to her room as she swung her arms around his neck. He lowered her into bed slowly. As he was pulling the covers over her tiny body she said in a quiet tone, “You and Jay are the best dads.”

The words pulled at Roy’s heartstrings. She had no idea how much what she had said meant to him. A few weeks prior, on his birthday, Roy had realized he wanted a future with Jason. He’d spent time reflecting on what that meant to him and what it entailed. He’d made some conclusions he had not yet shared with anyone besides the universe but, between Helena’s joke and Lian’s statement, he was thinking he was on the right track. “Thank you Etai Yazi.” He kissed her forehead.

“I don’t think Jay realizes how good he is,” Lian added. Her eyes were barely open now.

“He loves you sweetheart. As do I,” Roy said quietly.

“I know. I love you both too,” Lian said with her eyes closed. She tried to wish him sweet dreams but fell asleep halfway through the first word.

Roy chuckled a bit as he left the room. His baby girl was getting big, and fast at that. Her intelligence and communication skills were improving at an even more rapid rate. He walked into the living room to see Jason with his nose in the poetry book from earlier. His heart skipped a beat as he saw a flash of green nail polish when Jason turned the page. For the first time, the future Roy wanted became crystal clear in his mind. He had a sinking feeling it wasn’t going to be easy to attain but, in his heart, he knew it was all going to work out.

Chapter Text

Jason’s eyelids were heavy to the point he was basically squinting as he woke up. He had been dreaming about a person standing in front of a blinding light much like the one that had come from the spear the other night. He could not make out any distinctive features of the person as they were a blurry silhouette. Whoever this person was supposed to be had kept repeating his name ever so softly. They had reached a hand out to him and started walking closer to him. “It’s time to go,” they had said before shoving him off a ledge he had not known he was standing near. He remembered falling, his speed increasing as he approached something… He assumed it was some sort of hard surface. Whatever it was, he had woken up right before slamming into it.

The room was illuminated in silver moonlight that crept in from the slits in the blinds. Shadows danced across the floor and in the corners. He sat up, his back feeling oddly warm and still hurting. In his dream whatever the hell this injury was had manifested as there being something heavy attached to his back.

No sooner had he finally managed to open his eyes all the way did his heart instantly leap in to his throat. Standing at the foot of his bed, clear as day, was Catherine Todd smiling at him. She didn’t look quite like he remembered her. For one, it was because she looked healthy and sober despite being oddly pale. But there was something else he couldn’t quite put his finger on. “Jason,” she said. Her voice was warm and sounded slightly echoey.

“What the fuck?!” Jason said, rubbing his eyes again. She was still there. “Either I’m still dreaming or I’m finally going as insane as the goddamn Joker. There are no other possible explanations.”

Catherine shook her head. “I love you.”

Jason glared at her as something possessed him to reach for the knife he kept in the top drawer of his nightstand. He grasped the handle and threw it. It passed straight through her and stuck into the wall behind her. “Fucking hell.”

“There’s much you still don’t know,” Catherine said.

“I’m dreaming. I’m fucking dreaming,” Jason said, closing his eyes and resting his head in his hands.

Roy was awake and sitting up now, reaching out to him but refraining from touching him. He thought it best to gage the situation first. “Jaybird…Jaybird…Jaybird, I’m here. You’re here. We’re in the apartment we share. Lian is in the room next door.” There was a hint of panic in his voice that would have gone undetected if he were trying to comfort anyone else.

Jason dared to look at the end of the bed. She was still there. He growled at her, his eyes flickering green. “I’m always with you…I love you Jason,” Catherine said, and, in a blink, it was like she was never there. He crumpled into Roy. For the first time in years, his breath caught as his body shook and tears fell down his face.

Roy tentatively wrapped an arm around Jason who fell into him even more. “Jaybird…what do you need?” He was gently rubbing his partner’s side with the tips of his fingers.

“This,” Jason muttered. He managed to take a couple deep breaths and slow the tears. “I’m sorry Roy.” Roy had seen him at his lowest but never in a state like this. He snuggled into the man he loved, feeling embarrassed for being such a wreck. “For all of this.”

“Do you want to talk about it?” Roy asked, his voice just above a whisper.

“I’m going fucking crazy,” Jason responded, his voice was shaky. “My stepmother…she was just standing at the foot of our bed, as if she were a living breathing human. She was speaking to me…”

Roy tensed. The Navajo had raised him to believe that seeing the dead was a serious, negative experience to have. Sort of like a bad omen from what Jason understood. “How do you want to handle this?”

Jason shrugged. “You do what you need to. I’m going to hope that it was a one-time thing. If it isn’t, we will go from there.” He shook his head. “I have better things to think and worry about.”

“It’s going to be alright Jaybird,” Roy insisted. His voice was soothing, and he sounded like he genuinely believed what he said.

“I hope so,” Jason mumbled. He wanted to be optimistic but given how the vast majority of his life had gone, he was anything but. “I’m sorry I woke you…and for the knife in the wall. Can we try and go back to sleep?”

There was a brief pause as Roy processed the second part of the apology. He didn’t comment on it though. Instead, he pulled Jason into his arms and held him closely. Roy had the potential to doze off into a fitful rest as they lay in the bed, facing the window. Jason on the other hand had no hope of returning to sleep.

The good, the bad, and the downright ugly childhood memories of Catherine flooded through his mind. He had worried about her far too often due to her drug addiction. Therefore, he arguably had been mourning her long before her death. He had blamed himself for her dying, figuring if he had been there, he could have called for help or if he had pleaded more with the higher power who loved to mock him, she would have kicked the habit. He had been angry at her for never beating her addiction despite knowing she didn’t have access to the resources she had needed to do so. More importantly, he had been angry at her for leaving him all alone on the cruel, unforgiving streets of Gotham and for causing him so much pain.

At the time, Jason would have given anything and everything to have a mother again. At sixteen he had a shot at just that when he found out about his birth mother, Sheila. As payment for his wish coming true, he died trying to protect her even though she had handed him over to the Joker. Her death, along with his own, would always remain with him for obvious reasons. Catherine’s on the other hand, hurt more often than he cared to admit, but he thought he had accepted it. After tonight, it was becoming clear that he had not. At least, not fully.

Jason attempted to escape from dwelling on the past by focusing on the warmth of Roy’s arms around him. Being held by Roy was a comforting experience because of how safe it made him feel. Right now, he latched on to that sense of security as he remembered how Roy had led him out of the darkness years ago. This time, if it turned out he was staring into another abyss, he wanted Roy to walk beside him as he helped himself. He snuggled more into his significant other. “Thank you,” he mumbled.

“For what?” Roy asked, nuzzling Jason.

“Never giving up on me,” Jason answered.

Roy somehow managed to pull him even closer. “Jaybird, I wouldn’t even think of doing so.”

He fought the urge to wince when he felt a slight pressure on his back where it hurt because the benefits of the embrace were more important, and he didn’t want Roy to stop. Jason felt himself wanting to smile as he soaked in the warmth radiating from Roy. Unfortunately, he didn’t have the emotional energy to do so. “The feeling is mutual.”

Jason pulled the blanket over himself. Moments like this with Roy simultaneously made him feel unworthy of such a love and beyond lucky. He wanted to savor the fact the man he loved managed to stick around as he struggled. But given that Jason was used to people leaving him in some form or another, he tended to think that what they had was too good to last. It made him hesitant to talk about the future which contributed to why he found all the jokes and commentary from others about their relationship damn annoying.

He went back to concentrating on Roy’s physical form and how safe he felt. After that breakdown, Jason did not need to add stress by dwelling on a separate set of issues laced with high emotions. Since he did not want or need another freak out tonight, Jason curled up even more and began the long wait for morning's light.

Chapter Text

Roy was off with the Titans, Lian was at school, Rose was out shopping for a very specific mystery item, and Joey was at his fancy desk job. That left Eddie and Jason to have some much-needed quality time together. It had been ages since the two of them enjoyed each other’s company without their significant others, Joey, and Lian around. Not that it was bad hanging out when the others were around but sometimes the one on one time where they didn’t have to worry about small ears and could ask for relationship advice if needed was too scarce for their liking.

After the events of last night, Jason was grateful Eddie had asked him out for lunch. They ended up at a diner fifteen minutes away from the apartment, shoveling greasy food into their mouths. A group of teenagers was sitting in the booth behind them, laughing and pointing at Eddie’s demonic appearance. “Ignore them, it makes life a hell of a lot simpler,” Eddie said before biting into an onion ring.

Jason closed his eyes for a moment and worked up just enough anger to summon the darkness of the Lazarus Pit. When he opened his eyes to glare at the teenagers, he was seeing green as he intended. The little punks fell silent and shrank a way. He took a deep breath, blinked a couple of times and was back to normal. “But where is the fun in that?”

“Did you just do that intentionally? Since when can you control it?” Eddie asked.

“It comes and goes. Though, it is only ever in small doses,” Jason answered. He bit into a fry.

Eddie reached for his soda. “You’re fucking weird, you know that, right?”

Jason raised his eyebrows as he looked him up and down, a shit eating smirk on his face. “You’re one to talk.”

The two of them laughed hysterically to the point Eddie wiped a tear from his eye when they calmed down. “That felt good.” He bit into his buffalo chicken wrap. Jason watched as some of it fell out of the back and onto the plate. “So, Jay, no offense, but you look like hell. What’s on your mind?” Jason hummed in response. “Don’t do that.”

“Do what?” Jason asked.

Eddie rolled his eyes. “Oh, pen pal, don’t pretend you aren’t self-aware but if you must know, that humming and vague shit you do with your family. Keep it with them.”

“You’re right. I’m sorry,” Jason said. His half-eaten burger no longer looked appealing as he contemplated which subject to talk about first and how much he was willing to open up about. “There is a lot going on.”

“If Rose were here, she’d say that was very descriptive,” Eddie stated.

“Good thing she’s not,” Jason joked.

His oldest friend nodded. “But you’re stuck with me and you know that means open up or I start stealing fries.” Jason glared as Eddie slowly moved his hand towards the plate. “I’m getting closer…”

Jason swatted his hand away. “You win this round Bloomberg.” He broke a fry in half as he dipped it into the ketchup on his plate. “Do you want to hear about how I’m going crazy or Roy stuff first?”

“I feel like going crazy is best saved for somewhere more private and since Roy isn’t here…I’m going to have to pick option two,” Eddie answered. “Is there trouble in paradise?”

A loud huff escaped from Jason. “No but I get the impression that people are starting to talk more about our future than we have.”

Eddie finished chewing another bite of his wrap before responding. “Which is making you think about what you want and now you’re terrified?” Jason nodded. “Ah. Well, I guess it is only logical that I ask, what is it you want?”

“I can’t picture my life without him in it,” Jason answered, he was watching Eddie. “But more often than not, I’m scared there is going to be a point where he gets bored or fed up with my bullshit and leaves like most people have.”

“Roy isn’t most people,” Eddie said. His playful nature was temporarily gone in favor of adapting a more serious one for the duration of this discussion. “You know that, right?”

Jason was shoving a piece of lettuce that had fallen off his burger around on his plate with the broken fry. “Yes. I’m also aware it is an irrational fear that is caused by the events in my life conditioning me to have abandonment issues.” He ate the last bit of the fry. “And the fact that those are just the tip of the iceberg.”

Eddie slurped his soda. “Have you talked to Roy about how you’re feeling?”

“Do you think that I would be running this by you if I had?” Jason asked. It came out meaner than he intended. Judging from Eddie’s brief scowl, it must have sounded worse than he feared. “I’m sorry. That was rude and terribly bitchy.”

“Two apologies in less than fifteen minutes. You really must be turning over a new leaf, Jay,” Eddie stated. Another onion ring was poised to be eaten. “Anyways, since I can read subtext and understand that was a no because you need to talk it over with someone else first, let us continue.” He spun the onion ring around his finger as if it were on the cold side and he was reheating it. Then again, knowing Eddie’s power set, that was probably the case. “You said you can’t envision a life without him, what exactly do you have in mind?”

Jason was temporarily distracted by a young boy running past the table and vanishing before he ran into the wall. He was definitely going crazy. “Still in a relationship with him, facing whatever life throws at us, raising Lian. You know, all the stuff I swore I never wanted out of life and now have.”

Eddie had a toothy grin plastered on his face the second he heard that. “You know, there is a word to describe what you want that encapsulates everything you just said.” Jason furrowed his eyebrows at his friend, unsure of where he was going. “Marriage.”

“You’re not wrong,” Jason muttered, unsure of why that word freaked him out so much despite it being exactly what he wanted.

“I never am,” Eddie said, still with that look on his face.

“Yeah, no,” Jason teased.

His friend tried to steal a fry in a vain effort to retaliate. Jason moved the plate out of reach to thwart the attempt. “It was worth a try.” Eddie leaned back in the booth. “Listen Jay, you have abandonment issues, you said so yourself, which is why the idea of something that entails a lot of commitment is freaking you out. Therefore, I have some more questions for you.”

Eddie had hit the nail on the head which caused Jason to groan a bit. “Might as well go for it.”

“Is Roy The One?” Eddie inquired

Without hesitation, Jason responded, “Yes.”

Eddie’s face expression softened. “So, what are you waiting for?” He did not have a good answer for that and opted to keep quiet as a result. “Exactly,” Eddie said, interpreting the lack of response as another way to mean nothing. Which, in this case, he was right. “You’re letting yourself get in your own way and it is stopping you from moving forward. Just take a deep breath and go for it the next time the two of you are alone.”

“Hey Eddie,” Jason said, his voice low.

“Yeah?” Eddie asked.

“Excellent advice. You should take it yourself,” Jason said, letting himself smile widely.

Eddie finally successfully managed to swipe a fry, earning a glare from his best friend. “Consider it my fee.” He tossed it in his mouth. “Also, who says Rose and I haven’t talked?”

“Pen pal don’t like you aren’t self-aware,” Jason teased.

“I hate you,” Eddie responded. Jason stole an onion ring off his plate. “Dude!”

“Consider it an upfront payment. Now, tell me about you and Rose,” Jason said. A cocky smile spread across his face as Eddie groaned. He was going to enjoy the shift in focus to Eddie before they inevitably circled back to his mental health.

Chapter Text

Jason was pacing back and forth in the living room when Roy came back from taking Lian to school and grocery shopping. There were comments made about how Jason should be resting to help his back, but he insisted it was doing better. In truth it was, though there was still some pain and pressure. He would also like to know the cause of it but given that he was doing better and seeing Alfred in a couple of days, he was not terribly worried. Jason was too busy thinking of how to say everything he wanted without it spilling out in a jumble.

When he didn’t stop pacing by the time Roy put everything away, he was asked if everything was alright. “Yeah…I’m thinking,” Jason said unconvincingly.

Roy sat down on the couch. “What about?”

Jason took a deep breath. It was now or never. “Us,” he said, meeting Roy’s eyes. Every fiber of his being was radiating anxiety. His heart was racing as a part of him wanted to back out of it. Jason studied Roy carefully in an effort to decipher how he felt.

“I’ve been thinking about us too,” Roy admitted softly. He patted the spot next to him. “What have your thoughts, you know, centered around?”

“The future and what I want out of it,” Jason said. He resisted biting his lip as he sat down. “And how you play into all of it.”

He noticed Roy nod a bit. “Me too.”

They were staring at each other, breathing shallowly. Both of them were hoping the other would speak as they searched for the right words. Jason’s nerves were eating away at him, causing him to break the silence. “I love you and Lian.” He swallowed. “And I want the three of us to be a family.”

Roy took Jason’s hands in his. “Jaybird, we are a family.”

“I know but I’d like it to feel more…permanent,” Jason said. He wasn’t sure if the last word was the one he was searching for, but it conveyed his point enough for Roy’s eyes to light up.

"As in marriage?” Roy asked. He was unintentionally holding his breath as he waited for the answer.

“Yes,” Jason answered. It was liberating to get it off his chest despite the possibility this could all backfire. Although, judging from the giant smile on Roy’s face, things seemed to be going in his favor. “That is, if you’ll put up with me forever.”

Roy caressed his cheek. “How about, forever and a day?”

Jason leaned into his hand. “That I can do.”

“As can I Jaybird,” Roy said. They were about to kiss when Roy’s phone went off with the obnoxious ringtone he had set for none other than Dick Grayson. “He can wait.” He leaned into the kiss. It was tender and short lived as Jason pulled away to groan when his phone rang.

“He certainly lives up to his name,” Jason muttered as he took his cell out of his jeans pocket. He contemplated sending his older brother to voicemail but knew he would just try both of them again. “This is poor timing, so it better be good,” he said into the phone.

“I wanted to give you a heads up regarding the upcoming Friday night briefing,” Dick said. Mar’i was singing along to the new She-Ra theme song. Kori was giggling but eventually joined in.

He pursed his lips together. “What is it?”

“Tim and Barbara found a lead on what they think the spear is. I’ll forward the information to you. We’re bringing in a couple members of the Justice League Dark to either confirm or deny our suspicions,” Dick explained.

Jason cleared his throat. “Anything else?”

“You know your acquaintance Graystone from the other night?” Dick asked.

He let out a huff. “What about him?”

“We have intel stating he’s still in Gotham. We’re going to need your help to come up with a plan to take him into custody,” Dick explained.

“I’ll get back to you on those particular details because we’re in the middle of something. However, just note that having a magic user or two with us would help. Roy and I don’t want to be marionettes again,” Jason explained. “I would assume Damian is in the same boat.

There was cheering in the background. “Noted. I’ll see you Friday,” Dick said.

“Until then,” Jason said. He turned the phone off before placing it on the coffee table. “Want the details now or later?”

“Later, I want to talk about us more,” Roy answered. He was sitting cross legged on the couch now, his back resting against the arm in order for him to face Jason. “Before we get into talking about the timeline, you going to college, and everything else, can I ask you to do something?”

“What do you need?” Jason asked.

“Can we talk to Lian about this, together, after dinner tonight?” Roy asked. “I think it would mean a lot to her.”

“Of course. It’s only right that we include her,” Jason answered.

Roy concurred with a nod. “That’s what I was thinking. Now, onto the nitty gritty.”

***

They decided to let the dishes air dry. The smell of lemon dish soap mixed with spaghetti filled the apartment as the three of them sat in the living room. Originally, for reasons unknown, Lian thought she was in trouble when they told her they wanted to talk. After Roy and Jason explained that she was not five different ways, she settled into the armchair with her stuffed penguin in her lap. She was looking at them both with wide eyes, clearly wanting answers.

Roy cleared his throat. “Squeaker, how would you feel about Jay and I getting married within the next couple of years?”

Her eyes lit up. “Jay is going to stay!?”

“That is what your dad and I want. We want to know what you want,” Jason told her.

“You’re one of the best dads Jay! You better stay!” Lian enthused.

Jason was smiling. “Then it is settled, the three of us are going to continue to be a family.”

Lian punched the air with her tiny fist. “Yay!! Daddy, can I call Jay ‘Dad’ or do I have to wait till the wedding day?”

Roy looked at Jason. “Sweetheart, why don’t you ask him?”

“Jayyyy,” she said in the most adorable way. “Can I call you Dad?”

Jason had not been expecting this tonight. He thought she would take a couple days and then ask but apparently the kid had been thinking about this for some time now. “Yes, you can if you want to.”

Lian jumped off the chair and climbed onto his lap. Her little arms wrapped around his neck so tightly he nearly started to choke. “This is so great! Isn’t Dad?” She kissed his cheek.

“It is little one, it really is,” Jason answered as he pulled her into a hug. He kissed the top of her head. “Do you have any questions for us? You’re a part of this as well.”

Lian sat down on his knee. “Will I get to be a big sister? At the very least can we get a dog?”

Roy and Jason both looked at each other, trying to hide their panic. Neither of them was keen on having anymore children. That much had been established early on and reaffirmed during their conversation today. A dog on the other hand…that could be possible. “We’ll have to move before we can get any pets,” Roy answered.

“Fiiine,” Lian stated dramatically. “But you didn’t say anything about me being a big sister.”

“That’s because our family is perfect the way it is,” Roy said.

Jason sputtered as her ponytail hit him in the lips. “Hey Li.”

“Yes Dad?” she asked. It was going to take a little bit for him to get used to being called that. He hoped the warm fuzzy feeling that came with it wouldn’t go away.

“I love you,” Jason said.

“I love you too Dad,” Lian said, snuggling into him.

Chapter Text

“MAR’I!!!” Lian shouted as she ran through the doors of Wayne Manor towards her cousin. The two girls hugged each other so tightly they both dropped the toys they were holding on the ground. Lian managed to hug Mar’i to the point she lifted the younger girl a couple inches off the ground.

Mar’i was giggling hysterically. “LI!!!” As they separated she picked up her baby doll from the ground and adjusted the bow on the top of its’ head. “Are you going to be here all weekend!?”

“Yes! My dads are finishing a mission with your dad,” Lian explained, dusting off Princess Battle Axe.

Naturally as Lian used the plural form of the word dad that meant Stephanie, Harper, Cass, and Dick all entered the room at the same time. Harper and Stephanie wore mischievous grins on their face while Cass smiled sweetly. Dick was smirking as he glanced at Jason. “Hey there!” the oldest of Bruce Wayne’s children said. He gave a wave as he went to high-five a very giddy Lian.

“We’re going to have so much fun!!” Mar’i was telling Lian. “We’re reunited and Alfred said we can build a blanket fort in the living room!!”

“We’re going to make the biggest blanket fort this place has ever seen!” Lian cried as the two girls darted off to begin construction.

Dick wrapped his arms around Roy and Jason, managing to weasel his way into the middle of them. “So…Dads huh?”

“Recent development,” Jason said, trying to sound nonchalant. He didn’t want to give his brother the satisfaction of seeing the smile the word brought to his face. Mostly because he didn’t want to deal with inevitable hundreds of questions that were going to be thrown at him over the course of the weekend just yet.

Roy jokingly rolled his eyes. “He’s eating it up.”

“As he should,” Dick said, pulling Jason into an awkward side hug. “I’m happy for you Little Wing.”

Jason raised his hand to his face. “As I once told Roy, it’s your trachea or that nickname. You can’t have both*.”

“And look where that got you Jaybird,” Roy teased.

“This time I mean it,” Jason muttered as the three of them began to make their way to the Bat Cave.

Dick patted Jason’s back right where it was still sore earning him a glare. “Either way, I’m still happy for you. And proud. You’re growing up so fast.”

“Bitch, I’m only three years younger than you. You’re making it sound like you’re my mother or something.” Jason stated as Dick opened up the entrance to the cave.

“What can I say? Fatherhood has made me nostalgic,” Dick responded wistfully. He started to whistle as they made their way down the stairs.

Jason shook his head. “It’s already been a long weekend.”. There were voices coming from near the computer. He counted five voice; three of which he was not familiar with. The two he would recognize anywhere belonged to Bruce and Tim. Considering the situation he assumed they were talking to whoever they had sought out for help regarding the spear and his old acquaintance, December Graystone.

There was a man wearing a flashy red suit, hovering behind the group of people talking. He was bald and ghastly pale to the point his skin was pure white. He was prattling on about how even the Bat Cave spooked the dead. The dark-haired woman dressed as a typical stage magician, who Jason recognized as the famous Zatanna Zatara, was trying to hide how annoyed he was making her. “It’s definitely the spear a contact of mine possessed until it was stolen from his home two years ago,” Zatanna said. “He claimed it was The Spear of Destiny and from what we have discussed, it sounds like that could in fact be the case.”

“As in the spear that pierced Jesus’s side while he was on the cross?” Jason asked as they finally approached the group.

A man with blonde hair, wearing a trench coat turned to look at him. He smiled out of the corner of his mouth and there was something about the way his eyes gleamed that Jason did not trust. “Either you’re a scholar or religious; which is it love?” The man had a thick British accent and a rasp to his voice from smoking.

Jason narrowed his eyes. “I don’t consider myself to be either.”

“Odd since the mystical energy radiating off of you would be enough to power half of London,” the blonde-haired man said. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a cigarette. He was about to put into his mouth when he fell victim to a Bat Glare. “Alright mate, no need to get testy,” he said to Batman.

“Back up, what’s this about him and magic?” Dick asked, pointing a thumb at Jason before crossing his arms.

Roy was snickering. He was at least aware of the training Jason had with the All-Caste and how he could summon a certain set of blades because of it. “Oh man, do you need to be caught up on shit,” the archer said.

The blonde man turned to Jason. “Lazarus Pits always leave their mark, but you, you’ve been exposed to a lot besides those emerald waters. Given that there is League of Assassins magics pouring off of you, I’m guessing the Himalayan magic inside you comes from the All-Caste. There is something else I can’t quite put my finger on. Yet. But, from what I can tell that blast of holy light from the spear the other night has amped up what you’ve been denying, yes?”

Jason was glaring at this strange man for not only prying into his business but exposing it to three members of his family and two other people who were complete strangers. Zatanna noticed the look he was shooting the man and sighed. “Constantine, you’re going to piss him off even more if you keep talking and I will encourage him to hit you,” she said.

The man, apparently called Constantine, turned to the Mistress of Magic. “Ah love, you do still fancy me then?”

“Tuhs pu Nhoj Enitnatsnoc,” Zatanna said effortlessly, waving her hand towards him. “I’m sorry about him. He’s never known when to be considerate of others.” Constantine was trying to say something, but his mouth would not open. “Much better. Boston, take note.”

“Aww Zee, you’re no fun today,” the pale man, who must have been named Boston, half whined.

“I think she’s plenty fun,” Jason said to him causing everyone to stare at him. There were looks of concern from his loved ones. Zatanna was curious and gave a small smile and Constantine was too smug for his own good.

Boston floated over to him. “You can see me?”

Jason raised his eyebrows. “Am I not supposed to?”

“Boston, also known as Deadman, can only be seen and heard by those who are spiritually aware,” Zatanna explained.

Roy’s eyes were wide. “Uh, well, at least you have some answers about the, um, incident the other night.”

“Aw fuck,” he said, rubbing his temples. This was escalating too quickly for his liking. Therefore, it was becoming increasingly appealing to leave and hideout in one of his safehouses for the rest of the weekend.

Constantine snapped his fingers and was able to speak again. “Nice try love, but I’ve learned some tricks.” He walked over to Jason, pulling a business card out of thin air. “Should you ever want to learn how to reign all of it in, or perhaps even harness it, give one of us a call.” He tucked the card into Jason’s jacket pocket. “Now, I believe we have a strategy to devise to capture this wanker, Graystone.”

The cave was freakishly quiet as everyone processed whatever the hell had just happened. Their eyes were studying Jason, making the anxiety he fought hard to control begin to act up. He averted his gaze to Constantine and glared at him. The bastard’s eyes were still twinkling which made Jason want to punch the lingering smirk off his face.

***

After three hours of brutal fighting, Graystone was apprehended and taken into police custody. Zatanna had wiped his mind of all memories relating to Jason in order to protect the Bats from being exposed. It was a smart move because Graystone loved to hear himself talk and to heavily imply things to the point he might as well outright blurt out secrets for all the world to hear. However, it left Jason feeling strange because the blood mage had been someone he once trained with and considered an ally. It was funny how life sometimes pushed friends towards different paths only to have them later reunite as adversaries.

When they returned to the cave, Bruce let Zatanna take the spear to keep it from falling into the wrong hands. The mission debrief followed from there and took over an hour to wrap up. Jason and Roy finally were able to check on Lian at half past three in the morning. She was sleeping soundly in one of the guest beds with Mar’i. A quiet snore escaped from Mar’i as the two of them took turns kissing Lian good night.

“How are they?” Dick asked as they walked into the hall. He was clearly on the way to check on them himself.

Roy yawned. “Out like a light.” Dick nodded as he slipped past them, into the room.

The two of them made their way to Jason’s room down the hall. Jason could not shake the feeling he was being watched and followed. He wanted to choke it up to paranoia, but he would not be surprised if it was not. Thanks to the trench coat wearing jackass, he was certain the whole family knew about his past now. If that were the case, there was at least one loveable, but idiotic, sibling who would try to test his training by attempting to ambush him.

Jason was boarding a dangerous train of thought as he recalled what Constantine blabbed. Even though the details were vague, they were enough for people to draw conclusions and investigate. Both of which he hoped would not happen, but he knew would. Jason had worked so hard to get to a point where he had formed familial bonds with everyone and he was not certain they would hold up when people found out about the terrible secrets he kept. He mentally sighed. At least he would have Roy and Lian. And Kori. She was informed about a large enough portion of his life and she still valued him.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Roy asked.

Too much had happened in the last twelve hours for Jason to even try and guess which part of it all his significant other was referring to. “Not right now. I’m still processing all of it,” he answered as they climbed into the bed.

Roy understood. “When you’re ready, I’m here for you Jaybird.” He kissed him. “I’m going to sleep; do you plan on staying up?”

“Yeah, I’m going to read a bit and think,” Jason said before returning the kiss. “G’night Roy.”

“Good night. I love you,” Roy said. He yawned again as he curled up under the sheet.

“I love you too,” Jason said, reaching for a book he had left on his nightstand during their last visit here.

***

“Jason,” a woman’s voice called to him.

He looked up to see a rather unwanted roommate. Catherine was standing at the foot of his bed again. Jason was not entirely convinced of the whole spiritual awareness thing but for now it was a better alternative than thinking he was hallucinating. “What are you doing here?”

She gave a small smile. “You can see me now…I’ve been wanting to talk.”

“You’re dead. Aren’t you supposed to be in some sort of afterlife? At least I think that’s what happened when I died,” Jason said gruffly. This was not something he wanted to do ever, especially at the moment.

“As I told you last time, there is much you don’t know but please hear me out. I promise you, I will leave you alone afterwards if that is what you want,” she pleaded. She was visibly desperate.
He clenched his jaw as his first reaction was to be angry at her. “You left me alone when I was a kid, you can do so now.”

Her eyes were sad. “I know and it’s all my fault,” she said. Tears were welling up in her eyes, but she was refusing to let them fall down her cheeks. “I’m sorry for all the suffering I caused you. You’ll never know how I wish I could change everything.” He hummed in response. “Whether you forgive me or not is entirely your choice. I can’t fault you if you choose not to. All I want is a chance to tell you how proud I am of you.”

Jason raised his eyebrows, his anger subsiding just enough so that it was no longer clouding his judgment. “You’re what?”

Catherine shed a tear. “I’m proud of you Jason. You’ve grown into an intelligent, strong, responsible man and turned your life around. I’ve seen far too much of what you have done in the past to pretend I was not worried about you for years. But now I look at you, and my heart is full.” She turned her attention to Roy. “I wish I were able to tell him how grateful I am that my son has found someone like him to build a life with.”

“You…y-you approve?” Jason stammered. He was suddenly unsure of how to feel let alone what his exact emotions were right now.

The woman who had done her best to raise him nodded. “I do. He’s supportive, compassionate, intelligent, attentive, devoted, strong, and everything a mother could ever ask for in a spouse for her child.” She turned her gaze back to Jason. “And your daughter is a riot.”

Jason’s eyes were misty. “They’re both amazing. I don’t know where I would be without them.”

“My guess is far less happy and quite insufferable,” Catherine remarked.

He glanced at Roy, then back at her. “I was that bad?”

“Oh goodness, Jason, you broke my heart on a daily basis until you accepted Roy’s help,” she explained. Another tear fell from her eyes.

The fact that spirits were able to cry was a weird concept to him but at this point, he was going to roll with it. Not that he really had much of a choice in the matter. “I’m sorry,” Jason told her. His heart was racing.

Catherine floated over to sit on the edge of the bad next to him. She placed her hand on top of his. He could not feel her skin against his but the spot she was touching was cold. “As long as you do not try to break my heart anymore, all is forgiven.”

“Thank you, Mom,” Jason said. He wanted so desperately to hug her.

“I love you Jason,” Catherine said. She swept her hand across his cheek, taking in every detail of his face.

“I love you too,” he said.

A bright light appeared behind her that caught both their attention. “I never thought…”

“Go on,” Jason urged. “You deserve to be at peace.”

Catherine stood and walked towards the light. She turned to look at him one last time. “As do you. And tell Roy, that I thank him for all that he has done for you and how much he loves you. I’ll be watching over both of you and my granddaughter.” She smiled as she stepped into the light. Within in an instant, she was gone.

Jason sat there, staring at where she had been until the morning came. When Roy woke up around nine, Jason was ready to talk. About everything. He was barely able to finish delivering Catherine’s message before Lian bounded in, ready to spend the day playing with them and the rest of the family. Both of Roy, who was still weirded out about the whole situation given his beliefs, and Jason had been teary eyed about what Catherine had said. It was too beautiful not to be, but with Lian around, they were all smiles. The two of them hugged her tightly and somehow ended up in a tickle war. It was going to be a good day, Jason could feel it.

Chapter Text

The weekend was finally over with and they were home. Jason was more drained, in every sense of the word, than he ever thought would be possible. If Constantine running his stupid mouth, the fight with Graystone, and everything with Catherine had not been enough to make him want to crawl back into the grave, Bruce’s behavior certainly did the trick. The world’s greatest detective spent the entire rest of the weekend observing Jason as if he were some sort of experiment or predatory animal. When Jason caught him doing just that, Bruce’s lips would become a thin line of displeasure.

Bruce loathed not knowing every detail about people he worked with, especially his family members. He also despised magic and all things related to it. Which meant that Constantine’s incessant blabbering had made the old bat grumpier than usual and a bit twitchy at times for the rest of the weekend. As a result, Jason spent most of his free time for the past forty-eight hours waiting to be interrogated. When that didn’t happen, he knew Bruce had started investigating his past. Apparently, after all this time, he would still rather form his own opinions and theories from secondhand sources rather than try to talk to his black sheep of a son.

“Dad!” Lian called from her room.

“Yes?” Roy and Jason asked simultaneously, both of them smiling when they realized what happened.

Lian laughed. “Silly geese. Daddy is Daddy and the man formerly known as Jay is Dad,” she explained as if it were obvious.

Roy elbowed Jason. “You’re not the only one eating this up.”

“I can tell,” Jason responded. He walked towards the hall. “What’s up Lian?”

“Come here, I want to talk to you,” She called. When he entered her room, she pointed to her bed and said, “Sit.” He did so and watched as she put her hands behind her back.

Lian was pacing the length of her room. “Am I going to be adopted?”

The question took him by surprise. “What makes you think that?”

She sat down next to him and crossed her legs. “Well, Grandpa Bruce adopted almost everyone in your family including you. Daddy was adopted. Twice. So…I just thought that maybe you would adopt me?”

Jason’s heart felt like it was being squeezed. The subject had come up the other day when Roy and he talked. While neither of them opposed the idea, they agreed to ask Lian her thoughts on it when she was older. Especially since the odds of Jade giving her consent were slim to none. But Jason was not going to let some legal documents, or lack of, stop him from doing his best to help raise her. After all, family and love are more than blood and paperwork. They are both acts of your will. “That is going to depend on a lot of factors that aren’t necessarily in your Daddy’s, mine, and your control.” He put a hand on her shoulder. “Whatever happens isn’t going to change the fact that I love you and that I’m always going to be here for you.”

Lian snuggled into him. “Pinky promise?” She held out her right pinky.

“Pinky promise,” Jason said.

***

“You raised a good kid,” Jason said, as the two of them finally laid down in bed for the night.

Roy shrugged. “I’ve had some good help. Mostly it’s been sheer luck which is why I’m scared that she’s going to be absolutely hell to deal with when she is older.”

Jason wrapped his arms around him. “She is half you.” He gave Roy a peck on the cheek. “And she’s going to have Rose, Eddie, Joey, my whole family, your family, and of course me as terrible influences. Of course, she’s going to be a little bit of hell, but she’ll turn out alright.”

“The best of us did,” Roy responded as he let out a yawn. “You on the other hand…” Jason could hear the smile that was on his face.

“You sure about that Harper?” Jason whispered into his ear after he playfully bit Roy’s neck.

He was smirking as Roy rolled over to face him. “The only thing I’m sure about is how much I love you.”

Jason mocked him with a dramatic eye roll. “Why are you such a sap?”

Roy shrugged. “Someone has to balance out your cynicism.”

“That…is fair,” he said, tucking a strand of hair behind Roy’s ear. “I love you too.”

“Good. I was beginning to think you were going to leave me for Joey. Or worse, Eddie,” Roy teased.

Jason laughed. “Unfortunately for you, you’re stuck with me, remember?”

“How could I forget?” Roy asked, his voice was low.

“Selective memory,” Jason teased. He kissed his love’s forehead.

Roy shook his head. “That is only when it comes to doing the dishes.”

“Ah, the truth comes out.” He was still playing with Roy’s hair as the two of them began to drift off to sleep. Jason vaguely noticed that the light closest to their window in the parking lot flickered and somewhere in the distance police sirens were blaring. One of them, probably Jason, pulled the covers over them. They were both too tired to be fully aware of their actions, much less the other person’s. “Good night darling.”

“Good night Jaybird.”

***

Jason was standing in a meadow where the knee-high grass was white and silver instead of green. There were luminescent flowers with pastel colored petals growing there as well. Nearby, he noticed there was a path made of silver stones that shimmered a bit when the light hit them. He was curious as to where it led but something was keeping him from moving. Aside from the invisible restraints, the place seemed quite tranquil. There was also a sense of familiarity to this strange place despite Jason having no recollection of it.

A burst of bright light appeared in front of him, a silhouette of someone stood within it. That’s when he realized he was dreaming again. He went to look behind him to make sure he wasn’t standing near a ledge. To his shock his view was obstructed by two white, feathery wings with hints of pale rose and muted gold. As he twisted to see more, he noticed that about three quarters of the way down, the feathers began to fade into shades of grey and eventually turned to black at the tips of the wings. Considering it was just a dream, he had to admit they were pretty cool.
“Jason…” the mysterious being called to him. He turned to face them. His heart rate was increasing as they approached him with an extended hand. “You’ve been given a second chance. It’s time to go.” Whoever it was, pushed him downwards just like before.

As he fell, the wings felt heavy as gravity pulled down on them. However, eventually the feathers began to fall off and float away. It was one by one at first, by the rate increased quickly until the last one was drifting in the air currents. The wings themselves turned skeletal, then to dust seconds before he was submerged in freezing cold waters. Swirls of green and black filled his vision. It took a moment, but he figured out the black swirls, which were largely concentrated in one spot, was supposed to be the silhouette of someone. Someone nurturing yet dangerous. Someone he had known not that long ago…

Jason opened his eyes as he gasped for air. He was back in the apartment and the sun was shining. The alarm clock on his night stand was going off and he just knew Roy was staring at him. “What just happened?”

“The alarm woke me up and you were saying something incoherently in your sleep. Now you’re awake. Bad dream?” Roy asked.

He gave an irritated hum as he got out of bed to dig through his coat pocket. “Not sure but I get the feeling I’m going to somehow be stuck seeing that trench coat wearing bastard again.” He turned off the irritating buzzing from the alarm.

“You’re going to take him up on the offer?” Roy asked.

Jason pulled out the business card Constantine had given him the other night. “I’m going to put this somewhere I won’t lose it. As a last resort. The man is insufferable.”

His significant other stretched his arms. “Which means you two will be getting along within a month from the next time the powers that be force you to cross paths.” A shit eating grin was on his face as he stood.

“Hopefully, there won’t be a next time,” Jason said through clenched teeth.

Roy put his hands on Jason’s hips. “I wouldn’t get your hopes up too high.” He kissed Jason’s cheek and jaw. “By the way, good morning sunshine.” He rubbed circles into the hipbones as his lips finally met Jason’s.

“Good morning,” Jason responded. He was smiling as he returned the kiss. “How do you feel about chocolate chip pancakes this morning?”

“Please. I’ll go wake Lian if you want to get started,” Roy answered.

“Sounds like a good plan,” Jason said.

The two of them went off to officially start their days. Jason was pouring the batter to form the first pancake when he heard Rose open the door to the apartment. “Good morning Jason Harper!” she said as she leaned against the wall.

Jason looked at her, a gleam in his eye and a goofy smile on his face. “Good morning Rose Bloomberg!”

“Bitch, you said it yourself, Eddie is a Wilson,” Rose responded. The two of them were both still laughing about that when Lian and Roy entered.

“Good morning Dad!” Lian greeted him cheerfully.

Rose flicked her eyes towards Jason. “Someone took mine and Eddie’s words to heart.” All Jason could do was wink as he made more pancakes. Moments like these, had become one of the main reasons he kept going even when there were several shitstorms in full swing around him. The top two reasons were currently sitting at the table playing patty cake.