4 Jason Todd Ficlets: Various | DCU | Var. Char's/Pairings | PG-13 ea | 1/1 ea
Fandom: DCU
Rating: PG-13 each
Disclaimer: DC and WB own everything, the schmucks.
Author's Notes: All written for comment_fic and 50_darkfics.
Title | Characters/Pairing | Word Count | Prompts/Summary | Author's Notes
Like It or Not | Dick/Jason | 211 w | For comment_fic: Jason didn't need or want his help, but Dick had always sucked at taking no for an answer.; For 50_darkfics: No | Originally posted here.
“Let me help you!”
Jason just sneered up at Dick, his hand clamped over the bleeding wound on his leg and not quite covering the protrusion of broken bone. “I'd rather die.”
Jaw dropping in disbelief, Dick snatched Jay by the collar, tugging him up from the pained heap he'd fallen into. “Well, you just might, if you don't get to a hospital.”
“Good.”
“Fine.”
“Perfect. Now let me go, already. I can take care of myself.”
Dick huffed, propping Jay's arm over his shoulder to take the weight off his leg. “Right. Because you're in such great shape to do that right now.”
“Shut up,” Jason spat, giving only the barest token shrug of protest as Dick helped him out of the alley and to his car. Eased into the passenger seat, Jay winced visibly, unable to stifle a whimper of pain.
“You know, like it or not, you're lucky I'm not so good at taking 'no' for an answer when it comes to you.”
Jay clenched his teeth with a grimace. “Whatever.” And as soon as Dick was behind the wheel, the car started and pulled out into traffic, Jason leveled a dark look at him. “I'm bleeding-hnngh-all over your seats.”
Laying on the speed, Dick chuckled back, “We'll clean it up later.”
~*~*~
Up in Flames | Dick/Jason | 275 w | For comment_fic: Jason's always been the type to burn too hot and too fast; For 50_darkfics: Destruction | Originally posted here. Essentially follows "Like It or Not".
When the flames die down, the sun rising on a new day, Dick is almost surprised he hasn't been scorched. Not in a literal way-well, maybe-but Jason has always been the type to burn so hot and so fast that he can't help destroying everything he touches. It's sort of a miracle that he hasn't spontaneously combusted in a fireball of pent-up rage, despair, longing, and hate, renewing his old status as a statistic.
But that's not Jay's fault, not really, because he can't help what happened to him, what Gotham and the Joker and the Multiverse and fate and Talia goddamn Al Ghul did to him. He can't help what the Pit turned him into. He was probably even born hardened, doomed from the get-go, if you believe in that sort of thing.
Sometimes Dick does.
And yet, Dick is intact, and instead of running off-or trying to kill him in his sleep-Jason is tucked up against his side in the bed, snuffling softly in his sleep. He looks shockingly innocent like this, almost like the Robin that died in that blast so long ago-no, even more innocent than that, a blaze that was never lit in the first place, explosive potential at peaceful rest, untouched.
Brushing Jay's hair back from his forehead and dropping a gentle kiss on his brow, Dick wonders if time and destiny will eventually send them all up in flames anyway, total destruction, no survivors, history repeating itself to a more lethal end. But there's no point in dwelling on what might be, when Jason is here, and nothing, at the moment, is on fire.
~*~*~
Monster | Jason, Bruce | 353 w | For comment_fic: Behind Blue Eyes; But my dreams they aren't as empty as my conscience seems to be.; For 50_darkfics: Forever | Originally posted here. Strayed from the prompt as given into the song as a whole. Oops! AU for the big confrontation in UtH.
His finger resting on the trigger as the Joker cackles with perverse amusement, Jason waits. It would be so fucking easy to do this. It's what he wants to do. It's what he wants Bruce to do.
“Don't you get it?” he spits at the man he once called mentor, father. “You let him kill me. And you let him live! You let him take me away from you, and you didn't do a damn thing about it!”
Bruce scowls, calculating. “I didn't let him do anything.”
“Bullshit!” Jason spits, his finger tightening on the trigger, pressing the gun tighter against the Joker's temple. “You could've stopped him, but you didn't! You let him turn me into this!”
“No.”
His chest tightening, Jason has to fight the sudden urge to wail, has to fight his face's attempt at giving away everything. The Joker only laughs harder.
“You let him make me into a monster, let him make me like him, and now-” A sob chokes him, crushing his windpipe, and he can't stop the tears that escape the corners of his eyes, sliding out from beneath his red domino to streak down his face. “Now,” he tries again, suddenly trembling with the effort to keep from falling completely apart, “now you probably want to put me back in the ground I crawled out of!” It is a wail that tears out of him with that, and there's no going back. The game is over, and Bruce has to see now just how screwed Jason is.
“No,” Bruce repeats, but this time he goes on, “I don't, Jason. Never. I know how much you're hurting, but you're not like him. You're not the monster. He is.”
“Then kill him, or I will!” Jason screams, his throat raw with rage and grief.
“You won't.”
Sobs finally breaking free, his whole body shivering, Jason lets his finger slip off the trigger. A quick strike, and the Joker is on the floor. Down for the count, but not dead.
Strong arms wrap around the boy that once flew across rooftops in the dark of night, and something he thought was gone forever returns to him at last...
Hope.
~*~*~
In Death and in Worship | Talia(/Jason), Ra's | 273 w | For comment_fic: Jason Todd, Batfamily, "One who flies through the sky, was beaten by metal, killed by fire, escaped from the Earth and healed by water." Jason is the final sacrifice to bring about the Apocalypse.; For 50_darkfics: Eternal | Originally posted here. Strayed from the prompt as given, but I just couldn't resist.
“Daughter, no!!”
Talia grins at her father's shock as Jason falls into the Lazarus Pit. This is it, this is the end.
“Do you have any idea what you've done!?” Ra's screams, rushing toward her with fire in his eyes. “You'll destroy everything!”
The backhanded slap to her face that knocks her down is nothing compared to the glee Talia feels in her heart, knowing exactly what she's done. Still grinning even as she tastes blood smearing her lips, she pushes herself up and glares at her father, defiant.
“The ancient and eternal prophecy is fulfilled. 'One who has flown through the sky, was beaten by metal and burned by fire, escaped the earth and was healed by the living waters shall be the Key that opens the gates of Hell, that wipes the stain of those who call themselves gods from the face of the Earth, that brings about an end to the reign of false prophets. He who has met all the elements shall be the Savior of the world, the Destroyer of Demons, the King of Hell. All shall fall at His feet, in death and in worship.' I know the old scrolls as well as you do, Father, and I know perfectly well what this means.”
The screams from the Pit as Jason emerges from the waters are horror personified, the blood-strangled End and Beginning, and all eyes, save Talia's, fall upon him in utter terror, the Death of Gods risen.
Catching her Father's arm as he turns to flee, Talia presses close to whisper in his ear, “It was never meant to be you, Father. Your time is through.”
~*~*~
Rating: PG-13 each
Disclaimer: DC and WB own everything, the schmucks.
Author's Notes: All written for comment_fic and 50_darkfics.
Title | Characters/Pairing | Word Count | Prompts/Summary | Author's Notes
Like It or Not | Dick/Jason | 211 w | For comment_fic: Jason didn't need or want his help, but Dick had always sucked at taking no for an answer.; For 50_darkfics: No | Originally posted here.
“Let me help you!”
Jason just sneered up at Dick, his hand clamped over the bleeding wound on his leg and not quite covering the protrusion of broken bone. “I'd rather die.”
Jaw dropping in disbelief, Dick snatched Jay by the collar, tugging him up from the pained heap he'd fallen into. “Well, you just might, if you don't get to a hospital.”
“Good.”
“Fine.”
“Perfect. Now let me go, already. I can take care of myself.”
Dick huffed, propping Jay's arm over his shoulder to take the weight off his leg. “Right. Because you're in such great shape to do that right now.”
“Shut up,” Jason spat, giving only the barest token shrug of protest as Dick helped him out of the alley and to his car. Eased into the passenger seat, Jay winced visibly, unable to stifle a whimper of pain.
“You know, like it or not, you're lucky I'm not so good at taking 'no' for an answer when it comes to you.”
Jay clenched his teeth with a grimace. “Whatever.” And as soon as Dick was behind the wheel, the car started and pulled out into traffic, Jason leveled a dark look at him. “I'm bleeding-hnngh-all over your seats.”
Laying on the speed, Dick chuckled back, “We'll clean it up later.”
~*~*~
Up in Flames | Dick/Jason | 275 w | For comment_fic: Jason's always been the type to burn too hot and too fast; For 50_darkfics: Destruction | Originally posted here. Essentially follows "Like It or Not".
When the flames die down, the sun rising on a new day, Dick is almost surprised he hasn't been scorched. Not in a literal way-well, maybe-but Jason has always been the type to burn so hot and so fast that he can't help destroying everything he touches. It's sort of a miracle that he hasn't spontaneously combusted in a fireball of pent-up rage, despair, longing, and hate, renewing his old status as a statistic.
But that's not Jay's fault, not really, because he can't help what happened to him, what Gotham and the Joker and the Multiverse and fate and Talia goddamn Al Ghul did to him. He can't help what the Pit turned him into. He was probably even born hardened, doomed from the get-go, if you believe in that sort of thing.
Sometimes Dick does.
And yet, Dick is intact, and instead of running off-or trying to kill him in his sleep-Jason is tucked up against his side in the bed, snuffling softly in his sleep. He looks shockingly innocent like this, almost like the Robin that died in that blast so long ago-no, even more innocent than that, a blaze that was never lit in the first place, explosive potential at peaceful rest, untouched.
Brushing Jay's hair back from his forehead and dropping a gentle kiss on his brow, Dick wonders if time and destiny will eventually send them all up in flames anyway, total destruction, no survivors, history repeating itself to a more lethal end. But there's no point in dwelling on what might be, when Jason is here, and nothing, at the moment, is on fire.
~*~*~
Monster | Jason, Bruce | 353 w | For comment_fic: Behind Blue Eyes; But my dreams they aren't as empty as my conscience seems to be.; For 50_darkfics: Forever | Originally posted here. Strayed from the prompt as given into the song as a whole. Oops! AU for the big confrontation in UtH.
His finger resting on the trigger as the Joker cackles with perverse amusement, Jason waits. It would be so fucking easy to do this. It's what he wants to do. It's what he wants Bruce to do.
“Don't you get it?” he spits at the man he once called mentor, father. “You let him kill me. And you let him live! You let him take me away from you, and you didn't do a damn thing about it!”
Bruce scowls, calculating. “I didn't let him do anything.”
“Bullshit!” Jason spits, his finger tightening on the trigger, pressing the gun tighter against the Joker's temple. “You could've stopped him, but you didn't! You let him turn me into this!”
“No.”
His chest tightening, Jason has to fight the sudden urge to wail, has to fight his face's attempt at giving away everything. The Joker only laughs harder.
“You let him make me into a monster, let him make me like him, and now-” A sob chokes him, crushing his windpipe, and he can't stop the tears that escape the corners of his eyes, sliding out from beneath his red domino to streak down his face. “Now,” he tries again, suddenly trembling with the effort to keep from falling completely apart, “now you probably want to put me back in the ground I crawled out of!” It is a wail that tears out of him with that, and there's no going back. The game is over, and Bruce has to see now just how screwed Jason is.
“No,” Bruce repeats, but this time he goes on, “I don't, Jason. Never. I know how much you're hurting, but you're not like him. You're not the monster. He is.”
“Then kill him, or I will!” Jason screams, his throat raw with rage and grief.
“You won't.”
Sobs finally breaking free, his whole body shivering, Jason lets his finger slip off the trigger. A quick strike, and the Joker is on the floor. Down for the count, but not dead.
Strong arms wrap around the boy that once flew across rooftops in the dark of night, and something he thought was gone forever returns to him at last...
Hope.
~*~*~
In Death and in Worship | Talia(/Jason), Ra's | 273 w | For comment_fic: Jason Todd, Batfamily, "One who flies through the sky, was beaten by metal, killed by fire, escaped from the Earth and healed by water." Jason is the final sacrifice to bring about the Apocalypse.; For 50_darkfics: Eternal | Originally posted here. Strayed from the prompt as given, but I just couldn't resist.
“Daughter, no!!”
Talia grins at her father's shock as Jason falls into the Lazarus Pit. This is it, this is the end.
“Do you have any idea what you've done!?” Ra's screams, rushing toward her with fire in his eyes. “You'll destroy everything!”
The backhanded slap to her face that knocks her down is nothing compared to the glee Talia feels in her heart, knowing exactly what she's done. Still grinning even as she tastes blood smearing her lips, she pushes herself up and glares at her father, defiant.
“The ancient and eternal prophecy is fulfilled. 'One who has flown through the sky, was beaten by metal and burned by fire, escaped the earth and was healed by the living waters shall be the Key that opens the gates of Hell, that wipes the stain of those who call themselves gods from the face of the Earth, that brings about an end to the reign of false prophets. He who has met all the elements shall be the Savior of the world, the Destroyer of Demons, the King of Hell. All shall fall at His feet, in death and in worship.' I know the old scrolls as well as you do, Father, and I know perfectly well what this means.”
The screams from the Pit as Jason emerges from the waters are horror personified, the blood-strangled End and Beginning, and all eyes, save Talia's, fall upon him in utter terror, the Death of Gods risen.
Catching her Father's arm as he turns to flee, Talia presses close to whisper in his ear, “It was never meant to be you, Father. Your time is through.”
~*~*~