A Better Choice: Epiloge
A Better Choice: Epilogue (Through A Glass Lightly series)
Fandom: Batman
Continuity: Post-CoIE AU, Umbra Verse
Characters: Bruce, Dick, mention of Jason and the Teen Titans
Rating: G
Warnings: Angst
Word Count: 1031
Summary: The aftermath of Jason’s efforts to find his biological mom.
A/N: This is the result of a brainstorming session for a different fic with vespertila . Thank you dragonbat2006 for the excellent beta! Parts one, two, three, and four this way.
Bruce looks at the paper laying innocuously on his desk as if it’s a viper about to strike. Correction, it has struck. He’s already read it. Twice. But who it’s from and what it’s about is not computing.
After foiling the Joker’s plans in Lebanon, he’d returned to Gotham to try and pick up the madman’s trail again. No sooner had he stepped foot out of the Cave, than Alfred had pounced, informing him that Jason had run away. The only thing that had stopped him from turning around and going after his missing partner and son had been the knowledge that Dick was with him.
Alfred had pointed out that seeing as Bruce himself had been the major factor behind Jason’s departure, giving him some space was probably in order. Especially since he had a chaperon on his journey.
The billionaire hadn’t liked it then, and he still doesn’t, but he’d deferred to his old friend’s wisdom. Instead, he’d concentrated on trying to track down the Joker, who’d been keeping a frustratingly low profile. The next time he’d heard anything had been when the computer had picked up some police radio talk. The Joker and a woman were being extradited from Ethiopia to Gotham, and a police escort would be meeting the plane. As would Batman, not that anyone would be the wiser. He’d just had to make sure that the maniac was properly locked away and tried not to think on what would happen the next time he escaped.
A couple of the officers had mentioned that some American capes had been involved with the capture of Joker and his accomplices. Unfortunately, no one had seemed to have any more details then that. When he’d returned to the manor, Bruce had called Titan’s Tower.
There’d been conversation with that Chase boy, and then Dick had answered. There hadn’t been much said, by either of them. Yes, he and Jason had caught the Joker. Yes, they were both fine. No, Jason wasn’t coming home just yet. When he’d pressed, there’d been the muffled sound of arguing voices on the other end. After several loud moments Jason’s voice had come over the receiver. “Bye,” was all the boy had given him before hanging up.
Again Alfred interceded when Bruce would have headed up to New York, reasoning that Jason knew the way home and that he would return when ready. That for now it was best to leave him in Dick’s care, that the first Robin was a sensible young man and would see to the boy’s wellbeing.
The sound advice hadn’t sit any better this time than it had before, but he’d refrained from acting on impulse, and instead had some dinner before heading to the city for his nightly patrol. The next morning, the box and letter had been left outside the Manor door. Alfred had delivered both to him as he’d been eating his breakfast. He’d recognized Dick’s handwriting immediately on the envelope and taken both items to the Study.
Bruce,
I thought this might work better than a phone call, which Jason could interrupt. You and I have our differences, but I’m not enough of a jerk to leave you in the dark about this one.
Did Alfred tell you much about what Jason and I were doing? Honestly, he didn’t know much, so maybe I’ll just start at the beginning. First of all, you really need to work on your communication skills. I know that doesn’t come as anything like a surprise, but it’s true nonetheless. Jason was seriously pissed at you, and I don’t think it’s exaggerating to say that you’ve probably managed to push away another Robin, but I’ll get to that in a minute.
Jason found his birth certificate. It was badly water-damaged, but he could make out that his mother’s name started with an S, which meant Catherine wasn’t his real mother. So, using the skills you gave him, he decided to go looking for his birth mother. I caught up with him at the airport, and we headed to the Middle East to track down the three names he’d found. This proved, well, ‘eventful’ is a good word. Once we handled Joker and got the last DNA sample, Jason came with me to run the tests at the Tower. No, none of the ladies were a match. I think he’s mostly relieved by that actually.
And no, this does not mean you should start looking. It’s up to Jason, not you. For now, he’s decided to drop it and instead sort out his own head. It’s a seriously mature decision, Bruce, and you would be proud of the way he’s been dealing with things, if you could ever just pay some attention to what’s in front of your nose.
He and I got to talking after your phone call, last night. He’s not ready to return to Gotham. Or maybe it’s you. I’m honestly not sure which. I told him, he’s welcome to stay here. You know that I’ll take good care of him, and that the rest of the Titans will keep an eye on him as well. I’ll make sure he gets enrolled in a good school up here, when the new semester starts.
You two do need to talk, but not right now. Not yet. Let him make the first move, Bruce. When he’s ready, he’ll call.
Take care.
Dick
Absently, the man reaches over to the box and touches the red tunic it contains. He stares at the letter, as his finger tips trace the familiar R emblem.
END
***
A/N: Hey folks J I hope you enjoyed the series. Now that you’ve finished reading, I wanted to take a moment to explain a personal theory. I firmly do NOT believe that Sheila Hayward was ever Jason’s mother. This feeling is supported on page 8 of Batman 427, where a dying Hayward says to Batman “He must love his mother very much....” which indicates to me that she isn’t it. Gods I hope not. Jason deserves better than that. And yes, I’ll be giving him better as I continue the Umbra Verse. ABC was just the beginning.
Fandom: Batman
Continuity: Post-CoIE AU, Umbra Verse
Characters: Bruce, Dick, mention of Jason and the Teen Titans
Rating: G
Warnings: Angst
Word Count: 1031
Summary: The aftermath of Jason’s efforts to find his biological mom.
A/N: This is the result of a brainstorming session for a different fic with vespertila . Thank you dragonbat2006 for the excellent beta! Parts one, two, three, and four this way.
Bruce looks at the paper laying innocuously on his desk as if it’s a viper about to strike. Correction, it has struck. He’s already read it. Twice. But who it’s from and what it’s about is not computing.
After foiling the Joker’s plans in Lebanon, he’d returned to Gotham to try and pick up the madman’s trail again. No sooner had he stepped foot out of the Cave, than Alfred had pounced, informing him that Jason had run away. The only thing that had stopped him from turning around and going after his missing partner and son had been the knowledge that Dick was with him.
Alfred had pointed out that seeing as Bruce himself had been the major factor behind Jason’s departure, giving him some space was probably in order. Especially since he had a chaperon on his journey.
The billionaire hadn’t liked it then, and he still doesn’t, but he’d deferred to his old friend’s wisdom. Instead, he’d concentrated on trying to track down the Joker, who’d been keeping a frustratingly low profile. The next time he’d heard anything had been when the computer had picked up some police radio talk. The Joker and a woman were being extradited from Ethiopia to Gotham, and a police escort would be meeting the plane. As would Batman, not that anyone would be the wiser. He’d just had to make sure that the maniac was properly locked away and tried not to think on what would happen the next time he escaped.
A couple of the officers had mentioned that some American capes had been involved with the capture of Joker and his accomplices. Unfortunately, no one had seemed to have any more details then that. When he’d returned to the manor, Bruce had called Titan’s Tower.
There’d been conversation with that Chase boy, and then Dick had answered. There hadn’t been much said, by either of them. Yes, he and Jason had caught the Joker. Yes, they were both fine. No, Jason wasn’t coming home just yet. When he’d pressed, there’d been the muffled sound of arguing voices on the other end. After several loud moments Jason’s voice had come over the receiver. “Bye,” was all the boy had given him before hanging up.
Again Alfred interceded when Bruce would have headed up to New York, reasoning that Jason knew the way home and that he would return when ready. That for now it was best to leave him in Dick’s care, that the first Robin was a sensible young man and would see to the boy’s wellbeing.
The sound advice hadn’t sit any better this time than it had before, but he’d refrained from acting on impulse, and instead had some dinner before heading to the city for his nightly patrol. The next morning, the box and letter had been left outside the Manor door. Alfred had delivered both to him as he’d been eating his breakfast. He’d recognized Dick’s handwriting immediately on the envelope and taken both items to the Study.
Bruce,
I thought this might work better than a phone call, which Jason could interrupt. You and I have our differences, but I’m not enough of a jerk to leave you in the dark about this one.
Did Alfred tell you much about what Jason and I were doing? Honestly, he didn’t know much, so maybe I’ll just start at the beginning. First of all, you really need to work on your communication skills. I know that doesn’t come as anything like a surprise, but it’s true nonetheless. Jason was seriously pissed at you, and I don’t think it’s exaggerating to say that you’ve probably managed to push away another Robin, but I’ll get to that in a minute.
Jason found his birth certificate. It was badly water-damaged, but he could make out that his mother’s name started with an S, which meant Catherine wasn’t his real mother. So, using the skills you gave him, he decided to go looking for his birth mother. I caught up with him at the airport, and we headed to the Middle East to track down the three names he’d found. This proved, well, ‘eventful’ is a good word. Once we handled Joker and got the last DNA sample, Jason came with me to run the tests at the Tower. No, none of the ladies were a match. I think he’s mostly relieved by that actually.
And no, this does not mean you should start looking. It’s up to Jason, not you. For now, he’s decided to drop it and instead sort out his own head. It’s a seriously mature decision, Bruce, and you would be proud of the way he’s been dealing with things, if you could ever just pay some attention to what’s in front of your nose.
He and I got to talking after your phone call, last night. He’s not ready to return to Gotham. Or maybe it’s you. I’m honestly not sure which. I told him, he’s welcome to stay here. You know that I’ll take good care of him, and that the rest of the Titans will keep an eye on him as well. I’ll make sure he gets enrolled in a good school up here, when the new semester starts.
You two do need to talk, but not right now. Not yet. Let him make the first move, Bruce. When he’s ready, he’ll call.
Take care.
Dick
Absently, the man reaches over to the box and touches the red tunic it contains. He stares at the letter, as his finger tips trace the familiar R emblem.
END
***
A/N: Hey folks J I hope you enjoyed the series. Now that you’ve finished reading, I wanted to take a moment to explain a personal theory. I firmly do NOT believe that Sheila Hayward was ever Jason’s mother. This feeling is supported on page 8 of Batman 427, where a dying Hayward says to Batman “He must love his mother very much....” which indicates to me that she isn’t it. Gods I hope not. Jason deserves better than that. And yes, I’ll be giving him better as I continue the Umbra Verse. ABC was just the beginning.