#bruce has a meeting with jack drake the following week. he listens to the man complain about his son's dissapearance

[bruciemilf]

:(( Early Adoption AUs where Dick and Jason kidnap baby Tim is such, such a good trope.

It all started when they were playing in the yard.

They miss Bruce everytime he leaves for a dumb meeting, and if they have to wait outside for him until it darkens, that's what they'll do.

They're having fun. Alfred even allowed them to turn the sprinklers on and get the bathtub toys out. It's not everyday Gotham allows sunshine showers, after all.

Jason spots Tim first.

A mess of dark locks creeping through his pink binoculars. Tim is a small kid. Jason notices the chair behind him. He also notices the inside of his house is fairly empty.

They don't agree on much, not on anything, really.

But they KNOW a baby isn't supposed to look that sad.

Bruce comes home a couple hours later, sighing in relief as moonlight shadows cool down his skin. He practically melts under the sun. Alfred jokes (or at least, Bruce hopes he is) its the vampire genes in him.

Still. He rarely, if ever, sees Alfred nervous.

" Don't you want to tell me about patrol?"

Bruce frowns, " You don't like hearing about it. I have to shower. I can't play with Dickie and Jay if I reek of blood."

" Just go to the other bathroom."

Now, he's suspicious. " In the bathroom you never let me use? Because the boys used it like a water park? The bathroom you've explicitly told me you'll make me an orphan again over?"

Alfred shrugs, " It's a nice bathroom."

There's giggles streaming through his bedroom door and Bruce pauses. He knows exactly how his babies sound when they're happy.

He knows the tell-tale mischief in Dick's bright snickers and Jason's ear popping shriek is Bruce's favorite sound.

But there's another one, smaller and thinner, yet joyful.

He gives Alfred one last look before entering, and the sight freezes him in his tracks.

Right there, there's his boys, drowning in his work suit jackets, with glitter markers smeared all over their eyelids. The bright reds and greens pop around Bruce's eyeliner.

And in the middle of them there's tiny, itty bitty Tim Drake, also smudge-eyed but GLOWING with a toothy grin.

"B!" Dick's eyes are wide, " Uh...So you're probably wondering...About this."

"Hn."

Then, Tim surprises them all when he points a finger at him, " Batman."

Oh, boy.

[bluejaysandblackbats]

Catch and Release

Fandom: DC Comics, Batfam

Summary: AU where Jason doesn't die in the explosion and he and Tim end up attending the same high school months later.

Chapters: 4/?

Characters: Jason Todd, Bruce Wayne, Alfred Pennyworth, Tim Drake, Dick Grayson, Barbara Gordon, Sebastian Ives, Jack Drake, Janet Drake

Relationships: TBA

Additional Tag: Jason Todd Lives, Jason Todd-centric, POV Jason Todd, POV First Person, Tim Drake Has Issues, Tim Drake Has Issues, Tim Drake is Not Robin, Jason Todd is Not Robin (Anymore), Bruce Wayne Needs a Hug, Alfred Pennyworth is the Best, Alfred Pennyworth Knows, Stalker Tim Drake, Jason Todd Has Chronic Pain, Jason Todd Has PTSD, Angst with a Happy Ending, Unlikely Friends, Injury Recovery, Emotional Baggage, Rage, Bruce Wayne is Bad at Communicating

Chapter Four: Looking Glasses

My glasses weren't ready for my Wednesday appointment, but they were done the Friday after my second week of school. So, I took a cab to the optometrist's and then the pizza parlor, where I ran into Tim. He was with his friends, so I thought he wouldn't notice me. "One meat lover's pizza with thin garlic butter crust," I ordered. I waited in the corner, drinking out of the two-liter soda I bought to drown my misery. I had a crappy week at school and didn't want to speak to talk to anyone. The smell of pizza usually left me in a better mood. Besides, I liked being away from the house and the family. I ate the fries they gave me for dining in and watched people standing at the street corner.

"Order for Christopher!" the man at the counter called. I finished my fries, threw the two-liter in my bag, and grabbed my crutches. When I got to the counter, I realized I couldn't carry my pizza and use my crutches. Tim got up and offered to help. I was mortified. I hid my name and everything to avoid speaking to him, only to need his help.

"Here, listen, my driver's on his way. He can drop you off if you want, and I'll help you to your-."

"I don't wanna be any trouble," I interrupted. I said it harshly without meaning to, but I don't think Tim cared. He'd been following me around campus all day, and we just so happened to meet at the pizza place. It would've felt like he was stalking me had he not gotten there first. "I should've thought-."

"No, it's okay. It's really no trouble. I insist," Tim replied.

There was no polite way to turn him down, and his driver just pulled up out front. "I'll split this pie with you if you don't take me home."

Tim grinned a half-smile. "Alright. Come on, I've got your pizza," Tim reassured me. He carried my pizza to the car, and I followed him out.

Once we got in the car, I asked the question I'd had since the first day of school. "Are you watching me? At school, I mean?" I asked.

"I've been-. I'm curious. People talk, and-. Well, you never let anybody close enough to learn anything about you," Tim replied. I knit my brows with great effort.

"What do you wanna know, Tim?" I asked.

"Jason, what kind of accident was it?" Tim questioned.

"Explosion... Gas leak explosion. I don't like to talk about it," I lied. Honestly, I was dying to talk about it. I was sick of holding it all inside myself, but I couldn't afford to let anyone in my head. Especially not some freshman I'd known for less than a week. Tim gave me my pizza box and the okay to eat in the car. I set the box between us and draped an open napkin over my lap. I let Tim eat, but he wasn't hungry. I ate in silence.

It'd been a while since I'd had pizza. I think it was my birthday the last time. I was in the hospital then. Bruce wanted to cheer me up, but all I could think about was my-. I could only think about Sheila. I tried to take the brunt of the blast, but I wasn't big enough. She impaled her skull on a rock anyway. So, I lay trapped between the debris and her lifeless body for what felt like forever. I relived that moment constantly. Lately, I only think about it when I feel trapped. "Jason?" Tim whispered as he touched my arm. It shook me out of a trance. "You alright? You were gone for a while... We're at my house now."

"Oh, we're here?" I mumbled as if I'd been asleep. I slipped my backpack on, and Tim helped me carry my pizza box inside. His house was mostly empty, save for a maid or nanny working on the premises. He set the box on the coffee table and turned the tv on.

I took my homework out of my bag and sat it upright on the floor. "You're gonna do your homework?" Tim asked. I nodded and put on my glasses.

"Yeah, that's what I typically do when I get a minute to sit down," I half-joked. Tim shrugged and flipped through the channels.

"Would it be distracting if I asked you a few questions?" Tim asked. I shook my head. "Jason, when you were thirteen, you went on a short trip to Hollywood over the spring break, right?" The question was weird, but I nodded.

"Yeah, I was visiting a friend. He invited me out to see the movie his Aunt worked on," I answered. That was a half-truth.

"Did you get to see Robin while you were there?" Tim asked.

I laughed it off. "Robin lived in Gotham... But no one's seen much of him lately," I replied. Tim nodded seriously and turned toward the tv.

"He was in Los Angeles that week," Tim replied, "Weird coincidence, huh?"

"What are you getting at, Tim?" I asked.

"Nothing, I'm just a big fan of Robin. I always ask," Tim whispered. I took a deep breath. "I'm coming on too strong, huh?

"A little," I replied as I opened my history book and filled out my worksheet. It took me an hour to finish my homework before I asked Tim to call me a cab.

Tim seemed sad at first, but he called the cab anyway. When the cab got there, he lingered out front with me. "Hey, um-."

"Thanks for everything, Tim. Can we do this again?" I asked. Tim grinned. I didn't want to admit it, but it was the first time I'd felt normal since the accident. I didn't want to let that feeling go. I opened the door and waved at Tim before heading home.

As soon as I got home, Bruce came out of the manor fuming. He waited until I reached the front door to start in on me. "Where the hell have you been?" Bruce asked, whispering through clenched teeth.

"I got my glasses, ate, and did my homework... How are you?" I asked.

"I was worried-. Did you ask me how I was?" Bruce questioned. I nodded. I never asked him how he was. I think my sincerity shocked him. I offered an awkward smile. "I'm alright... How are you?"

"I'm good... I think-. Yeah, I'm good," I smiled. Bruce let me in, and I took the stairlift without argument. I didn't even have to argue with him. I chose peace and peace felt... Kinda nice.

[lady-literature]

Ok, we've seen Bio!Dad Bruce, Adopted!Dad Bruce, and both adopted and blood siblings for nearly all the robins. Now consider Bio!Mom Marinette. She's got the looks to be a Wayne, so do Jason/Tim/Dick. Imagine one of them being her actual son and then meeting Bruce. Imagine something happening and Marinette is separated from her child so Bruce adopts said child until she can come get them. Imagine all the different scenarios.

I have said it once, and i shall say it again: I fuck with mominette

but, hmmmmmmm. this is a tricky one. I can’t imagine that there would be much that could keep Mari away from her child for long enough for Bruce to need to adopt them. Unless she was presumed dead or, perhaps, previously knew Batman/Bruce and left them in his care and then something magical/inter-dimensional went wrong so she’s MIA for a bit (which, if he then turned around and made them a child hero I can only imagine the thrashing he’d receive when she came back).

keeping with backstories as much as possible I suppose it’d look like this:

The Flying Graysons are not a duo but a trio. Mary and John and Marinette, who are all as in sync as any three people could be. It’s no secret in the circus that, while Mary and John are the ones who are married, Mari is hardly the third wheel in their act. Mary and Mari have been together longer than they’ve known John, and when the three discuss children, it’s always Mari who they agree should carry the child.

(Mary’s life is in the sky, but Mari has always been able to flit back and forth. She can stand to keep her feet on the ground for a few months, but Mary always jokes that it would kill her.)

It’s Mary who gets final say on the name, and soon, Richard John Grayson is born to three loving parents and an extended family in the circus they all call home.

but when Dick is eight, Mari is called away for business, whether miraculous or fashion or simply friend related, it doesn't quite matter. She chooses to go on her own, for one reason or another and when she kisses each of her little family goodbye, she does not know it will be the last.

Mari doesn’t hear about their deaths until she catches back up with the circus a week later and when she does they break the news. she almost collapses with grief before the rage distracts her. because Haly explains to her that Dick is gone. That he’s an orphan now even though Marinette is his mother too.

(She’s had the name Grayson for years. all her official documents say Marinette Grayson. The fucking idiots in charge of this whole joke of an investigation seemed to have believed that Mary was a nickname, and no one would listen to her son when he cried about a second mother.)

and then, before she can storm in and demand the incompetent Gotham forces fix this Dick is already being bundled up and brought to Wayne Manor. Which is just,, great.

Mari’s never punched a billionaire before, but she supposes there’s a first time for everything.

***

(and yeah, i know Catherine wasn’t actually his mom but Shelia can choke for all i care about her) or like this:

It’s not drug addiction that takes his mother, but Jason gets to watch her fade all the same.

It’s a different sort of poison, but it’s just as deadly and painful.

The very air in Gotham suffocates her, digs into her skin and winds around her heart like a vice, turning her veins thick, inky black.

Gotham is killing her slowly, but their only alternative is her dying quickly instead. If his mother was to step foot outside of Gotham she would burn, a supernova on earth. 

Her miraculous was shattered, broken while she wielded it and the backlash was enough to send her to this death-life. her miraculous shattered and so did she.

His mother is broken and wrong but no matter how much Jason tries he cannot fix it.

He watches his mother wither away to ashes and later—when he is more man than boy and has tasted the death that took away the only person who ever seemed to give a damn about him—he wears her colors in remembrance. 

***

Marinette married Jack Drake out of obligation more than any sense of love.

But, she supposed, it could have been worse. Jack is not a cruel man and he’s gone on business more often than not, which leaves her and their son and the servants of the manor.

It’s not the life she wanted, but it’s far from terrible. Tim is the light of her life, and regardless of her feelings for his father, she adores him just as she always knew she would.

They are as close as Mother and son can be, which means she notices when he starts disappearing for long periods of time. At first she had believed him to be taking pictures—he’s grown very fond of photography and Marinette encouraged creativity at every opportunity—and well. Technically she isn’t wrong.

She stares at her son unamused when he tries to use that argument.

he’s oddly tight lipped about why he’s been following around Batman, and it takes all her skill in prodding and teasing out her son’s worries to get him to speak.

“Batman needs help,” he finally tells her. “Bruce Wayne needs help.”

And, oh. Well then.

“Okay,” she says simply, already planning how best to approach this situation. grief is a tricky thing and her and Bruce aren’t exactly close.

“He needs a Robin,” Tim insists then and multiple pieces suddenly click in her mind.

“No. Absolutely not.”

“But-”

“No. You are not going out and fighting crime at your age! If you think he needs a partner so much, then I’ll do it.”

if Tim is put out by being told he can’t go out and fight crime with Batman, it is very much overshadowed by the idea of his mom going out and fighting crime with Batman.

(Before the end of the week, Marinette has taken Tim over to Wayne manor and all but forced themselves on the household.

In six months, Nightingale takes to the streets of Gotham, fluttering at Batman’s side like she’s always been there.

In a year, Marinette has spoken to Jack—who gives his blessing which she appreciates even if she hadn’t needed it—and she begins spending more nights in Bruce’s bed than she does her own.)

[miss-choco-chips]

Home

Four times Tim just wanted to go home, and one time he’s actually there.

(  @animemangasoul I think you’ll like this one)

(I was listening to Home by Machine Gun Kelly X Ambassadors & Bebe Rexha while I wrote this. Might have cried a little. I regret nothing)

----.----

His mom is holding his hand, a rare occurrence. Were he in a more… stable state, he’d squeeze the moment for all it’s worth.

But the coldness of fear had his heart in a ice-like grip, and the scenery around them did little to appease him. Nothing, not even the warmth of being held, could keep him from shaking.

-I want to go home -he whispers in his mother’s ear when she picks him up in her arms. Safe against her body, he thinks he can feel his heart melting a bit around the edges where panic had frozen him over.

Mom tightened her hold, eyes leaving the crying kid and his dead parents for the first time in a long time. He feels how one of her hands drops its place under his leg to pat his back, more comforting than he ever thought she capable of.

-Yes, we are leaving now. Jack? Bring the car over, we’ll wait here.

She doesn’t lower him until they are back at the manor. Then, his parents retire to their rooms, both to rest and prepare for their trip to the Bahamas the following morning. 

Tim shivers all night long, yearning for the warmth he was too distracted to appreciate a few hours ago, back at the circus.

This wasn't what he meant, when he asked to go home. He just wanted to feel safe.

----.----

This… wasn’t what he expected. To being caught, that is. Specially by his hero.

Jason (Robin, call him Robin, don’t you dare slip up, he can’t know you know!) is looking down at him, hands on his hips. He’s doing his best to look stern, but the short shorts, pixie boots and unconscious thug at his back ruin the effect of his glare.

Tim, camera held tightly as it’s been for the last couple of minute since the man came out of the shadows to try and steal it from him, distractedly thinks Batman should get on that, teach Robin his famous loom. He’s feeling starstruck, more than fearful.

-It’s too late for a squirt like you to be out. Streets are dangerous, no’ne told you? Specially ‘is parts o’the city -the young vigilante drawled, accent thicker than Tim recalled from back at the gala when their parents introduced them in passing. Not that Jason would remember.

-I… I’m not a squirt, I’m ten -he finally blurts out, wishing he could smack himself the second the words leave his mouth.

-Children should be on bed at this time.

He does his best to calm his erratic heart, and canalizes all the sass on his pint sized body to arch an eyebrow- Hypocrite much?

Robin growls, but Tim can tell he’s doing his best to hide a smile.

-I can leave you here, you know.

He knows Jason is bluffing, looking for a reaction, but the mere idea still makes his barely calming heart kick into overdrive again. The scare of a few minutes ago was too fresh on his mind. He already knows he won’t be going out again soon, not until he could plan a new route to photograph his idols while traveling only by rooftop, to best avoid the scum of the city.

-No, wait… please -he moves forward, hand taking a handful of cape, as if that could stop the vigilante if he actually was planning to leave.

Jason took the chance to wrap him on it like a little blanket, picking him up in his arms like a baby.

-Don’t worry, shortstack. I’m taking you home so I can be sure y’er actually following your bedtime.

Feeling a little braver in his hero’s arms, he fired back- Don’t have any.

-Whatever, you lil liar.

-It’s true. You can ask my parents… that’s it, if you’re willing to go into my house for a chat. Masks are in bad taste though, you’ll have to take yours off.

Truthfully, both his parents are away on business. Not that he needed to know about the bluff.

This time, he didn’t bother to hide his amusement, letting his barking laughter come out.

-You little shit. I’m not giving you my secret that easy.

Tim just shrugs, painting his most innocent smile. It’s difficult to keep it in place when Jason asks for directions, and then drops him at his bedroom’s window.

The giddiness of meeting his hero can’t quench his disappointment when he watches Jason’s back as he leaves. 

A little, childish part of himself had believed, hoped (with all the innocence his heart had left), that when Jason said ‘take you home’, he was talking about his own. 

----.----

He’s training as hard as possible. His body, shaped by the multiple teachers he hired through the years, hurts in a way he never thought possible, and has been like that ever since he first went to the training mats to face Bruce.

He knows the pain is necessary, what he learns there could be the difference between life or death (his eyes never fail to go to Jason’s suit, his altar, where he, as his whorshipper, would always go ask for strength and courage), but it's hard to remember his purpose for being there when he goes to bed each night with aching limbs.

Still, he endures.

This last week has been both harder than any other, and the best he’s ever had. The first, because a full on out gang war had forced him, Dick and Bruce to work overtime, going out every night for twice their usual hours (thank god for spring break). The second, because to save time and strength, he’d been allowed to stay the night at the manor with them.

He can’t believe how nice it is to have breakfast with someone. Sure, they have it at like three pm, but still. The pained body was so, so worth this.

When they caught their last perps, all tied up and pretty for the GCPD, Tim was simultaneously absolutely beat and the happiest he’s been.

Batman puts a hand on his shoulder and squeezes, saying ‘let’s go home, Robin’, and he thinks for a moment he’s dreaming again.

He actually sleeps a bit, on the Batmobile trip. Beyond tired, feels his body being raised and then lowered again in a soft surface, something warm over his chest, and then lights out again.

When he wakes up the next morning, he’s at Drake Manor. The breakfast table is empty, the hallways colder than he remembered, and he wishes last night had actually been a dream. It would hurt less, if it had been all in his imagination; instead, he has to live with the knowledge of being so close, yet so far.

Not for the first time, he wishes ‘home’ were a different place.

----.----

He sighs, dropping his suitcase uncaringly. Anything important is on his phone anyway, who gives a fuck. Certainly not an overworked seventeen year old kid who’s just getting back after a long day. 

The place was clean, spacious and with a modern decoration style he kinda likes. The mechanic fishes certainly give it a nice touch, and the underground nerd cave he built for himself is the cherry on top- bottom, whatever.

It’s a nice house. A place he made for himself, to come back to. With scanners that automatically alert him if some sneaky ninja plants a bug, or a snoopy family member was sniffing around for his toys. He knows everything that happens here, in this little kingdom he built from scratch.

Of course, there are some itty bitty problems with it. Not the layout itself, that one was a dream came true, and no security issue either: all of Ra’s thwarted attempts at having his people breaking in confirmed how tight it was.

But, for some reason, the thermostat didn’t seem to work. It was always way too cold. 

The soundproof walls were good at keeping his secrets under wraps, but they also made it seem so unnaturally quiet, it gave him the creeps.

No table in sight. Not that he needed one, he shrugs. Lunch he eats outside, at the office. Dinner is a quick thing, a sandwich while he gets ready for patrol or some other snack while he types away at his computer. Breakfast… he doesn’t know why, but he never feels right when eating it, so he skips it more often than not.

Sighing again, he falls face first into his absurdly pricey couch. Blindly patting the coffee table until he finds the blanket he always keeps there, he thinks about taking a lil nap. He didn’t sleep last night (or the one before that), so it feels like he’s earned this break.

Decision made, Tim takes his phone out of the secret pocket in his coat and selects the app that makes background noise. He always sleeps better with it.

Yeah. This is a nice, comfortable place.

Too bad it’s not home.

-I just want to go home -he whispers to himself before letting unconsciousness claim him. 

If asked, he’d said the break in his voice was a yawn and not a sob.

----.----

When he wakes up, it’s to noise all around him. That alone puts him on guard so fast he would have pulled a muscle, if he were anyone else. As a Bat-trained vigilante though, he just tensed before opening his eyes to analyze his surroundings.

This… wasn’t his place, where he distinctly remembers falling asleep, face down on his couch. 

This was Titans Tower. Was he losing track of time? Had he been on a fight and got hit on the head? 

-Hey, you’re awake -Kon’s head poked out of the kitchen area, smiling as he floated all the way to where Tim was lying, on the living room’s couch.

The sight of his friend was enough to loosen his muscles. Still unsure but immediately comfortable he sat up straight and looked around. He could hear Bart and Cassie bickering on the background, probably the kitchen, Greta’s laughter coming to him from the same place, and those were Anita’s shoes and Cissie’s backpack near the elevator.

The first two and Kon, he could get. They were all Titans. But the three girls? They were retired, so what…

-Hey, boy wonder, let your brain take a break. I can hear you thinking from here and it’s giving me a headache -the super joked, landing by Tim’s side and poking his forehead lightly.

-That’s because you never think, you aren’t used to it -he fires back automatically. Then, a slow blink-  What are the girls doing here? What am I doing here? Last thing I remember I was… at the Perch. Sleeping.

-Yeah, and what a deep sleep that was. Been pulling all nighters, haven’t you? -his best friend shook his head, beyond giving Tim a disappointed look. They knew each other way too much to be surprised by their respective bad habits- you didn’t even flinch when I wrapped you up in TTK and flew you here. And about the girls, I told Cassie and Bart I was gonna pick you up, and they decided to make a thing out of this and went to bring them here, just to hang out. Like back in the days, you know?

The mention of their Young Justice times never failed to give Tim a heartache, but this time it just made him feel warm. 

He tried to look stern, but the smile he could feel growing on his lips against his will probably ruined it.

-But why did you? Bring me here, I mean.

Kon tilted his head, visibly confused.

-What do you mean? I heard you. You said you wanted to go home.

Something deep and frozen inside him abruptly melted, like it was hit by a flamethrower. The intensity brought tears to his eyes, body shaking uncontrollably as he bent over himself, hands clutching the opposite arm tightly, as if trying to hold himself in one piece.

Kon’s arms were around him in an instant, worried shouts piercing his ears as he plastered the smaller vigilante to his chest, unthinkingly helping him keep his broken pieces together. The warmth from his best friend’s body served as a welder, and Tim could finally breathe without the fear of breaking apart.

-Tim? Fuck, what’s wrong? Are you okay?! Here, dude, I got you.

-Kon? What is i- fuck, what did you do? Hey, Tim!

-Rob? Oh my god he’s crying, why is he crying!

The voices came closer, surrounding him from all directions as multiple hands touched him in an attempt to comfort.

It was too much, too warm, too bright.

He hoped it’d never end.

-I just…

Everyone stopped talking. His voice was broken by sobs, but he sounded happier than they had ever heard him.

-I’m just happy I’m finally home.