Chapter Text
Gotham was enigmatic in how it’s citizens almost seemed used to the danger, and torment that the streets held.
Sure, the rogues were new, and quite dangerous, but they were just like the gangs. They had a purpose and as long as you took care to attempt to stay out of the way, you’d likely make it out alive.
The city was rough around the edges, like a rock you’d find on a mountain but with the prettiest colors and crystals inside that glittered in the starlight.
Gotham was carved out of people with strong hearts and stronger wills. You couldn’t live in Gotham without having a bite. Just like crystals.
That made it hard to relax in the city. Even at night.
It was a calm summer night. The heat wasn’t quite there in Gotham, as it was about to hit September soon. Only a few weeks and the temperatures would plummet. The rains would come, and freeze the world into a land of biting cold and fog. Frost so thick you could make snow out of it just wiping it off.
Other things happened this calm summer night. It was pleasant for once. There were no screams, not like normally. Everyone seemed to have gone in for the night. There was no thieves on the prowl, no drug dealers holding meetings. It was as if a Christmas truce happened several months too early and everyone agreed to stay home.
The energy was a pleasant blanket that settled across the city.
Willis could see the sky. He’d not grown up in Gotham. Long enough though, he’d made his home here and he couldn’t remember a night so clear.
It brought out the inner country kid in him, memories of long rides in trucks and helping on the farms. Catching meteor showers and tracing constellations with the love of his life.
Willis wasn’t proud to admit that that love wasn't always so strong. Gotham was hard on a relationship, and he was tenacious as the rest but there was something about her.
She was like moonlight, dressed as a woman, with shimmering black air and eyes dark as coals. Willis thought she was lovely.
She felt like a warm cup of tea just before you went to night, and the comforting silence of darkness.
Willis wouldn’t forget that summer night.
It was more of a night. There were more stars than he’d remembered every seeing, the shadows draped around the buildings like tablecloths, and the night seemed sleepier and gentler then normal.
It was also the only night he remembered sleeping that well, in Gotham.
The knock came at a half hour until dawn. It was still black out. Stars still peeked among the black sky.
He opened the door, careful never to wake Catherine and before he knew it she was standing there. Black evening gown with a silver silken robe, open and billowing in a breeze Willis knew wasn’t there.
Willis knew she wasn’t human but he figured that had eliminated the chances. He looked down from the pure eyes of silver to the bundle he just noticed was held in her arms.
Willis fell in love, and it sank into his bones, with a sensation that this wouldn’t end well. He didn’t care, and he reached out with watering eyes anyways.
“Is-” He couldn’t bring himself to finish the words, and there was a gentle kiss pressed to the side of his head.
“You're a mortal like no other.” She admitted eyes shining as she stepped back “It’s rare I care for anything other than bringing terror, but the calm of sleep is still a part of me. the comfort of shadows not just the terror, and you’ve made me remember the softer sides of me in a way no one has Willis Todd.”
“You can’t stay” He knew it was coming, and she nodded in reply, a smile appearing.
It wasn’t bittersweet, at least, not until her gaze wandered down to the fast asleep little bundle Willis was cradling like precious gold.
Her eyes darkened like an eclipse. “He’s going to have a time of his life. Protect him, the best you can. The other gods cannot find you here in this place. Please do this . . . He doesn’t deserve the pain he’ll endure if you don’t.”
Willis couldn’t help but nod, eyes watering as he stared down with a dawning sense of foreboding. Her words were knowing in a way that Willis didn’t like.
“Tell him . . “ Her voice dipped with emotion and when he looked there was starlight in the corners of her eyes where a heartfelt expression was aimed at the tiny perfect baby. “Tell him that I love him and as long as he stays in the shadows there will always be a place for him.”
She was gone.
One second there, the next missing, in the blink of his eyes.
Willis looked down.
The blanket was the color they say a black hole is. Devoid of light, but among the fine soft threads, almost like that of a shepherd’s shawl, was tiny silver stars. They glimmered in an otherworldly way and Willis took a deep breath.
The little baby’s skin was pale, smooth with a gathering of dark freckles among his shoulders like constellations. Willis held him carefully tracing them with care, marveling at each one and how perfect they were.
His hair was almost an exact match for the night sky. Shiny ebony and the way the moonlight hit it, it shined.
The little face yawned, and Willis’s breath hitched as little blue eyes blinked open at him. They were a bright, warm familiar match to his own.
Willis never saw her again. He knew he wouldn’t. The sun rose and she was gone.
In the end Sheila Haywood was only a name to put to a paper.
He wasn’t able to keep that promise, but he tried to the best of his ability to the end.
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Jason Todd never realized he was different. He grew up a normal little kid, and if Catherine commented on how easily he went to sleep, at how he never seemed to fear the dark, it was never said to little Jason.
Even towards the end, all Jason ever heard was he was a miracle, he was a miracle and he was special, and it scared him with how serious it was told to him. Catherine gripped him with bad breath and shaking hands filled with sores and whispered those things to him.
Images forever burned into little Jason’s memories.
Then Catherine was gone, and Willis never came back.
Jason’s next chapter in life almost came naturally. Not the thieving, though his quick hands were very useful for that.
It was hiding. Jason was fantastic at it. He was able to lean into the shadow of a building and it was like confidence poured over him, and people looked right past him.
It came naturally as breathing, and Jason never viewed it as anything other than normal even when other kids on the street joked about him being a ghost.
Then the night came that he ran into the Shadow of Gotham.
Batman.
It ended with a five-star meal at the best burger shack, Jason could remember in years and a warm bed that night, and within the month, Jason Peter Todd was a ward of Bruce Wayne.
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It didn’t take long for Jason to discover the secret. It made things make much more sense, to how Batman seemed almost comfortable on the drive to the manor and how it all seemed to be smoothed over so well in the foster system.
It was also really cool that Bruce Wayne was secretly a hero.
Jason saw the way Bruce put his heart and soul into the city, and something changed. He wanted that. He wanted to be a light in the shadows!
He started training and a few years later is when he noticed it. It was only small things that came off odd here and there, that Jason soon forgot, only to realize again later.
He was able to hide even from Bruce. Bruce would look right over him, while Jason nestled into the darkness, and it almost felt different. It almost felt like the shadows wrapped around him, bent to his whims. When Jason popped out, he swore he could feel them sticking to him in a way.
Bruce would never jolt in a way that was funny, but the look in his eyes was one Jason couldn’t shake.
Even Dick, the original terror in the shadows, Robin, couldn’t find Jason and Robin was the original. Dick was the best of the best of hiding in the shadows.
Until Jason.
He was tired during the day, just a bit more than usual. The shadows felt alive in a way they didn’t normally. Jason could remember looking at Bruce when he was injured or sick and telling him that he needed to rest, and no sooner than did Jason say it, Bruce fell asleep. It worked on Dick as well.
Everything changed one late August night. A week after his 12th birthday.
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Jason was brimming with excitement. There wasn’t anything that he could think of that could ruin the night, and even Batman wasn’t scolding him for fidgeting as much as usual.
Once or twice, he thought he caught the twitch of a smile on the corners of Batman’s stoic scowl.
“When are we gonna get home?” He asked gazing down from the gargoyle he was perched on, focus anywhere but the streets below. There was a brand-new book, waiting at home, that Jason had been dying all week to finally get to and with school starting up the next week, Bruce was letting him have off the weekend to prepare.
Jason knew it was just a break to have some freedom before his time filled back up with school, clubs and Robin.
“Robin.” Batman said the grunt barely a warning “If you're so eager you can wait in the car.”
Jason practically perked up, and he did catch the smile on Bruce’s face this time, and it only served to fuel Jason’s own enthusiasm.
“Promise?” He said toothy grin infectious as Bruce finally chuckled.
“Fine. Go I’ll inform Agent A that you're coming in early tonight. Perhaps he’ll have something waiting for you when you arrive home.” Bruce motioned and Jason whooped, hopping down the fire escape fast as he could.
He was gone and jogging down the streets, with Batman in his ear reminding him to stick to the shadows and eagerly thinking of the book awaiting him.
Jason was excited, he rounded the corner-
And froze when the blur of something came swinging his way.
Jason only just managed to roll sideways out of the way, and he could hear the concrete of the building next to him crumbling.
Jason looked up, to face it and the blood drained from his face.
It was huge. It was easily the size of a van, and 3 times taller than Jason. The body was horrific, a terrifying mash of creatures that Jason probably knew, but couldn’t think of.
It was a lion, until you reached the neck. The head was a lion but splitting from the back of it bleating angrily with beady dead looking eyes was the head of a goat with huge horns of a ram. The lions teeth were yellowed and dripping spit where it snarled at Jason.
It moved and Jason yelped scrabbling back as it’s tail removed itself from the wall, and he shivered watching it coil across the ground and up with a hiss. It was a snakes head as the tail and it was easily thick as a barrel. Jason didn’t need to look twice to guess that it was poison dripping from the fangs.
Jason couldn’t name it but he knew instinctively he had to run. Nothing he did would kill this creature. He didn’t know how he knew this he just knew.
Jason didn’t understand, and no one he ran past seemed to understand either. Jason didn’t really know if they were there, but he assumed they were from the snickers he heard. A few people whispered about a kid being scared of a dog, but Jason couldn’t focus on that.
His grapple gun when he pulled it out, lodged and Batman was yelling into the Comm link in his ear, only just beating out the pounding of blood that roared.
Jason rounded another corner breathing fast and whimpering, thanking God that the creature's claws slipped on the cobblestones, after it had rained earlier. It was the only thing saving him at the moment.
“Robin, what is it!”
“I don't know!” Jason sputtered “It’s like nothin, I ever seen!” His accent was slipping out of terror and Jason screeched when another tail hit, slammed the cobblestone next to him.
“Jason Bat girl caught a camera, she said it’s only a dog, are you sure that’s what it is? You didn’t get hit by some sort of toxin?” Batman wasn’t trying to undermine him, but Jason could imagine the look on his face and it slammed Jason’s chest full stop. the words only ignited a fire, Jason didn’t know needed to be lit.
He screamed, yelling into his comm “Whatever it is, s’not a fuckin dog!” Jason snapped, the terror only growing hotter inside, as he stared ahead. THere was a dead end coming around this corner of the Alley and the only chance he had was to try and hide.
Jason’s feet echoed on the stones. Boots skidded around the corner and Jason dove forward.
The shadows clung to him Jason was in the vast expanse of nothing but darkness, feet stumbling.
He lost balance and moved instinctively into a safety roll and when he popped to his feet, Jason’s stomach dropped, and the adrenaline pounded in his chest.
He was on a roof.
. . .
He was on a roof.
“Bats?” Jason croaked as he stumbled, crouching, until he sat quietly staring across Gotham. Jesus Christ he was in the bowery. Distantly Jason swore he could hear the loud roars of something deeply angry, but they faded and so did the terror and adrenaline.
“Jason, are you there! Batgirl said your location glitched out somehow, Jason answer me!”
“I’m on . . on the roof of St. James’ Jason whispered “I-I’m okay . . . H-Hey Bruce?”
There’s the frantic sound of wind whistling, and Jason can picture Bruce, zipping across the city. Faster than he has before, and fluid in a way that determination caused.
“I’m here, Son.”
“I think you need to call Aunt Diana” Jason whispered, thinking, shivering as the wind started to gather, and he stared across the city.
Gotham was made of Night and Jason felt alive in that. He felt like part of the night and for the first time in his life it scared him.
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It was a fun time meeting the other league heroes, but Jason had a favorite.
That wasn’t why he wanted her to come.
Aunt Diana was the best, and Jason really liked her, but this was different. Jason was on pins and needles, and something was telling him that he needed her.
Jason remembered being in the family kitchen kicking his feet when the sound of the main door opening hit his hears.
He was gone feet moving on the floor before Alfred could shout at him and his quick jog brought him to the main hall.
He got there in time to see her turn to him, all blinding white smiles and see it be spun into shock.
Jason didn’t think wonder woman had been surprised often and even worse she froze.
“Diana?” Bruce’s fear was evident in how he stared at her reaction and looked back on Jason. Jason shook his head, some kind of fear bubbling up and making his eyes sting.
“You’ve been dealing with Monsters. Creatures that can’t be seen by human eyes haven’t you little one?” She spoke directly to Jason crouching with a gentle smile, all 6ft glory kneeling to his height.
“I-it was a monster, it was trying to-” Jason’s voice couldn’t make it through before choking up, and Jason didn’t back out of the strong arms that surrounded him in a deep hug. “I’m scared Aunt Diana.”
The hug she wrapped him in felt the safest that he’d been since returning to the Manor. Every creak every noise had kept Jason awake and it all melted, into the embrace.
Jason went limp, and the next thing he knew he was being lifted into her arms, and Diana was turning, to likely where Bruce was.
“Bruce, darling I think you're going to have to make a trip with me”