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Nightlights

Summary:

"It started with a storm. A storm like which Gotham hadn't seen for a long time. It left old injuries aching and even the most hardened criminals became unwilling to go out. Gale force winds rattled through the streets and rain fell so heavily it left people lucky to even see their own hands when in front of their faces."

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Day 26 - "Nothing like a relapse to rehash the kid who was scared.”
Relapse | Drawn Curtains | Power Cut

BW365 299 Day - Pressure

Notes:

i love this au so much i need to do more for it

Work Text:

It started with a storm. A storm like which Gotham hadn't seen for a long time. It left old injuries aching and even the most hardened criminals became unwilling to go out. Gale force winds rattled through the streets and rain fell so heavily it left people lucky to even see their own hands when in front of their faces.

 

For this reason the vigilantes decided to call it a night off. At the end of the day they are merely human, even as skilled as they are there is only so much that they can do in the face of a natural force. Superman was placed in standby, as much as Batman only agreed to it begrudgingly.

 

It is also for that reason that Jason, Harley and Pamela became stuck at the manor, secret identities long since abandoned when it became clear that not only did they know them already they had no intentions on using them against the Bats. Besides, the three of them were hardly villains... All of the time. They still didn't exactly land on the "good" alignment of the moral compass, if you were to follow a traditional morality structure, but they were definitely more towards that end of neutral now.

 

The three of them were currently occupying the spare sitting room (damn rich people and their fancy mansions with too many rooms to know what to do with). Harley and Pam were curled up together on the sofa with a blanket over them. Jason was sat on the floor wrapped in his own blanket and leaning back against the sofa as he tried to focus on the film that had been put on, some sappy romcom that none of them were really invested in but was an appropriately suitable distraction. They were alone in the room, door closed and curtains drawn which had been both to improve the movie watching atmosphere and more importantly because it had become clear quickly that seeing the storm was setting Jason on edge. The two women hadn't told him that it was their main reason for closing them, not wanting to risk embarrassing the boy.

 

Each crack of thunder that came closer, louder, had Jason drawing himself further into the blanket cocoon he had built around himself. Pamela reached a hand forward and ran her fingers through the tuft of hair peeking out of the blanket at the top of his head in what she hoped was a soothing way. It was getting long enough Jason would want it cut soon. He was still getting used to not having it the same as Jokers. He could handle it not being styled the same now but still couldn't manage being long enough to go below his chin.

 

Another thunder crack echoed out then next thing they were plunged into darkness. It didn't last long, barely a few seconds, before the backup generators kicked in and they had some lights back. Not all of them but enough to see clearly. Unfortunately it was still enough to send Jason spiralling into a panic attack.

 

No sound came from him but it didn't need to. They knew him well enough to know from the tight, stiff ball he had pulled himself into. Harley and Pamela shared a concerned look before Harley slipped out of their casual embrace to kneel on the floor in front of Jason, Pamela stayed where she was and kept the simple movement of her fingers through his hair going hoping that it would help to ground him.

 

For what felt like an age Harley stayed where she was just observing. As much as she wanted to help she also knew that startling him would go badly. Fate was not so on their side though as the door swung open loudly and Harley <i>saw</i> the way Jason flinched at the sound.

 

"Everyone okay in here?" Dick Grayson's voice came through, far too loudly for her liking. Harley didn't even try to hide the glare she sent his way, knowing that Pam was likely doing the same. To be fair to him he did look very sheepish when he clocked onto what was happening. "Sorry, I didn't mean to... Just, uh, just come grab us if you need anything. The backup generator will keep us going until the storm eases enough to go check the damage." He gave them a weak smile then shut the door, exit far more careful than his entrance.

 

Once he was gone the two immediately turned their full attention back to Jason who had pulled the blanket fully over his head the moment Pamela's hand had left his hair. Coaxing him out of it was difficult but nowhere near as difficult as seeing him rigidly stiff with a painfully tight grin pulled across his face. Just the way Joker had always insisted, usually before taking his frustrations out on one or both of them.

 

"Oh baby you're safe now. I promise." Harley gave a sad smile at the sight of her son falling back into old habits. They'd been making such good progress recently, her and him both, and she knew this was going to set him back, and then her back through worry. Healing wasn't linear, she knew that. It didn't make it any less upsetting when a step back was made. They'd get though it together though, as this little family they'd built for themselves.

 

Pamela helped Harley gently relocate Jason to the sofa when he would let him move them, no longer flinching away from their touches and instead tentatively leaning into Harley's touch. They got settled with him sandwiched lightly in between the two of them and a couple of blankets draped over them all. Muttered words of care were given between feather light kisses with both of them knowing Jason had mostly settled down when he shuffled around to hide himself in Harley's embrace, wrapping his own arms around her as Pamela wrapped her own around him too.

 

When morning came and the storm eased off the three of them would still be wrapped in each others arms with Jason having finally fallen asleep, no longer jolting alert each time he was about to drift off due to booming thunder. None of them would move until they had all rested.

 

But for now they just found comfort in the closeness they shared.

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