Work Text:
He didn’t do it. He didn’t kill that man. Yet, the body was there, in front of him, and he had so much blood on him.
Why did he have so much blood on him
He didn't do it
Hedidntdoit…
But Bruce… Bruce will think he did it, Bruce will think Jason killed that man.
He was there, the famous shadow, the Dark Knight, Batman, his dad .
"B… Bruce, it’s not me… I didn’t… It’s not what it looks like, I swear."
"Jason, what did you do?" His voice was firm, angry.
In Gotham, Batman was the incarnation of Justice, and today, justice came for him.
"I trusted you, Jason, but it seems like you shouldn’t have left Arkham at all."
Jason wanted to argue, but no sounds were leaving his mouth. He wanted to run, but he couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe.
"Jason, Jason!"
Bruce was calling him, probably to take him to Arkham, or to kill him himself for what he did to the city. But he couldn’t answer, couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe.
"Jason, wake up!"
Jason gasped as his eyes opened suddenly. Bruce was above him, his face reflecting his worries about his son. "Jay, it’s okay, it was just a nightmare. You’re safe here."
Jason is supposed to be cold, to be strong. But now, he was just weak and tired and so relieved that it was just a dream and he suddenly burst out in tears.
"Oh, Jaylad..." Bruce seemed suddenly so sad, seeing his son crying, and he took him instinctively in his arms.
"I’m here. I’m here, baby."
Usually, Jason would protest, but he felt as if he was all of sudden made of glass, that could break at any moment, and he really needed to be held right now. Also, being held by his father was a feeling he missed dearly.
“Wanna talk about it?” Jason hesitated for a second before nodding.
“I… Uh… There was a corpse, someone was dead and I was there and I… I didn’t do anything! But I was covered in blood and you thought it was me, and you wanted to put me back to Arkham but I wasn’t me.”
Bruce shushed softly his son’s ramblings.
“Jay, calm down. It was just a dream. And if anything like that would've happened in real life, I would’ve asked you about the situation. I’m not a monster lad, I’m your father, I will always take your side, okay?”
Jason sighed softly and put his head back against his father’s shoulder, drowning in the warmth of his body and the soft smell of his familiar cologne.
“Would you stay with me for the night?” He asked hesitantly as if he thought Bruce would refuse.
“Of course, sweetheart. I’ll stay with you for the night. But maybe we should go to my room: your old bed is already a bit too small for you.”
Bruce helped his son up and put an arm around his shoulders to guide him to his bedroom.
Bruce’s room had always been a safe place for Jason, a place where he used to join his dad, that was at that time so tall compared to him, and he would protect him through the night and the nightmares, though the fear of being abandoned or just not good enough for him.
So many years had passed, Jason had been abandoned after all, but Bruce took him back, with patience and love and trust and that little spark of what was making Bruce his dad , and not just his father. At first, Jason didn’t want to see his family anymore. He needed time, and he needed his independence. But then, something bad happened, another warehouse, another bomb, and that time his family came for him.
Jason had stayed traumatized and weak for a long time after that. He stayed hidden in the manor, refusing to eat and shaking with fever, his dreams were nightmares, memories, and always him . The Joker.
It took him some time to feel better: to stop having so many nightmares, to start eating correctly again, to leave the manor to go shopping with his family, or learning how to cook with Alfred. Bruce was expecting his son to leave, to go back to his outlaw life and his safe houses, but Jason stayed.
A timid presence at first, but that became so much important to Bruce’s daily life in just a few days.
“Jason, are you okay?”
Jason was brought back to the present by his father’s worried voice.
“Sorry dad, I’m fine.” He whispered.
His father led him to the bathroom to wash his face a bit, as he was brushing his teeth. Then, they went to the huge bed in the corner of the room. Jason climbed under the covers, and Bruce joined him shortly after, wrapping his son in the covers and a warm embrace.
“Sleep now, baby. I’m here.”
Jason closed his eyes and breathed in his father's sweet scent as the latter took a book on his nightstand and started reading calmly.
“Can you… Can you read it out loud, maybe?” Whispered Jason, a bit embarrassed.
Bruce didn’t answer but started immediately to read it softly as if he was trying not to wake up a child sleeping in his arms. His child was falling asleep in his arms after all .
“Good night, dad.”
“Good night, Jason. Don’t worry, I’ll be there to protect you from the nightmares.”
That’s what he used to say when Jason was a kid, but also when he was terrified in his bedroom at night, a few weeks ago.
Jason was woken up in the morning by someone petting his hair.
“Are you okay, Little Wing?”
It was Dick. The relationship between the two boys had evolved a lot in the past weeks. Dick was the one in charge of making Jason eat at least a bit of soup when he was delirious in his bed, sweating from fever and constant nightmares.
At first, Jason was suspicious and easily annoyed by his brother's presence. Always talking to him, telling him about the pretty dog he saw in the street or the beautiful bird that was sleeping in a tree of the garden this morning.
“Not as pretty as you, Jaybird.” He used to say.
But one day where Dick wasn’t there, on a mission out of town. Jason realized how much his brother missed him. He spent the whole day with a weight on his chest, he was feeling anxious and alone, and he realized that his brother had just been trying to distract him from the fear in his head.
“I’m okay, Dickie. Just had a nightmare, but I’m feeling better now.”
His older brother smiled and helped him up. “Good, Alfred made us some crepes today. He asked me to wake you up before Dami, Tim and Steph eat everything. Cass is not up yet, but she’ll probably eat way more than what she’s supposed to have. So we need to go, now.”
His voice was firm as if saving crepes for his younger brother was the most important thing they had to do today. That was a part of Dick’s personality that Jason enjoyed a lot, he was attaching importance to the smallest things.
“Go eat some crepes boys,” mumbled Bruce, still half asleep at his side. “I’ll join you in a minute.”
Dick pressed a quick kiss on his father’s cheek. “We cannot assure you that we can save you some crepes, but at least I’ll ask Alfred to make you a coffee.”
Bruce snorted “As if Alfred would let anyone starve in this house.”
In the kitchen, Damian and Tim were fighting over a crepe bigger than the other ones, while Steph and Cass were trying to hide a plate full of crepes and strawberries under the table. It was a chaotic scene, but it was familiar, it was home, and Jason was so, so happy to be allowed to see that again.
Alfred smiled when he saw the two older boys and gave them both a plate of crepes with chocolate sauce and a cup of coffee for Dick and hot chocolate for Jason.
Their father showed up a dozen minutes later, already dressed and ready for work. He thanked Alfred for the coffee and sat between Jason and Damian and started to talk about a new mission they should focus on.
Jason liked that side of Bruce: always caring, but ready to move on so his son wouldn’t feel embarrassed in front of the family: as if nothing happened.
And Jason knew his father would make sure it will never happen again.