[ Bruce yells and Jason gets what he wants, however temporary. The fire flickers to life and swallows up the trail of accelerant before fire suppression kicks in and smothers the life from it. And as long as the fire burned, it had Bruce's attention.
Now, it's back on Jason and honestly, he's pissed. Setting fire, even a meager one, to the cave seemed a far more personal attack than taking a crowbar to a memory Bruce cherished. ]
What did you think that was going to do, Jason? [ Because it certainly did not change his mind. ]
[Jason is heading to his bike. He almost wants to puncture a tire on the Batmobile, just to give him a minute, but he knows that those tires are a bitch to mess with and he doesn't want to make this dramatic exit lose any power.
He mounts his bike right around the time that Bruce yells at him.]
You set fire to our relationship, I set fire to that fucking memorial.
It's your choice.
[He parrots the words with a mimicry of Bruce's cadence that only the Robins can manage as he starts his bike.]
[ Deep down, Bruce didn't want things to be this way. Whatever their differences were, Bruce loved Jason and had wanted him back more than anything. But what came out of the Pit, who came out was someone Bruce was no longer starting to recognize and what put them at odds seemed greater than anything that had ever held them together. Bruce...he didn't know what to do about any of it. All of his efforts to make it right only ever seemed to make it worse.
Bruce Wayne was rebuffed at every turn. So now, Jason would have Batman instead.
He leaves the case behind (another mess to be cleaned later) and follows. ]
Fine. You made your choice and now I'll make mine.
He knows that tone, and he knows that threat. That's the tone of voice that he takes when you killed someone, and that means that Batman is out to play. It also means that Bruce, as usual, has taken a fight and turned it into a fucking crusade.
God, this was predictable and Jason walked straight into it.
He doesn't bother stalling, then. He just goes, bike going from 0 to an impossible speed on a street model in a second and a half. He needs to make up distance now. The benefit of a bike is that it's agile, but the Batmobile-
-Jason figures if he can make it to Gotham proper he can slip between the cracks. For all that Bruce knows Gotham, it's really always been Jason's city, and if Jason doesn't want to be found in it, the fact is that he won't be.]
[ What has his life been since that single tragic moment in Crime Alley but a crusade? A crusade for physical perfection. A crusade for a deep and vast well of knowledge. A crusade against the worst Gotham had to offer. Bruce Wayne - that little boy left alone in the dark at the feet of his dead mother and father - never stood a chance. Not a single one.
It's what drives him now. The Crusade. The Mission consumes him in all his waking hours (and his sleeping ones too). Jason's rejection, his choosing something other than peace was another to add to the list.
The car's driver side door swings open wide when he commands it to from his belt and he leaps into it to peel out after Jason into Gotham's night. He doesn't know what he'll say when he catches him. Was there anything left to say? Nothing Jason wanted to hear it seemed. It didn't matter anymore now.
[He wonders if Bruce even cottons this. That he's chasing his kid, intent on what? Some kind of violence? For setting a fire to a costume. Not for killing anyone. Not for hurting anyone.
For being upset.
He wonders if Bruce - the Bruce he knew, who used to take him to ball games and who was so proud of every good grade that he got, the Bruce that he used to think of, very tentatively, as dad - even is still there. Did everything good die with him?
He hits the bridge and zips past a pair of cops, who start the lights right up until the rumble of the Batmobile overtakes them. Jason knows he has seconds, maybe, so when the bridge ends, perilously close to the edge of the river, he rides his bike up on the slim slick side and shoots down in the city on a run that would make Nightwing nervous. He hears something resembling a gunshot - okay he's in Gotham - and spins into the city, then jumps the bike and vaults into the air, letting the bike go.
Bye bye, bike. You were so nice for the few weeks you lasted.
Jason figures if he can get airborne, he can find a place to hide out this temper tantrum.]
[ That was the problem. Bruce hadn't forgotten. Jason is still every bit the son he'd taken in all those years ago. The only thing shifted now is the perspective. His or Jason's, Bruce couldn't decide which. He only knows it tilts his world the wrong way around and no one else is going to fix it. He has to fix it himself. It is always by himself.
Jason knows Gotham's streets, but then so does Bruce. When Jason cuts corners the Batmobile cannot, Bruce can find an alley to swing into and continue the pursuit. His focus is narrowed to a single point in a red helmet that he's not given any thought at all to what he'll say when the chase ends. That could come later, when the adrenaline's not so hot and when the quiet aftermath sets in.
The police scanner lights up with reports of a guy on a bike and Batman hot on his trail. Orders were not to engage and if any had to stand down immediately. Funny thing. Bruce didn't answer to Jim Gordon. Instead Bruce presses the accelerator harder, bringing the car perilously close to the bridge's edge before he ejects himself up and out into the night air. The cape spreads out like jet black wings, billowing in the updrafts that keep him airborne. It won't last long so he makes the best use of what little time he has in the sky to see if he can spot Jason from above. ]
[He can almost feel the cape, at this point. He thinks that most of Gotham can, like a sixth sense, something above that is watching that is darker and more twisted than God. Jason could call in reinforcements, but backup has never been Jason's speed.
The old part of Gotham, that's where he heads. It's a playground for the bats, practically, with the old architecture that curled and cued and made a good place for grapples to land. But specifically to an old gargoyle that he used to hang out at, when he was a kid, when he was a teenager who just wanted to sit still for a while.
Bruce will find him here.
But who knows what he'll do from there. But maybe he's just kind of sick of running.]
[ Old Gotham is where he begins to lose altitude, clearing a few of the rooftops before he must land on one of the flatter surfaces.
He knows to look in the shadows first. It's where Bats always lurk. And he spies him on a familiar crumbling gargoyle nearby. Bruce grapples up, hauls himself across the distance until there's only a few feet between him and Jason and the gargoyle.
This is where they met. Fitting it's where they'd meet again. Their lives always seemed to converge at this point. ]
I don't want to fight with you. But I do want this to end.
[He has one foot braced against the gargoyle, but he doesn't look like he's going to attack. He doesn't look like he's about to fling himself off the gargoyle, either.
He looks tired, or at least his body language does. His face is covered in his helmet.]
Well.
Here you are.
What are you planning? You want to arrest me? Hand me over to the cops? Get rid of me?
[Its hard to believe him, when Jason feels like he’s always being hunted, when Jason always feels like he’s one decision away from being locked up in the cave for the rest of his life.]
[ You still are sit on his tongue, caught on the edges of his teeth. He wants to say it to reassure Jason that that part of their relationship had never ended, even after his death. But he cannot bring himself to. Not yet. ]
[Maybe this is the first time that Bruce has ever asked that, and that's why Jason looks up, then, that's why Jason lets the hydraulic lift the front of his mask away. He's still wearing a domino, because he's a dramatic little shit, but there's his face.
It's right there, and there's something young on his face, like maybe he's actually being listened to.]
Because as long as it's there, I can't have a relationship with you that doesn't revolve around my death.
[It's as honest as he can manage and it almost feels like he's choking to get the words out.]
[ Silence follows. Bruce cannot bring himself to argue against Jason's reason, even if every part of him rails against it. Jason's death would haunt him whether the memorial existed or not. Bruce couldn't look at Jason without seeing the boy he'd failed in so many ways. He turns his head to look at him, to see the young man under the helmet. It was good to see his face again, even if the moment felt too heavy for Bruce to carry.
He reaches for his grapple, prepares to pull himself away, so he can sit with this moment alone. ]
I'll tell Alfred to put it away.
[ Maybe not as gone as Jason would have liked, but it would be put out of sight. ]
[Theres a pause and Jason stands up, and maybe this is too much, maybe this is too fast, but he can't not acknowledge that. He reaches for Bruce, then, reaches for a hug.]
B.
[He's almost Bruce's size now; they're both big men. But he feels small, like he's twelve again, and Bruce is here to keep him safe, at least for now.]
[ The hug is unexpected and for a moment, Bruce doesn't seem to know what to do with himself. It feels like it is happening too fast, but it's been such a long time coming. Maybe it shouldn't have taken them this long to get here, but they are here now.
Bruce drops the grappling gun and wraps his arms around Jason. ]
I know I've let you down. But, you're still my son. I hope that still means something to you.
[He just holds him for a long moment, his eyes shut tight. He thinks that his whole (current) life he wanted Bruce to kill the Joker, but right now he realizes that was never true.
Those words mean more than that. I know I've let you down, the closest that Bruce can get to an apology without actually saying the words.]
[ He knows. He's not an easy man to love or to even get along with. Alfred is always encouraging him to be more open with the kids, to stop shutting out the people who love him. But Batman is solitary, even when he's surrounded by affection and warmth. It's easier to push it away than it is to embrace it. ]
I know.
[ His laugh is quiet, a puff of air that disappears into the night sky. He wants to ask what happens now. If they'll go up or down or stay right here in this limbo. Had they finally reached the end of the spiral? He lets Jason go and bends to pick up his grapple. ]
[Jason doesn’t take that as offensive, which he might have an hour ago, when he was prickly and unhappy and ready to fight. Now he just dips his head a little.]
It’s my home.
[Jason has been Gotham his whole life; he and this city are linked in ways that even Bruce isn’t, he thinks. Leaving has happened but he doesn’t really like to leave. He has to be pushed. Or pulled.
[ No where. Bruce would never have sent him away anywhere. If Jason ever leaves, he tells himself it's always Jason's choice. Never mind that Bruce might be the one pushing him. Especially if he feels like Jason isn't following his rules.
But we're not going down that line of thought. They're not fighting and Bruce would like to keep it that way. ]
Good. [ A pause and then: ] Hungry? There's a Big Belly Burger nearby.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
[ Bruce yells and Jason gets what he wants, however temporary. The fire flickers to life and swallows up the trail of accelerant before fire suppression kicks in and smothers the life from it. And as long as the fire burned, it had Bruce's attention.
Now, it's back on Jason and honestly, he's pissed. Setting fire, even a meager one, to the cave seemed a far more personal attack than taking a crowbar to a memory Bruce cherished. ]
What did you think that was going to do, Jason? [ Because it certainly did not change his mind. ]
no subject
He mounts his bike right around the time that Bruce yells at him.]
You set fire to our relationship, I set fire to that fucking memorial.
It's your choice.
[He parrots the words with a mimicry of Bruce's cadence that only the Robins can manage as he starts his bike.]
no subject
Bruce Wayne was rebuffed at every turn. So now, Jason would have Batman instead.
He leaves the case behind (another mess to be cleaned later) and follows. ]
Fine. You made your choice and now I'll make mine.
no subject
He knows that tone, and he knows that threat. That's the tone of voice that he takes when you killed someone, and that means that Batman is out to play. It also means that Bruce, as usual, has taken a fight and turned it into a fucking crusade.
God, this was predictable and Jason walked straight into it.
He doesn't bother stalling, then. He just goes, bike going from 0 to an impossible speed on a street model in a second and a half. He needs to make up distance now. The benefit of a bike is that it's agile, but the Batmobile-
-Jason figures if he can make it to Gotham proper he can slip between the cracks. For all that Bruce knows Gotham, it's really always been Jason's city, and if Jason doesn't want to be found in it, the fact is that he won't be.]
no subject
It's what drives him now. The Crusade. The Mission consumes him in all his waking hours (and his sleeping ones too). Jason's rejection, his choosing something other than peace was another to add to the list.
The car's driver side door swings open wide when he commands it to from his belt and he leaps into it to peel out after Jason into Gotham's night. He doesn't know what he'll say when he catches him. Was there anything left to say? Nothing Jason wanted to hear it seemed. It didn't matter anymore now.
The chase was on. ]
no subject
For being upset.
He wonders if Bruce - the Bruce he knew, who used to take him to ball games and who was so proud of every good grade that he got, the Bruce that he used to think of, very tentatively, as dad - even is still there. Did everything good die with him?
He hits the bridge and zips past a pair of cops, who start the lights right up until the rumble of the Batmobile overtakes them. Jason knows he has seconds, maybe, so when the bridge ends, perilously close to the edge of the river, he rides his bike up on the slim slick side and shoots down in the city on a run that would make Nightwing nervous. He hears something resembling a gunshot - okay he's in Gotham - and spins into the city, then jumps the bike and vaults into the air, letting the bike go.
Bye bye, bike. You were so nice for the few weeks you lasted.
Jason figures if he can get airborne, he can find a place to hide out this temper tantrum.]
no subject
Jason knows Gotham's streets, but then so does Bruce. When Jason cuts corners the Batmobile cannot, Bruce can find an alley to swing into and continue the pursuit. His focus is narrowed to a single point in a red helmet that he's not given any thought at all to what he'll say when the chase ends. That could come later, when the adrenaline's not so hot and when the quiet aftermath sets in.
The police scanner lights up with reports of a guy on a bike and Batman hot on his trail. Orders were not to engage and if any had to stand down immediately. Funny thing. Bruce didn't answer to Jim Gordon. Instead Bruce presses the accelerator harder, bringing the car perilously close to the bridge's edge before he ejects himself up and out into the night air. The cape spreads out like jet black wings, billowing in the updrafts that keep him airborne. It won't last long so he makes the best use of what little time he has in the sky to see if he can spot Jason from above. ]
no subject
The old part of Gotham, that's where he heads. It's a playground for the bats, practically, with the old architecture that curled and cued and made a good place for grapples to land. But specifically to an old gargoyle that he used to hang out at, when he was a kid, when he was a teenager who just wanted to sit still for a while.
Bruce will find him here.
But who knows what he'll do from there. But maybe he's just kind of sick of running.]
no subject
He knows to look in the shadows first. It's where Bats always lurk. And he spies him on a familiar crumbling gargoyle nearby. Bruce grapples up, hauls himself across the distance until there's only a few feet between him and Jason and the gargoyle.
This is where they met. Fitting it's where they'd meet again. Their lives always seemed to converge at this point. ]
I don't want to fight with you. But I do want this to end.
no subject
He looks tired, or at least his body language does. His face is covered in his helmet.]
Well.
Here you are.
What are you planning? You want to arrest me? Hand me over to the cops? Get rid of me?
no subject
[ Maybe any other time, his answer would have been sharp. It lingers instead. It's not soft. There's a sense of resignation with it. He's tired too. ]
I never regretted trusting you. Not for a moment. [ he looks over at Jason then looks away again. ] We don't have to be like this.
no subject
You keep saying that.
[Its hard to believe him, when Jason feels like he’s always being hunted, when Jason always feels like he’s one decision away from being locked up in the cave for the rest of his life.]
I’ll give you-
[He sighs]
I don’t know. What do you want?
no subject
You don't have to fight with me. Just stop fighting against me.
no subject
He can’t say that.]
I was supposed to be your son.
[He tilts his head down to look at the city.]
Getting rid of that stupid memorial isn’t fighting you.
no subject
Why is this so important to you?
no subject
It's right there, and there's something young on his face, like maybe he's actually being listened to.]
Because as long as it's there, I can't have a relationship with you that doesn't revolve around my death.
[It's as honest as he can manage and it almost feels like he's choking to get the words out.]
no subject
He reaches for his grapple, prepares to pull himself away, so he can sit with this moment alone. ]
I'll tell Alfred to put it away.
[ Maybe not as gone as Jason would have liked, but it would be put out of sight. ]
no subject
B.
[He's almost Bruce's size now; they're both big men. But he feels small, like he's twelve again, and Bruce is here to keep him safe, at least for now.]
no subject
Bruce drops the grappling gun and wraps his arms around Jason. ]
I know I've let you down. But, you're still my son. I hope that still means something to you.
thank u for your patience ;;
Those words mean more than that. I know I've let you down, the closest that Bruce can get to an apology without actually saying the words.]
You're an asshole.
[Which means: yes, that means a lot, thanks dad.]
of course <3!
I know.
[ His laugh is quiet, a puff of air that disappears into the night sky. He wants to ask what happens now. If they'll go up or down or stay right here in this limbo. Had they finally reached the end of the spiral? He lets Jason go and bends to pick up his grapple. ]
Are you staying in Gotham?
no subject
It’s my home.
[Jason has been Gotham his whole life; he and this city are linked in ways that even Bruce isn’t, he thinks. Leaving has happened but he doesn’t really like to leave. He has to be pushed. Or pulled.
He shrugs.]
Where else would I go?
no subject
But we're not going down that line of thought. They're not fighting and Bruce would like to keep it that way. ]
Good. [ A pause and then: ] Hungry? There's a Big Belly Burger nearby.