don't you dare fail me now

Participants: Jason Todd & Bruce Wayne
Open/Closed: Closed
Location(s): Batcave
Time of Day: Early evening then jumps to next morning
Weather: Cave weather
Summary: Jason's night takes a turn for the worse and he finds himself one of the last places he wants to be. | ♪

He tried his best to avoid Gotham. It rarely worked out, but he tried anyway. He knew as soon as he stepped foot in the city he was risking a run-in with the big bad Bat himself, especially since he seemed to be cutting back on the international travel lately. It’d taken him a while to relax in Blüdhaven, being so close to Gotham. For whatever reason, though, Batman had yet to show up and drag Jason’s ass to Arkham. Jason knew that Bruce knew he was there. Maybe the Bat just had too much going on in Gotham—there was just one of him again now—and just hadn’t had the time to go after Jason yet. Hell, maybe he just thought Jason wasn’t worth it.

Either way, against his better judgment, Jason had stopped looking over his shoulder so much in Blüdhaven—a wannabe bird breaking into his apartment notwithstanding. There was no such security in Gotham, however, putting him on edge every time. Never mind the fact that it should’ve been just as much his city as it was Bruce’s; that he’d given his blood, sweat, and tears to it as well, that he was the one who’d actually lived in Gotham and all her dirt and hurt from the moment he was born.

Gotham tended to be pretty unavoidable. Most crime rings in Blüdhaven had connections to the sister city. Hell, most of the ones that had crawled back after Chemo came straight from Gotham. It was what had brought him to this warehouse in the city in the first place: it was a big source of lots of the drugs being peddled on Blüdhaven’s streets.

He peeked around the crate he was taking cover behind, pulling back as a bullet went whizzing by his face and lodged itself into the only door in or out of the warehouse which Jason had purposefully positioned himself near. There’d be no escaping this place for these assholes.

Jason retaliated, firing two bullets—rubber, ugh—into the man who’d fired’s chest and sending him falling back into a table full of chemicals used to make the drugs. Only a few more men were left at this point, which was a relief, because Jason knew the longer this went on, the sooner it would catch the attention of GCPD ahead of schedule and that of the Bat or any one of his brood that still reside in the city.

“Screw this s**t!” One man yelled and Jason looked to see what that screw up was up to. He was holding something in his hand. Looked like- Aw, hell.

No time to shoot him. His thumb was already pressing the trigger and Jason was diving for the door. Not this s**t again, he thought, just before the world went black.

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He woke with a start, sucking in a breath and blinking against the blur taking over his vision. Something was tickling his nose and he went to reach up and bat it away, but his right arm—oddly heavy—caught on something. With a huff of annoyance, he focused on clearing his vision. Bad idea, because as soon as he did, he recognized the ceiling, if it could even be called that.

s**t s**t s**t. He was in the Batcave.

Initially, it was the sound of gunfire that had brought him to the warehouse. The sound was dulled, obviously coming from inside the large building, but he’d heard enough gun fights over the years to recognize the sound. It was, honestly, pure coincidence he was even in the area. He was doing reconnaissance on another nearby warehouse he suspected to be storing illegal fire arms. Fortunately, it was a task pushed aside easily enough. Not nearly as time sensitive as the dueling gunshots penetrating the otherwise quiet docks.

Just as he reached the warehouse filled with gunfire, balls of flame suddenly crash through the windows and a roaring boom reverberated through the air. The explosion wasn’t enough to crumbled the walls of the concrete building, but he doubted the inside would be as salvageable.

He needed to check for survivors. That was priority one. Later, he could inspect the scene and attempt to piece together what had transpired. Right now, he made his way to a figure he’d noticed crash through the warehouse door just as the explosion went off. His steps faltered, barely noticeable, as he drew closer, recognizing what was visible of the individual’s scorched jacket. Reaching the person, he finally caught sight of the unmistakable red helmet.

For a moment, he was in Ethiopia staring at a broken body.

Now, he was in the batcave, impatiently awaiting the autopsy results of those who perished in the explosion. His eyes briefly flitted over to the locker where he’d stowed away Jason’s costume and various weapons. He been tempted to simply dispose of the guns he’d found, but had held off on such an act for now. The rubber bullets he’d found loaded into the weapons had some influence on the decision.

His gaze then went to the medical cot off to the side. He had no idea what he’d say to the boy when he woke, nor any idea what would be said by the boy. His relationship with Jason was, perhaps, his messiest and at times he wasn’t sure it could ever be fixed. He was out of time to contemplate it all, though, because Jason’s eyes were open, blinking upward and his expression was less then pleased. Bruce stood from his chair, but didn’t approach, not wanting to corner the young man. He knew he should at least say something, but his jaw seemed bolted shut and all he could do was stare from behind his cowl.

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Jason Todd