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Jason first met Billy Batson at night.
Perhaps he should rephrase that. Jason didn't know it was Billy Batson when he first met him, only knew that Bruce needed to talk to Captain Marvel about magic because of a magical villain currently running around Gotham. Of course, they went to Fawcett City to talk to the hero, because Bruce was still a grumpy bastard when it came to allowing metas into his city, even if Marvel looked like he wouldn't hurt a fly.
At the time, Jason didn't think much about it. It was routine for the Dynamic Duo to do this whenever they wanted information; find the person the needed, follow them until they were alone, appear from the shadows, ask their questions, and leave. Nothing more, nothing less. It wasn't like they wouldn't be doing this exact same thing the next time they needed something else, like this was the last time he and Bruce would be creepy little shits because why the Hell not?
It wasn't until after Jason's death and rebirth that he realized that night had been anything but routine. It had been easy enough to find Marvel flying through Fawcett (after all, how could you even miss the guy flying around in a bright red, gold, and white outfit?) but after that, it seemed like Marvel... purposely got himself alone so that he and Bruce would show himself. Like he knew they were there the entire time.
As Robin, Jason couldn't care less about this, but Bruce sure did. He remembers the tense lines in the Dark Knight's back as they landed on the rooftop Marvel had landed on, far away from any civilian eyes. He turned around to face them, his smile wide and bright, blue eyes sparkling with lightning that always followed him. Jason remembers feeling so bitter towards the hero, his very presence enough to annoy him. Just what on this god forsaken Earth made him so damn happy all the time? Jason had betted it was because he's always had a home to return to, always had a loving family waiting for him to come back safe and sound. Marvel's never had to deal with pain, both physically and mentally, so why wouldn't he be happy?
Jason knew he probably shouldn't have been thinking these things, especially since he now had Bruce, but he couldn't seem to control his thoughts around the hero. It was... disturbing how much Marvel got under his skin without ever actually doing anything.
"Batman! It's good to see you," Marvel had exclaimed, smile somehow widening when he looked down at Jason. "And Robin! I don't think we've met before. Nice to officially meet you." If the hero had been concerned about his lack of response or Bruce's emotionless exterior, he didn't show it, only looked back up at the Dark Knight with that spark in his eyes. "I guess you wouldn't be here unless you wanted something. So, what can I help you with?"
The rest of the night went smoothly after that. They asked their questions, and with one last look at Jason, Captain Marvel flew off to wherever he went on a nightly basis. Bruce remained silent beside him, just like he always did. Jason was long used to this, knowing that Bruce wouldn't say anything unless it was important, but the sudden lack of warmth and color coming from Marvel somehow made the silence... hurt in a way he's never realized it could.
And months after the encounter with Marvel, as he grew more violent and reckless, the pain never went away, only gnawed at for reasons he didn't understand.
The Joker blew him up before he could.
Jason fell in love with Billy Batson at dawn.
This time, it really was Billy though, not whatever magic mumbo jumbo turned him into Captain Marvel, just plain old Billy Batson. Jason was in Fawcett City again, though for a completely different reason than a small chat with the local hero. No, he was here to track down a leader of a drug ring that lead back to Gotham, one that was making its rounds at middle and high schools, something that the Red Hood has put a death sentence on. And well, normally he doesn't worry about other cities and their problems, but he could make an exception here.
Hood stared down at the old, run down apartment complex where the dealer, Mike Quinones, was currently hiding out from his perch on a nearby building. The place was surrounded almost 24/7 by guards, but it was obvious they weren't trained in any way that would give Hood a hard time. They had the numbers, but he had the only actual brain here, he reminded himself, triple checking that all of his guns and various weapons were secure. They were, of course, but it never hurt to make sure.
He was just about to jump down and begin bringing his own kind of Hell when a goon suddenly came from around the corner of the building, looking pissed off about something. Normally, Hood wouldn't really give a damn about what was going on in the endless stream of minions bad guys, but this gave him pause, using his helmet to zoom in on the goon. When he did, all thoughts of going in guns blazing with no remorse was wiped clean from his brain.
The goon had a kid, maybe 15 or 16, right at gunpoint as he stormed down the sidewalk, dragging the kid by the scruff of his clearly warn and old shirt collar. The kid kept his head down, face hidden by a mop of black hair, stumbling as we was shoved forward. Hood enhanced the hearing in the helmet, listening to what the goons were saying.
"You'll never guess who I found sneakin' around like a little bitch," the goon snarled, practically throwing the boy onto the ground. The boy yelped, clutching at his now bloodied cheek, as his blue eyes darted around warily. Those eyes... they looked so familiar...
A different goon laughed, putting his rifle over his shoulder as he walked towards the boy, forcing him to look up with a hand on the boy's chin. "Well, I'll be damned," he chuckled. "It's Billy freakin Batson. I haven't seen you around here for a long time. Have you finally find someone that would care for you? Or are you still running around on the streets like the rat you are?"
Hood's anger grew as he watched the interaction, noting how the boy, Billy (which also sounded familiar for a reason he couldn't yet place) never said a word as the goons pummeled him with insults and the occasional kick or slap. He was either smart or incredibly stupid, seeing as the boy got himself caught around a place filled with less than friendly people. What had he even been doing here? If he really was a street kid like this goon said he was, he should be able to recognize a situation that he needed to back away from and stay out of it.
Apparently not this street kid.
The goon that brought the kid suddenly and harshly got the kid to his feet, pushing him through the door of the drug base. "Come on, let's go see what the boss want us to do with 'em," he jeered before the rest of them followed, one calling dibs on beating the boy to a bloody pulp. Hood's fingers twitched at his sides, feeling the anger of the Pit trying to rear its ugly head. He's had a better time of controlling it the past couple of years, but things like this, especially when it involved kids that couldn't defend themselves, made all of that control slip away. He saw how bad Fawcett City secretly was, how it was the opposite of the sunny, white and gold reputation that the town got so long ago that no one remembered a time when it wasn't there. The streets were filled with the homeless, many of them being kids, the police force was nearly as corrupt as Gotham's were, and the foster care system was a completely different level of fucked up.
Without realizing he was doing it, Hood stood up, using the thermal tracker in his helmet to watch as the group made their way up the building, right into where Quinones was hiding. He should have felt smug or glad that the goons had lead him right towards his target, but there was nothing but the rage simmering hotly below his skin. His plan of starting from the bottom and making his way up was far from his mind, and with practiced movements Hood shot out a zip-line, connecting it to his perch after briefly testing it's strength. He then brought out a hook to hold him up, and with one, fluid movement, jumped off his perch and straight at the window where the goons were.
The impact and sound of shattered glass hardly registered in Hood's mind, his vision tunneling on the sight of the goons huddling around a small form while Mike Quinones lounged back in a large, plush chair. His rage reached its peak when the goons' heads snapped to where he came in, barely revealing the boy who was now covered in bruises and his own blood, bright eyes shinning with shock.
"You know, I was planning on making things nice and simple here, only one bullet in the head for your boss over there," Hood growled, taking his twin pistols out of their holsters as the goons and Quinones trained their own weapons at him. "But now I'm angry."
Before any of them could react, there were bullets flying from Hood's gun, taking out three of the goons that were closest to him. He didn't check to see if they were still alive before diving behind a couch for cover, bullets flying into the furniture less than a heartbeat later. Every time there was a pause in the bullets, signalling that the goons were reloading, Hood popped up from behind his cover, picking them off one by one. He kept his eye on the boy and Quinones, the former which was curled up in the corner, watching everything with a haunted look on his face, and the later barking orders into a phone. He needed to take out the dealer before he could get away, and no amount of unchecked Pit rage would stop that.
With grace that he's only gained from years of training, Hood jumped from behind the couch, taking out the remaining goons with clean bullets to the head, their bodies collapsing to the ground. Quinones stopped his talking, his stunned face staring into the expressionless mask of the Red Hood.
"And who would've known!" Hood snarled as he stalked towards the dealer, his tall bulk making Quinones cower back in fear. "There's one bullet left, one bullet to make sure you know what happens when you mess with kids."
Hood raised the gun, finger ready to squeeze the trigger-
"Wait!" yelled out a voice weakly, a voice that wasn't Mike Quinones. "Don't kill him! Please!"
Hood slowly turned to the voice, already knowing he would see the boy, only a few feet away. Up close, he could see just how small he was, only an inch or so taller than Drake, but so thin that the clothes he wore hung off his skeleton. Everything about him screamed his life story; how he'd been on the streets his entire life, just trying to get by like Hood had so long ago. Despite all of that, those familiar eyes, so light they nearly glowed, were determined and brave, so unlike his own savage defenses he had built up. It was driving Hood crazy, trying to figure out how he knew this kid, only to be met with a dead end.
"He deserves to die," Hood snapped, pressing the barrel into Quinones' forehead.
"Maybe, but that doesn't make it right," the boy insisted, stepping closer to the vigilante without a hint of fear anywhere in his body. "He needs to pay for his crimes, but not with his life."
Hood choked out a bitter laugh, pressing the gun tighter against the whimpering drug dealer. "Do you know how many times I've heard that, kid? I've heard it so many times that it doesn't matter, heard it so many times that I can't even count the number of people that have said it to me. This piece of shit," he jerked his chin to Quinones, "sells drugs to preteens and reaps the benefits when they inevitably get hooked. He doesn't care about the lives he's ruining, doesn't care that those kids already have shitty lives without him coming in to fuck it up more."
There were sirens in the distance, slowly getting closer with each passing minute. Someone must have heard the gunfire and called the cops, meaning Hood had to get as far away from this place as possible. He didn't need another run in with the police to go south.
"I think you've killed enough people today to prove your point. Please, just let him live and leave while you still have the chance," the boy begged, now only a foot away from the vigilante.
Hood stared long and hard at the boy, thoughts racing, but nothing coming in clearly. The sirens were only a few blocks away now, close enough that he could begin to see their lights flashing red and blue.
Before he could think anything through, Hood lowered the gun to Quinones' leg, firing in his thigh, where no major arteries would be hit. The yell in pain from the dealer wasn't enough to completely quell his rage, but it was enough for now. "If I ever see your shit in Gotham ever again, that bullet will be going somewhere much less friendly," Hood spat, grabbing the boy by the arm and pulling him towards the shattered window over the pile of bodies, some still groaning in pain. The boy protested, asking him what he was doing, but Hood didn't reply, pulling out his grappling hook and firing it at the closest building across the street. Honestly, he didn't know what he was doing either, but didn't give his mind time to reconsider before he wrapped an arm around the boy's waist, holding him tightly as the grapple pulled them up onto the building. The boy held on for dear life, using strength that shouldn't be possible with his skinny arms, though he never once looked away, like the thought of falling down to the ground didn't even phase him.
When they landed, Hood gently placed the boy on the ground, tugging them both further into the darkness as the police finally showed up. He followed without protest this time, only watching the vigilante's movements as they made their way from rooftop to rooftop until they were blocks away.
"What's your name, kid?" Hood questioned, even though he already knew the answer. The boy hesitated for a moment pursing his lips together in thought. Even now there wasn't an ounce of fear to be seen, not even a spark of distrust. It was unsettling, but in a... familiar way. Everything about this kid was so damn familiar.
"I'm Billy Batson," he finally replied, the cool night air catching a wisp of his dark hair. "Thank you, for helping me, I mean. I don't know what I would've done if you hadn't been there... and I guess I'm sorry for stopping you killing that man. No offense, I just couldn't watch someone else die without trying to do anything."
Hood raised an eyebrow from behind the mask. Billy didn't seem particularly disturbed that he had just seen nearly a dozen people shot right in front of him, but what did the vigilante know? He might have started out as a street kid, but that didn't mean things weren't a little different now.
"How old are you?" was Hood's next question. Billy looked a little startled at the question, but didn't hesitate to answer this time.
"I'll be seventeen in a... week I think," he furrowed his eyebrows together. "Yeah, it should be a week."
Geez, this kid didn't even have a proper timeline of how old he was. Thank you Fawcett City foster care system.
"Where do you live? I can bring you there without much trouble." What was he doing? Hood did what he came to Fawcett to do, so he should be thinking about heading back to Gotham as quickly as possible. Yet he wasn't, and he had the feeling it wasn't just for the scenery.
Billy rubbed the back of his neck, looking nervous for once. "I, uh, live under Rader's Bridge in the east end," he said quietly, as if he was embarrassed about saying it out loud. A serge of protectiveness shot through Hood before swiftly shoved it down, scowling to himself. He couldn't afford to grow attached to anyone, even if it was a kid with pretty eyes and-
What the Hell am I thinking?
The vigilante nodded jerkily, grabbing Billy again (trying not to think about how nice it was to be near another living being without wanting to kill them) and began making their way towards Rader's Bridge. It wasn't too terribly far away, but Hood was still cautious, not wanting to be seen by the city's neighborhood Boy Scout. He took a few back alley's that were out of the way, but never once did Billy comment on it, simply letting himself be lead around his own city. They were in silence for a long time before Hood finally decided that he didn't like it, even if it was comfortable.
"So, what the Hell were you doing near that place, anyway? It was almost like you wanted to get caught or somethin.'"
Billy shrugged, his grip momentarily tightening as Hood grappled to a rather high building that would keep them in the shadows. "I was... just investigating, I guess. Wanted to see if I could stop anything before it got worse. Gotham isn't the only place that's been hit by those drugs, you now."
Hood gave a short bark of laughter, shaking his head at the boy. "What's a kid like you doin' investigating a powerful drug ring? Isn't that more of a job for, I don't know, the police or your resident Mr. Perfect?"
"Hey," Billy shot back, getting abruptly defensive. "The police can't be everywhere, especially since many of them are bought by the top drug lords anyway. And Captain Marvel can't do everything, I mean, can you imagine him trying to secretly investigate anything? Someone has to do something..." the boy trailed off, a faint blush dusting his cheeks at the outburst.
Hood hated how he thought it was adorable.
The vigilante sighed, seeing the bridge getting closer in the distance. It was rather big, eight lanes across that lead in and out of the city. At this time of night there wasn't much traffic, and you could see the farm fields and grassy plains that the city eventually melted in to. It wasn't that bad of a sight, standing on this roof and just enjoying the city, a beautiful city that was tragically tainted with its own sort of pollution that Gotham would never be able to replicate.
The rest of the trip went without a word from both parties, the pace only changing when they reached the building closest to the bridge. Hood lowered them both down with a line, Billy once again wrapping his arms around the vigilante and casually looking to the ground. When their feet finally touched, Hood found that he didn't want to let go, and when Billy made no move to do just that, he let his free arm come around the boy as well, soaking in his gentle warmth. Billy took a deep breath, sounding strangely content, like he was with someone he trusted rather than a dangerous, psychopathic vigilante that regularly massacred people with no remorse.
Hood has no idea how long they both stood there, but he knew by that time Billy finally pulled away, the faintest rays of sunlight were beginning to peak over the horizon.
"I should probably be going," Hood whispered, not wanting to break the calm that surrounded them. The boy nodded slowly, like he was trying to convince himself it was the right choice. The vigilante stepped back from Billy, instantly missing his presence, even if they were still close to one another.
"Will you be back?" the boy asked as Hood turned around, making him freeze in place. He wasn't expecting the question in the slightest, and he could feel the anticipation in the air as Billy waited for an answer.
Like everything that seemed to happen that night, Hood replied before his brain could catch up to what he was actually saying.
"Of course."
The vigilante grappled away, practically feeling the smile that came from the boy. He couldn't help but glance to see it, his breath nearly taken away at the sight of Billy's gorgeous smile. Heat threatened to rise in his face, but he forced it down, even if his face was still completely hidden from view. He tried not to focus on the silence around him, silence that now threatened to consume him in a way he knows he's felt before, one other time so long ago-
It's not until he makes it back to Gotham that he remembers why.
Billy Batson is Captain Marvel. Jason knows that now after hacking the Batcomputer and searching up the boy's name. He can't say he's surprised, but mainly, he shocked someone would give that kind of power to a kid, especially when he finds out Captain Marvel's been around for a good seven years now.
He should stay away from Fawcett City. To Jason, this was obvious... and yet, here he was, driving on his motorcycle towards the city, the sun long gone and the stars shining brightly down on him. Much like the kid's eyes.
It was easy enough to find Billy, and Jason couldn't help but think that even as his mortal counterpart he was way too easy to find. He was under Rader's Bridge, looking out to the skyline with a fond look on his face. For a few minutes, Jason just watched him, Billy never once noticing the vigilante standing only a few yards away. Sure, he traded the helmet for a simple domino, but Jason still stood out like a sore thumb in the middle of a city where everything seemed white and golden all over. The red bat on his chest didn't help much, nore did the guns strapped to his thighs, but this corner of the world seems so deserted by everything but Billy that he didn't really care all that much.
"Billy."
That instantly got the boy's attention, his entire form jumping in shock, blue eyes wide when they landed on Jason. Whatever fear might have been forming disappeared almost immediately, his lips quirking up in another beautiful smile. "Red Hood? I guess you wouldn't be here unless you wanted something. So, what can I help you with?"
The familiar words hit Jason in the gut, taking some of the breath from his lungs. He still couldn't believe that this kid was one of the most powerful beings in their world, and Hell, probably the entire universe. A kid that looked like he hasn't had a good meal in months, a kid that must have been just as broken as Jason and yet still somehow found it in him to be kind and gentle to the world instead of bitter and cold.
Jason took a deep breath. "Not here for business this time, kid. I just came to see you."
Billy's face lit up like a damn light at that, and from there, an odd friendship blossomed between the two. Jason made an effort to go to Fawcett at least once a week to see Billy, and was quickly finding that he looked forward to the trips immensely, so much so that both Artemis and Bizarro picked up on his mood. When the Amazon asked him where he was going so frequently, Jason found himself stumbling over his words, trying to make up an excuse. But Artemis just gave him a knowing smile and didn't bring it up again.
Almost every time Jason met up with Billy, he made an attempt to either buy the boy a meal or bring him snacks, even if he refused them 50% of the time, claiming he didn't want charity. He was way too skinny for Jason's liking, and when he found out Billy only got food every other day at best, he finally understood why Grayson mother henned him so much as a child when Bruce first adopted him. The urge to feed the boy was stubbornly high, so much so that it would have been embarrassing in any other situation.
It took three months for Jason to admit to Billy that he knew the boy was Captain Marvel. They were under Rader's Bridge, talking about seemingly everything and nothing, when an explosion shook the ground, flames flaring up in the distance. Billy's eyes went wide as he shot up from his place on the ground, his mouth shaping a word before stopping himself, a panicked look on his face. Jason realized immediately that the boy wanted to become Captain Marvel (however he was supposed to do that) and go and help, but was afraid of Jason's reaction.
"Billy, it's fine. I know you're Captain Wonder or whatever, and it looks like Fawcett needs your help," the vigilante said calmly, Billy's wide eyes whipping over to his.
"You knew?" he breathed in disbelief, like he was not understanding the words coming from Jason's mouth. "How long have you known, Hood?"
Jason shrugged. "I'm a Bat, kid. I have ways of knowing a lot of things I shouldn't. And I guess I should tell you to call me Jason now, since I know your identity it's only fair if you know mine." Before he could talk himself out of it, Jason took off the domino, revealing his eyes to the world. It might have been his imagination, but Jason swore he saw the kid stop breathing for a split second before going back to normal. "Now, I think Fawcett City could use its resident hero to help them."
Billy nodded dumbly, throwing his head back and yelling, "SHAZAM!" In the same moment a lightning bolt came from the sky, so bright at dark spots danced in Jason's vision. It struck the boy, and as it disappeared the vigilante saw the outline of who could could only be Captain Marvel, the hero's short cape waving slightly behind him.
"Holy shit," Jason mumbled to himself, completely stunned at the show of magic, something he would never get used to. The now Captain Marvel only smiled at him, giving a small wave before launching himself into the air, speeding towards the burning buildings in the distance.
"Damn."
About a month later, Billy told his own secret.
"I know about you being Robin," the boy said suddenly, a somber look on his face as he looked up at the sky from their place on the roof. "And I know about the Lazarus Pit and all that, I just thought you should know."
Jason stared at Billy, for once not feeling any of the Pit's anger when someone mentioned the past. For the longest time, he wouldn've lashed out on anyone who even referenced his death, but now... there as nothing. Just the aching feeling that it had indeed happened, but there was nothing he could really do about it now.
"Do you remember the first time we met?" the vigilante found himself asking, watching the boy's face turn fond.
"Like it was yesterday," he whispered, eyes meeting Jason's. "I was so excited to meet you, like you have no idea how much I was fanboying in those moments. It was like a dream come true, to finally see you face to face instead of on a blurry television or grainy newspaper. I didn't know who you were at the time, but I just had this feeling that you would be important to me one day and well," he gestured to the world around him. "Here we are."
The air lapsed back into silence, a comfortable one that Jason didn't mind in the slightest. He would take the silence all day for the rest of his life if it meant seeing Billy smile like that.
The sun was coming up now; the barest rays still somehow managing to wrap Billy in it's halo, making his pale skin glow and blue eyes sparkle. He was so freaking gorgeous that it hurt Jason's heart, made it beat harshly and squeeze with longing. To run his fingers through that dark hair, to make it so those eyes never look at anyone but him ever again, to be close-
And that's when Jason finally understood. As the run grew higher and higher in the sky, Jason Todd understood that he's fallen hard for Billy Batson.
Then he realized he fell long before this moment, long before that first sunrise, long before he even knew this boy's name. He was captured the moment he was left alone in silence, just like the silence around them now. But this time, it didn't threaten to crush him whole.
Jason said goodbye to Billy Batson at dusk.
It happened more than a year into their friendship and Jason's ever growing desire, just a few weeks after the boy finally became a man, even if he was still small and much too thin. Jason's told Billy what feels like everything about him; everything from his secret fears and nightmares he refused to speak of to his dreams from long ago, the ones that continued to haunt him. He told Billy about the Lazarus Pit, the Joker, how he nearly killed the new Robin many of times because he was so angry that Batman had replaced him but didn't avenge him, how in some fractured, cracked ways, he was making amends with his family, and found a completely different family that he treasured with all of his soul. He laid out everything on a platter, always so shocked about how easy it was to do. The boy never once mocked him or looked disgusted, only listened and gave comfort, something that Jason never realized he craved.
And in turn, Billy told Jason everything as well. He learned about Billy's parents dying when the boy was so young, how he was separated from his twin that he has yet to find, living briefly with his horrible uncle Ebenezer before being kicked into foster home to foster home, finally deciding that he would rather live on his own. Billy described the horrible conditions he lived in for so many years, how a subway magically brought him to the Wizard who made him the Champion of Magic, sworn to protect Earth no matter the cost, and the many scars he bore in order to do so.
But all of that was taken right in front of Jason, so fast that he didn't even have time to blink, so fast that even now the memory was half faded from his mind.
They had been walking together in Fawcett, that much he remembers. A warm fall night, the sun just starting to sink below the horizon, bathing everything a lovely orange glow. They had walked passed an alleyway, an alleyway where someone was getting mugged. Without any hesitation whatsoever, Billy ran into the alley, intent on stopping the criminal, seemingly forgetting that he wasn't in the invincible form of Captain Marvel.
The mugger had a gun. Jason should have seen this sooner, but he didn't. He only had a split second to realize it was being raised before the familiar sound rang through the air, and Billy's body was falling to the ground in slow motion.
Jason couldn't hear anything but the overpowering ringing in his ears, his heart stopped beating, air sucked from his lungs, his vocal cords vibrating but not hearing the devastating roar that came from them. In an instant he was running over to Billy, catching the young man just before he hit the ground, the warm red blood pouring from his chest and soaking Jason's jacket. He didn't care at all.
Billy's blue eyes were wide with shock, hazy with pain as Jason watched the life quickly begin to fade away.
"No," he might have screamed, he might have cried, cupping Billy's face in his hands. "No, no NO!"
"J-Jason," the young man possibly said, his voice barely reaching Jason's ears. "It- it's fine- I'll be fine-"
"You can't die!" Jason remembers yelling, holding Billy as close as he physically could, white hot tears streaming down his face. He remembers he feeling of soft hair tickling his cheeks, the blood pooling around them; but even in these last moments Billy still had that beautiful smile on his face, his hand coming up to brush Jason's hair away from his eyes. The orange of the fading sun colored his pale skin, painting him like a canvas.
"You know, I've had a crush on you for a long time-"
"No, Billy please-"
"I started out as one on Robin, but now I'm confident the real deal is much better."
Jason was hiccuping so hard it hurt, his eyes so filled with tears that he could only make out a blurry outline of Billy.
With what must have been the last of the young man's strength, Billy reached up, closing the small distance between him and Jason, giving the man a gentle kiss. "I love you, Jason."
Then those eyes, once so bright that they glowed with life, dulled into gray, leaving Jason alone in the silence of the alley.
No, it wasn't silent. He could hear sirens in the distance, but that wasn't the type of silence he was talking about. No, he was talking about the silence of his heart, the heart that was now a numb and empty tomb. He was talking about the silence of the one he loved, his brilliant spark snuffed out like a candle.
Jason was screaming, screaming so hard that everything hurt, but it was the only way he could fill the silence, the only way he could feel-
He never noticed Billy's being taken away from him, never noticed Bruce and Tim and Damian and Dick around him, trying to give comfort. He could only scream into the silent void, wondering what an angel like Billy had done to deserve his horrible fate.
William Joseph Batson was buried in Fawcett Cemetery, right next to his parents. Most days, Jason found himself here, a bottle of whiskey in hand as he cried and cried. Many tried to approach him, everyone from Bruce to Diana and even Clark, but not one could get him to move away from the grave. He's never felt so empty in all his life, not even when the Pit look away part of his humanity, ripped him open and took away his sanity. Billy's death hung on him like stones, dragging him to the earth, pushing down on his body until he refused to breathe.
It was still silent. This time, Jason was certain it would never be filled again, never the way Billy always could. He stroked the cravings that marked the grave of the one he fell so deeply in love with, wondering if Billy was watching him from wherever he was. Jason hoped not. His love didn't deserve to see him so broken, the cracks that have always been there splitting him open.
'A loving friend that brought light to every corner he touched.'
They have no idea.
"I love you," Jason sobbed. "I wish I had said it before, I wish I would have kissed you so long that you wouldn't remember how to breath, I wished I had hugged you so close that you would have never felt me."
The grave never gave any response, even as his tears ran down the stone. He didn't expected to hear anything.
He wouldn't hear anything but the silence ever again.