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The wind roared in Jason's ears as he sped through Bludhaven's streets. The streetlights blurred bright as his bike tore through the roads, narrowly avoid pothole by pothole. Damn Bludhaven. It was a shit city with shittier villains. He had no idea why Dick liked it so much.
Well, that was actually a lie. He knew. It kept Dick from crossing with B so much. He understood that. Hell, he'd have probably ran to another city himself, if he hadn't gotten blown up first.
Dicks' apartment building wasn't hard to find with a bit of help from Oracle. He lived close to the BCPD, in a crappy building. Jason felt dirty just climbing the stairs.
Apartment 24. Barb had said he lived in Apartment 24. Jason groaned as he climbed the steps, cursing the broken elevator. Dick was a trust fund baby, Bruce's eldest. Couldn't he swallow his pride and ask for a better apartment?
Jason made it to the door, but hesitated. If Dick was smart, he'd had placed security measures on his apartment.
Or, Jason could knock.
He rapped three times. He certainly didn't expect Dick to answer-
"Hey!" Dick's youthful, blue-eyed face popped around the door. "I, uh, didn't expect to see you."
Jason frowned. Either Dick coming to Bludhaven had NOTHING to do with Jason, or the Boy Wonder was pretending they were completely fine. Not at all what he had been expecting.
But then again, this was Dick. He'd spent most of Jason's younger years being jealous that Bruce had replaced him, yet had never gone too far and made it Jason's fault. There had been arguments, of course, but Dick always made it up to him somehow. The guy couldn't stay mad at anyone for too long.
"You okay there Dickie? I uh, thought maybe you wouldn't want to see me."
Dick shook his head, a bright smile plastered across his face. "Don't be ridiculous Jay-bird, I'm always glad to have you around to help out."
Help out? Well that made no sense. Jason frowned, eyes darting over Dick's face. Grayson's teeth were pearly white and perfect, gleaming as he smiled at Jason. But the creases were missing by his eyes. There was no mirth in them.
Lightbulb moment. Dick was faking it.
As if he had been waiting for Jason to catch on, Dick's blue eyes began to flicked between Jason and the empty space to his left, inside the apartment. A signal. Someone was inside. Someone Dick didn't trust, didn't want in there.
Someone like Slade Wilson, perhaps?
Jason's stomach dropped, churning and spewing acid around like a ship in a thunderstorm. "You been up to much?"
Dick shrugged, his shoulders tighter than they should have been for a man in his own home. "Came back to do paperwork, caught up with my mentor, you know the guy, right?"
"Oh yeah,' Jason drawled, catching onto what Dick was playing. 'Ugly one, yeah? Looked kinda like a pirate.'
God he hoped it was Deathstroke in there. The man's ego could fill an Olympic swimming pool. Jason would always delight in batting at the assassin's arrogance every now and then.
Dick's eyes narrowed. "If you say so. BCPD have been calling in the big guns, you know the type. Rich investor needs protection."
Code for: the League is assembling Ra's Al Ghul's most trusted assassins. Great.
"Can I come in?" Jason asked. What he really meant to say was 'can you handle Slade alone?'.
Dick bit his lip, chewed on the full bottom in a way that made Jason's arm hairs tingle. He wanted so badly to chew on that lip in Dick's place.
If Slade so much as looked at Dick wrong, he swore-
"Alright, I think we've had enough fun gentlemen," A gruff, smokey voice added from behind the door. A gloved hand pulled the handle and opened the entrance wider, revealing Dick's apartment. And of course, Slade goddamn Wilson. "Little Jason. Now there's a sight for sore eyes. Here to visit my favourite Robin?"
Jason’s fist twitched.
Slade wordlessly motioned for Jason to come inside. Jason stepped into Dick’s apartment, his nose wrinkling. God, it was a mess. Plates stacked high by the sink, laundry thrown all over the floor.
“How do you live like this?” Jason muttered, completely forgetting who he was with.
Dick had the nerve to look offended. Slade laughed, throwing himself onto the sofa and crossing his arms behind his head. He looked at the two of them like they were prized meat, prey for the predator to hunt. That was how Slade saw all the Robins, past and present. And none he favoured more than Dick.
“For a start, you can relax Todd. I’m not here to corrupt your big brother,” Slade’s grin broadened. “Though word on the grapevine is that you’re not exactly engaging in brotherly love.”
The grapevine? Jesus, did everyone know Jason’s business? How the hell was this even getting out? “And what source is telling you this?”
“Oh, Gotham’s underground pays attention, Hood. The gossip mill was running pretty high when I passed through. I hear Harley has started a betting pool on when you and the pretty bird here will finally admit you don’t see each other as brothers.”
Both Jason and Dick spluttered. Jason avoided looking at Dick, keeping his eyes focused on the monstrosity that Dick called an apartment. This was not how he wanted all of this to come out. Ever. His cheeks felt like they were stuffed with lava, almost glowing from the heat rising from his neck and up into his ears.
“So you’re here because…”
“I’m on a job for your old lover’s daddy. Thought I’d swing by, remind Grayson of what he’s missing,” Slade crossed his legs, eyes boring into Dick, sweeping appreciatively over the older Robin’s body. Jason choked on his own tongue as he held back from threatening the mercenary. “You’ve got a type, sweetheart. Hate to break it to you.”
This time, it was Dick who choked.
Jason grimaces, eyeing up the obvious similarities between Slade and himself. Tall, well-built men with a penchant for violence and a brooding demeanor. Goddamit, he hated when Deathstroke of all people was right.
Slade moved gracefully from the couch and to the window, like a tiger stalking through a jungle. He heaved his larger frame onto the ledge, smirking back at the two men still frozen in place. “Been nice seeing you both. Give my love to daddy and tell that little brother and sister of yours that Ra’s would just love for them to drop by.”
It hurt the brother he was referring to was not, nor had ever been, Damian. Poor kid couldn’t catch a break. Jason allowed himself a moment of pity for the little brat.
And then Slade was gone, dropping from the building like a heavy stone. Both Jason and Dick knew he’d be away before he even touched the bottom. The man could outswing Batman when he was having a good day.
The two ex-Robins stood in silence, neither daring to look at the other. Jason’s legs felt like they may give out at any moment. His heart thudded in his chest. This had not gone the way he had expected. He had been hoping for a fight, if he was honest. A real, honest-to-god scrap between Slade and himself. A way to take out all his frustrations.
He heaved a deep, heavy sigh. There was only one way to fix this. “Man, I don’t know where Slade comes up with his bullshit, but I’m dying for a beer after hearing that.”
Even if it hurts.
His eyes flitted to his left. Dick’s shoulders visibly relaxed, fully aware of the implications behind Jason’s words. They would do what Bats did best, and pretend there was nothing going on. Bottle up all those pesky little emotions and store them in a cave, like Bruce had always taught them.
“Yeah, I uh, I might join you,” Dick cleared his throat, reaching for his jacket from where it lay amongst the dirty clothes. “Jay?”
“Yeah?”
“When Slade said ‘your old lover’, did he mean…?”
“Shut up.”
“Oh my god,” Dick’s mouth dropped open. “You and Talia?”
“Shut up Dickie.”
“Talia? Jason, come on, Talia!?”
“Do not ever mention this to Bruce asshole. Or Damian,” It was meant to sound like a threat, but what came out of Jason’s mouth was definitely a plea. Bruce’s kid was small, but he was vicious, like a chihuahua. Jason liked his knees intact.
“No, I would never, but…” Dick chewed on his bottom lip again. Oh, that full, rosy bottom lip. “Talia?”
“Dick?”
“Uh huh?”
“Shut. Up.”