Work Text:
Papa Midnite knows Constantine will refuse, but that’s the point – he always offers when Constantine can’t possibly afford to accept.
He knows the dead, and this is enough information to be a powerful weapon against any burgeoning respect that shared experience might one day forge into friendship. He knows the disapproval with which the deeper forces of the world regard John Constantine, and he hears stories of the man’s friends.
Making Constantine actually refuse the chance to speak to his mother, time and again – seeing the childish and bewildered pain in the man’s eyes is better than risking his affection.