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Ra's loved his family fiercely. He wasn't always sure how to show it, but his daughters had been the fire in his soul since he first held each of them, counting their little toes. Nyssa and Talia had snared his heart that first time they held on to his finger with their tiny hands. He never thought he would feel more intensely protective of anything, not until his Talia, his Sona, granted him with a grandchild.
Though Talia never told him he knew how the sire was, he knew of his daughter's love for the boy he had trained a decade or so ago. When he asked about the man's absence, Talia explained she had thought she had a miscarriage and told Bruce as much. She later found out she had not, but Bruce's youngest had died by then, and Talia wasn't sure how to approach him. She said she would bring Damian to him when she thought him ready. For now, Bruce was not seen, and Batman became increasingly violent. Ra's sympathised. He would burn the world to the ground had he lost one of his children.
He didn't always agree with his daughters’ choices, but he would support them regardless if he thought they were making a mistake. However, this time he also understood Talia - protecting one's child was firmly ingrained into a parent's spine, and it didn't always make one logical. So, when Talia bought home Jason Todd - sparking with whatever ancient magic had brought him back to life, bearing scars and a mind hiding away from all the trauma he had suffered - Ra's provided whatever he could to help the boy heal. Again he questions his daughter's decision to keep her beloved's sons a secret from him, but Talia assures him she had no intention of it being permanent. She said she did not think Bruce could handle the hope of having Jason back if Jason did not survive.
Six months later, Talia cared for a boy that was barely more than instinct and pure emotion. Ra's had seen how he curled into Talia like she was safety, how reverently he would hold Damian, and how viciously he would cut down anyone who threatened anyone of them. He even knew of how Jason had killed an assassin set out after Ra’s. He admitted to himself that not only was it clear the boy loved them, nor that Talia loved him like a son, but Ra's himself had come to love the boy.
After over half a millennia of running a league of ninjas set out to fight for the environment and against capitalism and corruption, Ra's had plenty of kills on his own hands. But if it was one thing Ra's detested, it was prolonged suffering. Torture never worked; that had long since been proved, and leaving someone in a state of constant suffering was something he could not sanction. Killing was an act of mercy sometimes and a far more effective way to deal with threats or enemies.
And if Ra's was unwilling to leave an enemy in a state of suffering, he would certainly not leave his grandson in it. He knew of the frequent nightmares - the flashbacks - Jason had; Ra's knew of the times he would fight himself out of closed-off spaces, chest heaving for breath; he knew of the times the boy would crawl up in a corner, hugging his legs and crying.
Maybe therapy could heal the boy; help him out of this state. But Ra's was well aware that would take years , and he was not willing to leave his grandson to suffer that long - not when he could do something about it. And so he approached Talia about using the Lazarus Pit.
Unexpectedly, Talia agreed. The Lazarus Pit could not heal any injuries from Jason's earlier life. Anything that had healed - however incorrectly - would not be affected by Lazarus Water, but it would help peace together whatever was still an open wound. Hopefully, this would help bring Jason's mind back to them.
The Lazarus Pit had helped, and Jason grew like a weed now that the malnutrition was no longer echoing in his body. He put on muscle and height rapidly, clumsy with his newfound mass, unsure how to handle his much longer limbs. Still, he would often be found training and sparring with the others in the league. It helped him find balance in his body again and keep the ninjas sharp. It was also clear both the leaguers and Jason had fun on the mats.
In the evenings, Jason would read to Damian before bed, despite Damian still not having said his first word - though Talia and Ra's both suspected it would be some version of his brother's name. He would talk to Talia about seemingly everything, and he could often be found leaning into or hugging her. Seeking her out like a beacon for the feeling of home. An especially happy day in Ra's very long life was when Jason has sought him out, sought him out to talk about literature, history and Ra's travels. Jason was an eager listener and an even quicker study. Soon Ra's offered to sponsor and provide Jason with a training trip around the world - with the best the league knew of in each subject.
Killing was never an easy burden to bare, but Ra's could not be prouder of his grandson for always looking out for the victims first, past, present and future ones. If a few of those experts lost their heads, hands or lives after Jason had completed his training, Ra's certainly had no complaints. He just ensured that both Talia and himself talked to Jason after he had killed, checked in on his mental state and provided comfort.
When Talia approached the subject of him visiting Gotham, Jason surprised them both by saying he actually wanted to move back there. He explained that it was his first home, Gotham ran through his veins, and he could not abandon it. Ra's suspected Gotham ran in Jason's blood in a more literal sense and stronger extent than Jason knew of.
Talia was preparing for Jason's return and her visit to Gotham, when he surprised them both again. Jason agreed Talia should go to the manor with Damian and explain everything to Bruce. But instead of coming with Talia, Jason wanted to stop by Blüdhaven first. Ra's was unsure why until Talia told him Jason's older brother Richard lived there and that the two boys had been close before Jason's death. Ra's suspected that he was who Jason had missed the most and that Jason was nervous about his father's reaction to his return. It made sense Jason would want a person who represented love and safety with him when he met Bruce. And that he would wish Talia would handle Bruce's first reactions. The fact that it had been Jason's older brother, not his father, who had killed the Joker, likely featured in that decision.
Ra's had thought that the murder of Bruce's son might be too much and that Bruce would break his code against killing, and Ra's was grateful it had not. He had watched and had been prepared for the fallout should that happen. Bruce had explained well he wanted to give everyone a chance at redemption and healing but that he also didn't think himself capable of taking a life. Ra's had agreed. Still did. Not everyone was cut out for taking a life; not everyone could go through with it. Even fewer could live with themselves having done so, even by accident. Some broke under the guilt, and some lost track of their morals. There were so many ways the trauma could manifest.
Despite what others may have thought, Ra's supported Bruce's vow to never kill. He ran an organisation that held a large part of assassins; he had personally trained many of them to kill, and he was more aware than most that taking a life came with a price, one not everyone was capable or willing to pay.
In six hundred years, many of Ra's most trusted generals had never raised a hand in violence; as necessary as murder could be, the readiness to do so was not a measure of morals or capability. Ra's had seen many examples throughout his centuries alive.
Richard had surprised him. He had not thought the former Robin had it in him to kill, but after learning how close he had been with Jason, Ra's reconsidered. The boy valued family above all else, and Richard had lost his little brother in a particularly brutal way. Ra's learned that Richard had beaten his brother's murder into a death beyond resurrection and that he bore the aftermath with grace. Not without consequences; Ra's knew it had taken months before Richard reappeared as Nightwing, and he had no doubt the boy suffered from both flashbacks and nightmares. However, as far as Ra's had seen, there was no sign of Richard regretting his actions.
So, when Jason requested he'd travel to Blüdhaven before joining Talia in Gotham, Ra's understood, and he and Talia agreed on the condition that Talia followed him all the way to Blüdhaven to make sure he arrived safely. Jason had rolled his eyes and called them 'worrywarts', and considering the mouth Jason had on him, Ra's thought the insult relatively mild. Though that Jason was currently holding his three-year-old little brother, which might've been the reason for his censored language.
As so many younger siblings did, Damian worshipped his older brother and would toddle after Jason whenever he visited. His first word had been 'Ahki', or as close as the two-year-old could manage, and now he would often copy what Jason said like an incredibly adorable parrot. Ra's was unsure about likening his grandson to a bird, but he supposed it was fine as long as it was not a robin. Parrots were quite majestic birds after all.
Ra's would've loved to follow his daughter and her sons on their visit to Gotham, maybe see Bruce and have tea with Bruce’s own father, Alfred. But sadly there were whispers of traitors in the ranks, and he could not risk leaving Nada Prabat at the moment. He made Jason promise to come to visit, which the boy gladly gave - in exchange for a promise that Ra's would see him in Gotham, too, once the league stabilised and Jason had settled in.
Six hundred years and Ra's still struggled with knowing how to show his love, something both Talia and Nyssa would often tease him about, but when the time came for his daughter and grandsons to leave, Ra's gathered them each in tight hugs - even if he now had to reach upwards to wrap his arms around Jason. The boy was still only shy of eighteen years, yet he was well over six feet and still growing at that. Ra's wondered how tall the boy would be when he reached his full height. He was bound to become a monolith of a man.
The trio set off to Blüdhaven and then Gotham after several promises to call him, and once they had left, Ra's sat down in his tea room and thought of how in his six hundred years, he had never once before had something so wonderful to live for.
He wondered if Nyssa might have time for a call.