Chapter Text
Jason had a plan, and even Talia seemed to approve of his plan which meant it had to be good. But first, she said that he had to train with different handlers all around the world to learn different skills that would help him reach his end goal. And what was this plan exactly? He was going to take over and run the drug trade in Crime Alley, kill Joker, mess with the Bat and his replacement, and finally he’ll end the big Bat with his own hands. His plan changed a bit every so often, currently he was toying with the idea of letting Batman decide to kill the Joker himself; see how much he really loved Jason.
He was currently waiting for reassignment in Paris, France as his last handler said his training with them was complete. His body was cooling on the floor only a few moments after the words left their mouth.
He was currently squatting in a run down apartment building that he felt he had sufficiently boobytraped. That was until he entered his apartment through the fire escape window one night and saw a small person rifling through the duffel bag he had left sitting on the crappy coffee table. He cleared his throat loudly and watched as the small person froze and stiffened in their spot.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
He watched as the figure slowly raised their hands into the air, lifted their head, and turned towards him. His eyes widened slightly at what he saw, he….hadn’t been expecting this. The person was a small girl with wide bluebell eyes who couldn’t be older than maybe 12. Her clothes were torn, dirty, and ragged; hair pulled back into neat twin tails but was obviously matted and dirty from being unable to find a proper place to bathe.
Memories of his past, before he has been abducted by Batman, resurfaced from some place deep within the recesses of his pit crazed mind. Memories of being in the same predicament. The feeling of never being safe no matter where you are or what you do. The horrid hunger that would make anyone desperate enough to do anything for even the hope of a scrap. Fearing that one day you’ll go missing and no one will ever know or care where you are or what happened to you ever again. He could see fear in the small girl’s eyes, and what appeared to be tears brimming in them. Normally he would cherish and feast on that fear, but this wasn’t a normal circumstance.
“I-I’m sorry sir! I’ll leave right now and never come back! I swear I haven’t taken anything yet, nor will I again.”
“Maybe not from me, but from someone else, yea?”
He said calmly, softly. Slowly he raises his hands up in front of him, exaggerating and telegraphing every movement so the kid would know he was no threat or danger. When he was a few feet away from the girl he squatted down, still keeping his hands in front of him, but away from her. The girl took a small step away, moving into more of a defensive stance, a glare forming on her face. He gave her a small smile, letting her keep her distance.
“Hey, it’s ok. I’m not going to hurt you, I’ve been in the same spot as you.”
He started with a tender note in his voice. His French was a bit rusty, but it was still understandable, and that’s all that mattered at the moment.
“And what spot is that?”
She asked skeptically, eyes darting around the room as she looked for anything she could use to help her escape.
“On the run, homeless, stealing to survive, doing whatever is necessary to just live another day. I know exactly what that was like.”
The girl's eyes widened in shock, her shoulders and stance loosening ever so slightly. She stared at him for a long time, but he never moved as he let her evaluate him. When she seemed satisfied she discouragingly asked,
“So what are you gonna do? Call CPS?”
“F* those guys. They never helped anyone in the system, and there’s no way I’m gonna let you go through that.”
Silence hung in the air, but it wasn’t an uncomfortable one, more unsure and inquisitive.
“How would you like to go get some food? I’m hungry, and I have no doubt that you are too. If you’d rather just leave, then I won’t stop you. No catch, you don’t even have to talk to me. I get it. I’m Jason by the way.”
The girl bit her lip as if she were contemplating his offer. She looked all around the dark room one last time before she muttered.
“Mary.”
Jason smiled gently,
“Nice to meet you, Mary. I’ll go ahead and lead us to a diner. Again, you don’t have to follow, but I was going to head there for food anyways so you don’t have to worry about a trap or anything.”
Jason slowly stood up, keeping his hands in front of his palms facing forward the entire time. Cautiously, he walked towards the front door, and walked out. He never turned back to see if Mary followed him as it would probably send the wrong message. He was honestly a bit surprised when she sat across from him at the booth.
She pressed herself as far into the bench as she could with all her limbs curled up in front of her, letting her eyes focus solely on the table. He was grateful when the waiter dropped off the menus as it lessened the tension around them, letting both of them focus on something other than each other.
“Would you like anything to drink while you look for what you want?”
The waitress asked with a polite smile.
“I’ll have some white milk.”
Jason replied smoothly, nodding his appreciation before turning to look at the menu.
“Alright, and what would the young lady like?”
“Ummm,”
Mary hesitantly glanced up at Jason, but all he did was shrug in reply.
“Chocolate milk, please?”
“Alrighty then, I’ll have that out for you in just a moment.”
Jason turned his head slightly and watched the other patrons in the diner. It was odd to him that none of them seemed to know any of the great terrors this world held, and if they did they were good at ignoring them. They were so carefree and happy, and it just felt … off to him with everything he knows and has been through. He glanced at the kid and noticed her drawing on her paper kids menu with the provided crayons. She seemed to be making some kind of dress, and she was really good at it. If the crayons were better quality, or maybe just a pencil, he bet that it would look even better.
“You’re really good at that.”
He praised. Mary’s head shot up in surprise, and she quickly held the paper close to her chest. Jason raised his hands up in surrender.
“Hey, hey, it’s ok. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you. I’m not going to stop you, I’m not going to take it from you, and if you’re not comfortable with it, I won’t even look at you or your work anymore.”
Mary bit her lip, her eyes never leaving his hands, suspicion never leaving her eyes for a second.
“I promise Mary.”
He whispered, making direct eye contact to show her the seriousness—and hopefully honesty—he was trying to convey through his body-language and voice. After another minute of silent staring at the other she nodded. Hesitantly, she cautiously set the paper back down and continued working while occasionally glancing up to make sure he hadn’t moved closer or started staring. Slowly, Mary felt herself to relax just a little for the first time in years. He wasn’t staring at her or her work and always kept his distance. He kept his part of the deal as he just stared out of the booth and watched the people around them.
“Alright, here are your drinks. Are you ready to order?”
“Yes, I’ll have a Croque Monsieur, French Onion soup, French ratatouille, two slices of your Traditional Quiche, and two slices of Hazelnut Dacquoise please.”
He said politely as he handed his menu back to the server.
“Alright, and for the young miss?”
Mary stared at the page, refusing to make any eye contact.
“Ummm, I-I’ll have Croque Monsieur.”
She said nervously before quickly sipping from her drink to avoid saying anything else. She hoped that what she ordered wouldn’t cost much. But if he was ordering that must mean he isn’t afraid of spending money, right? But he may not want to spend much on her. Even if this is him being nice and not wanting anything in return, it’s best not to test him.
“Alright, will that be all then?”
“Yes please, thank you.”
“Of course, we’ll have it out for you soon.”
And with that the waitress turned and left back towards the counter. Jason turned back to his people watching, taking small sips from his drink.
“Thank you.”
Mary whispered. Jason smiled, but didn’t look at her as he replied,
“Yea, no problem kid. I’d be a hypocrite and a g*d* a*hole to not help you out when I’ve been where you are too.”
Once the food came Jason took all of the plates, including hers, much to her dismay. Instead of eating it all like she had thought, he started to split everything in half. He put some of the food onto his plate that held Croque Monsieur before pushing the rest of the food onto her own.
“Don’t worry kid, I’m not gonna steal your food. In fact you’re going to need more than what you ordered, and I know this place uses good and fresh ingredients to make their food. You’re gonna need the nutrients, so eat as much as you can. And if you want more, I honestly don’t mind giving you mine or ordering more. Okay?”
He asked, making eye contact with her once more as he slowly scooted her dish toward her. She nodded slowly, still trying to process what had just happened. Jason nodded, giving her a small encouraging smile before he started to eat his own food. Marinette watched him take a bite of a little of everything on his dish, once he had done that, and showed no sign of anything she tucked in.
It was obvious that she was born into a good family. He observed the way she ate, because while she was eating it fairly quickly, it was obvious that she was taught proper table manners. But while he couldn’t see signs of parental abuse, that didn’t mean there wasn’t any. He had her glass refilled a few times, much to her horror the first time, but he just smiled and waved off her attempts of “you don’t have too, I’m fine”, with “just drink your milk kid. You’re gonna need it if you don’t want to stay that size forever”. She had scowled at him for that comment, but sipped her milk in silence, a small smile creeping into her lips. He pretended that he didn’t notice it.
He had given Marinette both slices of the small cake, and was surprised when she scooted the last piece toward him. She didn’t look at him, didn’t even say a word. Just let the cake sit in the middle of the table, it was a silent offering of sorts. A show of trust that made Jason’s heart swell a little in a way he hadn’t felt in a long time. Slowly Jason reached out and pulled the slice closer to him.
________
“I’ve got another place you can stay the night at if you’d like. You could have a nice shower, I could find you some new clothes or something. If that isn’t for you, I’ve got some money that you can use. It should keep you off the streets and keep you fed for a little while.”
Jason said calmly as they stood outside the diner with his hands stuffed in the pockets of his leather jacket. He desperately wanted to help the kid (more desperately than he wanted anything, and that was frightening), but he knew there was only so much he could do. He would have to leave soon to his next instructor wherever Talia thought he should be shipped off to next. He can’t, in good conscience, take the kid with him. He would only do more harm than good, and she doesn’t deserve that. She has so much potential, an entire future ahead of her! He would never forgive himself if he ruined that for her.
Mary twiddled her thumbs and bit her lip, a nervous tick he noticed, as she thought through the options.
“Can I stay the night with you?”
That wasn’t really one of the options, and it showed that she really hadn’t been on the streets for as long as he had originally thought. No street kid with longtime experience would be this trusting, not even in Paris.
“That’s not the best idea, kid. I’m not a good person, you really don’t want to be near me.”
He said coolly, staring at some far off point in the distance.
“But you helped me today, and are still offering to help me. Doesn’t that make you a good person?”
She asked curiously. Goodness this kid was so innocent, and he knew that if he looked at her he would see her doe-like eyes silently begging him. How has she survived this long, how did she even end up in this predicament?
“This could all be a trap kid. I could just be putting you into a false sense of security before I kidnap or sell you.”
He said gruffly, rolling his eyes. Kid was going to get herself into some deep sh* if she wasn’t more paranoid and aware.
“Then why reveal your plan now? Why wait so long to do anything?”
Jason sighed in annoyance and rubbed his eyes.
“It’s called the long game kid. Ever hear of it?”
“I have, but you aren’t doing that. If you were doing that you’d look more smug and triumphant. You’d probably be thinking that “you’ve won now”,”
She rambled, using her fingers as air quotes.
“But you're not. You’re more annoyed and seemingly worried about me than anything else. You said you’ve been through what I have, far too sincerely to be fake. And-“
“Fine!”
Jason said with exaggerated frustrated annoyance,
“Just follow me kid, and keep up. I’m not gonna slow down for some curious little pixie.”
He ended gruffly as he began to walk towards one of his nicer safe houses that Talia had provided.
“Hey! I’m not little, and you offered!”
Mary said indignantly as she ran to keep up with his long strides.
“Sure Pix, let’s go with that.”
He said briskly, but smirked as he saw her trying to keep up with him. Sighing, mostly annoyed with himself, he slowed down and let her keep up with him, never removing his hands from his pockets and stared at the city of lights around them. The burning in his heart never really faded, it felt almost tangible, and that made him pause. He focused on the strange new feeling in his chest, and almost stopped breathing when he subconsciously was able to actually interact with this strange feeling. Mary froze, fear and uncertainty bleeding through her eyes. It was as if she felt the interaction, the small strange sensation, the burning that was occurring in his own heart.
“Not again.”
She whispered to herself. The feeling now attached to his heart felt like someone had a sharp vice grip on it. Like they were trying to yank Jason’s heart out.
“I’m so sorry Jason, I’ll get rid of it. I never meant for this to happen!”
She said panickedly. Her rates were shut like she was trying to focus on something, and while she focused the sharp tugging became excruciating. So he did what felt right and tugged back, relieving only a bit of the pain. Mary gasped.
“What is going on Mary? What on Earth are you trying to “get rid of”?”
She was silent and there was finally a reprieve from the painful yanking.
“I-I’m a meta.”
She whispered. Her face was pale and her eyes glassy and distended as she spoke.
“I can create physical and tangible bonds with others that I feel close to or safe with. I can also take those bonds away though it can be painful for both parties involved. It depends on how strong the bond is on both sides. I can’t control it, and now I’ve gone and bonded with you without your permission. I’m so sorry.”
A small tear fell down her cheek as she slowly shrunk into herself throughout her story. Jason could feel the l pain and fear, he didn’t know how she held all this in? Slowly Jason breathed in the chill Autumn evening air, before kneeling before the small child.
“Hey, it’s okay. I’m not going to be mad at you okay. It makes sense to me why you bonded with me. I doubt you’ve had a lot of people caring about or helping you out. You’ve been on your own for a while now, huh?”
Mary nodded stiffly, holding back more tears but unable to hold back a sniffle.
“How about we head to the apartment I was telling you about earlier and we can settle this out more there. Okay?”
Another nod. Jason gave her a small smile and slowly stood up. Hesitantly he offered her his hand, but to his surprise she took it while wiping at her eyes with her free arm. Jason smiled again, when was the last time he smiled like this so much? He honestly had no idea if he ever had, except he did. His first day out as-Jason shook his head. He couldn’t focus on that, right now he had a little kid to take care of.
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“So just to make sure I’ve got everything straight.”
Jason began once Mary had finished explaining how her power worked after he had made sure she was able to take a hot shower and change clothes. He had given her one of his hoodies and a pair of sweatpants—she was absolutely drowning in his clothes.
“So both of us can interact with the other through this bond as it transfers one’s feelings and emotions. Is that about right?”
“That about sums it up, yea.”
She replied meekly, wrapping the blanket he had also given her more tightly around herself.
“I also learned a way to shield my bond, which means I can block it so no one I’m bonded to can feel what I’m feeling through the bond. But it’s been so long since I’ve had one that I don’t fully remember how to do it again.”
Jason hummed, tapping his fingers against his knee in thought. He had been around magic and metas before sure, but nothing quite like this had ever happened to him before. It was strange, intimate, and seemingly out of his control. But strangely enough, he didn’t really seem to mind like he thought he would. The connection actually made him feel…calm, grounded even. It seemed that it even helped to lessen the corrupted voice of the Lazarus Pit in his mind.
Jason carefully focused his thoughts on this strange new connection, letting his mind and heart take hold of the bond as gently as he could. He hesitated, but only for a second before he let a gentle tug of joy and calm flow through the bond. He watched as she stilled, looking at him with wide hopeful eyes before she replied with her own happy little ripples. The feelings almost overwhelmed him with how genuine they were, but he knew that he was doing the right thing. He knew at that moment that he would do anything to protect this kid.