Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Maybe he had brought too many surprises, including himself. Dick glanced down at the bag filled with toys, books, puzzles, games…nah, this was fine. It had been almost two months since Dick had visited, so he wanted to spoil Lian. He had been accumulating things to give the four and half year old since the last time he’d seen her and Roy, so it wasn’t like this was everything he had bought in a single shopping trip. Plus some of this was from Donna, who’d dropped it off at his place before she left on a long mission in case he saw Lian before she got back, so really it wasn’t so bad. 

And if he wanted to spoil the First Baby Titan, then he totally could, it was his prerogative. 

Hefting the bag and the fresh donuts he had picked up for them all to share, Dick stepped off the elevator and headed down the hallway to Roy’s apartment. He hadn’t given Roy a heads up that he was coming. Dick hadn’t known he was coming to New York until a couple days ago, when he had followed a lead for his current woman-with-dinosaur-DNA problem into the city. It had turned out to be a dead end (wrong evil scientist’s lab), but he had decided to surprise Roy and Lian before heading home to Bludhaven and the VelociLady issue. 

Tim and Cass had been keeping an eye on things for him while he was gone. It was better than Bruce trying to fill in for him again. Gigantor Angry Nightwing was still an urban legend in Bludhaven, a story told to scare newer goons in the local bars and dives. 

Dick knocked his foot against the bottom of the door three times. He made sure he was loud enough to be heard over the sounds of the Encanto soundtrack coming from the apartment. Roy had surveillance on the building so unless he was really distracted, he would’ve seen Dick before he even made it inside. Dick threw a smile at the teeny tiny camera hidden in the right upper corner of the doorway, knowing the facial recognition software would log him. He didn’t want to get zapped by the door, which was booby-trapped ten different ways, but the worst was its taser feature.

Roy did not play when it came to defending his and Lian’s home.

It took longer than usual for Roy to open the door. When he did, Dick instantly held out up the box of donuts. “I come bearing gifts.”

“From Katydough’s and everything,” Roy said, “What’d you do, fight the leftover morning crowd?”

“I used my charm. And I pulled a card from Bruce’s paybook, skipped the line, and then bought everyone behind me a donut and coffee,” Dick said, pulling the box back. 

Roy stood partially in the doorway. He had on grey sweatpants and an ancient Green Day t-shirt, his face scruffy with a couple weeks worth of a beard. A yellow paper crown decorated with paint that hadn’t fully dried sat cockeyed on his head. His expression was weird, somewhere between nearly unreadable and stressed with a bit of a smile that wasn’t entirely forced but had that feel to it. Maybe showing up unannounced had been a bad idea? But he and Roy had been friends for years—

Dick’s eyebrows shot up his forehead as Roy shifted forward and he realized Roy was holding a kid in his arms, but this wasn’t Lian. A toddler with freckles, big hazel eyes, and curly chestnut hair up in short pigtails clung to Roy’s shoulder. She had a smudge of purple paint across her cheek and a pink paint handprint that had to be Lian’s on the sleeve of her Wonder Woman shirt. Grinning, she opened and closed her hand at him.

Dick copied the gesture, offering a smile back before pinning Roy with a curious glance. “And who’s this?”

“Um…”

Dick noticed a hint of panic in Roy’s eyes. 

Again?? Dick wasn’t judging, but if Roy had gone off and had another kid with Jade and not told anyone— Dick looked at the little girl closer. Her eyes weren’t as green as Roy’s, but that red tint to her hair and the freckles…

“I’m babysitting for some friends,” Roy said, “Don’t give me that look.”

“I wasn’t—”

“You totally were giving me A Look.” In his arms, the toddler giggled and patted her hand against his cheek, leaving a bit of purple behind to mix in with his red beard. 

“Ou’side?” she asked Roy. “Row, ou’side?”

“Nah, squirt, we’re staying inside today, remember? It’s raining, the drizzly kind,” Roy said.

She poked out her bottom lip and then glanced at Dick slyly, reaching out for him. “Ou’side?”

“Hey! You little schemer.” Roy tickled her side, getting more laughter out of her. “You can’t ask different people and expect different answers, we’re not all your Coco—”

“Coco? Zaa?” she exclaimed, looking around as if someone was about to appear. When no one did, she flopped against Roy’s shoulder and sighed pitifully like he’d betrayed her. “Ou’side, Row…”

Dick smiled. “What’s her name?”

For a second, Roy looked torn before he plastered on his patented smirk. He was being strange, no doubt. “This is Delaney,” he said, “Or Del. Say hi to Dick, Del.” 

She perked back up. Delaney did the open-shut-open hand wave again. “Hi-hi, Deek.”

“Hi, Delaney,” Dick said, grinning at the adorable mispronunciation. 

“Come on, party crasher,” Roy said to Dick, moving back instead of blocking the door. “The donuts grant you access to the keep.”

Roy’s apartment was spacious and kind of messy, with toys scattered all over the place and small projects left out of Lian’s reach. Engineering and tech books and magazines sat in random places, marked with a variety of bookmarks that weren’t actually bookmarks. Dick spotted a CVS receipt sticking out of a huge book about robotics. 

As the door closed behind them, Lian scrambled away from the coffee table. “Uncle Dick!” The four-year-old little girl was wearing a princess dress and a plastic knight’s helmet, plus a toy quiver slung over her back. Dashing over, she collided with his legs, beaming up at him, green eyes thrilled. “What’d you bring me? I miss you.”

Dick dropped the bag, set the donuts on the nearest table, and picked her up. He hugged her close. “I brought you a lot of stuff, and I missed you, too, kiddo.” 

Lian snuggled against him then squirmed to get down. “Can I see?” 

“Wait until he gives it to you—I blame Ollie,” Roy said, rolling his eyes as Lian started digging through the bag. “He’s even worse than you about spoiling her.”

“I need to up my game,” Dick said.

“Good luck.” Roy snorted and set Delaney on the floor, letting her get her balance before he let her go. She rubbed her face and wandered over to Lian. Delaney pressed her hands together and got down on the floor beside Lian, who started showing her puzzles and coloring books and toys. Roy sat down heavily on the couch. Out of the corner of his eye, Dick saw him drag both hands down his face. Huh. Well, if Roy wanted to kick him out because he was tired or something, he could and he would, and Dick didn’t plan on overstaying his welcome.

Delaney flipped through a book that Lian had handed her, more careful with the pages than most kids her age. It seemed like she had collected a lot of the books around herself. Lian kept stacking them near her.

Maybe there was something in the bag that she would like? Lian didn’t know that they were all for her, and it wasn’t fair not to give Delaney anything. Most of the gifts were for older preschoolers, but… Dick sat down and reached into the bag. He plucked out an extra soft black and white rabbit plush, something he had seen at craft market when he had gone to one with Kori the other weekend. Just as friends. For now, at least.

“Hey, Roy, can I give this to—?” He lifted the rabbit and then subtly pointed it at Delaney.

For some reason, Roy looked like he was suffering. He mumbled something under his breath that Dick had trouble hearing because of the distance, but it sounded like, “You’re killing me…” Finally Roy nodded and grabbed his phone from the end table. 

Dick held the plushie out to Delaney. “I think you might like this guy.”

Delaney hesitated then patted her hand against the rabbit’s soft fur. Dick pressed it into her palm. Taking it, she wrapped her arms around it and put her face into its fur. Gently, she brushed her hand down its fur. “Zaa bun.”

“Yep,” Lian said, “Like her rabbits!” She hugged Delaney around the shoulders. “Say thank you.”

“Tank,” Delaney parroted, all smiles.

“Thank you, Uncle Dick,” Lian said, stepping from Delaney to him. 

“Some of it’s from your Aunt Donna,” he said, “But you’re welcome from both of us.”

Lian sat down next to him and flipped open a coloring book. “Wanna color with me and Del?”

Dick glanced over at Roy, trying to gauge how he should answer that. Roy was extremely focused on whatever texting conversation he was having. Dick laid down on the floor, reaching for the brand new box of crayons. “Can’t think of anything else I’d rather do.”

Lian pumped a fist into the air before sitting down cross-legged across from him. She shoved one of the coloring books at him before opening another and putting it in front of Delaney. “Here, Del, this one’s yours. It’s farm things, like cows.”

Delaney let go of the rabbit and picked up a crayon. Dick smiled as she put the crayon down and picked up the coloring book and the rabbit. She started to wander toward Roy then came over and plopped down next to Dick, her back against his side. Then she pointed at the crayon again. “Get?”

Dick handed her the crayon. She started coloring in looping squiggles, her tongue poking out of the corner of her mouth. Cute. 

Eventually Roy put his phone back on the table and wandered over to them. He plucked the helmet off Liana head and smoothed his hand over her dark hair after he sat down beside her. Eyeing the gifts, he picked out a puzzle toy and started messing with it. 

“Everything okay?” Dick asked, flicking his eyes at Roy.

“Oh, it’s dandy,” Roy said absently, “Just peachy.”

“Uh-huh.” Dick had no idea what was going on with him, but he couldn’t ask outright with the girls there. 

For all he knew, Roy was worried about some kind of villain or case. He was mostly half retired, though he sometimes worked alongside the Titans or the Outlaws or Justice League Dark. He had fallen into the business of monster hunting with the Outlaws a few years ago and since part of that odd little team sometimes worked with the JLD, he wound up with them on occasion. In any case, they didn’t talk super stuff in front of Lian, which must’ve gone double for Delaney. He guessed that her parents were civilians. 

“Anyways, what’re you in the city for?” Roy asked, “Anything you need my illustrious and sought after help with?”

“I was tracking down a lead, but it was a bust,” he replied. 

“Bus,” Delaney echoed. 

“Exactly,” Dick said, tapping his blue crayon against the top of her foot.

“You don’t need to be gone all the time,” Lian said in a matter-of-fact tone, “I don’t want to miss you.”

“I’ll visit more,” Dick said, “Promise. And you could come see me in Bludhaven.”

“Yep, and we can all go to Disney World,” Lian said, “We’re going. Grandpa said so.”

“That sounds fun—”

“Wait, when’d Ollie say that?” Roy asked, “He didn’t tell me.”

“He said when he was here,” Lian said, “Yesterday.”

“He wasn’t here yesterday, you mean last week?”

Lian shrugged. “Yesterday? I don’t know. We’re going to stay in a big hotel, and me and Grandma are going to be princesses.”

Dick grinned as they went back and forth, arguing over this Disney trip. He wondered if he could convince Bruce to do a civilian-Bruce thing and crash the Queens’ trip because it would be fun if both their families went. Damian and Cass could use some normal life experiences, and Duke and Tim and Steph would love it. Babs and Selina might want to go, too. Alfred would appreciate having the manor to himself for a few days. He ignored the pang of loss as his mind tried to think about the missing gap in his family rundown. It was like running your tongue over a cut in your mouth, sharp and then dull, an old ache that Dick hated but accepted. 

Once the girls were done coloring, they all wound up eating donuts and watching Moana. Lian squished herself up against Dick’s side while Delaney sat between him and Roy, hugging her rabbit and babble-singing the songs. Sometimes she would climb off the couch and play with the blocks and other toys before coming back to the couch. She was a busy little bee. Eventually, she crawled up onto the couch and curled up on a pillow, watching the movie through half-lidded, sleepy eyes. 

As the movie rolled on, Dick could feel Roy getting more antsy. It wasn’t even that he was moving around that much or checked his watch or anything, it was like he was giving off anxious vibes. When someone knocked at the door, Roy jolted up and off the couch, making Delaney jump. She bumped into Dick, who steadied her.

“Stay here,” Roy said, as if Dick was going to go open the door or something. With a resigned look on his face, he left, disappearing down the short hallway to the apartment’s main door. 

“Is your dad feeling okay?” Dick asked Lian, trusting the four-year-old to be bluntly honest.

Lian nodded. “Yeah, he’s good.”

There were voices coming from the door, Roy’s and then two more that sounded strangely familiar. Had he worked with Delaney’s parents? There were still some people in the super community who held onto their secret identities. Roy worked closely with a few of them. But it was the baritone voice getting louder that made Dick get up, taking an involuntary step toward the door.

Dick had made up that voice. That wasn’t a real person. That was someone who only still existed when he was hurt or weak or tired and couldn’t deal with reality.

“—my family,” the voice grumbled, sounding pissed and nervous at the same time. “Since you both think it’s the best idea to rock his world on a random Saturday.”

“That is not what I said,” a woman argued, “And Roy isn’t forcing this—”

“Sure he isn't, Mo.” It was a sarcastic reply from a voice Dick had created for an adult version of a boy who had never gotten a chance to grow up. 

“I’m really not but I’m tired of lying to him, Jaybird,” Roy said. “To all of them but especially Dick. Don’t you think maybe it’s time?”

“Yeah, let’s do this.”

“Well, hold on—”

Dick froze as a hallucination he had only seen once before surged out of the hallway, looking cross and sullen and apprehensive. He was tall, maybe 6’3” or 4”, with black hair marked with a white streak in bangs that hadn’t lost their curl. Built like Bruce, he wore black jeans and a collared red shirt, sleeves partly rolled up. Behind him, Roy reappeared with a woman in a tea-length black dress with a red belt. She gave Dick a serious sense of déjà vu. Her long dark auburn hair had a touch of curly waves, she had hazel eyes like Delaney’s, and she was almost a foot shorter than Roy. 

Both of she and Roy looked ready to intervene. 

Dick stared. He wasn’t—this wasn’t real. Jason was gone, it had been almost ten years since he’d lost his little brother and he couldn’t be haunted by him again. Dick had seen this adult version of him once, about two years ago, when Dick had almost died after that nearly-world-ending fight against the first Nimue. After that, the hallucinations had stopped altogether. He hadn’t seen Robin or Jason or this grown-up Jason since then. 

It couldn’t start again, he couldn’t do this again. He had to be imagining things. This was just a guy who looked like what he thought Jason would look like. Even if he had the same ocean blue eyes with that touch of green, just like Little Wing’s. And he looked like Dick’s hallucinations.

He couldn't do this.

On the couch, Delaney made a happy little noise. “Dadada, Mama!”

“Hey, Dick,” Jason—the stranger said, passing by him and picking up Delaney. All those negative emotions on his face faded for a moment as he smiled back at the little girl who had his freckles and big cheerful grin. He tucked her into the crook of his arm and turned back toward Dick. He frowned. “I guess Roy told you everything.”

“No, dipshit, I didn’t tell him anything,” Roy said, “That’s what I was trying to tell you.”

Jason balked, holding his daughter tighter. “Oh.”

Chapter Text

It was only years of training that kept Dick from spiraling out of control as panic and sorrow clawed at him, raking at the emotional stability he had built over the years. He didn’t get so angry or so upset as often these days, but this was testing him. How much of this was real? Jason obviously wasn’t, but Delaney had seemed extremely real. Then again, hallucinations could be that way. But everything else— Roy and Lian had to be real. This was their apartment. 

Unless none of this was actually happening. 

Dick tensed, every muscle in his body going rigid.

Delaney made a cooing sound and touched Jason’s face. “Da, hi.”

“Hi, munchkin,” he said before he looked over at Roy. “You could’ve led with that fact.”

“You didn’t give me time to say a lot,” Roy said, keeping his voice even, his eyes staying on Dick. “Maybe you could’ve slowed down a second, Jay, and waited for one more minute after putting this off for years. Dick, breathe.”

Dick sucked in a breath at Roy’s command. Usually he only imagined Jason, or that’s how it had gone in the past; if this was an entire hallucinated scenario or even a nightmare, then it was possible he had been caught by some kind of enemy or stepped into a psychic or magical trap or been targeted by an extradimensional being. But which one? Or was this reality with only pieces of it being hallucinations? If it was a trick or a trap, how did he get out? 

And oh god what if it was all real.

Dick’s mind recoiled at the idea and the confusion it instantly caused but he also grasped at the raw hope. His heart pounded as he stared at the man who looked so painfully like how he imagined the adult version of his younger brother would look. There was a scar through his right eyebrow and more along his arms, some of them curling up under his rolled-up sleeves. Jason’s blue-green eyes were cautious and startled, uncertain as he took a step back toward the auburn-haired woman. 

“Don’t,” Dick said through clenched teeth, barely a whisper. He wasn’t sure if he was telling Jason to not move or to not leave. He had gone through phases where he wanted Jason’s ghost to stay and other times where he tried to shout it out of his mind. 

Jason stopped moving.

“What’s happening?” Lian asked, wandering over to them. She moved past Dick and eyed him and Jason. “You’re being weird. Can we watch the movie?” 

“You’re right, we’re being way weird,” Roy said, ruffling her hair as she knocked into his side. “How about you go hang out in your room until we’re normal again?”

Lian scrunched up her face. “Can Aunt Mo and Del go with me? I want my hair blue, and Aunt Mo said she’d make it blue.”

“I think we’re a part of the weirdness,” the auburn-haired woman said, “Sorry, sweetheart.”

“Okaaay,” Lian said, “Do not not be forever.” 

As Lian left, dragging her feet, Dick made himself look past Jason. He tried to logically assess the situation. Roy looked like he was trying to play it cool, but he also shifted forward, angling so he was in front of the woman and so he could get between Dick and Jason at any moment. It was easy enough to read his body language. The auburn-haired woman had a calm presence but seemed extremely alert, like Roy but in a more subtle way. Her hazel eyes locked with his as she offered a small, tentative smile. 

Mo, Lian had called her Mo. So had Jason. 

He felt like he had met her before, that sense of déjà vu only deepening, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t also a part of the hallucination. Maybe she was the source of it? She was an odd factor here. But she didn’t make him more unsettled. Instead, he felt like the familiarity with her was positive. However, she could be manipulating him into feeling that way.

Dick noticed Jason’s gaze tracking where he was looking. Instantly, Jason moved back toward Mo, handing Delaney off to her. He placed himself squarely between her and Dick.

“All right, um, we have to start somewhere,” Roy said, also moving forward.

“Maybe we could go into the living room?” Mo suggested. She put her hand on Jason’s elbow. “Jason?”

He shook his head. His entire body shifted toward her like he needed her close, like her touch drew him in. “I thought he knew—I can’t do this.”

“Come on, man,” Roy said, nearly pleading, “We’ve all been talking about this for almost two years now.”

“And I said not yet,” Jason said. “I only came in because I thought you told him, Roy.”

Roy frowned. “It’s too late to back out now.”

Real, not real: there had to be a trick here if it wasn’t real. And there had to be signs if it was. The Jason he made up never looked that nervous. Usually the kid-version asked why they hadn’t gone out more for ice cream or wondered why Dick didn’t like him or asked for burgers or caught on fire or bled out quietly in a corner or screamed inconsolably for Bruce and Dick to save him while a timer Dick had never heard because he hadn’t been there why why weren’t you there ticked down. He often showed up when Dick failed at something.

Was that why this happening? Because he hadn’t found the lead on his case? 

Dick shoved his hands through his hair, forcing himself to take deep breaths. “Roy. You can see him this time, right.”

“Yeah, buddy, I see him,” Roy said, “Hey, but what do you mean this time?”

There were too many other times to count. 

Grown-up Jason looked apprehensive. And protective. He stayed close to Mo. Dick saw her press her palm to Jason’s back and whisper something to him, too quiet for Dick to overhear. The look Jason gave her, glancing down over his shoulder, made it look like he was looking at someone he infinitely treasured and respected. 

Jason turned back to him. “Are you talking about two years ago?”

A memory slipped in, fuzzy and vague, but he remembered a room that smelled like lavender and earth and tea and this version of Jason sitting in a chair beside a bed. His bed. He had been hurt. The snippet of memory was like a clear spot in a fog, but it felt real. He remembered crying. Apologizing. 

“What is going on? What is this?” Dick felt his chest hollow out. His heart was thundering in the empty space, racing so hard it physically hurt.

“Boys, one of you start explaining things to him or I will,” Mo said.

“Are you doing this?” Dick asked her, not harshly since he didn’t know how adult Jason would react and he still didn’t feel like she was a threat, but he knew he sounded intense, “Do I know you?”

Her eyes flicked up to Jason’s before she looked back at him. “We met once, but it’ll be hard for you to remember. It’s been a couple years though, so the spell might’ve worn thin by this point.”

“It’s magic,” Dick said, feeling helpless as that spark of hope was doused. “This is your spell. What do you want?”

“She didn’t enchant you,” Jason said firmly. 

“Dick, this is real,” Roy said quickly. “You know it’s real, don’t you?”

“It’s not a spell now, and that wasn’t my memory spell back then,” she said quickly, shifting Delaney to her other hip as the toddler squirmed. “We weren’t ready to tell you—”

“Down,” Delaney said, “Down, Mama, down. F’oor. Bun! Zaa!”

Mo nuzzled Delaney and said something quietly to her while Jason shifted, moving fully back in front of them again. If this was real, then Jason seemed afraid that Dick was going to do something to his daughter and his…wife? Jason had a silver ring. Mo had one too. His wife. His brother had a new family. 

Jason was alive. 

A broken sound escaped Dick. His legs felt weak. He wanted to stay skeptical, but he also desperately wanted Roy to be telling the truth. “Jason?”

“Don’t pass out,” Jason said, internally freaking out even as he tried not to outwardly show it. He didn’t want to scare Delaney, but he felt like he was about to lose it. 

This wasn’t how he had expected to spend the afternoon, and he was rapidly realizing that he couldn’t tell Dick everything right now. He wasn’t prepared. He had thought about how he would do this so many times, but it hadn’t ever played out like this and he didn’t know where to start. It was just like when he had panicked and hauled Dick to the House of Mystery after that battle with Nimue because his brother had been dying and Mo’s healing magic was the only thing that would save him. He had almost told Dick everything then, but Mo had been pregnant with Del and Jason had been overprotective. Getting involved on a personal level again with the capes had seemed like a terrible idea. After Mo healed Dick, John had stepped in and scrambled Dick’s memories. Dick been unconscious most of the time so there weren’t many. Then John had unceremoniously dropped a dazed Dick off on the manor lawn, which must’ve pissed Bruce off. 

Two years had not made this conversation easier. Neither had almost ten, though the emotions and reasons were different now.

It was supposed to be a chill day off since the library was closed and Artemis and Biz were off on a mission, hunting down an ancient Greek scroll. Jason and Mo had gone to lunch and a matinee showing of The Outsiders while Roy babysat. They were supposed to get delivery with Roy and Lian before going home, which was currently a few blocks away, where the library was magically attached to what had been an abandoned firehouse. 

When they had gotten back to Roy’s place and he said that Dick had unexpectedly stopped by and had been there for a while, Jason had gone into fight or flight mode because Del was inside. Mo had said he should think about it. He knew she had meant to take a minute and consider telling Dick, but he’d assumed Roy had spilled the entire story to Dick. 

Which was sort of a shitty thing to assume after Roy had kept his secret all these years. 

But Dick didn’t know jackshit and he seemed to be freaking out just like Jason, who had no idea what to say.  

“You’re alive? Did you—were you—how—” 

Roy grimaced and rubbed the back of his neck. “It’s complicated.”

“You knew. How long?” There was a deep betrayal in that question. 

“Don’t get all pissed at Roy, I asked him to not tell you,” Jason said. And it had cost Roy a lot to agree to that. Zee had a similar problem since she had to keep it from Bruce, who was her friend. 

“A long time,” Roy said honestly, “You can be mad at me all you want, that’s fine, Dick, I made my choice, but I need you to go ahead and accept reality.”

Dick jerked his gaze away from Jason and dropped his head into his hands. Yeah, Jason knew how that felt. 

He felt Mo’s fingers pressed gently against his back again. Earlier she had whispered that Dick was acting like he was imagining Jason. Which meant Jason had to prove that he was real or at least try. 

Jason moved forward, slowly, like he was approaching a wounded animal. “Dickwad. It’s me.”

Dick startled and lifted his head from his hands. “I don’t understand,” he said, “This—why?”

“That’s a long story,” Jason said, “And I think your head is going to explode if I tell you today.”

Not to mention that Jason didn’t think he could do it right then. He was reeling and barely holding it together.

“I want to know,” Dick said.

“I get that, and I’ll tell you but not here or now,” Jason said, making up his mind in that moment. He might’ve been an idiot and rushed into this, but Mo had been right, he needed to think before acting and he really did think Dick needed some time to process. He looked on the edge of shattering, and Jason didn’t want to push him into that with everything he had to say.

“Yes, now,” Dick said, sounding desperate. “Please, Little Wing, you don’t understand.” He grabbed Jason’s arm, and his eyes widened. “Holy shit. Holy shit. I’ve never been able to touch you before—”

Jason couldn’t stop him. Dick, nimble and fast and strong, yanked him in and wrapped him in a bear hug or as much of one as he could manage. Jason was taller and broader than Dick now. Dick’s shoulders shook, and Jason realized he was crying. Oh hell, he’d broken him. 

“Dick, you big crybaby…” Jason patted his brother’s back, feeling awkward and like that street kid who had forgotten how to accept affection again. Except nowadays he wasn’t touch-starved or lonely or trying to prove himself. Dick had been like this two year ago too, and Jason had been overwhelmed by the reaction. It had gotten him thinking about reconnecting because Dick had actually missed him.

Before that, Jason had assumed they had moved on without him. And then there was the whole issue of Damian, who had been left by Talia at the manor a year ago according to Roy. Jason didn’t remember a lot about his time with the League, but he had good memories of Damian. The kid wouldn’t remember him, Jason didn’t think, but Jason wanted to see his baby brother again. 

“Jason,” Mo said in a light tone, “You can tease him later, when he’s feeling better.” Aka, Dick was fragile right now. Part of Mo’s healing magic made it easier for her to read people, and she was also trained to do it, thanks to her adoptive parents, a con-artist mage and a stage magician. 

Jason let Dick hug him until he finally let go right when Jason was ready to actually return the hug. Dick somehow looked even more shocked. “You’re actually here. Where have you been? How are you alive and what’ve you been doing and when did you get married? How old is Delaney?” He didn’t bother drying his tears. 

“I’ll tell you,” Jason said, “Just not today.” He felt like life was shifting again, as if Sisyphus’ boulder had rolled away and was barreling toward him and it was his fault for not taking a moment before confronting Dick. Because now that he was talking to his brother, that meant eventually he would have to talk to Bruce. 

Fuck. It was happening.

Dick was holding onto his arm, but Jason pulled away. He thought fast, knowing he needed to give Dick a time and place, something meaningful. “Meet me two nights from now at eleven where we patrolled together for the first time. Don’t bring Br…don’t bring anyone. And don’t try to get information from Roy.”

Dick looked torn, like he was trying to come up with a plan on the spot, but Jason didn’t know what that plan was, which automatically put him on edge. He knew Dick wouldn’t intentionally hurt Del or Mo, but—

Jason summoned an All-Blade and then transformed it immediately into an All-Key. He looked over at Roy. “This could’ve gone better.”

While Roy looked tired, he also looked relieved, as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. “I think this wasn’t a complete clusterfuck. I’ll keep an eye on the bird.”

He wasn’t sure what he had done to deserve a friend as loyal and good as Roy.

“You owe the swear jar a dollar for an F-bomb, Roy,” Mo said as she walked over to join Jason. Delaney was playing with Mo’s hair.  

“The price went up?” Roy asked, putting a hand to his chest even as he moved to get in-between Dick and Jason’s family.

“Del’s starting to parrot words more. You should see what John and Zee have to pay for spells,” Mo said, “And we have to put Del through college somehow.” She hugged Roy, who squeezed her back. “Tell Lian we’re sorry we have to leave, we’ll be back soon.” 

“Don’t go yet,” Dick said, “Please.”
 
Peeking around Roy, she smiled gently at Dick. “You’ll see him again, Dick, I promise.” 

“I want to see all three of you—”

Not yet. “Don’t forget, eleven at the first patrol spot,” Jason said, putting the All-Key into the front door’s lock. His magic, All-Caste and Librarian based, surged into the All-Key, creating the portal spell that turned Roy’s front door into the door to the floor of the Athenaeum Infinite where he and Mo and Del lived. This was a tactical retreat. Del waved at Dick over Mo’s shoulder as Jason let Mo in first.

He heard Dick call his name one last time before the door closed. Jason realized he was trembling moments before he backed into the door and slid down it. The adrenaline was gone. 

Ahead of him, their own cozy den was made of hardwoods and shelves, with herbs hanging in bundles from the ceiling and blankets and pillows stashed in nooks. Trinkets from travels and adventures dotted the room out of Del’s reach. Her toys were scattered around. 

Delaney babbled something about a bunny and Lian as Mo set her on her feet. She wandered over to a basket of cloth books. 

Jason caught Mo’s hand and drew her down into his lap, looping his arms around her. She tilted her head back and kissed his jaw before turning and cupping his face with one hand. “You’ll be okay. I’m proud of you. Except when you called your brother a crybaby.”

“’Cause he is.”

“Mhmm, and you never are.” Mo brushed her thumb under his left eye, swiping away a tear that had escaped. 

He kissed her properly. She tasted like blackberries and the sweet-tart tang of her healing magic. Jason started to calm as he held her, and they watched their daughter play with her books. Mo and Del were his home, his family, his everything.

Nothing anyone said or did or didn’t do could change that.