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Being snowed in wasn’t on Dick’s yearly patrol bingo card. Yet there he was, stuck in a safehouse with Jason.
“This is bullshit.” Jason wasn’t happy with the development.
“This was closer than the cave, and you were bleeding out pretty badly, Little Wing.”
“Bullshit.” The two brothers were staring out the window, watching the snow fall. In the few hours that they were cooped up in the safe house, snow had completely blocked the door. It was deep enough and snowing so hard that they couldn’t justify trying to climb out the window with a still very injured Jason.
“I’ve let Babs know we’re stuck, the rest will be here in the morning to try and dig us out.” Jason swore again.
“Fucking great. We’re stuck in a safe house with frozen pipes, a broken heater, and no food. We’re in a fucking casket, Dickhead.”
“Hey.” Dick grabbed Jason’s shoulders. “We’ll be fine. Bruce will get us out in the morning.” Jason scoffed.
“That’s what I thought back then, too. Don't hold your breath.” Dick inhaled sharply.
Jason… wasn’t exactly wrong.
“He didn’t know you were…” Dick cut himself off, jaw tightening. “He didn’t mean for you to die.” He tried to defend.
“You want to do this now?” Jason let out a bitter laugh and spun towards Dick. “But I did. I did die.” Dick swallowed, scrambling to try and salvage the conversation.
“I know, but-”
“No, you don’t.” Jason snapped. “You weren’t the one blown up, begging for Bruce to save you. You weren’t the one in the ground. You weren’t the one he replaced.”
“That’s not…” Dick took a breath. “I didn’t replace you. No one did.” Jason’s shoulders slumped.
“Sure felt like it.” His voice was filled with a bitterness that had Dick wincing.
“I failed you.” Dick said quietly. “All of us did. And Bruce… he made mistakes. Big ones. But losing you broke him.” Dick sat heavily on the beat up couch. “I can’t even describe how guilty I felt for being off planet when it happened. When Bruce told me…” He ran his hands over his face. “I thought that maybe if I was there it wouldn’t have happened. That it was my fault it did.”
Jason was quiet for a long moment.
“You weren’t there.” Jason said finally, voice lower now. Tired. “But neither was he. Not when it mattered.” Dick nodded in defeat.
“I know.” That seemed to take some of the fight out of Jason. Dick watched as he paced for a second, before stopping like he had hit a wall.
“I waited for him.” Jason whispered, staring at the floor. Dick’s heat panged at the tone in his voice. “I kept thinking… any second now. He always comes. He always finds us.” Jason’s jaw clenched. “He didn’t.”
“I’m sorry,” Dick said. He didn’t try to defend Bruce this time. Jason turned to him with a bitter look on his face.
“What, not gonna defend him? Tell me that he tried?” Dick shook his head.
“I’m tired of defending him. I’m tired of pretending that I’m not angry too. You’re my little brother.” Dick whispered, tears in his eyes. “I was so angry that he didn’t tell me it happened.” Jason stared at him like he didn’t quite believe what he was hearing, and that broke Dick’s heart more.
“You’re… angry at him.” Jason said slowly, as if he thought Dick would take it back. Dick huffed a weak laugh, scrubbing at his eyes.
“Yeah. Turns out I’m human. Shocking, I know.” He looked up at Jason again, expression raw. “I was angry he didn’t call me. Angry he didn’t tell me right away. Angry that when I finally got back, you were already-” His voice broke. “Already gone.” Jason shifted his weight, clearly uncomfortable with the direction this was going.
“You don’t get it.” Jason muttered. “You still had him. Even after. He was always there for you.” Dick shook his head.
“I had a ghost. He barely spoke for months. He kept your suit in a glass box like it was… like it was proof of a crime scene.” He swallowed. “And every time I looked at it, all I could think was that I should’ve been there to stop it.”
“Stop.” Jason said, quieter now. “You don’t get to put that on yourself. It’s him I’m angry at.”
“And you don’t get to pretend it didn’t hurt all of us.” Dick shot back, not unkindly. He softened almost immediately. “You weren’t replaced, Jason. Tim wasn’t a replacement. He was… trying to hold Batman together because I wasn’t there and wasn’t willing to do it.” Silence fell again, heavier this time. Jason lowered himself carefully onto the armchair opposite the couch, wincing as his injuries protested.
“You know,” Jason said after a moment, staring out the window, “When I came back to Gotham I thought… maybe I wouldn’t feel so angry if I saw you. Or Alfred. Or anyone.” He glanced at Dick. “I didn’t expect it to still hurt this much. To still be this angry.”
“I can’t fix it.” Dick said softly. “I can’t undo what happened to you. But I’m here. I’m not going anywhere. You can yell at me. You can be angry. But I’m just glad that you’re back.” He looked up. “I missed you, Little Wing.” He opened his arms slightly, offering a hug.
For a second, Jason looked like he might push him away. Instead, he leaned forward just enough for his forehead to rest against Dick’s shoulder.
It was enough.
“I missed you too, Dickface.”