It Takes One to Know One [Jason Todd x Reader]

8 // A Symmetrical Number

You didn't really know what was up with you, you'd been out of it all evening. The truck getting rammed had definitely triggered something. For someone who managed to shoot a gun at some weird thing in Middleton, whatever that creature had been (you'd forgotten the name, honestly), a collision shouldn't have shaken you this bad. For heaven's sake, you'd never been in an accident before! You'd seen a cop car get hit at the intersection of Federal and 120th, two other cars getting creamed alongside the police cruiser, but that was back home. This was here. Maybe that's why? Your first brush with almost-possibly-death in Gotham?

You knew signing up as a discount vigilante would have downsides, danger being a main one. You'd have a target on you, like Roy said, if you followed them into the night. Thoughts like this ran through your head as the boys and you found yourselves sealed in an underground bunker full of some of Jason's gear. It was pretty spacious. When they'd said your little group was headed for a safe house, you didn't realize it was going to be a WWII style bomb shelter, but hey. You aren't complaining. Security was good, especially right now.

With a heavy heart and still buzzing in the cloudy way your head has been, you managed to find a minute to drag Jason aside and hug him. The look he was giving you made it apparent he knew just how you were feeling, and with a small frown he pulled you into a bear hug. His arms were tight around your torso, his face in your shoulder. "You okay?" He'd mumbled out, although you both knew the answer.

"Maybe. I think so. I'm just, I don't know..." you trailed off with a sigh. Jason let out a small hum, letting you know he was listening. "I don't know why I'm feeling quite like this, if I'm to be fully honest. My head's a little hazy and I can't seem to focus."

"Shock will do that, _________. It's normal, trust me. The rest of us are used to it, it's why we can move on so fast." His voice was soft, uncharacteristically so. There was a hint of sadness that didn't go unnoticed. "A lot of us heroes and, well, anti-heroes, all have this. This moment, where everything falls into place, and we realize what truly matters. How small life is, and how insignificant we all are. We realize our actions can have big consequences, and in cases like us? We chose to do good with it. Or at least, if not good, morally gray." He laughed at his own joke, pulling back from the hug to look you in your eyes. "I've been meaning to tell you for a while, but part of the reason my attitude towards you changed so fast was because of a moment like that."

"You have a lot of moments when you're in the hero business, and I had one that reminded me that I was tired of always hating myself and how I am. You know as well as I do that I've died and come back, my death? That's another story for another time, but it was rough. I. I hated Bruce, was trained to loathe him because of the Joker. And despite it all my bond with B can never be what it once was. We can fix things close, or make things anew, but we can never have the past again. I want to be better though. I want to be happy. I'd been skirting along by with a self destructive attitude, but your cussing and bright self reminded me that that was a bad idea."

"Anyway," he said as he moved a hand up to your cheek. "My point is, this will come to pass. You'll look back, have a moment, and realize where you could grow. And then you will. And it'll be wonderful. Okay, _________?"

You nodded, taken aback. Jason has loosely explained once why he had had a 180 in personality, although it had been jokingly chalked up to you curing his depression. Having a more solid answer cemented a few things for you. Although one large question remained, despite it probably not being the right time for it.

"Where's the Joker now?"

Jason stiffened, a long sigh leaving through his nose as a conflicted look passed his face. "He's dead. And it's for the best. He hurt too many people to be allowed to live. We don't know who killed him, I wish it was me, but it wasn't-"

A call from the other room of the bunker brought you and Jason out of the hall you'd been talking in, Tim and Roy clustered together in front of the smaller's laptop. "So, status on all of this?"

You took a seat on the bed in the corner of the room, still a little fuzzy. Jason had bent over the back of Tim's chair, the three men talking strategy as you vaguely listened. From what little you knew, and what little you grabbed from their conversation, the Joker being dead for the past few years had made a power vacuum. People like Professor Pyg and Harley Quinn has been on the rise to take his place, even Riddler had been having a spike in activity. Bruce was talking with the boys the whole time, and a plan was formed.

Jason was to make a new persona as the Arkham Knight and use it to get into Black Mask's ranks to gather intel. Bad news? That meant limited contact with you for a while. Good news? Data would be collected on Roman and the why behind his resurgence. You didn't like this one bit, a scowl crossing your face as you flopped back on the bed. Sure, Jason wasn't technically your boyfriend, but it didn't change the fact that you didn't want him to be doing something so dangerous.

Just what kind of mess had you gotten into?

You were further annoyed when your phone buzzed. Pulling it from your pocket, you were met with a sight that raised your mood a little. Kori has texted, stuff with Blackfire having been settled.

«Hello darling! How goes the day?»

A distraction from this weird reality that left you empty feeling. A blessed distraction. You dove into conversation with the lovely girl, forgetting your momentary upset. Kori's way with words was unusual, yet you found yourself unwinding and getting back in touch with reality. She kept you grounded, despite her rarely ever touching the floor.

Bruce's voice continued to spill through Tim's speakers as you came to a resolve. "Batman," you spoke up, cutting over something dumb Roy said. "I want to help. What can I do?"

"You have no training, nor abilities. I should send you straight home, but with some guidance from Oracle you'd be a great asset."

"Could _________ learn from Babs in the clocktower while Jay goes undercover?" Roy asked, quietly adding on a moment later, "it would be safer than with me and Kori. The tower is practically the safest place in Gotham, minus your house."

"Manor," Tim corrected him. "It's a manor. Not a house."

"Bigass bungalow, try that on for size."

Bruce's staticky voice was back. "Enough, Arsenal. It sounds like a solid plan, I'll have Nightwing get in touch with her. We'll figure something out."

You thought back to what Jason said. You'd have your moment, and you'd help however you could. Little did you know the fate of Gotham depended on it, and you'd be faced with enough tragedy to make even the strongest of heroes crack.