Batfamily Short Stories

Dead And Gone

Jason collapsed onto the couch in his apartment, a sore wound from last night's patrol covering his left side.

Bruce had been dead and gone for weeks now. They had had the funeral. Jason hadn't even really show up until the end, but he stayed longer than anyone else, leaving the shadows of the forest to crawl into the light of Bruce's grave.

He had even pulled some of the freshly laid soil aside and placed a batarang in the hollow before burying it again. It was the same batarang that Bruce had used to night Jason had revealed himself as the Red Hood. Bruce had thrown it mere centimeters from his face in an effort to distract him from Tim. The Replacement.

Jason had been so embittered at that time in his life, and burying that batarang with Bruce was his way of trying to bury the hatchet between them.

Jason didn't say anything, but he let a few stray tears fall onto the dark soil. Not that anyone but the dead would have known.

It was just over a month later since the funeral by now. Jason had gotten over his desire to prove himself a better Robin than the replacement quite some time ago, but it still flared up every now and then. However, he was also finally getting along with his so-called family. All it took was the death of the man who had given them purpose in the beginning. In the wake of Batman's death, his kids had been tasked with the impossible. Keeping Gotham safe without him. 

Forcing himself to his feet, Jason moved into his bedroom. His mattress might be lumpy, but it was far better than his couch.

Not even bothering to pull back the covers, Jason eased himself onto the bed, being careful with his fresh wound, and curled up on his uninjured side, holding a pillow tightly to his chest. He hadn't even bothered taking off a lot of his body armour, but he could do that later.

Right now, all Jason wanted to do was sleep. All that he could do, however, was think about Bruce.

He thought back to the few memories of being Robin that the Pit had left him with. The thrill. The excitement. The responsibility. He had loved being Robin almost as much as he had loved life itself. Funny how Robin had been the end of his life after all.

Before he realized what was happening, Jason found tears running across the bridge of his nose and down the side of his face, leaving a cold wet patch on his pillow. He took a heavy, shuddering breath, which caused his wound to ache, when he heard his bedroom window sliding open. He should have heard someone approaching before now.

His eyes flicked to the mirror, only allowing himself to relax when he saw Cassandra's form straighten up inside his room.

"What are you doing here?" Jason asked, mentally cursing his shaking breath.

He felt the bed dip slightly under Cassandra's light form.

"You're sad."

The words were so simple, and true, which is why Jason hated them.

"Go home, Cassie," Jason demanded, letting his gaze fall back on the plain wall of his bedroom. He felt more tears form in his eyes.

But Cassandra inched closer, "You miss B?"

Jason's fist clenched, even at the simple nickname, "I don't want to talk about it."

"I miss... Him, too..." Cassandra whispered, struggling slightly with her words.

At that, Jason suddenly cursed himself and his previous words. Of course Cassandra was hurting. Bruce was her father, too.

Reaching over his shoulder carefully, Jason took Cassandra's hand, murmuring, "I hate you."

He didn't mean it, of course, but the words had become a replacement for "I love you". The duo had used the phrase jokingly, but they both knew the true meaning behind it.

Jason felt Cassandra curl up behind his back, resting her head on his shoulder and draping her free arm around his body, which was massive compared to her own.

"I love you, too." Cassandra whispered.