Tag: jason todd

Comfortable | Oner

I just remembered, that time at the market
snuck up behind me and jumped on my shopping cart
And rode down, aisle 5
you looked behind you to smile back at me
crashed into a rack full of magazines
they asked us
if we could leave.

Jason and Zatanna were at Whole Foods, buying groceries. He was in the produce aisle, picking out avocados. Zatanna was off in dairy, picking up mozzarella and cheddar blocks. She tossed the items into the basket, taking advantage of the fact that Jason’s attention was elsewhere. She hijacked it, hopping onto the back and coasting down the store. Jason looked up, watching as Zatanna flew down the slick floor, her head turned back in his direction. Crash! The stand that held the newspapers and gossip racks was spread across the floor, cashiers and customers in disbelief at the grown woman, extricating herself from the wreckage. A very unhappy middle aged woman, stomach bulging over her belt, came storming out of the back, demanding that Zatanna leave. Jason politely agreed, and they left the store in tears from laughter.

Can’t remember, what went wrong last September
Though I’m sure that you’d remind me, if you had to
Our love was, comfortable and
 so broken in.

“Zatanna…” Jason pleaded with her as she tossed her things into a bag at the Complex. “No, Jason. I’m through with you. You need to deal with this. I can’t wait here while you figure it out.” She shut her suitcase, placing a hand on her hip. “Deal with who you are, because I can’t do it.” Jason looked at her, tears filling his eyes. “This is who I am, Zat. I’m the Red Hood, what else can I say?” She bit her lip to stifle the insults. “Then goodbye, Jay. Good luck finding someone to accept you.” With a clicking of boots on hardwood, she was gone, leaving Jason to himself and his demons.

I sleep with this new girl i’m still getting used to
my friends all approve, say she’s gonna be good for you.
They throw me,
high fives.

Roy and Kori were at the Complex early in the morning, on a Saturday. They had skipped patrol for the night, mostly cause Jason had stayed out with a bartender he had met a few weeks earlier. Roy knocked on Jason’s bedroom door. A short woman, wearing boxers and a gray tank top, answered the door with a smile. “Hi there! I’m Lindsey. Jason is still asleep. Can I help you?” Roy was speechless. “I-Um-Hi, I’m Roy Harper. Nice to meet you?” Lindsey smiled. “Pleasure, Roy!” Kori stood a few feet away, silently watching the newcomer. Lindsey walked over to her, extending a hand. “Hello! I’ve heard so much about you! You must be Kori, right?” The princess didn’t say a word, merely nodding her head a fraction of an inch. Lindsey deflated a bit, but tried her best not to show it. “Well, I’m Lindsey. Jason speaks very highly of you.” Meanwhile, Roy was animatedly talking to Jason, raising a hand in congratulations for finding such a good looking girl. “Way to go, Jaybird! Nice!” Jason scowled. “Go away, Harper. It’s not like that.” Jason stood, walking out to make an official introduction to Koriand’r. Roy called out after him. “Whatever you say, man! She’s a ten!“

She says the Bible is all that she reads
prefers that I not use profanity.
Your mouth was,
so dirty.

Zatanna cursed loudly from the bathroom, a loud crash emanating from the tile. “Fuck, God dammit! I just broke my hair dryer.” Jason grinned from his seat at his computer, knowing how she got in times like this. “You gonna be okay there, babe?” Another stream of curses. “Screw you, Jason. I’d like to see you try this. It’s a damn shame your hair isn’t long enough to curl!” He smiled. “Yeah, what a shame.” He didn’t have to look at her to know she was flipping him the bird.

Life of the party
and she swears that she’s artsy

but you could distinguish
Miles from Coltrane
Our love was,
comfortable and

so broken in.

They had been invited to a get together at the Looper, a summer party hosted by Diego Otis himself. About a hundred people were there, and it had taken weeks to get Jason to agree to come. An hour in, Zatanna had found the stage, and a little less than sober, begun to perform unsolicited magic. The people laughed, but Jason scowled. She was always like this, this burning need to be the center of attention. A man catcalled at her, and Jason forced himself not to start a fight. Three hours in. Jazz played out over the loudspeakers, one of Jason’s favorites. Zatanna found him, loudly whispering to him about having suggested the music. She was always right about him, always. She knew him like the back of her hand, his ins and outs. You know, except for his past, or that he was the Red Hood. But she had an innate understanding of how he operated, of h is quirks and his personality. She knew that he hated crowds, and she respected his need for privacy. Never questioned his need for intel on the people she associated with. She loved him, and he her.

She’s perfect,
so flawless

or so they say, say

She thinks I can’t see the smile that she’s fakin’
 poses for pictures that aren’t being taken.

Lindsey was, as usual, unable to add anything to the conversation. Roy, Jason, and Kori sat around her in Jason’s den, drinking and exchanging stories. Theirs were ones of danger and excitement, about narrow misses and criminals that broached new levels of stupid. Hers were calmer, about the normal citizens. Roy was polite enough to listen, and of course Jason reacted as any significant other would. But Kori, distant Kori, sat in open annoyance, still refusing to warm to this stranger that knew their secrets.

I loved you

grey sweat pants,
no makeup,
so perfect
Our love was,
comfortable and

so broken in.

Zatanna was staying at the Complex full time now, and therefore had taken over a significant portion of the space for herself. She had taken to not wearing clothes when Dick wasn’t there, and Jason couldn’t complain. Even in the basest of clothes and fresh out of the shower, she was prettier than any other woman Jason had dated, and he had told her this, numerous times.

She’s perfect,
so flawless

Lindsey did everything she could to help the Outlaws, providing alibis, booze, and food whenever they needed it, never refusing to help, no matter the occasion or request. Even Kori had warmed up to her, and they had become quite the pair. Trio, if you counted Allison Brett. Jason knew all this, knew that he had found someone able to accept him for what he was, nothing less. Someone who was able to look past his profession, his flaws. Someone who wouldn’t leave him broken, like so many people had. Lindsey was the perfect woman for him, the girl that he had thought he always wanted.

I’m not impressed,
 I want you back.

Jason talked in his sleep on occasion, a habit that had driven Zatanna mad. Lindsey, however, never said a word about it, even as she fought back tears at his words. “No, she’s not the one. I still love you, Z. I still do.” She bit her lip and turned over. “It’s fine, just come back, please. I’m so alone…So lost without you. I want you to come back, please.” She got out of the bed, unable to bear his words any longer. She curled up on the couch, blanket and pillow wrapped around her. Finding a crappy movie, she prepared for a long night. Dawn came after what seemed like an eternity, and Jason awoke to find a tear stained face amongst tissues and blankets, sound asleep. It was the fourth time it had happened that month. She never told him why she cried.

The Airport Bar (It’s Not Far) | Jay and Isabel

Isabel
-Call me

He looked at the card, thinking back to Roy’s comment. He didn’t ask for the attention that the redhead so desperately wanted, nor did he really even welcome it. But from time to time, it was nice. Made him feel human, a part of the world that for so long had treated him like dirt.
He stepped off the plane, punching in her number as he waited for his bag. Roy, having packed nothing, was already on the way to the hotel to meet up with Kori, no doubt with sex and sleep in mind. He paused, his thumb over the send button, when he saw her across the airport, stewardess bag in hand. He sent the text.

Terminal Eight bar, back booth. Got a nasty case of jetlag, so I’ll be there until late.
-Jay

He grabbed his bag, tucking his phone into his suit pocket. Roy and Kori could wait.

Catherine Winick was barely 17 when Jason was conceived. Willis Todd, the father, was a high school dropout with a chest tattoo and a motorcycle, and Catherine fell in love instantly. She had come from wealth, but was cut off as soon as her parents got the call about her pregnancy. To manage, she started waiting tables at a strip club, while Willis dealt speed out of the back room. 
Soon enough, Jason was born, and Catherine moved up the ladder, getting the gig as the lounge singer at the club. Music is one of the things Jason remembers most vividly about her; she was always singing. From The Doors to Elton John to Rolling Stones, The Germs to Fleetwood Mac, she knew it all. 
Willis was busy making his way up the gang ladder, and so the task of caring for Jason was split between Catherine and the dancers and bartenders at the club. When Jason was two, Willis was arrested; Catherine was left alone then. She started dancing to pay the bills, and heroin to forget. She stopped singing then.
Years later, and Jason has only brief memories of those years. Pulsing lights. A bass line that made his teeth rattle. Soft lullabies, cooed into his ears. The ladies that were so nice, the ones in robes and swimsuits. His first record, Dire Strait’s Brothers in Arms. He remembers being on center stage, long after any patrons remained. Sitting on the thick plexiglass, feet sprawled out, back against the chrome pole. He was happy, even though logic tells him it wasn’t right.
After his return to Gotham, he bought the club, long since shut down. He demolished it, and put in a shelter for women and children facing drug and alcohol addiction. Called St. Catherine’s, it sees over 10,000 visitors a year.

For some time after Jay left Rome, he was lost, unsure of his direction. Using his talents as a mercenary, he started a small business out of the warehouse Talia had gifted him, going by word of mouth. He racked up a few dozen hits in Gotham, and attracted the attention of Thomas Elliot, M.D. Tommy, or as he introduced himself to Jason, Hush, came to the warehouse, asking for a simple answer.
Is Batman’s identity really Bruce Wayne?
Of course, Jason was able to answer that with ease, and did so. He saw in Tommy the same hatred, the same pain, the same rage that Jason felt. Hush had his direction; ruin Bruce’s life.
They worked out a deal. Fifteen million, cash, for proof. 
The deal was completed within a week, and Jason shut down his warehouse killer-for-hire operation soon after. He poured the money into construction a new company, Redstone Security. It focused on building a network of ex-soldiers, analysts, scientists, and developers, all working towards advances in technology, security, and weaponry. Simply put, he created a private army for hire, contracting with the government and foreign entities. The Research and Development department focused on engineering gear for his new persona-the Red Hood. His new direction of saving Gotham, one bullet at a time, was starting. With profits from Redstone, he purchased the Complex, cementing his presence in Gotham.
He didn’t see Tommy again for many years, but that’s a story for another time.

The Fall of the House of Todd | Oner

After the perishable food ran out at the Todd apartment, after the smell of her body had leaked out of the bathroom, permeating to the other rooms, Jason left. He put on the last clean clothes he had (blue jeans, a white t shirt, and a red long sleeved hoodie), packed a bag (peanut butter and a loaf of bread, a blanket, one picture of his mother, from when she was in high school, and a wallet full of money pilfered from the many, many men that Catherine had brought over in the last two years), and was gone before the landlord came knocking. 

The first night, he slept in a drainage ditch behind the grocery store. The second, a stoop in midtown. After a week, when the temperature dropped into the low 40’s, he’d convinced a nice lady that he was just lost, thank you, and could I please use your phone? He’d cut the line before he’d knocked, anyway. After that, he moved from neighborhood to neighborhood, perfecting his grift by the fifth house. 

All too soon, true winter was upon him. He needed shelter, and soon. No adult would take his money, so he learned to break into cars. He’d use the heater for a night, and leave just after sunrise. This got him through several hard weeks, although not before he was discovered three times (two times, an early commuter; once, an overzealous guard dog). He’d managed to escape, but those neighborhoods were unusable after that. 

After five weeks, he met a drug dealer named Johnny Zip, one who didn’t care that he was six years old. Johnny took Jason in, with the caveat that Jason helped him pull off scams and cons. He agreed, if for no other reason than he was hungry and cold. Soon, they moved up to stealing car tires, using Jason as a lookout. Who’d suspect a six year old in a crime, right? In any case, it worked, and Johnny Zip got rich, at least by his standards. Enough to move on, and leave Jason alone again-reinforcing his need for self reliance.

Zip had taught him enough to survive, however, as Jason now knew how to remove tires and steal cars. Soon enough, he found an unscrupulous chop shop that didn’t care where the cars came from, and Jay was in business. He brought them five cars a week, and they let him sleep in the garage, after closing time. The room wasn’t warm, but it wasn’t cold, either. The man who ran the shop didn’t like using a kid, but why should he care what happened to Jason? The kid was useful, that’s it. 

Like all good things, however, it came to an end. The garage was raided the second week of spring, and Jason escaped into the night, his jeans tattered, hoodie torn, and wallet still ensconced in his bag, albeit lighter.

Now that it wasn’t winter, he found himself able to sleep on the streets again. With no source of income, he again resorted to pickpocketing and stealing food, having mastered these skills before most children could read. Soon enough, with three weeks until summer, he found himself again working for a stolen parts garage, this one in uptown. Nicer cars here, and nicer people. Many of them left the cars unlocked, even! It almost wasn’t fair. 

Jason had grown by now, able to jack up the cars, loosen the bolts, and remove the tires by himself. This too, worked for him, although he demanded a 15% cut for the profits. They gave it to him, mostly because they felt sorry for him. 

They shouldn’t have. At seven years old, Jason was stronger, faster, and smarter than any other child his age. When the garage shorted him $250, he tipped off the cops. All fifteen employees were caught, and sentenced. After they had left, he used his (stolen) key to open the office. 
Hello, housing.

It was almost the end of fall when Jason ran out of money. He’d known it was coming, planned for it. Again, he was forced to steal cars to live, a decision that did not please him. The first car he took, this time, was a Rolls Royce, a silver model. He was already under the dashboard when a strong hand pulled him out, tossing him against a brick wall. Without thinking, he raised his fists, looking unflinchingly into the eyes of a tall, willowy woman with olive skin. Her expression was not of pity; this alone was why Jason didn’t strike at her. 

The woman was Talia al Ghul.