Chapter Text
It was not the first time that Bruce and Dick's arguments had gotten out of hand. However, that night, there was something that bemused the sense of the inhabitants of Wayne Manor.
Dick had escaped more than once during patrols around the city, getting out of Bruce's sight and even leaving without his permission even when Alfred had allowed it.
The clues to Jason were scarce and the paranoia that the Joker had hurt him only increased the gap that little by little formed between the inhabitants of the mansion.
Summer had barely begun and Dick was already seeing his long-awaited vacation go to waste. Wally, Kid Flash, had insisted to not worry, that everything would be fine and that it didn't matter if he postponed his plans if his little brother's life hung by a thread. However, as much as he and Speedy encouraged him not to break down, Dick had already gotten into the bad habit of indulging in gloom and fatalism just as his mentor usually did.
It was the same thing that led him to escape from the mansion one night where the city seemed to be in harmony. Maybe the villains had gone on vacation just like what he wanted to do, or maybe they were planning their next attack... either way, the young Robin found an opportunity to empty his mind of all the troubles that were rising at home. If he could call it that. He didn't like arguing with Bruce in the slightest, but the man didn't give him any other way out, he was beside himself, completely absorbed in his frugal search without answers that blinded him to the things he was missing. At least Alfred was on his side, he wouldn't know what he would do without him.
Dick was sitting on the terrace of one of the old buildings that marked the boundary between present-day Gotham and Park Row, when he heard someone climbing the escape ladder with clumsy steps.
“Pst!!” a small voice called him from below. “Psst!!! Robin!”
A shock of blond hair was the clue that pointed to the identity of the little intruder.
Perhaps the relief he needed to put aside his bad mood.
"Robin!!!"
So, he decided to launch into action in a couple of acrobatic stunts and turns that left no doubt that he was the real Robin. The girl looked at him with hidden astonishment, still waiting for the hero to acknowledge her. In one last leap, Robin landed right behind the girl, startling her on the spot but making her laugh with delight as she marveled at the hero's acrobatics.
"Hey... Steph, right?"
The little girl nodded vehemently with a smile. “You remembered my name!! Jason said you would!"
Something bitter filled Dick's chest at the mention of the lost boy.
"How to forget it? You're already part of the family.” Robin gave him a warm smile.
"Reeeeaaaally!!!!???"
"Honorary family," the boy corrected himself. "Of course, that doesn't include wandering around Gotham at this time of night, little miss!"
"I had to, Jason's not here to accompany me, you know?" Steph averted her gaze, letting herself be invaded by sadness at the mention of Jay, whose situation terrified her after not knowing about his whereabouts. "It's not fair that he disappears overnight..."
Dick didn't know how to respond, noticing the forced disinterest that masked the immense sorrow Steph felt for the absence of her friend, who was more like an older brother to her. He understood that to a degree, for he also felt responsible for not preventing Jason from being kidnapped.
"But it's not to complain about Jay-Jay that I came here... I was looking for you because he said that if there were problems, I should do it."
Dick already imagined the worst, knowing that both Jay and Steph got into some pretty dangerous trouble and might even risk their lives just to play the hero.
“Do you need help with something dangerous?” Robin looked concerned.
"Yes and no? Partly,” Steph turned to her jacket pocket that barely shielded her from the night wind, pulling out a piece of paper that she quickly extended to the young hero. "I'm not the one in trouble, but they need your help."
"They?"
“Yes yes, they… there are others… the other children in the area. Jay helped them sometimes so they wouldn't be recruited by adults." Steph looked terrified. “They have been disappearing, one after another…”
It was a problem that he feared Steph might be involved in and in danger herself, that even her mother couldn't avoid despite her father being a D-list villain. Robin carefully scanned the address, at the same time planning some strategy to try to solve it without telling Batman. With all the drama going on at home, it was best not to involve his mentor, although he should let him know as he knew it could be related to Jason's disappearance. And he couldn't let down his almost brother who trusted him enough to reassure other kids like Steph that he could help them.
"OK…"
"You're going to help them, aren't you Robin?"
"Of course! Don't worry, we'll bring them all back” Dick smiled confidently.
Stephanie looked apprehensive, like she wanted to say something but couldn't find the right words to say it.
"What about Jay?" she asked shyly, her eyes brimming with tears. “Is…is it true that he's leaving Park Row? Will he live with Bruce Wayne?"
It was a relief for Dick to have the answer to that question, especially when Steph's contagious hope encouraged him to make sure Jason would return home safely.
"Bruce is his real father, Jay spent a lot of time away and now they must meet... But don't worry, I'm more than sure you can visit him as many times as you want", noticing that Steph's concern did not diminish, Dick continued to list the benefits that he himself knew of the mansion. “There will be games and a very large yard to run around in, and food, waffles at all hours of the day…”
He went on to describe many things until Steph was calmed down, convincing her that Jason wouldn't forget her as soon as he moved in with Bruce. About half an hour passed when Dick decided to take Steph back home, advicing her in a thousand ways that she must not leave the house those days until he could find the other children.
That same night, after returning home after midnight, Dick decided that it was time to put into motion the plan that had already been brewing in secret with his other friends, other teenage heroes who really wanted to show that they too could be just as good as their mentors in the Justice League.
Returning home, he was grateful that Bruce was away, still deep in search of clues everywhere the Joker had been, giving him time to talk to Alfred about the plan, gain his approval and his unconditional support, which encouraged him not to fall apart even though he knew it would put Bruce’s trust on the line. And as soon as he got everything ready, he called every one of his friends.
“Roy? Hey, it's Dick! Yeah... It's the time! And we got our first case… you in?”
Alfred didn't entirely approve of him starting his big project without Bruce knowing, but knowing that if he objected and scolded him more than Bruce did, he would be losing all contact with the boy, and he was genuinely concerned for his safety. Alfred would monitor them from the computer in the cave, he would give them resources, he would make sure that everyone was safe, including Bruce, who didn't want to let others help him when he now needed it more than ever. Alfred would take responsibility, he knew it was the least he could do until they found his grandchild. He knew it was only a matter of time, while he would try everything he could to prevent Bruce from losing another son if Dick got hurt trying, but he trusted the boy, well... if there was at least one thing they differed from each other, it was the way Dick trusted his friends to watch each other's back. And one way or another it was a great advantage with which he already surpassed his mentor.
░░░░░░░░░
A little over a month had passed by Jason's count since the day Sean had handed him the maps, time he had used to slip through various loops of ventilation that had even led him to rooms in the upper part of the building, the same ones that seemed unoccupied and even not discovered because of how neglected they were and because of the thick layer of dust that decorated every corner. In one of his adventures, he had found an opening that led directly to the room that served as Ma Gunn's office where he had already been more than once because of the scam they were committing against his father.
That's how Jason found a surefire way to find out what the woman was up to. On some occasions the information was not relevant enough to write it down on the few sheets of paper he had left; However, on the most recent occasions when he had gone up to peek on the other side of the wall, Jason had discovered that in addition to demanding huge amounts of money from his father, many other unfortunate parents lived through the same ordeal while surely waiting to find their children back, that among the most… simple within all the operations of the old woman. Well, on the scale of danger, his case was the most worrisome.
He had seen the Joker wander into Ma Gunn's office a few times, but only once had the clown managed to plague his dreams with nightmares. It was a day when the heat was abundant and made him somewhat tired from lack of sleep and food when he heard the maniac burst into a dark laugh, as if mocking Ma Gunn.
“Oh come on, Faye, you can go on with your winnings and I'll take care of the boy, it's a win-win! HAHAHAHAHAHA”. His words did not seem to please the old woman, but she remained impassive. "You can't deprive me of the best joke I can tell in my life, Junior must be a reality."
"Do your part and we'll see, Joker"
Jason couldn't sleep without seeing and hearing the Joker's maniacal laugh every time he closed his eyes. His only consolation was hearing Ma Gunn say that she would no longer use the Joker after Batman left him bedridden, nearly immobile, in his last fight. Jay was upset to learn that Batman had been wounded in battle.
The next major Ma Gunn meeting Jason had witnessed was when Sal Maroni walked in demanding to threaten Faye with payment from her, which was related to Jason's birth family, much to his annoyance. From what little he had heard, they wanted to take over the treasure that Norman Peter Madison, his grandfather, and later Julie Madison, his biological mother, had inherited for Jason. For some reason they suspected that Bruce Wayne would know where to find it and they wanted it for trading. The boy shuddered at the thought of what would happen if Ma Gunn ever sold him to the Maroni. Especially when Salvatore Maroni offered to raise the price for his head.
“I know you've seen it Faye, all of us involved know that. First Batman and now Superman, soon we'll have the whole damn Justice League looking for him, and I know even though Wayne has something to do with it they wouldn't do it if he didn't have something interesting. Just think about it… That boy is practically a gold mine!”
"Hmm... Don't worry about it Sal, I'll take care of Batman."
It terrified him just to think that Ma Gunn was considering it. However, upon hearing that Superman was also looking for him and perhaps the Justice League, a spark of hope ignited in his heart. He could soon be reunited with his family. He could soon come home.
He just had to find a way to resist, not just for himself, but for all the other children who dwelt in the hidden underground corridors of the fake orphanage.
░░░░░░░░░
Soon, the incipient group of Teen Titans established themselves in the heroic community after beginning to solve cases that the Justice League itself often ignored due to their "lack of urgency", so the kids managed to make their way to the top and endearing themselves to the people even though they had yet to hone their team skills, which, though Bruce found it hard to admit, worked better together than the adult superheroes had when they first founded the JLA.
To say that Bruce was proud was an understatement, as he knew that sooner or later Dick would become a better hero than he ever could. Even so, the boy had decided that leaving home was the best option after so many arguments that ended badly because of his paranoia. Surrounded only by the solitude of his empty mansion, since Alfred gave him the silent treatment and preferred to monitor Dick, Bruce felt desperate and on the verge of breaking down. His family was falling apart and he still hadn't heard from Jason.
He knew that Dick was looking for him in the company of his group of friends, while he and Clark were busy closing the loose ends of everyone involved with the extortionist. He had received a total of three calls where he had been able to speak to Jason before he was no longer allowed to. And man, trying to track the disposable phones was distracting him a lot more than he wanted to admit. Well, ever since his confrontation with the Joker, he had overlooked his duties with the Justice League.
As soon as the psychopath was back in a cell in Arkham, a chain of events was unleashed that neither Bruce nor Clark could make sense of when the Batcave's monitors went off announcing an important call from the Watchtower. Some readings in the distant cosmos had alerted the Green Lartern Corps that their universe could be in crisis. Much more when, after answering the call, two versions of Mr. Terrific greeted them on the other side of the screen.
“Hnn. Don't have time for this,” said Bruce, dismissing the call and walking up to the room where he had every collected evidence from his missing son's case, and proceeded to ignore the call.
Clark, on the other hand, agreed to attend the urgent meeting, albeit reluctant knowing that leaving Bruce in the state he was in was like leaving a time bomb waiting for anyone to detonate it.
However, just when only two hours passed right after Clark was transported through the Z tubes to the Watchtower, when an agitated and rather anxious Superman returned to the great mansion, exalting Alfred in the process.
“Master Clark, to what I owe the new hole in the ceiling?”
"I'm sorry Alf, but I have to look into this," he said sadly, looking around the room for Bruce. When he was sure that his friend was not in hearing range, Clark dropped the bombshell they were facing alongside the JL. "Even though I know he'll be upset by this, I have to go for him too," he said, still confusing the butler. “I'll be back as soon as I can, but this is urgent because…”
The reluctance to say it only gave Alfred a bad feeling.
“I understand, Master Clark, you don't have to say—
“No, no, it's just… Bruce should know, when he gets better. Please.” Clark took a deep breath to brace himself. “The Joker, from another universe, made another version of us, the league… suffice to say, they crossed the line and had been terrorizing people. Mr. Terrific is going to contact you in case something happens, okay?”
"Master Clark" Alfred felt as if a bucket of cold water fell on him. The implications of what Clark was saying were enough to make Batman completely snap. "I understand".
Superman turned to leave, being stopped momentarily by Alfred's gentle hand on his shoulder.
"Surely Jason will want to meet you, we ill be awaiting for your return"
Clark nodded, giving him a warm smile and setting off at the speed of sound towards his mission.
None of them knew that things might get tough once Superman was gone.
Well, it was a mystery that no one was aware that their current reality had changed a long time ago...
And Jason's life was on the line as the decisive day drew closer.