brucewaynehater101

[brucewaynehater101]

skirting just under the finish line for @90skonweek ! i've been crazy busy all week but i just had to get something out for my favorite era of my favorite guy... consider this originally for day 3's prompt: media!

[brucewaynehater101]

Hello! I have have been writing a fic based on a post you made back in August. However, I’ll be honest, I did take a very different turn and it’s more of a loose take on yours and has a much darker/ horror feel. That being said, I still want to give you credit on AO3 (I have posted any of it yet). Do you have an account there I can credit? Also, I won’t publish it until I have the whole thing figured out, since I want to make sure everything flows. That being said, I already have over 40k words typed and only need another 10k - 15k to conclude it before editing and posting. Love your posts!!!

Hello!!! 👋

I absolutely love seeing works others create and feel honored when folks take inspiration from stuff I've posted.

If at all possible, I would like to know which post you're referencing. I am also a huge fan of horror and am excited to see your work ^^

My AO3 account is OneoftheUnknown. Credit isn't required, but it would be super cool to see your work whenever you publish it.

I hope the rest of your editing/writing is fun and turns out the way you hope 🖤

[brucewaynehater101]

Please please please give me tim drake who has always wanted a little brother. Give me tim drake who was so excited to have damian as a little brother. Give me Tim drake who was heartbroken that damian hated him. Give me Tim drake who gave up on his dreams of being the best older brother.

But also give me Tim drake who was so happy when duke came into the family and was happy to meet him. Give me Tim drake who has to experience the awe and admiration Duke has for him because HE is Duke's robin. Give me a Tim drake who FINALLY gets to be the older brother he always wanted to be.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE GIVE ME A TM DRAKE WHO TEACHES DUKE HOW TO BE A DRAKE, WHO TEACHES DUKE HOW TO ACT AT GALAS AND INTERACT WITH HIGH SOCIETY LIKE JANET TAUGHT HIM.

(No pressure, I love your work so much)

hi anon !! tysm for the ask and sorry it took me a minute to get to it, but I had so much fun writing this, and this was such a brilliant idea! <3

Tim always wanted a little brother.

Not to boss around or dump chores on—he just liked the idea of it. Someone to look after. Someone to share things with. To protect. He grew up alone in a house full of silence and secrets, and maybe he thought a little brother would make it all feel a little less cold.

So when Damian came into the picture, Tim was excited. Really, genuinely excited. Damian was younger. He was new. He was Tim’s chance to finally be the older brother he’d always wanted to be.

Except Damian… hated him.

From the start. Didn’t even hesitate. It was instant, razor-sharp disdain. Like Tim had done something unspeakable just by existing. Just—rage and rejection and contempt.

And Tim—he didn’t know what to do with that. He tried, at first. But everything he did just seemed to make things worse. So eventually, he stopped trying. He let the silence settle between them again, let the distance become a wall, and then a canyon.

And eventually, it just felt like—he’d never had a little brother at all.

Then Duke joined the family.

Younger than Tim. Bright. Smart. So much potential. And Tim didn’t let himself hope. Didn’t reach.

So he stayed polite. Friendly. Civil. He helped Duke when he asked, guided him when it was needed. But he kept that emotional distance. Just in case. Just in case Duke ended up hating him too.

Except… Duke didn’t.

Instead, Duke started standing by him at events. Letting Tim take the lead. Letting Tim show him the ropes of high society and backhanded condolences.

Tim noticed the way Duke mimicked his posture, his cadence, his etiquette. Like he trusted him.

And something in Tim—hope. It sparked again.

He started softening. Started doting. Just a little. Then more. Checking in. Saving him the good snacks. Making sure he wasn’t left behind in the chaos of everything.

And one day, Duke tells him— “You were my Robin. Not Dick. Not Jason. You. I always looked up to you.”

And that—Tim has to sit down. Because. No one’s ever said that to him. No one’s ever meant it like that. He’d never expected to hear it from anyone, let alone from Duke—the kid he hadn’t let himself hope for.

Duke likes when Tim teaches him how to be a Drake. When Tim smooths his collar and reminds him to arch one eyebrow when a socialite says something snide. Duke notices the difference, too. Damian learns how to be a Wayne. But he learns how to be a Drake.

And Duke thinks he might actually like being a Drake, even more than he would a Wayne, at least. There’s something gentle about it. Something warm.

Tim looks at Duke and thinks: maybe this is what it’s supposed to feel like. Maybe this is what having a little brother feels like.

And it’s not perfect. It’s not how he pictured it when he was ten years old and lonely.

But it’s real.

And he wouldn’t trade it for anything.

[brucewaynehater101]

"The Sandpiper's Emergence" by OneoftheUnknown

“Your muse, hmm?” Geralt turns to face Jaskier once more. “My life's muse, I'm afraid. Others will come and go, but you, darling?” Jaskier lounges back onto the bed until he's propped up on his elbows. “I have a feeling you’ll be the inspiration that I return to.” ~~~ Geralt is Jaskier's life partner. Whether that's platonically, as fuck buddies, or some kind of romantic relation doesn't matter. Jaskier has followed Geralt for decades through heartbreak and laughter and love and despair. He'll follow the witcher for decades more as long as he's allowed to. Yet, it was Geralt who inadvertently taught him how humans scorn those they deem “other.” It was Geralt that inspired him to do something about that. This is their story through the decades, Jaskier's character growth into the bard who aids nonhumans, and all the little moments in between. Or Geralt unknowingly influencing Jaskier into accidentally starting a movement

;)

[brucewaynehater101]

Yes, Viki Vale and Alvin Drapper become professional rivals.

No, Viki doesn't know she's beefing with a child.

Investgative Journalist Tim Drake AU

Tim is a stalker. He found out Batman and Robin's identities at the age of ten. He found out several other superheroes/villains identities just to see if her could.

Upon figuring out these identities, he stumbles upon Clark Kent... and more importantly, Lois Lane.

See, Tim was solving GCPD cold cases in his free time. It's fun and helpful. The issues with this hobby, however, are trying to pass along his findings to Gordon and the fact that Batman already does this activity in *his* free time. His work is a little bit redundant even if it does help.

But then he reads some of Lois Lane's works. Then, he sees the direct impact they have on unearthing corruption, changing policies, obtaining convictions against powerful people, and bringing awareness to white collar crime.

Batman, Robin, and Gordon try to assist with those matters in Gotham, but their main priorities seem to revolve around violent crime.

And, well, Tim can anonymously post articles.

This leads to him hero-worshipping Lois Lane, utilizing his stalking skills to gather evidence, and becoming a well-known journalist and photographer under the alias "Alvin Drapper."

[brucewaynehater101]

Investigative Journalist Tim Drake AU

Tim is a stalker. He found out Batman and Robin's identities at the age of ten. He found out several other superheroes/villains identities just to see if her could.

Upon figuring out these identities, he stumbles upon Clark Kent... and more importantly, Lois Lane.

See, Tim was solving GCPD cold cases in his free time. It's fun and helpful. The issues with this hobby, however, are trying to pass along his findings to Gordon and the fact that Batman already does this activity in *his* free time. His work is a little bit redundant even if it does help.

But then he reads some of Lois Lane's works. Then, he sees the direct impact they have on unearthing corruption, changing policies, obtaining convictions against powerful people, and bringing awareness to white collar crime.

Batman, Robin, and Gordon try to assist with those matters in Gotham, but their main priorities seem to revolve around violent crime.

And, well, Tim can anonymously post articles.

This leads to him hero-worshipping Lois Lane, utilizing his stalking skills to gather evidence, and becoming a well-known journalist and photographer under the alias "Alvin Drapper."

[brucewaynehater101]

Y'all. Trying to post fics while on my phone is a pain in the ass. None of the italics or bolded words wants to copy over.

I absolutely refuse to scour 10k words for every single time I use italics.

[brucewaynehater101]

What the fuck kind of correction even is this?

[brucewaynehater101]

Y'all. I finished the first chapter of my long Witcher fic (it's currently at 65k words). Realistically, I should wait to post the first chapter until I at least have the second chapter done.

But emotionally, I just want to post the first chaper :/

So, poll time!

[brucewaynehater101]

Sorry, but I do actually think it’s possible to be a Batman fan without reading any comics. The comics are super fun! I encourage people to give them a try. Never underestimate the power of a universe you care about to get you to read a media you normally don’t enjoy. But there are:

Three seasons of Batman: The Animated Series

Three seasons and one movie of Batman Beyond

Three seasons and one movie of Batman (1966)

58 DC Animated Original Movies, many of which include Batman or Batman characters

Over a dozen live-action Batman-related movies, including the very popular Christopher Nolan trilogy and The Batman (2022)

Many novelizations of comic arcs, including No Man’s Land and Court of Owls

Batman video games, including Arkham Knight (and related Arkham video games) and Gotham Knights

Look, I get that the comics are the source material, the original, but…

Are you really going to say someone who has watched BtAS ten times and has an encyclopedic knowledge of it is “not a Batman fan”?

What about someone who is obsessed with Batman (1966) and knows all the details about it and has cosplayed as Eartha Kitt’s Catwoman?

Or someone who repeatedly plays through Arkham videogames and rambles on Tumblr about them?

Or a fanfiction writer for The Batman (2022) who has watched the movie more times than they can count and written 200k words of fanfic for it?

Or someone who has religiously watched every single DCAOM, most several times?

Or someone who is completely obsessed with that one Batman radio play and makes fanart for it?

Face it. Batman is a multimedia phenomenon. If you can be a fan without watching the movies, you can be a fan without reading the comics. I understand that it’s frustrating when someone who has no grounding in any canon starts talking about something being “out of character,” but…I find it ridiculous for people to claim that you can’t be a Batman fan if you haven’t read Batman comics. Because you can be. Unless in those scenarios I described above everyone is just a fan of Ratman instead.

[brucewaynehater101]

thinking about how tim’s friends react to seeing ‘bruce’ not react as strongly about tim’s death and even being downright suspicious about anything regarding tim in the body swap au which would lead to yj trying to subtly gather more information on how tim died and what led up to it while trying not to upset the rest of the bats even though they want to tear answers out of batman

Post for reference here ^^

I imagine Kon, Bart, and Cassie are all gripping each other to prevent themselves from kidnapping Batman and beating the shit out of him for answers. They don't want to hold back, but that's Tim's family. All they want to do is know why Batman is acting so sus about Tim's death (does that mean Tim isn't really dead???), but they don't have enough proof to hurt Tim's family. Yet.

This turns into them being passive aggressive to Batman whenever he's around and Tim (who's in Bruce's body) being hurt by his friends' comments. Tim also feels conflicted cause his friends don't know it's him, and that's Tim's fault.

[brucewaynehater101]

I would say it's both? Tim understands that others may make promises they don't mean and, considering that they are not fae, he doesn't blame them too much.

However, the more serious it is, the more he can't help but hold it against them. His loved ones would know this, though, and hopefully refrain from making promises to Tim or Tim's loved ones in front of him (because a broken promise between his loved ones probably also bothers him as a form of betrayal).

Some myths/folklores describe fae as having some sort of power when humans make deals. A promise could be considered a deal, so maybe Tim has some sort of magic that makes the promise legally binding even against non-fae?

As far as that angst scenario, yes. That would be extremely cruel and upsetting for Tim. Even worse would be if Tim was forced by an enemy to make a promise (say he had to promise to help a villain as long as they didn't harm his family).

hi!!!

AU Idea: fae!tim drake who very specifically treats promises as sacred. why? the ✨angst potential✨.

plus all the other stuff with tim being a fae, but i had the idea abt promises specifically

Hi!!! 👋

Fae!Tim has my entire heart and soul. The promises side of this is a wonderful addition. So, let's get into it ^^

For this AU, let's say Tim can lie. He's fae, but he can lie. The only issue he has (and other fae have) with lying is that it's painful, considered rude, and fae can usually tell when someone is lying to them. The pain and offense of the lie increases with how great or important the lie is.

The fae, however, keep this as a tightly guarded secret (that they can lie and that lying hurts them). Barely any non-fae know about it.

Unfortunately, Tim found out the hard way that not keeping promises, even when he intended to, counts as lying to their biology. He was in a considerable amount of pain when he found that out the hard way. Perhaps there's even a magical binding element to promises where he has to keep them or pay some price.

Tim thus very rarely makes promises. He doesn't do white lies, and he won't say comfort lies/promises of "you'll be alright." There are loopholes he utilizes, and he is very good at misleading or misrepresenting himself.

Nobody else in the batfam is fae. Only Tim. So, the Bats do not know that Tim can lie. Because, again, he rarely if ever does and it usually causes him pain.

The Bats do know that he's very careful with promises. Perhaps there was a moment where someone tried to use promises as a way to guarantee Tim would do something (like take care of himself), and Tim was hella pissed off for this.

Anyways, I think the others would have varying opinions about promises. Some say them off-handedly, some try to only mutter them in serious or important moments, and some try their damndest to uphold any promise they make.

The only batfam member to take it as seriously and sacredly as Tim is Damian. Whether that's because of how he was raised or because of his nature (dragon, angel, siren, or whatever), is up to you ^^

I just like the angst and relationship potential of Tim and Damian, who start off as enemies, learning to trust the other when it comes to promises. This one aspect they see eye to eye on.

[brucewaynehater101]

I've seen soooo many fics where little Tim Drake, for one reason or the other, eventually blackmails Bruce Wayne by threatening to reveal he's actually Batman. Usually, it's a last resort and an act of desperation, and he feels really guilty and bad for being mean to his heroes.

But my FAVORITE fics are the ones where little feral Tim decides threatening the richest and most powerful person in Gotham is the first line of defense, actually. IMMEDIATELY he resorts to blackmailing before anyone even knows wtf is happening. "Hello, Mr. Wayne, I'm Tim, I'm nine years old, and if you don't do the fuck I say right now your secret is out, bitch" every time I'm literally as gagged as Bruce

[brucewaynehater101]

hi!!!

AU Idea: fae!tim drake who very specifically treats promises as sacred. why? the ✨angst potential✨.

plus all the other stuff with tim being a fae, but i had the idea abt promises specifically

Hi!!! 👋

Fae!Tim has my entire heart and soul. The promises side of this is a wonderful addition. So, let's get into it ^^

For this AU, let's say Tim can lie. He's fae, but he can lie. The only issue he has (and other fae have) with lying is that it's painful, considered rude, and fae can usually tell when someone is lying to them. The pain and offense of the lie increases with how great or important the lie is.

The fae, however, keep this as a tightly guarded secret (that they can lie and that lying hurts them). Barely any non-fae know about it.

Unfortunately, Tim found out the hard way that not keeping promises, even when he intended to, counts as lying to their biology. He was in a considerable amount of pain when he found that out the hard way. Perhaps there's even a magical binding element to promises where he has to keep them or pay some price.

Tim thus very rarely makes promises. He doesn't do white lies, and he won't say comfort lies/promises of "you'll be alright." There are loopholes he utilizes, and he is very good at misleading or misrepresenting himself.

Nobody else in the batfam is fae. Only Tim. So, the Bats do not know that Tim can lie. Because, again, he rarely if ever does and it usually causes him pain.

The Bats do know that he's very careful with promises. Perhaps there was a moment where someone tried to use promises as a way to guarantee Tim would do something (like take care of himself), and Tim was hella pissed off for this.

Anyways, I think the others would have varying opinions about promises. Some say them off-handedly, some try to only mutter them in serious or important moments, and some try their damndest to uphold any promise they make.

The only batfam member to take it as seriously and sacredly as Tim is Damian. Whether that's because of how he was raised or because of his nature (dragon, angel, siren, or whatever), is up to you ^^

I just like the angst and relationship potential of Tim and Damian, who start off as enemies, learning to trust the other when it comes to promises. This one aspect they see eye to eye on.

[brucewaynehater101]

Vigilante named Rumor Tim anon here

For Stephanie, Tim would likely have tried to arrange matters to Arthur Brown is neutralized or at least kept away from Stephanie and her mom, maybe gotten them into witness protection, definitely gotten Crystal Brown help to be more independent, probably managed to help Stephanie avoid becoming a pregnant teenager by maybe getting the would be baby daddy arrested or something

Rather than Stephanie having her memories of another version of herself and living with that burden, maybe make her even more of an independent vigilante, if she even goes that way without the impetuous of her father

Not Spoiler in Star City, Stephanie giving Oliver Queen gray hairs as an independent vigilante who doesn't use a bow and is definitely operating in "his" territory, Stephanie standing up for Roy and maybe joining the Outlaws, Stephanie looking at Cissie and maybe taking a page out of her book and finding happiness and fulfillment with what she wants instead of feeling so powerless and frustrated with the system that she feels it's her responsibility to fix it (I understand why DC has kid heroes but kids should not be responsible for cleaning up the mess of the adults! Stephanie should not feel responsible for Cluemaster's actions! Tim is the Best Robin and an amazing vigilante but the adults should have stepped up!)

If C4 and Stephanie have the memories and impressions of other versions of themselves, it wouldn't lead to them incorporating Stephanie into YJ, it would probably alienate her further and honestly Stephanie and Tim on the same team with the burden of their history, it would take away the safe place that Tim has created for himself with his friends/family and Stephanie wouldn't find a safe place there either (he asked her to give him space! she did not give him space! she blew him up! she made his coming out about her and her feelings! that was not ok!)

Let her have a clean slate instead, a fresh start, Stephanie maybe not as a vigilante, not as someone who feels so powerless and so burdened by her parents that she feels like she has to be the one to fix it, but someone who can be more, someone who can build her own connections in the vigilante world with her own merit

Or if the Browns do stay in Gotham, Stephanie as future Dr. Stephanie Brown, medical doctor to vigilantes instead, taking up Leslie's mantle (kind of mad at Leslie for her helping to fake stephanie's death but it was sort of a witness protection thing so understandable but at the same time, jerk move)

Maybe Stephanie volunteering in Leslie's clinic and running into Cass there and building a friendship with the other girl outside of masks and hopefully not pressuring anyone and badgering them and being secure in herself to become trusted with Cass willingly, voluntarily, confiding in her, Stephanie not being Spoiler and always tied to the Cluemaster, Stephanie not being Batgirl and feeling as though she always has to prove herself and the Bat moving the mark so she can never reach it and using her as a tool to motivate the Robin he never wanted (I despise that Bruce told Stephanie Tim's identity)

Stephanie as Stephanie Brown, and that's enough

Or Stephanie as Kate Kane's protege, Batwoman and maybe Songbird? Or owlet, let Stephanie and Kate piss off the court of owls and if Stephanie has to have a vigilante name tied to a rogue, court of owls would be cooler than cluemaster, make cluemaster irrelevant to Stephanie, let her have an identity not tied to someone who hurt her personally

Post referenced here ^^

OH. You are entirely right, anon. Not only are you correct that Tim nor her would feel safe/supported with those memories and connection, but Steph should be able to exist outside of Tim. I didn't consider that part, so I appreciate your additions ^^

I can't decide between Star City, Doc Brown (particularly when we consider her mom), and Kate's protege. All three are beautiful, wonderful options for Steph.

Perhaps the Kate route would allow for YJ and Steph to become friends/associates while giving Steph the ability to stand independently from Tim (and Bruce).

[brucewaynehater101]

Just read the Power-Cancelling Bruce ask and aaaaaah. That idea is just so perfect.

All of the heroes think that Batman is being snobby and looking down on them when actually he's just trying to keep them safe. If people like Luthor or Waller found out that there's someone they can use to completely shut down metas they would do anything to get their hands on him. In this idea Bruce can't control his power it's something automatic like Superman's invulnerability, so he knows he's a liability to all others if captured. Furthermore, his powers are only effective against other metas, he has no particular advantage against regular human bad guys looking to use him for their plans (aside from you know, being Batman). He knows he's not easy to subdue, but he can't risk it.

This continues until the Titans are fighting against this meta supervillain and they're completely outclassed. Maybe something like Amazon where their meta ability consists in copying other super powers in a radius. The leaguers have to stay away for fear of making things significantly worse for the kids, until they see this black plane flying by. By the time they make it to ground zero of the attack, Batman is already gone but the villain is subdued and the Titans can't stop talking about how cool Dick's dad is.

On another note I think Bruce would be a lot closer with Oliver, Helena and any non-powered vigilante. I don't know whether he'd tell them or not (what do you think?) but just imagine the comedy of Green Arrow talking about his pal Bats, and how he's really such a sweet guy while the other's go "HE'S REAL?!?!/NICE!?!".

Another comedy potential is the sitcom logistics of his children's dating life. Especially if they don't know either. Dick thinks his dad is racist against aliens because he had no problem with him dating Babs but won't allow him to bring Kori to Gotham. They know he can't be homophobic because he had no problem with Jayson and Roy but he won't let Kon or Jon set foot in the city either ("See? He's racist, I told you all").

Also, Bruce developing some sort of parasocial relationship with the Justice League from spying on them (giving little mermaid vibes). Maybe he has to send Duke with one of them after he does his basic bat-training once he realizes he's a meta. Sorry, I just had so many thoughts and I wanted to share!

My questions are, who does he tell and when? How do the kids feel when they get to interact with metas for the first time? On the line of sending Duke away part time so he can reach his full potential, would he even know one of his kids was a meta? Is his power radius the entire city or has he found a way to amplify his power specifically in Gotham? Feel free to add any other thoughts, love your ideas!

Hello! The post being referenced is here ^^

I very much so vibe with Bruce having a close relationship with non-powered vigilantes/heroes and being practically a myth to powered ones. This is especially funny if you think of Green Arrow and Black Canary.

Also, this could become a cute Clark/Bruce fic where Superman is trying his hardest to become friends with Batman (the dad of Kon and Jon's friends!) while Batman is trying his hardest to run away from him.

Part of me thinks that Bruce would want the JL to have practice not having access to their powers during training. So, I'm debating how long he would keep his power from that purpose 🤔

Then there's the idea of who knows. The funny answer would be no one but Alfred. Not sure, though, particularly if we question how the power works. Does someone under its influence immediately know or do they only know when they try to use their powers?

Is Bruce aware when it affects someone? Since it is always on, perhaps he doesn't notice? I really am curious about the specifics of this power :/

As far as radius of power... While all of Gotham would be hella cool, a few of Batman's Rogues have some sort of power. They would have to move to another city if they could never utilize their power. Also, Duke would have to move too :(

So, I'm thinking the radius is naturally ~10 feet, but he can purposefully push it up to four miles? Does that seem like a fair estimate?

And I appreciate the ask! I love exploring ideas ^^

[brucewaynehater101]

.... I am so sorry.

CW: Angst, open/ambiguous/sad ending

~~~

It's raining.

Jason should be focused on the snarling group of armed men. He should be listening to their barked demands, to the croaking of the rope Robin is thrashing against, or to the shuffling of clothes and the sqeulch of mud as people shift around him. He should be calculating how many assailants there are, what weapons he has at his disposal, and the assistance Robin could provide. He should plan, defeat the group, silently communicate with the teen, or stall for backup. He should be paying attention.

But all he can think about is that it's raining.

Cold water is sliding down his face, his eyes safe only due to his mask. Lines of water carve down his chin, down his throat, down his back. The cloying scent of rain and mud threatens to choke him, as if the taste of mud is already on his tongue. As if he's swallowed the earth.

His hands ache, his bones stretching and creaking under ill-fitting, rough skin. He can feel every single fingernail. And he can feel the mushy, grainy, soft stain of wet dirt on his supposedly clean hands.

His gaze drifts down to his leather gloves. His clean, untouched leather gloves. They still protect his hands. They are still there to keep the mud from seeping into them.

"What's it going to be, Hood?" The leader of the gang rasps.

Jason's eyes drag themselves back to the gun pressed against Robin's forehead. The gunmetal has a distracting sheen to it with droplets slipping over its groves, across its barrel, onto the finger resting upon the trigger, and in between the rear sight and hammer. He can't bring himself to look at Robin, to see the panic on the kid's face.

"Well?" The woman jabs the gun further against Robin. "Are you going to decide, or are you going to make me choose?"

With narrowed eyes, she taunts, "Because you know what I'll choose."

Jason's head creaks as it twitches to make eye contact with her. His shoulders are nearly to his ears with their tense, nervous, aggressive posturing. His jaw pries open as his mouth jerkily forms the words, "I'll do it."

He doesn't look at Robin.

The bird shouts, "No!"

The woman merely chuckles as she jostles the bound teen in rebuke. The arm not holding the gun sweeps in front of her as she asks, "Well, what are you waiting for?"

Jason glances down at his legs as if asking them the same question.

"No!" Robin cries. "Hood, no! Don't do it!"

Jason slowly, shakily lifts his left foot. He maneuvers it ahead of himself. He sets it down.

"Hood!" Robin yells. He's frantically shaking his head and yanking at the grip of the man holding him.

The woman has a cruel, amused twist to her lips as she watches the floundering bird and the robotic movements of the crime lord. She has no mercy. She has no intentions to prevent her constructed comedy. She laughs, "Better hurry, Hood. You wouldn't want me to think you're stalling."

He lifts his right foot. He positions it ahead of himself. He sets it down.

"Hood, please! You don't have to do this!"

"You are correct, little bird," the woman purrs. With the gun, she drags the weapon down Robin's face in an affectionate manner.

The kid shudders, his face paling further while he's unable to pull away from her touch.

"He could let you die," she agrees. "Which will happen if he doesn't hurry up."

Somehow, Jason picks up the pace. He picks his left foot up and then places it forward. He repeats this with his right foot. His left and then his right. Left. Right. Left. Right.

"Just let me die, Hood! Don't do this. Please," Robin pleads.

Jason finally, finally stands before the hole. The rain has gathered in a small puddle at the bottom, the water murky from the mud and unable to reflect.

Across from him, on the other side of the pit, there's a slab of granite that taunts,

Here Lies Red Hood - At Rest

He peers down at the coffin nestled six feet below ground. It's open, the stiff wood seemingly staring back at him. It's soaked. It's starting to fill from the rain. It's so far below him. It's only six feet.

"Please," Tim sobs. "You don't even like me! Just let me die! Please let me die!"

The wavering whimpering is enough to draw Jason's eyes over to Tim. He can't tell whether it's rain or tears trailing down the kid's face. His lip is wobbling, his chest is heaving, and he leans forward as if he's trying to reach for Jason despite his hands being bound behind his back. Every single part of Tim asks, begs, wails at Jason to stop.

"He can't do it without you. He can't lose you again," the teen croaks. "Not again. Don't do this to him."

Jason stares at Tim.

"He won't survive this," Tim warns.

Jason's body shivers, his limbs trembling as he stands there facing a hurt, scared kid. A child he envies. A teen he loathes.

A kid.

Tim.

"Tik tok, crime lord," the woman prods. "Step in, or we'll drop the little bird instead."

Jason glances at her, at the squishy mud beneath his feet, at the pit, and then at Tim.

"Please," Tim wails. "Please."

Jason turns back to his grave.

He drops into the hole.

He crawls into the coffin and nestles himself between the wood.

He shuts the lid.

He closes his eyes.

He hears Tim's howling. He hears her laughter. He hears the rain pelting his coffin.

He hears the scrape of a shovel. He hears a wet thud land above him.

Then he hears another.

And another.