#resurrection of ras al ghul

[aliteralchicken]

yoink

[fancyfade]

oh okay so RRAG is *super* weird. It is technically canon at the time it was published. it also reads as OOC to me for Ra's, given that we see earlier Ra's prioritize his family's lives over his goals (note: not necessarily their wellbeing or feelings, but their lives). In an early plotline he kills a guy who shot (and nearly killed) Talia when she was betraying him, and after Tower of Babel he has the guy who shot Talia non-fatally in the leg fed to lions.

(There are ways I have to try to streamline/'fix" RRAG but :P that's besides the point).

Anyway I assume that by time new 52 rolls around, resurrection of Ra's al Ghul is no longer canon because IIRC they stop drawing him possessing Dusan's body.

Batman and Robin (2011), which has the issue #0 I posted a page from, is good for Damian and Bruce content. It focuses heavily on their dynamic. There are some writing decisions Tomasi made that I don't agree with, but I in general like it and it was fun to read.

Batman Inc Is not really good XD.

In my head for Damian's training, poor kid probably had next to no downtime (+comic book improbability at learning fast). Fortunately we see that he thinks that sparring and fighting is at least fun some of the time :P I headcanon that Ra's got pedagogy experts to try to help Damian learn some essential skills very quickly in his early years, rather than his later teachers who are specifically content experts (like world class chess master etc).

I think it's also notable that we see Damian doesn't have some of the skills that other kids have that they're developing when they do regular kid stuff. Damian has a hard time interacting with peers, we see in Batgirl 2009 he doesn't really know how to play. Like I guess the 'soft' skills he hasn't had a lot of time or experience developing.

OK I know this is beating a dead horse with regards to criticising dumb writing decisions but how did Tim get to be “the smart Robin” when damian had a PhD level education in economics at 10?

[umbrellajamming]

ok sorry I just have to yell about this real quick -

Nightwing (Vol. 2) #139 - The Resurrection of Ra's al Ghul, part 6 Dick: "I let you make the choice for yourself...because I knew you'd make the right one."

Dick didn't know shit, lmao!! "Because I knew you'd make the right one" my ass lol.

Let's rewind two minutes shall we:

Dick: "Tim... Listen... There are no easy answers... But you have the right to make the choice for yourself." || Dick (internal narration): "No-win. If I stop him, I don't trust him. If he goes through with it, I shouldn't have trusted him. C'mon, Tim..."

He doesn't know what choice Tim is going to make, whether his grief will overcome him and he'll take the Lazarus water or not, and has in fact been physically fighting Tim this entire issue to stop him by force. But ultimately he knows it's Tim's right to choose for himself, and decides to hope, and have faith in his brother.

And he has that faith rewarded, and reaffirms it afterward, despite the fact that he wasn't sure.

And paralleling that moment of "yes of course I knew you had it":

Red Robin (2009) #12 Dick: "How'd you know? How did you know I'd be there to save you?" || Tim: "You're my brother, Dick. You'll always be there for me."

TIM DIDN'T KNOW SHIIIIIIIIT HGKLJDKFLSD

At least not consciously! Being caught by Dick is certainly not something he planned for, as he seems to be trying to imply.

Again, rewind:

Tim (internal narration): "I did it. I saved the people he loved. I saved everything he worked so hard to build. No compromises. He won't say anything, he never does. But I know. I know that Bruce will be proud of me. Not a bad day." || Tim: (in the midst of pASSING TF OUT) || Dick: (swoops in and catches him)

Tim may not have actually known that Dick would be there. But that catch... A falling Tim being caught by Dick is a motif that occurs over and over and over across the years of their relationship. Why do I feel like there's a part of Tim, faint as he faded out, and much stronger when he woke up, that went, "Oh, it's Dick - of course if it was anyone, I knew it would be Dick"?

After their conflicts and miscommunications in this arc, after Tim sweeping back into town and explaining not a single thing as he races to thwart Ra's, despite Dick's frustrated pleas, after cutting Dick off with a simple, "Batman...trust me," and Dick's responding, "Of course"....

Tim feeling like he knew, even if he didn't know, or plan, or expect. Because that's his brother. And choosing to express that trust, after Dick chose to trust him...

Just. Dick and Tim. Verbally reaffirming their faith in each other, even after in-the-moment doubts. BROTHERS. My emotions.

[zahri-melitor]

Tim’s life slogan.

[scarlethood]

DC has the ultimate punnentt square of responses to resurrection in Donna Troy, Kon El, Jason Todd and Ra's al Ghul.

we've got Kon: dying gave him a clarity of purpose and resurrection hasn't changed that. he's more settled into himself as he's proven his character as a true hero. this is good for him and for everyone else.

we've got Jason: life was painful, dying was excruciating, but death was true lasting peace. someone resurrected him from that bringing him back to a shithole and he's going to make it everyone else's problem. this is bad for him and everyone else.

we've got Donna: a respected beloved hero who died in the line of duty and was honored posthumously whose resurrection was a result of the multiverse smashing together leaving her in a constant identity crisis because she's not exactly herself anymore. but she's a damn good hero. this is bad for her and good for everyone else.

we've got Ra's: this old man will not stay dead! he's got too much shit to do! like eco-conscious city planning (the plan is to blow up the city and let nature reclaim it). he reacts to resurrection like a grindset business man waking up from a nap he didn't plan to have. this is good for him and bad for everyone else.

[fancyfade]

My preferred backstory is similar (Talia gives up Damian, she finds him later and sorry shameless self promo but i have a fic based on the premise of post lexcorp era talia finding out about Damian (link))

But I just like. pretend death and the maidens didn't happen and mentally re-write the plots and interactions I don't like. If it requires evil talia it just happened a different way in my head. I don't like Death and the Maidens because it feels like torture porn for Talia.

i think that if Ra's has Damian raised as an assassin, he kind has to distance himself more from Damian than he did Talia as a kid, because if he was as close to Damian as he was Talia, he wouldn't be able to do it. And it can explain Ra's raising him in secret, because Ra's couldn't always be there anyway if he didn't want to make Talia suspicious. This could fit pretty well with pre 2011 Damian canon where Damian seemed to mostly be raised by (?? Don't think they answered it?) we'll go with tutors and other assassins. And it can help explain some of Damian's early characterization where he seems to be surprised that Dick came to rescue him. Not like I think that Ra's would actually not rescue Damian if he got in trouble, but if you have a child who doesn't have a consistent primary caretaker he has a strong emotional bond to (because the person he does care most about in this case, Ra's, is absent by necessity) then he would probably feel like he's on his own.

WRT Ra's characterization I think something interesting is that before the first plotline where Ra's is portrayed as like. Straight up willing to kill a large population of civilians (which IIRC is Batman Annual 8, his first writing by Mike Barr) it is after he died very graphically and was reduced down to 1 cell in the Lazarus PIt and reformed, and Ra's implied that this 'rebirth' influenced the view in the sun cult he was running. I can't get panels b/c its not on DC Universe and the rco is not working for me, but that's to the best of my memory. I think you could use it to somewhat explain Ra's' change in perspective, if he was less willing to go to extremes earlier.

Another thing I think could work: Resurrection of Ra's al Ghul (RRAG) Ra's is kind of OOC, but I know lots of people don't really like getting rid of RRAG because it's one of the only post Morrison comics where we see Talia being a good mom to Damian and caring about him. What's OOC is Ra's being willing to possess his family members against their consent, IMO, because we see Ra's generally kill people who hurt Talia, even when she is betraying him and they are working for him and trying to fulfill his goal (he kills the guy who accidentally shoots Talia in Wolfman's Batman run, and after a guy shoots Talia non-fatally in the leg in Tower of Babel he has that guy fed to a big cat).

Anyway RRAG does clarify Dusan is the first person who suggested the preserving Ra's' essence thing if his body dies, so he can easily start the plot before Ra's gets back... and Damian would presumably think it's his grandfather's plan and feel betrayed... BUT I'm thinking if Talia is trying to get Damian way from the League, she might not allow Ra's to correct Damian's assumptions, because she doesn't want Damian to go back (since she knows it's bad for him)... not necessarily anything in a 'my canon now' but it's an idea I'm tossing around.

Question for DC fans, what version of Damian's backstory/his relationship with Talia do you consider your personal canon? The one you choose to run with when writing fic or analysing his character?

For me I ignore a lot of the Morrison/Evil Talia nonsense. I go with Son of the Demon being canon, Ra's taking Damian back without Talia's knowledge, Talia finding out later on (tragically makes the baby Damian and Talia moments nonexistent but it's what makes the most sense to me for her character), Talia trying to be a good mother to an indoctrinated Damian. Year of Blood and Death and the Maidens which can be used to explain the ooc evil Talia stuff during Damian's Robin run. Although DATM has terrible Ra's characterization so I have to ignore some of that and do some reaching about the Lazarus Pit deteriorating his mind. And then Robin Son of Batman and Williamson's run. Ram V's Detective Comics run seems good so far as well.

Basically, it's a lot of trying to balance Damian's childhood in a cult being awful and explaining a lot of his trauma, but without turning Talia and even Ra's into one dimensional child abusers who just act like racist caricatures.

I'm curious to know how others pick and choose and why they do. It's a tricky topic but I want to know more about what the general consensus is among people who actually know Talia as a character and not just the racist, misogynistic stereotype she's been pushed into.

[frogaroundandfindout]

Terribly important to me (Nightwing Vol. 2 #139)

[heroesriseandfall]

What did the poor monks and caretakers of Nanda Parbat do to deserve everybody thinking Ra’s al Ghul owns the place when they specifically banned him from it?

This is where all the good vigilantes go for spiritual training and healing or whatever. When Ra’s came he tried to steal their holy water and destroy it. Free Nanda Parbat from the assassin stronghold allegations!

[sleepy-writes-stuff]

DP X DC WRITING PROMPT #20

(#) = Notes at the end of post

(*) = Other ideas relating to the prompt

✦

To Let Sleeping Dogs Lie

Jason stayed dead for about six months before he was resurrected. That left his spirit plenty of time to fully manifest in the ghost zone, but time flows a little weird in the Infinite Realms so it feels like he's been dead a lot longer.

Regardless, six months is enough time for him to make plenty of friends and enemies alike. Enough to fall head over heals for the white-haired boy named Danny who just so happens to also be his king. Enough time for Jason and Danny to finally confess their feelings for each other and form a relationship. Enough time for them to grow to adore each other down to their very cores. Enough time for Jason to become the King's consort and earn the title of Prince of the Infinite Realms.

Not enough time, however, when Jason's spirit is unwillingly dragged back to the broken husk of his body buried in a coffin six feet under. Not enough time when the sheer amount of trauma his body and mind suffered causes his memories of the afterlife to sift out like grains of sand through a colander, mindless in his continued existence and search for a man named Bruce that he only half recalls.

Not enough time for when his body is stolen and dunked into the foulist pools of ectoplasm to ever surface in the living world and he comes back with unbridled rage he only half understands. Where is he? Where was he? Why does green flood his vision? Something is missing but why can't he remember? He shouldn't be here. Why was he here?? (1)

Jason tries to navigate his way through the world he'd previously left behind and discovers what happened after his death. The Joker was still alive. Another child was running around in a traffic light costume in the dead of night. Bruce had replaced him, seeming to forget he ever existed and the consequences of training a child to be a vigilante. That just won't do. He cries. He rages. He plans.

Meanwhile, the King of the Infinite Realms is apocalyptic over the fact that his lover was ripped from his arms, their kingdom, their home. He can sense Jason's torment like echoes in a cave. Can sense when his body enters the fringes of his territory when dunked into the toxic Lazarus waters created by the previous king. How dare they taint his lover's spirit with such filth?! Danny's core rears its head, chanting, growling to protect his soulmate.

Danny is beyond unhappy and he's about to make it everyone's problem.

✦

Notes:

(1) Jason forgets everything he experienced in the afterlife with Danny and is even more confused than he previously would have been when resurrected. Memories only come back to him in bits and pieces when he comes into contact with beings of the supernatural and Danny himself or possibly when he sleeps.

(*) I believe an interesting way to show the events and progression for this prompt would be to switch back and forth between the current events of Under the Red Hood/Phantom's anger and the days they spent together in the Infinite Realms before they were literally torn away from each other. Either as standalone info or through the dreams Jason has as he sleeps but doesn't remember when he wakes.

The events of Under the Red Hood still happen, there's just the question of where he even was for the six months that he was dead added into the equation. Dead on Main tossed in there for flair, because why not? Been seeing a lot of "Jason becomes Danny's Fright Knight" fics, but I wanna see one where they're literally just a royal couple who rule the Infinite Realms with a just and fair hand.

[aalghul]

ra’s is always written so poorly in any story where he considers tim as a successor or even finds him particularly valuable outside of batman.

[fancyfade]

ID: after "Bruce was a better father to Damian than he was in the original storyline" we see a few panels, one from secret origins 4 showing damian in his league of assassins outfit and bruce as batman. damian is kicking mr freeze in the face and bruce is punching mr freeze. a narration box reads "And just as master bruce started to make a connection with Damian… he was gone" next are some panels i do not know where are from. we see LoA Damian holding a sword at Batman-Bruce's neck while Bruce is held up by manbats. there is text readin "but talia found the boy distracted, with only one thing on his mind… and that was to meet his father. so, in a less than optimal situation… I met Damian. My son. for the first time. And from that moment on, I worked at finding a way … to push past the obscene indoctrination of his early years." The last bit is on a page showing damian in his first robin costume hitting a man bat with escrimas and bruce punching the man bat. we see damian again in an early robin costume in the next panel, side-by-side with bruce as batman. damian has a sword and bruce does not and they are both fighting killer croc in the sewers. bruce's internal monologue reads "… and prayed that nurture would win out over nature. but there wasn't enough time, damn it. and as we started to grow closer… I died." We see a panel of bruce being hit by darkseid's omega beams.

after "Or with the intention to create a sob story for Tim about how Bruce forgot all about Tim the minute Damian showed up:" in the OPs post we see a panel of batman (possibly not bruce iIRC(, Cassie Sandsmark/wonder girl, and tim drake/robin. tim is holding a batman mask and thinking "but ever since Damian showed up, we all knew bruce planned to give him the cowl to him. even if he isn't ready yet, he will be, someday. I can't be robin forever. so who am I, if i'm not going to be batman?"

then there is a page from bvr showing bruce as batman fighting tim as robin in the forest. bruce falls to the ground after presumably being hit. tim says "I was your robin for years! I was damn good at it! And the minute -- the minute -- Damian came on the scene, he replaced me." we see tim is brandishing a bow. he continues "-- and you said nothing! I disappeare in your eyes!" Bruce stands up and thinks "as with damian, possessed tim is laying bare his deepest-buried grievances. I can't take them personally". out loud, bruce says "Tim, you didn't need me anymore! I knew you were doing - doing fine on your own!"

After OPs text reading "Completely ignoring that Bruce made sure to tell Tim that Damian's arrival wouldn't change anything:" there are some panels from morrison's batman run. we see tim and bruce in the batcave as batman and robin. bruce is holding a utility belt. tim says "It is possible. what about us?" Bruce says "This doesn't change anythin. tim, I know the kid's very tough to be around. he was raised by international terrorists in his grandfather's league of assassins. brutalized. indoctrinated. then, used as a weapon in his mother's insane war with me. if he is my son -- even if he's not -- he deserves some love and my respect." bruce puts the utility belt on. tim says "so let him earn it, like everybody else. i came to tell you the spook turned up, holding the mayor hostage at blackgate prison. i figure you can handle it by yourself." tim walks off and Bruce says "tim!"

after OPs text reading "Instead he went on a date with Jezebel Jet:" we see more panels from morrison's run. there is a scene in gibraltar showing dead or defeated manbats with swords and bruce wayne (in a suit( on the phone and smiling. jet is talking to him on the phone she says "Bruce wayne, there you are! You've been avoiding me all weekend. meet me at la flegere. 10:30 tomorrow morning." then we see in another scene bruce and jet are in a fancy resturant. bruce says 'I dropped your name, as a matter of fact. they say fame's the new currency, after all." jet says "ha." then, she leans forward and looks concerned and says "Are you all right? You look… sad." Bruce looks away. He picks up his wine glass and says "sad? I'm fine. I had a hell of a weekend." jet puts her hand on bruce's and says "Bruce… you can talk to me. I read about your parents. I'm so sorry, Bruce. You were so young. It must have been terrible. my own father was assassinated because of what he believed in. I want you to know I understand." Bruce looks down and grimaces and says "jezebel,it was… a long time ago. I …" the scene pans outside to the window where there is snow. then close up to bruce's eyes as he says "got over it."

after OP's text reading "according to Alfred because Tim is still shaken by meeting Damian:" there are more panels from morrison's batman. a deeply injured bruce is having a nightmare about the three evil batman with 10 year old Damian with Ra's' hair in the center. nightmare Damian says "Father. The third ghost is the worst of all." Bruce wakes up and yells. Alfred and tim are right near him. Bruce says "Damian!" Alfred says "A nightmare, Master Bruce. Nothing more. What happened to you?" Tim asks "Bruce?" Bruce says "guy beat the hell out of me. I thought he was going to break my back, like bane did. he even looked like bane… as if … as if he was designed to trigger my worst fears…" next panel shows only tim and alfred. Bruce says "Tim! Where the hell did tim go?" Alfred says "I fear the arrival of your son, Damian, has shaken him somewhat, sir. Young master tim feels he has a lot to prove." bruce stands up out of bed and starts putting on his batman costume. he says "Not like this. that thing almost killed me. alfred, I can barely stand… we keep a batmobile in the garage, don't we?"

After "Bruce goes after him immediately despite being badly injured and high on painkillers to protect Tim and to reassure him that he has nothing to prove to him:" we see bruce fighting a giant muscular shirtless batman outside. the non bruce batman is lifting up the batmobile over his head. bruce as batman (with tim behind him( Bruce says "car defense" the car electrocutes the guy but he does not drop it on himself, he just goes to his knees next to it. bruce crouches down and says "You don't have anything to prove to me. you hurt?" Tim, who is hunching over, says "dislocated arm. I'm fine." there is a scene in the batcave next showing alfred talking to tim as robin. tim follows alfred down some stairs and says "Did he do the paternity test? on damian? You know, like a DNA test… He had to, right? Alfred?" Alfred says "he insisted he would tell you the results when the time was right." tim points at alfred and says "So you know. you both know and nobody is going to tell me?" Alfred says "it's not my place to say, young sir. forgive me." Tim says quietly "The son of satan is my brother?" he throws up his hands and then says "That's it. Time out."

after "But that story also ended with Bruce choosing not to pursue Talia who had once again left with Damian:" in the OPs post there is a scene from the resurrection of ra's al ghul. bruce alfred and tim are in a private plane. bruce is looking out the window and angsting and tim comes up behind him. he says "you thinking about them again? Talia and the kid?" Bruce looks at Tim and thinks "I was hoping they're safe. and hoping talia takes him someplace far away from the life they've known." Tim says "Even if that life doesn't include you?" Bruce says "if Damian wants that life, he'll choose it… Just as you and Dick did. For now, he deserves a life free from destiny… mine or anyone else's." Alfrd brings drinks in the room. he says "A very nice sentiment, Master Bruce. And most appropriate for the season." Bruce says "the season, alfred?" Alfred says "It's christmas, sir. Don't tell me you had forgotten." tim and Bruce each takea mug with the drink alfred is serving. Bruce says "Well, bette rlate than never, I suppose. To family." alfred tim and bruce toast. alfred says "family, sir." we can see dick is flying the plane.

END LONG IMAGE/ BEGIN COMMENTARY

I think it's such a shame they retcon things to such an extent. Like I personally like my Batman way less assholey than Morrison's, but I think it'd be easy to do some re-writing so that Bruce still makes Damian feel unwanted unintentionally especially due to the fact that... they are willing to re-write Bruce's actions to make him look better... but they don't change Damian's responses to those actions. And they don't re-write Talia's interactions even though her character was assassinated way worse.

tim being insecure about Damian despite having 0 reason to be is also in character for him! like he is portrayed as worrried about being fired even 74 or something issues into his robin solo title where he has received nothing but support from bruce (IIRC the secret identity thing happened after this). So it's very easy to get a tim who is as insecure as he was in canon without re-writing it because... that was literally already in character (and canon). it's like someone read one too many fanfics and one too few comics in DC.

I do like secret origins 4 better for damian becoming robin in that he seems way less OOC than he did in battle for the cowl where the writer was writing 'generic teenager' (even tho damian is 10). But the bruce retcons felt totally unnecessary.

I think a lot of Damian's early actions are very tied into how he was received in the batfam and its stupid for DC to ignore that.

I also think there is a lot of potential under a good writer who wants to re-write morrisons' bruce a little to keep Damian not having had time to bond with Bruce before Bruce's death and then you can parallel Bruce finding out about the son he (hopefully) wanted but messing up with him and thinking of the missed opportunities to Damian not having time to bond with his dad who is now dead/'dead' and thinking of all those missed opportunities..

I'm not really a fan of DC retconning the way Damian became part of the batfamily from "Damian is introduced to Bruce, Bruce decides to let Damian stay with Talia and not pursue them not once but twice, Talia brings Damian to Gotham again during Batman RIP and leaves him with Bruce again (however exactly that happened, DC never explained it), Bruce gets lost in time during Final Crisis and Damian becomes Robin to Dick's Batman" to "Talia introduced Damian to Bruce and Bruce immediately tried to bond with him, but got shot and send back in time by Darkseid shortly afterwards, cutting Bruce's attempt at parenting short"

I get it's easier to understand and Resurrection of Ra's al Ghul probably isn't canon anymore considering that many of Damian's more recent stories act like Damian grew up around Ra's, which strongly contradicts Resurrection of Ra's al Ghul.

But Damian doesn't really gain anything from this retcon. First of all, it's not a proper retcon, by which I mean an arc or a oneshot that shows Bruce and Damian bonding, a story that truly replaces the original storyline, we only get single panels that promise us that this is how it actually went down now without elaborating on it.

It's also either written with the main intention of making it sound like Bruce was a better father to Damian than he was in the original storyline:

By acting like Bruce had been dedicated to bond with Damian and teach him another way right from the start.

Or with the intention to create a sob story for Tim about how Bruce forgot all about Tim the minute Damian showed up:

Completely ignoring that Bruce made sure to tell Tim that Damian's arrival wouldn't change anything:

Tim is the one who storms away and acts rather childish.

Even though in fact nothing did really change for several months. Bruce did not make Damian Robin, he did not look for Damian after the explosion on the boat. Instead he went on a date with Jezebel Jet:

Feeling possibly sad about what happened with Damian, but basically going back to business right away.

When Tim goes out alone to face a villain that just beat Bruce to a pulp, according to Alfred because Tim is still shaken by meeting Damian:

Bruce goes after him immediately despite being badly injured and high on painkillers to protect Tim and to reassure him that he has nothing to prove to him:

Bruce also didn't tell Tim about the result of the paternity test, probably out of consideration for Tim's feelings:

In fact Bruce did not refer to Damian as his son until the climax of Resurrection of Ra's al Ghul, always choosing a distancing term to refer to Damian prior to that moment.

But that story also ended with Bruce choosing not to pursue Talia who had once again left with Damian:

You know for all the times Bruce complains about Talia raising Damian to be an assassin he sure as hell was not all that invested in getting Damian away from the league during their first few meetings.

In the original canon that was it. Damian and Bruce did not meet again on-panel until Bruce returned from his adventures in the time stream. Somehow Damian became a member of Bruce's household before Battle for the Cowl off-panel.

And I get that retconning it so that Damian moved in with Bruce after Talia dropped him off the first time makes that whole thing easier to explain. But Bruce's rejection of Damian is important to make early Damian's behaviour more sympathetic. Because a lot of Damian's arrogant behaviour during that time was rooted in deep insecurity. By removing the reason for that insecurity from canon Damian's feelings become a lot more unreasonable when he in fact had very valid reasons to feel that way.

[sarahreadstoomanycomics]

"You have nothing to apologize for. Nothing. I left you to make the choice for yourself....because I knew you'd make the right one" -Dick Grayson, Nightwing v2 #139

[kiragecko]

Wanted to look back through Damian's early appearances so I could catch when a few names were first used. He wasn't in that much before Bruce's death, I thought it would be easy! But 'Resurrection of Ra's al Ghul' Damian is SO BAD that it's hard to read.

He acts nothing like who Damian will end up being.

He's awful.

He's stereotypical, and not even an INTERESTING depiction of a bratty rich kid.

He contradicts most of the history he's going to have - he's never heard of Ra's OR his dad.

Talia seems involved with his life, but there is NO WAY that woman could have tolerated that behaviour for long.

It's possible that this kid WAS supposed to have been safely adopted by a nice family, with only the occasional visit by his birth mom, until Dusan kidnapped him and forced Talia to prepare him for the resurrection ritual. That's the only thing that really makes sense.

But the stories haven't been well enough written so far for me to be hopeful that there actually WAS a sensical explanation.

[bluejaysandblackbats]

Lily of the Valley

Fandom: DC Comics, Batfam

Summary: Jason Todd dies and comes back to life. As the League takes him in, he navigates his morality and family values over the years.

Chapters: 30/?

Characters: Jason Todd, Talia al Ghul, Ra’s al Ghul, Damian Wayne, Barbara Gordon, Dick Grayson, Bruce Wayne, Sheila Haywood

Relationships: Jason Todd/Original Character(s)

Additional Tags: Immortal Jason Todd, League of Assassins Jason Todd, Protective Talia al Ghul, Good Parent Talia al Ghul, Jason Todd Needs a Hug, Good Sibling Jason Todd, Hurt/Comfort, Adopted Children, Resurrected Jason Todd

Chapter Thirty: Cream Wild Indigo

Two Christmases passed, bleeding into New Year’s, Mardi Gras, Easter, and the Fourth of July, and Jason still hadn’t left Houma or Josh. He kept telling himself he’d go home, but every time he thought to leave, he’d look at Josh, and his heart would ache so badly, he decided to stay behind. He’d taken things slowly, thinking that Josh’s effect would wane as his grief passed, but his affection for Josh only grew as time passed. One night, Jason woke up feeling oddly bold as he approached Josh’s bedroom door. He knocked, sheepishly standing outside, his gaze cast downward as he waited. Josh opened the door, wearing a pajama shirt and basketball shorts. He scratched his stomach, squinting at Jason in the dark. “Ça va?” Josh asked as he lifted Jason’s chin. “I forget you shy… You wanna come in here?” Jason nodded. “You wanna talk?” Jason shook his head. “You wanna do more than kiss?” Jason wasn’t sure how to answer, so he didn’t. “You wanna kiss me, though?” Jason nodded, staring into Josh’s eyes. 

Josh leaned in, and Jason closed his eyes, meeting Josh halfway as their lips touched. Jason placed a hand on his own stomach, acknowledging the difference and the butterflies that came with it. Josh was gentle, leaning back to see if Jason was willing to chase him… And Jason did more than just chase. He grabbed hold of Josh’s pajama shirt, pulling him close as their lips parted. “I love you,” Jason whispered as he took a breath. 

“I love you, too. Still want to come in?” Josh questioned. Jason nodded, taking Josh’s hand as he stepped past the threshold for the first time. They didn’t kiss again that night as Josh held the sheets up, allowing Jason to climb under them, sharing the warmth. They didn’t do anything except talk. 

“Peter’s my middle name,” Jason confessed. 

“Alright… I like when we go out dancin’. I pretend I don’t wanna dance, but I feel somethin’ special when you close to me like that,” Josh replied, his eyes squinting and eyebrows pulled together in a severe expression. Jason grinned. 

“You’re the first boy I ever loved. First boy I ever kissed,” Jason whispered. 

“I figured so… Your family don’t take light to that? Is that why you don’t write or call them?” Josh questioned. 

Jason shook his head. “No… It’s not like that. My mama, she’s had a few loves in her life. Not all of them were men,” Jason answered, “I just—. If I let them know where I am, they’ll ask me to come home… And I—. I wouldn’t hesitate. I’d go… But I know I’m not—. I’m not ready to go.”

“So, they don’t know you here?” Josh asked. Jason shook his head. “Why you leave?” 

“I’m adopted… It’s no secret. They took me in when I was eleven… My stepmother, who I believed was my birth mother died… And my mama took me into her home, taught me her way of doing things, and she gave me everything I could ever dream of and more. She offered me the best education available, all the books I could read, miles and miles of land to explore, and I ate. God, did I eat… It was a huge step up from the abandoned apartment I lived in alone… And my brother never saw me as anything but his brother. He used to sneak into the room to keep me company when I was sick…

“And my grandfather… I was so afraid of him for so long, but I know now that he wanted me to be strong. He had his way of doing things, and I can respect it now… But, I left home to meet my birth mother as soon as I learned her name. It didn’t work out, and I felt so guilty for leaving… Especially in the way things turned out… I couldn’t go home and look them in the eye after that,” Jason explained. Josh played with Jason’s long curls. 

“I know they miss you… You have a gentle way about you, so I know your little brother must miss you somethin’ awful,” Josh whispered. Jason frowned. “I didn’t—.”

“I missed his last three birthdays. He’s ten. He just turned ten a week and a half before my birthday, and I—. I’ve been with you for a year,” Jason whispered. 

“You should go see him… Buy him something nice,” Josh whispered. Jason closed his eyes, pretending to be tired. Josh kissed his forehead. “We won’t talk no more tonight.”

**

Jason didn’t sleep in Josh’s bed again for nearly two weeks. It took him that long to build up the courage to do what he wanted. He made love to Josh and afterward, he lay beside Josh, holding back tears. “Why you look so sad?” Josh questioned. “I knew you was leavin’... You have to see your folks.” 

“But I—. It might be a while before I see you again. I don’t want to leave you,” Jason whimpered. Josh smiled, not completely understanding the weight of Jason’s words. 

“I’m not goin’ nowhere. Family real important… I been tellin’ you to go home. Jason, you go home and you let them know somebody here love you… And when you come back, I’m gon’ show you how much I missed you,” Josh whispered as they shared a kiss. Jason’s tongue brushed Josh’s as tears rolled across his nose and down his right cheek. Josh pulled away and wiped Jason’s tears away. “Don’t you cry now, ma moitié.” 

Hearing Josh say that made Jason’s heart sick. He moaned in pain as he turned his face into the pillow. Josh rubbed Jason’s back. Jason “Do you promise to be careful until I get back? And take care of yourself? And—.” Jason took his necklace off and gave it to Josh. “Never take this off. Ever.” Jason kissed the jeweled charm that hung down to Josh’s chest. 

“Love charm?” Josh asked. Jason shook his head. 

“Protection,” Jason replied, “When I’m back in the United States, I’ll come for you.” 

“You don’t live in the US?” Josh questioned. Jason shook his head. 

“No, I grew up on an island. I’ll know you’re okay as long as you wear that charm,” Jason whispered. Josh nodded. And when Josh woke up, Jason was gone. The only evidence of his presence was the charm necklace and a letter. 

**

Jason arrived home after three days, dog tired and longing to hear Josh’s voice. He could still smell Josh’s cologne on his skin. It smelled like Houma on the jet. He trekked through the forest for half a day, taking the long way home. It was dark when he arrived, and he quietly explained to the guards that he didn’t want Ra’s, Talia, or Damian notified of his return. They let him through, and he crept toward Damian’s room. Damian tossed and turned, muttering in his sleep. Jason smiled, touching Damian’s little hand only to be met by a knife. Jason grabbed his wrist before Damian could hold the blade to his throat. “Di, is that any way to say hello?” Jason asked. Damian’s eyes widened as he stared at Jason. “I’ve missed you.”

“Gē, did Grandfather call you home?” Damian whispered. Jason shook his head.

“Why would he call me home?” Jason questioned as he held Damian’s face in his hands. He could see a darkness in Damian’s eyes that wasn’t there before, but his soul smelled so warm and sweet like an infant. “Oh, how I’ve missed you, Di—. Damian.” 

Damian hugged Jason. “You’re going to Gotham with me… Aren’t you?” Damian asked. “I’m leaving soon.”

“I’ll have to talk to Grandfather in the morning before I can answer that. I’ve been gone so long, I’m not sure what he’ll want from me now,” Jason answered, “You’ve gotten so big. I missed you every day that I was gone. You’ve never been far from my mind.” 

“Saru’s—. She’s—.” Jason nodded and frowned. “Why didn’t you come home when—?”

“I’ll explain it to you in a little while. Will you be up for a little while? I want to sleep in here with you… I’ll tell you about my new friend,” Jason answered. Damian nodded, letting Jason go. They had so much catching up to do. It felt like several lifetimes since they were last in that room together.

[avayarising]

So I’ve been reading The Resurrection of Ra’s Al Ghul (thanks @lynzine), and…

Ra’s wants a new body to transfer his consciousness to, and has captured Robin!Tim and Damian. He says he can use either:

But later, once Ra’s has taken over the body of his son, Dusan, the White Ghost, we see this:

For the transference to work, you need a blood relative.

How is Tim blood-related to Ra’s Al Ghul?

[heather-chandlers-weirder-cousin]

Shoutout to Damian for liking every animal except bats. Truly the kid with the worst luck in relatives