Chapter Text
This was not how Dick had wanted to reunite with Jason.
He didn’t want Jason to have called them because of a tragedy, but here they were. Jason had called the family, but his son was missing.
The sun had just set when Bruce and Dick entered the small house.
Everyone else had wanted to come, but Raven couldn’t teleport all of them. Tim had protested the loudest. It had been a metaphorical kick to the guts when Dick had found out that not only did Tim know where Jason was, but he had been able to meet Jason’s little family. He could admit, at least to himself, that he had been jealous. If Bruce’s clenched jaw had been any indication, Dick wasn’t the only one who had been feeling that way.
In the end, it had been decided that only Bruce and Dick would come. He hadn’t wanted to leave Mar’i, but Kori had shown up at the manor. His daughter would be in good hands with her mother, aunts, and uncles.
The first thing Dick noticed was Jason sitting on a chair, slumped over with his hands cradling his head. The despair cloaked his younger brother.
The second thing, or rather, person, that Dick noticed made him scowl.
Talia had her hand on Jason’s shoulder.
“Richard, Beloved,” she greeted them.
Jason looked up. His eyes were red, and tear tracks marred his cheeks. He got up and approached Bruce until he stood before their father.
“Thanks for coming,” Jason said in a hollow voice.
Bruce didn’t hesitate; he hugged Jason, holding on to him as if he were the most precious thing in the world.
“Always, Jay lad, always. I’m so sorry that I ever made you think you couldn’t count on me. Don’t worry; we will find your son and bring him home safe.”
Jason was the first one to break the hug. He cleared his throat and sat back down.
“We just came back from looking around the school. They sent us back, saying that they’d regroup in the morning,” Jason added bitterly. “Did Tim tell you anything about the situation with Danny? How I found him?”
“Yeah, he told us while we got ready.”
“Hn, you found Danny in an alley after he came through a portal, correct,” Bruce asked.
“Yeah,” Jason gave a wet laugh, “The little tyke burrowed his way into my heart.”
“I put Ellie down for a nap,” Dick turned toward to voice to find a young red-hair walking into the living room they were standing in.
Jasmine Nightingale: Jason’s younger sister.
Not jealous, not jealous, not jealous
Raven turned and frowned at Dick. He looked away from her disappointed look. He couldn’t help what he was feeling.
His eyes fell on the pictures on the fireplace mantel. Dick walked toward them and picked up a picture of a five-year-old boy with blue eyes and black hair scowling at the camera while he had on a backpack.
So this was Danny.
The next picture he picked was of Jasmine, Jason, Danny, and a baby girl he assumed was Ellie, smiling at the camera. The following picture showed Lian and Danny swinging from Roy’s arms. The last one was one of Raven, Roy, and Lian with Jason’s family at what looked to be a birthday party.
Dick could see Jason’s happiness shining through the picture. Jason had left the family behind but had formed a new one. One that didn’t abandon him, one that had been beside him.
“Do you have any idea who would want to kidnap your son,” Bruce’s question brought Dick back to the present situation.
“I do,” Jasmine said, “Jazz Nightingale. I used to be Jazz Fenton.”
She took out a piece of rubber.
“The Fentons, my bioparents. The world I come from doesn’t have heroes. Well, it didn’t except for one. Phantom. He fought ghosts that would come through a portal from our basement. My parents’ lifework was to open a portal into the afterlife to study ghosts.”
“It wasn’t really to study, though. They wanted to capture, dissect, or destroy them to prove their crazy theories. In their eyes, all ghosts were evil and unfeeling without sentience. I don’t know how that worked because if something doesn’t have sentience, how can they be evil.”
“They finished their portal, but it didn’t work. My brother, Danny, decided to check it out with his friends. From what I understand, one of them asked him to enter so they could take a picture. He tripped; the on button was on the inside. He turned it on while he was inside.”
Jazz’s voice wobbled with emotions. She took a deep breath and continued.
“The accidents gave him powers, ghost powers. He was half dead and half alive,” Jazz said with a hollow chuckle. “He always called himself Schrodinger’s boy. My parents discovered Danny’s powers and attacked him while he was with Ellie with one of their inventions that was supposed to rip a ghost apart ‘molecule by molecule.’ As is usual with their inventions, it backfired and deaged them both instead.”
“I was there, luckily, and could push Danny into the portal before jumping after him, Ellie. When I got here, it had been a few weeks since I had pushed Danny in, even though it had only been a few minutes for me.”
There was silence for a few seconds before Bruce spoke up, “You think your parents kidnapped Danny this time?”
Jazz played with the piece of rubber in her hands, “I know they did.”
“I don’t care who took my kid. I’m going to find them and take my son back home,” Jason said. “Raven, can you help us with a location spell?”
Raven shook her head, “That’s the first thing I tried. Something is blocking my magic.”
“How is that even possible?” Jason got up, pacing, “I need to find him!”
Dick’s eyes widened when he saw Jason’s hair start to smoke.
“Jason, you’re on fire!” Bruce went to get a pot of water and was about to throw it at Jason when Talia stopped him.
“Habibi, you need to calm down. You won’t find Daniel if you let your emotions get in the way. You’re like him; he is your son. Concentrate and use your powers to find him.”
Jason stopped pacing.
“What if it doesn’t work,” he asked in a scared voice.
“Then we find a different way to look for him, but you’ll never know if you don’t try, habibi.”
Jason nodded and closed his eyes. A red light had Dick looking away. After blinking away the spots from his vision, Dick looked toward Jason again. But it wasn’t Jason, not anymore. In his place stood a creature of smoke and fire. Dick was about to attack when he noticed a purple ‘R’ in a white circle on the creature’s right breast.
“Jason, son, what is this,” Bruce asked breathlessly.
Jason opened his eyes, which resembled glowing embers.
“I’m sorry, dad, but I didn’t come back fully alive either,” Jason whispered, his voice echoing eerily. “I understand if you hate me, but please, help me look for Danny first.”
“Jay, lad, I could never hate you, with or without powers, whether you’re alive or half-alive. I will always love you, and you will always be my son.”
Jason gave a weak smile and closed his eyes. Then, Dick felt a warm wind pass through him. After a few tense seconds, Jason opened his eyes.
“I felt something weird. It felt like Danny, but he was scared. I know where they took him to, though, before his signature disappeared.”
“Where,” Dick asked.
“We need to go to Ghostwriter’s bookshop.”