Fic: (Un)Necessary | DCU | Dick, Jason | R | 1/1
Title: (Un)Necessary
Fandom: DCU
Characters/Pairings: Dick, Jason(/Bruce), past Dick/Bruce & Jason/Tim
Rating: R
Word Count: 1,140
Prompt: For dcu_freeforall: Vulnerable/Naked
Summary: Dick realizes that something has been odd about Jason's recent behavior.
Disclaimer: DC and WB own everything, the schmucks.
Author's Notes: Twenty-fourth in the (Un)Familiar-verse; follows (Un)Observed. Warning for bloody death of a few OCs and mentions of infidelity.
(Un)Necessary
The first clue Dick has that something's off is the odd message that Steph gives him from Jason during training. The Wolf, apologizing for being an ass? Since when does that make sense?
But he doesn't think much else about it until Jay's been back among their numbers in training and out on the streets for a few weeks, his hand healed all the way and his fighting more vicious than ever. After Dick's gleaned as much intel as possible from their particular prey tonight, a clown-faced thug-clearly one of the Joker's gang-who'd been peddling some sort of new designer drug, he hangs back as Jay's eyes turn cold and fiery all at once, the Wolf pouncing with snapping jaws.
Watching Jason tear the throat out of his victim, blood everywhere, Dick slides back into a shadow down the adjacent alleyway, the others having gone in various directions to chase down the thug's associates. He can hear and feel the rage pouring off of the Wolf, the half-lupine whorls and eddies of pure instinct driving him to slice and tear at the broken flesh. And it's mesmerizing.
Dick isn't used to being mesmerized.
“What!?” Jay spits at him when he rises from the kill, swiping the blood from his face with a bare arm as he shifts up into his human form, the question startling Dick out of his thoughts.
It takes him a moment to respond, slowly melting back out of the shadow, his eyes darting between the dead body on the pavement and Jay's blood-drenched chest. “You've been different,” he says, letting caution guide him. “More focused on the kill lately. And-” Pausing, he realizes that none of that deadly focus has been on him lately. A definite change from the snarling Wolf that very obviously wanted him dead just a few weeks ago. “You haven't been trying to kill me,” he finishes, suddenly sure that something strange is going on with Jason. “Why?”
Jason stares in return, one corner of his mouth twitching and his nose crinkling as he sniffs the air, a sudden tension thickening between them. That's the only warning Dick has before the Wolf is lunging at him, shifting in mid-leap, and Dick just has enough time to hold hands out to try and fend him off, his mind full of Jason's panic and pure violent intent, before-
Before the Wolf passes just over his shoulder and strikes something-someone-behind him deeper in the alley, howling cackles and roaring snarls filling the air. Dick stumbles out of the way just in time to see another clown-faced thug choking his last laugh as jaws clamp down on a pale throat, the tire iron in the goon's grip falling to the filthy ground with a clatter while blood spray fills the air.
A hissing static of pain and satisfaction spreads through his mind as the thug dies, Jason biting down hard enough to crush everything, even his spine, and in just a moment it's over, another dead body on the pavement, another pool of blood, Jay's body slicked and splattered with even more crimson, as if he'd bathed in it.
“Th-thank you,” Dick breathes as the metallic odor of red death itches sharp in his nose, Jason swiping more blood from his face. But then his brain kicks back into gear, the realization hitting him that he didn't even hear the mind of the clown before Jason took him out, and he can't help a shiver. “Why did you do that? You didn't have to.”
Scowling, Jay snorts and lifts a shoulder in a half-shrug. “You were distracted. And you've been taking care of Tim. I'd rather not screw that up. Got more important things to do, anyway.”
At that, Dick surprises himself with a laugh. “Seriously? That's it? A few weeks ago I wouldn't have been surprised if you'd tried to kill me in my sleep, Tim notwithstanding. Especially for what Bruce and I did.”
He doesn't expect Jason's sudden weight slamming him back against the brick of the nearest wall then, the growl from his throat, or the bared teeth, Jay's eyes and claws shifted enough to nail him in place physically and visually. “You never bring that up again, Golden Boy,” Jason snarls, the blood on his breath rank, a promise to Dick that his own demise would look the same. “I forgave Bruce for what he did, but the jury's still out on you. I'm just not-”
But he breaks off then, his expression twisted in a sort of agony that Dick can feel all the way to his toes, and he drops his head to Dick's shoulder, his grip easing up, claws shifting back to nails.
“You're fucking family now,” Jay whispers harshly. “And I can't turn my back on that. I got a pack to protect, dammit.”
And that... that isn't at all what Dick was expecting. The anger, yes, but the utter defeat and reluctant acceptance as a part of his... his pack? It's more than he could've hoped for, considering how well they've gotten along so far, how well their respective species get along.
Reaching up to get a grip on Jay's bloodied shoulders, he drags him back enough to catch his surprisingly vulnerable gaze, those lupine eyes gone blue and soft and so human. “Jason... forgiven or not, I'll take what I can get. You do me and my kind a great honor.”
Jay's lips twitch, his mind buzzing with conflicted emotions, but at last he pushes back to step away, his eyes glued to Dick's. “Yeah, well... don't go making a big deal out of it. I could still eat you for breakfast if I wanted to. And stop staring. I ain't naked for nothing.”
Dick can hardly be blamed for the laughter that escapes him then, his eyes prickling with tears as he clutches his side and slumps back against the wall. “Oh gods,” he wheezes, dragging his gaze back up to Jason's where the Wolf has crossed his arms over his chest, looking petulant. “I wasn't even looking, I swear. You're covered in blood and gore, Jay. It's a little incongruous, don't you think? Considering Timmy's the Vamp?”
A twitch of his nose, and Jason snorts again, his posture relaxing. “Whatever. I'll get a shower when we get back. Now if you don't mind, the rest of the clowns are down, and we need to catch up with the group and head home so we can break down what little intel we managed to get tonight.”
Loosing a final giggled sigh, Dick shakes his head minutely. “Yeah. Okay,” he agrees, and when Jay shifts down into his Wolf form, fur clumped and sticky with that same blood and ick, Dick follows him out of the alley to seek out the others, relieved that they had a chance to get that off their chests. Hopefully, things will be different now.
~*~*~*~
Fandom: DCU
Characters/Pairings: Dick, Jason(/Bruce), past Dick/Bruce & Jason/Tim
Rating: R
Word Count: 1,140
Prompt: For dcu_freeforall: Vulnerable/Naked
Summary: Dick realizes that something has been odd about Jason's recent behavior.
Disclaimer: DC and WB own everything, the schmucks.
Author's Notes: Twenty-fourth in the (Un)Familiar-verse; follows (Un)Observed. Warning for bloody death of a few OCs and mentions of infidelity.
(Un)Necessary
The first clue Dick has that something's off is the odd message that Steph gives him from Jason during training. The Wolf, apologizing for being an ass? Since when does that make sense?
But he doesn't think much else about it until Jay's been back among their numbers in training and out on the streets for a few weeks, his hand healed all the way and his fighting more vicious than ever. After Dick's gleaned as much intel as possible from their particular prey tonight, a clown-faced thug-clearly one of the Joker's gang-who'd been peddling some sort of new designer drug, he hangs back as Jay's eyes turn cold and fiery all at once, the Wolf pouncing with snapping jaws.
Watching Jason tear the throat out of his victim, blood everywhere, Dick slides back into a shadow down the adjacent alleyway, the others having gone in various directions to chase down the thug's associates. He can hear and feel the rage pouring off of the Wolf, the half-lupine whorls and eddies of pure instinct driving him to slice and tear at the broken flesh. And it's mesmerizing.
Dick isn't used to being mesmerized.
“What!?” Jay spits at him when he rises from the kill, swiping the blood from his face with a bare arm as he shifts up into his human form, the question startling Dick out of his thoughts.
It takes him a moment to respond, slowly melting back out of the shadow, his eyes darting between the dead body on the pavement and Jay's blood-drenched chest. “You've been different,” he says, letting caution guide him. “More focused on the kill lately. And-” Pausing, he realizes that none of that deadly focus has been on him lately. A definite change from the snarling Wolf that very obviously wanted him dead just a few weeks ago. “You haven't been trying to kill me,” he finishes, suddenly sure that something strange is going on with Jason. “Why?”
Jason stares in return, one corner of his mouth twitching and his nose crinkling as he sniffs the air, a sudden tension thickening between them. That's the only warning Dick has before the Wolf is lunging at him, shifting in mid-leap, and Dick just has enough time to hold hands out to try and fend him off, his mind full of Jason's panic and pure violent intent, before-
Before the Wolf passes just over his shoulder and strikes something-someone-behind him deeper in the alley, howling cackles and roaring snarls filling the air. Dick stumbles out of the way just in time to see another clown-faced thug choking his last laugh as jaws clamp down on a pale throat, the tire iron in the goon's grip falling to the filthy ground with a clatter while blood spray fills the air.
A hissing static of pain and satisfaction spreads through his mind as the thug dies, Jason biting down hard enough to crush everything, even his spine, and in just a moment it's over, another dead body on the pavement, another pool of blood, Jay's body slicked and splattered with even more crimson, as if he'd bathed in it.
“Th-thank you,” Dick breathes as the metallic odor of red death itches sharp in his nose, Jason swiping more blood from his face. But then his brain kicks back into gear, the realization hitting him that he didn't even hear the mind of the clown before Jason took him out, and he can't help a shiver. “Why did you do that? You didn't have to.”
Scowling, Jay snorts and lifts a shoulder in a half-shrug. “You were distracted. And you've been taking care of Tim. I'd rather not screw that up. Got more important things to do, anyway.”
At that, Dick surprises himself with a laugh. “Seriously? That's it? A few weeks ago I wouldn't have been surprised if you'd tried to kill me in my sleep, Tim notwithstanding. Especially for what Bruce and I did.”
He doesn't expect Jason's sudden weight slamming him back against the brick of the nearest wall then, the growl from his throat, or the bared teeth, Jay's eyes and claws shifted enough to nail him in place physically and visually. “You never bring that up again, Golden Boy,” Jason snarls, the blood on his breath rank, a promise to Dick that his own demise would look the same. “I forgave Bruce for what he did, but the jury's still out on you. I'm just not-”
But he breaks off then, his expression twisted in a sort of agony that Dick can feel all the way to his toes, and he drops his head to Dick's shoulder, his grip easing up, claws shifting back to nails.
“You're fucking family now,” Jay whispers harshly. “And I can't turn my back on that. I got a pack to protect, dammit.”
And that... that isn't at all what Dick was expecting. The anger, yes, but the utter defeat and reluctant acceptance as a part of his... his pack? It's more than he could've hoped for, considering how well they've gotten along so far, how well their respective species get along.
Reaching up to get a grip on Jay's bloodied shoulders, he drags him back enough to catch his surprisingly vulnerable gaze, those lupine eyes gone blue and soft and so human. “Jason... forgiven or not, I'll take what I can get. You do me and my kind a great honor.”
Jay's lips twitch, his mind buzzing with conflicted emotions, but at last he pushes back to step away, his eyes glued to Dick's. “Yeah, well... don't go making a big deal out of it. I could still eat you for breakfast if I wanted to. And stop staring. I ain't naked for nothing.”
Dick can hardly be blamed for the laughter that escapes him then, his eyes prickling with tears as he clutches his side and slumps back against the wall. “Oh gods,” he wheezes, dragging his gaze back up to Jason's where the Wolf has crossed his arms over his chest, looking petulant. “I wasn't even looking, I swear. You're covered in blood and gore, Jay. It's a little incongruous, don't you think? Considering Timmy's the Vamp?”
A twitch of his nose, and Jason snorts again, his posture relaxing. “Whatever. I'll get a shower when we get back. Now if you don't mind, the rest of the clowns are down, and we need to catch up with the group and head home so we can break down what little intel we managed to get tonight.”
Loosing a final giggled sigh, Dick shakes his head minutely. “Yeah. Okay,” he agrees, and when Jay shifts down into his Wolf form, fur clumped and sticky with that same blood and ick, Dick follows him out of the alley to seek out the others, relieved that they had a chance to get that off their chests. Hopefully, things will be different now.
~*~*~*~